Chapter 119 : An Unexpected Competitor
“You must have dug into Councilor Sorbet’s office. The move to check from the sidelines failed, so it seems they’re trying to exercise direct political power.”
“The actions of that vermin, who has no pride as a councilor, are none of my business. What’s important is the identity of the ones who funded Sorbet.”
“It must be the Brotherhood.”
“Yes, it must be.”
Considering their financial power to move large sums of money and their vested interests, they were the most likely candidates.
“Things like worms eating away at the city.”
Giselle’s face was etched with blatant contempt and disgust. It was utterly unpleasant that such scum could wield influence, claiming to be a major power in the city. They all deserved to be exterminated, but…
“I apologize for saying this, but I believe it would be best for you to step down from your position as the person in charge of the crackdown.”
“……”
Even without his aide’s repeated suggestions, he himself knew best that the situation was unfavorable.
“What if I refuse to step down?”
But to admit defeat so easily would mean he wasn’t a pointy-eared noble.
“The justification is on your side, Councilor, so you will be fine.”
“Then there should be no problem. I will handle the checks from those trash-like councilors.”
“Instead, they will start to go after those around you.”
It was a well-known fact that Giselle was stubborn. Persuading him to bend was a method no one dared to attempt. So, there was no choice but to apply pressure from the periphery.
“First, they will likely put pressure on that contractor.”
To Giselle, a contractor from the dregs of society was a parasite no different from the Brotherhood. If he had merely used him as a tool, he could have gladly handed him over as a scapegoat. It was because that wasn’t the case that Giselle hesitated.
“……This is troublesome.”
Allen, becoming the sword that acted in place of the Public Security Bureau, would thwart the Brotherhood’s deal. Giselle, in turn, would block the future checks from the councilors that would be directed at Allen. That was their deal.
To abandon a promise just because the situation had turned unfavorable was an unbearable disgrace for Giselle.
“There’s no choice. I will do so.”
“Thank you. Then, with that understanding…”
“I will stop the crackdown. However, I cannot bow to those lowly parasites.”
The pressure from the councilors and the lobbying from the Brotherhood were separate matters.
“I cannot overlook the audacity of the Brotherhood trying to overturn the board.”
“What will you do?”
“Track down the one who spread the bribes and reveal their identity. And…”
Giselle himself could have put pressure on the Brotherhood directly. However, he thought of another way.
“I will entrust it to that contractor.”
Allen had proven his own worth by fulfilling his contract. If he handled this matter well too… he could be entrusted with even greater tasks.
***
A place becomes familiar after you’ve been there hundreds of times, even if it was once unfamiliar. I was now confident I could reach Cromwell’s brokerage office with my eyes closed. That’s why I could quickly notice the sense of unease.
“……?”
I stopped in my tracks.
The time was late evening, when dusk was beginning to fall. The perception that the city’s night was more glamorous than its day was a story for the central districts. The boundary leading from District 3 to District 4 was gloomy and desolate, like a deep shadow cast under a bright light source.
“You’re finally here.”
A person was there. Pale, almost translucent white skin that revealed the veins beneath. His eye sockets were sunken, shadowed as if made up with black kohl.
“Why are you wandering around so much instead of focusing on your main job?”
He took a red pack out of his pocket and stuck a straw in it with trembling fingers. The back of his hand, thus revealed, showed the bumpy outline of bones under the skin. His physical condition was so poor it was bizarre he was even alive.
“I was getting tired of waiting, I almost passed out.”
With each sip of the pack’s contents, his panting subsided. Was it a powerful nutrient solution that forcibly infused vitality into a dying body? If not…
“Do you know who I am?”
“You’re a contractor, aren’t you? Was your name Allen? There’s a lot of talk about you being the hot rookie, but did you get famous because of your face?”
“If you came looking for me knowing who I am, your purpose must be obvious. If it’s a request, go through a broker.”
There were sometimes guys like this. Saying the commission for the broker was a waste, or that their situation was urgent, and so on. For all sorts of reasons, they would directly seek out a contractor and ask for a commission. Most of them were suspicious, so there was no need to pay them any mind. Especially since I had no intention of taking on contractor work for a while.
“You must be a busy man. Going straight to business talk.”
“I believe I told you to go to a broker.”
“So impatient. My business is different.”
The man walked through the shadows and approached me. He shook his hand, discarding the shrunken pack. A red liquid leaked from the pack that fell to the ground. A thick smell of blood, which revealed the contents, wafted over.
“I just came to deliver a message as ordered.”
A flow of mana, as if thunder had struck from the sky, spread from the top of his head to the tips of his toes.
His body twisted at every joint as if having a seizure. His brown pupils narrowed into ovals, then turned red and shot out a ray of light.
“Ah, ah.”
The voice changed. From a drawling, annoying tone to a clear, sweet, and high-pitched one. There was a skill called voice mimicry, where one person could imitate several voices. This was different. It felt as if the person had changed into someone else, with only the appearance remaining the same.
“Hello, nice to meet you.”
“Possession?”
“Wow, you figured it out already?”
It was a type of magic similar to necromancy, which is classified as a type of black magic. However, possession is much trickier compared to necromancy. This is because complete mental subjugation of the possession target must precede it. Otherwise, the mind of the one who does not hold the initiative will be destroyed.
It was a problem even if there was mutual agreement. Unless the target entrusted their body to the other party without a single shred of doubt, the caster who initiated the possession had to overcome instinctive resistance. Therefore, there were two cases where one could succeed in possession as naturally and fluidly as the man before my eyes.
First, to be a mage powerful enough to crush the mental resistance of the possession target. Second, to have completely dominated the target’s mind and reigned over it. Either way, it was a tricky opponent.
“I was hoping you’d recognize me, so I just met your expectations.”
“Hmm? Why did you think that?”
“For a show, you chose a rather troublesome and annoying method.”
If the purpose was a message, he could have just delivered the words without going as far as possession. But he had deliberately chosen the method of possession. It was a trick to create a sense of pressure through a display of profound skill.
“So what great message were you trying to deliver that you put on a show like this? I have a weak stomach, so I’d appreciate it if you’d say it quickly and get lost.”
Hearing that voice from that face was beyond bizarre; it was disgusting. Combined with the inherent unpleasantness of the magic of possession, I didn’t want to drag out the conversation.
“Hmm, this is different from the development I had in mind… but a guy with a quick mind shouldn’t be hard to talk to.”
The man’s tone, which had been seemingly innocent and somewhat friendly, suddenly changed.
“I’ll forgive the impertinent things you’ve done so far. So from now on, keep your hands off.”
My skin tingled as if pricked by a needle. A great weight settled on my shoulders. The hem of my clothes fluttered as if caught in a gale. The mana being released from his entire body was imbued with a killing intent so sharp it was suffocating.
“The Brotherhood, was it?”
But I just calmly analyzed the opponent’s identity.
“So the rumor that the deal of Branch 52 was planned by the underboss was true. For the higher-ups to issue a direct warning over a trivial incident like the annihilation of a single branch.”
It could be said to be smooth sailing. I had ruined the deal of Branch 52 to make the Brotherhood’s higher-ups move. I couldn’t help but be pleased that my scheme had worked.
“Wow, you even knew that. And you still did something like that?”
“I had something to believe in, so I took a chance.”
“Right, the Public Security Bureau. Those house-guarding dogs reached out to you, didn’t they?”
I inwardly swallowed a laugh. The ruse of entrusting the recovery of the smuggled goods to the security officer had worked. The Brotherhood was convinced that I had acted on a request from the Public Security Bureau.
“So I’ll let it slide once. I’m warning you, there won’t be a second time.”
“Well, I’m not the one who decides that.”
“It will be.”
The man answered as soon as I finished speaking. It meant he had that much confidence.
“Did you move the council members?”
“You know well.”
He had acted quite quickly. It meant he was that desperate.
‘Since he moved in desperation, there must be traces left.’
He had persuaded the heavy-bottomed council members to move directly. Whether he had spread bribes or promised interests, he must have paid a great price. It was an opening sufficient to dig up his veiled identity.
“Hands off. This isn’t a game for a contractor to get involved in.”
“Unexpected.”
“What is?”
“You’ve found out my identity and moved the council members to block any repercussions, so why are you just warning me with words?”
The Brotherhood’s higher-ups had moved. In any organization, the higher-ups do not act easily. This was even more so for a large organization like the Brotherhood. Yet, this situation of peacefully exchanging conversation was puzzling.
If he were a subordinate of the underboss behind Branch 52, there would be no need for this. He was confident in his skills, so he could just pay back the damage he had suffered.
“It feels like you’re trying to push me away, even forcefully. So that I don’t dig deep into this matter.”
“……”
Did I hit the mark? The man’s mouth closed.
“You’re not a subordinate of the underboss. And you’re not the underboss himself either.”
“……How can you be so sure?”
“Because there’s no one like you among the Brotherhood’s underbosses.”
Gender, tone of voice, and mannerisms. There was no one who matched in the list of underbosses in my memory. In that case, it was certain.
“You’re even higher up than the underboss.”
“……”
“You were worried that even though you had blocked the Public Security Bureau’s intervention, Councilor Giselle, the person in charge, had acted indirectly, weren’t you? You came to me because you were anxious that things would flow the same way this time.”
He had wanted to hide it desperately, even by doing so. It was probably a secret that the underboss personally held. That’s why he had contacted me first. He had warned me to just stay silent, without any introduction, to make me mistake him for the underboss himself or a close aide.
‘An identity suspected to be higher than the underboss. A secret that must not be revealed.’
Apart from what the secret was, I couldn’t think of a reason for him to warn me. Unless…
‘A purge?’
“……That’s enough.”
The man cut off my train of thought that was about to continue.
“It’s hard to say a few words carelessly. Your mind works fast, and above all, you know too much. If you know too much, it’s hard to live long in this city.”
The joints that had been bent like a doll’s gradually returned to their places. The mana contained in his body began to slowly reverse upwards. He couldn’t maintain the possession forever. It was proof that the time limit was approaching.
“Since you know so much, you must have understood the gist of my words well. I’ve warned you.”
“I believe I’ve answered you too. How I act in the future depends on the client’s intentions.”
“Hmph.”
Was that enough? The red energy that had colored his pupils faded.
“……Ugh!”
As the possession was released, the man grimaced and clutched his head. He shook his head from side to side a few times, and as if he had come to his senses, he straightened his posture.
“To shake off the aftereffects of possession so easily, you’re stronger than you look.”
“I’ve gotten used to it. It’s not an ordinary possession magic either.”
“I suppose so. I can roughly tell from that blood pack.”
The drink that had restored the man’s vigor. Even though only a part of it had leaked, the smell of blood was strong. It wasn’t just that it looked like it; it was a real blood pack.
“Blood magic, a subordinate of a vampire?”
“……Amazing, I thought you were unusual, but I didn’t know you knew that much.”
A skinny physique, pale skin, a shadowed complexion, an instinct to avoid light, a taste for blood. These were the characteristics of the mutant known as a vampire.
“In that case, you must have taken the warning to heart.”
The man left his last words and disappeared into the shadows.
“Don’t think of getting involved in our faction’s affairs.”
“……A faction.”
The story I had heard from Hatig a while back came to mind. The three factions that ruled the Brotherhood.
“Has an unexpected competitor appeared?”
No matter who the opponent was, I had no intention of handing over my goal.