The Druid Who Devoured the Great Nature

“Huu… finally… you’ve come.”

The security officer who discovered my return let out a voice of relief, as if on the verge of death.

The battle at Centream’s headquarters had reached a lull. It wasn’t as fierce as the fight between me and Buggy that had laid waste to the area. However, it was no less desperate.

With Bianca guarding Demian like an iron wall, the majority of the security officers had fallen.

“Oh my, you’re back early?”

Bianca greeted me with a wave of her hand, looking pleased. Compared to the security officers, she was in pristine condition.

Buggy Vile was a monster, so it was natural they were no match for him, but Bianca was far inferior. The security officers’ claim that they could handle her if she was alone was no empty boast. For the difference to be this great…

“It’s the artifacts. That woman pulled out every single collection she’s ever stolen right here.”

“Thanks to that, the losses are immense. The warehouse is on the verge of being cleaned out.”

Bianca shook a shadow that was bunched up like a wallet, as if lamenting her own ruin. Not a single speck of dust came out of the shadow.

“Was there a need to try that hard?”

The collections she had stolen were rare items that would fetch a fortune if even a single one were put up for auction. Although she wasn’t the type to place great meaning on them, she didn’t consider them worthless enough to consume them all for a single job.

This was the same woman who had tried to backstab Director Berman before. She wouldn’t be afraid of Centream. It was strange for her to do her best to the point of accepting her own losses.

In response to my question, Bianca smiled, her eyes crinkling prettily.

“I was just testing the waters. Which side should I stand on? There’s no need to keep my loyalty, but if I run away before the results are out and I’m wrong, it would only hurt my pride, wouldn’t it?”

“There’s a limit to the nonsense you can spew.”

Since when did an outlaw care about pride?

“You say such hurtful things. After all we’ve been through.”

Contrary to her words, Bianca’s tone was not hurt at all. It was, in fact, filled with playfulness.

“Actually, you’re right, it is nonsense,” she admitted breezily.

“I just thought this way I could look at your face a little longer before running away.”

“…What is that supposed to mean?”

Demian, who had been composed even upon my solitary return, interjected hastily, his voice laced with bewilderment.

“Run away? It’s regrettable that Buggy Vile was defeated, but that contractor isn’t unscathed either. We are not at a disadvantage.”

He was right. I had pushed myself considerably while dealing with Buggy Vile, as I was pressed for time. If the security officers had managed to push Bianca back, it might have been different, but with her having taken so little damage… I still had one more major hurdle to overcome.

Of course, revealing this fact to the enemy would be a foolish thing to do.

“If you’re so confident, then bring it on. I won’t refuse.”

As long as I worked as a contractor, bluffing was a basic skill. In reality, there was no superhuman more powerless against me than Bianca. I believed she wouldn’t take part in a gamble with such slim chances of winning.

“That’s right. Unfortunately, I’ll have to sit this one out. As I said, the matchup is bad for me.”

And in the first place, Bianca’s choice had already been made. She obediently withdrew her domain, retracting her will to fight.

“I’m not telling you to win! Just buy some time! Then our forces will soon…”

“Don’t waste your energy on something that won’t work.”

I made Demian, who had shed his unshakable composure and was now shouting almost hysterically, face reality.

“If begging an outlaw like that changed anything, they wouldn’t be called outlaws in the first place.”

“That’s right.”

As I walked steadily toward Demian, Bianca didn’t block my path but discreetly moved aside.

“If I say no, what meaning is there in whatever you have to say?”

“…Ha.”

As I aimed the gun at his forehead, Demian finally slumped down in defeat.

“You had no intention of working diligently from the start.”

“You should expect what you can from Madhouse.”

Their skills were impeccable, but in the end, they were outlaws who acted as they pleased. It was a risk one had to be prepared for when deciding to collaborate with Madhouse.

“I! I made a legitimate deal with you! To get what we both wanted, you couldn’t have picked such a lineup… ah.”

Demian, who had been venting his anger alone, suddenly stopped, as if something had occurred to him.

“So that was it. Because you had already achieved your goal by completing the deal…”

“You finally get it?” Bianca grinned.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but.”

The deal between Madhouse and Centream. Whatever scheme was contained within it, I was in no position to investigate it now.

“You can regret it all you want after you’re dead.”

Bang!

Demian collapsed pathetically. Even the owner of an ambition that sought to swallow a whole city was no different from anyone else after turning into a corpse.

***

“Well then.”

The objective was achieved, but the cleanup of the scene was not yet over.

“Shall we bring our own business to a close?”

“…Huh?”

I turned the gun on Bianca. She tilted her head in confusion.

“Weren’t we in the mood to part ways just like this?”

“I never said anything of the sort.”

I had succeeded in killing Demian thanks to Bianca’s concession, but that didn’t become a reason to let her go quietly.

“Seeing you three times is more than enough. Let’s put an end to it now.”

Contrary to our previous conversation, Bianca had followed Madhouse’s orders, which brought her no benefit. Having clashed with Madhouse several times, I had no idea how she might interfere with my work again.

Separate from the fact that she showed me some inexplicable favor, to me, she was a potential enemy.

My condition wasn’t great, but a few security officers were still with me. It was a golden opportunity to deal with her.

“No, Demian didn’t run away because I was holding my ground. I helped so things wouldn’t get complicated, do you really have to be like this?”

“What persuasive power is there in an outlaw talking about favors and grudges?”

“I didn’t even come here to bother you. I told you, I just came to see your face.”

“Then since you’ve seen my face to your heart’s content as you wished, you can leave without any regrets.”

“…I didn’t want to say this, but those security officers aren’t dead. Do you know how carefully I acted to make sure they stayed alive?”

I had noticed that the security officers were still breathing with just a quick glance. It’s easier to kill than to keep alive. From that, I could surmise that it was true Bianca had not approached this job with the intention of working diligently.

“The security officers are valuable assets, too precious to lose like this. Rather than starting an unnecessary fight, wouldn’t it be the right decision for the greater good to save their lives first?”

It would be a disaster if the security officers were out of the picture. My own condition was a mess, and Bianca was more skilled at escaping than fighting. It would be difficult to chase her if she decided to bolt without the security officers’ assistance.

“Madhouse, we do not negotiate with dangerous elements like you.”

I wasn’t worried. For security officers, dealing with the city’s enemies was a priority over their own lives. If she was trying to threaten them with their lives, she had picked the wrong address.

“Hmm, this is troublesome.”

Despite that, she still seemed relaxed.

“But well, it’s not like I didn’t consider this risk. I was going to bring it up later to get some credit, but I guess I’ll have to use it as a bargaining chip now.”

“A deal?”

“I know where our boss is headed right now.”

“And what about it?”

I had clashed with Madhouse consistently, but tracking down their boss to settle the score was a different story. The scales of the deal didn’t balance for it to be used as a bargaining chip.

“Don’t be so prickly. Your thoughts might change after you hear this.”

Bianca walked over gracefully and whispered in my ear.

“Our boss, he’s heading to the continent’s edge right now.”

“…What?”

“It’s not just Gellerg City that’s in chaos. Brahms is an exception since it’s beyond recovery, but the other cities are in a similar state of uproar. It’s the result of our boss pulling in or making deals with the power echelons and skilled individuals of each city.”

It couldn’t be a lie just to get through this situation. News from other cities usually took a considerable amount of time to reach other regions. Furthermore, the period when Gellerg City fell into chaos was after Shadowfang’s uprising. The city’s administration had been paralyzed for a long time. It was natural that we didn’t have information on other cities.

Most importantly, it was consistent with Madhouse’s recent moves to expand its influence in each city.

“While each city is preoccupied with its internal chaos, our boss intends to challenge transcendence.”

Was that what Demian meant with his last words? Madhouse helps Centream take power, and Centream supports the Madhouse boss in his challenge for transcendence.

At first glance, it seemed like a legitimate deal beneficial to both sides, but it was wrong. Madhouse had spread its poison to all cities, including Gallug City. It was to create a gap for him to challenge transcendence while avoiding the eyes of each city’s ruling class.

The moment Centream revealed its ambition, Madhouse had already achieved its goal.

“If what you say is true, why were you guys here?”

“I heard it from Buggy. He had no interest in it, though. In the first place, when the very existence of the concept of transcendence is ambiguous, is there any reason to join such a reckless challenge? He knew the other members would react that way, so he scattered us across the cities and left alone.”

Bianca seemed skeptical about transcendence, but I knew the answer. Transcendence was a real concept. That’s why the Madhouse boss making the first move was a matter that I had to take seriously.

“So, isn’t this enough for you to let me go?”

She had reason to be confident. Transcendence was an open secret among the city’s upper class. To them, this information was a serious matter that required immediate discussion of countermeasures. It would bring a huge benefit to me, the provider of the information.

“Fine, I’ll let it slide this time.”

But to me, this information itself was deeply meaningful. It was different from what Bianca intended, but it was more than enough to pretend not to see her and let her go.

“…”

The security officers seemed dissatisfied with my decision but didn’t object. We had only worked together because our goals aligned this time; I wasn’t their colleague. In any case, they had nothing to lose if they couldn’t deal with Bianca. They could save the lives of the security officers instead, so all they had to do was swallow their pride.

“Then let’s move on from this matter.”

“What else are you trying to bring up? If you try to find fault any further, even I might not be able to tolerate it.”

“It’s not that. I’m suggesting we work on something together.”

“Huh?”

There was no time to leisurely rest and watch the subsequent developments after completing a job as usual.

“Centream should have something called the spirit’s cocoons in storage. I need you to retrieve them as quickly as possible.”

Since the Madhouse boss had already headed for the continent’s edge, it was now a race against time again.

***

“All the spirit’s cocoons held by Centream have been recovered.”

“…That was fast. I heard the city government hasn’t even started cleaning up the mess from Centream’s collapse.”

“The situation has become urgent, so I couldn’t wait for Sylvester to retrieve the items while I asserted my share.”

“What’s going on? Just bringing down Centream was a near-impossible task. It’s amazing that you succeeded. There’s no need to be in such a hurry…”

“The Madhouse boss has made a move to challenge transcendence.”

Since retrieving the spirit’s cocoons was the top priority, I was only now able to share what I had learned with Amelia. After hearing the detailed circumstances, Amelia’s mood finally matched mine.

“First of all, there’s no need to be in too much of a hurry. Even if he challenges transcendence by taking advantage of the city’s chaos, we don’t know if it will be a success or a failure.”

“Just because it’s been fine so far, the name value of the Madhouse boss is too immense to be optimistic.”

“That’s true too. But the fact that he left first is something that has already happened. It’ll be hard to close the distance by just chasing after him.”

“Does telling me not to hurry even though you know that mean you have a way?”

“Yes.”

Amelia answered reliably.

“We can head to the continent’s edge by a safe route.”

(End of Chapter)