Lemon and Apple strutted into the alley with their heads held high, their upper bodies swaying in a weird mix of annoyance and swagger.
“Huh?”
“Tsk. A face I haven’t seen before.”
A group of rough-looking women huddled together, smoking, clicked their tongues at the newcomers. But after a moment, they spotted Lemon and Apple’s ears and gasped in surprise.
“An Elf? What’s an Elf doing…?”
“Hey, you idiot! Why would an Elf come looking for people like us in a back alley?”
It was like a light bulb went off in one thug’s head as she crushed the cigarette she was smoking and asked.
“Where are you from?”
Hmm, valid question. No matter how much Lemon and Apple looked like second-rate thugs, an Elf is still an Elf.
After all, Elves are famous for not having any shady criminals because they don’t make money in dirty business.
So, even if Lemon and Apple were nothing special, they must’ve guessed there was a big shot backing them.
Sharp thinking. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have survived long.
As I admired their quick transition, the two Elves giggled and puffed out their flat chests.
“Hehe. I wonder who sent us, huh?”
“Don’t be surprised, but that’s Jonah. A merciless killer who will chase down debts to the ends of Hell.”
“The famous and terrifying Jonah is this guy right here!”
“Everyone, bow down to Jonah!”
…?
What the hell are they talking about?
Suddenly, Lemon and Apple pointed to where I was hiding, and I should’ve figured it out when they started shouting and running.
The thugs’ faces turned blank when our eyes met.
Yeah, I get it. I’d have the same expression if a national-level organization’s executive suddenly showed up.
Thanks to the thugs’ shock, I managed to regain my composure quickly.
Originally, I planned to sneakily lift a wallet while Lemon and Apple caused a ruckus to break up a fight. I figured even thugs wouldn’t just beat down a pretty boy trying to mediate.
This supposed to lead to an easy, fast pickpocketing situation…
“Ugh! I have no idea what to do! Just die…!”
If I’d been found out, the only option left was to strike first.
With that in mind, I charged at the strongest-looking thug who had just asked about me.
“Uh…?”
Before she could react, I threw a sturdy noose I made out of rope I procured yesterday, aiming for her neck.
I thought this might be a bit dangerous, but…
“Too late!”
In an instant, I zipped through the narrow alleyway and landed on the thug’s shoulders. I tightened the noose around her neck.
“Ghh….”
As she struggled to free herself from the rope, I smacked her head with the hilt of my dagger.
Whack!
Unfortunately, unlike in the movies, she didn’t just faint from one hit, so I kept whacking her until she went out.
Whack! Whack! Whack!
“Ugh! Ggh! Ugh…”
Did I just get a solid hit in? She started trembling, rolled her eyes back, and collapsed.
The remaining thugs stared in shock at what just happened, and I raised my hand to signal for silence.
“Your territory is done for! From now on, this place is ruled by me, Jonah!”
The first disgruntled thug tried to say something, but—
*
Labyrinth City is a surprisingly safe place for a neighborhood crawling with rough adventurers.
The reason is simple. The really scary guys are either hidden away in the Labyrinth or are corporate mobsters who are uninterested in petty crime.
Of course, there are occasional serial killers or extreme drug addicts, and maybe a human trafficker now and then…
But before long, those guys get caught by the Guild and are left with a dented skull or crushed by the hands of the real big shots for muddying the waters.
The twin-daggers clan that tried to kidnap me had that same vibe. They got caught for being too enthusiastic about human trafficking.
Anyway, because of this situation, unless you deliberately go deep into shady areas, there aren’t many truly dangerous people around.
Before meeting Lydia, I had been pickpocketing all over the place.
But no matter how much I was too scared to mess with legitimate businesses, I figured it was easier to extort or rob some orphans or beggars, even if those petty thugs were usually tougher than me.
It wasn’t just a whim that I thought to sneak around with Lemon and Apple in front. I just wasn’t confident in direct confrontation. Yet…
“P-Please spare us, and we will pledge our loyalty!”
“…?”
I looked down at a group of six thugs kneeling in front of me.
They wore tight-fitting clothes, smelled of alcohol and cigarettes, and had scars all over their bodies. They might look rugged by Pan Continent standards, but to me, they didn’t seem that bad.
Just a few months ago, these terrifying ruffians were bowing before me.
And this wasn’t the first time. This was the third group already.
How did it come to this?
Lemon and Apple foolishly revealed my position, and I panicked and took down the strongest-looking one.
The rest surrendered immediately, so I just took their wallets and let them go. Was that the problem?
The guys who were once so scared of me visibly relaxed, then started trailing behind me.
Even if I told them to scram, they just stayed within a short distance, not willing to break away.
Since it felt weird to leave them like that, I asked if there were any decent targets to rob, and they happily showed me the way to another alley.
…Then, just like Lemon and Apple, they proudly introduced me.
You idiots.
With the heavy feeling of having thugs trailing behind me, I was attacked first but ended up winning anyway.
My experience in the Labyrinth, especially dealing with the Wild Rabbits, really helped.
If I could keep up with the speed of those agile rabbits, the strikes of these pathetic thugs couldn’t touch me.
The thug who looked like the leader was the first to charge in, but she struggled and was quickly brought down.
With her head held captive, her group surrendered without hesitation. I took all their wallets and let them go again, yet they started following me closely once more.
It was absurd. When I asked why, they insisted on becoming my underlings.
It got annoying, and I handed them over to Lemon and Apple.
Now, my lackeys multiplied twofold.
Half-exasperated, I wanted to solve the next encounter quietly, so I asked about the next target…
But Lemon and Apple, determined not to lose to the newbies, dashed out before I could stop them.
Since I wanted to resolve things quietly, I hoped they’d behave themselves.
And here we are now.
This thug didn’t even seem inclined to fight back and directly knelt instead.
…I mean, I remember everything that happened. I still don’t understand how it ended up like this.
What the heck is going on?
As I pondered, Lemon and Apple started shouting at the thugs beside me.
“How dare you! What do you think you’re doing to Jonah!”
“Do you really think such pathetic loyalty is enough to survive?”
They shouted, glaring and making silly gestures with their fingers and thumbs.
Their demands were so obvious and almost pitiful that the trembling thugs stared wide-eyed.
The thugs hastily began rummaging through their pockets. They pulled out their wallets with utmost politeness and placed them on the ground as Lemon and Apple collected them to hand over to me.
“Hm….”
I accepted the wallets, putting on my best dissatisfied face.
Of course, there wasn’t a heap of cash in there. The thickest wallet belonged to the thug leader and barely had over 2 silver coins, at most.
But after gathering it all, it seemed to amount to around 4 silver. When I combined it with what I got from the previous groups, I had nearly 13 silver now.
I originally planned just to slyly lift a few wallets from 1 or 2 thugs, thinking I’d do well if I made 2 or 3 silver…
Now, I reconsidered. With this, the profit outweighed my discomfort. I nodded.
“Alright. This is enough. You can get up.”
“Thank you for your generosity, Jonah!”
“Now you all belong to our family!”
“Thank you… thank you…”
Lemon and Apple were joyful, encouraging the thugs to stand.
As I looked at the wobbling thugs, I poked the sides of the twin Elves.
“Phew.”
“Hah….”
“Stop making weird noises and come talk to me for a second. I have something to discuss.”
“What is it? If it’s urgent, is it bathroom time or something?”
“Lemon, guys don’t just run to the toilet.”
“What nonsense! Why would I call you to go to the toilet? And Apple, guys go to the toilet too!”
Lemon, with a clueless look on her face, blinked away while Apple sat down as if the world had fallen apart.
Seeing them, I sighed deeply and pointed to the thugs in the back who were now my lackeys.
“What are those guys? Why are they so eager to be my subordinates?”
“Huh? Weren’t you planning to take over this area?”
“You seriously didn’t know? I’m shocked.”
“Never intended to! I thought I’d just swipe a wallet and be off. Anyway, I really don’t get it, so just explain.”
Lemon and Apple exchanged a look and nodded.
“It’s simple. Jonah didn’t try to subdue them with much damage.”
“He didn’t even attempt to kill or maim them. In our line of work, that’s how you communicate joining under someone.”
“If you spoke directly, they wouldn’t listen, so instead, they’re picking pocketing in the alleys instead of the Labyrinth.”
“There’s another reason. Jonah is young and cute, right?”
“How would it look if they were beaten by someone like Jonah? They’d get laughed at by the other girls immediately.”
“…Could it be they want to make everyone else suffer since they lost to Jonah?”
“Kind of, but not really.”
“If they all get bested by Jonah, it’s not just them embarrassed. It just shows Jonah was strong.”
“……”
“Moreover, if someone fights as well as Jonah does in this business, they absolutely must attach themselves to them.”
“Otherwise, they live tightly without crossing paths at all.”
“These guys are too obedient to the strong, huh?”
So that’s what it was.
I shook my head and asked.
“Don’t you feel embarrassed following a young guy like me?”
“What are you talking about? It’s exciting instead.”
“Having a female boss is ordinary, but having a male boss is a whole different deal.”
“…Ah.”
I get it.
Having a hot boss is a real deal.
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