Chapter: 89
“Debi… what was it again? We received a report that a city-sized great curse has been activated in the territory taken over by those guys.”
[Such a large-scale curse?]
“They say it’s a curse that only someone like the Demon King can activate?”
[…! No way! Are you saying such a powerful being is hiding around here?!]
“Well, I’m not sure they’re still here. It happened three years ago.”
At the mention of three years ago, Hamulina fell silent.
[‘No way…’]
Hamulina rummaged through his memories of three years ago when he had tried to mentally attack Lian and ended up fleeing with a critical injury.
[‘No, no. From what I observed, that guy was just borrowing the power of the cursed sword; his real body had no power whatsoever.’]
It felt a bit unsettling, but he forcefully shook off any connection between Lian and the great curse.
“They said the organization that took over that area was most hostile to the western region, right? So, it’s highly likely that the ‘Nest’ organization is involved this time.”
That meant Hamulina’s goals were aligned with Potensian’s. Since Hamulina’s desire for revenge was stronger, he pushed down his uneasy feelings.
[“Alright, then let’s go kill him right away!”]
“No. This isn’t the time for hunting.”
Potensian’s eyes sparkled with determination.
“Leave everything to me. I’ll definitely take out that so-called saint.”
With that gleam of madness in Potensian’s eyes, Hamulina had no choice but to silently agree.
*
Potensian was younger than the other Four Heavenly Kings and tended to charge in without thinking, giving him the image of a reckless kid.
But he didn’t just accidentally stumble into the position of a Heavenly King. He always displayed a rational side when it was time for hunting.
“It’s all, all the doing of that bastard from Nest!”
The fact that Potensian didn’t immediately charge into Nest after listening to Hamulina was due to his thorough preparation; he had tracked down Atan, the former boss of the Leviathan organization, to make him spill all the beans.
“That bastard has been playing us like pawns right from the start!”
Atan, who now looked like a shadow of his former self, was spewing blood as he screamed with bloodshot eyes. Dressed in ragged clothing, he was completely drunk.
Even in this state, his ‘hatred’ couldn’t be concealed. Considering his organization had fallen apart because of Lian, it made sense that he’d be this enraged.
“Who the hell is that guy?”
Potensian found Atan’s fury quite amusing and deliberately tossed in a provoking question. Atan then exploded with a torrent of information.
“Lian! The real boss of the Nest organization! The mastermind who manipulates everything in Cardishian like a toy! The Slaughterer Lian!”
Potensian’s grin widened at this intriguing title.
“What exactly did he do to earn the title of ‘mastermind’?”
“That’s…”
People often shift their problems onto others to manage excessive stress. What about Atan, who was under immense stress from the collapse of his organization? Of course, he took on heaps of stress and cast all his troubles onto someone else.
Finding a target for his resentment helped him blame Lian for all his misfortunes.
“Are you saying that the collapse of the eastern mine is also the work of the Slaughterer Lian?”
“Absolutely! That bastard knew I was there from the beginning! If I bring this up, those idiots will call it paranoia and spout nonsense… but considering what Nest gained from it, they couldn’t possibly say such ridiculous things!”
With Noah at the center, Nest, now equipped with ‘power,’ had tightened its grip on the abandoned eastern lands.
It wasn’t surprising that Nest would eye the eastern lands after swiftly swallowing the western region. As their influence grew, it was only natural that it began to affect various places.
Atan, who was hiding his identity and operating in the east, inevitably got tangled up in Nest’s schemes.
Believing all his misfortunes to be instigated by Lian, Atan fed Potensian the juicy gossip about how malicious and cunning Lian was.
‘Seems like he’s more dangerous than I thought.’
Potensian licked his lips, lost in thought.
‘There’s nothing more entertaining than bringing down someone who thinks they’re the smartest.’
After sorting through the information grabbed from Atan, Potensian left the sobbing Atan behind and exited the tavern.
[Do you really not need to kill him?]
“If what he’s saying is true, Lian knows that the boss of Leviathan is still alive. Recklessly killing him could attract unwanted attention.”
Potensian’s surprisingly rational approach fully impressed Hamulina.
[‘This guy might really help take down that bastard!’]
As he recalled the humiliation at Lian’s hands, Hamulina let out a proud laugh.
“Ugh!”
And promptly vomited rainbow-colored bile onto the ground.
*
Three years can feel like a long time. While there were minor incidents, it was undeniably a peaceful stretch, making it feel even longer.
With extended peace, naturally, love is bound to flourish.
“How long are you going to keep hiding it, sis?”
“Well, but…”
Noah, the boss of Nest, was blushing wildly, desperately avoiding Lily’s gaze.
“What if he finds it unpleasant…?”
“You’ve been saying that for two years now, you know?”
“But still…”
As Noah fidgeted and justified herself, Julianna, who was lounging (well, floating, but looked like lounging) on the sofa reading a romance novel, spoke up.
[He’ll only come to his senses if he brings another woman, so just leave him be. Tsk tsk.]
“…!”
At Julianna’s words, Noah’s eyes widened in shock, and they began to tremble anxiously. Lily, not hearing Julianna, assumed Noah’s reaction was due to her own words.
“Now that the organization is settled, no one would care even if the boss of the Nest is a woman, right?”
“I get that, but…”
“It’s extraordinarily uncomfortable!”
“Umm…”
Noah had also matured over the past three years. With puberty kicking in, her once-flat chest now boasted curves.
The problem was that it was larger than the typical female size. She kept putting off confessing to Lian that she was a girl, and suddenly, three years had slipped by.
Fearful of the disgust that might come from finding out that a friend she thought was male was actually female, she tightened her chest and suppressed her curves.
Even with magical devices sealing her chest, keeping this a secret from Lian was tough, and the discomfort was undeniable.
Lily pointed this out. …Of course, she was pointing out more than just that.
“Why hide such a great tool? Have you not read romance novels? When the male lead realizes that the friend he thought was just a buddy has a feminine side, he can’t help but fall for her! Haven’t you seen that?”
“Lily, fiction and reality are different.”
“They’re not different! You’ve got everything going for you, Noah! You’re beautiful! You’ve got great assets! And you’re talented!”
“L-Lily…”
As Noah beet red buried her face in the desk, Lily clicked her tongue.
“If you keep this up, another woman will swoop in and grab Lian. That naive brother might even give her his heart and soul.”
“…!”
“Even if he mostly stays between the main building and the annex, he sometimes slips over to the outer main building, right? Those girls who meet him when you hand over lunch are practically drooling over him, you know?”
“…!!”
With each of Lily’s words, it felt like heavy boulders were dropping onto Noah’s head. With Noah’s reaction in mind, Lily continued in a firm voice.
“So, sister, even now—”
Before she could finish her thought,
Boom!
The building shook like an earthquake, and a deafening explosion resonated. Noah, who had been slouched like a melted marshmallow, jumped to her feet. Lily also turned towards the sound, her expression serious.
“An attack?”
“How did they find this place…?”
Currently, they were not in the outer main building but in the real main building where the executives were housed. This implied someone had figured out the location of the real main building and attacked.
With no words exchanged, both dashed out of the study simultaneously.
At that same moment, in the annex,
“Aaah!”
“Kyah!”
The recognition-blocking magic didn’t extend to muffling the explosion sounds. As a result, the kids, clutching their heads in panic, sat down, shivering.
“It seems we need to evacuate immediately.”
“Y-Yes!”
The teacher, who had been lost in a daze, snapped back to reality at Lian’s words and started organizing the children.
“Alright! Everyone, this way!”
Though they had adapted to peaceful living, the children who had faced horrendous experiences were unusually composed, responding to the teacher’s commands.
“Teacher, please lead the kids from the front. I’ll follow from behind.”
“Sure!”
Even though the teacher was older, Lian was much stronger, so she guided the children out of the annex without complaint.
“Iris, there might be an attack from the front, so please stay with the teacher.”
“Okay.”
“Jess, keep a lookout for any children that may get ensnared by magic.”
“Sure!”
After giving them instructions, Lian watched from the back as the children evacuated the annex. They even had a portal set up outside the annex just for emergencies like this.
The kids began to follow the teacher and Iris towards the portal in an orderly line. Lian stood at the back door, watching them leave.
‘Wait… one is missing.’
Counting the kids one by one, Lian’s face hardened as he glanced back inside the annex. There was still a child left inside!
Without a second thought, Lian dashed back into the annex.
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