Act 3: Chapter 1: Sake Cup and The Reaper
Act 3: God of War and The Red Cane
In the room surrounded by stone walls, two men were facing each other with a cane interposing between them.
Each had brought along two escorts who were standing by behind them. The escorts from both sides were watching their leader in silence, watching the flow of negotiation.
Both sides were ready to unsheath their weapons at a moment’s notice as soon as something went wrong.
That moment, the big man’s side opened his mouth.
The man was a giant whose arms were almost as thick as a tree trunk. He had a bald head and the eyes in his eyesockets were emotionless as if they were merely marbles.
The big man’s name was Bosgin. He was the leader of a bandits gang who hunted adventurers, 《Blood Cup》.
《Blood Cup》 was a big group numbered at more than fifty people.
Normally, their gang was divided into small groups to infiltrate each country and build their base there, sometimes exchanging information.
All upper echelons of this organization had strength rivaling that of an A-rank adventurer.
「You know too, right? I hate having to fight along with you, but we ain’t got any other choice since this matter is simply beyond our control. That’s why I want your help.」
Bosgin said so.
Seeing Bosgin acting so humble, the other man let out a sneer as he raised his feet on the table.
「I see. But, I don’t particularly detest the idea of killing all of you right here.」
「Y-You bastard…! B-Bosgin-sama, let’s kill this b*stard who dares to look down on us!!」
Bosgin’s subordinate who got pissed of by the other party’s remark had already placed their hand on the hilt of their sword.
That moment, Bosgin was stood up from his chair, swung his arm, and knocked out his own subordinate.
The subordinate’s sword got knocked off as its owner crashed into the wall.
「Argh! B-Bosgin-sama…!」
「… Forgive my rude subordinate. Now, let’s continue.」
Bosgin bowed his head to the other party as he sat back in his chair.
「I’m serious about my previous remark though. Bosgin, fight me. With your strength, you should be able to live an easy life as a proper adventurer while having the thrill of your life, why did you chose this path? You’re still bloodthirsty, right?」
Bosgin shook his head upon hearing the other man’s remark.
「My bad, I’m not a battle junkie like you. My level ain’t that high either. My only wish is to r*pe, or rob others. I don’t wish to get involved with a lunatic like you.」
Bosgin replied calmly without letting himself fall into the provocation of the other party’s remarks.
The man heaved a sigh upon realizing that the other party didn’t buy into his provocations at all.
「Bosgin, you know nothing at all. Even I know one or two things about the 《Blood Cup》. I know that you’re one of the strongest in there. I’m not the kind of man who will surrender even if I fight against an opponent beyond my level. Rather, I’ll be delighted since it will become a rare chance for me to raise my level.」
「Don’t try to provoke me. And I’ve prepared another opponent for you.」
「Hou?」
「Now, let’s get down to the business. I received an information from 《Blood Cup》’s member. The cane that was said to be owned by an otherworlder several hundred years ago, which was kept in the treasury of the royal castle… 《Red Authority Cane》 has been taken out from the treasury.」
「Taken out, is it. Are you sure? I don’t think that the royalty is that reckless.」
Bosgin nodded in response to the other party’s question.
「Yeah, until now, 《Red Authority Cane》 was nothing more than a useless treasure in the royal treasury since no one could use it. Only the previous owner, the one who contracted with great spirit inside the cane, can use the cane. And that previous owner, the otherworlder, has been dead hundreds years, meaning that it’s just a junk item right now.」
「In that case… why now of all time?」
「Because the S-rank adventurer from magic city Manarak, Kotone of the 《Ares Hand》, she might be able to bypass the requirement for using the 《Red Authority Cane》. Thus, the royal family sent their messenger to hand over the 《Red Authority Cane》 to Kotone.」
The damage caused by monsters had been worsening in recent years. A demon king even appeared a while ago in Manarak, and according to the report sent to the royal castle, Kotone was the biggest contributor in that event.
Even the royal family was had some expectations in Kotone.
In addition to strengthening their force, the wanted to cut off Kotone’s path of retreat who was rumored to be lacking contribution in the monster subjugation by providing her with their warrant.
「《Red Authority Cane》 is just a mere decoration without 《Ares Hand》. But, many rich people want this so called decoration. You know what I mean, right?」
A grin formed on the man’s face upon hearing Bosgin’s remark.
「I see. You people want to steal 《Red Authority Cane》 from Kotone. But you’re literally too afraid to fight her.」
「… Yes, that’s right. But, Lovis, I believe that you and your subordinates can deal with 《Ares Hand》. Naturally, I’m going to lend my subordinates too.」
The negotiation partner of Bosgin, Lovis, was leaning on his chair as he crossed his arms with satisfied look on his face.
「I understand, I accept the job. But, I don’t need the help of your useless subordinates. You and your people can rampage around in Manarak and make sure that no one disturbs our group. Fufufu…the opponent this time is 《Ares Hand》 eh, not bad.」
Lovis stood from his chair and turned around to leave the place.
「The small fries are enough for you guys. There no need to go along with you people. We, the 《Black Reaper》 will head to Manarak by ourselves. Let’s go, Damia, Yozakura.」
「Yes, Lovis-sama.」
Yozakura replied with clear voice while Damia replied with a nod.
「We might be not the only ones aiming to steal 《Red Authority Cane》. Be careful, another strong figure might be hiding in Manarak.」
「And why are you telling us about that?」
Lovis didn’t even turn around as he waved his hand toward Bosgin.
「Let me make it clear, Bosgin. Our goal in coming here is to kill you. The reason why we accepted your suggestion is not because we’re interested in the strife around 《Red Authority Cane》. We want your life. We, the 《Black Reaper》 aren’t a naive group like the 《Blood Cup》. Have your fangs dulled after you became the boss of a group of monkeys, Bosgin?」
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