Chapter 103

After the invaders left.

Judo was left alone in the house that had turned into a ruin, replaying what had just happened.

The invaders had covered their faces with masks, but they had carelessly dropped a few clues.

─ First clue.

Judo, having been trained as a warrior, had a good eye for arms and armor. So, he knew at a glance that the swords pointed at him were of the highest quality steel.

Swords so rare that it was hard to find even one in Fasa!

It was impossible for people who used such items to be mere mercenaries or thieves. They must be individuals of high standing from somewhere.

─ Second clue.

For some reason, the invaders exuded a sense of discipline, like a well-organized army.

It was hard to tell whether they were trying to hide it or had no intention of hiding it.

─ Finally, the third clue.

The invaders were only chasing the red-eyed monster and had no interest in the Corsini family at all. No, it seemed they didn't even think they would face retaliation.

For Judo, it was a slight blow to his pride. It meant he was seen as an easy target.

And for Judo, it was also a fortunate thing. If the invaders had shown interest, Judo would have been a dead man long ago.

Anyway, when all three clues were added up, a conclusion was reached.

'These guys are surely knights dispatched from some knightly order to hunt the monster. Probably to gain honor.'

It was a highly prejudiced thought, but it was also a common-sense one.

The only people who would go out of their way to hunt monsters because they had nothing better to do were knights who sought honor.

And because they were of such status, they must have trampled on the Corsini family without a thought for the consequences.

'Just you wait. I'll make you regret it.'

Face was an important issue for both nobles in the sun and bosses in the shade.

And Judo's face had just been trampled on.

If you suffer damage, you must retaliate. A boss who doesn't do that cannot be respected by his subordinates.

Judo vowed revenge.

However, if he had known that the opponents were inquisitors dispatched from the Holy See, Judo would have reconsidered his thoughts.

He might have even gone to church to offer a prayer of thanks for surviving an encounter with an inquisitor.

But even with Judo's insight, he could not reach such a conclusion.

It was only natural. People cannot think of things they are not familiar with.

To Judo, the inquisitors of Ratio were such ominous and unfamiliar beings that, conversely, he could not think of them.

"Ugh, brother, are you alright?"

Just then, Judo's cousin appeared, limping.

"I called for you a while ago, why are you only showing up now? No, what's wrong with your leg?"

Judo was about to shout but stopped when he saw his cousin had a splint on his leg. The cousin answered, leaning against the doorway.

"I was done in by those guys. The damned bastards broke my leg bone with precision."

"What?"

"I'm not the only one. All the other guys got the same treatment. At this rate, we'll have to close up shop for a while."

"Damn it."

Judo shuddered at the viciousness of the invaders. What were the remaining people supposed to do when they just went on a rampage like this?

His cousin also pleaded his grievance.

"Brother, no matter how far we've fallen, we can't just take this lying down, can we? I'm so dumbfounded I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight."

"Don't worry. I'll definitely retaliate. And in fact, those guys won't be safe for long either."

"What? How, when all our guys are down?"

"That's not what I'm talking about."

Judo gave a twisted smile and explained what had happened.

"Those guys asked me to recommend someone who knows a lot about the red-eyed monster. So who do you think I named?"

"Whose name did you give?"

"I recommended the Illyrian gang that's been annoying us lately."

"Oh."

The Illyrian gang was a criminal organization that had flowed in from a foreign country and was recently at odds with the Corsini family over territory issues.

Considering the actions of those unidentified invaders, it was clear that they would surely attack the Illyrian gang as well.

From the Corsini family's perspective, it was a way of solving a headache without lifting a finger.

"In that case, either the Illyrian gang dies, or the invaders die. Wouldn't that be a good thing for us? We just have to wait for the right time and finish off the survivors."

"As expected of you, brother."

Judo's cousin offered high praise for his scheme. It was indeed an intellect befitting a family head.

Then, for a moment, the thought of sending the invaders to the family's sworn enemy, Leon Gryph, crossed his mind, but that was all.

Shouldn't he solve the problem right in front of him first? It is in human nature to lack foresight.

***

Judo's wish came true.

Because Ceras attacked the Illyrian gang.

But Judo's prediction was wrong.

Because Ceras did not perish along with the Illyrian gang.

"Wipe all these bastards out!"

Rather, Ceras rampaged as if she had been waiting for this moment.

After the Corsini family and the Illyrian gang, the Levona intelligence agency hiding in the foreign residential area was crushed, the Fasa Painters' Guild was crushed, the warehouses used by several small-scale smuggling organizations went up in flames...

When it reached a level where not just a spark but a whole fire was burning on their feet, the clandestine forces operating in Fasa also realized that something strange had entered the city.

It was one thing for them to attack each other, as that was a daily occurrence, but wasn't this an external attack? This doesn't seem like the time to be fighting amongst ourselves, does it?

Thus, the heads of each faction dusted off the word 'cooperation' from their minds.

This was the reason why the first meeting of the thieves' guild was held in Fasa.

"That damned Judo. You sold us out, didn't you? Should I make you a cripple too?"

"Rade, it's a real shame your face is still intact. I wish you'd just dropped dead."

"..."

Of course, just because a meeting was held, it didn't mean that the whole process was smooth.

They were rivals who fought over territory. Just because they suddenly held a meeting didn't mean they would become friendly with each other.

Judo of the Corsini family and Rade of the Illyrian gang engaged in a war of nerves as soon as they saw each other.

And there were several faces looking at him with displeasure.

A spy from the Levona intelligence agency, the last pirate of the Golden Sea who had now changed his profession to a smuggler, the Painters' Guild, and so on, were among them.

"Hey, can't we just get along without fighting for one day? We didn't gather for a good reason anyway."

"No, but let's just clarify one thing. Why on earth was the Painters' Guild attacked? In the first place, what right do you have to attend here?"

The Painters' Guild was a guild of a middle-ranking position among the twenty-five artisan guilds of Fasa.

Normally, they would have no business getting involved with such clandestine forces.

At that, a man reeking of paint cleared his throat with an awkward face. It was Ducho, a painter of some renown in Fasa.

"I can't tell you the details as it's a trade secret. I'll just say that our knives are quite sharp."

It was a simple hint, but everyone present understood its meaning.

'So those bastards have been carrying out assassinations while hiding their identity.'

'Well, if it's a knife used for oil painting, it's certainly possible to use it for assassination. And no one would suspect a painter.'

'They handle their business well with such an inconvenient tool.'

As the true identity of the Painters' Guild was revealed, a silence fell over the room.

"We all know that the people gathered here are not on good terms with each other. But let's just let it go for today. That's not what's important right now. I know that everyone has suffered considerable damage from this incident."

The Levona spy stepped forward as if to mediate. At that, the pirate-turned-smuggler glared at the Levona spy.

It was only a few months ago that Levona warships had wiped out the pirates. As a survivor of that incident, he was annoyed by the Levona dwarf.

"Hey, shorty. Let's say we suffered damage, but you guys don't have a business to lose anyway, do you? What kind of loss did you guys suffer?"

"We suffered damage in our own way."

"What damage?"

When it seemed the smuggler had no intention of letting him off the hook, the Levona spy reluctantly answered.

"Ahem, a few of our hideouts were destroyed, and we lost some competent agents. That's all I'll say."

"Ah, so that's why flames suddenly shot up the other day."

The people in the room exchanged glances.

'The reason these bastards are investing in Fasa is obvious.'

'They were obviously trying to kill someone.'

'It's obvious. There's only one person in Fasa that Levona would target.'

Most of the people present were engaged in foreign trade (?), so they also had knowledge of foreign affairs.

Knowing that Levona's specialty was the crossbow and knowing Levona's maritime policy, one could roughly deduce the conclusion.

Of course, no one argued about it. From the thieves' guild's perspective, they disliked Leon Gryph if anything, and had no reason to like him.

When you think about it, there was no one here who hadn't suffered a calamity at the hands of Leon Gryph.

This meeting could very well be called a gathering of Leon Gryph's victims.

"So what do you want to do? We're not just going to console each other and then disperse, are we?"

"There's only one thing to do. Let's join forces. And let's make them pay the price."

"When we don't even know who the enemy is?"

"We can just investigate that from now on. No, we can check after we kill them."

"Alright. Let's do that. Does anyone have any objections?"

"No, none."

"Yeah! Let's put aside our grudges for a while and make those guys pay the price!"

The enraged attendees unanimously resolved to stand against the mysterious force that had been raiding the back alleys of Fasa.

***

Meanwhile, Ceras, who was rummaging through the back alleys of Fasa, was not so comfortable either.

It was said that if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back at you, and she had witnessed another abyss in Fasa.

"Where is it this time? Sierra?"

"No. They're an informant for the Schwarzwald Emperor. The one we captured this time seems to be just a low-level operative."

"That damned old dragon is taking an interest this far? Is the King of Elance going to show up next?"

Instead of the red-eyed monster she was looking for, foreign intelligence organizations kept popping up, so Ceras was on the verge of getting pissed off.

How startled had she been when she encountered the Levona intelligence agency last time? How much trouble had she gone through to get away then?

Of course, it was understandable that the old dragon would be interested in Fasa. How interesting must the current events be, even in the eyes of a dragon.

But from the perspective of someone experiencing it, it was enough to make one curse.

"Damn it, is this some kind of bottomless pit? Things keep popping out endlessly. Or is this some fallen city from the holy scriptures? I think it is."

From behind, a subordinate made a thoughtless joke.

"No. Sir Ceras. Even so, we're on a secret mission, how can you use such harsh words? What if you blurt out those words in front of the faithful later?"

"..."

Ceras gave Eric a cold glance. Eric sighed deeply and grabbed the thoughtless subordinate by the shoulder.

"Shall we have a little chat?"

"Ah. Sir Eric, just a moment. No. I was just trying to change the mood."

"Just follow me quietly."

A moment later, a few dull thuds echoed from behind the alley. Eric returned with the subordinate, whose eyes were inexplicably red.

Only the apprentices looked around awkwardly and hunched their shoulders. Eric asked.

"Sir Ceras, what will you do? At this rate, the mission will be hindered. Everyone has reached their physical limits as well."

"I suppose so."

Even if they didn't show it, everyone was exhausted. Not to mention the apprentices who had no field experience.

At this rate, they would collapse from lack of stamina before they even encountered the monster. Ceras bit her lower lip.

"This won't do."

"Have you decided?"

"I am ashamed that we could not find the evil being, but we have no choice but to request reinforcements from headquarters again."

"I hope the bishop of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith grants our wish."

"We just have to find that monster this time. If we do that, we can make an excuse."

Obsession and resentment were so fully etched in Ceras' eyes that Eric could not bring himself to stop her.

In fact, Eric was just as pissed off. It was like peeling an onion; so many factions were hiding in this small city, and things just kept popping up.

Thus, a fateful battle was set to unfold between the Fasa Thieves' Guild and the Holy See's Inquisitor unit.

Meanwhile, Leon, unaware of what was happening in his backyard, was receiving an unexpected report.

"Huh? Why isn't the Painters' Guild open for business?"