CHAPTER 71: CHAPTER 71: FREE THE SLAVES [3]

Whenever Darwin’s father was dissatisfied, he would drag him out to beat him.

His entire life was like a punching bag for him to vent his anger at will.

What a despicable man.

"Damn it! Why am I so unlucky?!"

Fists and kicks rained down on Darwin’s thin body.

"...I’m sorry..."

Meanwhile, he could do nothing but lie there, taking the punches.

"Why did that bitch give birth to you!? And why do I have to be the one to raise you!"

Thud!

"It hurts..."

"Why doesn’t anyone feel sorry for me!?"

The punches continued.

Darwin, lying there trembling, muttered like a dying person:

"I am wrong...dad. Please forgive me..."

That was Darwin’s childhood.

While other children his age were bathed in sunlight, had plump bodies, and always had a sunny smile on their lips,...

...Darwin had to live in the dark.

Had a weak body.

And rarely smiled, let alone laughed out loud.

But, somehow, he was still able to survive through those days.

Because Darwin believed that...

"Happiness comes to those who wait..."

***

The journey from the 100th floor to the 90th floor for Kael’s group was really easy.

Indeed, they met many other guards, but because everyone was wearing uniforms, the guards didn’t ask much.

But, Alaric and Kaede were different from them.

No matter how one looked at it, the clothes the two of them were wearing didn’t match at all.

"Wait, who are these two?"

A guard stopped them, then glanced at The King and Drifting Aurora from top to bottom.

He was feeling suspicious.

But Kael wasn’t worried at all.

He had predicted this would happen from the start.

"They are VIPs who wanted to see the slaves with their own eyes, so I gave them special permission to come up here."

"Oh? VIPs?"

The guard and his companions raised their eyebrows.

Their tone also changed to a flattering one.

Sure enough, anyone who heard the word VIP would have a 180-degree change in attitude.

"Can we go now?"

Alaric interrupted.

His voice was authoritative, leaving no room for disobedience.

"Yes, yes, of course, please."

The guards stepped aside, making way for them.

"Ah, but I advise you to leave quickly, because we just received news that the slaves from the 100th floor have escaped."

"...Are they dangerous?"

"Of course. The fact that they escaped from there proves how dangerous they are."

"Is that so? Then do your jobs well."

With that, Kael’s group left.

"Yes! Have a nice tour!"

...

Even after his group was gone, the guards still stood there, waving, and smiling professionally.

"That VIP guest was really nice, huh?"

"Yeah, but it’s a shame we couldn’t escort him."

They continued chatting, not realizing that Kaede, now completely invisible, had returned.

With one goal in mind.

Killed them all.

That was Kael’s plan.

Tricked, and killed.

***

Their journey continued like that.

On this journey, thanks to Kael’s brilliant plan, many slaves from other floors were freed.

Along with that, many guards were killed.

This was a great success.

Floor 69.

"Wait, stop."

Suddenly, Alaric raised his hand, signaling everyone to stop.

Although they didn’t understand what was going on, the group had no intention of disobeying him.

"What’s going on?"

Hans stepped forward, glancing down the hallway in front of them.

Even the protagonist didn’t notice anything odd.

Yet, for some reason, The King was frowning.

"...I don’t sense anyone on this floor."

A drop of sweat ran down his forehead.

"So what?"

Kael tilted his head.

"Isn’t that normal?"

"No, it’s the opposite."

Something was not right.

"Normally, I can sense the presence of 2 to 3 people on every floor we pass. But on this floor, I can’t sense anyone..."

The King was worried?

Fuck!

He’s the fucking strongest!

"Moreover..."

"Moreover?"

"...I can sense that something bad is about to happen. My feelings have never betrayed me."

Unfortunately, Alaric didn’t know what was truly wrong.

Hence, it was still unknown to them.

As a natural reaction, everyone started to worry after hearing Alaric’s words.

But no matter what was ahead, they had to continue.

Because other than continuing, Kael’s group had no other choice.

Taking a deep breath, they walked.

Step one.

Everything was fine.

Step two.

Nothing monstrous jumped out of the darkness to kill them.

Step three.

It was still peaceful.

...

Step 34.

Still, nothing happened.

But, everything changed at step 35.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

From the darkness, holding a lamp, a muscular man stepped out.

"...He is very strong."

To the point that even Alaric was amazed.

"Who are you guys?"

Suddenly, the man stopped in front of Kael’s group, then spoke.

As expected, his target was them.

He clenched his fists, trying to stay calm in front of a powerful existence like him.

"Hello sir. We are..."

Just like before, he used the same lies to deceive this man.

"Hmm... So that’s how it is?"

The muscular man frowned, then rubbed his chin.

"Yes!"

He immediately replied.

"..."

The man glanced carefully at Kael’s group, then glanced at the place they had just gotten off from.

Finally, he moved aside.

"Have a safe journey. Try to get our VIPs out of here soon."

"Thank you very much!"

Feeling fortunate, he and the others continued their journey.

But at that moment, another unexpected event occurred.

An event that Kael could not have imagined even in his dreams.

"Wait."

The muscular man’s voice rang out once more.

It sounded gentle, but it was actually an order that could not be disobeyed.

Obviously, Kael’s group was forced to stop.

"Yes?"

Without turning to face him, he replied.

"I am the manager here."

So what?

Suddenly, he felt an ominous premonition.

"...And strangely enough, I have never heard of VIPs visiting, nor have I seen anyone like you."

"..."

"It’s strange, isn’t it?"

"..."

There was no need to say anything more.

The identities of Kael’s group had been exposed.

Without delay, he drew the weapon at his waist, then turned towards the muscular man.

Clang!

The next moment, the two swords crossed.

Signaling the beginning of a battle, where only one side could leave alive.