Chapter 36

"Even if you ask me, I think there are many things I don't understand."

Nixki humbly says this, but he has known them longer than I have. He knows more than I do. That's for sure.

"Still, you know more than I do."

I pause for a moment before asking my question.

"Wasn't the attack on the detention center this time a bit extreme?"

"Extreme...? ...Indeed, it does seem like Gustav is making things bigger than necessary..."

He looks down at the table.

"But, it's something he did. Maybe this was the most efficient way to handle it."

"I suppose, but I think it would have been much simpler to just cut me loose."

Or, if he had let me escape, it wouldn't have been so much trouble.

"Letting me escape would have been fine. If the resources I gather are so valuable, there are hideouts like this one. We could use this place for transactions. Eventually, I could return to the city."

"So, you're saying Gustav deliberately chose an inefficient method to harm the guards?"

"That's how it seems to me."

Of course, there might be a flaw in my thinking. In fact, that's more likely.

But if that fair-minded old man acted out of personal feelings, it would be a bit of an interesting story.

I realize as I think this that it's just a question out of curiosity.

It's a bit unfair to Nixki, who has been accompanying me, but even if I don't get an answer, it's not a problem.

"Or maybe Gustav has some bad feelings towards Bar or Haman?"

"Do they hate each other? Did they say it clearly?"

"No, it's just a feeling I got."

He once said something unnecessarily bad, which was unusual for him.

Crossing his arms, Nixki closes his eyes.

After thinking for a moment, he starts speaking slowly.

"...Gustav has people he dislikes too."

"Really..."

He seems to know something.

"I heard a bit about it before. It was when I had been an explorer for about ten years. An incident happened."

"Incident?"

"Yes, a common incident. In the city, a poor district resident tried to help a woman who was being attacked by thugs, but ended up being beaten instead."

"That's not a common incident I'd like to hear about."

Looking into the distance, Nixki speaks as if muttering.

"But, it's a common occurrence for poor district residents to be beaten."

That day, the poor district resident, a man named Galax, was on his way home from work.

Hearing a sudden scream, he peeked into an alley and discovered a woman being assaulted by thugs.

Galax was a man with a strong sense of justice.

Not only that, he was a good guy.

He had a good reputation at his workplace, and despite living in the poor district, he never lacked work.

He made a living by doing things like cleaning in front of stores, repainting signs, and repairing roofs.

That's the kind of man he was.

When Galax discovered the woman, he confronted the thugs.

"Stop it! What are you doing! Stop it!"

Thanks to Galax's intervention, the woman managed to escape.

It would have been fine if it had ended there.

If Galax had escaped, and everything had returned to normal, it would have been fine.

The thugs, angry at Galax, beat him up. Galax fought back and managed to drive them away, but he was seriously injured.

It was a terrible sight.

His whole body was bruised, and his clothes were stained dark.

That day ended there. That day.

Galax, barely alive, returned to the poor district and was arrested by the guards the next day.

The charge was an attempted assault on the woman.

The roles of the perpetrator and the victim were reversed in the guards' report.

Galax was said to have tried to assault the woman, and his injuries were from the men who tried to stop him.

Gustav, who was already the owner of the Stone House at the time, protested.

"Galax isn't that kind of person. If you investigate properly, you'll find the opposite."

But his protests were dismissed with the reasoning that "the word of a poor district resident can't be trusted."

Galax's injuries worsened during the interrogation.

He had internal injuries from the previous day, but the main cause was the guards' aggressive interrogation.

As a result, Galax died.

The woman who escaped and the thugs who attacked her are now unknown.

After finishing the story, Nixki closed his mouth.

"...It's a terrible incident, but... what does it have to do with anything?"

"At the time, Gustav was unusually upset. Galax was one of his favorites."

I can't imagine Gustav losing his composure, but apparently, he did.

"He got drunk and complained to me. He said he hated them. He hated the villains who pretend to be righteous and don't see reality, and he kept repeating it."

"So, those are the people Gustav hates?"

"Yes. ...I only saw Gustav drunk once in the past fifty years."

The people he hates are the "villains who pretend to be righteous and don't see reality," which in this case means the guards who don't investigate properly.

"So, it's not Bar or Haman, but the guards he hates?"

"That's probably part of it."

It made some sense.

"And he also said, 'If they don't uphold justice, then I'll be the villain. So, I won't forgive those who pretend to be righteous and do bad things.'"

"That's a line I can't imagine coming from the current Gustav."

Nixki nods.

"Gustav and I were both young back then."

The "villains who pretend to be righteous and do bad things" fit Haman and Bar.

So, they were right in the middle of the people Gustav hates.

"I see, it makes sense. This time, they touched Gustav's sore spot."

"Looking back, that's what it was."

Nixki also seemed impressed, twisting his lips.

"What does 'I'll be the villain' mean?"

"I don't know the exact meaning either. It's a story from thirty years ago. I'm not even sure if he really said it..."

He paused, looking at the corner of the room and thinking. Then, as if his thoughts had solidified, he turned to me and said,

"Probably, he wants to control the crimes committed by the poor district residents."

"Control crimes...?"

It sounds like a criminal organization.

"Using us, the explorers and merchants from the poor district, to interfere with crimes committed by people outside the poor district. And to fund crimes committed by poor district residents. He might have bought stolen goods from thieves."

"Funding... So, dealing with stolen goods and contraband is part of it?"

"If we buy stolen goods at higher prices than others, all stolen goods will end up at the Stone House. If we sell them cheaply, no one will buy stolen goods elsewhere. Eventually, all criminals will rely on the Stone House."

"Then, no one outside the Stone House will get involved in crime... That's a profitless approach."

Acting as a villain to force others to be good, without considering profit. It's hard to imagine from the current Gustav.

"Well, this is just my guess. He might not have thought about it at all."

"The boy... you said Crow, right? I don't know what Crow is thinking."

Nixki stands up, straightening his cloak.

"Do you have any thoughts about Gustav from this incident?"

"No?"

It's just curiosity.

"Crow, like Galax, is one of Gustav's favorites."

His gaze, which is fixed on me, shows no emotion. His brown eyes catch me straight on.

"So, don't die."

"Of course, I have no intention of dying."

I answered immediately.

Satisfied with my answer, Nixki smiles and pulls his hood over his face.

"I've said too much. ...See you later."

He opens the door and disappears into the forest in an instant.

Alone in the cabin, I feel drained and stare blankly at the wall.

Out of curiosity, I learned about an incident from the past.

The story seemed to veer off track at times, but I feel like I understand the general situation.

But, I don't really know. The latter part of Gustav's thoughts is mostly Nixki's speculation.

I have no intention of asking Gustav about the details.

The slight sense of unease I felt about Gustav being strict with Haman and the others seems to touch on some serious matters.

I can't delve into them. I'm just a regular customer at the Stone House.

It's something I can forget. I'll try not to think about it.

Consciously trying not to think about it, I open the package.

I untie the string and remove the thick paper wrapping the book.

I'll spend the rest of the day reading the book I ordered.