Chapter 53

<53. Mole (2)>

"Push forward...!"

"Uaaaaaaah——!"

At the entrance of the giant sewer adjacent to Area X and Area W, dozens of beggars were engaged in a fierce struggle.

Though their only weapons were clubs and knives, none of those fighting were lukewarm.

They were desperate, fighting for their meager strength and survival.

"Die! Die! Die!"

"Feeling good when you had more numbers, huh? Damn bastards!"

"Try making a fuss again!"

Bip, the pimp from Street 2 of Area W.

Aron, the errand boy from Street 17 of Area W.

Hammer, the bald leader from Street 25 of Area W.

Mouse, the cleaner from Street 42 of Area W.

Numerous beggar gang leaders led their subordinates under Kent's command to attack the moles.

Of course, it was a natural outcome.

While the moles were expanding their influence and accumulating grudges here and there, Kent, who was highly respected, appeared with all his wealth and proposed to fight together.

Well... besides such sentimental reasons, there was also a more realistic and direct reason.

"Max, Butter, Buddy, Milk. Bite!"

An old man with dogs appeared from below the moles and shouted.

The obedient dogs, upon receiving their master's command, instantly transformed into fierce beasts, baring their white fangs and charging forward.

Grrr... Woof! Woof!

Crunch...! Woof! Woof!

Woof! Grrr——! Grrrrrr!

Woof! Woof! Kyaa——!

"Alright, hold on... Gaaaah-! My leg! Leg!!"

"Shit! My dick! Shit dick! Get it off! Get it off! Aaaah-!!!"

The appearance of the fierce dogs momentarily stunned the beggar alliance, which had been advancing with high morale.

Indeed, the old man with the dogs, who had lived as a strongman in Area W all his life, was a formidable figure.

In the meantime, about half a dozen beggars armed with shotguns, revolvers, and pistols appeared at the entrance.

"Idiots! Our equipment is different from yours. Equipment!"

"We'll turn you all into sieves! Die!"

With that, they pulled the triggers... or rather, tried to.

[Shadow Spike]

A shadow stretched out with the prison.

Along with it, stakes sprang up from the ground, piercing the bodies of the armed beggars simultaneously.

Pierce! Pierce! Pierce! Pierce! Pierce! Pierce!

"......!"

Oliver, with a hood over his face, appeared among the frightened beggars.

The beggars on the mole side immediately panicked upon seeing Oliver, who used black magic.

The only one who mustered the courage was the old man with the dogs.

"Kids! Bite!"

However, only the owner had the courage.

The fierce dogs, upon seeing Oliver, were terrified. They literally flattened their ears, curled their tails, and cowered.

"Keeeee...."

"Kids, kids?"

"Dogs seem to be afraid of black magic, too."

Quartersstaff Kent appeared in front of the old man with the dogs and said,

"Ha, shit... You brought a black magician, and it's not just a fake, but a real black magician."

"Half right, half wrong."

"What?"

"I'll explain later. For now, let's rest."

Kent swung his Quartersstaff and knocked out the old man with the dogs.

Oliver silently watched this, and Kent explained as if making an excuse.

"...Because he's a friend of the acolyte."

"Ah....."

Someone stepped forward among the beggars.

A bald man with a scruffy beard, the leader of Street 25, Hammer.

"Great! Great!! Great!!! You really brought a proper... black magician, Kent!"

Hammer, holding a sledgehammer, observed Oliver and said,

"If we had someone like you earlier, we could have brought you in! Then, we wouldn't have struggled so much."

"..... It's not as easy as it sounds."

"Ha ha! That's true. Someone like you...! Alright, kids! Let's go break the heads of the rest of the mole bastards!"

"Uaaaaaaah-!"

Led by Hammer, the beggars re-entered the mole's lair.

The beggars guarding the sewer passage had long fled, so Kent's beggar alliance flowed in smoothly.

Of course, Kent also followed Oliver.

"Amazing. I didn't think the moles would really have their nest here when you said so."

"Really?"

Kent examined the dry sewer wall and said,

"Didn't I tell you before? Randa had a major downfall in the past."

"Yes... due to some disaster."

"Right, divine punishment, demon summoning, failed magic experiments, and many other reasons. Before the mages and capitalists rebuilt this city, it was a cursed ruin."

"Yes, I remember."

"But, it wasn't all rebuilt. Sometimes, contaminated life forms appear in sparsely populated or long-abandoned areas. This place was once like that, too."

"..... Then, now?"

"That's the problem... The fact that the moles are using this place as their lair suggests that there is a force that can clean up the contaminated life forms living here. If the rumors are true—"

"-Gaaaah!"

Before Kent could finish, a scream came from ahead.

More specifically, from the end of the sewer passage, a huge space.

Surprisingly, a creature larger and more grotesque than a human was attacking the beggars.

Keehaaaaaaa—!

Keehaaa—!

Keehaaa—!

A chilling and terrifying cry.

It resembled a hairless rat.

Standing between 2 and 3 meters tall.

Its body was covered in wrinkles, and its skin was mottled and diseased-looking.

Its orange front teeth were extremely long, and even more horrifying were the open wounds and pus and maggots oozing from its body.

So grotesque that the large nail embedded in its head and the flask containing life force were relatively less noticeable.

"Oh, my God... "

Hammer, leading the charge, trembled with fear and disgust, seeking the divine.

The nameless, terrifying creature was eating a beggar's stomach alive, which was a natural reaction.

Splat— Splat— Thud— Thud— Thud— Splat—

The stomach was opened, and the flesh, organs, and blood of the eaten person flowed out.

Then, someone spoke.

"You bastards... Finally invaded my kingdom?"

A man with a small baton in one hand and a necklace with an eyeball pendant around his neck appeared among the creatures.

Someone called him Mole.

The creature, seemingly hungry, snarled and lunged at the Mole, but only for a moment.

Sssss... Kiiiiik—!

When it tried to bite the Mole, the creature shook its head in pain.

"You, you're controlling that monster...?"

Someone exclaimed in surprise.

Mole, with heightened momentum, said,

"Right, you beggar bastards. Did you think I would only rely on beggars who are after money? Rather, it's good. I'll clean you all up. Are you hungry?! Eat!"

Several contaminated life forms charged forward.

The beggars, turning back the way they came, desperately shouted,

"Black magician! Yes! Call the black magician!"

"Black magician?! Ha ha ha! It doesn't matter who you bring! Your half-hearted firepower won't kill them all. Compared to the one behind me—!"

[Bind Shadow]

With Oliver's gesture, the contaminated life forms rushing forward were bound by shadow tentacles.

Kiiiiiiik—!

Sssss... Kiiiiik—!

Kaaaaaaah Keehaaa—!

The creature thrashed and struggled, but the more it did, the more the shadow tentacles rising from the ground pressed down on it.

The beggars, who had been fleeing just moments ago, and Mole, who had been boasting, were stunned by the ease with which the creature was subdued.

As if they couldn't understand what was happening.

"Wh...?"

Amid the silence, someone spoke.

"Excuse me for a moment."

Oliver, with a hood over his head, appeared and politely asked the beggars to step aside.

The beggars, frozen in place, moved as Oliver requested, and Oliver thanked them each time.

Thus, Oliver, standing before everyone, looked at the captured creature and said,

"Oh... What is this?"

Kent, feeling both absurd and afraid, replied,

"....Naked mole rat. A contaminated life form living in abandoned sewers. It's low-grade but still a dangerous creature that hunts humans. I hunted a few during my bounty hunter days."

Oliver nodded and examined the naked mole rat.

The foul smell and grotesque appearance seemed irrelevant.

Or rather, he didn't seem to notice them at all.

"....Interesting? I designed it to transfer control of a zombie, an easily controlled animal, to someone other than a necromancer, and to make it more stable and enduring through hunger rather than anger or hatred. Impressive."

Oliver tapped the open stomach and the nail embedded in the head, and the flask containing condensed life force, and said.

The naked mole rat zombie, suffering from hunger, gnashed its large front teeth at Oliver, who was observing it, but Oliver found this interesting.

"It's a zombie, and its hunger can never be satisfied. Unfulfilled desire becomes the driving force... Simple but effective. You seem to be a skilled black magician."

"Quite a dirty story."

"Is it?"

"From our perspective... Sorry, but can you get rid of those monsters? Everyone is scared."

Oliver looked at the naked mole rat with a hint of regret and extended his hand into the air.

He then extracted the life force of the naked mole rat zombie.

It was a state of complete subjugation, yet it was still impressive. The actual performer didn't seem to fully realize it.

".......!!!"

Oliver, sensing a gaze, turned his head toward Mole.

"Hmm... Mr. Kent. I want to examine this personally. Can I take care of it?"

"...Do as you please, Mr. Black Magician. But now, it's time to settle the score."

Kent aimed his Quartersstaff at Mole's neck.

The