Chapter 34

◈ Chapter 34: Steps Toward the Truth (3)

Rudger still couldn't forget that moment.

The clear eyes that looked up at him while licking his injured mother.

The purity that even thanked him with a smile as he used magic to kill her.

He couldn't forget.

Absolutely, he couldn't forget.

“I, I don't know! How would I know! Who are you, anyway!”

“Don’t know?”

Rudger threw Belbort Rikson, whom he had grabbed by the collar, to the ground.

Belbort, whose body had weakened with age, fell to the floor and clutched his waist.

“Guh. What are you?”

“Do you know what this is?”

Rudger took out an experimental drug he had prepared in advance from his pocket and tossed it in front of Belbort.

The transparent glass tube contained a red liquid that looked like melted rubies.

Belbort, who had ordered the creation of this, couldn't possibly not recognize it.

“This, this is...”

“Do you understand now?”

“What do you want from me? Money?”

Belbort realized that his opponent had a hold on his weakness and took a submissive stance.

Not only could this person sneak into his room undetected, but he also had the experimental drug that Belbort had been involved with.

Could it be the Nightcrawlers from the Security Bureau?

‘Damn! How do those bug brothers handle things!’

Does he think I invested a fortune for nothing?

The experimental subject didn't escape, and this unknown person even found his residence.

But he couldn't express his dissatisfaction right away.

Whoever this man was, he undoubtedly held the key to Belbort's life.

“Well, I won’t hold you accountable for sneaking in. And you, since you came here secretly, must have something you want, right?”

“Something I want?”

“Yes. What do you want? Money? I have plenty. I can give you as much as you want.”

But the answer Rudger received far exceeded Belbort's expectations.

“Answer.”

“What, what?”

“Answer the question I just asked.”

“The question you asked...”

Belbort tried to recall the question Rudger had asked, thinking as hard as he could.

It was something about a 7-year-old child.

Belbort tentatively spoke.

“Did you, by any chance, eliminate that escaped experimental subject?”

“...”

“Ha ha! That’s it! It was you! You should have just said so. Ahem. Let’s say we had a misunderstanding. Thanks to you, the situation didn’t escalate too much.”

“Answer my question first.”

“Ah, I understand! The 7-year-old child, the experimental subject, right? What’s the problem? He had already become a monster, and it would have been better to kill him before others found out.”

“...”

“After all, they are just lower-class citizens, people who might not even be noticed if they existed. How many of them die, does it really matter? Instead, they made a significant contribution by sacrificing their lives to complete the drug that brings youth to humans.”

Noble sacrifice.

Belbort Rikson truly believed that.

Whether a few workers or poor people died, what did it have to do with him?

Those lowly beings who were of no help to society.

If they could serve as experimental subjects to develop a drug that brings youth to humans, wouldn’t that be a contribution to him, and even to humanity?

“Even if a dirty commoner sweats and toils in a factory every day, how much money could they really earn?”

It would be much more productive to use their meaningless lives in a more valuable way.

Being an experimental subject for drug development.

That was what it meant to Belbort.

“Is that enough of an answer?”

“Yes. That’s enough.”

“Then...”

“It’s too cold and excessive.”

Crack!

Rudger grabbed Belbort by the throat.

Belbort, eyes wide open, grabbed Rudger’s arms with both hands, but Rudger’s grip was too strong for his aged body to resist.

“Gurk! Why, why!”

I answered properly!

Belbort’s eyes protested to Rudger.

Instead of answering, Rudger brought the bottle containing the drug he had brought and poured it into Belbort’s mouth.

Gurgle!

Belbort tried to resist desperately, but with his throat held, it was impossible.

Swallow.

The red drug flowed down Belbort’s throat.

At the same time, changes began to occur in Belbort’s body.

“Gurk! Gaaaaah!”

With a pain as if his body was being torn apart, Belbort’s flesh began to swell.

Rudger released Belbort’s throat and stepped back to watch the scene.

The skin, wrinkled by the passage of time, became taut and then split, with hair growing out.

But his transformation didn’t stop there.

The hair that grew fell out, revealing a bright red, naked skin that began to swell like foam.

Belbort had drunk all the drug in the bottle.

In reality, the experimental subjects had only received a small amount of the drug, and even that had caused severe mutations.

The amount Belbort, who was already old, had consumed far exceeded the standard.

“Gaaaaah! Why! Why!!!”

Even as his body was being torn and twisted, Belbort could only scream at Rudger.

His face contorted strangely, half blending with the appearance of a beast.

The sound that came from Belbort’s throat was neither a human cry nor a beast’s howl, but something else.

Gaaaaah!!!

“No matter what I say, you won’t repent, nor will you even understand me.”

Then it doesn’t matter if you don’t understand.

Instead, feel the pain you inflicted on others.

Rudger canceled the sound-blocking magic he had cast.

Ding ding ding ding ding!

At the same time, the alarm, sensitive to magical power, rang throughout the mansion. This was followed by the howls of the monster that Belbort had become.

Gaaaaah!

“What’s that sound?!”

“It’s an intruder! It came from Mr. Belbort’s room!”

“Mr. Belbort! Mr. Belbort!”

Bang! Bang!

The guards outside pounded on the door.

After a moment, the locked door broke and sturdy men rushed in.

Among them was a freelance magician hired to protect Belbort.

“A, a monster!”

“Where did such a monster come from?”

“Everyone, back off!”

The magician immediately cast a fire spell to burn the monster.

The monster, despite its bizarre appearance, burned easily.

Its tenacity was such that it regenerated while burning, and then burned again, a cycle that continued.

The magician, sensing the danger, poured all his magical power into the flames.

An hour later.

The monster’s body, unable to regenerate any further, collapsed.

“Huff. Huff. Finally, it’s over.”

“What about Mr. Belbort?”

“Find him!”

No matter how bad-tempered a person he was, Belbort was their employer who paid their salaries, so the people were determined to find Belbort Rikson.

But no matter how much they searched, Belbort was nowhere to be found, and there was no trace of him.

In the end, everyone at the scene could only conclude that Belbort Rikson had been eaten by the monster.

Such an absurd situation.

At the same time, they didn’t know.

The secret safe hidden in Belbort’s room.

The safe containing Belbort’s wealth, hidden in a secret space behind a large portrait.

Had been stolen by someone.

* * *

“Here?”

The hideout Hans told him about was a shabby house deep in the alleys of the commercial district of Leathbark.

The worn-out sign, creaking door, and oil-stained exterior and windows.

But the interior was clean and odorless, contrary to its appearance.

It looked like an ordinary bar, but that was just an illusion.

“Not a bad place you picked.”

“It’s in the commercial district adjacent to the factory area. It took some effort to secure it.”

“What about the surroundings?”

“The investigation isn’t complete yet, but the back alleys of Leathbark are quite complex. More time is needed.”

“I see.”

Rudger placed the safe he had brought on the floor.

With a thud, Hans’ eyes widened.

“What’s that? It must have taken some effort to bring it here.”

“Not really.”

“So this is a safe? It looks like one.”

“Yes. It was secured with magic, but I removed the security on the way, so you can open it right away.”

Hans didn’t refuse.

After opening the safe and checking its contents, Hans immediately closed it.

“...Too much?”

“Use some of it for our work. Hide the rest in a suitable place.”

“Well, if you say so, I don’t mind. Are you leaving now?”

“Yes.”

“You look tired. Why not rest a bit? I have a room set aside for you.”

“I’ll check it later. I’ll probably come back soon anyway.”

“What identity will you use then?”

“The most fitting one for moving in the underworld.”

“Oh, that one?”

Hans didn’t ask any more. Rudger must have been quite exhausted from today’s fight.

“Get some rest. I’ll finish my business as quickly as possible.”

“Thanks.”

Rudger left the hideout with weary steps.

The air in the back alley, where no one walked, felt sticky and clung to his skin like glue.

Every time he walked down the smelly street, he could feel eyes from the deeper darkness of the alleyways watching him.

The hyenas of the back alleys.

They scrutinized Rudger and then, realizing he was not someone they could mess with, backed off.

When he finally emerged from the alley, Rudger removed the hood covering his head and the scarf covering his mouth and nose.

Looking at the Remzian River, where a few steamships still cruised, the sound of a large bell from the clock tower standing tall in the center of Leathbark echoed.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

It was the sound of midnight.

Rudger continued to stare at the Remzian River, filled with darkness.

Until the memory of the eyes of that child, which had looked at him, completely washed away in the river.

* * *

[The Death of Wealthy Belbort Rikson]

This was the headline on the front page of the newspaper issued the next day in Leathbark.

The death of the notorious businessman and one of Leathbark’s wealthiest, Belbort, was enough to stir the city.

Especially if his cause of death was a werewolf attack, it would be even more significant.

The monster was eliminated by a magician guarding the interior of the mansion, but Belbort’s death was a major issue.

Some said Belbort had received divine punishment, while others claimed he had been burned by a dark magic he couldn’t control.

Reporters clamored for days in front of the Rikson mansion, demanding to be let in.

Squeak.

At that moment, a black car stopped behind the reporters.

“Huh?”

The reporters, curious, watched the people getting out of the car.

Who are they?

Three people got out, all dressed in the same uniform.

Black uniforms with gold badges.

The reporters’ eyes widened in recognition of the uniform known as the Black Coat, which only authorized personnel could wear.

“The Security Bureau!”

“And it’s the Nightcrawlers!”

The Security Bureau is not a particularly secretive organization. Rather, it is known for its immense reputation in the open and its terrifying infamy in the shadows.

The reporters swallowed hard.

They had come to the mansion’s entrance for a scoop, but if the Security Bureau was involved, the story would be different.

Exclusive.

One word kept circling in the reporters’ minds.

‘This isn’t right. I won’t be able to get inside anyway, but I need to write something related to the Security Bureau.’

‘If the Security Bureau is involved, it must be a significant matter. And the person leading them...’

The cold silver hair contrasting sharply with the black coat adorned with gold and red tassels.

The sharp-featured woman, who had pushed her hair back to reveal her forehead, was a very famous person.

Tirina Ryanholt.

The head of the Ryanholt family, symbolizing the protection of the empire.

And the leader of the Nightcrawlers, a knight order under the Security Bureau.

Her well-known nickname was the Lord Protector.

The roar of the lion, which had cut down countless threats to the empire, had become a symbolic phrase for her.

As Tirina moved toward the mansion with an unrelenting stride, the reporters parted to make way for her.

Her sharp charisma made her the idol of all female knights in the empire.

“Open the door.”

Even the guards at the entrance broke into a cold sweat when the Security Bureau appeared.

“B, but no one is allowed to enter...”

“Door.”

Tirina pointed at the guard with her finger.

“Open it.”

“Yes, yes!”

The pale guard immediately moved.

The tightly closed gates of the Rikson mansion swung open.