Chapter 32

That was a desolate area. It was a dirty place to live. Abandoned buildings lined up, and plywood boards were placed haphazardly in the window frames, connecting the abandoned buildings. There were many narrow alleys, and some places were blocked by lockers and abandoned vehicles.

The pedestrian bridge looked like a garbage dump, with monster bones tied with ropes hanging from the bridge. The shops barely existed, with windows covered by boards, empty shelves, and muscular men who seemed accustomed to violence manning the stores.

The residents had various faces: some looked tired, some had sharp eyes as if looking for something, and some looked listless.

If ordinary people ventured in, they wouldn't come out unscathed. Men would be stripped naked and found dead in the gutters, and women would be assaulted and sold to brothels. It was a dangerous place where even the police wouldn't enter, a lawless area. A slum existed there.

It was a melting pot of criminals and impoverished people, including robbers, hitmen, homeless people, prostitutes, and drug dealers. Fights and killings were not uncommon in this area, but today was different.

Several abandoned buildings had collapsed, and dust was rising and falling like ash. The dust covered the ground, and the bodies of those who had fallen were disappearing.

Flames were shooting out of houses that looked like they were about to collapse, spreading the fire. Usually, when someone died, the hyenas who would strip the body would target them, but this time, they realized the danger and fled, screaming, turning the area into a hell of screams and cries.

Amid the flames, smoke, and the smell of death and blood, figures in black robes stood with blood-dripping swords in their hands.

One of the robed figures found a thin, trembling woman who had been left behind and, without emotion, swung his sword to kill her casually.

The woman screamed and fell. As the robed figures advanced, a fireball flew at their feet. It exploded with a loud noise, scattering flames, but the targeted figure had already jumped back.

"What the hell, you bastards!"

A woman's angry voice echoed, and dozens of people appeared with heavy footsteps. They were armed with iron pipes, knives, and pistols.

There were three times as many of them as the robed figures. A girl, who seemed to be the leader, descended from the sky, her anger palpable. She still had a hint of youth, but her eyes were wild, showing the ferocity of someone accustomed to violence.

"Hey, are you the leader here?"

One of the robed figures stepped forward, cracking his shoulders as if he was bothered, and spoke with a relaxed tone.

"Yeah! I'm Yoko! Yoko of the Nine Tails! I'm the boss of this territory! What the hell are you doing in my territory?"

The girl had fox ears and a fox tail, which were invisible to humans. She was clearly a mage. Due to the dirt, her fox ears and tail were as thin and dirty as burdock roots.

"Ah, I see. I'm not a resident of this filthy place. Do you really live in such a garbage dump?"

The man laughed mockingly, digging his ear. Yoko's face turned angry.

"This is my home!"

"You seem to have some power. I see, in a place like this, you can be the king of the mountain. In a place like this."

"You bastard!"

As the robed man laughed, one of Yoko's companions, unable to contain his anger, rushed out, raising an iron pipe and bringing it down mercilessly on the man's head. The man, however, didn't even try to escape, and his lips twisted into a smirk.

With a solid thud, the man felt the impact and smirked, but the next moment, his expression turned to shock.

When the robed man removed his hood, there was not a single scratch on him. He grabbed the man's face with his hand and lifted the adult with one hand. The man in the robe had blonde hair and golden eyes.

"Ugh, you guys stink. Have you taken a bath recently?"

"Let me go, you bastard!"

As the man struggled, the robed man applied more force to his hand.

Crunch

The man's head shattered like a watermelon, spilling brain matter and blood, and he stopped moving.

The robed man tossed the body aside, flexing his arms.

"I am Frungnir, one of the executives of 'Nidhogg.' I act to change the world for the better. You know, like a hero."

"Bullshit! You killed my comrades!"

"Hey, hey, he attacked first. I was just defending myself."

Yoko waved her arm and shouted at the smirking Frungnir.

"What are you talking about! You've been killing the people who lived here!"

"Yeah, that's right. It's called necessary expenses. You see, by killing a lot of people, the boss of this territory would come out. It was necessary for that. Besides, they were unproductive. It wouldn't have mattered if they were killed, right?"

"J-Just for that?"

Yoko felt fear at his casual tone and asked, but Frungnir nodded nonchalantly.

"They were a group of criminals. It would have been fine to kill them, right?"

"Bullshit! We're still alive!"

Indeed, they were a group of criminals. Theft was common, and they drank, sold their bodies, and used drugs. They would even kill for the right price.

But to Yoko, who had grown up there, they were important comrades.

"Ha! Killing a group of criminals, you might even get a thank you, but not hate. You scum. ...Anyway, do you know about magical artifacts? There's a forehead crown made of earth. I came here because I finally got information that it's here. I failed six years ago. That was a mistake."

Yoko's face paled at Frungnir's words, and she bit her lip, glaring back.

"Forehead crown of earth? You mean the robbers who broke in here?"

"Huh? ...Could you be the only kid who escaped? Oh, you're still alive? I thought you were dead when I couldn't find you among your relatives."

"You... You're the one who killed my family! I'll kill you! Attack, everyone!"

Yoko's vision turned red, and she shouted. Her companions, each armed with their weapons, charged at Frungnir.

"Right, if the kid who escaped is here, the magical artifact must be here too! I won't let it escape!"

Yoko's companions attacked Frungnir. Yoko created a flame in her palm and glared at her enemy with hatred.

"On that day, when you broke in, my parents let me escape. With my brother..."

Yoko, who had no power, was given a few magical artifacts and told to escape. Her parents promised to come for her soon.

...But her parents never came, and Yoko wandered aimlessly with her brother... Eventually, her brother died, and now Yoko only had a few magical artifacts left. She was the boss of a small group in the slum, awakened to 'Mana.' That was her.

She had survived by getting her hands dirty with crime, driven by a desire for revenge. And now, her enemy was right in front of her.

"I'll definitely kill you!"

'Fox Fire'

She fired several fireballs from her palm. Frungnir, with a relaxed expression, held out his palm and deflected the fireballs.

"Hah! I won't lose to someone who hasn't even been properly taught how to use 'Mana'!"

"You bastard!"

Yoko used the physical abilities of a fox person, leaping into the air and firing 'Fox Fire.' Frungnir easily deflected her attack and, as an afterthought, crushed her companions with his powerful punches. The impact was like a missile, and the areas hit exploded, killing them.

"These guys are all mages!"

"Kurata was killed!"

"Guns don't work!"

Unbelievably, Frungnir's companions were mages with animal-like speed. Iron pipes were deflected, knives didn't pierce, and bullets had no effect. They were killed with swords.

"Hahaha, look at your subordinates. They're trash, unable to even scratch us."

"Damn it. Don't underestimate me!"

'Mirage'

Yoko played her trump card. Her figure disappeared in a mist, and even her presence vanished.

"Ho, not bad. I can't even find you."

Yoko laughed and silently slipped into Frungnir's range. While others couldn't even scratch him, she was a mage. A short sword imbued with 'Mana' could hurt him.

With a whoosh, Yoko's short sword sliced into Frungnir's neck.

"Hah, take that!"

Her attack revealed her position, but Yoko was confident in her victory.

"Nice one, girl!"

"What!"

To her shock, Yoko's attack only left a red welt on Frungnir's neck. Despite her full-force attack, it had no effect, and she was left stunned.

Frungnir didn't miss the opportunity.

"It's over. I'll throw you in the trash."

A crystal spear formed in his palm and pierced Yoko's chest. Yoko was killed without being able to take her revenge.

That was the end of Tamamo's nightmare. She would forget the content when she woke up, but it was a recurring nightmare that made her too scared to sleep, and she would cry and sleep with her parents.

But today was different.

She blinked and realized she was unharmed. Moreover, her appearance had changed.

"What the hell are you?"

It wasn't the slum. It was an unknown place.

For some reason, Frungnir was on his knees, looking anxious.

"Huh? You don't know my name? So you must be a regular character."

In front of Tamamo was a beautiful girl with silver-gray hair, her face fierce like a wild animal, baring her fangs in a smile. A few others stood around her, but they were shadows and couldn't be seen clearly.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm just air. Being a mob is sad, isn't it?"

Confused and bewildered, Frungnir laughed, and the gray-haired girl raised her hand. She said something, and a flash of light appeared... and Tamamo woke up.

She opened her eyes and felt as if she had had a scary dream, but it turned into a happy one, and she smiled. She somehow knew that nothing sad would happen anymore.

"Mnya. Hornbearcow, bear, cow?"

En-chan, who was sleeping next to her, was talking in her sleep. Tamamo found it funny and poked En-chan's cheek.

"Good morning, En-chan."

"Good morning, Tamamo-chan."

Seeing En-chan's sleepy response, Tamamo's heart felt warm.

After that, she never had the same nightmare again.