Chapter 5: Blood Bang (1)

Outer City.

This is where the commoners live.

Unlike the slums outside the castle, which are mostly shanties, the outer city has well-constructed streets, restaurants, and even a square where people can rest.

Especially, the statue of Hephaistos at the center of the square was a symbol of Demetri.

'It’s noisy.'

The surroundings were loud.

Many people were coming and going, and the noise of vendors selling goods and customers buying them filled the air.

Roman walked down the street.

Naturally, many people recognized him.

Most of the Demetri family live inside the inner city, but Roman often went out to the outer city for entertainment and other pleasures.

In the process, Roman had caused trouble more than once.

People whispered quietly when they saw Roman, but they didn’t approach him or acknowledge him.

Respect for the noble family?

At least, it didn’t apply to Roman.

While the people of Demetri genuinely respected Baron Romero, they didn’t treat his wild son any better.

'Now, Blood Bang must know my position. They know that I, Roman Demetri, the target of their revenge, am walking the streets without a single guard.'

This was the reason he ventured into the outer city.

Roman walked the streets with Hans.

This was something he had often shown before, and when he judged that his position was sufficiently exposed, he deliberately left Hans at a safe restaurant.

Hans’ role was sufficient to that extent.

Hans’ presence was merely a point to make the enemy relax; Roman had no intention of putting him in danger.

'If Blood Bang is a group that doesn’t discriminate in their targets for revenge, now would be the perfect opportunity for them to strike.'

Today.

Roman’s outing was not a coincidence.

After being tasked by his father to deal with Blood Bang, Roman locked himself in his room and thoroughly investigated them. In fact, their military strength wasn’t that formidable. The Demetri knights could handle them, but the problem was that it was impossible to eliminate a loosely organized group all at once. That’s why people didn’t provoke Blood Bang. If they did and couldn’t completely eliminate them, they would have to live in constant fear of terrorism.

A force without a clear structure.

So, Roman made a plan.

If he couldn’t find them first, he would make them come to him.

"Today’s fish is fresh!"

"Silk from the South for just 1 gold!"

"Max, move faster!"

People bustled about.

Roman walked among them, calmly composing his emotions.

'Today is the day when the Demetri knights conduct regular training. The number of guards is significantly reduced compared to other times, so if something happens in the outer city, they won’t be able to respond quickly. Blood Bang wouldn’t want to miss such a day. The young master of Demetri, who goes out at unpredictable times, is walking the streets without a single guard on a day when the Demetri knights are training. This is a rare opportunity.'

Bait.

Roman made himself an attractive bait.

This method was often used in the martial arts world.

Even great assassins who didn’t leave a trace would pounce when a natural weakness was exposed.

'Three behind me.'

The tail was starting to form.

At first, a few people were watching from a distance, but now they were openly following him.

'Now, I’ll lure them.'

Naturally.

Roman turned and walked into a quiet alley.

This direction led to the entertainment district he often frequented, so Blood Bang wouldn’t suspect a thing.

He gently shook the bait.

To make them bite.

Roman hid his true intentions and disappeared into the depths of the alley with a cold expression.

* * *

"Sir Jonathan! Sir Jonathan!"

Jonathan, who had been guiding the knights’ training, frowned at the sight of Hans running up breathlessly.

"What is it?"

"D-D-Young Master, huff, is in danger, huff."

"Speak calmly."

Hans couldn’t speak properly due to his heavy breathing.

His face was pale from running from the outer city to here, but it was more important to inform Roman’s danger.

"Y-Young Master Roman is in danger!"

"Young Master?"

"Yes! Young Master went out to the outer city without a single guard, and it seems he intends to confront Blood Bang. If we leave him alone, who knows what might happen. We need to find Young Master as soon as possible!"

Hans’ voice was agitated.

While he was actively emphasizing how dangerous the situation was, Jonathan reacted with disbelief.

"Are you saying that Young Master Roman, who can’t even use a sword properly, went out alone to fight Blood Bang?"

"Yes!"

"Really absurd."

Jonathan chuckled.

He had been a knight of Demetri since Baron Romero received the Demetri territory and had taught the young masters of Demetri, including Roman. The other young masters showed excellent qualities as knights. They made rapid progress and advanced to the capital, but Roman was an exception.

A weakling among weaklings.

The biggest problem was his chicken chest.

Whenever he saw blood, he would collapse and tremble, so Jonathan judged that Roman had no talent as a knight.

Stupid and useless.

The evaluation of being a fool started from the knight’s squad.

It was natural for Jonathan to find it hard to believe that such a Roman had gone to confront Blood Bang.

"We don’t have time for this! We need to save Young Master quickly!"

Hans was frantic.

Jonathan was reluctant, but he couldn’t ignore Hans’ words.

'The lord also gave a special order.'

A few days ago.

Baron Romero called Jonathan and ordered him to assist Roman. The Demetri knights, including Jonathan, didn’t like Roman, but they couldn’t refuse the lord’s command, whom they followed like the sky.

If what Hans said was true.

The foolish fool had made a serious mistake.

Why would a guy who can’t even use a sword go out and provoke them?

Jonathan shouted.

"Arm yourselves immediately."

Clack, clack.

The knights lined up.

Jonathan, with a fierce look, looked down at Hans.

"Lead us to where Young Master is. We will not tolerate anyone touching the young master of Demetri on our land."

* * *

Thud, thud.

Footsteps echoed in the alley.

At first, the men quietly followed Roman’s steps, but as they entered a secluded area, they revealed their true colors.

Thud.

"Revenge for Blood Bang!"

It happened in an instant.

A man rushed at Roman and stabbed him with a dagger from his coat. It was a sudden, surprise attack. An ordinary person would have been helpless, but Roman’s reaction was quick.

Thud.

By a hair’s breadth.

Roman dodged to the side.

Then, he grabbed the man’s arm with his armpit and twisted it.

Snap.

"Ah, aaaaaah!"

The man screamed.

With his arm grotesquely twisted, he dropped the dagger, and Roman caught it and stabbed the man’s neck several times.

Blood spurted out like a fountain.

The man, with a pale face, tried to stop the blood gushing from his neck, but there was no way to stop the blood seeping through his fingers.

"Damn!"

"What the hell!"

The men’s expressions changed.

They drew their weapons and attacked Roman simultaneously.

Whoosh!

Weapons swung at Roman from all directions.

The sharp blades, reflecting the sunlight, glittered, but they failed to hit their target and only sliced the air.

The men’s expressions hardened.

The Roman they knew would never show such movements.

Thud!

"Ugh."

Roman’s kick hit the man’s abdomen.

The man, with a distorted face from pain, tried to counterattack, but Roman moved nimbly out of range.

When he finally found his opponent, Roman’s fist hit his face.

His head snapped back.

Blood gushed from his mouth, and his teeth fell out like corn kernels.

Next.

"Ah!"

Another man’s scream was heard.

While the man who was hit was still dazed, Roman’s dagger hit the other man’s thigh.

The men who fell to the ground.

Three were down in an instant.

The two men who were still alive, seeing their comrade with a hole in his neck, were terrified.

'This, this is Roman?'

The information was wrong.

No, the common sense was wrong.

The Roman they knew could never produce such a result.

"Are there only three of you?"

Roman’s voice was calm.

Roman wiped the blood from his face as if it was nothing and looked around to assess the situation.

There were no other enemies.

At least, that’s what Roman’s senses told him.

'No one in Blood Bang can hide from my senses.'

In the past few days.

Roman had made rapid physical progress in a short time.

It was impossible for an ordinary martial artist, but nothing was impossible for the Heavenly Demon, who had unified the martial arts world.

Heavenly Demon’s Divine Skill.

The best skill in the martial arts world developed Roman’s body just by breathing.

The Heavenly Demon’s memory and martial arts made such a miracle possible.

It would take considerable time for Roman to reach a satisfactory level, but even recovering 0.1% of his original power was enough to handle Blood Bang.

Roman caught his breath.

A trace of mana reacted in his dantian.

Roman’s body, which was far from mana, was already accumulating mana and entering a new realm.

"If you kill us, you won’t be safe either!"

"We are Blood Bang!"

The men struggled.

Terrified, they tried to break Roman’s will with words.

"Trying to threaten me after attempting assassination. Are you stupid, or do you have nothing else to say?"

Roman squatted in front of them.

He stabbed their legs again with the dagger.

Thud!

"Ah!"

"Answer only the questions I ask. If you answer honestly, I’ll give you a special chance to reform."

"W-What... ah!"

Thud!

"Answer only the questions I ask."

Roman looked into their eyes.

Their terrified eyes couldn’t meet Roman’s.

The method to eliminate a loosely organized group.

Simple but effective.

When you can’t find their true structure, start eliminating them from the bottom, and you’ll eventually reach the core.

Roman smiled.

"Who is your superior?"

The conversation was short.

The Blood Bang members tried to keep the information secret, but once the torture began, they quickly revealed it.

By cutting off their finger joints.

By gouging out their eyes.

They couldn’t withstand it.

"There’s a pub called Morning Dew. We receive our missions there. If you say a special password, they give you the mission. We don’t know anything beyond that."

"Good, you should have said that."

"Will you spare us, then?"

"No, the only way for scum to reform is through death."

Thud!

Roman stabbed the man’s heart with the dagger.

There was no guilt.

The Demon Sect was a world of the strong preying on the weak.

Showing mercy to the enemy was not a virtue of the Demon Sect.

Roman wiped the blood from his face with his sleeve and walked back to the bustling street.

'One by one, one by one.'

A smile appeared.

Roman knew.

He wasn’t a good person.

His heart pounded.

Emotions he hadn’t felt when he ruled as the best in the world came alive, stimulating his senses.

While the Demetri knights were in chaos.

Roman walked alone to the lair of Blood Bang.