Support the translator on
After an early
dinner, the five Chariot members, including myself, head for the guild.
My brother will stay
at the base.
We are going to subjugate
the bounty hunter Zozon, who slaughtered Shure’s cousin, and we will go to the
guild once to meet up with the official in charge.
When taking down a
bounty target, if it is done far from the city, it is reported after the fact,
but if it is found in the city and can be reported first, it is done in the
presence of the person in charge.
The purpose is to
confirm that the subjugated opponent is indeed a bounty target and to confirm
the damage to the surroundings that occurred during the subjugation.
Naturally, there are
many people who have committed heinous crimes who will be given bounties, and
it seems that it is not uncommon for them to be involved in large-scale
subjugation.
As a result, if there
is damage to nearby buildings or bystanders, if the person in charge of the
authorities is present, it will be possible to shoulder for them to cover the
damage and conclude it as self-defense smoothly.
The official in
charge was a sheepkin man in his twenties named Hugues, who looked very
capable.
He has a slender
sword hanging from his left hip and is sharp not only in appearance but also in
his body language.
He is the type of man
who is both an academic and martial artist, and he is probably blitzing ahead
on an elite course without ever experiencing a setback.
“Zozon, our target this time, had an opportunity to be captured in
another city about seven years ago, but he escaped when passersby were caught
up in a riot that resulted in the deaths of four people. This time, the people
who are around the target will probably get what they deserve if they are
involved, because of the location, but please try to take down the target
without causing any damage.” (Hugues)
Hugues does not wear
glasses, but if he did, he would be fixing his glasses while talking.
The way he looks at
the members of Chariot is also somewhat condescending, and to be honest, I
don’t think I’d like him very much.
In the guild meeting room,
while Laius was explaining the procedure for defeating the Zozon using a map,
he was listening with a crooked smile on the edge of his mouth, as if he was
not amused.
It seems that Hugues will
be watching from behind Laios as we subjugate Zozon.
However, he didn’t
interfere with the operation, so it seems he has no intention of interfering.
When we left the
guild at the appointed time, he was wearing a shabby robe over his
tight-fitting official uniform.
He seemed to be a man
with consideration in this area.
On the way to the slums
after leaving the guild, Hugues spoke to me as usual as I was being carried by
Shure.
“Are you the Nyango who helped arrest the attackers the day before
yesterday?” (Hugues)
“That’s right… what is it?” (Nyango)
“No, you just looked a lot different from what I had heard…”
(Hugues)
Well, I understand how
you feel. Anyone would think so if they saw me being carried in someone’s arms
like this, but please don’t say unnecessary things because it will put Shure in
a bad mood.
As for me, I want to
quickly clean things up and go home and snuggle up in the futon.
When we reached the
alley that borders the slums, we split up into our respective positions.
Gad moves alone to focus
on the west side of the street.
Laius and Shure will
enter from the east side with Hugues.
Shure is wearing a loose-fitting
robe and hood so that no one will think she is a woman.
I climbed up to the
roof with Serge.
“H-how are you floating in the air!?” (Hugues)
“Please don’t speak too loudly. This is void attribute magic.”
(Nyango)
“I see, it’s strong enough for another person to ride on…”
(Hugues)
Hugues shouted in
surprise as Serge, and I made our way up what appeared to be nothing.
The stairs up to the
roof had a handrail attached, but unlike me, Serge couldn’t see the stairs, so
he was just groping his way up.
“Even though I know it’s going to be okay, this still feels
weird.” (Serge)
“I can only say that you should get used to it.” (Nyango)
We reach a position
overlooking the slums, where the sun has completely set and the clientele has
begun to increase.
Shure, Laius, and
Hugues will start the ambush on the east side of the alleyway where the Zozon
will enter and exit.
Once Zozon is in
sight, they will signal me through a sound-collecting microphone, and I will be
responsible for transmitting the signal to Gad through a void attribute
speaker.
Serge sat down on the
roof with a short bow instead of the longbow he usually uses.
Gad leaned his large
shield against the wall of the alley and leaned himself against the wall of the
warehouse.
Shure and the others
seemed to be in position.
You might think that
a trio of two hooded people and Laius a lizardkin would stand out with their
suspicious-looking appearance, but in the slums, they are not as conspicuous.
On the street,
however, there are some more oddly dressed and dangerous-looking people.
Even if a blind deerkin
woman with a naked upper body walks swaying, people will lose interest after
glancing at her.
It seems that the
prostitutes are not interested in anything other than good customers who buy
them at a high price.
They don’t seem to be
willing to live together, hand in hand, despite their poverty.
They are just trying
to live for the day, and few of them have any hope for tomorrow.
“He’s here…” (Shure)
Shure’s signal is
transmitted to Gad, and Chariot begins to move.
Looking down from the
roof of the warehouse, Zozon, known here as Gor, walks up from my left.
Meanwhile, from the
right side, Shure, still wearing her hood, walks ahead, with Laius and Hugues
watching from about 20 meters behind.
Zozon, who was walking
toward me, waved his arm toward me as he faced forward.
With a series of
cracks, the [Shield] popped from something. It seemed to be black gravel or a
shuriken.
“Tsk…” (Zozon)
Zozonclicked his tongue
so loudly that it could be heard all the way up to the roof, and he glared at
me.
I have no intention
of hiding tonight or running away with my tail between my legs.
I was looking down from
the roof in a nonchalant manner, and when Zozon gave me an irritated look, Shure,
who had taken off his robe, called out to him.
“Zozon…” (Shure)
I guess he was
distracted by me, and after turning around in surprise at the sound of Shure’s
voice, Zozon, perhaps realizing his mistake, clicked his tongue again loudly.
The first thing that
he did was to look at Shure and see that she was no ordinary person, and he
opened his legs lightly and assumed a posture ready to move at any moment.
“Who are you?” (Zozon)
“I’m a relative of the owner of the dojo you killed thirteen years
ago.” (Shure)
“Oh, that good-natured and disgusting woman huh…” (Zozon)
“What did you kill her for?” (Shure)
“Because I didn’t like her eyes.” (Zozon)
As soon as Shure and
Zozon began confronting each other, the residents of the slums, sensing the
tense atmosphere, disappeared like spiders scattering.
The only ones left
were the men of our target, who had moved away to the back of Laius and Gad.
In the street, where
everyone but themselves was gone, Zozon began to recount an incident that
happened 13 years ago.
“No matter how much I make up for it, there are women who recognize my
true nature. …I had killed a woman and taken her money during my martial arts training
trip, but when I went to that dojo, I was really trying to reform myself. So, I
kept my head low, behaved politely, and acted like a decent person. I believed
that if I acted the part, eventually it would stop being an act and become a
routine, but that woman just looked at me… as if she was looking at me like I
was a snake.” (Zozon)
Whether it was a
woman’s intuition or the instinct of a mother with a child, Shure’s cousin Lilia
seemed to see, fear, and loathe Zozon’s true nature.
No matter how good
Zozon played the good guy, Lilia’s attitude never changed, he said.
“Even that night, I said to that disgusting woman I’d be the one acting
in front, but she told me to go home and leave my second disciple behind. I was
told by her not to go near the main house. Well, that’s why I killed her, I’ve
reached the limit of my patience!” (Zozon)
As he spoke, Zozon
held out his hands and raised his voice, as if remembering those days.
“Enough, I will kill you…” (Shure)
“Hmph, you’re… what? What’s going on… Gua!” (Zozon)
Zozon noticed the [Rubber
Ring] around his waist, and the arrows shot by Serge nailed his feet to the
ground.
“Damn you, you cowards!” (Zozon)
“Shut up… this is not a martial arts fight. There is no cowardice
or fairness in the extermination of a mere beast…” (Shure)
The right hand of Shure
moved like a lightning bolt, and the silver light from the sheath was sucked
into the right side of Zozon’s body.
Zozon tried to reach
for the sword on his waist, but since both of his arms were also fixed with [Rubber
Ring], there was no room left to resist.
“Guuuuu…” (Zozon)
When Zozon moaned, Shure’s
blade was already sheathed.
The area around his stomach
was probably gouged out, Zozon’s right flank was dyed red in an instant, and
the blood that flowed out ran down to his feet.
“Dam, damn it!” (Zozon)
“It’s no use struggling… They say those restraints can even bind a
Bronze Wolf, so there’s no way you’re going to get out of this one.”
(Shure)
At the mention of the
Bronze Wolf, Zozon came staring at me like a demon as I sat on the edge of the
roof.
“Shit! You coward… let’s fight, I’ll kill you!” (Zozon)
“Fufu, what are you talking about? The game is already decided. You
will die here…” (Shure)
The ranting Zozon was
pale to look at, and his breathing was becoming shallow.
I don’t know what
position he was in in the slums, but no one appeared to help the dying Zozon or
to say goodbye to him.
Of course, if anyone
tries to help Zozon, Serge is ready with the next arrow to stop them immediately,
and Laius and Gad are also keeping an eye on them.
Zozon, who had been
verbally abusing Shure, broke his knees with a jerk and was now supported by [Rubber
Ring].
Zozon’s heart broke
when his line of sight focused and Shure was looked down on him.
“H-help me, no… I don’t want to die…” (Zozon)
“Fufu…” (Shure)
The smile on Shure’s face
was chillingly ruthless and chillingly beautiful.
“No, no… I don’t want to die… I don’t want to die…
die…” (Zozon)
More strength was
lost from Zozon’s body, and his neck snapped with a jerk.
Shure cautiously
stepped around behind Zozon and once again struck the dagger from her waist,
gouging deep into the back of his neck to make sure to finish him off.
When Shure finished
the stabbing, Hugues, who had taken off his ragged robe, raised his voice and
declared that this was a legitimate bounty target being killed, and then I
carried Zozon’s body on a cart to his office.
A final check was made, Laius
signed the paperwork, and Zozon’s subjugation was finalized.
T/N: If you like the series rate, review it, and add it to your reading list on Novel Updates. You can also donate through Paypal or Ko-fi or subscribe to Lazy Translations. Thank you!
Support the translator on lazytranslations.com