[Translator – Prøks]
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Chapter 9
Sein sat crookedly on the desk, resting his chin on his hand.
“I apologize!”
Starting with the dock of the one-eyed Cyclops.
“I apologize!!!”
The toothless apology rang out.
This is the home of the Cyclops.
He had taken over his territory.
It was simple.
First beat up the cyclops to near-death position and then drag his feet through the streets for his minions to see.
“So why block the path for people walking quietly?”
So many rules and regulations in the back alleys.
But there’s always one that stands above them all.
“I apologize…”
It was power.
“Do you have any complaints?”
“Oh! No, sir!”
The Cyclops immediately responded to Sein’s question.
“That’s how it should be.”
Eyes lowered.
“If you try to take advantage of Demorus, you’ll have to pay for it.”
Hmmph
It was a different reaction from before.
“Why, did you think I didn’t know?”
The Cyclops came out to greet him as soon as they heard the news.
It seemed like they were extending a hand of friendship, but there was likely a hidden agenda behind it.
“You guys are shitty in the back alleys of Borpeo, aren’t you?”
“…….”
“Your territory’s shrinking, and your people have probably split off.”
“Yeah….”
It was a predictable story.
Sein Demorus, the mad dog of Chichiron.
The fact that the name was first on the list proved they were desperate to do something.
If the Cyclops gang had any power, they would have stayed back and watched the situation unfold.
“Some kid comes in here with a few men, campaigning, and you think if you scratch his back, he’ll do what you want.”
“Oh, no!”
Bam!
Sein raised his foot and brought it down on the Cyclops’ head.
“No? What do you mean no? If I hadn’t provoked you, you would have half-killed me and somehow tried to use me.”
“We apologize…”
The Cyclops eventually admitted.
“But why did you shrink so much?”
Sein, with his chin in his hand, asked again.
The Cyclops before him.
He possessed skills that didn’t suit the back alleys.
Considering he was from the city of Borpeo, it was somewhat understandable.
‘Three times.’
Though he didn’t display his true skills, the Cyclops had managed to block Sein’s attacks three times.
There must be a reason why an organization like his shrunk in such a small place.
Especially…
“You lost that eye not too long ago, right?”
Cyclops seemed unaccustomed to his blind spot.
If he had lost his eye a long time ago, he should have gotten used to it by now.
“Both the organization shrinking and losing the eye happened not long ago.”
If that’s the case, there must be a reason.
“That, that’s because…”
The Cyclops said.
“It’s because of the Ogres.”
* * *
While Borpeo was located in the borderlands, it was still a city, making the ownership of the back alleys definite.
The four divided districts were under the absolute authority of Warbear, the ruler overseeing all.
He was a giant figure seldom seen in the borderlands, even reaching one of the three major underworld families.
It had been a month since the sudden appearance of the Ogre, a presence so unexpected that it shocked the entire area.
“Cyclops lost?”
New rumors were spreading in the back alleys.
“Well, that idiot, it wouldn’t be surprising even if he lost.”
“He already did lose.”
The owners of the other three districts, excluding the Cyclops, were gathered, discussing the matter.
“Anyway, he was going to be removed soon. The areas he controlled were already agreed to be divided among us fairly.”
“He was the one who provoked the Ogre.”
The Ogre. At the mention of that name, the owners fell silent. They knew better than anyone else the ferocity and cruelty of the being that suddenly appeared after breaking through the city gate.
The One-Eyed Cyclops.
A one-armed wolf.
The one-legged Frog.
And finally, the one who was given the new name of One-Eared Fox.
Just the thought of him sent shivers down the spines of the district owners.
“Still, that Cyclops guy, his other abilities were lacking. But when it came to physical strength, he was the best among us.”
“He knelt after just three sword strikes.”
“Impressive.”
Such achievements made him stand out.
“Did they call him the mad dog of Chichiron?”
“That Chichiron from the farthest border? That’s just countryside talk.”
“….”
The name ‘Mad dog of Chichiron’ echoed throughout Borpeo.
“If he’s called the mad dog…”
Frog spoke as if he knew something.
“Why? Do you know the name?”
“….”
But Frog fell silent soon after.
“Moreover, the real issue is his true name.”
Fox continued the conversation.
“They say his name is Sein Demorus.”
“…Demorus.”
The power that name wielded was immense. Throughout the continent, there was no one who could ignore the name Demorus. Especially in the back alleys, that name held even more absolute power.
“Again…”
The owners of the three districts, named after animals, spoke in unison.
“Demorus, is it.”
* * *
“Wow.”
At the center of the rumors.
“This is insane.”
Sein was genuinely impressed.
Shuffle.
The scattered belongings of the Cyclops laid before him. Every item that Darren meticulously searched and found amazed Sein.
“It’s incomparable to Chichiron, isn’t it?”
The spoils from the Cyclops were beyond imagination.
“Compared to the past, it may be nothing, but…”
Sein, who once was a prince of the empire, had witnessed mountains of wealth built with gold coins. While it was surprising for him to be amazed by this amount now, it didn’t mean he was still a prince of the empire.
“Hehe…”
The Cyclops, wiping his hands in front of him.
“If this guy, who seems to know nothing but using force, is at this level, then what about the rest?”
The back alleys of the city.
It was a vault of wealth that could never be ignored.
“I heard the next guy, Wolf, is twice as powerful as me.”
“Twice?”
“The most skilled is Fox…”
Chuckling.
“I heard he’s over ten times more powerful.”
Ding!
A spark flashed in Sein’s mind.
Originally, Sein had planned to take a short rest in Borpeo and then head straight out.
Since it was his first time in a proper city, Sein thought he could prepare for the journey to Demorus.
But his mind changed.
“Anyway, the path to Demorus isn’t just any ordinary road.”
The journey was accompanied by a guardian.
If they used teleportation circles, deliberately choosing to travel by land instead of a shortcut must have had a reason.
“My tracks will be the measure of my worth.”
Every footprint would be an evaluation of himself.
And if those footprints were lacking in depth or number, becoming a successor would be unlikely.
In other words,
“Game over.”
It meant the failure of the main quest.
Of course, there would be routes associated with that, but Sein didn’t feel the merit in seeking out the harder path.
“There are alchemists and blacksmiths in Borpeo.”
So then,
“Alright. It’s decided.”
Sein stood up and declared.
“I’ll conquer Borpeo.”
“…!”
The Cyclops widened his last remaining eye.
“Are you… serious?”
Surely, the Cyclops had spoken about Borpeo.
About the existence of the Ogre.
He thought Sein, known as Chichiron’s Mad Dog, would run away.
“I am serious.”
Sein said, ready to confront.
“Why? Wasn’t it what you wanted too?”
The Cyclops, who had come looking for Sein.
“To seek revenge, isn’t that what you want?”
“…!”
The Cyclops, who managed his territory quite well.
He couldn’t be called a good guy, even in the best of terms.
But.
“Isn’t that why you came to me? To use my name for something.”
According to Darren’s gathered information, he was quite a decent boss.
Crack.
A faint sound echoed from the Cyclops’s mouth.
“…I do.”
The Cyclops said.
Because Ogre made his eye like this.
But more than that.
“I can still hear… the screams of my subordinates.”
Ogre massacring his own subordinates helplessly in front of him.
“I want it. Revenge! Please, command me anything!”
Swish.
What came before the Cyclops was Sein’s palm.
Similar to the one the Cyclops had reached out to use for Sein.
But.
“Hold.”
Their weights were different.
The palm of the powerless one and the one with power.
“…Thank you, Boss.”
The difference was clear.
* * *
The dockside, bordered by the Byikal River.
Once the protagonist who turned Borpeo into a bustling trade city, it was now abandoned and polluted.
“Long time no see, Frog.”
This place also served as the headquarters of Frog, who divided Borpeo’s back alleys into four.
“The epitome of defeat, aren’t you, Cyclops?”
Small stature, repulsive appearance.
With bulging eyes, he was none other than Frog, also known as the Outsider.
“They said you got torn apart by a mad dog, but you seem fine.”
Chin.
Frog, placing his legs on the table, spoke.
Since his legs were already short, it looked quite comical.
“…Your ugly mug is still the same, Frog.”
“What?”
With Cyclops’s words, the atmosphere turned hostile.
Here were Cyclops and his two subordinates.
And Frog with over a dozen subordinates.
“Scratching me won’t do you any good. I’ve figured out my stance clearly.”
“Oh. After getting chewed up by Ogre, you still can’t get your act together. Must’ve been quite the bite.”
“Yeah.”
When Cyclops acknowledged it nonchalantly, a hint of admiration flickered in Frog’s eyes.
Cyclops was a proud man.
As the leader of a renowned mercenary band, he had quite the pride.
For such a man to admit without hesitation…
“So, why did you want to meet? I’ve indulged you before out of goodwill, but there’s no reason to see you again. You’re nothing now.”
“I know.”
Cyclops.
Chin.
He placed a lump of gold coins on the table.
It seemed like it could easily be a thousand gold.
“Let’s make a deal. You repulsive toad.”
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