Chapter 38
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
Chapter 38
It was hardly a surprising turn of events.
The Underworld had always been a dumping ground where refuse gathered.
As this became a distinctive characteristic of the place, it naturally acquired a certain allure, drawing outsiders to venture in and out.
Yet ultimately, it remained little more than a lawless zone where crime flourished unchecked.
The nobles who frequented this place to savor danger understood this truth well enough.
They affected an air of adventurousness and bravery, but it was mere pretense.
They arrived escorted by their most skilled mercenaries and knights, ensuring their protection at all times.
Without such precautions, one's life could be forfeit in an instant.
Noble status meant nothing in this place—no one deferred to it.
Yet here wandered a young boy and an infant through the Underworld with no escort whatsoever.
They appeared less bold than suicidal.
With fortune's favor, they might have slipped through unnoticed.
Most inhabitants paid little attention to those around them.
But despite being concealed head to toe in hooded robes,
both the twins and Chesa possessed an aura that naturally drew eyes toward them.
It was this quality that had made them targets for the Slave Hunters.
"Ooh!"
As Karha swung his blade, his hood was torn away.
With the boy's face now fully exposed, the Slave Hunters grew even more excited.
"Look at that face!"
"Where did something like this crawl out from?"
They chuckled among themselves with glee, already haggling over the price they could fetch, utterly beside themselves.
Chesa regarded them with cold indifference.
'Low-tier.'
Those who hunted human slaves were the lowest rank.
The most notorious among Slave Hunters were those who preyed upon fantastical beings.
The near-extinction of creatures like fairies and beastfolk owed much to the Slave Hunters' relentless pursuit.
The Holy Empire harbored no fondness for fantastical beings, yet left those born of nature to their own devices.
Lichesia, the fairy queen, was no ordinary fairy—her aberrant power warranted an exceptional extermination order from the Empire.
As fantastical beings grew rarer with each passing day, I had heard their value had become incalculable.
Thus, those hunters who once pursued such creatures now turned their attention to fallen nobles and powerless princes of minor kingdoms.
'And then I appeared, causing them all to lose their minds and come rushing at me.'
A young fairy who had awakened in the Orphanage, knowing nothing of the world.
For the Slave Hunters, no quarry could have been more perfect.
As Chesa recalled the day the hunters had come to the Orphanage, her gaze grew distant and cold.
She swiftly buried the memories of flame and screams deep within herself once more.
In any case, low-tier Slave Hunters were manageable opponents.
Karha alone should be more than capable of handling them.
"How foolish of them...."
Ishuel muttered softly under his breath.
"We barely managed to get out for a stroll with my sister, and now this mess."
Ishuel, who had been showing his displeasure, suddenly broke into a bright smile the moment his gaze met Chesa's looking up at him.
"Sister, would you cover your eyes for a moment?"
He took Chesa's hand and positioned it to cover her eyes.
Immediately after, I heard Karha receiving an order.
"Don't let any blood splash on me."
"Yes."
Karha faithfully followed the command.
Chesa also covered her eyes as Ishuel instructed.
Of course, she didn't cover them thoroughly—she deliberately spread her fingers slightly to peek through.
As if they had been waiting, Slave Hunters burst out from the alleys.
They quickly blocked the path ahead and behind, cutting off any escape route.
"...."
Karha slowly spun his sword in a half-circle without a word.
He positioned himself with the two blades crossed, his gaze fixed quietly ahead.
The moment our eyes met—those chilling crimson eyes.
The Slave Hunters, who had been acting as if they would pounce at any moment, instinctively flinched back.
As they hesitated, a man who appeared to be their leader barked at the wavering Slave Hunters.
"What are you doing against just a kid!"
Only then did the Slave Hunters begin rushing forward in a wave.
Watching the crowd surge toward him, Karha's lips curved into a faint smile.
His small frame darted forward with nimble grace.
This was the first time I had seen Karha fight properly.
Rather than textbook knight's swordplay, the boy who tumbled wildly and swung his blades was like a beast.
With two short swords instead of a longsword, his attacks were so swift and unpredictable that the eye could barely follow them.
It was like watching a mercenary who had rolled across countless battlefields.
Mesmerized by the fluid and lightning-fast swordwork, Chesa couldn't tear her gaze away.
"That... that bastard...!"
"A monster!"
The Slave Hunters grew excited at Karha's unexpected skill.
Realizing he couldn't be underestimated, they all drew their weapons.
"Just keep him alive!"
"Disable his swords first!!"
Just as they all rushed forward desperately.
"Stop."
A voice, strangely crystalline, cut through the noisy night street.
Though not particularly high or loud, it rang clearly in everyone's ears as if some magic had been cast.
A long cord fluttered behind gray hair.
A man who seemed to materialize from thin air landed on the ground.
The man with cloth covering his eyes spoke in a low voice.
"The Master does not wish for any further disturbance."
A subordinate of the Master who ruled the Underworld.
It was Jahan.
The moment the Slave Hunters saw Jahan, they instantly shed their aggressive demeanor—the very same hunters who had been acting as though they could devour the street itself just moments before.
They exchanged glances of bewilderment with one another.
The man who appeared to be their leader hurried over, rubbing his palms together nervously.
"Oh my! I had no idea you would arrive, Jahan. We may have gotten a bit too greedy, I'm afraid."
Despite his massive frame, he bowed obsequiously before the slender Jahan.
Yet even as he fawned, he probed with a subtle question.
"Surely the Master isn't nearby? We've caused such a commotion—I fear we've disturbed his peace. How might we ever apologize?"
The Slave Hunter's question was understandable.
Originally, the Master was 'one who maintained only the bare minimum of order.'
Street brawls like this occurred in the Underworld several times a day.
There was no reason for him to intervene and quell such a disturbance.
'Yet he sends his direct subordinate to suppress the chaos?'
Jahan was a high-ranking official who rarely took direct action.
Unless the Master was nearby drinking and had grown irritated by the noise—sending Jahan as a result—this made no sense.
But Jahan did not answer the hunter's question.
He had no obligation to satisfy the man's curiosity.
"...."
Jahan simply stared at the hunter in silence.
The man, understanding the message, began to ramble excuses and backed away.
"Ah, I meant no disrespect with my question. I merely thought, should the Master be nearby, we ought to pay our respects. Please convey our regards to the Master."
He bowed repeatedly before leading his subordinates away with a rustling sound.
The street fell silent in an instant once the Slave Hunters had withdrawn.
All that remained on the now-quiet street were Jahan, the twins, and Chesa.
Jahan, who had been gazing briefly in the direction the hunters had vanished, slowly turned his gaze.
He looked first at Chesa.
Seeing the small child swaddled in the hood, Chesa pretended to know nothing.
Jahan then turned his attention to the twins.
That was when something strange occurred.
I had naturally expected Karha to be wary of the Unknown Intruder.
Yet he was sheathing both swords into their scabbards.
Jahan's demeanor toward the twins also differed from how he had treated the Slave Hunters.
Though still possessing that rigid, puppet-like quality, his voice carried a slightly softer tone.
"Did I not say that causing a disturbance would be problematic?"
Karha blinked before speaking.
"Oh, sorry."
Unlike Karha, who apologized readily, Ishuel responded with a sharp retort.
"They attacked first."
"Then you shouldn't have come here in the first place."
"...."
Ishuel pouted, pushing out his lips in protest.
Chesa, who had been watching their exchange, gasped in shock.
'What, what is this....'
Chesa's eyes widened as she looked back and forth between Jahan and the twins.
'Do they know each other?!'
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org