The iron rule of surprise terror is to unleash maximum firepower in a short time and flee quickly before a counterattack comes.
It seems the enemies knew this fact well too.
“Damn these filthy beggars, they’ve already run off!”
“…They’re fast.”
All that was waiting for us as we burst out the window was flickering flames and fleeing citizens. The main culprits had already fled, leaving no trace behind.
“Seriously, they’re ridiculously quick.”
Not just their fleeing speed, but the overall efficiency of their operation was unexpectedly swift.
I thought it would take at least a day to pinpoint my location and wreak havoc in revenge, but it turns out it wouldn’t take even a few hours.
Thanks to that, I got properly wrecked.
I might not have lived such a pointless life as to get injured by a poorly aimed Molotov cocktail, but all that remained intact were my body and my travel bag.
The bed I had planned to spend the night in was completely burned down, and since the flames spread to other rooms, the entire inn was ablaze.
“I can just picture the innkeeper’s tears flowing like rivers.”
How much would it cost to rebuild this place?
It wasn’t some cheap inn with only a basic setup—it was a luxurious one with bathtubs in each room… It probably wouldn’t be cheap at all, maybe even more than a handful of gold coins, right?
“…This means we have to compensate, don’t we?”
“Do we have that kind of money?”
…We don’t.
Recently, my earnings could smack a decent adventurer with cash, but in the end, it was still temp work.
I could afford to eat well, sleep well, and dress well, but building something from it was out of reach.
If I had that kind of money, I’d have bought land and a house to live on after retirement.
“My innnn! My hoteloooo! Who the hellll—!”
…So, even if I handed over all my assets to that miserable dude crying out for the world, it wouldn’t even cover a quarter of the burned inn’s restoration costs.
If I just slipped away without a trace, I guess I’d feel a tad guilty, huh…? What the heck should I do about this?
Anyway, damn those riffraff of Abandon. Just like those scummy bastards who wouldn’t hesitate to use any means necessary, they really made a heck of a mess…
‘…Oh, wait. Why didn’t I think of that?’
An idea flashed in my mind.
Upon reflection, I had no reason to compensate out of my own pocket.
The ones who set the inn on fire were those damn riffraff from Abandon, right? So they should naturally bear the repair costs.
If we think about it, I’m a victim too. I should be collecting money from those Abandon fools instead of paying them off.
‘Yeah, that’ll do.’
Although they were an organization made up of the poor and riffraff, they ruled over the entire slums, so they surely had some stashed money.
And since I’m the new boss of Abandon, that money is now mine.
Though I was hesitant to squander money obtained through dirty methods and planned to use the leftover from auction costs for a donation to the temple,
‘Since things turned out this way, I can donate to the innkeeper instead of the temple.’
That amount should be enough for the inn’s restoration.
Of course, to use that money as I please, I’d first have to remind the slum folks who the new boss of Abandon is.
“…So, what do we do now? Should we chase them recklessly?”
Friede asked while shaking off the sparks from her cloak.
“After the fireplay, it’s tag, right? Elly wants to play too!”
Elly grabbed my left hand and smiled mischievously. Was the large fire from burning down a building just child’s play to her?
Well, as a daywalker vampire, I guess she wouldn’t be dying in such flames, so everything must seem like a game to her.
“Elly, this isn’t playtime. Let’s be calm right now, okay?”
I gently grasped Eleadra’s small hand to calm her down.
I couldn’t use Eleadra. Letting loose a monster that could burn the city to catch the ones who set the building on fire? Not worth considering.
“If we catch them, even if we can’t get a reward, at least we can get a chance for revenge, right? If we bring them back…”
Friede asked again. If we catch the ones who set the fire and hand them over to the innkeeper, wouldn’t that be a sort of emotional compensation?
I mean, she wasn’t wrong, but I didn’t think that would settle it. I shook my head.
“No, that’s a waste of time. What would we do by catching the low-level punks? They’re just expendable pieces, and the real mastermind must be elsewhere.”
“Uh, um… then what do we do?”
“Well, for now… let’s flee. The Guild will be swarming here soon.”
This Fountain Square is under the Guild’s management. After an act of terror in their territory, they’ll be up and about in no time.
Even if the person in charge is dragging their feet after being bribed, they’ll probably be only a few minutes late to act at most with such a fire occurring.
So we needed to clear out first.
If we were to face the Guild here, we’d be identified as the cause of the situation, leading to unnecessary conflict with them.
The Guilds are the closest thing to decent folks in this city full of murderous thugs. I really didn’t want them as enemies.
I could win in a fight, but winning would only lead to bitterness.
◆◆
“So… tonight, are we really going to be homeless?”
After escaping the fiery inn district, we hid in an alley between buildings to discuss where we would spend the night.
“No, we’re heading to 6th Street. Just be careful not to get spotted by the Guild.”
“6th Street…? Why there?”
“Because that’s where the mansion of the boss I killed is.”
The three-story mansion of the former head of Abandon, Daniel Furb. That was my next destination.
“…Isn’t that the enemy’s den?”
“Not really. That Daniel guy doesn’t seem the type to allow filthy beggars to set foot in his place.”
Looking at just his attire made that obvious.
Daniel Furb was a man with a severe sense of inferiority due to his upbringing in the slums, to the point of insisting on an extravagant style that didn’t fit him.
He wouldn’t allow people from his own area to enter his home, much less invite the common riffraff in.
To avoid being stabbed in the back while sleeping, he would’ve hired a couple of ordinary people as guards or housekeepers instead of using the members of his organization.
Or maybe he wouldn’t even have that. Scumbags like him usually can’t trust anyone but themselves.
…Well, we’ll find out when we get there.
Nodding as if understanding, I led Friede and Eleadra towards 6th Street.
Time dragged on as we made our way while hiding in the shadows of buildings and narrow alleys, avoiding the Guild’s patrolling torches.
In the end, we arrived safely without being spotted.
“…Is this it?”
“Probably.”
I nodded while looking up at the dim mansion that had one lantern unlit.
I wasn’t sure, but this had to be it. There were no other three-story mansions on 6th Street. If it wasn’t this one, it meant Jack was lying to me.
…The chance of that wasn’t zero, so it felt a bit uncomfortable.
“Let’s go in quietly first. Just in case, don’t swing your sword immediately if something happens.”
I advised Friede to leave violence as a last resort considering the worst case.
If this mansion turned out not to belong to Daniel and just some regular house, it would mean I’d have to butcher a civilian trying to defend their home.
“Yeah! It’s a black house! Really big!”
“…Isn’t she the bigger problem here?”
Uh… maybe…?
Well, I could expect Friede to at least distinguish when swinging her sword was appropriate, but I doubted Eleadra would have that kind of discernment.
For her, anyone attacking would be a target to retaliate against. To Eleadra, they were just all prey.
I had given her prior instructions to avoid attacking people whenever possible, but I didn’t think I could stop any instinctual retaliation.
“Hmm….”
Everything should be fine…? It has to be okay…?
Standing in front of the mansion, I hesitated for about ten seconds, worried about an unexpected disaster.
“Hah… you stay here. I’ll go check inside first.”
Friede sighed as if she expected that and stepped forward. She told me to watch Eleadra well while she took charge of scouting the mansion.
I had no reason to oppose.
There shouldn’t be any strong enemies in this mansion that could threaten Friede, and even if there were, I could dive in the moment something went wrong.
“Uh… um… can I count on you?”
So I let her go in first.
With a swift leap, Friede jumped effortlessly over the tall wall in front of the mansion and landed noiselessly like a cat, slipping inside.
I waited outside the mansion’s wall with Eleadra for Friede to come back.
About this much later…
Eeeek!
Unlike when she went in, Friede confidently stepped out the front door and quietly opened the gate.
…That was an invitation to come in, right? Thankfully, it seemed there hadn’t been any issues.
“How was it, Friede? Was there anyone inside? Does this seem like the right place?”
I gently asked as I approached Friede while holding Eleadra’s hand. Friede lightly tapped the hilt of the large sword on her back and nodded.
“There was someone inside, and it should be the right place. There was one person who pulled out an axe, wondering whose mansion this was. He claimed he was the new boss of Abandon.”
So, we came to the right spot. Though a strange guy intruded,
‘The new boss of Abandon, that would be me, right?’
Whoever it was, impersonating me took some guts. Did they have nine lives or something?
“So, what happened?”
“I knocked him out to see if he knew anything. I did well, huh?”
Oh, that was indeed well done.
If someone immediately claimed the mansion after Daniel died, it would likely be someone who originally had a stake in Abandon.
Someone like that would surely know quite a lot.
“Yeah, good job, our brave warrior. Much better than me.”
With a bright smile, I stepped into the mansion alongside her, ready to thoroughly loot this organization now that I had become the boss.
