Chapter 9

Note: Contains very cruel scenes

It was in a post town located along the highway that he took on that request.

It went like this: “A farmer living nearby went out one day and hasn’t returned. His mother is worried about her son’s safety.”

“It seems that a wedding was held in a village about 10 leagues away. The son said he would attend the celebration and promised to return in two days, but he left and hasn’t come back since.”

“I want you to go to that village, find my son, and come back as soon as you can.”

This was a request for a missing person.

The story came from a middle-aged waitress in a bustling tavern filled with merchants and travelers.

The woman spoke, her plump body shaking, “How many days do you think it has been since the wedding? Are they still celebrating? Those men will stick around as long as there’s booze to drink.”

“—I wonder about that. There’s probably not much food stored in a poor village like that. Besides, you can’t leave an aging mother alone for too long.”

The man—armed in armor and a hauberk, resembling a mercenary—leaned back, tilting his cup.

He had a well-built physique.

His language was fluent in the common tongue of the continent.

His black hair was mixed with some gray. At first glance, he looked quite young, not at an age where gray hair would normally sprout. But that unnaturalness stirred quietly.

“This tavern’s spirits… are strong. Just my taste. I can get well intoxicated.”

“Hah! Being told that by a drunk has no persuasive power. How unpleasant.”

“That doesn’t sound like something a tavern seller would say. You’re a good customer, aren’t you?”

He poured more drink into his empty cup. The woman indignantly replied.

“I’m doing this reluctantly because my husband drinks too much and doesn’t work. What a cruel twist of fate; the gods can be so mean. There’s no other job around here.”

“The gods have no malice toward you and are not interested in your circumstances. They cannot even take an interest. They’re like lumps of stone, unable to comprehend human feelings.”

“Huh?”

“Just drunken nonsense. Don’t mind it.”

To the middle-aged woman, who looked puzzled, the man asked, “More importantly, about that son of yours. What’s his name, and what does he look like?”

“I think his name is something like Norba. From what I heard, he has narrow eyes and a prominent round nose. Apparently, he always wears a red hat.”

“…Norba. Round nose with a red hat, huh.”

“I don’t know him personally. He seems to live in the north.”

“Do you have a map to the village? If you do, please show me.”

“No such thing exists. Even papyrus isn’t free. Only the bureaucrats get to write things down on paper.”

“Then I’ll use my map. Show me where it is.”

The man took out a paper map from his pocket and spread it out on the counter.

He pulled out a quill and handed it to the woman, asking her to mark the spot.

“What is this map? It’s big, the paper is nice, and it’s quite detailed. I’ve seen maps from familiar merchants, but none were this good,” she said.

“Just hurry and mark it. Just tell me where it is; I don’t need directions.”

“Right around here. I think.”

The woman marked an “X” on the map. After receiving the pen and map back, the man took out a curious accessory.

It was a rusted metal chain with a small black crystal at the end.

He lowered the crystal chain over the spot marked on the map.

The crystal danced on the map.

In the depths of the man’s expressionless eyes, a tiny flicker of emotion was visible. However, this detail went unnoticed in the tavern, clouded by the fog of drunkenness.

“What are you doing? Have you gotten drunk?”

The man whispered to himself, “I found it.” He put the accessory away.

Then, as if testing the waitress, he asked, “Just to confirm, the request is to check on his safety, right? Not to ‘bring him back to his old mother.'”

“Well, he’s not a child. I just need to know where he is and what he’s doing.”

“…Ah, that’s true enough.”

The man drained his cup, put away the map, stood up, and adjusted the sword at his waist.

“I understand. I’ll take the job.”

“Great! So, what’s your name? I need to report to the person who made the request, so I should at least know the name of this wandering contractor.”

The man glanced at the middle-aged woman and left the tavern.

“I’m called ‘Amber.’ That’s what I’m called now.”

He—formerly known as Ashihara Juuichi—chose one of his several aliases at random and spoke as he flicked his cloak.

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Northern Territories.

The land is full of undulations, and being blocked by mountains from the central continent, this distant area has historically seen the rise and fall of small nations.

The treacherous terrain has given birth to powerful clans and small kingdoms from isolated villages, leading to regional conflicts, famine from poor harvests, and large-scale banditry.

Sometimes, monsters emerge from the forest, crushing and obliterating new, small nations.

There is a constant absence of peace, a hellish land where depopulation and poverty run rampant.

Such is the North.

Yet, people still existed there.

A caravan of merchants, drawn by the high prices of Northern specialties, traveled long distances. They were accompanied by mercenary guards.

Criminals with scars on their shins. Those being pursued for various reasons.

And treasure hunters exploring ruins in search of ancient treasures left behind by the old dynasty.

Rough men who made a living by hunting monsters.

This was a paradise for rogues, where lawlessness and an order based on mutual aid existed, all in the name of wealth.

──Amber, known as Ashihara Juuichi, was currently in the forest.

Having strayed from the path leading to the village as per his request, Juuichi had entered the forest for about 1 league… approximately 1.27 km in the metric system he knew.

His footsteps as he traversed the forest were nearly silent.

Over time, he had learned and mastered the art of masking his presence and sounds in the woods. His skill was such that even wild animals could be deceived if he remained downwind.

The wind flowing through the dense coniferous trees was chillingly crisp, signaling the end of the brief summer.

In solitude, Juuichi pondered.

A request. A devoted mother worrying about her son who had gone out…

He felt a sardonic amusement at the thought that any decent person would likely sympathize with such a story.

This was merely a cover story.

Such a mother did not exist. The son was neither a farmer nor her child. The claim that he attended a wedding celebration was surely a lie.

Known by the nickname, “The Escapist.”

That person was a well-known figure in the underworld of this region.

A good-for-nothing belonging to a certain human trafficking organization in the Northern Territories. The description—red hat and narrow-eyed, round-nosed—matched, and Juuichi had seen him before.

The premise of a mother searching for her child was a template widely circulated by criminal organizations when searching for their members.

Without a doubt, it was him.

He had a method. He would approach the local residents who wished to leave due to the harsh life in the North, offering to “help them escape” for a price.

After assisting their flight and collecting the fee, he would sell those he had recruited as slaves in the central continent.

The middle-aged waitress had said she didn’t need to take him back. She seemed to be an unrelated party, merely passing on the request to the tavern without knowing the details.

The true client was likely the criminal organization.

“…It’s about time.”

Juuichi had his reasons for straying from the path and entering the woods.

He stopped and looked at a nearby tree. He began to climb it.

Though there were no reliable branches to hold onto, Juuichi skillfully ascended the tree.

Once settled in a suitable spot, he looked out through the leaves, gaining a vantage point over the village mentioned in the request.

There were no signs of people in the village.

“I guess I’ll start from around there.”

As Juuichi murmured this, something strange happened. His left eye recessed along with the surrounding eyelid.

It was as if that part had been cut out. The muscles, blood vessels, and the lens inside the eyeball were visible beneath the skin.

It was a view from a third person’s perspective.

From Juuichi’s point of view, it was as if he had opened a small “light blue window” of his “inventory” right in front of his face, poking his left eye through it.

He then opened another window above the village, allowing himself to peek through it to check on the village’s condition.

This was a technique for remote reconnaissance using the ability to open multiple inventory windows.

The inventory, which should have merely served as a storage space, allowed him to project items partially out while still being contained within it.

He could also make objects he held appear at a distance away.

This could be described as a kind of cheat he had devised over many years of understanding the mechanics.

Juuichi’s floating eyeball moved.

The village stood on gentle hills, surrounded by forests, with a few shabby pit-dwelling-like houses, fields, and livestock pens.

In the center, there was a somewhat impressive church.

On the grounds of the church, there were several large wooden tables and chairs, their legs broken and scattered about.

On the table that barely remained intact, there were numerous plates of food, all decayed or withered and dried out.

…And there were ominous bloodstains, thickly left behind.

“As expected, it’s too late. I knew this would happen,” said Juuichi, sounding resigned.

He had an understanding, albeit fragmentary, of what had occurred through the remote ‘Past Playback’ imagery using a map and crystal.

However, every time he beheld the desperate scene, he felt as though a new weight was being added to his heart.

In truth, this request had been merely a matter of coincidence.

Juuichi was currently searching for a certain white stone. There was a reason he had taken up the dubious request made by criminals.

The cause behind the disappearance of a master like the ‘Escape Artist.’

This was no ordinary village. There was a threat that could not be dealt with by simple abductions, causing the organization to hesitate in sending personnel directly and instead recruit mercenaries for the job.

He had overheard rumors at the tavern about a merchant who sold a peculiar white stone in this area, fetching a high price.

It was likely about this village.

— ‘Fragment of the Goddess of Destruction.’

A stone that spreads calamity. A part of a god’s body.

Something that must not be possessed by humans. Indeed, not even by non-humans.

When he used ‘Far Sight,’ he had spotted a figure resembling that stone in this village.

That was Juuichi’s objective this time.

After confirming the surrounding terrain one last time, he descended from the tree.

Leaving the forest, he climbed over a simple fence and entered the village, heading towards the church located in the center of the village. As he walked along the gravel path, a desolate wind blew towards him.

He was on guard, but nothing attacked him.

The area in front of the church was… terribly vandalized. Signs of violence and destruction were evident.

Dishes that had held food and cups containing honeyed wine were scattered, and on the broken legs of tables, there were stains of dried blood, likely where a human had been impaled.

That day, some kind of celebration had taken place here.

And in the midst of that, something had happened to the villagers, as vividly indicated.

Something catastrophic.

A foul odor struck Juuichi’s nose. Looking behind the table, he saw a human lying there.

It was a man’s corpse, one he had not spotted from above earlier.

He was curled up in the shadow of a fallen table, swarmed by flies.

Juuichi pinched his nose and approached to inspect the body.

Both legs were broken and twisted. Furthermore, his head was deeply crushed, with one eye bulging out. And on his torn abdomen… there were gruesome marks as if someone had feasted upon his flesh.

“The fatal blow was to the head, I’d say. The gnawing occurred post-mortem. The predator was not a wild animal; its teeth were not sharp—rather dull, like molars.”

He sighed deeply.

“Half the problem may have been solved. The ‘Mother’ will only receive bad news. I don’t care about these guys anyway.”

…At the man’s feet lay a red cap.

It was the same man he had identified earlier through Far Sight. Narrow eyes and a round nose.

The ‘Escape Artist’ was dead.

“However, he’s no fool. A piece of human trash, but he has the capacity to respond to danger. Why is he dead in a place like this…?”

Juuichi opened his inventory.

He took out a small piece of paper. Bringing it closer to the corpse.

The moment the paper touched the dead man’s clothes, it began to squirm and was stained a deep blue.

This paper was a simple method of detecting magical residue, made at his request to a sorcerer.

Such items were generally available in this world. Primarily used by law enforcement agencies in investigations.

“Magical traces. But it seems he was just caught up in it…”

The blue turning to black indicated that it was not the center of the magic.

However, a deep blue indicated the strength of magical exposure, meaning that powerful magic or some kind of ritual had taken place nearby.

In other words, this man was merely a victim. Not a sorcerer…

“Though he doesn’t seem to fit the description of a victim, there might still be something to hear. Let’s see if he can ‘speak’ about what happened here.”

Juuichi took out a chain with a black crystal attached. It was the same one he had used during Far Sight.

‘Crystal of Thought.’

A type of highly valuable magic item/artifact.

It had the power to read and project human thoughts, and by combining it with Juuichi’s abilities, he could ‘glimpse’ the emotions/subjectivity of humans that had occurred previously.

Even if the other party was dead.

The chain was made of a material imbued with magical power, known as a magic stone, and by enhancing its output, it was also capable of distant past playback, though the imagery would be quite vague and shaky.

The black crystal danced over the corpse.

A voice echoed up from the depths of the earth.

──”Damn it…!”

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It was a chaotic mix of thoughts, so jumbled that even the timeline was confused.

At the same time, flickering images appeared like visions.

──Something was thrown. Smoke rose. The approaching monster caught a whiff and hurriedly fled into the depths of the forest.

──”There’s no way I’ll get caught. It’s an easy job. I’ll strip the fools in the north of their gold as usual.”

──Looking down. The view swayed, probably while walking. The filthy walls of the slums.

──”Gold. Gold. Gold. Everything is about gold.”

──It was dark. A place like an underground.

──”Damn it. Should I give up? No way in hell. I will definitely save them.”

──Light blue. Black.

──”Those country bumpkin fools. There’s no paradise waiting for them at the end of their escape. They deserve to be deceived.”

──”I was just like that.”

──White.

──”…Kid?”

──Children in ragged clothes stared at me in fear, reaching out as if to cling on.

──

──A cage. Darkness. Echoes.

──Bloodstains.

──Signs of use from torture instruments. A broken child’s toy…

──”Wait a minute. What the hell is this?” ── “This can’t be real, right?” ── “I… I’m…”

──”Damn it.”

──”How can you do this? Why are you all…!”

──”…Damn demons!”

──

Before my eyes, the flames of a campfire burned quietly.

──”Today, I learned what I’ve done and the line of humanity. The people I sold from the north were not human. They deserved to be slaves. They were not human.”

──”I can’t speak of justice. I’m trash. I’ve deceived women and children to sell them to slave traders. I was sold myself as a child, deceived by my parents.”

──”But this is too cruel. I have to stop this madness.”

──”I’ll free them all. For real. Now is the time my name will become true. Even if I have to lose my hands and feet due to the organization’s rules, I don’t care.”

──”Ha! A kid is the client? For this petty sum.” ── “This money was the heaviest in my miserable life, among all the money I’ve received…”

──”Just one person. I couldn’t prepare more than that. A bunch of kids, not even ten years old, heard my rumors and gathered this money to save my youngest sister. It was gathered from crawling through the muck like filthy rats. Can you believe it?”

──”I can’t believe it. Until now… such…!”

──

A huge shadow. Collision caused my vision to spin, blood gushing out.

──”Ah…!”

──”God, please. Save me. I’ll do anything. I’ll do anything.”

──”I don’t care about myself. Just please save these kids.”

──”Someone…!”

The voice cut off.

Juuichi stopped the crystal and stared at the escape artist.

He was surprised.

He hadn’t expected to hear feelings of regret and atonement.

“…What happened? What made this cruel kidnapper repent in this village…”

The corpse of the escape artist seemed to reach out as if it had lost the hope it tried to grasp, its right hand outstretched and exhausted.

Juuichi thought.

What had happened here?

Cold village. A wedding? Human trafficking. A man’s repentance. Children.

And this being the north. An isolated place where wolves and monsters roamed the paths, making it a lawless land where nothing could be seen from the outside.

Customs of a closed-off land. A sinister cage and torture instruments.

“…”

There weren’t enough materials for a judgment yet. Investigation was necessary.

And finding materials was something Juuichi could infinitely obtain.

He had power, a special kind of power.

To call it a cheat would typically yield more serious results.

Juuichi distanced himself from the corpse, picked up a chair that hadn’t been broken, and placed it slightly away from where the tragedy had occurred, sitting down.

Steeling his heart for what he was about to witness, he activated his ability—

“Past Rebirth.”

When this power was directly activated, it could reproduce everything that had happened in that place, all objective events with accuracy far greater than merely listening to fragments from far away or from a corpse.

The time was about ten days prior, the day of the “wedding.”

The feast must have been lively, at the hour when the sun was at its zenith. He adjusted the playback to fast forward and rewind.

From the ground, pale blue phantoms of the attendees from that day began to appear.

And then── Juuichi saw.