“Wow~ look at this girl’s chest. She’s carrying around something as big as a kid’s head? Must be heavy, we should help her out.”
“You’re giving us the chance to enjoy dozens of goddesses, so in return, you’ll have to do it dozens of times, right? Don’t pass out and make it boring, okay?”
The thugs were spewing vulgarities, saying they’d give her drugs if she sold her body. From the way they talked, it seemed they weren’t the suppliers but were just reselling the drugs they got their hands on.
I hesitated, wondering how to deal with them, and slowly approached with a cautious demeanor. On the surface, they looked like ordinary neighborhood thugs who approached without much thought… but honestly, the chances of that were low.
Criminals always have their tricks. It’s obvious. These guys were just bait.
—
Archbishop Gwinnel mentioned that every time a paladin infiltrated or appeared, the suppliers would vanish, making it impossible to catch them.
This meant that within this slum, they had their own information network. A network to monitor sudden outsiders, investigate their identities, and quickly alert others if they turned out to be paladins.
Perhaps the entire slum was in on it.
Among the addicts scattered around the alleys, some might be pretending to be addicts while keeping watch. There could be slum dwellers watching me from the cracks of crumbling buildings.
These thugs probably appeared for the same reason. A woman with her face hidden sneaking into the slum at night—they must be trying to figure out who she is.
How I respond here will determine their next move. If I act meek, they’ll think I’m just a prostitute here for drugs and let it go. If I try to run or hesitate, they’ll get more aggressive.
If I tear these guys in half, they’ll confirm a paladin or knight has arrived and go into hiding. Probably, the ones watching me somewhere would alert their superiors about the knight’s appearance.
So, what should I do…?
Honestly, the safest way to infiltrate would be to comply with their demands, remove suspicion, and then move. Agents who do this kind of work often endure discomfort to operate this way.
But am I crazy? Spread my legs for these scum? So, I had no choice but to go with the second-best option.
“Drugs… drugs first…!”
I approached them, bowing my head, and spoke in the tone of a desperate addict craving drugs.
“This girl’s voice is completely messed up. How much has she been using?”
My voice had a metallic tone due to the purification device, but the thugs didn’t seem to notice, thinking it was just hoarse. It would be different if they saw my face.
“Who cares? As long as the body’s good, that’s all that matters. Hey, lady, there’s an order to these things, you know? If you want the drugs, you gotta take off that rag and stick out your butt. Got it?”
“Or should we just stick it in your backdoor? You’ll reach heaven in no time with the drug rush!”
They laughed and teased, but cold sweat dripped from their foreheads, and their hands rested near their knife hilts.
They must know too. If the person they’re spewing vulgarities at is an undercover paladin, their heads could be sliced off in the next moment.
Living life like a gamble, huh?
“……H-here… at least, over there…!”
After hesitating, I acted like a drug addict who decided to sell her body and pointed to a secluded corner of the alley. Pretending to be desperate enough to agree to prostitution but unable to do it in plain sight.
And before they could respond, I immediately headed that way. If they got any closer, they’d try to lift my hood to see my face or touch me, and that was obvious.
“Tch, a prostitute being picky.”
The thugs sneered but quietly followed me. If they had any sense, they wouldn’t have followed me to a secluded spot. But they dropped their guard and followed, thanks to my acting.
This is why you shouldn’t outsource important tasks. Well, you can’t exactly throw a full-time employee into a disposable role like a canary in a coal mine.
[Pretending to be a prostitute? Must we stoop this low for our dignity?]
‘It’s necessary. Sorry, but bear with it for a bit.’
I moved to the corner of the alley, sharpening my senses to observe my surroundings. Since I was moving to a spot out of sight, anyone watching me would react.
Anyone moving now would likely be involved.
Three addicts sprawled in the alley, one inside a second-floor window of a derelict building, two leaning against a fence, snickering. Out of these six, who would…?
-Squish!
What the hell, where are you touching…!
A sudden touch. My thoughts snapped. Disgust surged, and heat rushed through me in an instant.
While I was focused on the movements of the others, one of the thugs who had gotten close grabbed my butt tightly!
“Hehe, your butt’s so firm—”
I impulsively swung my left arm. The Ice Blade-equipped hand sliced through the thug’s body horizontally, cutting through his elbow, torso, and even his other arm.
“Huh…?”
The thug, too fast to realize he’d been split in half, muttered blankly. His severed arms fell, spurting blood, and his upper body slowly slid off his severed waist.
The thug’s mouth opened wide as he realized the pain. A scream was about to erupt from his throat.
“Gaaah…!”
“Shut up.”
I reached out with my left hand, grabbed his head, and crushed it.
With just a light squeeze, his skull crumbled like clay, spilling its contents. His eyeballs popped out like bullets, and his crushed brain oozed from his eye and nose sockets.
[Hah, you told me to bear with it, and look what you’ve done.]
‘You expect me to endure that?’
Touching my butt was crossing the line. Especially with those wriggling fingers.
[No, you did well. These lowlifes daring to touch my body deserve nothing less than a thousand deaths.]
Hersela’s words weren’t just empty curses. Using my arm as a base, she created a Life Force blade and shredded the thug’s body into pieces.
It took less than three seconds to completely dismember a person. I dropped the now pulpy head and turned my gaze to the other thug who had followed.
He was frozen, unable to process the sudden change, like a victim in a violent game.
“Haa, haaa—!”
“Shh. It’s bedtime, so keep it down.”
I covered his mouth with my left hand, still dripping with his friend’s brain matter. The man, who had just tasted his comrade’s brains, trembled violently.
I quickly scanned the surroundings while keeping his mouth shut to prevent any noise. I had already identified who was around, even though things had escalated faster than planned.
Now, it was time to find the one making suspicious moves.
The addicts sprawled on the ground were still rolling around, drooling. Even though a person had been torn in half right next to them, they showed no reaction. Guess they’re just trash.
The men leaning against the fence, chatting. They were still snickering. No suspicious movements like signaling or one of them rushing off.
It was pitch dark, and the distance was a bit far, so they probably hadn’t noticed what happened.
Then, what about the last one? The guy peeking from the second-floor window.
Focusing my senses on him, I could vaguely sense what he was doing. Instead of screaming or cowering in fear at the brutal scene, he was calmly moving somewhere, like a trained soldier or professional thief.
Found him.
That guy was definitely the watcher, the one reporting the appearance of paladins or knights to his superiors. Now, all I had to do was follow him or catch him for interrogation.
“Lucky you. I’d like to play more, but I’m a bit busy. Hand over the drugs, and I’ll spare your life.”
I leaned in close to the thug I was holding and smiled. Not that he could see my expression through the mask.
“A, a monster…!”
The thug wet himself and mumbled something incoherent. Probably trying to say “monster.” It’s a familiar reaction.
“Drugs.”
I didn’t have time to mess with him. The watcher was slowly moving away, even if not too fast.
I tightened my grip on his mouth slightly, and the thug, his eyes twitching, frantically pulled something out of his pocket. It was a small paper bag.
Good boy. Probably that LSD or whatever drug it is. I took the bag and stuffed it into my pocket.
Not planning to try it, but maybe I’ll have it analyzed later. If it’s such an effective new drug, the manufacturing process must be something special.
The method itself might hold clues about the creator. Of course, if I wipe out their organization tonight, it won’t be necessary.
“Thanks for cooperating. I’ll spare your life, as promised.”
The thug trembled but shed tears of relief. A bit too early for that.
The next moment, the Life Force blade tore through his limbs.
“Ggggguh!”
The man, now a bug with only a head and torso attached, flopped like a fish out of water. A spray of blood painted the alley red.
I picked up the pulped head of the earlier thug, crumpled it to the size of a fist, and removed my hand from the thug’s mouth. Before he could scream, I shoved his friend’s head into his mouth.
“Guh!”
His face twisted into a mess. A mix of disgust, horror, and pain. Quite a satisfying expression.
“What’s wrong? I spared your life, didn’t I?”
I had planned this from the start. Even if I spared his life, if his mouth and limbs were intact, he’d cause a commotion and alert others about my presence after I left.
As a final touch, I used a piece of cloth from the ground to tightly gag his mouth. So he couldn’t spit out his friend’s head and scream.
Leaving him in the alley like this, he’d quiet down soon. His eyes were already half-closed, probably from drowsiness.
Now, it was time to chase that watcher. I crushed the thug’s legs, now reduced to a worm-like state, and launched myself in the direction the watcher was moving.
