Chapter 1127: Residual Scent (15)
Torquepaz.
The continent’s foremost entertainment city, a hub for all manner of gambling and crime.
A place where everything in the world is used as currency and collateral, then discarded like trash.
It’s also a hotbed of luxurious facilities and entertainment culture, and the city where the most physical assets of the Western Continent congregate.
The capital amassed here surpasses that of an individual city-state, functioning as an entire living zone.
Receiving visitors from all corners of the world, it is a cradle for entrepreneurs and fraudsters alike.
As such, various modes of transport were available for Torquepaz.
Hoo-
With a slow boat horn, a luxurious cruise ship approached along the river.
The cruises sailing the river near Torquepaz are, in themselves, giant casinos.
Decked out with splendid hold’em and blackjack tables. Guests drinking or engrossed in gambling there.
Because of the sheer number of people and the large sums of money exchanged, there are also smaller boats that follow the main vessel, trading or supplying goods.
Splash!!
Lennok lifted his gaze from a small yacht moving behind the cruise ship.
“Money.”
A stern-looking man stepped out of the yacht’s cockpit, holding out his hand to Lennok.
“Three million for the fare. Three hundred thousand for commission. One point two million for tip. A clean 4.5 million cells, that’s all I’ll take.”
“…”
[Why is he asking for so much in tips?]
As Davi grumbled, the tip ratio was quite high for the price.
“Why, what’s wrong?”
As if noticing Lennok’s gaze, the man spat on the river.
“Surely, someone who came all the way to Torquepaz to gamble wouldn’t begrudge a few pennies to a merchant, would they? Let’s settle up quickly and be done with it.”
“Pennies, you say.”
“Or, should I report you to the Torquepaz Police Department right now?”
The bearded man grinned, looking at Lennok.
“It’s called a police department, but here, it’s no different from the military. If you’re caught entering by river without permission, you’ll be thrown in a cage immediately.”
“…”
“You chose me because you didn’t want any trouble, didn’t you? So you should show a little more sincerity.”
He wasn’t wrong.
After the Kundara collapse, many cities on the Western Continent were restricting outsiders to some extent.
In such a situation, entering Torquepaz under the identity of Victor required some illicit means.
Strictly speaking, the “sincerity” the man demanded wasn’t unfounded, but—
Stomp.
“W-what?”
As Lennok took a step closer, the man’s complexion subtly changed.
The obsidian mask visible beneath the robe, and the flashing red glow from within the mask.
The dark appearance, leaving no skin exposed, made the man momentarily feel overwhelmed.
But Lennok raised his gloved hand towards the man.
“Here.”
Clink!!
Several dazzling gold coins dropped into the man’s hand.
“Ohh?!”
The man’s eyes widened as he checked the number of gold coins in his hand.
At a glance, their value easily exceeded 5 million cells. And seeing the Alcantara Bank certification engraved on them, they were undoubtedly genuine.
Only then did the man smile and hastily shove the gold coins into his pocket.
“Ha, ha-ha! You’re surprisingly reasonable. Yes, this should be enough for—”
“I’m looking for someone with a white-painted face.”
Lennok cut off the man’s words with a strangely modulated voice.
“If you know anything, I’ll pay more.”
“…Someone with a white-painted face?”
Suddenly, the man, who had been stuffing gold coins, paused.
Was it greed, seeing Lennok readily offer millions of cells for a single question?
But the man, lost in thought as if recalling memories, then casually opened the yacht’s door and replied.
“I don’t know. I just do business following cruises near the river. How would I know if such a person is in the city?”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah. I don’t know what it’s about, but go to the casino first. There are plenty of messed-up male prostitutes there. That should be worth one gold coin—”
“An interesting answer.”
The red glow behind the mask curved into a long, thin line.
“I didn’t say it was a man yet.”
“What? No, that’s not what I meant…”
A moment of silence.
Was it because of greed for the gold coins, or because he wanted to hide what he knew?
The man’s reaction, uncharacteristically vague, momentarily slowed.
“…Damn it.”
Click!!
The man cursed and immediately reached for the pistol at his waist.
The moment he raised the loaded pistol and pulled the trigger towards the mask.
The man realized his index finger was already gone.
“Huh?”
Swoosh!!
The fingers gripping the gun were sliced off one by one.
Like being cut by an invisible blade, blood flowed from the clean severed surfaces.
Slash!!
Finally, the man’s wrist, still holding the gun, was cleanly severed and fell.
“Uwaaaagh!!”
The man screamed belatedly, clutching his severed hand and collapsing.
“You pulled the trigger.”
Lennok looked down at the man and said coldly.
“Then you die.”
“W-wait! Wait!!”
The man threw down his severed wrist and frantically knelt at Lennok’s feet.
“I’ll talk. I’ll talk!! I just heard about it!!”
“Spit it out.”
“That, well…!”
The man, babbling incoherently in fear, told his story.
While ferrying illegal immigrants along the river, he was actually reporting their information to the Torquepaz Police Department in exchange for payment.
In the process, he had heard information from the police department, including something about a man with a white-painted face.
“I, I heard recently that a very dangerous Trait-type Spellcaster is in Torquepaz.”
“…”
“A police special unit was dispatched, but an entire company left no bodies behind…”
The man, pale-faced, confessed.
“There were n-no witnesses, so just bringing information would fetch a considerable reward. I, I just got greedy for a moment.”
“I see.”
“T-then, can I go n-now…?”
Due to the blood flowing from his severed wrist, the man’s face had turned pale.
He would likely lose consciousness from blood loss soon.
But even knowing that, the man did not act rashly.
He hadn’t even seen what instrument had cut off his fingers. The masked figure before him was undoubtedly a killer beyond his comprehension.
He had to avoid displeasing him to stay alive.
Lennok, who had been silently watching him, nodded.
“I’ll let you go. After one last deal.”
“Th-thank you…!!”
The man’s face brightened, and he hastily bowed, gathering his severed parts.
Trembling as if cold, he firmly picked up his fallen hand and fingers.
The moment the man, gathering his severed fingers piece by piece, staggered to his feet.
Click!!
The pistol the man had dropped floated in the air, aiming at his temple.
Frozen in place, the man only turned his eyes to look at Lennok.
“Why…”
“You pulled the trigger, so I must pull it too.”
Lennok said.
“Wouldn’t that be a fair deal for both of us?”
Creak…!
An invisible thread slowly pulled the trigger.
Something whirred inside the pistol, and
“I’m not sure what they call it here. Torquepaz Roulette?”
“You son of a…!!”
Ping-
With a small piercing sound, the man fell, scattering blood.
The man’s body, staggering and falling from the edge of the yacht, slowly drifted down the river.
Splash!
Lennok watched him, then opened the yacht’s door and stepped onto the dock.
“…Hmm.”
Standing on solid ground, the constant nausea seemed to subside a little.
Despite taking motion sickness medication, the unpleasant feeling in his stomach disappeared, and Lennok moved on.
[They call it Endorose Rotation.]
Davi, who had been quietly tucked away, subtly spoke from within his robe.
[The major city of Endorose on the Western Continent is very famous for firearms, and this is apparently a zero-sum game derived from there.]
“You don’t need to explain.”
Naturally, Lennok had no intention of letting the man, who had conspired with the police to sell his information, live.
Unnecessary mercy would only expose Victor’s identity to the Torquepaz Police Department once more.
Either way, Lennok had never intended to leave any loose ends from the start.
“It’s not much different from Vulcan, being obsessed with money and crime.”
Lennok said, adjusting his mask.
“It’s one of the things I do best.”
Beyond the mask, brilliant lights illuminated the night sky.
Casino and hotel buildings soaring high as if to pierce the heavens.
Fireworks constantly exploding, and dazzling billboards flashing everywhere.
And even the familiar face of a woman, shining brightly on the surrounding billboards.
[Freya Karlins: 17th World Tour]
[Torquepaz Stadium Solo Concert]
[Concert Starts D-1]
Torquepaz, the entertainment city, gleamed as brightly as midday even in the dead of night.
Lennok stepped into the dazzling street without hesitation.
Loud, vibrant music blared, as if to burst one’s eardrums.
A street completely focused on entertainment and gambling, filled with dazzling lights.
[It smells very familiar here.]
“There was an area that benchmarked Torquepaz as a mega-city.”
Lennok, walking buried in the crowd, glanced around.
“District 47 Port, was it? The street and scenery are similar.”
The memory of meeting Peshia, the director of Deadrise, for the first time and competing with her on a gambling machine.
It was quite some time ago, but the gambling game he played with Peshia then was quite memorable.
It purported to be a fighting game, yet it was essentially a slot machine based on pure chance.
Recalling the scene of the casino he had visited back then and looking around, he felt a familiar sense of déjà vu.
“Damn it, this is it!!”
“No, why won’t an ace come out…!!!”
“Shuffle the cards again! One more round!!”
Clatterrrr!!
Hundreds of slot machines occupying one side of the street spun ceaselessly.
People everywhere cheered or wailed, gripping cards and gambling chips.
“I heard concert resale tickets are over 4 million cells. Twenty times the original price.”
“It’s impossible to even get scalped tickets. What can you do? It’s Freya’s concert, after all.”
“Songs embedded with Musical Scale Spellcraft are like a ‘blessing’ to mana users. They’d be worth any price anywhere on the continent.”
“I really want to go somehow, is there no way to sneak into the stadium?”
People chattering about Freya’s concert everywhere on the street.
Concert promotion posters plastered densely on walls and pillars.
Lennok fell into thought in the middle of Torquepaz’s bustling street.
‘I need to find the Clown.’
Freya’s concert in Torquepaz was a means to directly transfer to the Kabahim Royal Capital.
Hylaea had said that the Clown was gathering members in Torquepaz for that plan.
The problem was that even Hylaea didn’t know where the Clown was in Torquepaz.
All she could provide were the operational plan and the means to travel to Kabahim.
‘He’s an 8-level illusionist. If he’s determined to hide himself, he can leave no trace.’
He’s a monster who can toy with hierarchies at will, raising himself to a maximum of 8th level.
His way of thinking far surpasses that of ordinary people, so there’s no telling how he’s hiding.
‘I need to contact the Clown before the concert starts. Only then can we at least synchronize our movements.’
Considering the Clown’s personality, it’s unlikely he’d stay quietly by Freya’s side until the operation begins.
If Lennok had to find and contact him, it wouldn’t be at the stadium where the concert is held, but somewhere entirely different—
Boom!!
At that moment, a heavy roar echoed from across the street.
The bustling crowd parted, and steel giants nearly three meters tall appeared one after another.
Mechanical giants, their entire bodies clad in sturdy metal plating, with large heavy weapons mounted on their arms and shoulders.
Green light gleamed from within their visors, looking down at the murmuring crowd.
Lennok, watching them through his mask, muttered.
“…Powersuit?”
[Those are unmanned Armored Barrels equipped with autonomous combat AI.]
Davi immediately replied from within his robe.
[Twenty types of heavy weapons and four missile launchers. Infrared and mana field detection capabilities. Armor capable of withstanding shock spells level 5 or higher.]
[Sixteen-direction adjustable boosters and thrust control algorithms. Combat performance comparable to war mercenaries operating on the Central Front.]
[They are advanced combat weapons equipped with a Cannibalism System, supplying power in real-time for semi-permanent operation.]
Lennok tilted his head, listening to Davi rapidly rattling off information about the weapon.
“Unmanned combat weapons being experimentally deployed in Torquepaz, then.”
[I looked up related news, and it says they’ve been gradually deployed since last quarter to reduce casualties among police personnel.]
“…”
Indeed, what appeared on the street were not just the metal giants called Armored Barrels.
Lined up on either side of the metal giants were uniformed, expressionless police officers.
At that moment, Lennok felt the gaze of several police officers and lowered his head.
[Master?]
“They saw me.”
It was a fleeting, indifferent glance, but Lennok didn’t miss the subtle cue.
It wasn’t because he was wearing a robe or a suspicious mask.
There were plenty of customers dressed like Lennok scattered throughout this street.
The strange thing wasn’t Lennok, but the police’s reaction itself—a conscious attempt to look away, even while observing him.
“They’re moving. It’s not just simple curiosity.”
Lennok tilted his head, watching police officers one by one turn their steps towards him.
“Could it be… they detected my mana?”
Under the identity of Victor, where he suppressed Targeted Resistance, it wasn’t impossible for his mana to be detected.
But if the police’s attitude changed after detecting Lennok’s mana, wouldn’t the reason be the peculiarity of his mana?
And if they were trying to interrogate Lennok because of his Trait-type Spellcaster mana.
‘It’s because of the Clown.’
Thinking that far, Lennok immediately turned his steps.
If he were caught by the police here, he wouldn’t be able to avoid trouble.
He hid himself in the dense crowd and walked quickly.
He entered a wide-open casino and headed for the sparkling slot machines.
Lennok, having subtly picked up a gambling chip lying nearby, put the chip into the machine and sat down.
Click!!
Clatterrrr!!!
He pulled the lever, the slot machine spun, and brilliant lights burst forth consecutively.
With the noisy music, Lennok’s figure was naturally obscured behind the machine.
Lennok, watching the police unit passing in front of the casino, nodded.
“Good. I’ve shaken them off for now.”
[Wouldn’t it have been better to just run far away?]
“I need to check out the surrounding casinos to get information, after all.”
Lennok said, glancing around.
In the process, he didn’t forget to pick up a few more chips, put them into the machine, and pull the lever.
Clatterrrr - Bang!!
Clatterrrr - Bang!!
“I’ll lose some money around here and observe the atmosphere. If I hide my mana and focus on gambling, the police won’t suspect…”
[Oh.]
Davi tilted her head from within his robe.
[Master, that’s…]
“…What?”
Clatterrrr!!!
At that moment, Lennok’s gaze froze as he saw the numbers spinning on the slot machine.
The screen, which had shown fruits and numbers alternately, unified into a single number.
[7] [7] [7] [7] [7]
Bam-ba-ba-ba-ba-bam-!!!
A festive music blared, as if to burst the casino, accompanied by celebratory fireworks.
Simultaneously, large letters rapidly appeared on the slot machine screen.
[Congratulations!!]
[You have won!!]
[Please collect the following prizes through the casino!]
[1: Winnings 1,541,432,373 cells]
[2: Torquepaz Casino VIP Membership, 5 years]
[3: Freya Karlins World Tour VIP Seat Ticket]
“…What is this?”
While Lennok frowned at the unexpected prizes and looked away,
The bottom of the slot machine split open, and gambling chips began to spew out from beneath it.
Whoooosh!!!
Guests sitting around Lennok, who had been staring blankly, stood up abruptly, their eyes wide.
“J-Jackpot!!”
“Damn it, the jackpot hit!!!”
“No way, someone actually hit it big here?”
“Everyone look! Money’s falling!”
People shouting excitedly.
Eyes from all directions in the casino focused on Lennok.
And even the police officers who had just turned the corner to pass by, spotted Lennok and turned back.
“…”
Lennok met the cold gazes of the police and stood up with a wry smile.
“I don’t know if this is good luck or bad.”