Chapter 11

Chapter 11

An abandoned warehouse, off the beaten path. There was a woman lying on a tattered, grimy rag, covered with a blanket.

“Eek, eek, eek. Hmph!”

A sob escaped between chewed lips. Sobs and snorts.

It was a very lonely and cold place for her.

“Fuck you, assholes. I’m the one who wanted to break it, huh? Why would I want to break it. How the fuck does that piece of shit cost five million? Hmph!”

Goofy.

Talking to himself was a recent habit. Pekatum’s travels away from home had always been painful and lonely, so he had to talk to himself.

Especially on a night like this.

“……is good.”

Kill a man and I’ll cut you a million. The bastard’s last words echoed in my head. If you kill five people, it’s all forgiven.

Morals. Ethics?

The incident made it clear to Asterike. That conscience doesn’t feed you. It’s a liability.

You worked hard for your money and got mugged. He went to help a man who was being attacked by a beast and ended up with a debt of 5 million.

There’s only one way to reimburse.

“If you’re a bad… person. Yes.”

You can do it. I have no choice but to. Asterike’s golden eyes filled with venom.

“If you’re a bad person, what?”

“Hee hee!”

Asterique jumped at the sound of a voice that rang in her ears from nowhere. She backed away from the corner in the blink of an eye and looked up.

The only light was the moonlight streaming in through the blown-out door. It was barely enough to illuminate the night, but Asterike was used to the darkness.

So it wasn’t hard to see. Squatting down, eyes fixed on himself.

“I don’t know what to do. You must be pretty bold to sleep in this place. It’s not even a safe zone. What if there’s a monster out there?”

“I can handle the …… beast.”

“Without hearing human footsteps?”

“I’m here today because… I have a lot on my mind, and I’m not here because I want to be.”

“That’s not right. I’m sorry.”

There was no sign of mockery. Asterique watched the nameless man’s demeanor.

“Who are you…?”

“Kim Yi Hyun. What about you?”

“……Asteriske.”

What the hell is going on here, a statement out of the blue? Asterique was a little taken aback, but not in a bad way.

“It feels like it’s been a while.

It’s been a while since I’ve had to introduce myself, and the guys who were screaming at me for 5 million never asked for my name.

Many did. The name Asterique didn’t seem to matter to them.

“Other than the name, um. Nothing to tell. Just a homeless guy wandering around, like you.”

“Oh, I see. Is there something you need me to do?”

Instead of answering right away, Kim looked away. A photo had fallen to the floor.

A photo of the “target” that Pavoni pointed out.

“I understand the situation you’re in.”

“Huh?”

“Five million. The Pavoni family. Hired to kill.”

Asterike’s face flushed with embarrassment. Soon, embarrassment turned to hostility. A hypothesis formed in her brain.

“You were their coworker!”

“No, it’s not, so let’s just calm down.”

“You’re lying. How else could you…….”

“Who needs secrets in the middle of nowhere?”

Bam!

The flashlight flicked on, casting a pale glow. Asterike squinted at the brightened vision.

“Who came in, when they came in, where they’re staying. I can tell from a few bridges over that some immigrant bought a flashlight a few hours ago.”

“…Is that it?”

“Thanks to you talking to yourself, I know you’ve been thinking about killing Wang Lin. Judging from his condition, he’ll do it tomorrow or the day after.”

He shudders at the realization. A white hand clutched at the tattered cloth that served as a blanket.

“I can’t help it, I don’t have the money.”

“Just so you know, the magic sword is bullshit. Five million? That’s a lot of money for a lame duck to get attacked by a beast while carrying something of that quality alone. He’s not an idiot.”

“I thought it was weird too, but what can I do, he keeps crying about how I broke it, so it’s just my fault.”

Classic blackmail. Asterique realizes she’s been set up.

But the realization came too late.

They won’t listen to you if you claim the sword is fake, and they’ll pay you the right amount, not too much and not too little.

“I’m going to tell you what’s going to happen to you.”

“What?”

“If you kill Wang Lin, bad things will happen to your reputation. Wang Lin may be a Maldan, but he’s a member of the Red Clan. The moment you touch him, you’ve been branded a Red Gun. By the time you’re in danger, the Pavoni family might try to curry favor.”

“…….”

“Then I’ll pay you about 150 to kill a mafioso named Svedeniye, and you’ll be in no position to refuse, because the more you live with the grudge, the more you’ll need the Pavoni family’s favor.”

“What the hell. What do you want from me…….”

“It’s Pekatum the Sage, and while I’d normally shy away from him, he’s a good hit man.”

Pecatums are not only characterized by their distinctive horns. Exceptional physical abilities. A natural sense of combat. They’re also known to be belligerent.

“Ast isn’t much of a combat guy.

The ‘Asterike’ in front of him now didn’t look like someone who enjoyed fighting either.

This bias is due to the fact that many Pekatums are mercenaries by nature.

‘Clearly, Pekatum is in a precarious situation.

Having been ostracized for so long, it’s easy to get caught up in “their” ideas. Those who seek to keep the disabled under their feet.

Legion.

This is the organization that Shadow was a part of, and is the main villain of the episode until the midpoint.

The Polaris world is stable for now, but then the Legion comes along and tears it apart.

To stop a tragedy in the making, you need allies. Someone like Ast.

“I knew it within days of leaving my hometown.”

After a moment of silence, Asterike said.

“That there aren’t many Pecatums in the world. When I heard about my people shaving their own horns… I thought they were idiots, but now I just think it’s amazing.”

The horns are a Pekatum’s proof and pride. Pecatums do not welcome kin who have lost their horns for dishonorable reasons.

Damaging the horns with my own hands would be like killing the option of returning home.

“They were determined to live in a place like this… where the only people who despised, feared, and wanted to take advantage of them were those who were Pekatum.”

Asterike’s eyes sank to a grayish hue. Doubt and resignation. A flurry of emotions stared back at her.

“What about you? What do you want from me?”

“……m.”

Kim scratched the back of my head. I could fool her with words. The right story was pieced together in my brain like a puzzle.

But I didn’t feel like cheating.

“I’m not so different from the Pavoni family, I just like to use your abilities as I see fit.”

Asterike snorted at that.

“Ha. That’s honest.”

“You didn’t expect me to say, ‘I feel sorry for you and want to help,’ did you? Dream on. I’ve only met three such good people in all my time on this side of the pond, oh, maybe one.”

Kim picked up Wang Lin’s photo and handed it over. Just as Pavoni had done.

“No matter how bad you are, for the next three years, everyone who approaches you is the same asshole.”

“Three years?”

“The people I just told you about aren’t coming this way for three years. Unless you’re going to be thrown on a mountain, you better pick a better asshole.”

“That’s you?”

“You should think about it.”

He put the flashlight down. It was a small gift. You should feel sorry for him, hugging his rags.

I was tempted to give him a blanket, but unfortunately I didn’t have one on hand.

“If you stick with me, don’t go into the safe zone and stay here for three days.”

“…Then what about Bob.”

A voice that sounded like it was crawling. The tips of his ears were slightly red with embarrassment at his own words.

“Ah, Bob. It’s important. I’ll take care of them. It’s a three-day horse, it could be over tomorrow, they’re not the most patient of creatures.”

Asterike shook her head, not quite sure what she’d left out. Kim didn’t bother to elaborate.

“I’ll know soon enough anyway. I don’t know if I’ll have time to think it through then, but maybe it’s better to go with my gut.”

While straightening the bent knee. Finally, I said.

“All I’m saying is… you mumbled something earlier, ‘if you’re a bad person’. I’ve decided to pay as little attention to that as possible.”

It’s good to have humanity in your enemies. Just as Shadow has an unfortunate past, so do the villains.

“It comes down to this: Is this asshole going to hurt me? If I let him have his way, how much trouble will I be in afterward?”

Calculating risk and return. When we decided to pre-process shaders, we did the math.

And now.

Given Astra’s return, the Pavoni family risk was not a threat.

* * *

To start with the results, Asterike never left the warehouse. She only went outside briefly to perform her physiological activities.

Two days later, in the evening.

“Haha. Did you hide this because you hid it?”

The Pavoni family wandered in. Twelve of them, including Pavoni himself. They strode into the warehouse.

“You’re a barbarian, you don’t understand the concept of debt, you’re not good at this, you need to think about paying it back fairly.”

Pavoni clicked his tongue.

“You said you couldn’t afford to pay, and I gave you a way to do it. If you come out like this, we’re in trouble. Hey, do you want this knife back?”

Thump, thump!

Swing the sword with the scabbard and hit the wall. The item he had stolen from Asterike. The noise echoed through the not-so-spacious room.

“……?”

Soon Pavoni’s eyes narrowed. He’d deliberately provoked her, but the Pekatum woman hadn’t responded.

“Something’s wrong.”

“Yes?”

He doesn’t even look panicked. The mafia busted into his hiding place. There were no obvious questions about how he knew.

Above all, eye contact.

“I keep looking where-”

Ta-da!

A sharp gunshot. The tall man at Pavoni’s side fell to the ground. The surprise shot sent shock through the gang’s faces.

Bang! Another shot rang out. One of the cowering mafiosi dropped to the ground, clutching his abdomen.

And then someone shouted.

“Shit, it’s an ambush!”

The location was specific. Tarps spread all over the warehouse. The one closest to the door among them.

A gun was sticking out of the tarp.

As soon as he was caught, Kim removed the sheet. Just as the mobsters’ guns were pointed at him, another device was in his hands.

2-star special armament [FE-7 suppression shield].

“Don’t just watch, shoot!”

Thud, thud!

The bullet struck your shield. Your grip tingled from the impact.

It’s not unbearable. Kim tightened his grip and stepped back.

“I’ve never been in a gunfight before.

It was also the first time I’d ever shot a person.

Sensations similar yet different to the first day you fell into the Polaris. My ears are deafening and the smell of gunpowder irritates my nose.

To summarize my impressions.

“It’s easier than a shadow child.

It was a far cry from the days when there was no way to fight back except with tricks. Of course, you’d still get yourself killed, but that was the same as fighting monsters.

The challenges ahead are many, steep, and often life-threatening. There are limits to how far we can go with our maneuvers.

“Think of it as gaining experience.

The main episode afterward. The second half changes things up, but at least through the middle, the main enemies are Legion – humans, not monsters.

You need to get used to dealing with them.

“And him.

Kim squinted at Asterique through the mobsters. His expression showed fear. At the same time, she seemed troubled by something.

It was time for Ast to come to his senses.