Chapter 53. Shall I Go There First?
After hearing Hyunwoo's question, Verian thought for a mont and opened her mouth.
"You said you wanted to know about the movents of the Arena executives?"
As Hyunwoo nodded, Verian cleared her throat once and spoke to the empty air.
“Rodwell.”
“……!”
Swoosh—
The space shimred, and a hand holding a paper docunt erged from the air, right next to Hyunwoo's face.
As Verian took the docunt, the hand vanished back into the air with another swoosh.
“Thank you.”
Watching the disappearing hand, a chill ran down Hyunwoo's spine.
He was certain that if that hand had grabbed his neck, he wouldn't have been able to react at all.
For the first ti in a while, Hyunwoo felt his body tense up.
“…What was that?”
“Ah, I apologize if you were startled. That is my escort and secretary. He has been assigned to stay by my side since I beca the branch manager.”
…Right. She was the branch manager.
She wore an innocent expression, but he wasn't fooled by it.
It was a masterful way of naturally reminding him of the gap between them.
Her escort, Rodwell, had only shown his hand, but his presence was considerable.
Seeing that she had such a formidable escort, the reality of her high position hit him anew.
Verian handed the docunt to the tense Hyunwoo and spoke.
"Information on the movents of the Arena executives is Class 2 information. It's information that can be provided to you, Lord Hyunwoo, as a 1st Class mber. Here it is.”
“The paynt?”
“I will send you a comprehensive bill for settlent later.”
The fee for information sold by Lotus was not a subject for negotiation.
It was likely their policy not to even deal with wanderers who couldn't afford the information fees in the first place.
Hyunwoo nodded once and looked at the docunt he had received from her.
The title was written neatly on the cover in block letters.
⌜Report on the Movents of Bellatus Arena Executives⌟
The amount of paperwork, titled as a report, was vast.
Flip—
Hyunwoo flipped through the report one page at a ti, carefully examining its contents.
The report detailed the movents of the Arena executives.
After staring at the report for a long ti, Hyunwoo's eyes sparkled.
‘…This guy moved?’
He couldn't find the movent of an executive that would specify a match, but he had obtained even more important information.
⌜Poml: Currently moving toward Rakiter Valley.⌟
Poml was an executive in charge of being dispatched outside to greet important guests of the Arena.
The Rakiter Valley he was heading to was….
‘Don't tell … ‘he’ is coming?’
The individual Hyunwoo had marked as a potential sponsor.
‘Jude Basterion.’
The illegitimate child born between a Demon King and a Celestial. Just hearing it suggested a life of arduous fate.
There was an expression that easily brought him to mind.
‘Icon of Misfortune.’
He rembered creating the character Jude Basterion by cramming in all sorts of unfortunate backstories.
Of course, that absolutely did not an he was weak.
‘The blood of a Demon King doesn't just go anywhere.’
He was simply born with an unfortunate destiny; in terms of martial power, he lacked nothing.
No, in fact, if one were to rank combat power in the Demon World, he would definitely be among the top.
To put it simply, he was insanely strong.
The Rakiter Valley, where the executive was heading, was a border area of the Gallion Territory, ruled by ‘Jude Basterion’.
The only ti Poml went to Rakiter Valley was when he was going to escort Jude Basterion.
Seeing that, he could be certain that Jude was coming to this Arena.
With that fact, Hyunwoo could also easily recall the Gold match related to Jude.
‘…A Special Match.’
A match held solely for ‘Jude Basterion’.
It was a match so vicious that all participating gladiators could die.
Recalling that much, Hyunwoo t the eyes of Verian, who was gazing at him intently.
“Thank you. This has been a great help.”
“I’m glad it was helpful.”
Verian smiled brightly at Hyunwoo.
Now that he had obtained all the information he wanted, he had no more business with her.
“Well then……”
As Hyunwoo was about to say his goodbyes and leave, she opened her mouth as if she had sothing more to say.
“Perhaps……”
“…?”
“Do you rember the warning I gave you last ti?”
The warning Verian gave…
Hyunwoo recalled the warning Verian had left about Baron Modric.
eting Hyunwoo’s eyes, Verian continued in a strong tone.
“Be careful of Baron Modric.”
“Modric, you an?”
“Yes. There are signs that he is plotting sothing against you and that vampire. Lucas, was it? There are circumstances suggesting he is plotting against the two of you.”
Until he returned to the Arena, he had been tense, not knowing what Baron Modric might do, but when nothing happened for a while, he had completely forgotten.
‘That’s right. That bastard was still around.’
But even if she was the branch manager of Lotus, was it really okay for her to casually hand over information about a Demon…?
“Is it alright for you to tell this?”
“Lotus should know how to distinguish between gold in hand and a pebble on the street.”
“By that you an…?”
“Do I need to say it directly? I’m saying that you seem to be the gold.”
Verian valued him more highly than Modric.
Casually handing over information about Modric, a Demon, was a risky act for her as well.
It seed that making her the branch manager had played a large role in this favor.
“He is moving overtly.”
Verian had warned him about Modric before.
She went on to explain that Modric was now looking for hunting dogs to kill Hyunwoo directly.
Hyunwoo bowed his head in thanks as he headed out.
‘Baron Modric is preparing hunting dogs, is he….’
If he prepared carelessly, he would be bitten to death by those hunting dogs.
On his way back to the dormitory, Hyunwoo continued to think about Baron Modric.
* * *
Hyunwoo made his way to the Gold section, not Silver.
It was because he had heard from Van that the move was finished.
The Gold dormitory was just a larger version of the previous one.
Hyunwoo entered the new dormitory.
Pierre, sprawled out haphazardly on the floor, greeted Hyunwoo.
“…You’re here?”
Seeing Pierre barely manage to lift his head to greet him, he could feel how much he had suffered alone.
“Good work.”
Thanks to him, they were able to move from the Silver to the Gold dormitory safely.
However,
“Why are you still here?”
Hyunwoo casually spoke to Lucas, who was sitting on the sofa.
Why had Lucas, whom he thought would have gone to his own dormitory in the Gold section, followed him all the way here?
“All my things are here, so where do you expect to go?”
“…What about your dormitory?”
“Whatever it is, I doubt it would be more comfortable than here.”
“……”
Lucas sank deep into the sofa and nodded.
…It seed he was getting more and more shaless as ti went on.
Well, it didn't seem like adding one Lucas to a spacious dormitory would be uncomfortable.
He had already experienced it enough during their ti in Silver.
Hyunwoo soon nodded, easily accepting it.
Pierre, with his exhausted body, served him and Lucas tea before leaving the dormitory.
Slurp—
Hyunwoo took a sip of his tea and opened his mouth.
“I have sothing to ask you.”
“…Don’t talk with tea in your mouth.”
Lucas frowned.
Hyunwoo ignored him and continued speaking.
“Do you have so kind of grudge with Baron Modric?”
“……”
At the ntion of Modric, Lucas's expression grew even fiercer.
“It seems Modric is targeting us.”
“He’s targeting ‘us’, not just ?”
“Lotus said that bastard is targeting both of us.”
“……”
Thak—
Lucas put down the teacup he was holding.
“I had no intention of getting you involved as well. I apologize.”
He bowed his head politely and apologized.
In the process of making Lucas a companion, a clash with Baron Modric was an expected event anyway.
To beco his companion, this was sothing worth enduring.
Besides, no matter how much a Demon was targeting him, there was a way to resolve it.
‘Jude Basterion. If I can just make him my sponsor, everything will be solved.’
Therefore, the current situation was more of an opportunity to get closer to Lucas than a crisis.
“Tell about Modric. I need to know to prepare.”
“…Alright. Baron Modric is of the Lycanthrope race.”
“Is it because of a traditional grudge?”
“Vampires and Lycanthropes do have a long-standing grudge… but the reason he is targeting is related to the fall of my family.”
“You an Modric is related to the fall of your family?”
“Hmph! What a joke. Do you think soone like Modric could even leave a scratch on the Cayenne family? He’s a hunting dog. Sent to kill .”
From what he heard, it seed Modric was sothing of a subordinate to the power that led the fall of the Cayenne family.
‘I had a hunch when he said Lycanthrope.’
Modric was a problem, but he felt that what was behind him was also a problem.
Was there no other way but to get stronger faster?
Perhaps it was because of Hyunwoo's serious expression.
Lucas, who was always confident, looked uncharacteristically restless.
“So… I say this again, but it was not my intention to get you involved. I am truly sorry.”
“For soone who says that, you seem to have been living in my dormitory quite shalessly.”
“…I’m sorry. Is there anything you want?”
There was the option of making him feel indebted like with the pact last ti, but.
‘There’s no need for that.’
Their relationship was no longer so shallow as to require such things.
As it happened, he had sothing in mind.
“If you’re sorry, then follow my lead until the next match.”
“You want to follow your lead?”
“You don’t seem very sorry, do you?”
To get in sync with Lucas, a vampire with a strongly individualistic nature, it was best to get a firm promise like this.
After hesitating for a mont, he spoke.
“…Do you have so information about the next match?”
“It’s a Gold match. Let's just be careful.”
“I understand. I will follow your lead. Do you have a plan, by any chance?”
“What plan?”
“Baron Modric. We could be attacked if we just stay put.”
“We will have to prepare.”
“How do you plan to prepare?”
Slurp—
Hyunwoo drank his tea, recalling information about Baron Modric.
‘A man who has mastered handling gladiators.’
He was a man of such tenacity that there were rumors that any gladiator he set his sights on would inevitably beco his sponsored gladiator.
Whether he used mana stones or exploited weaknesses, he always achieved it.
‘That's how vile a man he is.’
In the Demon World, being called vile was the highest praise.
For a man like that, a way to target him and Lucas would be….
“He’ll try to work through the gladiators he sponsors.”
“Huh? What does that an?”
“It ans the gladiators Modric sponsors will target us in the match.”
“…Will it be alright? I heard he sponsors many gladiators.”
Lucas wore a grave expression.
“Are you, the great Lord Vampire, getting spooked by re gladiators?”
“…I was worried about you. Such n are no problem, no matter how many there are.”
Seeing Lucas put on a straight face, Hyunwoo let out a chuckle.
“Then we’re fine.”
“Fine?”
“If we’re together, it won’t be a big problem.”
“…Alright.”
Lucas nodded with an unconvinced expression and started drinking his tea again.
It wasn't that he said it with the complacent thought that things would work out sohow.
‘The next match is related to Jude.’
Modric's sches to target them would be aningless.
No matter how many hunting dogs he unleashed….
‘They’ll be too busy trying to survive the match.’
That was how vicious the ‘Special Match’ related to Jude was.
This was not the ti to prepare for Modric.
Conversely, it ant that he, too, had to prepare for ‘that match’.
He was now a Gold gladiator.
That ant he could use a new floor of the ‘Market’.
‘Shall I go there first?’
The ‘Auction House’ in the market, available to Gold gladiators and above.
Hyunwoo drank his tea, thinking about the items he might be able to obtain at the auction house.
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