Chapter 17: Flick (5)

This place might have been akin to a fateful opportunity for Yuria as well.

She had come risking danger for an important ingredient.

It was the reward for a courageous challenge.

“……?”

Carl, quietly looking around the shop interior, turned his head and gazed out the window.

He sensed a strange commotion from the street outside.

Could a fight have broken out?

It wasn’t really related to him anyway, so he slowly looked over the shelves.

If there was something decent, he thought he might come back later and buy it.

How much time passed like that?

“Hehehe.”

Yuria, with a broad smile at her lips, descended from the upper floor.

In her hand she held something like a brown crystal orb about the size of a fist.

‘That was called Greskyle’s Essence, I think.’

Seeing its form as an essence, it looked as if some kind of energy was condensed.

Even Carl, who could be considered quite knowledgeable, had never heard the name before, so it seemed like a rare item.

So she must have come all the way here searching for something like this.

With an expression suppressing her excitement, Yuria paid the price and carefully placed it into her pocket of extra‑dimensional space.

“Does anyone else need something?”

“I don’t think I do. I’m not much into this kind of thing.”

Laysis shrugged her shoulders and stepped back one pace.

As a swordsperson, she didn’t need magical ingredients much.

Then the witch turned her gaze to Carl.

“How about you, sir?”

“I’m the same. I only learned magic as a cultural refinement.”

“I see, that’s too bad. But if you ever need something, come anytime. I’ll take good care of you.”

The witch winked lightly at Carl in a seductive manner.

Beside her, Yuria looked at him with an expression of disgust.

It was a gaze that said: did she really flirt with the witch?

“…….”

Carl felt wronged.

He hadn’t done anything, just stayed still.

“Then goodbye, young friends. The road home might get a bit rough, so take care.”

With their business concluded, only going back remained.

Crossing the threshold, the witch cast them a meaningful smile.

“What….”

What was she talking about?

Before Yuria could ask, the shop door closed.

At the same time the building’s form vanished, transforming into an empty alley.

“Hmm.”

Yuria tilted her head in puzzlement.

Either way, they had achieved their goal, so there was no longer any reason to stay here.

“Let’s go. I’ll treat you to dinner tonight.”

“That sounds good. Can we have something expensive?”

“……Well, um.”

At Laysis’s words she trailed off.

Buying Greskyle’s Essence had cost a considerable sum.

If royal Laysis ordered an expensive course from the start, they’d go bankrupt before even entering.

Seeing Yuria’s expression, Laysis smiled faintly and stepped ahead.

“I’m not going to completely fleece my friend. Don’t worry.”

“……Thanks.”

“Taking everything at once would be too shortsighted. Better to take it slow.”

“Don’t tease me.”

Though they were bickering, they spoke in a warm, friendly atmosphere—as if quite amicable.

At that moment, Yuria quietly turned her head toward the quietly seated Carl, twisting the tip of her hair, and said:

“You too, come with us. Thank you for coming along.”

“Understood.”

Carl gave a slight smile.

Still, his attitude was more honest than before.

Could it prove that they had grown a bit closer?

The three who emerged from the alley soon tried to cross the street.

There was plenty to see on the surface.

They didn’t want to wander around such a dirty and gloomy place if they didn’t have to.

—“Kill them!”

—“Damn it, if this collapses it will breach zone 3! Defend it at all costs!”

Just before they entered the city.

Their steps stopped at the raucous noise coming from ahead.

A mix of foul curses, fierce sword clashes, terrified screams, and an indescribable commotion.

“……What is this.”

“Looks like some kind of fight broke out?”

Yuria and Laysis halted immediately and hid themselves in a nearby alley.

Carl, who had already sensed the disturbance some time ago, slipped between them into hiding.

Clang! Clang‑clang!

It was more than just one or two fighting.

At least dozens of people were swinging weapons violently to kill each other.

Bright red blood splattered and body parts were severed.

The number of bodies collapsed on the ground easily exceeded double digits.

At that horrific sight, the two murmured with grave expressions.

“……What do we do now?”

“I doubt they’ll let us go peacefully.”

Even if they explained they had nothing to do with this street, those who had tasted blood and gone mad wouldn’t just let them pass.

Surely they would capture them or kill them.

With a few people they might be able to push through somehow, but now the opponents were too many.

“Let’s detour through another alley first. There isn’t only one exit.”

“That’s what we should do. No need to hurt ourselves unnecessarily.”

“……This way.”

Yuria, as if done deciding, immediately guided them to a different path.

Avoiding contact with others as much as possible and moving toward safety.

“Uh?”

But after only a few steps, they ran into a man clutching a blood‑dripping axe.

Just as Yuria and Laysis opened their mouths in alarm, something flew swiftly between them.

Puff—!

Their shoulders flinched.

This place might easily have been a fateful opportunity for Yuria as well.

She had risked danger to come for an important ingredient.

It was the reward for a bold challenge.

The thrown throwing dagger flew and pierced the man’s glabella precisely.

There was no doubt about it—instant death.

Soon the man quietly collapsed, blood spraying everywhere.

The two slowly turned their heads and looked back at Carl.

“It looked urgent.”

Carl shrugged his shoulders and answered with a nonchalant attitude.

He wondered if he’d been too decisive in using an assassin’s tool, but any further disturbance here would only cause more trouble.

“…That may be true.”

Laysis gave a brief nod, showing her understanding.

She was not so weak that she would make a fuss over one person’s death.

“….”

Yuria’s expression was much the same.

It was a world where hesitation to kill others to survive wasn’t allowed.

It gave her a moment to reaffirm a fact she had forgotten.

Thunk.

Carl retrieved the thrown dagger.

He wiped the blood off the blade on the man’s clothing.

He hadn’t expected to use the first weapon of Ibleheim that he had bought at an auction in such a way.

‘After all, it was bought as a gift from the Queen.’

After silencing one person by killing him, they continued through the alleys.

But every direction seemed to show signs of movement, forcing them to turn back.

“…This way is blocked.”

And some paths didn’t connect properly, leaving them in a real dilemma.

As they stood paused with troubled expressions, Laysis cautiously offered an idea.

“Then how about this? The fight doesn’t seem like it will last long, so let’s hide somewhere.”

“Is there a suitable place? It looks like they’re running around everywhere.”

“I heard there’s a neutral zone in Flick. It’s usually a tavern.”

“A tavern?”

At Carl’s words, Yuria looked around.

All shops and houses had long since shut and barred their doors.

But there were occasional places where one could feel activity inside.

“Tavern, tavern, tavern. Ah, over there?”

Yuria pointed with her fingertip to a shop sign painted with a large drink mug.

There was no mistaking it—it clearly meant tavern—so they threw on their robes and hurried across the street.

Screeech.

When they opened the door and entered, they saw quite a few people seated inside.

The middle‑aged master wiping a glass at the counter looked at them with a puzzled expression.

“Customers? The fight isn’t over yet, but surprisingly you’re safe.”

“Three martinis. Dry for me, and tequila for the two.”

Carl gave the response.

It wouldn’t be good to ignore women’s voices in this kind of shady place.

Though they both might have gone to many social clubs, a place like this was unfamiliar, making them slightly awkward.

The master seemed to notice the two behind Carl were women and gave a lecherous expression.

Then he gestured for them to sit casually.

“…Do you often come to places like this?”

Once they laid claim to a corner seat, Laysis asked with a curious look.

At first glance Carl looked somewhat fragile.

His facial lines were fine and his skin slightly pale, giving a sense of deficiency.

In a good light, he had a maternal aura; in a bad light, he lacked masculine appeal.

‘I thought he was just a bookish pest.’

Yuria seemed to think the same.

But seeing his smooth handling of deadly weapons and composed behavior even in a place like this made her reconsider.

“I’m from the North. When hunting or patrolling, I often drank alcohol to warm my chilled body.”

“…The North? Which region did you say?”

“Leipzig.”

“I see.”

Yuria emitted a quiet exclamation, and Carl gave a wry smile.

How little attention had she paid that she didn’t even know he was from Leipzig until now?

“If you’re from Leipzig, that fits. It’s in the North, near the border.”

“So is that why your hands are so fierce?”

“Our family motto is to abandon hesitation.”

Carl shrugged his shoulders.

North, imperial border, harsh environment.

It was enough background to explain his profile plausibly.

“…By the way, this place is crowded.”

“They must have come here to avoid the fight.”

“So does that mean everyone here lives on this street?”

“Yes, I think so. These would be criminals who fled after committing crimes or those forced to hide their identities.”

Reasonable, ordinary people wouldn’t drift into Flick.

Mainstream society had no reason to go there, so the place was practically a den of criminals.

“Say, when we go back…”

Once their tension eased somewhat, Yuria and Laysis began chatting freely.

They occasionally spoke to Carl as well.

He responded as needed while listening to others nearby.

‘…As expected.’

It seemed this street hadn’t yet had its power structure firmly established.

That meant there was room for them to break in.

If they seized the outer edge of the Empire, next came the underground city Flick.

Flick, operating beneath the surface shadow, was the real underbelly of the backstreets.

‘Currently, three organizations are vying for power.’

From the rumors of drunk patrons, he gained a rough understanding of the situation.

Originally the long‑standing powers here, ‘Lazi’ and ‘Comte’, had a tense balance despite their bickering.

But when the third organization, ‘Lounge’, appeared, the balance collapsed.

Lounge swept through the street with overwhelming might, forcing the two organizations to ally against them.

Once power leveled off somewhat and Lounge’s strength was significantly reduced…

‘Comte stabbed them in the back.’

That’s why the three‑way conflict resumed and continued until now.

Having grasped the entire situation, Carl reached one conclusion.

‘Lounge is the storefront. The real backers are elsewhere.’

Their purpose was the mutual destruction of Lazi and Comte.

They sought to eat away each other’s strength so they could swiftly take over this street.

‘Interesting.’

Carl smiled faintly as he tilted his glass.

Even in a town of this size, such fierce intrigue raged beneath the surface.

He wondered how many more formidable foes awaited if he looked across the Empire’s shadows.

He found it rather exciting.

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