The innkeeper wiped his sweaty palms on his tattered apron, his entire body trembling as he faced the man before him. This was no ordinary resident of the ruined city.

Dressed in fine, albeit slightly worn, robes, with a sharp, predatory gaze and an aura that suffocated the weak-willed, the man exuded a powerful aura. Compared to the usual star-formation realm locals of this place, he was a beast among lambs.

“Is he still here?” The man asked, his voice coming out as a low rumble for the old man’s ears, carrying the weight of authority.

The old innkeeper swallowed, his throat dry. “Y-Yes. The man with the meat… he’s still in his room.”

The man with the meat was, of course, Alex, and looking at the man’s eyes still not leaving him, the innkeeper quickly pointed at the room Alex was staying in.

The stranger’s gaze flickered toward the creaky wooden staircase, right at the room the old innkeeper was pointing at.

Staring at the room for a while, the man gave a small nod, his boots making no sound as he moved toward the steps. However, as his foot touched the first step, the innkeeper suddenly remembered something.

“Wait! He… He might already be dead,” exclaimed the innkeeper in a hushed voice.

The man halted, turning his piercing gaze back to the innkeeper, a frown forming between his brows. His expression made it clear that he was expecting an explanation, and the innkeeper quickly stammered out his reason, albeit shuddering. “The inn is… busier than usual tonight. Too many eyes on him. Too many hands that would have wanted that meat for themselves.”

The old innkeeper didn’t directly say it, but the man could understand the meaning behind those words. With so many people aiming for the mean, the possibility of Alex dying was higher.

The man’s eyes narrowed. Without another word, he turned back toward the stairs, his pace doubling.

His instincts screamed at him to hurry. If the fool had already been killed, then his mission would take an unpleasant turn.

He reached the door and pushed it open forcefully, entering the room, but as soon as he did…

Splash!

He stepped on something liquid. He didn’t even have to think twice about what it was as the scent of blood hit him like a tidal wave. His breath caught in his throat as his eyes widened in horror.

The scene before him wasn’t something he was expecting. The floor was slick with crimson, and bodies lay in a gruesome heap against the far corner of the room.

The metallic stench of death clung to the air, suffocating and thick. His fingers twitched toward his weapon. He wanted nothing more than to run away from this room, but before he could move—

Boom!

A weight unlike anything he had ever felt before slammed into him.

His knees buckled. His entire body crashed onto the blood-soaked floor, pinned by an invisible force that made his very bones creak under its pressure.

His instincts screamed, his body resisting, but nothing worked. He was utterly and helplessly trapped.

And then, he saw him.

A figure sat on the edge of the bed, the cold glow of the moonlight filtering through the window and settling upon him. Blue eyes gleamed like icy daggers in the dim room, filled with amusement—and something darker.

“Aha,” the man on the bed murmured, tapping his fingers lazily against his knee. “Finally, someone who looks useful.”

It was Alex, and after waiting for so long and only finding low-level people who knew nothing but tried to get their hands on the meat, someone who seemed different finally entered his room.

[Looks like your acting paid off,] Sophie commented, making him smirk.

‘Of course,’ he said, raising his nose with pride. ‘Who do you think I am?’

During the day, Alex had been going around exchanging meat for information not because he believed any of that information was true but because he knew that the scent of the meat would attract someone like the man in front of him—someone who would definitely have some information.

All of the meat he gave to those vendors and beggars was an investment.

Alex was sure that even in this ruined city, there would be a ruler, and to catch their eyes, he must at least have something they could only dream of having.

Now, looking at the man on the ground, growling in protest while trying to get up, he cracked his fingers. “Shall we see how strong you are?”

The man trembled under Alex’s predatory gaze. He tried to speak, wanting to beg for forgiveness.

In this place, power was the ruler after all. Alex was stronger than him, so the man had no qualms listening to Alex’s orders. But Alex didn’t want that. Alex wanted to instill fear in the man’s heart because this place ran with fear.

The next few hours were nothing short of a nightmare.

Screams, twisted and raw, tore through the walls of the inn. The sound of breaking bones, of choked sobs, of agony drawn out like a symphony composed of suffering.

The innkeeper, hunched beneath the reception desk, covered his ears and squeezed his eyes shut. The other vultures who had been waiting outside, hoping to snatch the meat for themselves, had long since fled into the darkness, realizing the monster they had thought was prey was, in fact, the predator.

They never got to know of this until now because Alex didn’t even try to interrogate the ones who came before this man; they were killed the moment they entered.

He didn’t want to expose his power unless he was sure he would get what he wanted.

After who knows how long, there was finally some silence.

In the blood-stained room, the once-proud man was nothing more than a broken mess, his breath ragged, his limbs shaking uncontrollably. Yet, he was still alive. And drinking from a potion handed to him by the very man who had tortured him.

Alex watched with icy amusement as the man gulped down the healing potion, his fingers twitching from the sheer trauma still lingering in his body.

“Now then,” Alex mused, his voice light yet carrying the weight of absolute menace. “Tell me what I want to know.”

The man coughed, blood splattering onto the floor as he tried to steady his voice. “W-What do you want to know?”

Alex leaned forward, his sharp gaze narrowing. “A girl. Purple hair, purple eyes. Have you seen her?”

The man shuddered. “I… I don’t know much. But I did see someone like that. She was bound, unconscious. They brought her through here.”

Alex’s expression darkened. “Who brought her?”

‘I-Is she someone this devil knows?!’ The man’s eyes widened when he saw Alex’s expression changing.

“I-I don’t know! I swear!” The man quickly pleaded, fear clear in his voice. “I’m just a henchman! I was only sent here to find you. My orders were to take you to the boss!”

For a while, Alex said nothing, causing the man to quiver in fear, unable to guess what Alex would do next. But soon, Alex’s lips curled into a slow, dangerous smile. “Your boss sure is considerate, huh?”

The man flinched as Alex rose from the bed, stepping toward him with deliberate, slow movements. A firm hand landed on the man’s shoulder, sending a violent shiver through his being. Just that simple touch brought back the fresh, unbearable memories of his torture.

Alex leaned in slightly, his voice carrying the weight of unshakable dominance.

“Well then, shall we go meet this boss of yours?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep