Chapter 34: The Black Market

"This is insane..." Aidan Hamil muttered, his eyes fixated on Curan's head lying on the floor. He tried to shout something at Karyl, but then abruptly covered his mouth in shock.

His plan had gone completely wrong.

With such a mess, it’s only a matter of time before the administrators notice...

He hadn't expected the kid before him to be this strong. Sure, he thought the kid was formidable, but never imagined that he could single-handedly take down the Golden Lion.

Both the principality and the empire have always been eyeing Tatur.

Situated above the Three Kingdoms of Istria in the south, Tatur could be considered the heartland of the continent. However, its strategic location made it challenging for any one nation to easily conquer it due to mutual caution.

At this rate, all the groundwork done so far will be in vain.

The issue at hand was no longer just about acquiring Suan Hazer anymore.

"Aidan."

"Y-Yes?"

“What about your sister? Why did you come here instead of looking for her?"

Aidan gulped. Though he had prepared an answer, his dry mouth made it difficult to speak properly.

"Well, it seems she is not at the port. Maybe she’s inside the city..."

"Is that so?" Karyl replied, his lips forming a slight pout. He nodded as if he knew nothing.

Of course, she's not here. She must be hiding somewhere nearby. With Curan dead, she won't come out now. She is always so fond of hiding, that girl.

Karyl knew Aidan’s sister was hiding somewhere in the city, watching everything from the very beginning.

The sharp gaze he had felt upon entering the building had disappeared, but he doubted she had left so easily. Perhaps Karyl had interrupted her attempt on Curan's life.

If that’s how it's going to be, I have my ways too.

"In the city? Then you should come too," Karyl said to Aidan.

"Me?"

"Yes, it’s dangerous to be alone now that things have escalated."

Despite the obviousness of Karyl's response, Aidan felt uneasy.

Damn it.

He felt like he was being played.

Each time he spoke Karyl's slightly upturned lips, added to Aiden’s ever-growing anxiety.

"Are you really a commoner? Your control over magic is quite impressive. You could join a guild with that skill."

"Ha, no... I’m nothing special. I just got lucky with the wind direction."

"Oh? I see. Lucky, huh?" Karyl smirked oddly at Aidan's response. "Thanks to you, everything went smoothly. It isn’t much, but I'll help you find your sister until the end."

Karyl's lips curved into a smile, but his eyes seemed to glare, making Aidan feel uneasy.

What the... Damn.

The gaze made him want to escape right then and there.

It was clear. It wasn’t just a feeling. Aidan couldn't shake off the feeling of being completely seen through.

Does he know... about me? No, that can't be. How could this kid possibly figure me out when I’ve been living in Tatur for nearly a year?

Suspicion clouded Aidan's mind, causing turmoil, but he dared not speak up. Standing out might only raise more suspicion. He had no choice but to silently follow Karyl.

"What will you do now?" Suan Hazer asked, his face filled with genuine concern.

"Tatur may not have a king, but it does have administrators. Suan, you must have heard of them, given your travels through the city," Karyl said as he walked on.

Nonchalantly, he rummaged through Curan's lifeless body. "Hmm, not here." Tilting his head slightly, he continued, "Four administrators. Well, now that one is dead, it's three."

The true powers in the Free City: Curan of the lawless port, Dushala of the black market, and Kamma of the slums. And the last one is the annually changing champion of Tatur's arena. The champion isn't technically an administrator but receives similar treatment.

"Don't worry. Those guys won't bat an eye just because Curan is dead. They're probably already scheming on how to snatch his position," Karyl stated as if it were all too obvious. "They'll keep an eye on us but will leave us be for now. Sorting out the lawless port is their priority."

As Karyl rose to his feet, he picked up a longsword, larger than his own hand, which had fallen near Curan. "Besides, the arena champion, aside from the other two, isn't much of a fighter. They can't openly fight."

The creaking sound of a nearby windmill filled the air.

"Hmm." Karyl swung the blade a few more times, then examined the sword closely before striking it forcefully with his dagger.

The thick blade of the sword broke off with a loud noise, startling both onlookers.

Panting slightly, Karyl let out a light sigh.

Truly impressive... every time I see it. In my past life, I never used it, just kept it with me.

He looked at the dagger again, satisfied. Despite being a dagger, it held its own in a fight with Curan, not faltering in the slightest.

What material is it made from? To be this durable...

Curan's sword was made from Sea Iron, a special ore found only in the sea.

Now that I think about it, this sword... it can't be the work of barbarians. The north hasn't seen such metals nor does it have the capability to forge it. Not just the north, searching the entire empire might not yield a sword of such strength.

In his past life, Karyl had used weapons made by the empire's best blacksmiths. But despite the plain decoration, the edge and strength of this dagger were superior to any sword he had used before his death.

If I weren't so small in size when I was twelve, I might not have chosen to use a dagger. Then I might have missed the true value of this blade.

Pulling something from the broken blade, Karyl found what he was looking for. "Here it is."

A disc smaller than his palm was embedded in the sword's body.

"What’s that?" Suan and Aidan asked.

"It’s the administrator's token. Each administrator has one, all are different in shape and material. It could be an object like this or even a tattoo engraved onto the body."

Suan silently watched Karyl, "Do you plan to become an administrator?"

"Me? Hardly. Why would I willingly enter a split territory that's been fought over so fiercely?" Karyl smirked.

Whenever Suan saw that smirk, he couldn't help but feel a chill.

"Let's go. It'll take time to deal with the remaining ones. We need to move quickly."

"Where are we going?"

"Inside the city, of course," Karyl said nonchalantly, causing both listeners to gulp nervously. "Don't worry. We've killed an administrator."

Are you mad? After causing all this chaos, you plan to boldly walk into the city?

Aidan Hamil felt an urgent desire to stop him.

"It might sound dangerous to outsiders. But having the administrator's token means those without real power won't dare to challenge us."

As if he could read his thoughts, Karyl lightly swung the ornament he had extracted from Curan's sword.

Despite his words, the others still looked uneasy.

How can he be so confident? It's as if he's been to Tatur before,

Suan thought, frowning towards Karyl.

"Also we should enjoy the privileges that come with it."

"You can't mean... to go there?"Surprised, Suan looked at Karyl.

"Exactly." Karyl nodded with an ambiguous smile, confirming their destination.

***

Deep within the slums of Tatur, where only tents provided shelter, the already lawless city felt even darker.

"Hahahaha...!!" Laughter echoed from a tent illuminated by a flickering light, where several shadows were entwined.

Suddenly, the tent flap was pulled back. "So, you're Kamma, one of the remaining administrators."

The sudden low voice startled the elderly man inside, causing him to look up in surprise.

"Wha... What?!" Surrounded by naked women, the old man, his face covered in liver spots, received something thrown at him by Karyl without a word.

Thud—

Suan, standing behind him, turned his gaze away as if he'd seen something he shouldn’t have.

"You are..." One of the people inside the tent seemed to recognize Suan, but their attention was diverted to the object that had fallen.

Their eyes widened in shock.

"Aaah!!"

"What is this?!"

Screams filled the tent all at once.

It was none other than the severed head of Curan.

The women, screaming in terror, grabbed their clothes and fled.

"Don't make a fuss."It's as if rot wafts from you every time you move."

Karyl, preventing the old man from fleeing with the women, pushed his shoulder and spoke with a cold expression. "Both of you."

The old man’s lips quivered as his gaze alternated between Curan's head and Karyl.

"Ka, Karv..."

"Karv? Was that the name of the guard stationed out front? Give up on finding him. He's already dead."

"..."

"Three in the alley, fifteen in the adjacent building, and seven positioned along the street. Seems the slum lord has a lot more money than what his name suggests."

Kamma asked in a trembling voice, "What... What do you want?"

"Kamma of the slums." Karyl scanned him from head to toe.

The old man nodded repeatedly, his face quivering.

"I understand you manage the gate there." At those words, the old man's gaze slowly descended to the object rolling towards his leg on the ground. "This should suffice as your qualification."

Kamma, staring at the severed head of Curan, swallowed hard.

What's going on? How did this happen?

Curan had already been dead, yet no reports had come in.

Only a few hours had passed since Karyl crossed the lawless port, and the lack of significant reports until now was indeed strange.

Right after entering the lawless port, Kamma's hidden forces, who were lurking, were identified and eliminated like ghosts.

Aidan Hamil looked at Karyl with a pale expression.

A ghost...?

The numbers Karyl mentioned weren't just Kamma's bodyguards but also forces Kamma had secretly placed from the outskirts of the city to this location.

No, a monster...

Having turned the lawless port into a sea of blood without batting an eye, it seemed no one had survived, or had the courage to show themselves.

Or perhaps they're hiding in fear.

Despite the chaos in the lawless port, Kamma, an administrator in Tatur, was oblivious to everything.

To think someone who was heavily drinking at the inn this morning would return as a corpse before day's end...

Kamma's mind raced. Then it struck Kamma,

The Golden Lion died just a while ago? At the hands of this kid?

"It was a fair fight. There were witnesses. This person will vouch for it. Being an administrator, you should know who he is."

Following Karyl's pointed finger, Kamma shifted his gaze. He began to say something to Suan Hazer, who was looking at him, but then closed his mouth.

A fair fight? It was a completely one-sided battle.

Suan recalled the recent events and shook his head.

"But... the black market is only open on the designated day... Opening it suddenly without the administrator’s orders is..." At Karyl's words, Kamma spoke with a trembling voice.

The black market, filled with rare items from across the continent, only opens once a year, on January 1st. After leaving the mansion, one of Karyl's primary reasons for coming to Tatur was precisely because of this.

The item hasn't been revealed yet; it must still be here.

He smiled faintly.

But it was late summer, not the right time, as Kamma mentioned.

At Suan’s words, Karyl nodded as if he already understood. "That's why I brought this. The administrator's approval."

Karyl took out Curan's ornament from his pocket. Knowing it was the token of an administrator, Kamma's expression hardened at the sight of Curan's head and Karyl's prepared evidence.

"That is... Since the establishment of Tatur, opening the black market required the approval of at least two administrators..."

"Well, including you now." Karyl, with a calm expression, drew his dagger and brought it to Kamma's neck. "Isn’t it settled? Now, open the gates of the black market."