Chapter 118: Clearing the Field

Chapter 118: Clearing the Field

Dragon Might surged forward. Strongman Ozil and his subordinates all jolted at once, as though someone had struck them heavily with a giant hammer.

In an instant, some of them ran wildly in all directions. Some fled aimlessly. Some spun repeatedly in place. Some stood stiff and trembling. Their reactions varied, each different from the others.

Unlike earlier, when he had to seize every second for fear that the Silver-Tongued Misor might recover, Klein now had enough leisure to observe the entire field. In an instant, he grasped the situation:

“The different reactions are based on differences in mental strength and toughness. The most fragile and ordinary ones sprint in panic. Those with stronger will among ordinary humans flee aimlessly. Beyonders with improved mental states and ordinary people of considerable will mainly spin in place, wanting to flee while still barely restraining themselves. Beyonders of significant strength or mental resilience show a combination of standing stiffly while trembling and circling in place.

“As for those frightened into losing control of their bladder, they belong to the fleeing-and-hiding category…”

Klein swept his gaze over them and was just about to shoot, making sure the enemies capable of threatening him lost combat ability.

At that moment, he discovered that one stiff, trembling man’s eyes had regained clarity, seemingly about to break free of Deterrence’s influence, while several others also showed signs of recovering to varying degrees.

Considering that he could not eliminate them all in a short time, that gunshots could easily awaken some people, and that different Beyonder abilities might combine to injure him, Klein changed his mind. The glove on his left palm took on a sinister, reflective black.

His eyes instantly grew deep and dark as he forcefully distorted the intentions of those about to awaken.

The trembling man abruptly threw himself sideways. The desire to flee became impossible to restrain, and he headed straight for the secret exit, leaving his employer, Strongman Ozil, with a shrinking view of his back.

Klein rapidly switched between Psychiatrist and Baron of Corruption. Dragon Might followed Distortion, and Distortion followed Dragon Might. Very quickly, the guards around Ozil whose minds were relatively strong or resilient were driven out of the underground area.

Although Creeping Hunger could not compare with a true Shepherd and required a brief delay when switching between different souls, Klein grasped the rhythm extremely well. Together with the lingering influence of Dragon Might, he easily achieved his goal.

However, he also discovered a problem: against certain targets, if they were repeatedly affected by Dragon Might within a short period, the Deterrence effect would grow weaker and weaker. Of course, most of Strongman Ozil’s subordinates, after having Dragon Might stacked onto them repeatedly, had all collapsed to the ground, filth overflowing as a foul stench spread.

“Dragon Might and Distortion really pair well… Earlier, if Misor had not wanted to counterattack and had instead used Bribe—Weaken and Distortion to force his escape, I might not necessarily have caught him and killed him. And that counterattack of his really was dangerous. There were almost no warning signs at first. If Seer and Clown did not both depend on spirituality and premonition, I might not have had time even to use Paper Figurine Substitute, let alone dodge.

“This reminds me that even relying on Creeping Hunger to possess Sequence 5 combat strength, I must not look down on other Sequence 6s. One careless moment, and I might be the one killed…”

While thoughts surged, Klein made the glove appear as though cast from gold. Two bolts of lightning suddenly lit within his eyes.

Strongman Ozil immediately screamed. Unable to support himself any longer, he collapsed to the floor like a mountain caving in, clutching his head as he struggled in agony like a catfish freshly pulled from the water.

What a pity. I have no area-of-effect offensive Beyonder ability. Otherwise, those Beyonders just now could all have been kept here… I remember the Sea King domain has Lightning Storm… But such a charm is too high-level and exceeds the scope of my current knowledge… Klein swept a glance over the thugs scattered across the ground and entered the underground area without hurry.

This place had originally been a marketplace, but those who could flee had already fled. It was now empty.

Wearing a black double-breasted formal coat, Klein carried a chair from behind one stall, placed it in front of Ozil, and sat down leisurely. Leaning forward, he silently stared at the owner of the Fragrant Tree Leaf Bar.

Ozil rolled on the ground for a while and finally recovered from pain close to losing control, though his head still felt as though it were splitting apart.

He was just about to push himself up when he suddenly saw a pair of pale eyes reflecting faint gold, and a glove covered in dark-gold scales.

In that instant, cold sweat still clinging to his forehead, he felt one vortex after another appear inside those eyes, drawing his entire mind inward.

Klein’s voice was calm as he asked, “Were you a pirate in the past?”

“Yes.” Ozil discovered that he very much wanted to answer the other man’s question.

This was psychological suggestion!

Klein’s tone did not change as he asked again, “What things have you done in violation of the kingdom’s laws?”

Ozil concealed nothing. He briefly described some of the things he had done as a pirate and as the boss of the Fragrant Tree Leaf Bar. These included insulting female passengers during the robbery of a passenger ship and killing innocent people, as well as kidnapping the family of a competitor, setting an ambush, and sinking the entire family into the sea together.

Klein quietly listened until the end. The corners of his mouth slowly curled upward. His right hand patted his left palm.

“What a competent pirate, and a qualified gang boss.”

Amid those words of praise, he extended his left hand. On that thin human skin, a hideous mouth split open at once.

Shriek after shriek echoed through the underground area, but they lasted only several seconds before cutting off abruptly, leaving only lingering reverberations.

Klein sat in the chair, quietly watching the bright points of light slowly gather in front of him.

Around him, the gang thugs who had soiled themselves and could only curl up instinctively crawled away from him, leaving filthy trails across the floor.

After a while, Klein slowly stood, bent down, and picked up the pure ball of light that resembled an infant’s fist, as well as the wallet from Ozil’s clothes.

Glancing at the thickness of the bills, he put both away, holstered his revolver, removed his half top silk hat, and bowed to the gang thugs hiding in the corner and trembling.

Once that was done, Klein inspected the underground area and regretfully discovered no safe or similar object. He could only return to the passage, lift the Silver-Tongued Misor King’s corpse, and walk to the entrance.

He paused there for two seconds. A scene naturally outlined itself in his mind, letting him discover that the guards outside, who he had thought might try to open the door and rescue their people, had long since gone somewhere unknown.

Did the Dragon Might earlier make them understand that this was a battle between Beyonders, so they backed down? As expected of a region where pirates run rampant. Even some ordinary people have a chance to know about Beyonders… Similar things seem to happen often here, don’t they? A certain wanted criminal getting raided and captured by Mandated Punishers, for example? Klein untied the iron chain and, along the way, searched Misor’s pockets, transferring the other man’s cash onto himself.

Suppressing the impulse to count his gains, he lit a paper figurine, flicked it outward, then opened the entrance door and walked out carrying Misor’s corpse.

By now, most of the bar’s customers had already dispersed. Only seven or eight remained, hiding in different places while waiting for the outcome.

Klein swept his gaze expressionlessly over them, making every stare hurriedly retract.

The only one who dared meet his eyes was Urs Kent. The military contact frowned, watching Gehrman Sparrow slowly approach with a corpse in hand.

Bang!

The corpse flew before him, smashing over a table.

Urs Kent focused, examined it, and his pupils abruptly shrank.

The Silver-Tongued Misor King! Vice Admiral Ailment’s third mate, Misor King! Astonished, he lifted his head and once again looked toward Gehrman Sparrow.

Klein revealed a smile bit by bit.

“Remember my bounty.”

After speaking, he removed his half top silk hat and bowed slightly, counting it as a salute. Then he turned and walked toward the entrance of the Fragrant Tree Leaf Bar.

…

Bayam Harbor, aboard the White Agate.

Elland watched the door to his captain’s cabin slam open and asked in astonishment, “Kent, what happened?”

Urs Kent’s expression was somewhat distorted as he questioned, “Elland, just what kind of monster did you introduce to me?”

“…Gehrman Sparrow?” Elland asked back uncertainly.

Urs Kent nodded.

“He killed the Silver-Tongued and Strongman just like that, inside the Fragrant Tree Leaf Bar, right in front of me! From start to finish, it did not take more than five minutes!”

He felt as though he was going mad.

“Misor King?” Elland spoke the name half as a question, half to himself.

Then he revealed a bitter smile.

“It seems we have to report this upward.”

He did not mention Blazing Danitz, nor the death of Steel Maviti.

“Good!” That was exactly what Urs Kent had been waiting for.

At three in the afternoon, inside a garden house near the Bayam Governor-General’s Office.

Elland and Urs Kent sat in the elegantly decorated sitting room, waiting for a reply from a major figure.

After an unknown length of time, a young man with blond hair neatly combed back came down the stairs and said to them, “The admiral’s meaning is that, since he has no hostile intentions for the time being, we should fulfill the agreement and continue our previous cooperation, while maintaining a certain degree of caution. Send a telegram back to Backlund as well and secretly investigate his true identity and his purpose in going out to sea.

“Also, spread the news that he killed Misor King. Spread it to the pirates.”

“Yes, Mr. Luan.” With clear instructions, Elland and Urs Kent immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

…

Inside the inn, Klein finished his divination and counted his cash. He confirmed that his gains this time amounted to 327 pounds, 9 soli, and 5 pence, along with a Sequence 8 Pugilist Beyonder characteristic of the Warrior pathway.

“This is also an item worth six or seven hundred pounds… And there is still Misor’s bounty. Even after deducting labor fees, it should amount to several thousand pounds. Heh, Urs Kent may not even dare to take a cut… This is quite a nice harvest. A true windfall from the heavens!” Klein thought in a comfortable mood. Then he held a ritual and brought Creeping Hunger above the gray fog.

Honestly, the three Beyonder abilities—Dragon Might, Frenzy, and Psychological Suggestion—were all extremely useful. He was rather reluctant to part with them. But since he had already promised Miss Justice, he ultimately chose to honor his word.