The Emperor nodded, a subtle gesture that sent a ripple of anticipation through the small group. He then extended a finger, pointing deeper into the shadowed labyrinth of the alley.
“Perhaps… he’s near the quack doctor’s place of business. He’s always getting into fights…”
His voice was low, almost a murmur, yet it carried an undeniable authority.
“Take us there.”
The command was clear, leaving no room for argument.
“Or not.”
The initial reluctance of their guide quickly melted away under the Emperor’s unwavering gaze.
“Oh, no, I’ll guide you right away!”
Fortunately, their destination wasn’t far.
They soon found themselves in front of an old, dilapidated building.
Several figures, visibly battered and bruised, were gathered outside, a testament to the “quack doctor’s” clientele.
“Th-there he is!”
The man who had led them pointed a trembling finger.
Their eyes followed, landing on a figure who perfectly embodied the description: one eye swollen shut, a vibrant purple bruise marring his nose, which was grotesquely crooked in the opposite direction.
His face was streaked with fresh blood, evidence of a recent skirmish.
And true to his moniker, “One-Legged Robert,” one of his legs was conspicuously absent, replaced by the sturdy support of a crutch.
The Emperor, without a word, tossed a glinting gold coin to their guide, a silent acknowledgment of his service.
“Th-thank you!”
The man’s smile was bright, his gratitude evident as he swiftly disappeared into the shadows, leaving them alone with Robert.
“Robert?”
The Emperor’s voice was calm, a stark contrast to the chaotic surroundings.
“What? Who are you?”
Robert’s voice was rough, laced with suspicion.
“Are you Roban’s younger brother?”
Hearing those words, Robert’s already bruised face contorted into a fierce scowl.
He snapped, “I don’t have a brother like that!”
He made to leave, his crutch thudding against the uneven ground.
But before he could take another step, the Emperor seamlessly retrieved a pouch from his pocket and tossed it.
Robert, caught off guard, fumbled but managed to catch it.
He eyed the Emperor with a mixture of confusion and wariness. “What’s… what is this?”
“Open it. It won’t be lacking.”
The Emperor’s tone was dismissive, as if gold was a trifle.
Still suspicious, Robert hesitated, his gaze darting between the Emperor and the heavy pouch.
Curiosity, however, won out.
He finally opened it, and his eyes widened.
Inside, it was filled to the brim with gleaming gold coins, their metallic shimmer a stark contrast to the dim alley.
“So-so much money…!”
Robert’s hand trembled, his voice barely a whisper.
He swallowed hard, his gaze returning to the Emperor, now filled with a startled apprehension.
“Why are you giving this to me? What’s your motive?”
“It’s simple. If you answer my questions well, the money is yours.”
The Emperor’s offer was straightforward, yet it held an unspoken weight.
Robert clutched the pouch of gold coins to his chest, his eyes darting around the alley, clearly searching for any possible escape route.
But as Sir Chris, ever vigilant, drew his sword with a chilling whisper of steel and adopted an attacking stance, Robert’s desperate hope for escape quickly evaporated.
It was clear running wouldn’t be easy, and with his crutch, it was obvious he wouldn’t get far before being apprehended.
The alley, which had moments ago seemed a potential escape, now felt like a cage.
“Hmph…”
A grudging sound escaped him, a concession to their overwhelming presence.
Finally willing to speak, he turned back, his bitterness palpable.
“Yes, Roban is my brother. Why are you looking for him? Judging by you quickly throwing such a large sum of money, you don’t seem like a drug dealer looking for overdue payments.”
He spoke with a cynical edge, clearly accustomed to the darker underbelly of the city.
“I heard Roban was saying strange things recently. That anyone who takes a certain medicine can become an immortal warrior.”
The Emperor’s words were carefully measured, designed to elicit a specific response.
“Oh, right. He got his hands on a rare medicine he’d painstakingly found in another country. He was bragging so much, saying that with just that, he’d be sitting on a pile of money in no time.”
Robert scoffed, a hint of disdain in his voice for his brother’s grandiose claims.
“He was so excited, saying it was his ticket to a life of luxury, that he’d finally escape this wretched existence. He spoke of untold riches, of never having to worry about money again. I just dismissed it as another one of his wild schemes, never thinking it would actually come to anything.”
“Do you know who bought that medicine?”
The Emperor pressed, his gaze unwavering.
“How would I know that? That pathetic fellow left saying he’d collect payment and never came back.”
Robert muttered to himself, his expression souring further.
“Well, maybe he just abandoned me and ran away. A cripple brother would only be a burden, after all.”
His voice trailed off, a note of self-pity creeping in.
He was used to being seen as a burden, as something disposable.
“He’s always been like that, looking out for himself. I shouldn’t have expected anything less.”
“If you bring us decisive evidence related to the transaction, we’ll give you five times this amount.”
The Emperor’s offer was sudden, a drastic escalation from the initial sum.
At the sheer magnitude of the offer, Robert’s mouth dropped open. His eyes, already wide with surprise, seemed to bulge even further.
He pondered for a moment, the prospect of such wealth clearly overwhelming him, then, with a surprising surge of energy, he quickly turned around.
“Follow me. I’ve heard where my brother hid his secret ledger.”
The allure of five times the initial gold was too strong to resist. His limp quickened, a newfound purpose in his steps.
Following Robert into the deep, inner reaches of the alley, where even the faintest glimmer of light barely penetrated, the surroundings grew incomparably more eerie with each step.
The air grew heavy, thick with an unsettling stillness.
The sounds of the city, once a distant murmur, were now completely swallowed by the oppressive silence.
“…We’ll be okay, right?”
A nervous whisper escaped my lips, a question directed more at the oppressive atmosphere than at my companions.
“Huh?” Sir Chris, ever the stoic, simply grunted.
“The atmosphere here is so strange. And the people are even scarier.”
I shivered, the cold stares of the alley dwellers sending a chill down my spine.
The initial plan of blending in, of avoiding attention in the festive atmosphere, had ironically backfired.
Our disguised appearances, meant to make us inconspicuous, had instead drawn every eye in this forgotten corner of the city.
We stood out like beacons in the darkness, targets in a place where anonymity was survival.
“I guess it was a mistake to suggest disguising ourselves like this. It seems everyone’s staring because of me…”
I muttered, a wave of self-consciousness washing over me.
“It’s fine. We’re outsiders anyway, so it would have been obvious.”
The Emperor’s reassurance, though brief, was enough to quell my unease.
He had a way of making everything seem manageable, even in the most unsettling situations.
Robert stopped in front of a shabby wooden building.
It looked utterly neglected, almost abandoned at first glance, as if no one had set foot inside in years.
Dust motes danced in the sparse slivers of light that managed to penetrate the grime-covered windows.
The wood was warped and splintered, the paint long since peeled away.
‘He left a ledger in a place like this?!’
The thought echoed in my mind, disbelief warring with the Emperor’s unwavering conviction.
As I hesitated to enter, Robert glanced back, a sly look on his face.
He then added an explanation, as if sensing my apprehension.
“My brother said he had to hide the secret ledger in a place people wouldn’t be interested in. That way, it wouldn’t be discovered by others.”
His logic, twisted as it was, made a perverse kind of sense in this hidden world.
Unlike me, Sir Chris showed no hesitation, his imposing figure moving forward with resolute steps.
Seeing his unwavering resolve, I, Mayhem, also gathered my courage and stepped into the crumbling building.
A sharp, mournful creaking sound echoed with each step, the old floorboards groaning under our weight.
The light was dim, almost nonexistent, forcing us to rely solely on the flickering candlelight Robert held in his trembling hand to navigate the gloom.
The air inside was heavy with the scent of damp earth and decay, a grim welcome.
It was at that point that Robert, who had been unusually quiet for a long time, suddenly spoke, his voice unnervingly calm.
“But how are you going to give me the extra money you promised?”
“I’ll send someone trustworthy here.”
The Emperor’s reply was swift, his tone businesslike.
“Ah, that might be a problem…”
Robert’s voice was laced with a chilling amusement.
He suddenly stopped, turning to face us, a malicious grin spreading across his battered face, illuminated by the struggling candlelight.
“Because you all have to die here.”
In the faint darkness, human shadows appeared one by one, emerging from the deeper recesses of the building.
Though I couldn’t see them clearly, their forms were discernible, and each held something in their hands—a crude weapon, glinting ominously in the dim light.
The silence that had once been heavy now felt charged with an imminent threat.
***
As they finally drew closer to Robert, faces started to appear one by one in the flickering candlelight, illuminated by the lone candle in Robert’s trembling hand.
There was no tension whatsoever on their faces; instead, their expressions were filled with a chilling glee at what was to come, a predatory anticipation that sent shivers down my spine.
“What on earth are you doing?”
The Emperor’s voice was calm, but a dangerous edge had crept into it.
“Did you think I wouldn’t be prepared for something like this? My brother gave me instructions. He told me that if someone comes looking for him and he hasn’t returned, to just kill them.”
Robert’s grin widened, a cruel twist of his battered lips.
He seemed to revel in the sudden shift in power dynamics, his earlier subservience replaced by a dangerous arrogance.
“He always said, ‘Never leave loose ends, Robert. Especially not in this alley.’ And I’m a good brother, aren’t I? Always following instructions.”
The Emperor muttered, a hint of pity, almost disgust, in his voice as he looked at Robert.
“It seems that brother of yours didn’t tell you the most important thing.”
“What?”
Robert, still basking in his perceived victory, scoffed.
“That you only have one life.”
The Emperor’s words hung in the air, a chilling pronouncement.
Robert looked dazed for a moment, the weight of the Emperor’s statement slowly sinking in.
Then, as if snapping out of a trance, he burst out laughing, a harsh, grating sound that echoed in the confined space.
“Just look at you pathetic lot. Do you even realize what’s going on?”
He pointed a finger, now accusatory, at our ridiculous appearances, our elaborate disguises that now seemed utterly out of place.
“This is a lawless zone. Literally a place where only the strong survive. Do you really think pampered nobles like you could last a day here?”
His gaze lingered on our fine clothes, our uncalloused hands, a sneer twisting his features.
“You’re lambs to the slaughter, completely out of your depth.”
Then, Robert’s gaze, filled with a leering malice, landed on me.
He flicked his dirty tongue out, slowly licking his lips like a snake, a truly repulsive gesture.
“Especially you, Mayhem. I’ll make you regret stepping into the underground as a woman.”
His words were a clear threat, a promise of unspeakable horrors, delivered with a perverse pleasure.
The other figures in the shadows shifted, their own hungry gazes falling upon me.
I was clearly in a dangerous situation.
Every fiber of my being should have screamed in terror.
But somehow, perhaps surprisingly, I didn’t feel scared at all.
I didn’t know about Sir Chris, who stood stoically beside me, but I had seen the Emperor’s terrifying power.
The sheer, unbridled force he commanded was a force of nature, something that dwarfed any petty threats from these alley thugs.
He had annihilated entire armies with a flick of his wrist.
These few ragged ruffians were nothing to him.
In fact, with every crude, threatening word Robert uttered, I felt that the time he had left in this world was rapidly shortening.
It was a strange premonition, a certainty that his fate was sealed with each taunt.
The air around the Emperor seemed to hum with a suppressed energy, a silent warning to those who dared to challenge him.
Just then, a voice laced with a deep, unsettling malice came from beside me, a voice that was utterly unlike Sir Chris’s usual composed tone.
“There are many ways to hasten your demise.”
Sir Chris, who had been stretching, his muscles rippling subtly beneath his clothing, turned to the Emperor, a feral eagerness in his eyes.
“Commander! Can I play with these guys however I want?”
The question was posed with an almost childlike enthusiasm, yet the underlying meaning was chillingly clear.
“Yes, just keep them alive.”
The Emperor’s response was curt, a mere formality, as if giving permission for a minor amusement.
The implication was clear: the lives of these men were theirs to toy with, but not to extinguish completely.
As I watched Sir Chris excitedly rush towards them, a predatory grace in his movements, the Emperor’s hand, surprisingly gentle, covered my eyes.
“…What are you doing?”
I asked, my voice muffled by his palm.
“I thought you wouldn’t like this.”
His tone was soft, almost tender, a stark contrast to the brutality that was about to unfold.
Could he possibly be remembering what happened in the rose greenhouse, the gruesome scene I had witnessed there?
But even with my eyes covered, I couldn’t help but hear the dull, sickening thuds, the distinct sounds of flesh meeting bone, as if someone was being hit repeatedly with immense force.
The air was filled with grunts, groans, and choked cries.
Ugh, thud, groaaan!
I wondered how a human could make such sounds, sounds that spoke of shattered bones and crushed organs, but it seemed best not to delve too deeply into it.
It was a symphony of pain, orchestrated by Sir Chris, a testament to his terrifying efficiency.
The sounds were more vivid than any sight could have been.
Before long, the surroundings were quickly cleared.
The sounds of struggle ceased, replaced by a strained silence, punctuated only by ragged breathing.
The heavy thuds and guttural groans gave way to whimpers and pleas.
When Sir Chris returned to us, his posture was relaxed, as if he had merely been on a leisurely stroll.
Robert’s face, however, was swollen beyond recognition, a pulpy mess of bruised flesh, and everyone else who had threatened us was now kneeling, their hands raised in pathetic surrender, their bodies trembling.
“Please, spare us. We were wrong!”
The pleas were desperate, raw with terror.
The Emperor walked up to Robert, his gaze piercing as he looked down at the cowering figure.
A dry voice, like the rustling of withered branches in a harsh wind, then flowed out of him.
“The ledger?”
There was no emotion in his voice, only cold expectation.
“I-I was keeping it separately. I’ll hand that over too!”
Robert stammered, his voice choked with fear, his defiance utterly shattered.
The promise of the ledger, a bargaining chip for his life, was now his only hope.
“Good, remember that.”
The Emperor’s acceptance was curt, a simple affirmation of Robert’s forced cooperation.
He stood up, turning to Sir Chris, who stood patiently at attention, awaiting further instructions.
“Seeing as those rascals can still make human sounds, they haven’t been beaten enough. Make sure to clearly engrave it on them: what happens when you don’t know your place and act recklessly.”
His voice was low, yet the command was chillingly clear, a promise of continued pain until the lesson was fully learned.
“Understood, Commander!”
Sir Chris saluted, a terrifying eagerness in his eyes.
After that, the Emperor led me outside, leaving Sir Chris to his gruesome task.
The fact that we were leaving him alone bothered me a bit, a lingering sense of unease.
“Is it okay for us to just leave first?”
I asked, looking back at the dark entrance to the building.
“It doesn’t matter. It’ll be more convenient for him.”
The Emperor’s tone was dismissive, as if the fate of the cowering men was of no consequence. His focus was already on the next step.
As we reached the entrance to the alley, stepping back into the vibrant, festive atmosphere of the city, a brilliant golden light suddenly burst forth from somewhere, startling me.
The source of the light, I quickly discovered, was inside my pocket.
‘What is it…?’
My heart hammered against my ribs, a mixture of surprise and apprehension.
I took out what was in my pocket to look, and the talisman I had received from the little boy earlier that day was glowing brilliantly, pulsating with an ethereal golden light.
“Wh-why is this…?”
My voice was a shaky whisper, unable to comprehend the sudden, inexplicable phenomenon.
In an instant, the bright, blinding light swallowed me whole, and the surroundings began to blur, dissolving into an indistinct swirl of colors.
The Emperor, his expression etched with a startled concern, tried to grab me, his hand reaching out in desperation.
But then everything vanished, the light, the Emperor, the alley, all of it.
Only an urgent, echoing voice lingered in my ears, filled with a desperate plea.
“Mayhem…!”
Why did the conversation I had with him just then, the one about superstitions, come to mind now, in this moment of complete disorienting chaos?
“Fear unfamiliar places. Beware of guests who arrive late at night. If you carelessly open the door, a terrifying wolf will snatch you away.”
The boy’s words, once dismissed as mere folklore, now resonated with an unsettling clarity.
“…Huh?”
My bewildered response from earlier.
“Why are you so surprised? It’s just a superstition. It probably means they hope children will be careful, even if it’s by scaring them.”
He definitely said it was a superstition…. He had dismissed it so easily, so casually.
Finally, complete darkness descended before my eyes, a profound void that offered no comfort, no clues, only an absolute and terrifying silence.
The golden light, the Emperor’s frantic voice, the memory of the superstition—all faded into the encroaching blackness, leaving me adrift in an unknown fate.