Chapter 125
"This looks like a virtual simulation program. That makes things difficult."
Gilda spoke as she projected the restored data onto a hologram. Complex, indecipherable characters streamed down like a waterfall.
"Can you run it?"
"I'd love to help, but… this is beyond my capabilities. Either we convert the data to work with modern devices, or we need to find a virtual machine from that era. The latter is nearly impossible, so the former is our only option."
Gilda was a technician and a mechanic, not a hacker or a programmer.
'Giselle is in the engineering field too.'
I was now convinced that Agatha Custoria had lost her mind.
'If you're going to give me a chip, at least make it readable!'
Frustration started to creep in. I had no way of knowing how useful—or harmful—this data might be.
"What level of skill is required to convert this data? Keep it simple, so I can understand without technical jargon."
Gilda rested her arm and stroked her chin before giving a short answer.
"Top-tier."
She raised a single index finger. It was a response even I could understand easily.
In this field, I knew only two top-tier individuals.
'Director Jin Gaw… and the witch, Barbara.'
The problem was that neither of them were trustworthy.
"I'll handle the rest on my own."
I placed a credit chip on the table as I spoke. Gilda's pupils widened when she saw the number.
"I think this is excessive pay, but I won’t refuse."
I took both Agatha’s chip and the chip containing the restored data.
"Stay safe for now, Gilda. A storm is coming."
"You too, Luka."
After our brief farewell, I left the workshop. The outside was dark and chilly.
Creak. Creak.
I placed an electronic mask over my lower face. As it expanded, it adhered to my jaw and mouth.
The lower district was a maze of buildings and alleys. Outsiders could easily get lost, especially at night.
Unlike usual, I stuck to the main roads and bustling streets. It was a bit of a detour, but I figured it was the better option. The last thing I needed was to get caught up in trouble or stand out.
"Bang! Bang! I'm Luka, the noble hunter!"
"Idiot! Lord Luka uses a sword, not a gun!"
"You're both wrong! Hunters use bows! Take this!"
Since it was a lively area, children were running around playing. I glanced at them as I walked past.
The children were wearing makeshift battle suits crafted from plastic and cardboard. Since the rumors about me were rampant but vague, they each wielded their weapon of choice and ran around shouting, "I'm Luka!"
Once again, let me emphasize—until recently, this kind of behavior would have never been tolerated in Akbaran.
Just because this was the lower district didn't mean there were no nobles around. You could be killed simply for offending the wrong person.
Right now, this was a highly unusual situation.
'Akbaran is on the brink of storm season.'
From what I had heard, riots and uprisings tended to break out in some regions during storm season. The chaos provided an opportunity for the people of the lower district to strike at the upper district residents. Even the high-and-mighty nobles had to be cautious during this time.
'…And ever since the public procession, anti-noble sentiment has turned vicious.'
A crowd consumed by madness acts irrationally.
If a noble tried to scold these children, they might end up beaten to death by the lower district masses. No noble would be foolish enough to do something like that in this climate…
"What, a noble hunter? You shouldn’t toss around words about hunting nobles so carelessly! Understand?"
And there, standing like a perfect caricature of an idiot noble, was someone proving me wrong.
"Ugh…"
I pressed my lips together and swallowed a sigh.
A familiar noble youth came into view. At this point, I was starting to think there was some kind of strange connection between us.
'Enrico Lagan.'
Enrico was picking a fight with the street kids.
Thud!
He snatched one of their weapons and smashed it to pieces. The plastic sword shattered pathetically against his knee.
'You're unbelievably petty, Enrico. It's almost impressive.'
I was stunned by the sheer smallness of his character.
"Darling, p-please stop! They're just kids playing!"
Beside Enrico stood a beautiful woman. At a glance, she seemed like a young lady from the middle class, but I knew exactly who she was.
'A Doll from La Vie en Rose.'
Dolls were the professional women of La Vie en Rose.
After the Carthica Tower incident, I had reached out to La Vie en Rose and connected Enrico with them. Martina, the Diva, had likely jumped at the chance and assigned him a suitable woman.
That suitable woman was the one now standing beside Enrico.
"Playing? You think saying ‘kill nobles’ is just play? Everything is getting strange—really strange! And I know Lukaus well. We're close friends! That guy is not on the side of lowlifes like you!"
Since when had I become Enrico’s "close friend"? I had just learned something new about myself.
Regardless, Enrico was picking the worst possible actions. The crowd’s attention had now fully shifted to him, and among them were eyes filled with hostility.
'Are you aiming for the Idiot of the Year award…?'
The woman beside Enrico desperately tugged at his arm.
"Let's just go! This is going to turn into a serious problem!"
She was stomping her feet anxiously, unable to hide her panic.
"They may not be adults, but I’m still a man of House Lagan. I can’t ignore such dangerous ideas. They need proper education. That’s a noble’s duty—though I wouldn't expect a lowborn like you to understand."
It was almost fascinating how he managed to say the worst possible things. If there were a course on "How to Become the Most Hated Noble," Enrico would make a fortune teaching it.
I resisted the urge to applaud and continued watching the farce unfold.
'Enrico, I saved your life from an armed helicopter last time. You don’t remember, but I do.'
If things went south this time, I wasn’t going to save him. Maybe a good beating would knock some sense into him. If he was unlucky, he might even die.
"Aha! So, you’re a young master of House Lagan! My lord, my lord! I’ve always admired the noblemen of House Lagan!"
A man swaggered through the crowd. At first glance, he looked like an ordinary thug, but his steady, balanced gait revealed that he was someone trained.
"And who the hell are you?"
Enrico scowled. The thug grinned grotesquely and positioned himself behind the children, almost as if he were deliberately playing the villain.
"Consider me one of those people who aren’t too happy with the current mood. No matter what anyone says, it’s the noble lords who have led the Accretia Empire thus far. But seeing a noble being disrespected on the streets like this? I just couldn’t stand by. So, so, you said your name was Enrico, right?"
The first to sense the thug’s ominous intent was Enrico’s woman.
"Darling, let’s go now! I’ll let you do whatever you want later! Remember last time, you said you wanted to try tha—ahh!"
The thug abruptly slapped the woman across the face.
"Stay out of this, you whore. A noble doesn’t act on such filthy desires. Isn’t that right, young master?"
He bared sharp teeth in a sinister smile. The air grew thick with violent intimidation.
"Y-yeah, of course! H-how dare you say something like that to me?!"
Enrico, completely overwhelmed by the thug, was now berating his own woman instead. I never imagined someone could be this pathetic.
"Lord Enrico Lagan. You have a gun, don’t you? Ah, here it is. Grip it tight with both hands. Let’s shoot just one of them as an example—so they’ll never dare speak of ‘noble hunters’ again."
Things were escalating dangerously. The thug was openly encouraging Enrico to commit murder.
"Huh? What? No, that—that’s too much!"
"Come on now, that’s not true. If we let them grow up, they’ll turn into rebellious elements causing riots. Cutting them down now is the best way to protect the Empire. This is a noble’s duty."
He was spouting utter madness. The surrounding crowd was growing restless, and someone attempted to step in to stop them.
Click!
The thug swiftly drew his pistol and aimed at the approaching person. The would-be intervener hesitated, then raised both hands and stepped back.
"Listen up. If you don’t want to die, stay out of this. I’m a retainer who serves as a noble family's guard. You know what that means, right? Even if all of you came at me, you wouldn’t stand a chance."
The thug’s threat was chilling, but the people of the lower district weren’t easily intimidated. A large man behind the thug was slowly maneuvering to take advantage of his blind spot.
Bang!
Without even turning his head, the thug fired behind him. The large man crumpled to the ground, clutching his knee where the bullet had struck.
His skill was impressive. This wasn’t some ordinary back-alley thug.
Enrico’s lips and hands trembled uncontrollably at the gunshot. The thug stepped closer to him.
"Y-you… Which noble house are you from? If you’re from a family I know—"
"Does that really matter right now? Young master, pull the trigger. Do it."
Enrico was being pressured. Not even understanding what was happening, he pointed his gun at the child.
Regardless of the reason, if a noble were to kill a street kid in this climate, it would ignite a full-scale riot. There were far too many witnesses.
'That man is a provocateur, stirring up a riot on purpose. Who sent him?'
I accessed the database to check his identity. There were no unusual records. One thing was certain—he wasn’t a noble family's retainer. Meaning, he was a liar.
Squelch.
A dark stain spread across Enrico’s pants as he lost control of his bodily functions. His legs shook violently.
"I-I can't do this…"
"Shut up and shoot, you idiot."
The thug whispered into Enrico’s ear while guiding his hand over the pistol. I could read his lips.
Step. Step.
I moved forward. This wasn’t to save Enrico—I was simply curious about the thug’s background.
"Huh? And who the hell are you? Take one more step and—"
The thug raised his gun and aimed at my leg. But before he could finish his threat, I kept walking.
Bang!
He pulled the trigger. He had no hesitation in shooting people from the start.
Tap!
I twisted my body and dodged the bullet. A shot aimed at my leg was laughable. Even if it had hit, it wouldn’t have done much to my prosthetic limb.
"Tch."
The thug clicked his tongue, eyes widening. Realizing the difference in skill, he immediately turned to run.
Quick judgment. He really was trained for combat.
Crunch!
I bent my waist and knees, increasing power output. My toes dug into the ground.
Kwah-jik!
I launched forward, tearing up the ground beneath me. In an instant, I closed the twenty-meter gap between us. My hand reached the back of his neck.
"N-no, please! Don't!"
The thug was visibly terrified. No—he wasn’t afraid of me.
Beep. Beep-beep-beep!
The necklace that had looked like a throat guard started flashing. Acrid smoke seeped from its seams.
Sensing danger, I quickly covered my head with my arm and shoved the thug away.
Boom!
His head exploded in an instant. The blast sent me flying several meters.
'A bomb collar?'
The moment I grabbed him, the collar detonated. Someone had activated it remotely upon seeing what happened.
"W-what the hell?!"
"Is he dead? How did he die?"
"Did that guy kill him? The moment he touched him, he just blew up!"
The crowd stirred. True to their nature as lower district folks, no one screamed in horror just because someone had died.
I casually brushed off the human debris clinging to my clothes and stood up. The stench of death was nothing new to me.
"Luka?"
Enrico spoke, recognizing me from behind. He seemed to have a knack for noticing familiar faces at the worst possible moments.
Then, he continued.
"L-Lukaus Custoria! My friend! You came to save me!"
He jumped to his feet. His soaked pants were still dripping with yellow liquid.
"You really… have no damn awareness, do you?"
I glanced around. The crowd, having heard Enrico, was now murmuring among themselves.
"L-Lukaus Custoria?"
"That’s Lord Luka! The one who saved the Crimson Crown Prince!"
"Luka! Luka!"
A dozen thoughts raced through my mind in an instant.
I could grab the fallen children by their collars and accuse them of insulting a noble. I could slap them and make some disparaging remark about the lower class, clearing up any misunderstandings. If I openly declared my allegiance to the nobles here and now, all the ridiculous rumors would disappear.
…But instead, I chose to use my infamy. I could only hope it was the better decision.
"Enrico."
I looked at him and smiled. It was probably a rather vicious expression.
"Uh, y-yeah? My friend?"
"Shut your damn mouth."
I clenched my fist just enough and punched Enrico square in the face.
Kwak-jik!
A deeply satisfying sound rang out.
Enrico was sent sprawling to the ground. A tooth, ripped from his gums, spun through the air in a trail of blood.
"Uwaaaaaaaa!"
"Luuuuuukaaaaaaa! Long live Luka!"
Cheering erupted behind me.
"Wh-why? L-Luka?"
Enrico, his face covered in blood, looked up at me, teary-eyed—like a man who had just been utterly betrayed.