Akatsuki Translations

In the forested area on the outskirts of the City of Sin, Proudia

Compared to areas outside normal cities, that is, outside human habitation zones, monsters do not appear around Proudia. This is all thanks to the 【Barrier of the Sun】 created by【True Babel】.

Naturally, no monsters appear in this forested area either. Only small animals and insects can be found here. In this place where a very small-scale ecosystem circulates:

“Oi, ya fuckin’ brats! Come out ‘ere!” the thugs’ abusive shouts echoed.

Their aim was to kidnap the orphans living in that dilapidated, ghost house-like place and threaten the orphanage director. They didn’t know their client’s purpose. They were doing this for the advance payment they had received and the reward upon success.

They thought it would be an easy job. After all, their targets were mostly Nameless orphans, and the person they were threatening was an old man who was nothing but skin and bones. Moreover, although within the barrier, the location was outside the city. The eyes of the Knights were far away. It seemed very convenient to them.

“Damn it! Where did those brats go?!” one thug yelled.

“I found ‘em over here…! Ow! What the-? A pitfall trap?” another exclaimed.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me! Why is something like this here?!”

Apparently, they realized something was amiss when they tried to threaten the children collecting wild herbs with their knives. The children fled as soon as they saw them. Well, running away was normal. So the thugs tried to move to surround the children. However:

“Scatter!!!” a command like those used by the Knights rang out.

With that, the children fled all at once, without a single scream. As if to bewilder their pursuers, they scattered in all directions.

Having failed to capture them initially, the thugs chased after the children. But they couldn’t catch them. The children, well-versed in the forest terrain, skillfully outwitted the thugs. Just when they thought they had found one, there would be a trap ahead. When they thought they had cornered one, the child would climb up a tree like a monkey. It was as if they were being made fools of, and the thugs’ frustration only grew.

“Damn it all! Hey! This ain’t what we were told!” the leader of the thugs glared at the hooded man.

This man had lured them, a group of drunk adventurer-wannabes in a small tavern, with suspicious phrases like “There’s an easy job that pays well.” But now that they had actually taken on the request, look at the situation. The children’s movements were like those of specially trained soldiers. The traps were merciless, and there were injuries. The leader was convinced that these targets were not worth the small advance payment they had received.

In response to such protests, the hooded man heaved a deep sigh.

“That’s my line. I never thought you good-for-nothings couldn’t even handle the advance party before the ‘main target’ arrives…”

“What’dya say?!”

“It’s the truth, isn’t it…? If you’re dissatisfied, then catch at least one child!”

The hooded man’s voltage was gradually rising. Though his expression couldn’t be seen, he seemed to be irritated as well.

“Hey!! Over here!! We’ve cornered one!!!” came a voice from one of their companions.

As the thugs headed towards the voice, indeed, a small girl was cornered alone, with her back against a giant tree. They were wary of traps, but there didn’t seem to be anything set up.

“…!”

“You fuckin’ brat… makin’ us go through all this trouble—”

“Now!!!”

The moment the thugs gathered to seize the child, a sharp command rang out again. Startled, the thugs’ eyes widened as they looked around. There, the orphan children were in the treetops surrounding them, glaring down, raising something, and then throwing it.

“Gyah!?”

“It’s stones! They’re throwing stones!! Shit!!!”

“You’ve got to be kidding me!!!”

A rain of pebbles poured down. Thrown by children’s strength, at worst they might draw blood if they hit a bad spot, but they still hurt. It was enough to make the thugs, who had never seriously engaged in adventuring, cower.

Moreover, they realized the girl had disappeared. She had been a decoy.

“What’s with these kids—”

“Well, I agree with you on that,” a voice interrupted.

“Huh?!”

And then the leader of the thugs was punched in the face by a short figure who had appeared behind him, knocking him unconscious.

　　　　　　　 ◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆

“…Did they really need help with this?” Ur wondered as he restrained the thugs. When he arrived here, the thugs who had apparently attacked the orphan children were already trapped by the orphans’ snares and being pummeled, unable to move. All Ur had done was deliver the final blow.

But Zain shook his head. “It’s just a stopgap measure. The orphanage doesn’t teach children anything beyond self-defense in the first place.”

“You call this level self-defense?” Ur asked skeptically.

“With the caveat that it’s the level necessary outside the city. In any case, they did well,” Zain replied.

“…Well, I’ll gratefully accept those words,” Ur said as he continued to restrain the thugs. Beside him, Shizuku and the others were also capturing the assailants who had attacked the orphans.

“We’ve finished restraining all those who were pelted with stones,” Shizuku reported.

《All ti~~ed up》 Akane chimed in.

“They’re not even adventurers, are they? They don’t have rings. Probably dungeon-diving thugs,” Ur observed.

They weren’t part of the dark guild Zain had mentioned either. It seemed they were just thugs hired with money to commit quasi-criminal acts. It didn’t look like they’d get much useful information from capturing them.

“Gramps!” the orphans called out as they gathered around. Zain nodded as he checked on the children. It seemed everyone was safe.

“Hehe! Did you see that, Gramps? How awesome we were?” one of the children boasted.

“It was good that you let young Toto escape, but the rest should have been limited to distraction and flight. Your judgment was lacking,” Zain responded, his reaction to the proud orphans’ words decidedly salty. The children booed, but Zain maintained his usual stoic expression.

“Predecessor, they’re just children. You could go a little easier on them,” Diz suggested.

“This is plenty gentle. Compared to your training when you were a child,” Zain retorted.

“You absolutely can’t compare them to me,” Diz protested.

By the time they finished this conversation, the restraining of the thugs was complete.

“Should we turn these guys over to the Knights?” Ur asked.

“They’re Nameless too. And against Nameless orphans, the Knights will just find it troublesome,” Zain replied.

《Is that the aim?》 Akane wondered.

“What do you think? Shall we ask the person himself?” Shizuku suggested, glancing towards the depths of the forest. There, a man completely covered in a robe, neither an orphan nor a thug, appeared. His suspicious appearance left no doubt that he was involved in, or the mastermind behind, this attack.

The underlings he had used were restrained. In a situation where he should have been cornered, the man revealed himself instead of fleeing. This meant he still had something up his sleeve.

Realizing this, Ur and the others remained on guard.

Indeed, the hooded man’s mouth twisted not in anger or fear, but in joy. He opened his mouth as if excited:

“Ha, haha! I thought they were useless, but to think they’d lure out the real target!”

His gaze was fixed straight on Zain, the old man who looked like a withered tree. Zain, neither surprised nor moved, glared at the man.

“So you intended to kidnap the orphans to lure me out. Quite a sloppy method,” Zain said.

“Silence!! This is an order from a certain person!” the hooded man shouted.

Saying this, he gripped tightly the bracelet attached to his right arm. The bracelet began to emit an eerie purple light.

“You lot are unnecessary in this noble Proudia! If you and the orphans disappear, there will be no reason to continue that filthy orphanage!!!” the man shouted.

The moment he yelled, the ground behind him swelled and then exploded. What emerged was a pitch-black, humanoid mass of stone.

『―――――OOOOOOOOOO』

A sound like wind blowing through a cave. For Ur, it was a familiar sight: an artificial monster, a golem. Moreover, it was a 【Black Gold】 model designed for anti-monster combat.

“You’ve brought quite a flashy thing to deal with orphans and an old man…” Ur remarked.

However, the current Ur had no reason to panic. He was well-versed in fighting puppets, and he had no intention of falling behind now. Above all, in this situation, he had an incredibly reliable ally.

“Who is this ‘certain person’ you speak of?” Shizuku inquired.

“Probably some priest blinded by money. I’m not interested. Akane,” Diz replied.

《Aye》 Akane responded.

The 【Hero Diz】 was here. While Ur didn’t intend to rely on her entirely, he couldn’t imagine a mere puppet being any trouble for her. This wasn’t overconfidence or underestimation, but a simple fact based on the comparison of their strengths.

Therefore, their concern should have been preventing harm to the orphans and Zain. Ur and Shizuku moved to avoid interfering with Diz, or so they thought. But then:

“This is a good opportunity,” Zain said, stepping out in front of Diz.

《Gramps!?》 Akane cried out.

“Diz, your 【Magic Severance】 is incomplete. It’s far too immature,” Zain declared as he walked past Diz, leaning on his staff. Diz was startled, but Zain paid no heed, exposing himself within the puppet’s range, right in front of the hooded man.

“―――― DO IT!!!” the hooded man screamed in ecstasy.

『OOOOOOOOOOOOOO』

The hooded man ordered the puppet. The black gold puppet raised its arm high, about to bring its fist down on the old man who was far smaller than itself.

“Relying on magic to release 【Magic Severance】 is out of the question. If you hone and perfect your own skill―”

In that instant, Zain’s figure vanished. Even to Ur’s eyes, he seemed to disappear. Before they knew it, he was behind the puppet. He gripped his old staff, and without even having a foothold in mid-air, yet without wavering his posture at all―

“…Huh?”

In that moment, a black sword flash cleaved the black gold puppet in two at the waist.

The hooded man, unable to comprehend the scene before his eyes, gaped in astonishment. Ur understood the feeling. He probably had the same expression, as he felt the same way.

『―――― 』

The magic core tumbled out from the puppet’s severed torso. It too had been sliced in two by the previous strike. With its heart cut in a single blow, the puppet ceased functioning without even going berserk, and collapsed.

“Like this, 【Magic Severance】 can be released even with a mere stick without a blade. Train harder,” Zain instructed.

“…No, it doesn’t work like that,” Diz commented involuntarily.

Everyone except Zain agreed with this sentiment.