Chapter 32. The Auction House Beneath the Crescent Moon (1)
Robert’s body shook violently as though it might explode at any moment.
[Hahahaha! Foolish lumps of flesh! Let us all fall into hell together!]
Beams of light began spilling from his body.
He looked exactly like a bomb moments away from detonation.
Yukgap and Victoria could only scream.
“Aaaaaah!”
“Aaaaaah!”
Their voices rang through the restaurant.
“My, that was close.”
At that moment, Seryun suddenly stepped between them.
Using an awkwardly stitched-together arm, he roughly rubbed at the top of Robert’s head.
The violent heat and vibration coming from Robert slowly faded.
Then his body went limp.
[Functions terminated... functions terminated... functions terminated...]
“What a troublesome golem.”
Seryun said it as though nothing serious had happened.
Yukgap stared at him in disbelief.
“What did you do?”
“Simple. I killed the golem.”
“Killed him? A golem?”
Was that even possible?
When Yukgap looked at him in confusion, Seryun tilted Robert’s head back.
At the center of Robert’s computational control core, the word METH had been crudely written in marker.
“This is the core of a golem. The word representing truth is ‘EMETH.’ If you erase the ‘E,’ it becomes ‘METH,’ which represents death. In that state, the golem ceases functioning.”
So that was Robert’s core.
Yukgap stared at it with a hollow expression.
“Golems are less impressive than I thought.”
“Machines are all like that.”
Seryun glanced down at the motionless Robert.
“Doctor, before waking him again, could you make a few adjustments for everyone’s safety?”
“Dr. Mozg?”
After Robert’s rampage had finally been brought under control, Yukgap cautiously brought up the name to Seryun.
“Yeah. I figured you might know.”
Yukgap showed him the business card No. 7 had given him.
Seryun, who was stitching his head back onto his neck with some thread and a needle he had somehow found, answered indifferently.
“It’s pronounced Mozg. She’s Russian.”
As expected, Seryun knew her.
“So you do know her.”
“Few people in the underworld don’t know that information broker. She’s also an incredibly irritating woman.”
Yukgap cautiously asked,
“Worse than Victoria?”
“Perhaps.”
Seryun shrugged.
A woman even worse than Victoria.
Yukgap grimaced.
“Ugh. I don’t even want to imagine it.”
Seryun continued,
“In any case, she’s difficult to deal with. More importantly, she’s a merchant. She buys and sells information, and she always demands proper payment.”
Yukgap thought about that.
“Payment means money, right?”
“Usually. Depending on the situation, she may ask for something else.”
“Like what?”
“Contract killing. She may give you information in exchange for killing someone she wants dead.”
Yukgap frowned.
“Why?”
“Information becomes more valuable the fewer people know it. Doctor Mozg understands that very well, so she’s obsessed with eliminating anyone besides herself who possesses certain information.”
Yukgap had only one response.
“She’s insane.”
“I told you. She’s irritating in more ways than one. She’s hired people to kill me several times. Fortunately, I’m undead, so I came back every time.”
He spoke about dying as casually as discussing the weather.
In that sense, being undead was convenient.
“Still, Mr. Yukgap, you’re a specialist in assassination. If you offer to kill a few people for her, Doctor Mozg will probably cooperate.”
“I don’t want to.”
Yukgap shook his head.
Seryun looked confused.
“Why? You’ve killed plenty of people before.”
Yukgap thought for a moment before answering honestly.
“I decided I’m not going to kill people anymore.”
“Hmm. Hearing that from a biological weapon is rather amusing.”
There was a faint mockery in Seryun’s tone.
He was not wrong.
Yukgap had killed so many people that he could no longer remember the number.
Anyone would find it ridiculous that he had suddenly decided killing was wrong.
Even Yukgap himself could feel the contradiction.
Still, his mind did not change.
“Think whatever you want. I don’t want to kill anyone anymore.”
Seryun sighed quietly.
“Then you’ll have to meet her and negotiate directly. I don’t know what she’ll ask for, but if there’s anything you can pay, she’ll try to take it.”
“I don’t care. I was prepared for that.”
Seryun gave him a sinister smile.
“Then don’t blame me no matter what happens.”
For some reason, those words sent a chill through Yukgap.
He tried not to show it.
“So where do I meet Doctor Mozg?”
Seryun gave him a strange answer.
“...Mr. Yukgap, have you ever entered the hidden side of the world?”
“What does that even mean?”
