Chapter 43: Rob the Client!
Kaian's precious client was wobbling up a ladder propped against a tree.
The man sighed so deeply it seemed the ground itself might collapse.
"Haah..."
When he'd reluctantly accepted the mana-crystal smuggling job, he'd thought his life couldn't possibly become any more tangled.
It's treason, for crying out loud...!
Still, he'd desperately convinced himself that since he'd already hit rock bottom, the only direction left was upward.
Without that little bit of hope, he never would've found the courage to get involved in this damned job.
But what about now?
Glance.
When he looked up, there was a dark elf hanging from the tree with his lower body torn away and his throat pierced.
Glance.
When he looked down, the Reaper was smiling brightly while holding a flashlight.
"M-Mister..."
The man had thought his life had already hit rock bottom.
Apparently there was a basement beneath rock bottom.
Worse, the damned Reaper had insisted that every dark elf's head was worth ten silver, so they absolutely couldn't leave a single one behind.
Of course.
Naturally.
They absolutely had to collect them all.
The man desperately wanted to beat his past self for nodding along a few minutes ago.
I didn't know I was the one who'd have to cut the heads off!
When the man continued hesitating on the ladder, Kaian shouted.
"Mister! Morning's coming! We have a lot of heads to cut off!"
"I-I'm doing it! I'm doing it!"
With trembling hands, the man pulled a short blade from his belt.
Kaian had personally handed him the sharp knife.
Ugh, disgusting. My miserable life...! There's a limit to how vicious someone should be!
He was shaking so badly that his hand accidentally touched one of the tentacle-like vines protruding from the corpse's mouth.
Squish.
"Aaaaaaaagh!"
The man practically fell down the ladder in his rush to escape.
Kaian was genuinely impressed by the speed.
"Whoa. Mister, you're surprisingly good at running on all fours."
The merchant didn't care.
He immediately dropped to his knees in front of Kaian.
According to the wisdom he'd accumulated during thirty-five years of life, this was clearly the moment to beg so desperately that his hands became feet.
He burst into tears.
"Reaper, sir! Please spare me! I have trauma when it comes to knives!"
"Huh? Did the way you talk suddenly change?"
"A lowly bastard like me changes his speech whenever necessary! I'll tell you everything I can! Please, just spare my life!"
"I'm telling yooou, there's nothing I want to knooow."
Of course, that was a lie.
Kaian wanted to know plenty.
Where did the mana crystals come from?
Did you remember the face of whoever contacted you?
Did you hear a name?
What were you promised as payment?
What were you supposed to do after handing the mana crystals over to the dark elves?
Did you know anything about the mastermind's plan?
...But he probably can't answer any of it.
Kaian was certain the man had an [Intention] spell placed on him that prohibited certain actions or statements.
That's what I would've done if I were behind this too.
The merchant wasn't reliable in the slightest.
He'd thrown up just because Kaian made the carriage move quickly with [Enhance].
Instead of poisoning his enemy, he'd fed his own escort a sleeping potion.
And he'd even fainted just because the horse he'd ridden with all day changed appearance.
What kind of nerve was that?
No mana. No courage. What could anyone possibly trust this man with?
He was exactly the sort who wouldn't move unless someone had a grip on his life.
The merchant had probably accepted the job because he wanted to survive.
Of course, the mastermind behind the plan had likely intended to kill him as soon as it was finished.
The dark elves might've killed him themselves.
From a certain perspective, Kaian had actually saved the man's life.
Whether that had been useful remained to be seen.
Without expecting much, Kaian asked,
"Then whose idea was it to smuggle these mana crystals?"
The merchant, who had been crying face-down in the dirt, immediately lifted his head.
Kaian instinctively leaned backward.
Flinch.
The man's face was so swollen from crying that it looked as if he'd poured out every tear he'd ever possess in one night.
Sniffling, the merchant drew a finger across his throat.
"Ugh, hic. I can't say that. If I did... hic... I'd just... die."
Kaian snorted as though he'd expected it.
Definitely [Intention].
If [Intention] was active, he couldn't casually speak about the mastermind.
He might not even be able to say the words "mana crystal."
Simply thinking too hard about the restricted information might cause part of his body to explode.
Usually the head or heart.
That was why Kaian hadn't tied him up and interrogated him.
Instead, he'd merely suggested they take a little walk.
I need to scare him with something else and make him leak information unconsciously.
It has to slip out before he realizes what he's saying.
That was why Kaian pretended he wasn't curious and suggested they focus on cutting off dark elf heads.
I already got the general situation from listening to them talk among themselves.
The mana crystals had come from the Valancia Empire.
They were originally meant to be sent to the Silvaris Federation.
But...
Someone tried to steal them midway.
Mana crystals couldn't be transported without government approval.
A high-ranking official was almost certainly involved.
Kaian had no idea who the mastermind was.
But whoever they were...
They wanted relations between the Valancia Empire and the Silvaris Federation to worsen.
Why?
The simplest answer would be money.
Maybe honor or political power.
Those were probably the motives of the people who destroyed my family too.
The evil people committed for more money could be far more daring and ruthless than most imagined.
Maybe... they're connected to the people who attacked my family.
Kaian immediately dismissed the thought.
Don't rush.
Finish the request first.
The request he'd accepted was to safely escort this man and the cargo in his carriage to the Silvaris border.
If he failed, he'd owe compensation.
Of course, there had been a few unusual circumstances.
A dark elf attack.
The client's double contract.
Attempted mana-crystal smuggling.
But...
The Exchange Union is merciless!
They'd absolutely say special circumstances weren't their problem and charge me compensation anyway!
Only someone who had personally dealt with merchants understood how terrifying their fox-like accounting could be.
And mana-crystal smuggling was serious enough that it had to be reported to the Silvaris Federation.
If Kaian didn't want to get dragged into the investigation and treated as a suspect, it would be better for the client to remain alive.
Though before I hand him over to Silvaris, I'm going to squeeze every profitable piece of information out of him.
