Chapter 104: Owen Valtany

Chapter 104: Owen Valtany

→ Owen Valtany ←

Owen Valtany had no idea about the huge debt he owed.

After arranging his grandfather’s funeral, he spent his days playing music to comfort his grieving heart.

The rough loan sharks were the ones who dragged the boy, who had been living a life between melody and tragedy, art and lamentation, back to reality.

Being an artist by trade would always leave you starving.

Claren, the city where such artists gathered, was a place where loan sharks could thrive without any hindrance.

Under the pretext of seeking inspiration, these artists would pour money into drugs, gambling, alcohol, and cigarettes, making it easy for such loan sharks to expand their business.

It was a perfect environment for back alley thugs to become gangsters. This was the dark side of Claren, the city of artists.

Nevertheless.

Owen, who was deeply immersed in loneliness, first learned about his grandfather’s debt when he saw the documents the loan sharks possessed.

Upon seeing the enormous debt along with his grandfather’s signature, Owen was greatly shocked, as if he had been hit on the head by a hammer.

In the end, all Owen could do was find solace in his piano performances amidst his struggle with debt.

He had tried making money through the street performances organized by the city hall.

Thud!

However, the loan sharks didn’t give him enough time to do so.

“Isn’t it time for you to pay us the interest?!”

Owen, who was on his way to perform on the rooftop of Furcheni today, was dragged into an alley by the loan sharks and beaten up.

“Cough!”

His face swelled up. The boy, who had never been exposed to violence, had to now endure the blows from the thug’s fist, his eyes reddening as he lay on the ground. Fôll0w current novÊls on n/o/(v)/3l/b((in).(co/m)

It was at that moment that the entire world of this young pianist, who just moments ago had resolved to perform more diligently, began to be tinged with more resentment and tragedy.

“Here, look at this! You know your grandfather owed us money, right? Do you intend to pay it back or not?”

The loan shark continued to kick the boy while waving the loan agreement.

As the foul-mouthed man, who seemed to be the instigator, continued beating the boy, a man with glasses, standing behind him and smoking a cigarette, stepped in to stop him.

Owen’s body curled up and trembled uncontrollably. Due to the severe beating, he even found it difficult to breathe.

A brief moment of rest already felt like a handful of mercy.

“Kid, do you think you will be able to pay off the debt if you keep working hard all day like this?”

“......”

“You’re only playing in the public performances organized by the city hall, right? There are plenty of performers in Claren. The meager amount you earn can’t even pay off the interest.”

Huff.

He puffed out the cigarette smoke slowly for some time. Blurred by the foul-smelling smoke enveloping his nose, Owen’s consciousness began to fade.

“Let me tell you something good. If you do that, your debt will be settled quickly. And you will finally be able to make enough money to live off.”

“Ah......”

What was he talking about?

Does this person want something else from me?

Owen was bewildered as the loan shark kindly smiled, unlike his usual behavior, and reached out his hand.

“Take my hand. If you do, a whole new world will open up for you. After earning enough money, you can go back to playing the music you want to, and that’s it.”

To be honest, Owen didn’t care about such things. All he wanted to do was just get out of this current predicament.

“Ahh.”

He stretched out his hand while trembling. However...

Thud!

The foul-mouthed man standing behind Owen went flying past him.

Crash!

The man seemed to have lost consciousness after he rolled on the ground in an unseemly manner.

“Huh? Just one punch?”

She had white hair that was tied up in a ponytail, but strands of hair stuck out as if she was not used to wearing her hair in such a manner.

She wore a shirt and black pants that allowed her to move comfortably.

In addition, she had crimson eyes that emitted a predatory gaze.

The man smoking a cigarette could immediately tell that the woman who just appeared was no ordinary person.

“Findenai, go fetch the documents.”

From behind her appeared a man. He had black hair that was a bit long and reached down to his eyes.

The man subtly displayed his noble status with his neat clothes and an aesthetic appearance befitting the city of artists.

“I guess I have no other choice.”

I pulled out a gem wrapped in cloth from my pocket. Its mere appearance had already elicited screams of agony from souls.

[Do you have any idea?]

The boy’s grandfather had already closed his eyes, entering his eternal rest.

However, due to strange events surrounding that boy.

“We might find out if we ask him directly.”

I considered asking Owen’s grandfather directly, about the secret he held in his arms as he drifted into his eternal slumber.

* * *

“So, you failed?”

Inside the office of Bolfras, the loan shark.

All the thugs were standing up, their heads lowered in fear.

The woman at the center wore a robe that didn’t suit the office.

“Yes, yes! We’re sorry!”

Bolfras, the owner of the office, spoke with a trembling voice. It felt like his tongue twisting and drying up with each word he uttered.

If they showed even the slightest annoyance, she would devour them right away.

Having already witnessed this scene several times, Bolfras couldn’t help but feel even more tense.

“So, did you bring those bastards who did this?”

“Yes! They were detained on charges of fraud, so we posted bail and paid a bribe to bring them back!”

“Well done.”

The woman stuffed a piece of bread into her mouth, chewing vigorously.

The thugs felt a sense of dread from her demeanor and hastily brought in the two main culprits of this event.

The two people kneeling in the office were in severe condition.

One had a completely battered and swollen face, while both arms of the other were broken.

With the awareness that she was in an artist’s city, Findenai created this work with an artistic flair.

Trembling, they immediately pressed their foreheads to the floor of the office. Tears and blood stained the ground as they cried out.

“W-we’re truly sorry!”

“Some strange guys suddenly showed up! If you give us one more chance, we’ll definitely bring him!”

“Bullshit.”

The woman rose from her plush chair and stretched out her hand.

Her hand soon transformed into a massive mouth resembling that of a demonic monster and its gruesome teeth instantly pierced through both of them as it devoured them mercilessly.

“Agh, ahh!”

“Spare us! Please...!”

Chomp, chomp.

It didn’t take long for the sobbing screams to turn into the sound of bones and flesh being munched on.

The rest of the thugs swallowed their saliva but didn’t dare to raise their heads, so they just looked at the blood dripping down and soaking the floor.

“I’m not even asking you to bring that old man but just his grandson. What’s so difficult about that...”

The woman grumbled in annoyance, however, suddenly, her eyes flashed open. Then she made an expression of disbelief.

“Huh, so that’s why?”

The woman who had just devoured the two suddenly burst into laughter, clutching her stomach. After laughing for a while, tears welled in her eyes. She wiped them away while murmuring.

“Geez, these two have just shown me something fun, but I killed them for no reason.”

The remaining thugs couldn’t understand what she was talking about.

The woman sat back on the plush chair, crossing her legs.

“The Soul Whisperer has arrived in this city.”

Even if it was just a coincidence, could there be a coincidence like this?

After the Monstrumancers from Dante were killed by a girl named Aria Rias, she came to Claren, which was abundant with yokai, to replenish her forces.

But she unexpectedly encountered Deus Verdi, whose whereabouts were currently unknown.

“He... hehe.”

The woman licked her lips and wore a satisfied smile.

It felt like an enticing, sumptuous feast lay spread before her.

The woman smacked her lips as if she was about to drool.

/genesisforsaken