Chapter 178

[Translator – Night][Proofreader – Gun]

Chapter 178: The Black-Haired Demon (3)

Name: Schurz.

Without a surname, he was an orphan who didn’t even know his parents’ faces, and from a young age, he traveled through various cities doing odd jobs.

Then, at the age of 17, by chance, he caught the eye of a retired knight from the Ushif Empire who was a mercenary, and he joined the mercenary guild called ‘Red Horse’.

Perhaps he had talent unknowingly, as he quickly gained a lot of attention from his fellow mercenaries for his swordsmanship and various specialized skills needed for mercenary activities.

However, Schurz left the mercenary guild just two years after joining.

When asked why by his colleagues, he simply dismissed it by saying he no longer wanted to do dangerous work.

It wasn’t unreasonable.

Mercenary work typically involved high risks for high rewards, so during his two years of activity, he witnessed the deaths of many colleagues and himself narrowly escaped death several times.

In truth, leaving because the work was dangerous was just an excuse; the real reason was simply that he couldn’t bear it anymore.

The purpose of mercenary activities ultimately boiled down to money.

To earn that money, one had to do whatever dirty deeds necessary without hesitation, and Schurz couldn’t escape the moral guilt that came with it.

His colleagues scoffed, saying that such petty feelings wouldn’t help in the real world, but what could he do?

He himself was influenced greatly by such petty feelings.

In the end, Schurz left the guild and heard news that laborers were being recruited at the Uito Mine, so he impulsively crossed over to the Garam Kingdom.

When crossing over to the kingdom, he used the alias Zion.

About seven years ago, there was a time when he sold cigarettes on the streets of the red-light district in the neutral city of Lambert, and there was a boy who had overturned the most notorious crime city on the continent.

[TL/N: HE’S ALIVE!! THE NOVEL IS SAVED!!!]

[PR/N: SO GLAD THEY CHANGED THE NOVEL]

Although there were certainly many witnesses, no one remembered his face, and all that remained was the name Zion.

Maybe it was because they were similar in age, but Schurz developed a sense of admiration, and he had been using the alias Zion ever since.

The work in the mine wasn’t as difficult as he thought, and the pay was decent, not much different from mercenary work.

He thought that if he worked diligently here for a few years, he would accumulate enough funds to not starve to death, and he believed that most of the laborers, including himself, came with that purpose in mind.

However, the atmosphere in the workplace was unexpectedly strange.

Among the stories he heard almost every day while working, one was, ‘When will someone steal the mana crystals and run away?’ and there were quite a few stories of those who had succeeded and were now living elsewhere.

Schurz couldn’t understand it.

If caught, wouldn’t they immediately lose their status as laborers and become slaves under the miners?

From what he saw, it was just shiny rocks with a bit of mana in them, so why were people making such a fuss?

Even when he tried to ask those who had become slaves, it wasn’t easy to meet them as they were always working in separate areas.

‘Why not just check it out once?’

Had he been influenced by the lax atmosphere of the workplace?

In the end, Schurz decided to put his small curiosity into action.

However, unfortunately, he ended up being caught by the lord himself.

It seemed that he had been caught because he had helped a laborer who was being beaten during the day.

At this rate, it was obvious that he would lose his status as a laborer and become a slave.

With no excuse to say that he wanted to check it out once, Schurz just made up his mind to charge in.

However, the world is vast, and there are many strong people.

He thought it was just a big, unkempt pig, but this was nothing short of a demon disguised in a pig’s skin.

Is this really the power of a human?

It wasn’t just physical strength coming from his size; there was something fundamentally different.

The price of his belated realization was brutal education.

His healthy body was quickly reduced to a battered mess, and he descended to a state on the brink of death.

It was futile.

If he had known it would end up like this, he should have just continued as a mercenary.

Despite repeating regrets, he couldn’t undo what he had done, and thus, Schurz resigned himself to facing death with resignation.

Until the demon with black hair appeared, that is.

“What were you doing early in the morning of that day?”

“I was up early doing my usual morning exercises.”

“There should be several witnesses, so your alibi should be solid.”

The investigator, who was carefully examining Schurz’ personal records, couldn’t easily hide his unease.

“Understood. We may need to call you in again later, so please wait in your accommodation for now.”

Nodding, Schurz got up immediately from his seat and left the room.

It seemed that the investigation was quite challenging.

Of course it would be.

Considering he was the sole survivor at the scene, it was natural for him to be silent like this.

Despite not having done anything wrong, why would he have a reason to be there with his hands up?

With his expertise in dark magic, he had neatly erased all traces, so there was no need to worry about being caught.

As long as the demon with black hair didn’t talk to anyone, that is.

As a result of the declaration by the society to suspend mining operations for the investigation, mandatory leave was issued.

It was more like a sobering break than a vacation, and it didn’t seem like it would end soon considering the situation.

Schurz lay in bed after the strange day.

Even lying down, thoughts about the demon didn’t leave him.

Honestly, the demon wasn’t a demon; just judging by appearances, wasn’t he nothing more than a genuine human?

He had healed him when he was dying and even saved him, so it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he was practically an angel to him.

Thinking back to the atmosphere at the time, it seemed that the man had come to kill Lord Vince from the beginning…

Why?

Did he have a grudge against Lord Vince?

Regardless, what was the reason for healing him and saving him, knowing he could be the only witness?

With questions piling up, Schurz couldn’t fall asleep easily.

“Ugh!”

Schurz finally got up and went outside.

He headed straight for the mine.

Despite the late hour, the mine was filled with people gathered to investigate the scene.

In a situation like this, standing out for no reason would only lead to suspicious glances.

Schurz quickly turned away with a sense of resignation.

It was said that the culprit would return to the scene, but wasn’t it strange to say they would return?

There was only himself, the only survivor at the scene, and even if they did return, it would be to kill him, the only potential witness…

“…!”

Why are there moments like this in life?

Moments when something just clicks in your mind without any signs or evidence.

The dimly lit streets of an ambitious city.

Just now, a man with his hood flipped up passed by him by chance.

The thought of ‘It’s him!’ inexplicably struck him like a pickaxe hitting ore.

‘That man!’

Schurz quickly turned his head as if electrified.

However, all he could see was an empty street with no one passing by.

It had only been a few seconds since he passed by, so where did he disappear to?

Schurz rushed back towards the mine.

Although he had rushed as if being chased by the jaws of death, the mine was no different from before.

There was no trace of the man anywhere, and despite waiting in a corner of the forest, hoping he might appear if he waited a little longer, he waited for nearly two hours, but…

“Haaam~”

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

All that came was a yawn and drowsiness.

He began to feel self-loathing about what he was doing right now.

“I guess I should go and get some sleep.”

With a disappointed sigh, as he turned his body to head back to his lodging,

The disappointed sigh escaped as Schurz turned his body to head back to his lodging.

“…!”

Schurz froze in place as if under a spell, his body seemingly immobilized.

-Shususu

A strange mist with a chilling touch brushed against his skin.

Within that mist, at a distance of exactly ten paces in the direction he was facing, under a rotten tree stump, sat the man with black hair, staring at him with deep-set eyes.

It was the demon with black hair he had been seeking.

When had he arrived, or rather, why hadn’t he noticed his presence until now?

Perhaps he had been too focused on the mine, but could he have missed any signs completely?

Was he truly not human but a demon?

A moment of doubt and fear compounded, and then.

-Swish

The demon with black hair suddenly stood up.

Then, with measured steps, he approached where Schurz stood.

At that moment, Schurz thought to himself.

He was a fool to have briefly considered him an angel.

Two years of mercenary life wasn’t for nothing.

Did he just appear to have meaningless eye contact with him?

Look into those red eyes, tainted with blood.

Those were the eyes of an assassin who had come to kill him without a doubt.

Didn’t they say reckless curiosity leads to trouble?

Intended or not, he should have just stayed still like a mouse when he was saved.

His newly reclaimed second chance at life was about to be cut short in an instant.

Then Schurz thought again.

It was pointless to sit there miserably and beg for life.

He needed to come up with a more innovative solution to escape this situation quickly.

“…!”

Finally, something flashed in his mind, and Schurz slammed his head into the ground.

“I have been seeking Your Excellency all this time!!!”

At this, the approaching footsteps of the man abruptly stopped.

“I have not disclosed anything about Your Excellency to the outside world! For reasons unknown, I felt compelled to come here to repay the grace you personally bestowed upon me! Please accept me!”

Drops of sweat dripped from his forehead onto the earthen floor, gradually easing the tension.

“….” S~ᴇaʀᴄh the N0vᴇlFire(.)nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

There was no response, not even the sound of footsteps.

As his heart pounded and his whole body trembled like a bamboo in the wind, Schurz couldn’t bring himself to lift his head.

How much time had passed?

It felt longer than the time he had been watching the mine.

Sweat streamed down and formed rivulets, bugs danced merrily on his arms and legs.

Anything would have been better than no response at all, but the demon with black hair showed no reaction, not even an acknowledgment.

Unable to bear it any longer, Schurz slowly lifted his head.

“…?”

Nothing.

No one was there.

Schurz hastily got up and looked around, but all he felt in the ambitious silence of the forest was stillness, devoid of any sign of life.

“What, what’s going on?”

Whether it was a dream of a summer night or not, in a daze, Schurz couldn’t leave that spot for a while.

* * *

“Zion!”

If it were any other time, he would have awakened at the slightest call, but today, it took shaking him several times before he could finally open his eyes.

“W-what’s going on?”

“The investigators want to see you again!”

Schurz’s heart sank at once.

“What’s the matter? Can you tell me why?”

“How should I know? I heard they sent someone from the Garam Magic Society to investigate this case again. Maybe they want to conduct a new investigation among themselves?”

The Garam Magic Society?

They sent someone from the Garam Magic Society to investigate this case?

Schurz, who hadn’t fully awakened from his dream of a summer night, was thoroughly disoriented.

“But why are you sweating so much? You never sweat even when you work.”

“T-that’s! Anyway, I’ll go!”

Schurz fled the room and headed for the lord’s chamber.

-Knock knock

Despite knocking on the door, there was no response from inside.

“Ito Mine’s laborer, Zion. May I come in?”

“Come in.”

The indifferent voice of a girl filled the room.

With rising questions, Schurz opened the door and entered.

“I heard you were looking for me…”

As Schurz entered the room, he was immediately speechless.

A cute girl with a ponytail tied with a light blue ribbon, who looked like she might be someone’s little sister who would not want to show her off.

He had somewhat of an idea because he heard a girl’s voice, but he had no idea there was a real girl there.

[PR/N: Huh? Is bro still asleep?]

Her dark, almost ominous eyes were unsettling, but…

“Hello, Mr. Zion. Please have a seat.”

Schurz sat down with a bewildered heart.

“Is Zion your real name?”

It was an unexpected question from her.

Her gaze was not on Schurz but on his identification.

“It’s, uh, a pseudonym.”

“I thought so.”

Momentarily taken aback, Schurz blinked.

“I checked the identities of the miners in the mine while coming here, and Mr. Zion’s magic attribute is darkness, right?”

“…!”

Schurz calmly responded without being flustered.

“Well, what does that have to do with this case?”

“Of course, it does. It’s related to this case and to why I’m here…”

At the incomprehensible answer, Schurz’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Then, at that moment,

“Luna, may I come in?”

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]