Side Story: The Outlaws
In the darkness, illuminated only by moonlight, a man skillfully navigates through the back alleys. He’s small and slender, with dark hair and clothes that seem to blend into the shadows. As he weaves through the narrow paths littered with obstacles, he suddenly stops and turns around.
“…Who’s there?”
His voice, though small, carries a peculiar, menacing edge. After muttering this single word, he silently glares into the depths of the alley.
For nearly ten seconds, the man remains motionless. Then, as if giving up, a figure emerges from the shadows.
It’s a large man, tall and broad-shouldered.
“…You noticed me well,”
a deep voice echoes as the large man pulls out something. A wide, curved short sword gleams in the moonlight.
“It would’ve been better if you hadn’t,”
the large man mutters, barely suppressing a laugh. In response, the small man shrugs and sighs.
“…Is this your first time in this city, rookie? Or are you some delusional idiot who thinks he can take on the Royal Knights alone?”
As the small man speaks with an exasperated tone, the large man visibly bristles, lowering his chin. With eyes brimming with murderous intent, he quietly responds.
“…You’re acting pretty high and mighty yourself. Aren’t your knees shaking? Or do you think I’m some amateur who’s afraid of killing?”
Saying this, the large man takes a step forward, lightly swinging his sword.
“Are you trying to provoke me into charging, so you can desperately slip past my sword? Or are you going to claim you’re some master sorcerer?”
Though his words are mocking, the man maintains his guard, sword at the ready. He continues to close the distance inch by inch.
Despite the tense situation, the small man places one hand on his hip and waves the other dismissively.
“Definitely a rookie. This city never runs out of outlaws with dreams and ambitions, but the more overconfident ones always end up in a sorry state. Take my advice and go back home.”
As the small man speaks with apparent disinterest, the large man freezes in his tracks.
“…Are you trying to talk your way out of this? You don’t seem like one of the Nevis family. If you’re a man, fight your way through!”
The large man snorts, pointing his blade at the small man.
Staring directly at the sword, the small man pulls something from his pocket. He pinches a small black stick between his thumb and forefinger, bringing it to his lips.
For an instant, an orange light flickers in the pitch-black alley. He’s lit a cigarette.
The man takes a light drag, extinguishes the flame, and leisurely exhales the smoke.
“I warned you, rookie. If you regret this, immediately drop to your knees and shout, ‘I was wrong, I’ll reform!'”
As the small man speaks in a joking manner, the large man’s anger finally boils over. He raises his sword and charges.
“Die, you coward…!”
He closes the distance in an instant, bringing his sword down with a shout. It’s a surprisingly quick movement for such a large frame.
However, the small man does nothing, simply watching the blade approach. Seeing this, the large man’s lips curl into a smile.
But the descending sword stops mid-air, as if blocked by something, before it can touch the small man’s body.
“W-What the…?!”
The large man shouts, seeing his sword halted in mid-air. He reflexively pulls back and strikes again, but this attack is also easily repelled.
“What’s going on?!”
The moment his second strike fails to connect, the large man leaps back to create distance. The small man’s eyes widen slightly at this movement.
“Oh? Good reflexes. I can see why you’re so confident. You’d probably rank among the top in our family.”
The small man speaks with interest, assessing his opponent’s skills as he takes another drag of his cigarette.
He inhales deeply and exhales the smoke.
“…But you can’t beat me.”
He mutters with a defiant smile. Seeing this, the large man gasps.
“N-No way, are you really a sorcerer?! I didn’t even sense you casting a spell…!”
Reassessing his opponent as an unknown entity, the man freezes, still holding his sword at the ready.
At that moment, the sound of firm footsteps echoes from behind the large man.
Startled by the reverberating footsteps in the alley, the large man spins around.
“Time’s up. Your movements were good, and you seem capable, but your situational awareness and danger perception are poor.”
The small man says with a laugh, cigarette in hand. His gaze has already moved past the large man, focusing on something beyond.
The rhythmic sound of firm footsteps grows louder, approaching from the depths of the dark, narrow alley.
“W-What…?! Did you call for backup?!”
The frightened man redirects his sword towards the darkness, turning his whole body. Seeing this, the small man shrugs with a wry smile.
“Don’t say such presumptuous things. The Witch of the Academy herself has come for a mere underling’s crisis.”
The moment the small man says this, moonlight floods the alley. As the angle of light changes, it gradually reveals the figure walking from the depths of the path.
Long, dark hair with a purple tint. A small, delicate silhouette, yet somehow exuding an aura of intimidation. A beautifully symmetrical face.
It’s the figure of Aoi-Kō Nominato, a senior instructor at Fiddick Academy, feared by some of the town’s residents and known as the Witch of the Academy.
“…The Witch of the Academy, you can’t mean…”
The large man mutters, his fingertips trembling as he stares at Aoi. Catching this, the small man snorts.
“Did you think it was just a rumor? You fool. This is a crazy city where goods and money flow in from every major nation. It would normally be a constant warzone. It’s because the Witch of the Academy really exists that such a healthy alliance is possible.”
As he speaks these words with a laugh, the large man glares at Aoi, still holding his sword.
“D-Don’t come any closer! I won’t give you a chance to cast a spell!”
The man, now half-panicked, shouts this at Aoi.
Immediately after, Aoi slightly opens her mouth.
“Hundred Pike.”
The moment she mutters this, countless thin, sharp stone spears burst from the ground around the man. The stone spears completely surround him, even knocking the sword from his hand.
The man swallows pathetically as he sees Aoi’s eyes through the wall of stone spears.
“Hii…!”
Hearing the man’s scream, Aoi turns her gaze to the small man.
“How was it?”
As Aoi asks tersely, the small man spreads his arms and speaks.
“A great success. That guy seemed quite strong, but it was no problem at all. With this, we should be fine even if a horde of magical beasts attacks.”
He says this in high spirits, to which Aoi nods slightly before replying.
“It provides minimal protection, but we shouldn’t be overconfident. It might not withstand a single blow from a slightly larger dragon.”
“I understand,” Aoi replied. The small man laughed out loud at that.
“Alright… but that seems almost invincible to me.”
Ignoring his casual response, Aoi looked at the man still surrounded by stone spears.
The man, now under Aoi’s gaze, flinched his large body.
“…I think you didn’t know the rules of this town. So, I’ll let it slide this time. Please have mr Seabass over there teach you the town’s regulations.”
After saying this, Aoi turned on her heel with an attitude that suggested her business was done. Immediately after, the stone spears surrounding the large man shattered into pieces.
Without looking back, Aoi walked away confidently, while the man just stared at her retreating figure, speechless.
After confirming that Aoi had completely disappeared from the alley, the man called Seabass spoke up.
“Hey, what’s your name?”
Seabass asked for his name, but the man didn’t answer. Tilting his head, Seabass asked again.
“Hey. Just so you know, that person’s magic isn’t limited to just this. Your rebellious spirit is admirable, but in this town, only fools defy the witch.”
As Seabass said this in a slightly louder voice, the man turned around with a startled look.
“Ah, oh… W-what? Rules, was it?”
“Your name, your name. What’s your name?”
Seabass asked again, irritated by the man’s response.
“…I’m Early. Anyway, hurry up and teach me these rules you mentioned.”
“You can’t expect me to do it so quickly. The rules are absolute. If I’m going to teach you, I need to do it properly until you understand completely.”
Seabass scolded Early, his eyes narrowing.
“…By the way, I was thinking of having you guide me to the Nevis family’s hideout. Take me there now.”
“…You don’t know how to speak to your seniors, do you?”
Seabass complained in an exasperated tone at Early’s rough way of speaking. Early snorted and turned around.
“Take me to the hideout, senior.”
As Early rephrased his request in a bold manner, Seabass dropped his shoulders and sighed.
“…Follow me, junior.”
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
At the Nevis family’s hideout, Kalila Nevis was sitting in a large chair at the back. Five tough-looking men were standing around him.
“Seabass. Who’s that guy?”
As one of the men asked, Seabass shrugged and glanced at Early.
“This is Early, a newcomer who just arrived in town. He’s got a bit of an extended rebellious phase, but that’s his only flaw. Be nice to him.”
As Seabass casually introduced him, everyone’s eyes turned to Early.
“He’s big. Looks confident too.”
“Well, that doesn’t mean much in this town.”
As the men chatted and laughed among themselves, Kalila, seated at the back, spoke up.
“Early, was it? I’ll explain the rules briefly. If you want to eat good food and sleep peacefully in this town, never ignore these rules. Understood?”
After this preface, Kalila told Early the town’s regulations.
“do you have any questions? “
After listening quietly, Early folded his arms and tilted his head.
“…So, fighting is forbidden. Stealing and killing are prohibited. Even slave trading is not allowed if done illegally. And we have to report our regular work once a month to prove we’re working legitimately, huh?”
As Early recited the rules with apparent dissatisfaction, the gang, except for Kalila, laughed mockingly.
“What? Did you want to make a living by stealing and killing?”
“Know your place, newbie.”
“Don’t be so stubborn.”
As the others said such things, Kalila snorted and waved his hand.
“We were the same just a few months ago. Can we really laugh at the newcomer?”
Kalila said this with a sigh, but he looked at Early with a somewhat sympathetic gaze.
“…Well, we’re all outlaws. I understand how you feel. You came here intending to take over the underside of a town that’s got the attention of various countries, right? If that’s still your plan, I’d advise you to choose a different town.”
Kalila offered this advice.
Early seemed to consider for a moment, then exhaled through his nose and spoke.
“…The one who made these rules, is it the rumored witch from the academy?”
“That’s right.”
Kalila answered Early’s question with a bored expression.
Hearing this, Early puffed out his chest and looked down at Kalila.
“Is the woman I ran into earlier really amazing enough to control the underside of such a large town?”
“Well… let’s just say she’s amazing enough to wipe out powerful individuals who could form large organizations in other countries in just one night. To be honest, she’s a monster. We don’t even think about defying her.”
Kalila said this with a dry laugh, and the men nodded repeatedly with serious faces.
Early was about to say something in response, but before he could speak, the sound of hard footsteps, likely from heels, was heard from behind, and he shut his mouth.
“…Who’s a monster?”
A low, calm female voice echoed, and everyone present straightened their backs. Even Kalila, who had been lounging in his chair, quickly stood up and corrected his posture. When Early turned around, he saw Aoi standing there.
“Ah, no, there was a rumor about a monster-like magical beast appearing in the outskirts…”
“Y-yeah, that’s right. A black one…”
“Are you an idiot?”
As the men tried to cover up in a flustered manner, Kalila looked at Aoi with a strained expression.
“You’re quite early. Did you have some business?”
When asked this, Aoi looked at Early.
“Come to think of it, I’ve never seen the education conducted by the Nevis family, so I came to observe today.”
As Aoi answered, the men beside Kalila shuddered.
“…She even comes to check directly when we’re just teaching the rules?”
“That’s scary.”
Ignoring the men who were saying such things and trembling, Aoi looked at Kalila and Early.
“Are you finished?”
She asked no one in particular, and Early turned his whole body to face her and spoke.
“…I’ve heard enough about the rules.”
“I see. Then, I’ll be back another time.”
Aoi nodded expressionlessly at Early’s words and was about to turn on her heel.
“Wait a moment.”
“Yes, what is it?”
As Early stopped Aoi from leaving, tension ran through the surrounding men.
It would be terrible if the newcomer who had just finished his education picked a fight with the witch.
That was clearly written on the faces of the men.
However, Early didn’t seem to care about this at all and boldly looked down at Aoi from the front.
“…I’ve heard that you’re a monster-like magician. But it seems I haven’t fully understood that… Show me that amazingness once.”
As Early said this and clenched his fist, Aoi glanced at Kalila in the back.
“…! You guys, evacuate immediately! One second, one second! Jump out the window if you have to!”
“Y-yes sir!”
At Kalila’s instruction, the Nevis family escaped from the hideout like startled rabbits.
After that, Early completely submitted to and became devoted to Aoi. According to Early, he had met his ideal boss, but no one thought that Aoi would be troubled by Early greeting her loudly every time they met in town.
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