Hans, who had run away under cover of darkness, crouched still outside the door of the bar and waited for the fight inside to end.
There was no reason for him to step up in fighting the Crimson Society with Ludger.
Even though he looked like a werewolf, he didn't know how to fight.
The sight of a ferocious werewolf with black fur and a height of over 2m sitting still was a strange sight that could only be seen in a dream.
‘Oh.’
Hans, who was listening to the situation inside with his ears pricked up, eventually got up from his spot.
‘So it’s over.’
The sound of blows being exchanged from the fight inside stopped as silence subsided.
The last thing he heard was the pained scream of the Crimson Snake, Daughtry, the leader of the Crimson Society.
Maybe he was being tortured for Ludger to get the information he needed or something like that.
When even that sound stopped, it meant it was all over.
As expected, when he entered the bar, he smelled the thick smell of blood.
“Aargh.”
Hans, who had become more sensitive to smell as he had the shape of a wolf, clicked his tongue and moved carefully so as to not to step on the corpses.
Ludger sat on the front bar, sipping liquor quietly from a transparent glass.
“Is everything over?”
“Yeah,” Ludger replied without looking back.
“How about both of the Semi-Knights?”
“Under my feet.”
Hans was surrounded by corpses.
Hans decided not to ask exactly what had happened.
“Argh. I'm going crazy because I'm sensitive to the smell while I'm maintaining myself in this form.”
Hans immediately inserted the drug ampoule given by Ludger into his forearm.
Shoot.
His swollen body shrunk, and he returned to his human form; then, Hans quickly put on his already prepared coat.
He shuddered at the dreary sight of his surroundings.
“You are so awesome. You can drink liquor in this kind of place?”
“I’m just getting used to it.”
“More than that, what kind of liquor is that? The smell seems like it’s very good.”
Even though he had returned to human form, his sense of smell, which became a little more sensitive due to the influence of his transformation, picked up the smell of Ludger's liquor.
The scent was quite sweet.
The liquor in Ludger's glass itself was so clean that there were no foreign matters, so the flavor looked quite strong.
It must have been a pretty expensive liquor.
"It's said to be from the 38th year of Gorgonne Mountain."
“Oh! That precious liquor, you mean? Damn it! Please, give me some as well!”
"Wasn’t your stomach upset?"
"Even if I throw up because I am disgusted by my surroundings, I should drink it!"
Ludger handed over the liquor bottle, and Hans took a moderate, empty cup and poured the liquor into it for himself as well.
A shabby bar full of corpses…
Where the smell of blood and alcohol was strangely intertwined, the two men sat side by side and drank together.
"So are you sure that you killed Daughtry?"
"I haven't killed him yet because I won’t have anything to use on him after pulling the important information from him.”
“Indeed. Now that you have a new place here and moved your dwelling… What’s that again? There's something you told me before. Did you say that you're here to give out rice cakes?”
“Yes.”
"I don't know what the hell it means to give out rice cakes, but I suppose that it's something like greeting people in a good way since you just moved in, right?"
“You guessed it exactly right.”
"The Crimson Society has been dominating them and building their society up with a notorious reputation… If you get rid of the Society, the other organizations will really love it."
Of course, he had not yet eliminated all of the Crimson Society.
As they dominated that big city, of course, the total number of their people was well over 1,000.
But not all 1,000 of those Crimson Society members were complete members.
Rather, the 100 people who had gathered in the bar were the key figures.
"Now that the head of their organization is gone, the rest of them are practically destroyed. What are you going to do? Are you going to assimilate all the small fry?”
“No.”
Ludger shook his head.
The organization could not be maintained properly, even if the number of its people was increased with useless mongrels.
“I will just use the few people who are needed. Of course, I'll need the guys who will be subcontracted, but not all of them. Pick people who are smart enough and have a good personality."
“Hmm. You're telling me to go around a little bit."
“Hans. I'm done with everything I can do. The rest of the data will be in their office upstairs, and their papers and secret ledgers will be all there, so you can look at those and proceed with your task."
“Oh, my. I will be busy again.”
Hans sighed.
Hans had worked really hard for a couple of days to get information, collect data, and organize it.
Ludger had completed all the necessary processes in just one night.
Of course, it was possible because Ludger was so great, but Hans felt it to be a little unfair.
‘No. I chose not to walk on a safe path and not risk my life, so I can't complain about it.’
Of course, he had to take risks when collecting dangerous information, but it was possible for him to borrow the power of his unusual physical type for that.
That was why he thought Ludger was even greater.
Otherwise, there would be no reason for Hans to honor him and follow him everywhere other than that.
"But even after our hideout is decided, there’s no one else but you and me, right? What are you going to do about that?”
“If there’s no one else, we should increase the number.”
“Increase the number, you said? But a little while ago, you said no one should come in…”
“I'm not talking about any Tom, Dick, and Harry. Hans, you must know it as well. There are several people I know."
“Ah.”
Hans immediately crumpled up at Ludger's remark.
“Are you sure?”
“Why are you like that?”
“Why, you said? That’s because…”
“Ah. Now that I think about it, your relationship with them is bad.”
“Ahem. More than not having a bad relationship, it’s a bit like…”
Hans hesitated because he knew who the 'people I know' that Ludger was trying to refer to were.
Of course, they were definitely skilled in each of their fields, and their skill was good enough to be mentioned by Ludger himself.
However, if there was a problem, would it be that they didn’t have responsible personalities?
"No, by the way, will those extremely stubborn people really come? They won't budge, no matter what I say to them, though."
“I already sent them letters. Unexpectedly, they said they were going to come after finishing their work.”
“Urgh.”
Hans kept grumbling until he emptied his glass, seemingly uncomfortable just by thinking about them.
“Do you hate them that much?”
"It's not that I don't like them, it's more like I feel uncomfortable about them. There aren't any normal people among them. Well, even though I shouldn’t be saying that with my body as it is."
"Can't you just get along with them?"
“Pheew. I think you're saying that because you don't know, but how can I get along with them when they all have the same bullshit personality? Some of them used to treat me like I was some kind of experiment."
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Of course, yes. They're a little meek when you're around, but I might really die if you disappear. Are you still going to be here?”
"I'm busy maintaining my Ludger identity right now."
“That’s exactly it! Every time you're away as a Sören Professor, have you ever thought about how much of my blood dries up?"
“That’s your own business. Will you die because of it, though?”
Of course, he wouldn't die, but he might be all stressed right before he almost died.
Hans sighed.
It was a reality that had already happened to Ludger.
* * *
* * *
“…Haah. Now that I think about it, there's indeed no one else who can do this kind of nasty job as well as they do."
"Because they're so talented."
It was one of them that had done such a great job in creating all of the equipment that Ludger still used.
“More than that, are you going to be alright?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you a Sören Professor for now? Besides, wasn't it a bit dangerous because you showed your real face this time, unlike your previous identities?"
“Yes. That's also why I was moving like this."
"You said they somewhat suspected you, though. Then is it okay for you to just walk around outside like this?"
It was that part that Hans was worried about.
If Sören suspected him, shouldn't Ludger refrain from going out to the city?
Moreover, as their opponent was a wizard, their opponent might be secretly monitoring him through any methods.
He obviously needed to move with caution in doing everything.
“You don’t have to be worried about that.”
“Are you sure? Isn’t your opponent a wizard?”
“Hans. What do you think a wizard is?”
“Hmm. What is a wizard…? If they use magic, then they’re a wizard. But if I have to answer that question… A very rational and cool-headed seeker? Something like that.”
“You are close. Just as you said, wizards are quite rational. No, I think they need to be rational—they won't tolerate the slightest of mistakes."
It was essential to have a calm mind for a wizard to cast their magic.
Of course, wizards could not be free from all mistakes, because they were human beings.
However, it was the basic tenet of a wizard to do their best to reduce mistakes in whatever they could.
Especially because, the higher the wizard's rank, the more they should be careful of mistakes.
"The principal is a sixth-rank wizard. Moreover, she’s smart as well. I understand your concern because she is suspicious of me."
"But are you okay, even after that?"
"Let's say the principal is suspicious of me and keeps her eyes on me."
“Let’s say it like that.”
"And what if I notice that? If I argued with that, saying, “why did you secretly watch me”, what do you think she would do as the principal?"
“That’s…”
Hans became silent and was unable to quickly answer.
She was supposed to be tracking Ludger secretly without getting caught, but what if she got caught? wouldn’t that be a pretty bad situation?
What if she said, ‘I was suspicious of you' shamelessly?
“Can she just not get caught?”
“It's not 'certain' for her not to be caught. But the possibility of getting caught might exist. Hans. What are you going to consider in this case?"
“…Hmm. I'm sure it's the latter. If she's really not sure that she won't get caught, then she shouldn't mess up with you."
"Her opponent is a Sören's Professor, and his real skills are not well known. If she tails such a target recklessly and gets caught, she'll be in a lot of trouble, no matter if she's the principal or not."
"So it's better to just not tail you rather than having to suffer loss by doing it?"
“Wizards are like that. Besides, I've shown good performance as a Professor so far. If she makes a mistake here and disappoints me, she will be quite embarrassed as the principal."
A principal that couldn't trust the Professor and tailed him…
That fact alone would put the principal in a bad position.
Of course, considering the personality of the principal, she would prepare as much safety as possible, but she was already defeated the moment she even considered that as a possibility.
“The principal’s position… Even the principal can't do anything she wants at the moment, there are opposing factions and not all Professors follow her. She has to be more careful the more those kinds of factions exist because her position is just like that.”
“Aha. I see. So you don't mind moving around freely like this by using that chance?"
"Of course, I'll get caught if I act too explicitly because the tail that’s long is bound to be stepped on.”
That's why Ludger managed his image as a Professor and made sure he strengthened his internal stability.
Thanks to that, even if he went out freely, the principal would not track him or follow him, even if she is a little suspicious of him.
Especially when there was a conflict between the aristocracy and the common people like there had been that day that had caused Sören to become noisy.
“I understand, so I don't have to worry about it right now."
“Of course.”
"So if we all get together and form an organization, have you decided what to name it?"
“Name?”
"Aren't you and I going to move and live in Leathevelk? Then we should definitely name the organization. Well, even if we're going to get rid of our organization's rank and stuff, would the atmosphere be alive without a name?"
“You make a good point.”
Dribble..
After pouring all the liquor into the empty glass, the bottle was empty before he knew it.
He was disappointed because it was a luxurious drink and it tasted good.
The liquor was still full just then.
"How many people in total will be gathering?"
“Hmm. Including you and me, it's about six or seven."
“Small.”
“Of course. The number is ridiculously insufficient to form an organization."
"But more people will come in. Maybe if we add a few more people, 10 people won't be bad."
“10 people? It’s adequate. So have you decided on the name?”
“Name. Name, huh…”
Ludger suddenly remembered a famous original novel and poem that had the same name that he had seen in his previous life.
He had read it a long time ago, but it was such a famous novel that he still remembered it clearly.
There was a character in the novel…
A person who suppressed people's sinful acts and judged those who could not be dealt with by law.
Someone who eventually got rid of himself.
“.”
“? The organization’s name is ‘unknown’? What’s this? Did you just change the meaning of the word ‘unknown’ with a pun?"
“Yeah.”
"I like the accent."
Thus, the new organization that Ludger would create was named .
“One more glass?”
“Yes.”
Clink.
In celebration of the birth of the new organization, Ludger and Hans shared a toast, lightly bumping their last remaining glass.
Inside that alley…
It was a night in a bloody bar.
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