How to Live as a Tyrant’s Spoiled Brat Chapter 62

How to live as a tyrant’s spoiled brat Episode 62

(62)

We stood next to the vacant lot and waited for the fight to end.

“Eww!”

“Save me!”

There were fewer men wearing necklaces than I thought.

If there were 500 people wearing bracelets, there probably wouldn’t even be 100 people wearing necklaces.

But the one who had the necklace was the one who had the upper hand.

Among them, there were some who were two heads taller than those around them.

He would split his opponents in half with an axe, throw them with such force that they collapsed a tent next to a vacant lot, or even grab them by the ankles and swing them around.

“Sir Tentia, that… … .”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Anyone can see that he is an encroacher.”

I could see black, needle-like hairs growing out from their necks, backs, and wrists.

I let out a deep sigh inside.

If that became known, it was obvious that Jaylilith would try to push the streets.

If I wanted to lessen her notoriety, I had to do it on my own terms as much as possible.

The tide was clearly turning, and eventually the poor people wearing bracelets began to scatter and run away in all directions.

“Boss, I’m sorry!”

“Aaah, how do I beat that?”

Rudy said, “Ah,” and picked up the pistol again.

“Mr. Valen, can I ask you something now? I’ll put the leg in first.”

“No. Not you.”

“yes?”

Rudy looked at me with a clear question in his green eyes.

I answered as if it was a given.

“You go to them and say, ‘Are you a predator?’ Then you’ll end up fighting 100 people against 3? Of course, I don’t think I’ll lose, but there’s no need to do that. It’d be better to at least gather some information before going back.”

“then?”

“We have to go after Jin.”

There were many who scattered and ran away, but there were also many who stayed together and ran away while supporting the wounded.

We chased them through the alleys.

Occasionally, those who had lost their fear would thrust daggers at us, but those who were sane would run away as soon as they heard the footsteps of Lord Tentia.

“What on earth were these guys thinking when they pounced on the knight?”

Tentia Sir swung his steel gauntlet once, blasting away both a man and a wall, then muttered.

I opened one of his eyes and answered.

A brown aura was faintly lingering.

“That’s because you’re not in your right mind. Your mind is slightly polluted. It’s proof that the slums are constantly being eroded.”

Although it was not yet at a level where treatment was impossible, the problem was that they could not afford to donate the church money needed for treatment.

“Valentine, I think we’re all here.”

In front of me stood a perfectly fine four-story building.

It retains the elegance it had when it was first built, as it was not supported by planks or anything like that.

There were groans and screams all around.

“Boss, someone is here.”

“Knight, knight! There are also people wearing expensive clothes.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to go and tell him?”

A voice like that was heard from the front door.

As I was waiting for a moment, the door opened first.

“Nari. Hello. What brings you, our noble Nari, to this wretched place?”

The leader was a man wearing something that resembled a uniform.

He had short-cropped brown hair, a slightly mean-looking face, and a long scar under his eye.

“Do you know anything about those guys wearing necklaces?”

He answered as if he had been waiting for me to ask.

“Yes, Nari. I know. They are terrible invaders. They have grown in power recently by absorbing kids who came in from outside and former guards who flowed in from the red-light district. They practice cannibalism and human sacrifice… … .”

I shook my head and cut him off.

“Just answer the questions I ask. Do you know where their hideout is?”

“We don’t know that properly either, so we can’t do it. Nari.”

“I guess that means you have a rough idea.”

The boss nodded.

“Why did the sheriffs let you and those guys get to this point?”

The boss’s eyes lit up at my question.

I think he was scared.

“Are you… talking to us?”

I looked at the poor people lying in the alleys and laughing.

“Sir Tentia. Do they look sane?”

“… … I thought these guys held up well against those strong guys earlier. It’s hard for even trained soldiers to charge in after seeing dozens of people fall, but there was a reason for it.”

A bitter expression appeared on her manly face.

The boss’s face rotted away.

I asked the boss again.

“Why did the sheriffs let you and those guys get to this point?”

The boss answered in a crawling voice.

“The number of poor people has increased too much recently. There are too many people coming from outside.”

“and?”

“Those kids don’t go out of the slums. They only fight with kids like us inside, so the police chiefs are actually happy about it.”

“and?”

“We distribute drugs, but they don’t touch them.”

I smiled and said to the boss.

“I’ll make you an offer you can’t refuse. I’ll go with you to their hideout right now. You’ll stand in front of me, and your men will stand in front of you. Once all your men are down, you’ll be next. I’ll give you time to gather your men.”

* * *

The slum streets were originally neat three-story brick houses, but after being rebuilt with planks, they had turned into strange fortress-like structures.

Hundreds and thousands of poor people were squeezing their way through the narrow alleys.

As evening came, it seemed as if the undead army was advancing.

Some people were quite mentally polluted, and strange incantations could be heard here and there, or bluish eyes could be seen.

“I will cut down anyone who retreats! The only way for you to return alive is to advance and win! Go forward! Go forward!”

Valencian stood like a light in the darkness, shouting and harassing the poor.

In the darkness, the golden eyes lit by the torchlight gleamed along with the white uniform embroidered with gold thread.

Tentia drew her sword and aimed it at the leader’s back.

The guards standing before the leader gritted their teeth, but none of them were brave enough to show that expression to the red-haired knight with a dignified, wolf-like appearance.

“If you show any suspicious signs, I will stab you right away. Command properly.”

“I, Nari. Weren’t you supposed to save me?”

“His Majesty will gladly spare your life if you do your best. Wasn’t he very pleased when you gathered the subordinates of the allied organizations?”

‘Let’s take this opportunity to drive them out.’

‘I didn’t like the sight of those who didn’t even sell medicine trying to take over the mainstream.’

‘The competition has gotten too fierce. Let’s hold our breath.’

‘If a young girl dares to join in, I’ll be happy.’

When they heard that the higher-ups were planning to attack the Necklace Gang, numerous organizations gathered under the Bracelet Gang.

For a moment, Tentia wondered whether Valencian had anticipated this as well.

The white-haired prince’s mind, which expressed its emotions by screaming loudly, changed from moment to moment, sometimes like a sheet of paper, and sometimes like a deep ocean with no bottom.

Whether he knew Tentia’s worries or not, Rudy tied his long brown hair neatly up and came to his side.

“Lord Valen. Didn’t His Majesty the Emperor order you to just get a general idea of the situation?”

It was a pure question, without any sarcastic intention.

Valencianus saw a few poor evaders running away and ordered them to be shot. He looked confused for a moment as he watched Rudy pull the trigger without hesitation, but then he answered in a sly voice as if nothing had happened.

“Looking at the situation, I think we should do it this way.”

“I didn’t know it would come to this.”

Rudy answered as he loaded a new cartridge into his rifle.

“Actually, in this case, erosion is also an additional problem.”

“yes?”

Her green eyes widened.

It was a shocking news to Rudy, a devout believer, to hear that factional fighting was taking place within the church, as erosion was an additional problem.

“Fundamentally, there are too many people. Look at it. It’s almost like an army.”

It was so dark that it was hard to guess the overall size of the city.

If you add up all the poor people who are being pushed into the alleys, the number of people who came out today alone would be in the thousands.

“It was all in vain that we demolished the red-light district to secure a redevelopment area. When a bunch of hot-blooded drifters without homes or families gather in one place and live in discomfort, they’re bound to fight.”

“ah.”

“Winter is coming soon. The relief of the poor is the business of the church and the lords. His Majesty the Emperor has been increasing his military budget by destroying the red-light districts, and he is even dragging the church into it to prepare for the attacks of the old ones. Will he spend more money on the poor? I don’t think so, and in fact he shouldn’t.”

Rudy looked ahead for a moment and then shook his head.

A large gang of necklace-wielding men blocked the alley and swung an axe, knocking down several people.

“It’s strange.”

“what?”

“Ultimately, it is the poor and powerless who are falling for the old ways. If you intend to fight the old ways, why don’t you spend money here?”

To her surprise, Valencian answered immediately.

“If these poor people fall for the old ones, they can be suppressed in an instant. Look. The giant eroder we saw last time is gone. Even if everyone here were to attack, Lord Tentia would probably be able to defeat them alone.”

It’s not common to become stronger as an eroder.

If you want to become as strong as a Sword Expert as an Evader, you have to work hard enough to become a Sword Expert.

“The old things that His Majesty is wary of are the demon realms and high-level invaders. To become a high-level invader, you must be a noble or knight with mixed race blood. In the end, it’s in line with being wary of local lords. You can’t spend a lot of money on things that happen in these slums.”

Rudy nodded.

I felt like I knew a little more about the world.

I felt bitter because I thought I had come to understand the efficiency that the higher-ups were talking about.

It’s literally inevitable.

She also knows how scary the devil and rebellion are.

But does that mean that we can just ignore these poor people and say that they did enough?

The moment you have such an irreverent thought.

So, Valencian smiled brightly, saying,

“You sent me.”

“yes?”

Rudy turned to Valencian, whose green eyes were behind thin square glasses.

He unbuttoned the front of his white uniform, drew his sword, and prepared to fight.

“I’ve been getting solid results on a small budget, haven’t I?”

In a world of imperial administration where people struggle to avoid even the worst, the only people who can choose the lesser of two evils are those who were never expected to be there in the first place.

Valencian asked Tentia.

“Sir. What is the offensive situation?”

Ssuk, Tentia scanned the area and answered immediately.

“This is the worst. The exchange rate is probably 80 to 1. The path is narrow, so numerical superiority is meaningless, and those wearing necklaces hardly ever get tired. If this is a siege, it is a lost war even if we win.”

Rudy checked the front again.

The human barrier that had stretched endlessly in front of the leader had become considerably thinner.

It was hard to see clearly in the dark, but the liquid that was sloshing around under my feet didn’t seem to be transparent at all.

“Good. Boss?”

“Yes, yes. Nari.”

He had been half-sane since he had heard Tentia call Valencianus ‘Your Majesty’ several times.

“Take care of the wounded and the dead and retreat. I will allow the use of magic white powder on the wounded. Send the dead to the sewers one by one. If you are not careful, they may all be resurrected as abominations, zombies, or skeletons. At that time, battle wizards on wyverns will appear in the slums.”

Despite his firm voice, Valencian’s feelings were not so comfortable.

Among the fighters sent from various organizations, those who were irreversibly corrupted or had become extremely violent due to the side effects of the drug were put in the lead, and when they had all fallen, the order was given to retreat.

There was a lot of bloodshed today, but by tomorrow there will be a lot less fighting in the slums.

Unfortunately, he had to cut off his toes to keep his feet from getting frostbite.

It was something I couldn’t do, considering the toes I’d cut off, but the title of Grand Duke was there to do that kind of thing.

And if blood was to be shed in anyone’s name, it should be his own, not Jaylilith’s.

“Yes, Nari. I will do as you say.”

The leader quickly answered and started to gather his men and leave.

“Ahh!”

“They’re running away!”

“We also retreat. They are too strong!”

“Chase him! Kill him!”

There was a tremendous amount of chaos in the darkness, and in an instant the power lines collapsed.

It was quite a sight to see the torches, which had been advancing little by little, begin to scatter in all directions.

Rudy looked at it with pure amazement, while Tentia and Valencianus followed with their eyes which building the Necklace Gang’s pursuit party was emerging from.

“Your Majesty, it is over there.”

“Okay. Let’s find out who’s the leader of those eroding monsters.”

* * *

There was no way there would be any lighting in the slums, so the inside of the building was pitch black.

However, neither Rudi, Valencian, nor Tentia were at a level where they could be caught by that darkness.

“Cross carefully.”

“Yes, Lord Valen.”

Valencianus stood in front of the window of one building, jumping from building to building through the plank-framed siding.

Tentia nodded once, and she leapt into the window.

“Everyone, get on your knees and bow down!”

There was a loud crash, the sound of something breaking and flying away, and then it was quiet.

“Your Majesty, you may come over.”

Valencian entered the room through the window with Rudi.

Inside the large room, there was a slight odor of blood, and several large men with an air of erosion were rolling on the floor, while Tentia was aiming his sword at the one who was probably the leader.

“Okay. Would you like to see my face?”

Valencian recited the spell and lit the flames.

“uh?”

Sitting on the chair was an unexpected face.

Her long, wavy brown hair had a faint red tint to it, and her almond-shaped eyes had a gung-ho look that didn’t seem to belong in the slums.

The girl, who had become noticeably more mature and clever than a few months ago, still resembled the man he had cut down with his own hands.

Soon she opened her mouth.

“Your Majesty, Grand Duke Valencian. It has been a long time since I have seen you. May I please rise on my crutches and pay my respects?”

She was the one-legged daughter of the slum knot gang leader who had inherited the pen of Ulgrim.