The man’s dreary face fshed a bizarre smile as he threw an arm around the oisseur’s shoulder. “There’s about to be a ge in business ownership, but we would be delighted to have your patroerwards.”

  At his hushed words, a man akin to an ogre emerged from the din of the crowd. Fnking him were two other men who looked equally as menag.

  The oisseur broke into a sweat and quickly ceded. Oher hand, the crowd—noting the group’s identity—quickly dispersed in a fit of panic.

  The dreary-eyed man heaved a heinous smile. “As I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, this thriving town is a mag for scum. And of course, that includes us.”

  With a anding snap of his bony fingers, the burly giant interlocked his goril-like hands and, with a thunderous roar, brought them down like a wreg ball onto the flimsy stall.

  Daisuke, anticipating the assault to some extent, executed a dive-roll to safety with Zephyr in tow. They huddled lolintered wood, dust, and debris rained down around them.

  Zephyr raised his head, uhused. He could sense his panion’s displeasure and the bloodlust directed at him from the other party.

  “Otto~” one of the men exhaled as he effortlessly caught the Mana Crystal before it could hit the ground.

  “See,” uttered the dreary-eyed man in a mog tone. “I told you it would have been in your best io sider our services. That prote fee would have shielded you from our target list.”

  Daisuke scowled at the bastard, biting his lip in a mix of fear and exasperatio he maintained his posure, struggling to analyze the situation amid the cmor of his poundibeat.

  But Zephyr wasn’t capable of remaining calm, which was evident by his bared teeth and raised hackles. To prevent him from charging in for an attack, Daisuke held him tightly ih both hands.

  I’m sorely outnumbered and outcssed, he admitted regrettably, his frown deepening. These guys are thugs, so unlike your average NPCs, they’ve more than likely been rag up levels and Stats by abusing and killing people.

  Calm down. All I o do is refrain from antagonizing them. I’ve already memorized their faces. Ohey leave, I’ll secretly tail them back to their hideout.

  Afterwards, I’ll talk to the soldiers and have them ha. If that doesn’t work out, I’ll just sell the remaining Mana Crystals to the guild and hire adveo deal with—

  Daisuke’s words trailed off, his mind swimming as he fot to breathe. Butterscotch eyes quivered violently as a trolley suddenly appeared on the se filled with six ks of Mana Crystals and a smiling Reeza.

  Her mother had her head down in peared to be guilt, her eyes unreadable.

  Daisuke’s facade of posure shattered, repced by an expression of sheer disbelief and horror.

  “Yes! That’s it! That’s the ohe dreary-eyed man excimed with aed ugh. “That look on your face—the moment one iably gives in to despair! Ah… I ’t get enough of it! It’s intoxig, like a well-aged wine, and as fleeting as an asm. It’s perfect!”

  “T-That’s…” Daisuke stuttered ily. “How… did you—”

  “Mao get such a rge haul?” Reeza added with a sly grin, the childish melody in her voipletely gone. “It’s quite simple, actually—we embedded trag magi the trolley. Finding the Crystal Field again was child’s py once we knew where you’d been.”

  “Impressive work as usual,” the dreary-eyed man ended with a round of appuse.

  “Fttery isn’t going to get you a cut, so don’t even bother.”

  The man raised his hands in surrender. “Pity.”

  The oisseur finally breathed.

  Daisuke was still dumbfounded. “J-Just who—”

  “Hey there, Zephyr,” Reeza interjected in the gentle voice the pup would have remembered. “Why don’t you e with me? There’s a feast of delicious treats waiting just for you!”

  “No. This… ’t be happening.”

  Caught in a whirlwind of despair, Daisuke’s heart and mind spiraled into helplessness. Devastated at the prospect of starting over from ro, his grip on the e loosened, and Zephyr immediately charged in with a vengeance.

  “…So that’s your choice,” Reeza uttered bitterly, a telling gleam lighting her eyes.

  “AHWRU!”

  Despite Zephyr’s admirable burst of speed, which blurred his image momentarily, his feeble Stats weren’t enough to pete with those of a seasoned hunter.

  At the sound of the pup being mercilessly pinned underh the boot of the ogre, Daisuke’s eyes regained focus. As his gaze locked onto the heart-wreng se, memories of all those he had lost fshed through his mind with the iy of a bolt of lightning.

  Rational thought was cast aside, ed by the fmes of desperation. Without hesitation, ag on pure instinct, he hurled himself at the ugly boar who held the e captive.

  But before he could sink his teeth into the man’s leg like a rabid dog, another assaint, moving with unnerving speed, intercepted him with a forceful kick to the face, sending him flying backwards.

  Drunk on adrenaline, Daisuke brushed off the pain and gnced around. His trembling hand sought out a length of plywood nearby, hoping to wield it against his attackers.

  Before he could grasp it firmly, the dreary-eyed man swooped in, mercilessly stomping on his outstretched fingers as if they were nothing more than brittle twigs beh his heel.

  “Guaaghh!!”

  A guttural cry tore from Daisuke’s throat, but it tly cut short as the man’s boot ected with his face, pressing mercilessly against his temple.

  “Arrogant, sniveling little punks like yourself,” he sneered, “always strut around as if they’re untouchable, above everyone else. It’s always been my greatest pleasure to shatter that illusion.”

  As the ominous words hung in the air, the other two men closed in, their imposing forms eclipsing the sun. A powerful blow to the stomach had the remnants of Daisuke’s breakfast from Gret violently expelled onto the ground.

  Writhing in agony, he instinctively curled into a defensive ball, but it provided little shelter as a relentless barrage of kicks and stomps desded upon him like a ferocious tempest.

  “You cocky little shit!” one of the men spat venomously. “Did you holy believe you could set up shop in this neighborhood without our permission?”

  “Know your fug pce, you piece of trash!”

  Laughter akin to the uling cackles of hyenas filled the air as the men savored the brutal se. Daisuke, battered and broken on the ground, couldn’t help but recall the simir cruelty he had endured from the loan sharks.

  “Tsk,” the weary-eyed man clicked his tongue in disdain. “It’s no longer fun if you’re not screaming,” he remarked before casting a anding g the ogre. “Kill the dog.”

  “W-Wait!” Daisuke pleaded, desperation evident in his wide eyes as he g to the man’s foot.

  A fierce kick to the jaw sent his head spinning 180 degrees, but he stubbornly spat the blood from his mouth to speak. “P-Please spare him! I’ll give you money!”

  The man holding the Mana Crystal scowled as if regarding a lowly cockroach. “You mean the you earned by illicitly selling in our territory? That’s ours now.”

  “T-Then I’ll get you other funds,” Daisuke insisted, his eyes wide with fear.

  The weary-eyed man tilted his arrogantly. “Where is it?”

  Daisuke gnced around frantically. “I-I don’t have it right now, but I work for it. I promise I’ll—”

  The man hissed through his teeth and promptly snapped his fingers, the and prompting the ogre to uhe the sword from his waist.

  “Wait!” Daisuke roared. “Please NOOOOOOOO!”

  SWISH!

  Fear of monsters & the unknown: ????

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