Chapter 43: The Mark of Life
Faced with her fierce aura, Elton gripped his weapon and backed away. But I, on the other hand, stepped forward.
‘The Black Rose doesn’t usually make enemies of its clients.’
Since it was a rule set by Fenry herself, she wouldn’t take lethal action against me unless it was a dire situation that threatened the guild's existence. I was certain of that.
Moments like this called for boldness. The position I established in this conversation would be crucial for the deal that would follow.
Time to provoke her a little.
“You won’t be able to do it alone.”
“Are you mocking me? You, of all people?”
“I have a condition.”
“Are you deaf? I have nothing more to say to you.”
“I want the Mark of Life.”
“Puhahahaha!”
She burst out laughing, as if my defiant attitude was beyond belief. She clenched and unclenched her fists, watching me intently, as though holding back a desire to kill.
That was a bit intimidating.
“A worthless nobody like you actually knows about the Mark of Life? You have sharp ears, don’t you?”
“I take pride in being sharper than most when it comes to things happening in the Laup Forest. Especially concerning recent events.”
Sharp ears.
It meant I was adept at gathering information.
[Truth]
Fenry studied my eyes, her brow furrowing.
Everything I said sounded like nonsense, but there was no falsehood in my intent.
It was all genuine.
To encounter someone so difficult to read—it had been a while since that happened.
Perhaps that was why.
She wanted to dismiss me, but something held her back. The lack of any clues regarding her target made her hesitate. Finally, she frowned and spoke to me.
“If you talk too much, you’ll get your tongue cut out. Just get to the point.”
“The elf Sharbadin.”
“…….”
“That’s who you’re looking for, isn’t it?”
Her hand, which had been repeatedly clenching and unclenching, froze. Her expression didn’t change, but I could tell she was surprised.
“What makes you think that?”
“Didn’t I mention? I saw other species. I made an educated guess.”
“Did these other species tell you about Sharbadin?”
“Not directly. I learned about it ‘indirectly.’”
Since I’d read about it in a novel, I couldn’t exactly say I’d heard it firsthand.
Fenry stared at me for a moment, then sat down on a nearby rock.
It seemed I’d successfully set the stage for a conversation.
If she pressed me too hard about my source of information, I’d be in trouble, so I quickly shifted to a topic that would capture her interest.
“There’s a rumor about her disappearance. After she went out, she vanished, and Dorneth has been desperately searching for her. I heard that the elf Sharbadin came from the fifth floor of the Blue Rose. Since you’re the leader there, I thought I’d bring it up.”
“You guessed correctly. I am looking for her.”
Fenry was someone who valued practicality.
Realizing that I might be able to help, she openly admitted her objective.
The reason she was personally involved was that Sharbadin held immense value.
She was the only partner that the ruler of Beneta, Dorneth, had managed to secure after a long pursuit.
Sharbadin served as a bridge between Beneta and the Black Rose, a political asset that made losing her unthinkable.
“So, what help can you offer?”
“I want the Mark of Life.”
“…….”
The Mark of Life was a kind of salvation token that granted its bearer one chance at life. For anyone who bore the mark, Fenry would be obligated to protect them, risking her life to do so.
It was an absurd demand, a huge burden to take on.
And yet, she didn’t refuse outright.
This told me that Sharbadin was even more valuable than I’d expected.
While she hesitated, I quickly pulled Elton aside and whispered to him.
“Leave this place immediately.”
“What? What about you?”
“It’s not a situation where we can stay together. Go find somewhere to hide and wait it out.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to stay with her…?”
“That’s too dangerous.”
If it came down to negotiations, Fenry might take Karl’s group hostage to gain the upper hand.
That was why I’d refrained from mentioning Karl. Knowing her keen hearing, I was certain she’d overheard our conversation already.
As expected—
“Who said you could leave?”
Fenry immediately stepped in to block us. It seemed she intended to use Elton as leverage, but that wouldn’t work on me.
I responded without missing a beat.
“I don’t know where Sharbadin is. But I know the method with the highest chance of getting to her. Let him go, and I’ll tell you.”
“…….”
Elton should be able to reunite with Karl’s group while the camouflage magic was still active.
He was an essential character meant to continue working with Karl in the future. For that reason alone, I had to make sure he left safely.
“You trust me, right?”
“…….”
“Stay hidden in the forest for two days.”
“Two days?”
“Just wait it out, and a path will open. Don’t do anything—just keep hidden.”
When I first noticed the chimeras’ movements, I’d been confused. But seeing them still lingering around made me consider a certain hypothesis.
The prison closure phenomenon.
It was a precursor that occurred when Dominic decided to retreat to his lab. That time seemed to be approaching.
From the looks of it, this was the process of collecting all experimental subjects before the closure. Once the chimeras withdrew like an ebbing tide, the magic circle would deactivate and disappear.
At first, I thought Fenry’s arrival might have been the reason Karl’s group escaped, but in the novel, Karl and Fenry had no connection.
In other words, Karl’s group likely endured with Bethel’s Poison until the prison closed and escaped that way. I emphasized two days to make sure they survived, since my interference had already altered their future.
“Don’t trust any rumors about a red gemstone. If you get greedy, you’ll end up with a shattered skull.”
Everything I said would reach Karl.
After passing along the essential advice, I pushed Elton firmly away.
“Hurry, before the magic wears off!”
“…….”
Elton paused, looking at me silently before pressing his lips together and turning to run.
For a moment, I’d worried that his stubborn nature might keep him here, but thankfully, he left.
“Alright, now tell me.”
“Tell you what?”
“The method.”
“I haven’t heard a clear answer from you yet.”
“You think I’d just let him go? With the magic cast on him, he can’t escape my sight.”
“So, are you giving me the Mark or not?”
“Ha, you little bastard.”
Seeing my unyielding attitude, Fenry acknowledged her disadvantage in this negotiation.
No matter how much she tried to twist it, it was pointless. I knew all too well how valuable Sharbadin was.
“Demanding payment upfront—isn’t that extortion? Back when I dealt with you, you stripped me bare.”
“Then take gold instead of the Mark.”
“One million gold.”
“…You’re completely insane.”
“There’s more than a million gold’s worth of value here. You should hurry up and make your choice.”
“You’re implying that time is of the essence?”
“If Dominic has captured her, then even if we move immediately, it’ll be cutting it close. When it comes to his lab, the value of a hostage doesn’t matter. It’s all just humans and non-humans to him.”
Fenry let out a hollow laugh and stood up, brushing herself off.
Sharbadin was indeed worth more than a million gold. This guy had sharp ears, as they said. I’d certainly encountered a troublesome person.
It was hard to intimidate him, and we didn’t have the luxury of time.
If his mouth held the only clue to Sharbadin’s location, then I’d probably have to take a loss in this negotiation.
“Let’s do this.”
Fenry took a puff from her pipe. After exhaling a stream of smoke, she spoke.
“Take me to her. I’ll give you the Mark if you do.”
“A conditional promise, then?”
“Yes. But…”
She blew smoke directly into my face as she continued.
“If you don’t find her, I’ll hold you accountable. I’ll hunt down you, that guy who just left, and every single person connected to you under the name of the Black Rose. This is a matter that affects the guild’s survival. Do you agree?”
The guild’s survival.
If she lost Sharbadin, the Black Rose would lose its backing from Beneta. She intended to hold me responsible for that loss.
“What if we find her, but Sharbadin is already dead? Am I still accountable?”
“You have a week. If she dies within that time, you won’t be held responsible.”
A type of immunity, then.
The condition was to bring her to Sharbadin within a week, regardless of whether she was alive or not.
I considered it briefly.
It was a deadly gamble, but one worth taking.
After all, I knew that Sharbadin’s place of death was Dominic’s laboratory.
Should I push my luck a bit more?
Perhaps I could demand something additional beyond the Mark.
But I quickly shook my head.
Even though it was conditional, she’d accepted my terms without even hearing the method. Pushing her further could jeopardize everything.
“Deal.”
I extended my hand. But Fenry didn’t shake it.
“I haven’t heard anything from you yet.”
Taking a deep breath, I began to explain the plan I’d developed since I first landed in the Laup Forest. It was a plan I’d hesitated to execute because it seemed nearly impossible.
But with Fenry’s involvement, the odds had opened up.
‘A being who could stop Arena Huaton.’
She was the force I lacked, the missing piece to my puzzle.
Even the protagonist of the novel, the Mad Butcher, had abandoned the idea of assaulting Dominic’s lab.
This was a gamble for both me and Fenry.
At some point, Fenry had stopped smoking her pipe, simply holding it as she listened intently. She seemed to have forgotten to take another puff.
After I finished, she let out a hollow laugh and finally bit down on her pipe again.
“You’re a crazy bastard.”
Her first reaction to my plan was to call me insane. Yet, she was smiling. I seemed to have convinced her.
“How could you even think of something like this?”
“It’s more effective to use the enemy’s movements against them.”
“I don’t particularly like this method… but fine. Damn it.”
Fenry now understood the method with the highest chance of reaching Sharbadin.
‘Letting yourself get eaten by a chimera.’
It was a bold plan, unlike anything she’d ever heard before.
The chimeras would lead us straight to wherever Sharbadin was being held.
If all captured subjects were brought to Dominic’s lab, then the plan was feasible. She had already deduced that Sharbadin had been captured by a chimera, which was why she’d tracked the creature here.
“How did you figure out the chimeras’ behavior?”
“After being eaten twice by them, I picked up on a few things. No one knows their movements better than I do.”
“Just to be safe, how about I let you get eaten and then follow the chimera?”
“Are you aware of the barrier surrounding this place?”
“I’ve already checked.”
“Can you break through it?”
“It’s difficult to do quickly.”
“The lab’s barrier will be even stronger. Do you think you can keep up?”
“…Hm.”
It sounded like a provocation, but Fenry considered it carefully.
The barrier here wasn’t ordinary magic.
It was an ancient spell, a magic circle infused with arcane knowledge. Breaking it in a short time was unlikely—perhaps even impossible. In the end, she concluded that using the chimera as a medium was indeed the safest and most reliable method.
Fenry stared into my eyes, as if seeking confirmation. To follow my lead was a huge gamble for her.
“What’s it going to be?”
I waved my hand lightly, as if confident everything would go as I planned. She clearly didn’t like my smug expression and looked as if she wanted to punch me, but eventually, she shook her head.
Headbutting a wall would get her nowhere—this plan had more potential.
After a moment’s hesitation, she reached out and clasped my hand.
“Fenry Chaser. That’s my name.”
“I’m Arthur. Arthur Clayton.”
The deal was made.