Chapter 130

A damp sensation filled the deep cave.

Originally, there was nothing living there except for small bugs or wild beasts…

“Damn these bastards!! Can’t you let me go right now?!”

In this moment, a man’s voice echoed throughout.

A voice filled with annoyance and outrage.

The owner of that voice was none other than the Duke of Ocleang, a noble of the Kingdom of Frantz and a distinguished guest of the Holy Empire.

Once wielding power without fear, doing anything he pleased and obtaining everything he desired, he was now pouring his anger into this humiliating situation he had never experienced in his life.

“Do you think you can get away with this?! I am the Duke of Ocleang, a noble of the great Kingdom of Frantz! Unlike you commoners, noble blood runs through my veins! Do you think you can harm me? If you lay even a scratch on me, you’ll be sentenced to death according to the law!”

“…Hah…”

“I can’t believe this…”

And so, there stood a pair of armed individuals, Magellan and Elkana, looking utterly incredulous at the Duke of Ocleang.

“I was hoping it wouldn’t be true… I never thought there could be someone this foolish.”

“I agree, it’s infuriating to think that our companions suffered at the hands of such a scumbag.”

“You bastards! What did you just say?! How dare a filthy commoner insult me? Do you want to die?!”

Duke Ocleang raised his voice in anger.

He knew the situation was bad, but still, a common sense that he believed was natural remained in his mind.

He was aware that the revolutionary army was made up of despicable and ruthless traitors.

Just how could that ignorant little Ambasha dare to cut off my noble wrist?!

But… they weren’t completely foolish.

Even if Ambasha was an uneducated slave, their leadership consisted of people who knew the intricacies of politics.

“Though the majority of them are worthless commoners, there are a few sharp ones among them. They aren’t mindless fools, so they wouldn’t dare treat me recklessly!”

In fact, the part of his hand that Ambasha had severed had returned to normal since he regained consciousness a moment ago.

It was clearly the work of healing magic, which was proof that they were aware of his importance.

Though the situation was a bit complicated, he believed that he, once one of the greatest powers in this country and still holding considerable connections and notoriety, was tremendously valuable.

He held faith that even the revolutionary army wouldn’t be able to do anything to him.

Moreover, commoners, no matter how much they might rebel, would ultimately bow their heads to nobles.

From the perspective of Duke Ocleang, who had lived under the unquestionable class system for thousands of years, it was laughable to see commoners treating him this way—like a bug that writhes after being stepped on.

With such thoughts, reasoning imposed by necessity and tradition, he believed he had nothing to fear.

With that, Duke Ocleang shouted in a confident voice, “I’ll warn you once more! Stop your nonsense and let me go at once! If you apologize for your rudeness and show me respect, I might grant you mercy!”

No matter how much a lowly bounty hunter might hold a grudge against him, they wouldn’t dare touch him in this situation, where commands were issued from above.

Believing that they couldn’t do anything, Duke Ocleang unleashed his fury upon the foolish commoners.

Yet…

“You want us to let you go?”

“Ha ha… oh dear…”

At his words, the two shot him cold sneers.

They began to slowly approach where Duke Ocleang was.

And…

“? What… what is it?”

A sense of foreboding began to creep in.

Feeling an unsettling shiver surging through him…

Duke Ocleang spoke in a panicked tone colored by instinctive fear.

“What do you mean…?”

“Of course, it’s revenge time. Oh, great Duke.”

“Grahk!!!”

With that statement, Elkana swiftly kicked Duke Ocleang squarely in the head.

With a sudden shock, his body crumpled to the ground.

And…

-Так!

“Grrk!!”

Immediately after, Magellan gripped the hand of the fallen Duke.

He began to slowly apply pressure to the fingers he held.

“Ugh… Stop! Can’t you just stop! How… how can you… such lowly scum…!!”

The situation was bizarrely skewed.

As Duke Ocleang screamed in pain, desperately grasping the reality of his degrading situation…

Magellan, twisting the Duke’s fingers, spoke in a chilling tone.

“How can I? Simple… just like this!”

-CRACK!!

“Guhhhh!!!”

As he snapped the finger and pulled it away, both Magellan and Elkana felt a terrible jolt of pain shoot through Duke Ocleang’s body.

The wave of agony struck him as if a hammer had hit his mind.

When his hand was severed, he had felt faint and barely managed to slip into unconsciousness.

However, the pain of his finger being torn off was raw and unfiltered, hitting him in full force.

Screaming in agony, Duke Ocleang writhed on the ground.

At that moment…

“Fufufu… sweet… this is quite a sight.”

“Does it hurt? Each and every one of our companions suffered far worse. You’ve barely begun to repay the pain of those who died because of you!”

As Magellan spoke, he prepared to kick the Duke once more.

But…

“Grahk! W-Wait! Just wait a moment!”

Duke Ocleang waved the hand that had lost a finger in desperation.

Though he felt an excruciating pain that drilled deep into his brain, he shouted as best he could at the man before him.

“Y-You bastards! You’re making a mistake! Do you think your revolutionary army can tolerate such tyranny?! No matter how much you’re backed by the king, this is a clear crime! Are you unaware this could profoundly damage your supposed just cause?!”

Trying to lay down the facts and stop the guy, Duke Ocleang was…

Yet…

“Revolutionary army?”

“…Ha ha… Justice? What does that concern us?”

“W-What?!”

Duke Ocleang felt shock and confusion at their unexpected remarks.

He never anticipated such words from those he thought were members of the revolutionary army; it shook the foundation of all his assumptions to the core.

Then…

Amid his confusion…

Magellan said coldly, “Hey noble, you seem to be mistaken… we aren’t the revolutionary army you think we are.”

“I mean, sure, during our bounty hunter days we pretended to uphold the law, but we don’t need to any longer. Because… we are ‘pirates’ now.”

“P-Pirates?!”

Duke Ocleang was gripped by a deep shock at this unexpected revelation.

And…

-Wham!

“GRAHHHH!!!”

With that, Elkana kicked him again in the face.

“Gurgh! Gahh! Nooooo!!!”

The relentless beatdowns continued, each one bringing out the Duke’s screams, easing a bit of the tension within Elkana.

This was nothing less than a requiem for her comrades who had passed on.

As she executed this beautifully cathartic performance, a single tear rolled down her cheek.

In that moment…

“Elkana. Let’s just stop there for now.”

“…Guh…”

At Magellan’s urging, Elkana finally managed to halt her onslaught.

As he comforted her trembling figure with a reassuring hand, Elkana took a breath and stepped back.

And…

“Grahhh…”

Duke Ocleang, gasping for breath at the feet of Elkana, was in a tragic state.

Despite being a woman, her blows as a Grade 7 Advanced Warrior had turned the Duke’s body into a ragged mess.

His nose was broken, several ribs shattered, and some of his organs had begun to rupture.

If left alone, he might not survive much longer.

In the midst of this horrifying pain, Duke Ocleang trembled in rage and fear as his consciousness began to fade.

“D-Dead…? I…? This Duke Ocleang… by the hands of such commoners?!”

It was an unfathomable reality.

He wanted to live.

He didn’t want to end like this.

How could someone with noble blood die so pathetically at the hands of such base-born scum?

It would be far more honorable to die swinging a sword recklessly on the battlefield.

Thus, as he sank into despair over an utterly unacceptable, horrid future,

Duke Ocleang slowly felt his breath slipping away.