Chapter 101: Boom and Bust (2)
After a while, Sigren and I set a date to inspect the illegal arena. Read the translation only on itsladygrey.com.
“We need to be as inconspicuous as possible.”
Sigren gave me a skeptical look.
“Then wouldn’t it be better if you didn’t go?”
“As expected, silver hair stands out in the capital just like it does in the North, right?”
“Yes, your hair color is noticeable.”
Considering his comment, I changed my hair to the most common color—reddish-brown.
“I wish I could change my eye color too.”
Reddish-brown eyes. It was a combination I personally liked. The new hair color changed my overall vibe; I looked a bit more ordinary, more human. Still, I couldn’t fully blend in, since red eyes were uncommon. Read the translation only on itsladygrey.com.
“I can’t help it,” Sigren said as he carefully pulled up my hood.
Looking at his face, I wondered which was more noticeable—my hair color or his striking appearance.
“Aren’t you the bigger problem?”
“It’s fine,” Sigren murmured, pulling on his hood with a slightly sullen expression. “If anyone recognizes us, I’ll knock them out.”
That was one way to handle it. Then I quickly remembered Abel had taught him that.
We got into a carriage and disembarked at the boulevard near the illegal arena. From there, we had to walk, just to be safe. As we entered an alley, following the crowd, I expected the place to be a shady, dark corner like most illegal spots. But to my surprise, it was a luxurious mansion. Nobles were casually coming and going, while commoners weren’t allowed in. Only those with noble identity cards could enter and exit freely. Read the translation only on itsladygrey.com.
At the entrance, the staff handed out masks that half-covered our faces. Since this activity was illegal, everyone was hiding their identities.
I looked around after putting on my mask. The interior was quite luxurious, though not quite at the level of a noble’s mansion. However, it was certainly lavish enough for a wealthy merchant’s residence.
I whispered quietly, “How do they manage the monsters?”
“Well,” Sigren replied, scanning the surroundings without drawing attention. He seemed to be checking the access routes.
We moved along with the crowd.
The inside was much larger than it initially appeared. The farther we walked into the mansion, the more separate rooms there seemed to be. Well, when doing something illegal, you have to put in the effort.
“This is it,” Sigren said as a large door opened.
Before us spread a massive hall, much bigger than I had anticipated. A large circular stage was surrounded by rows of seats, reminiscent of a theater or a colosseum. The main difference was the strong iron bars separating the audience from the stage.
I sat in the seat I was directed to and looked down. Two monsters were growling and fighting below.
“Those are intermediate-level monsters, not low-level ones,” I noted.
“You’re good at spotting those kinds of things,” Sigren remarked.
Even within the same family, there were noticeable differences in the appearance of monsters depending on their strength. Read the translation only on itsladygrey.com.
“Move! Move!”
When one of the monsters fell, people shouted angrily. It seemed they had bet on the losing creature. Meanwhile, others cheered.
But the fallen monster’s defeat wasn’t the end. An employee of the gambling den reached into the caged arena from the outside and whipped the downed creature.
“Get up!”
“Hey! Hit it harder! I bet my entire fortune on it!”
“This is dangerous,” I muttered, frowning.
“Definitely dangerous,” Sigren agreed.
No sooner had the words left my mouth than the fallen monster lunged, biting the man’s arm.
The audience erupted in chaos. Read the translation only on itsladygrey.com.
“AAGHHH!!”
Blood gushed from the man’s torn arm as he clutched it, screaming, before collapsing.
Sigren sighed. “Some intermediate-level monsters are smart enough to pull tricks like that.”
Monsters could feign defeat, only to attack when their guard was down. They each had unique traits. Even within the same category, there were slight differences in their abilities. For example, the monster lying on the stage wasn’t particularly strong, but it was the type that could strategize. Judging by what had just happened, the staff running this gambling den didn’t know that. Well, for people who rarely dealt with monsters, it would be hard to distinguish between a normal beast and a monster. Yet, they were bold enough to run this kind of operation. At this rate, an incident was inevitable. Read the translation only on itsladygrey.com.
“Fiona,” Sigren whispered in my ear, glancing around, “this is bigger than I expected. I can see a few unidentified people.”
“Is it hard to shut this down with just Heilon and the knights under your command?”
“It wouldn’t be a problem to catch the people, but it would be dangerous if the monsters were accidentally released in the chaos.”
“Well…”
That made sense. Also, if Sigren and Heilon handled this on their own, rumors would definitely spread. It would be better to involve neutral nobles to clean this up. However, getting the Priscilla family involved would be difficult.
As I considered which nobles we could reasonably involve, Sigren glanced down meaningfully and whispered,
“Over there.”
“Hm?”
I looked in the direction Sigren was indicating, but I couldn’t tell who he meant. Everyone looked the same to me.
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
“The crown prince is here.”
Wait, really? It was frustrating that I couldn’t spot him. Sigren’s vision was clearly much better than mine.
“He’s further down… heading inside,” Sigren added.
Where was he? Just as I turned my head, I noticed an arena employee walking inside, into an area where others weren’t allowed. That was why I hadn’t noticed before. The staff even bowed to him. Had he revealed his identity?
“Why is he going inside?” I asked.
Sigren’s expression darkened.
“Well, that’s definitely not a good sign.”
I agreed.
Read the translation only on itsladygrey.com.
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