HEO 96
“Brothers. You overdosed on drugs.”
Wolf jumped to his feet, spun halfway around, and kicked his opponent. Crack – the sound of breaking ribs echoed through the room. With a single kick, the man flew through the air like a piece of white bread, slammed into the wall, and slid down to the floor. Knocked out.
“Die–!”
Another one swung an axe. Once again, Wolf easily dodged and grabbed the man’s wrist. As soon as he tightened his grip, the axe fell from the man’s grasp.
“Ugh… Argh! L-let go of this!”
The man slapped Wolf’s wrist with his free hand. Wolf didn’t flinch.
“Brothers, this isn’t a slaughterhouse. It seems you lot see us as plump pigs, but we’re human beings.”
“Who doesn’t know that! Let go of me, you son of a… Ugh, ugh! Argh!”
“What’s this? You recognize us? So you really were trying to kill us? That’s strange. For all you can see, we’re the hardworking guys who cleaned up the mess in the kitchen yesterday. What’s the reason? I love listening to speeches, so please explain it to me.”
“Just knock him out.”
Silver’s voice rang out. He was sitting with his back against the wall, one hand covering his nose.
“They’re all drugged. They won’t remember a thing when they wake up.”
“That’s true. Then.”
Just as Wolf raised his fist,
“Wait a second.”
Silver raised a hand. Wolf arched an eyebrow.
“What? Is there a problem?”
“Yes.”
Silver gestured toward the man Wolf was holding.
“Look at his neck.”
“It’s clean. I don’t see anything.”
“If he’s a senior member, there should be something there. The Shark Teeth Gang members get a rope tattoo on their neck when they’re promoted to full members.”
“You don’t mean these guys are…”
“Yes. They’re prisoners.”
The warehouse where the prisoners were held had collapsed in the downpour. The prisoners had swarmed out like bees, along with the grunting pigs, and were now engaged in a bloody battle of revenge.
Wolf released the man’s wrist and took a step back. The man gasped and glared at Wolf. The man who had briefly passed out from Wolf’s kick staggered to his feet and approached.
“Don’t worry. I understand you.”
Wolf gave the prisoners a sly smile.
“If I’d been locked up with those pigs for just a day, I’d have lost my mind too. Killing every last one of these pirates wouldn’t even be enough. Let me make this clear: I have no intention of fighting you. I was just swept up in the chaos and ended up joining this crew by accident.”
Wolf forcee fown his disgust and approached the prisoners. He brushed the straw off their rags and smoothed out their crumpled collars. He picked up the axe and handed it to one of them.
“Here’s the deal. I’ll pretend I didn’t see you, so you guys get out of here. We’re going to sleep soundly, so you can do whatever you want, steal a ship and leave or whatever. The senior pirates are too busy getting high to notice, so it shouldn’t be hard. Got it? Goodbye and don’t ever come back.”
Just as Wolf grabbed the prisoners by the shoulders and turned them toward the door, Silver spoke up again.
“Those guys aren’t civilians.”
“What?”
Wolf turned to look at Silver. Silver pointed at the prisoners.
“They’re pirates too. Professionals who make their living off piracy, just like the Shark Teeth Gang. They invaded here trying to take over these waters, but they got caught in the Bone Flute Tower, lost their ship, and got captured.”
Wolf frowned slightly. One of the prisoners spat on the floor.
“What the hell are you talking about? You’re finished, you bastards. Our brothers are tearing this island to shreds right now. While you junkies here can’t even tell the difference between an axe and your own dick.”
The other one chimed in.
“We’re gonna kill every last one of you. We’ll skin you to make wallets and sails, and scatter your flesh to feed the pigs! We’ll carve your bones into dog bowls. Know this: today is the day the Shark Teeth Gang vanishes from the face of the earth!”
Wolf was at a loss for words.
Damn it, what kind of bad luck is this first thing in the morning?
“You heard that? Let them out.”
Silver said indifferently.
“There are about thirty prisoners. With that many, they can wipe out those junkies in a couple of hours. We should side with the prisoners.”
“You’re quick on the draw. Right, we should side with the winners.”
The prisoners chuckled.
“You big guy over there, did you hear that? Learn a thing or two from the little guy.”
“Unless that head of yours is just for show…”
Before he could finish, a scream erupted from outside.
“Did you hear that? That’s the sound of our brothers settling the score! You lot stay stuck here while we slaughter the pigs! Unless you want to be skinned alive!”
“Especially you, big guy! You better know you owe your life to that big mouth of yours that told us to steal the ship and run! Keep your head down on the floor and stay put!”
The end of the gruff voice trembled. He was all talk; he looked like he was scrambling to make a run for it, afraid of getting beaten up again. The prisoners turned toward the door. Wolf, who had been silent until then, suddenly closed in right behind them.
Thick forearms wrapped around their necks. Crack, snap – two sounds of breaking bones. The sensation of shattered cervical vertebrae ran up his arms. The axes fell from the prisoners’ hands.
As Wolf released his grip, the prisoners slumped to the ground. They looked like deflated leather sacks. One of the fallen prisoners had a bone fragment protruding through the skin at the back of his neck.
“What the hell are you doing?”
Wolf turned at the voice. Silver stared this way while leaning slightly forward. He was shocked.
“Answer me. What did you just do?”
“I killed people. Two of them.”
Wolf picked up the bodies and tossed them out the door one by one. Then he picked up an axe from the floor and added,
“They’re killing all the Shark Teeth Gang brothers. I couldn’t just stand by and watch.”
“What?”
Silver let out a hollow laugh.
“Stop spouting nonsense. It’s not funny.”
“I’m not joking!”
Wolf shouted.
“They’re my precious brothers! I can’t just let them die! You stay here! I’m going to save my brothers!”
“You’re crazy… Hey, hey! Wait a minute!”
Silver’s voice rose. Wolf had already run outside. Icy rain pelted his entire body. This unexpected turn of events made him frustrated.
Shit, I haven’t eaten a single meal since yesterday, what kind of backbreaking labor is this?
Most of the houses lining both sides of the hill were belching thick plumes of smoke. Waking up and snorting drugs without even eating breakfast. Even two hours was generous. If the prisoners moved quickly, this would end within one hour.
A corpse appeared at the bend in the road. A woman, her back split open, exposing her white spine. A man, his face etched with the ecstasy of drugs, his intestines spilling out onto the pavement.
Wolf stopped and looked around. Across to the left, men emerged from a narrow alley between houses. Seven of them in all.
“Feels like stealing a pie from a snotty kid.”
“I’ve never killed anyone this easily in my life.”
“Hahaha!”
The men burst into laughter. Wolf pointed his axe at them and walked forward.
“Hey! You there!”
The men flinched. In that instant, Wolf lunged forward and brought his axe down on the man in the lead. His movements were so quick that his opponent had no time to dodge. White brain matter and blood spurted out from the top of his head. The axe sliced diagonally down to just below the ear. Finally, half the head clattered to the ground. The eyeball popped out like a bird’s egg and rolled across the floor.
“You bastard!”
The men surrounded Wolf.
〔Crisis situation detected… Multiple lethal threats.〕
〔Combat mode…〕
“Get lost! I refuse!”
The moment he shouted, a fierce gust of wind roared from behind. A blunt weapon was flying toward him. Without even turning around, Wolf caught it with one hand. He squeezed it with all his might, and it crumpled.
“W-what the…!”
“He’s a monster!”
The prisoners recoiled in horror. One of them even fell flat on his backside. Wolf, too, was stunned as he looked down at the blunt weapon in his hand.
It was a combat mace with an iron head. The iron head, capable of shattering human bones in a single blow, was crumpled like a piece of paper, and the oak wood inside was split in half. It was absurd.
I did this with my bare hands……?
7 .
Silver stared at the entrance, shrouded in ashen darkness. As if, if he stared long enough, the darkness might spit out Stuffy-Nosed Mouse.
The wide-open door creaked and swayed in the wind. Meanwhile, the rain, now falling harder, cut through the threshold and slanted its way inside. Rainwater splattered across the floor, leaving bruise-like stains.
He really should have stopped worrying and gone to bed. He should have thanked God that the noisy, chatty giant had taken his leave of his own accord and tried to get some sleep. That is, if he had even a shred of common sense. Even though he knew this full well, Silver couldn’t bring himself to lie down and just stared out the window.
That bastard. Is he smart, or is he stupid?
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