Episode 168
The old man’s eyebrows twitched at the mention of “Blood Demon.”
“Do you know who I am?”
Zeke grinned widely. “Oh, I know you very well.”
Everyone who knew the name the old man used during his outlaw days was long dead. The Blood Demon had buried his past and was living quietly, running a small organization in Argos’ underworld. But now, someone who knew his past had suddenly appeared.
“Who are you?” The Blood Demon glared at Zeke with a murderous intensity.
Caught between them, Frank’s eyes darted nervously.
Zeke slowly approached the Blood Demon and spoke. “I was worried you might catch on and run, but it seems I was lucky.”
In a past life, Zeke had a bitter history with the Blood Demon. It was his organization that had sold Zeke into slavery in the South. Later, as a hitman for McCain, Zeke dismantled the organization and returned to the central continent, tracking down those who had wronged him. The old man before him had been managing human trafficking networks for years.
The Blood Demon, once a notorious outlaw, had killed everyone who knew his identity and vanished, living out his days here. In his past life, Zeke had captured the Blood Demon and discovered his ties to the Nostra family. Back then, he had only dealt with the Blood Demon to prevent things from escalating. But now, he needed to find the connection to the Nostra family, so he sought him out again.
And what luck, to be captured by the Blood Demon himself. Zeke was secretly pleased.
Zeke pulled a dagger from his coat and placed it on the table. The Blood Demon instinctively sensed that the young man before him was beyond his ability to handle.
“What do you want?” the Blood Demon asked, his voice steady.
Zeke looked him in the eye. “The Nostra family.”
Frank’s eyes darted even more frantically at the mention.
The Blood Demon twitched his eyebrows, opened a drawer, and pulled out a stack of files, placing them in front of Zeke. “I don’t have a direct line to them. I just handle the occasional job that comes down from above. Take whatever you need from these.”
The Blood Demon was professional enough to assess the situation and avoid unnecessary resistance.
Zeke flipped through the files briefly before tossing them to the floor. “I’m interested in how to contact the middle distribution network.”
“The Nostra family wouldn’t bother with a small-time operation like mine. The people I know are just low-level thugs. I don’t know anyone higher up.”
Zeke picked up the dagger from the table and drove it into the Blood Demon’s hand.
Crack!
The dagger pierced through, but the Blood Demon didn’t flinch.
Zeke looked at him and said, “I know you have a direct line to Skin. It’s in your best interest to talk.”
At the mention of Skin, the Blood Demon’s expression hardened. Skin was a member of the Nostra family who occasionally tasked the Blood Demon with dirty jobs that were difficult for the organization to handle.
Seeing the Blood Demon hesitate, Zeke activated an electric skill through the dagger.
Zzzap!
Electricity coursed through the Blood Demon’s body. Trying to maintain his composure, the Blood Demon foamed at the mouth.
“Ugh!”
Zeke drew another dagger and pinned the Blood Demon’s other hand to the desk.
“Speak truthfully, and I’ll promise you a painless death.”
The Blood Demon coughed and finally spoke. “You’re from the South, aren’t you? Why is the cartel causing such a ruckus here?”
It was the same thing he had said before dying in Zeke’s past life.
Zeke, uninterested in answering, pulled out a third dagger. “Let’s see how much patience you have.”
Zzzap!
Hours later, Zeke had extracted information about Skin from the Blood Demon. The assignment Frank had secretly received was also from the Nostra family, passed down through Skin.
The Nostra family, with its influence spanning the entire continent, meddled in the succession of local lords and powerful nobles, blackmailing them and seizing opportunities. Families caught in the mafia’s grip had no choice but to pledge loyalty or become accomplices in their dirty work.
This was how the Nostra family’s centuries-long history was built.
Zeke looked at the Blood Demon’s lifeless body, then turned to Frank, who was frozen in fear. Realizing that the naive rookie he had sold was actually a ruthless Southern hitman, Frank wet himself.
Zeke addressed Frank. “The Blood Demon was planning to give you the job, wasn’t he?”
Frank nodded quickly. “Y-yes, that’s right.”
Zeke pondered for a moment before speaking. “Alright, then you’ll help me.”
“M-me? I’ll do anything if you spare me!”
“The assignment to fake-assassinate a noble heir is important enough for Skin to come personally. Help me, and I’ll let you live and pay you well.”
Frank had no choice but to agree. The target was scheduled to visit Argos for a dungeon tour the next day.
Zeke used a transformation cloak to change his appearance. In an instant, he took on the guise of the tattooed man who had collapsed at the door earlier.
“What’s this guy’s name?”
Frank gaped at the sudden transformation and stammered, “J-Jack.”
“Good. Tomorrow, you’ll come with me to meet Skin at the rendezvous point.”
“Y-yes, understood.”
Zeke disposed of the bodies using his power of decay and headed to Frank’s office.
He planned to capture Skin, a member of the Nostra family, and extract the location of their headquarters in Helia.
The next day, Zeke and Frank set out for the meeting place as planned.
“This place is really depressing.”
A young man with slicked-back hair leaned against a black carriage, smoking a cigarette. He wore a black suit, with tattoos peeking out from his neck and wrists.
Opposite him, a curly-haired young man silently took a deep drag from his cigarette.
The slicked-back youth spoke to the curly-haired one. “Hey, are you really mute? Man, next time I need a bodyguard who can at least talk. This is so boring.”
Just then, the carriage door opened, and a man stepped out.
“Hey, take that somewhere else.”
The slicked-back youth grumbled at the man. “Uncle! You said we’d go somewhere fun, and you bring us to this backwater? What’s this about?”
The man, also in a black suit, was known as “Skin” for his gruesome habit of flaying the skin off rival gang members. He lit a cigarette as the curly-haired youth offered him a light.
“Don’t blame me. Go complain to your old man.”
“Damn, I knew it was my father’s idea.”
The slicked-back youth threw his cigarette to the ground in frustration.
At that moment, another carriage approached.
Skin gestured to his waiting men, who blocked the carriage’s path. It stopped, and two figures emerged—Zeke, disguised as Jack, and Frank.
The men searched Jack and Frank, finding nothing suspicious. Only then did Skin approach them with a grin.
“Jack, you look like you’ve put on some weight since last time. Things must be going well for you. So, where’s your boss?”
Zeke, as Jack, gestured to Frank. “He’s busy. You know how he is. I brought someone to guide you, so check him out.”
Skin, familiar with the Blood Demon’s meticulous nature, accepted the explanation. He looked at Frank. “Is this the guy? You know what you’re supposed to do, right?”
Frank nodded nervously. “I-I’ll do my best! Leave it to me!”
Skin tapped Frank’s cheek. “You think you can guide us properly when you’re this tense?”
Zeke, still in Jack’s guise, reassured him. “He’s been in this business for 15 years. Once we start, you won’t have to worry about his tongue.”
Skin nodded. “Alright. I’ll trust your boss and go along. You know what happens if you mess up, right?”
He made a slicing motion across his throat.
Then he called over the young men behind him. “Introduce yourselves. This is my nephew. I brought him along to learn the ropes.”
The slicked-back youth grinned and extended his hand. “Nice to meet you. I hear you’ve been in this line of work a long time. Let’s get along.”
Zeke, as Jack, bowed slightly to the two men.
He then leaned in to whisper to Skin. “The site is ready. The boss wants you to do a final check before we start.”
Skin sighed, looking annoyed. “Man, that old guy is so picky.”
Having worked with the Blood Demon before, Skin knew his fastidious nature. Though he grumbled, he nodded, understanding the importance of the task.
“Alright. The target will arrive in the afternoon, so let’s go check it out now.”
Skin and his nephew, along with the other men, climbed into the carriage. They headed toward a high-risk dungeon they had prepared in advance.
The mountain path was steep and isolated, making it difficult for anyone outside to notice if an accident occurred.
Skin stepped down from the carriage and entered the dungeon with his crew.
“Ugh, the smell. I can never get used to the stench of these damn monsters.”
He covered his nose with a handkerchief as he ventured further inside.
Deep within the dungeon, high-risk monsters, prepared in advance by the Blood Demons, were caged and waiting.
Skin nodded approvingly at the sight of the creatures.
“Minotaurs and Cyclopes? Impressive. The old man really went all out.”
They had assumed it would be a light journey, so the level of protection wasn’t expected to be high. With Minotaurs and Cyclopes, even the target’s escort knights would have a hard time.
Skin gestured to his nephew, beckoning him closer to the cages.
“Kid, have you ever seen anything like this? These are real monsters.”
The young man with slicked-back hair approached the Cyclops, fascinated.
He drew his sword and poked it through the bars, prodding the Cyclops.
Grrrr!
The Cyclops, starved and caged, rose with drool dripping from its mouth.
Bang! Bang!
The Cyclops shook the cage, and the young man burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.
“Haha! Look at that! It’s hilarious—”
Wham!
It happened in an instant. The Cyclops’s fist smashed into the young man’s head, obliterating it.
“What?”
Skin, now drenched in his nephew’s blood, blinked in shock.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The cage was suddenly broken, and the Minotaur and Cyclops were emerging.
Roar!
Startled by the roaring monsters, Skin stumbled backward.
“What the hell! Damn it! Jack! Hey! You bastard!”
Panicked, he looked around, but Jack and Frank were nowhere to be seen.
Cursing, Skin tried to flee the dungeon, only to find a massive boulder blocking the exit.
Zeke, from the Blood Demons, had triggered a trap, sealing the path.
“Damn it! Open this! Open it now! You guys, stop them!”
The crew, frozen in shock by the unexpected turn of events, drew their weapons to fend off the Minotaur and Cyclops, but it was futile.
Whack!
The cave began to fill with the torn bodies of the crew. Terrified, Skin fell to the ground as the Cyclops advanced toward him.
At that moment, a young man with curly hair stepped in front of Skin.
He drew a dagger from his coat and sliced his own palm.
Drip!
The curly-haired youth flung his blood at the charging Cyclops.
Splat!
The Cyclops, hit by the blood, reacted strangely.
Grrr!
Suddenly, it turned and attacked the Minotaur beside it.
As the Minotaur and Cyclops tore into each other, the young man helped Skin to his feet.
Skin gripped the young man’s shoulder and said, “Visco, find us a way out! Quickly!”
Just then, someone emerged from the shadows.
“I didn’t expect a Bloodline user to be here.”
It was Zeke, appearing in Jack’s guise.
Skin glared at him, drawing his sword.
“You bastard! Who are you? Where are Jack and the old man?”
“At least you have some sense. You’re not a complete fool.”
Zeke removed his cloak, revealing his true form.
A uniform with a dragon-slaying insignia and black gloves.
In this continent, that attire meant only one thing.
“A D-Draker?”
Skin’s eyes widened in disbelief at the unexpected revelation.