Chapter 253: Swift, Fast and Clean
After spending several hours wandering through the Black Market...
Ezra and Lucy finally made their way out.
This time, however, they didn’t leave through the hidden entrance they had originally used. Another employee of the Black Market, whom they met near the main entrance before leaving, guided them toward one of the market’s many concealed exits instead.
Like every other entrance and exit connected to the Black Market...
It remained carefully hidden from ordinary citizens.
A section of an old stone wall quietly slid open after the attendant activated the concealed mechanism. Once they stepped through, the passage sealed itself behind them as though it had never existed.
The two emerged into a narrow back alley.
It was almost deserted.
Only the faint sounds of the distant streets drifted into the quiet passage, where melting snow mixed with patches of sand and worn stone beneath their feet.
Cold wind swept gently through the alley.
"Ahhh..."
Lucy let out a long sigh.
She looked genuinely disappointed.
"We didn’t get to face a single challenge inside the Black Market."
She lowered her gaze toward the snowy ground while lightly kicking a loose pebble as she walked.
"I thought..."
She looked back up again.
"At least one thug or some group of villains would suddenly appear."
Her eyes lit up dramatically.
She clenched one fist as though imagining the scene inside her head.
Then she hurried several steps forward until she caught up with Ezra.
"Master..."
She looked at him expectantly.
"Aren’t you listening to me?"
Ezra remained silent, with his walking pace never changing.
Lucy puffed out her cheeks seeing this.
"This was honestly such a letdown."
She folded her arms.
Ezra simply continued walking through the alley without responding.
Lucy had already begun to grow accustomed to this.
Ever since becoming his maid...
She had learned that Ezra often chose silence whenever she began rambling about one of the countless strange scenarios she imagined.
Although, that never stopped her from talking anyway.
"Like..."
She continued enthusiastically.
"We did meet those scary-looking men."
She stretched both hands outward while speaking.
"But nothing happened. Nothing at all."
She sounded almost offended by reality itself.
"I really thought..."
She suddenly passed a small amount of Cognis towards her feet.
Whoosh!
Her figure flashed beside Ezra in an instant.
She immediately deepened her voice.
"Show your face, kid!"
Lucy widened her eyes and put on what she believed to be a terrifying expression while trying to imitate the smoking guard from the shopping complex.
She quickly moved to Ezra’s other side.
Then she crossed her arms while speaking in another exaggerated voice that seemed to be her image of how Ezra would reply.
"Huh? You think I’d listen to you... Smokey?"
She finished with an expression that clearly showed how proud she was of her performance.
For the first time since leaving the Black Market...
Ezra finally looked toward her.
He slowly stopped walking, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly.
Lucy remained completely immersed in her acting.
"How dare you call me Smokey!"
She shouted dramatically while pretending to charge toward an imaginary opponent.
Flick!
Ezra calmly raised one finger.
His fingertip landed squarely against Lucy’s forehead.
"Ouch!"
Lucy immediately covered her forehead with both hands.
She looked at him with watery eyes.
"You actually flicked me!"
She protested.
"You seriously used your Cognis just to do something like this."
Ezra replied in his usual flat tone.
His face remained completely expressionless.
Lucy rubbed her forehead.
"You shouldn’t hit a lady, Master."
She complained.
Ezra ignored her.
Without another glance...
He simply resumed walking.
Lucy dusted off her clothes before quickly following after him.
"You’re a bully."
She pouted playfully.
Ezra remained silent.
Then...
BOOM!!
A heavy crash suddenly echoed from the alley to their right.
The sound resembled a body smashing violently into wooden crates.
Ezra immediately stopped.
Lucy did the same.
Both calmly turned toward the source of the noise.
A young boy flew through the air before crashing heavily onto the ground several meters ahead of them.
Fragments of broken wood scattered across the alley.
"Young Master!"
A frightened female voice screamed.
"Argh..."
The boy struggled to push himself up.
His entire body trembled from the impact.
Even so...
He stubbornly forced himself back onto one knee.
"Cough... Cough!"
Fresh blood spilled from his mouth before dripping onto the snowy ground beneath him.
Loud laughter followed shortly afterward.
"Hahahahaha!"
Five older men slowly walked into view from the opposite side of the alley.
Their dirty clothing, rough appearances, and arrogant expressions made it obvious what kind of people they were.
Common street thugs.
Amongst them...
Was a massive man with an enormous belly.
Although fat covered much of his body...
His thick arms remained packed with visible muscle.
In one arm...
He held the struggling young woman tightly around her waist.
No matter how desperately she twisted her body...
She couldn’t escape his grip.
Her clothes had already been torn in several places.
Part of her shoulder and chest had become exposed.
The large thug shamelessly squeezed her left breast while wearing a disgusting grin.
"Let her go!"
The injured boy shouted hoarsely.
"Cough! Cough!"
His voice cracked from both pain and anger.
Ezra quietly looked at the scene.
Then...
His eyes shifted toward the frightened woman.
Finally...
Toward the five men.
What a troublesome situation.
The thought crossed his mind only briefly.
Without saying anything...
He simply continued walking.
Straight ahead.
Passing directly by the injured boy.
The young man finally noticed Ezra and Lucy.
"...Eh?"
He stared blankly at them.
Lucy also noticed Ezra continuing forward.
Without hesitation...
She followed behind him.
Before either of them could walk much farther...
"YOU!"
One of the thugs suddenly pointed toward them.
His grin widened.
"Stop right there!"
His loud voice echoed through the alley.
Another man standing beside the big thug laughed.
"They think they can just show up...And leave like nothing happened?"
He waved his arm.
"Get them!"
"Yes, Boss!"
The remaining three immediately burst into laughter.
"Another pair of prey!"
"I hope one’s a girl!"
The three rushed toward Ezra and Lucy.
Even after hearing the order...
Neither Ezra nor Lucy changed their pace.
They continued walking as though the approaching footsteps behind them didn’t exist.
Lucy glanced toward Ezra.
"Master..."
She asked calmly.
"Master, shouldn’t we just run since you don’t want to get involved in whatever is going on."
Her playful expression from earlier had completely disappeared.
Only seriousness remained.
Ezra didn’t even look back.
"Why would I run?"
He answered plainly.
At that moment...
The injured boy forced himself up once more.
Ignoring the pain throughout his body...
He stumbled toward Ezra and Lucy before spreading both arms in front of them.
"You two..."
His breathing became uneven.
"You should run...And call the local guards!"
His body visibly shook.
Fear remained obvious inside his eyes.
Yet...
He still chose to stand in front of complete strangers.
Trying to protect them.
One of the charging thugs burst into loud laughter.
"Hahaha! Would you look at this idiot!"
Without slowing down...
He swung his fist straight toward the boy’s face.
"RUN!"
The boy shouted with everything he had.
BAM!
The punch landed heavily.
His head snapped sideways from the force.
At the same time...
Ezra and Lucy continued walking calmly.
Almost as though none of it concerned them.
"Wow..."
Lucy looked toward the injured young man with genuine admiration.
"I didn’t know there were people like that, even in a town like this."
Even while his face was swollen and blood continued dripping from the corner of his mouth...
He still chose to stand in front of complete strangers.
Ezra’s eyes briefly rested on the boy before returning to the three men charging toward them.
"There will always be kind people in this kingdom."
He answered calmly.
"No matter where you go."
Lucy smiled faintly.
"They’re only a few meters away now."
She slowly cracked her fingers one after another, while a calm expectation remained on her expression.
Ezra continued walking nonchalantly without turning back.
"Since they’re the ones attacking first..."
His voice remained perfectly flat.
"Make it quick. We need to leave this town before nightfall."
The heavy footsteps behind them rapidly grew louder.
Two thugs were already within striking distance.
"Yes, Master."
A bright smile appeared on Lucy’s face.
She immediately stopped walking, smoothly turning her body.
The thug in front stretched out his hand, intending to grab Ezra’s scarf.
"Huh?"
His fingers had barely reached forward...
Lucy moved.
There wasn’t the slightest unnecessary motion.
She stepped forward once and her left hand already intercepted his wrist.
Crack!
The sound of bone breaking echoed sharply through the alley.
Lucy didn’t simply squeeze his wrist.
She crushed it.
"AAAAAHHHHHHH!!"
The thug let out a blood-curdling scream.
His entire body instinctively bent forward from the unbearable pain.
The second thug, who had been charging behind him, froze for a split second.
Shock flashed across his face.
"HOW DARE YOU!"
Rage immediately replaced it.
He pulled a small pocket knife from his belt before lunging toward Lucy.
The blade reflected the afternoon sunlight as he thrust it toward her neck.
Lucy didn’t retreat.
She didn’t even dodge.
A narrow dagger silently slipped from the sleeve of her opposite arm.
Its movement was so smooth it almost looked effortless.
Slash.
A silver arc quietly passed across the first thug’s throat.
His scream abruptly stopped.
Blood burst from the clean cut before splattering across the snowy ground.
His hands instinctively flew toward his neck.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
He staggered backward.
His knees buckled.
Then...
His entire body collapsed onto the ground, twitching violently as blood rapidly spread beneath him.
The second thug’s pupils contracted.
Although, his charge didn’t stop.
Instead...
His anger only intensified.
"I’ll kill you!"
He roared.
Lucy calmly stepped to the side.
Her body disappeared from his line of sight.
The thug blinked.
"Huh?"
His vision suddenly tilted.
The sky...
The buildings...
The snowy alley...
Everything seemed to rotate strangely before him.
Only then did he notice it.
A headless body...
Still running several steps forward.
His own.
A fountain of blood erupted from the neck before the body finally collapsed onto the frozen ground.
His severed head struck the stone pavement with a dull thud before rolling several meters away.
Lucy had already walked past him, never once looking back.
Instead...
Her attention shifted toward the third thug.
He remained several meters away.
Unlike the first two...
He stopped chasing them.
Instead...
He stayed back repeatedly kicking the injured young man lying on the ground.
Each kick landed heavily against the boy’s ribs.
The thug laughed while doing it.
"You think you’re some hero?"
He sneered.
Another kick landed.
Then...
The scream of his companion echoed through the alley.
The thug instinctively turned.
His mocking grin slowly disappeared as he watched Lucy’s figure come to a stop.
Then...
His companion’s head separated cleanly from his body.
Blood sprayed into the air.
The grin on his own face instantly transformed into horror.
"...What the hell?"
He blurted out.
Lucy calmly began walking toward him.
Every step remained steady.
Neither hurried.
Nor slowed.
The thug’s entire body stiffened immediately.
His survival instincts immediately took over.
He spun around and fled instantly.
"No-No-No way...Never!"
He shouted while running with everything he had, but before he managed more than several steps...
The injured young man suddenly lunged forward.
Ignoring every injury covering his body...
He wrapped both arms tightly around the thug’s leg.
The thug stumbled violently.
His body nearly crashed into the ground.
Only by slamming both hands against the frozen earth did he barely stop himself from falling.
"You bastard!"
He screamed in panic.
"LET GO!"
Without hesitation...
He drove a brutal kick straight into the young man’s face.
Bam!
The impact forced the boy’s grip loose.
"Argh!"
He cried out in pain before rolling across the snowy ground.
The thug immediately pushed himself back onto his feet.
His breathing had already become uneven.
Fear completely filled his face.
He no longer cared about his companions.
He only wanted to survive.
"Ahhh! Ahhh! Ahhh!"
He ran with everything he had.
His legs barely obeyed him anymore.
Even so...
He continued sprinting toward the opposite end of the alley.
Toward his boss.
And toward the strongest member of their group.
At that moment...
The large thug had already forced the young woman onto the ground.
One massive hand pinned both of her wrists above her head.
The other kept her body from moving.
Beside him...
The boss laughed while unfastening his trousers.
The young woman’s struggles gradually weakened.
Tears streamed down her face.
She finally stopped resisting.
Not because she had accepted her fate...
But because she understood that continuing to fight would only get her killed.
"AAAAHHH!"
The fleeing thug finally reached them.
His terrified scream immediately drew both men’s attention.
The boss frowned.
"What the hell are you doing?"
He shouted angrily.
The large thug also looked up.
The fleeing thug pointed behind himself.
"T-They...They’re...They ar..."
His words never finished.
A cold flash quietly crossed the space between them.
The movement was so clean...
And so swift...
That neither the boss nor the large thug immediately understood what had happened.
For a brief moment...
The fleeing thug remained standing.
Then...
His head slowly slipped from his shoulders.
It struck the ground before rolling across the snow.
Only afterward did the headless body collapse beside it, blood pouring from the cleanly severed neck.
The blood splattered across the frozen ground.
Dark red droplets scattered over the thin layer of snow before slowly melting into it, creating a sharp contrast against the white surface beneath.
Lucy calmly lowered her dagger.
Her eyes remained fixed on the remaining two men.
"Forcing yourself on a lady..."
She spoke in a cold, emotionless voice.
"...is disgusting, you know."
With a light flick of her wrist...
She swung the dagger through the air.
The fresh blood coating its blade scattered away in crimson droplets before the polished steel became clean once more.
"The... the hell..."
The boss stared at her in disbelief.
Cold sweat instantly formed across his forehead.
He had watched one of his subordinates die within only a few breaths.
The death had been swift and the strike had been clean.
There hadn’t been a single wasted movement.
He could already guess what happened to the other two just from this.
"What are you waiting fo..."
He angrily turned toward the large thug beside him.
His voice suddenly stopped.
His eyes widened.
A throwing dagger had buried itself perfectly between the man’s eyebrows.
The blade sank deep into his forehead.
The huge thug remained standing for only a brief second.
His eyes slowly lost focus.
Then...
His massive body crashed heavily onto the ground.
Thud!
The impact shook the snow beneath him.
"W... What..."
The boss blinked repeatedly.
His thoughts had become completely blank.
His breathing turned uneven.
For the first time in many years of his life as a thug...
Fear completely overwhelmed him.
He hurriedly turned back toward Lucy, who was still walking towards him.
Step...
Step...
Step...
Her movements weren’t hurried.
She walked toward him at an ordinary pace.
Yet every step made the boss’s heart pound harder inside his chest.
Run.
The thought finally appeared inside his mind.
He instinctively pushed himself backward.
However...
The moment his foot moved...
Lucy disappeared.
His pupils contracted violently.
Too fast.
She had vanished from where she had been standing.
A sudden chill crawled up his spine.
Before he could even react...
Lucy had already appeared directly beside him.
She hadn’t used Cognis.
She simply relied on the terrifying speed she had built through countless hours of daily physical training.
Slash.
The silver blade quietly swept through the air.
It was so smooth...
And so effortless...
That the boss didn’t even feel pain.
For a brief moment...
He remained standing.
Confusion filled his face.
Then...
His vision slowly tilted.
The alley...
The sky...
The falling snow...
Everything rotated before his eyes.
Only then did he realize...
His body was no longer beneath him.
His severed head struck the frozen ground before rolling several meters away.
Behind it...
His headless body collapsed to its knees before finally falling forward as blood poured from the cleanly severed neck.
Lucy calmly watched the corpse fall.
Without changing her expression...
She crouched beside it.
Using the dead man’s clothing...
She carefully wiped the blood from her dagger.
Every movement looked practiced.
As though she had repeated it countless times before.
Once the first blade was clean...
She walked toward the large thug.
The throwing dagger remained embedded deep inside his forehead.
Lucy gripped its handle.
With one clean pull...
She removed it.
A small trail of blood followed the blade as it slid free.
She wiped it clean using the thug’s clothing as well before calmly returning both daggers to the concealed sheaths hidden beneath her sleeves.
Only after everything had been put away did she quietly let out a satisfied breath.
"Ah..."
A faint smile appeared beneath her scarf.
"I finally got some action."
She looked around at the motionless bodies scattered throughout the alley.
"Well..."
She shrugged lightly.
"At least it was something."
Her tone sounded almost disappointed that the fight had ended so quickly.
Not far away...
The young woman slowly pushed herself up from the snowy ground.
Her trembling hands hurriedly pulled her torn clothing back into place.
Even after escaping...
Her body refused to stop shaking.
Tears continued running down her cheeks.
Moments earlier...
She had believed her life was over.
Now...
The men who had cornered her all lay dead around her.
She looked toward Lucy.
Fear...
Relief...
And Gratitude...
Several emotions mixed together inside her eyes.
"T-Thank you..."
Her voice trembled.
"Thank you very much."
She bowed deeply.
Lucy casually turned toward her.
"It’s fine."
She answered simply.
It’s not like I killed them to save you.
The young woman lowered her head once again.
"No..."
She shook her head repeatedly.
"Thank you. If you hadn’t arrived..."
Her voice broke.
"I..."
She couldn’t continue speaking.
Instead...
She bowed once more.
Lucy quietly looked at her.
Only now did she properly notice the young woman’s face.
Earlier...
The big thug had blocked the full view of the young woman’s face for Lucy to see her properly.
But now...
With the woman’s face fully exposed...
Lucy finally saw her clearly.
Her expression froze.
The calm look in her eyes immediately disappeared.
"...Gwen?"
Lucy’s eyes widened in genuine surprise.