The scene of Vanessa coldly executing their target still lingers in the air. Auren stares at her, the curtain with the severed head wrapped inside dangling from her hands, while she smiles as if nothing happened.
"Well, Vanessa, you did well. But I'm sure I don't need to point out that your sudden... 'growth' is rather unnerving. Make sure not to lose control, okay?" Auren says, his tone filled with concern.
"Don't worry," Vanessa answers cheerfully. "This is a rush, I know, but I am in control. You don't need to worry. I'm grateful, though—you're a real cutie, Auren."
She steps forward, presses a quick kiss against his cheek, and giggles softly.
I've seen a lot of carnage, but this is almost too much, even for me. Whatever... focus on the job. Women can be terrifying.
Auren shifts his attention back to the barkeeper, pulling out the thick stack of money again.
"Now, you've earned yourself a little more of the reward money, and I need you to contact me when the other targets are ba—" Auren begins, but suddenly stops as he notices three armed guards marching up the stairs from the ground floor. The music and ruckus below suddenly stops, the entire bar becoming eerily quiet.
Who are they? Even the noise from downstairs is dying out... I hear more movement. Are the guests leaving? They looked brutal and uncontrollable earlier—if they're acting cautious now, they must be truly afraid. Looks like things are about to get serious. Who is able to easily get them to leave?
"Get behind me!" Auren yells at Konrad and Vanessa.
"Please, there's no reason for panic. We just want to talk," a voice calls from below as one more man steps onto the upper floor, joining them in the VIP area.
Really? I suppose it's no surprise we pissed someone off. Vanessa was the exact opposite of discreet with her little... show.
"It's nice to see you, Master Auren. Our boss sends his greetings to you," the man says. He's middle-aged, chubby, bald, and sports a small mustache.
Should I know this guy?
"Sorry," Auren replies, looking apologetic. "Refresh my memory—do I know you?"
"Hehe, no need to apologize. You haven't met me before. My name is Zenji. I'm a capo of the Mafia community, currently serving Don Berto. I believe you met him in Yorknew, not too long ago?"
"The Don of the western part of the Yorbian continent," Auren says, now relaxing slightly. "I didn't really think about it, but that includes Glam Gas Land, doesn't it?"
"Yes, you are correct," Zenji replies with a broad smile, rubbing his hands together. "You're quite smart and well-informed. To tell you the truth, all our VIP areas, under our family's control, have cameras. As soon as we spotted you, I received a call from my guys... I wonder if we could talk in peace? I'll make sure you won't regret it."
I wouldn't want outright conflict with one of the Dons—especially since Hollow Blade already maintains ties with them... even if they are rather loose ties. In this case, my personal feelings shouldn't outweigh the interests of the sect. I don't like this guy—he seems like a snake, but I'll humor him... for now.
"Of course... I didn't realize this shitho—" Auren clears his throat, correcting himself. "I mean, establishment—belongs to you."
"Hahaha, no problem," Zenji says. "If I may." He then sits down at the counter, leaving one seat open between himself and Auren.
Zenji turns toward the bartender and barks, "Barkeeper, give me my usual! Boys, you can also get a drink and relax." He glances at his bodyguards, who casually reach behind the counter, grab a few bottles of beer, and take seats at a nearby table.
"Y–y–yes sir!" the bartender replies, clearly showing his respect for Zenji as he quickly prepares a drink for him.
Zenji then looks back at Auren and begins to talk. "You see, we heard you were operating in Glam Gas Land. You know this establishment is under our control... and it seems you are hunting for bounties? To tell you the truth, we have a little request—no, not a request. More like a suggestion, or better yet, an offer."
Auren, not changing his expression at all, simply says, "Go on."
"We don't want any bloodshed inside our businesses. Reputation is everything in our business. We would appreciate it if you could hunt elsewhere. In return, not only will we provide you with information, but we will also actively help you. You're after bounties, correct? We know the location of quite a few targets."
"Hehehehe," Auren laughs. "Let me guess. These bounties will be conveniently located in the businesses run by your rivals, right?"
Zenji smiles, a drop of sweat running down his cheek. "You aren't wrong... however, is that a problem? Nothing changes for you. Aside from us, there are small independent families, gangs, and other criminal organizations running their operations here. We don't want outright war with them. Glam Gas Land is a special case, even for us. The clan is the absolute overlord here and prohibits large-scale turf wars. We will provide you with as many targets as you want, and we can tell you—we just ask that you don't hunt inside our establishments."
He goes on, "To be honest, this will boost our reputation and make our businesses more profitable while sabotaging our competition. In return, you'll have an easy time finding your targets. I promise you, with the information we already have, I can hand over the location of at least ten targets to you—each with a bounty of no less than five million. I even know of a serial killer who likes to cook her victims alive. Ever heard of the Soup-witch? If you can catch her, you would become world-famous."
"What the..." Auren says, clearly amused. "Soup-witch? Is that supposed to be a joke?"
"No, it isn't," Zenji replies, his face turning serious.
"I know about her," Konrad cuts in. "A sick, twisted caricature of a woman who kidnaps children and boils them alive. She's ranked seventeenth on the list of the twenty most wanted international criminals. She has at least a hundred victims. At first, she targeted lone, orphaned children, but later she escalated to abducting and killing entire groups of them. The sites of her crimes are rumored to be hellish, like out of a horror movie. By now, the media has been ordered not to report on her, to avoid causing a panic, or to be honest, probably to not shame the V5, as they still haven't dealt with her. She could be a Nen user. I've always wondered what motivates these kinds of monsters, but Nen could explain it."
I know of another mass murderer who focused on children... Konrad might be right. Could this be part of a Nen ritual?
"That isn't confirmed," Zenji says, "but you might be right. On top of that, she's rich and usually hires expensive bodyguards to do her dirty work. She's a well-connected individual. The truth is, the Dons want to get rid of that vile woman. Even the Mafia doesn't condone crimes like this on its turf."
"What's her bounty?!" Vanessa asks, her voice filled with excitement.
"Five hundred million, beautiful lady. And the community offers another five hundred million on top of that," Zenji explains, staring at Vanessa.
"A billion?!" Vanessa exclaims. "That's pretty good!"
"Not like we care about the money," Auren notes, "but it is indeed generous."
"Let me say this, Zenji," Auren continues calmly. He pauses for a moment before adding, "We'll accept your offer. However, I despise betrayal... so make sure you provide me with accurate information. Trust me, anyone who betrays me will regret it. Is that acceptable?"
"Of course..." Zenji says with a small bow. "I'll even accompany you myself if you allow me. I'll make sure this cooperation will be mutually beneficial."
Auren takes out his cellphone and calls Neffi. She picks up quickly. "Auren? Is something wrong? We haven't found anything in this shithole... we're just walking around, seeing nothing but lowlife scum going wild. I hate this place! I want to go back to the hotel and take a bath in the VIP whirlpool."
Auren ignores her complaints and relays to her the position of the bar. "Make sure to hurry," he finishes, ending the call.
Exactly five minutes later, Neffi and Eren appear, climbing the stairs and heading toward Auren.
"Did a bomb explode here?" Neffi asks. "The ground floor is empty—no one around—just trash and broken glass lying everywhere!"
"I've allowed myself to empty the bar for a while," Zenji explains.
"This is Zenji, a high-ranking Mafia member. He works for Don Berto, the local Don," Konrad explains quickly. "We've decided to collaborate. We are after the bounties... but most of all, we are after the Soup-Witch."
"Soup-Witch?" Eren repeats, his face breaking into a smile, unsure how to react.
"Master mentioned her..." Neffi says, her expression suddenly souring. "She's dangerous."
"You know her?" Auren asks, turning toward Neffi.
"Master mentioned her when she trained me," Neffi answers, looking a little unsettled.
"What did Grunah tell you?" Auren presses.
"She mentioned her when explaining how to increase the efficiency of Hatsus," Neffi says.
"How do you do that?" Vanessa asks curiously. "I want to know!"
Konrad sighs and glares at his sister. "We've been through this! Multiple times, in fact! Conditions... restrictions... in short, self-imposed limitations, you should know by now!"
Neffi nods, her face pale, still looking uneasy. "Master mentioned her as a special case. Usually, really strong and dangerous Hatsus have conditions and restrictions built into them. The Soup-Witch is a little different. According to Master, her Hatsu requires sacrifices, but according to her guess, she is just gathering some kind of 'fuel'. That means her gruesome acts are just the condition for something that we don't know about her. I had the feeling Master knows her personally. She isn't connected to us, so we don't need to worry about that, but she is extremely dangerous."
"I wonder why she 'cooks' the children," Auren says, frowning. "I know of an old man who sacrificed children in hopes of gaining additional lifespan."
Zenji, listening, looks disgusted as well. "You are indeed high-class Nen users. I wish I could tell you more. The only thing I can say is that the Witch is known to travel with a young girl, maybe your age? However, that girl is not one of her victims."
Interesting... I wonder what her connection to that girl is... does she kill out of love? I guess we'll find out.
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