Abandoned by my Childhood Friend, I Became a War Hero

56 – Old Acquaintance

After dinner at a restaurant.

We headed to the tram stop in District 7.

There are no classes left on Monday afternoon, and I had a plan to stop by somewhere today.

So, since I had submitted her vacation notice in advance, I asked her instructor Lyria for her understanding and sent her off to her station.

“Then I’ll go in first. Instructor Graham should be careful going in too? There are so many bad news about the system these days.”

“Yes, see you tomorrow.”

Instructor Lilya smiled brightly and waved her hand, and I checked her into her tram and left her station.

“… ….”

Then let’s go.

The problem with Saladin, the atmosphere in Opal Black class, and consultation with Instructor Lilya were important, but the real business of the day started right now.

I told Instructor Lyria that there was a place to stop for a while, but in fact, the place I was going to wasn’t around here.

Institutions Sangria is divided into 25 zones, but there are zones that are separate from the regular zones that the general public does not know about.

A place beyond the reach of the law, an area that is not an area.

The place where all the dirty desires and dirty money of the city are gathered.

People who know the place often call it this way.

Isles Area 26, Underworld.

Of course, I’ve only recently been to the island, so I know that the underworld exists, but I don’t know its exact location.

All we know is that it’s hidden underground, out of sight, and an old criminal organization rules it. And the fact that the imperial family knew of its existence but secretly tolerated it.

But just because you don’t know where it is doesn’t mean there’s no way to find it.

Section 7, which is close to the central road, has good security. Therefore, this place was not suitable for finding an underworld.

District 8, District 9, District 10… I moved further and further away from the main roads of the island, deliberately walking only in the dirty, sparsely populated back alleys of the district.

The instructor’s uniform is too conspicuous, so he took off his coat beforehand. If so, it will inevitably attract the attention of a group of bad quality.

As expected, before I knew it, I felt the presence of many people quietly following me.

I ventured into a deeper, darker back alley. Then the people who followed behind me got closer and closer to me more and more blatantly.

I stopped in a suitable alley and waited for them.

Common sense tells us that if you’re alone in such a dangerous back alley, it’s natural for you to be wary, thinking there might be something there.

Still, the people who can approach me must be third-rate bullies who can’t even think of such a thing, or those who are quite confident in their skills.

They appeared to be the latter.

“Hey. What are you doing hanging around here?”

“It’s a face I haven’t seen before? Did you know that this is the territory of the black scorpion?”

All of the men who followed me had stern faces and physiques that were too large to be called back alley beggars.

Perhaps a member of the organization that has taken control of the back alleys of this district.

I was lucky. I thought about repeating this a few times, but it didn’t seem necessary.

They asked a question, but when I didn’t get any answer, their already grim faces contorted even more and they spoke in an annoyed tone.

“Is this bastard dumb?”

“Okay. Let’s get it right and let’s get started If I break my leg, I’m sure you’ll be kind of like a gang member.”

They gradually closed the distance with menacing gestures, such as bending necks and fist bumps.

I sat there, crossed my arms, and looked at them without any reaction. Then the stout man, who must have eaten the most of them, twisted her face and punched her at her.

“Ha! Bastard, let’s see if he makes that face even after being beaten!”

The man must have punched her once or twice, and the gesture of putting her strength into her waist and punching her was quite plausible. It must have been quite a skill at the level of the back alley.

I indifferently bent his head, and his fist brushed my cheek very finely, leaving a faint mark.

“The National Guard.”

“What?”

Instead of answering, he untied his arms. At the same time, a fist pierced the guy’s stomach in an instant.

With the sound of three or four ribs breaking, the man flew into the air and crashed into his wall.

He grabbed his chest and gasped for breath, then rolled his eyes and fell forward.

The other men around me opened their mouths in amazement.

I walked slowly, and soon the screams of men echoed in the back alley.

***

“Hey, here. Here it is, sir….”

I led the black scorpion or centipede, the leader of the back alley organization in this district, to lead the way to the underworld.

The general members I caught did not know the way to the dark side, so I had to go back to find someone I knew, and eventually go to the base of the organization and bring the leader back.

From his point of view, the base was suddenly destroyed, so it must have been an unexpected disaster, but if you think about it, his subordinates threatened me first, so in the end it could be seen as self-defense.

I went down to the basement of a shabby building under the guidance of the captain. At first, I thought it was the basement of a simple building, but it was connected to an old waterway connected to the island’s underground.

Remnants of the Third Empire, which was used when Sangria was first created, before the establishment of the Galatea Empire.

The underground aqueduct, which is no longer in use, was the passage to the underworld.

“If you keep following this road, it will lead you to the dark side.”

“Is this all there is to the road?”

“In District 11, yes. There are several other passages similar to this one in each area, but they are managed by different organizations, so I don’t know… ! It’s real!”

There is only one organization that manages the underworld, but they cannot control all the entrances to the numerous underground conduits that spread throughout the vast archipelago. Therefore, these organizations were in fact close to sub-organizations of the organizations that ruled the underworld.

I sent the leader of the organization who was no longer in business and walked along the path of the underground waterway.

Just when I thought the road was coming to an end, at some point, the light from the magic lamp was gradually shining in the dark basement.

A wide plaza connected to all the roads of the underground waterway. It was once a reservoir to store rainwater from all islands, but now it is a place where all the desires of the islanders gather instead of rainwater.

This was Islands Area 26, the underworld.

There were no guards guarding the entrance. According to an acquaintance who told me about the underworld, District 26 was just a district, and anyone who knew the way to get there could come freely.

As long as you follow the rules of this place, it’s interesting that you don’t ask each other questions and don’t take an interest in the place called the underworld.

“… ….”

I was lost in thought for a while as I looked around the scenery of the underworld.

The reason I came to the dark side. It was to find Ella’s whereabouts.

After encountering the vision of Ella in the woods, I decided not to run away from the truth any longer.

But 20 years have passed since Ella left the village. In the midst of the war that broke out and many people died and went missing, the odds of finding Ella if I searched hard alone was close to a miracle.

It is difficult to find Ella’s whereabouts using normal methods. So there were only two possible organizations.

Imperial intelligence.

And he was an underworld information dealer.

She considered asking Elisabeth to work for the Imperial Intelligence Agency, but I was reluctant because it seemed like she was using her student for my personal business, apart from accepting my request. She didn’t want to create a debt to the imperial family.

In that respect, the underworld information store was neat. As long as you give me money, they will take care of things somehow without asking or asking.

It wasn’t a very good place for imperial soldiers or academy instructors to come, but I couldn’t help it because there was no other alternative. Besides, there are people I know in the underworld.

It was the first time I had been to the underworld, but he must have known where the information was. So, of course, I knew where I was going.

It’s not a place I really want to go to, nor a person I really want to meet….

I can’t help it. Since you’ve already come this far, there’s no reason to back down.

I made up my mind and checked the clothes of the people walking around the dark area. Adventurers, mercenaries, and even aristocrats with escorts.

Most of them covered their faces with masks or robes to hide their identities, but some did not hesitate to show their faces.

These people were mostly residents of District 26, who lived only underground, not from the surface.

Alone walking down the dark road, I didn’t get caught up in a fuss. Even this area, where the laws of the system do not apply, has its own rules. If you were caught up in various disputes and dangers as soon as you entered, there would be no people looking for this place.

The type of person I was looking for while walking down the street was someone who, at first glance, seemed thirsty for desire and was desperately looking for a woman. Because it was clear where they were going.

They finally arrived at the entrance of a splendid building filled with the smell of perfume and alcohol, and women’s breathtaking laughter.

“My God, today such a wonderful person is here.”

“A handsome older brother. Would you like to have a good time with us?”

I let out a deep sigh as I felt my mind go numb for a moment.

“Haa….”

The place I found was the window of the underworld.