C53: James Moriarty (3)

Hans didn’t bother to ask why Rudger gave him the wolf’s tooth. It was because he was the one who knew his constitution better than anyone else.

“Even so, if I go alone, the atmosphere doesn’t live up to me. I need you to wreak havoc in the back.”

“……After fighting we will run right away.”

“You don’t have to worry about that part.”

“Haa.”

Hans sighed, took the wolf’s teeth in his hands, and thrust it into the palm of his hand until it bled. Immediately afterward, black hair began to grow on Hans’ body, starting from the wolf’s teeth.

When the gene contained in the wolf’s teeth entered his skin and came into contact with his blood, the constitution in which the factors of the beast were expressed was activated.

With the sound of his bones twisting, Hans’s size grew almost 1.5 times larger than usual. Before long, Hans was a werewolf with dark fur, wearing an almost exploding robe.

Hans carefully took off his top, noticing that his clothes were stuffy, and carefully placed it nearby.

“Are you okay?”

“Hmm. Not bad. I thought I was not going to even need pants…….”

“……Look at that.”

“Yes. I have to understand that part.”

If the transformation was later released, and Hans were to take off his pants, there could be nothing more terrifying than that.

Hans sighed in relief.

“I guess that’s good.”

“Hmm. The size isn’t bad either. After all, the shape changes depending on which animal’s teeth are used.”

“……Well, that’s something that I had no choice but to know from experiences so diverse that I’m sick of.”

“I’m sorry. If I could get it, I wanted to keep the teeth of a bear or a tiger.”

Hans doesn’t have to be bitten directly by the beast. His constitution is activated only when the beast’s factor enters inside his body.

“Still, this wolf’s teeth looks particularly great, right?”

Hans looked around himself and said so. Hans changed into various forms, so I could feel how special he is now. His body was full of strength, and his muscles were 1.5 times thicker than usual, it was obvious that this was no ordinary wolf tooth.

“It is the teeth of the Black Fang that exists in the North Continent.”

“Those beasts are so ferocious, no wonder. I felt that I had more energy than usual.”

“Compared to anything you have changed so far, you can be confident that this is at the top of the list. Of course, if you use the ‘it’ you can become stronger than anyone else.”

At the word ‘it’ that came out of Rudger’s mouth, Hans’s face frowned to the point of being unrecognizable, even though he was in a wolf’s state.

“Brother if I use something dangerous like that and make a mistake, I might be eaten by the wild.”

“Because you didn’t know, I passed it on to you to keep it. I don’t know how the world will change but if your life is in danger, use it. It would be better than dying.”

“It is but…….”

Hans remembered that huge molar. The tooth was so large that it was sharpened and made into the shape of a dagger. It was a special gift from Rudger for Hans. Hans, who thinks that his constitution is a curse, was reluctant to keep that tooth.

“Then shall we go?”

“I’ll say it again, after the fight, I’ll run right away.”

“You just need to set the mood. I’ll go in first, so when I give you the signal, follow me.”

“I see.”

Rudger, dressed in black, and Hans, who became a black beast, immediately disappeared as if melting into the darkness of the alley.

* * *

Located on the outskirts of downtown Leathervelk, Forges Street is famous for its many shops, restaurants and music venues. Also, in some areas, there were workshops for making power devices made of mechanical windings, so it was a place where not only adults but also children actively visited.

In the deep part of Forges Street was the boundary between the bright outside of the city and the back alley. In a large pub that everyone knows, men with bad characters gathered instead of customers, maintaining an uncomfortable atmosphere.

“Damn!”

Among them was a red-haired man who swore and drank a bottle of wine. His physique was nothing special compared to others whose muscles were plump, but his face was. Having grown his sideburns for a long time, he had a large scar that crossed one of his eyes, which made his ugliness unique.

When he got annoyed, the subordinates around him noticed immediately. At that time, his subordinate, who was acting as an advisor, plucked up the courage to step out.

“Brother, are you okay?”

“Do I look okay?”

“……To be honest, it’s hard to say.”

The man was the leader of the Red Society, the red snake Dutri.

In a way, it was natural for him to be angry now. This is because Bellbot Rickson, who can be said to be the biggest source of funds for the Red Society, died suddenly.

From the point of view of Dutri, who was best friends with Bellbot and built the Red Society with its prestige on his back, one of the large pillars that supported him collapsed.

There are still a few more pillars to help them, but the problem is that before Bellbot Rickson’s death, the Red Society had invested huge sums in his business. It is a self-evident fact that the manager of the project has died and all of his wealth scattered.

Most investors will share it, but it was difficult to recover the invested capital from the point of view of Dutri, who spent a large amount of money.

There would be no chance that the Red Society would be destroyed by such a thing, but it was inevitable that the atmosphere would be disturbed.

“But it’s still worth it, so why not find a new way?”

“That’s why I called you guys here. I think we will have to expand our business in the near future.”

Business expansion will be a work that involves blood and violence. Maybe they’ll have to fight another organization but no one was concerned about it. They were the best in Leathervelk back alley when it came to their armed forces.

“Once I took some black rose bitches and pressed them….”

When Dutri murmurs like that the door to the bar creaked open and a man walked in.

“Oh?”

“What?”

At first, he thought he was a late member of the organization, but he had no choice but to change his mind because the man was too neat to be considered a member of the Red Society.

With a black Inverness coat and a cane held in his hand together with the black silk hat on his head and the monocle on one eye he looked like a rich gentleman.

“What is that bastard? Hey, don’t you know that the store is closed?”

Dutri glared at the uninvited guest with a drunken face.

The man took an empty chair near him and sat down in the center of the bar, as if he heard nothing. The figure of him sitting with his legs slightly apart, supporting the staff with his two hands, was filled with a strange dignity that was difficult to describe in words.

“Are you crazy?”

All members of the Red Society stared at the uninvited guest.

After emptying the bottle, Dutri jumped up from his seat.

“Who are you?”

“Dutri, leader of the Red Society, am I right?”

“Yes, but I haven’t seen your face in these places.”

Dutri smirked as if it was absurd.

“Huh. You came here alone, knowing that we were the Red Society?”

Even with the gaze from all directions, the man was confident without showing any fear. Dutri felt a strange sense of insecurity at the sight since the man didn’t appear to be bluffing.

He has been fighting for a long time in the back alley, and he has been able to distinguish between the pretentiousness of an incompetent person and the daring of a truly talented person. The human in front of him was the latter.

‘The clothes he is wearing look luxurious, and the atmosphere itself is unusual. Did this person come to me?’

Dutri thought he needed to hear the other party first.

“Hmm. Why the hell did you come to me?”

“It’s been a while since I’ve been in the city so I am trying to start a new business.”

“Ah! Business! It’s good! You have found the right person.”

Dutri clapped his hands in joy. This man was talking about business, but there was nobody here who didn’t know it was dirty money and even dirty work.

Judging from what he came to know about, this man must have been of the same sort as Bellbot Rickson, a wealthy merchant with a lot of money and a dark heart.

‘It’s a money line that I must grab!’

But Dutri was not hastily pleased, he knew that he couldn’t believe someone he just met.

If you don’t know someone, you never trust them. Even if you know your partner, you only believe in half. Betray first before being betrayed that was the way and discipline of people living in the back alley.

“So, what is your name?”

At Dutri’s question, the man said in a soft tone.

“My name is James Moriarty.”

“James Moriarty?”

Dutri was puzzled by the name and felt something daunting.

‘I think I’ve heard the name before, but I don’t really remember much.’

Then his lieutenant and advisor, his right arm, noticed something and hurriedly approached Dutri and whispered to him.

‘James Moriarty! It’s that man.’

‘Who is he?’

‘A tycoon who once ruled the dark world of the Delica Kingdom.’

‘Ah.’

Dutri could barely recall a name at those words.

James Moriarty, he called himself professor and was a notorious crime consultant in the dark world. Delica, the iron kingdom, has made remarkable progress in the steel industry and it was this man that ruled the darkness there and stood right under the light. He was famous enough to be considered half-legendary in this field.

‘But is that true?’

Dutri was suspicious since Professor Moriarty disappeared from Delica several years ago. Rumor has it that he was brought to an end by a detective from a famous aristocratic family.

Some say that he was captured and rotted in the deep dungeons of Delica, others that he chose to die before being captured otherwise there would be no news for years. Perhaps there was a possibility that this Professor Moriarty in front of him was a fake.

‘Well, maybe I should check it out.’

Dutri sighed and waved at his subordinate.

“Professor Moriarty, I’ve heard your name a lot.”

“I’m glad you know me.”

“ Whether Professor Moriarty is real or not is a bit vague.”

“Do you think I am an impersonator?”

“Someone who had suddenly disappeared a few years ago suddenly appeared in front of me like this.”

Moriarty glanced around at the men who took their weapons from their waists. The smell of cheap gunpowder, gently irritating the tip of his nose, convinced him of the fact that the Red Society is a fairly large organization since they have access to guns.

“I warn you of one thing.”

“Tell me.”

“I recommend not pulling out a gun if you can.”

Moriarty immediately raised his right hand. At the same time, countless subordinates around the area pulled out their guns and aimed at him.

“If you do anything suspicious, you will become a beehive.”

Moriarty was not at all intimidated.

Dutri began to wonder if the man in front of him was the real deal.

“It’s quite noisy.”

At Moriarty’s provocation some of the younger members of the gang looked at Dutri and asked if they should shoot.

Dutri pondered for a moment, and then gently nodded.

Recognizing the signal, the subordinate slowly pulled the trigger of the gun in his hand and aimed for the shoulder, not the head but no bullets went out.

“Uh, huh?”

It wasn’t just that. The guns of all the gang members gathered in the pub right now were useless.

“That’s why I warned you.”

Moriarty laughed quietly amidst the perplexing situation.

“Don’t pull out your gun.”

“Wizard!”

Dutri realized why all the guns had suddenly stopped working. It was clear that this was the magic [silence of fire] used by wizards. That said, it is clear that this man in front of him was a wizard even if he doesn’t know anything else.

At that moment, Moriarty whistled. When the sound echoed through the bar and spread outside the door of the bar was smashed and a giant came in.

“Ugh!”

“What the hell is that?”

It was a giant wolf that walked on two legs. He was covered in black fur all over his body, had a huge figure that looked over 2.5m tall and even sharp claws that grew on both arms. Everyone was aware of the werewolf incident that had created an uproar in Leathervelk.

The werewolf slowly entered the bar and stopped behind Moriarty as if to protect him.

Dutri immediately changed his stance at the sight.

“It seems you are the real deal.”

“Is this enough proof?”

“It’s enough.”

“Then we can have a serious conversation now.”

“Yes. What kind of business do you want to start? What do you need?”

“Before that, I have something to tell you.”

“Something to tell me?”

At Moriarty’s words, Dutri’s eyes widened.

“I don’t like dirty things.”

“Yes?” “What that means is that the Red Society will disappear from Leathervelk as of today.”