Inside the massive tent—
Warm light from hanging lanterns flickered across piles of gold, weapons, and expensive fabrics scattered around the room.
At the center—
A massive man sat comfortably on a large chair.
Gold armor covered his body.
A giant hammer rested beside him.
Goldy.
He looked down at Kuro with narrowed eyes.
"…Why are you here, gangster?"
Kuro walked forward calmly, hands in his pockets as if he were visiting an old friend instead of an enemy camp.
"…Oh, Goldy the Greedy."
A small smile formed on his face.
"I'm here to meet you."
Goldy let out a rough laugh.
"Heh."
"Or maybe you just want some of my valuables."
Kuro shrugged lightly.
"…Yes."
Then his eyes sharpened slightly.
"But some of your slaves are my men."
"I want them back."
Goldy leaned back in his chair slowly.
"Finders keepers."
A grin spread across his face.
"Losers weepers."
Kuro sighed softly through his nose.
"…Well, that's technically not fair."
"They're my property first."
Goldy chuckled again.
"Then maybe I should just ask them to join my gang instead."
He leaned forward slightly.
"Especially after you got defeated by a newbie."
The atmosphere inside the tent shifted slightly colder.
Kuro's smile faded just a little.
"…How charming."
Goldy smirked.
"That's what the news says."
"The mighty Kuro… beaten by some young gangster."
Several nearby gang members laughed quietly.
Kuro stayed silent for a moment.
Then he smiled again.
Calm.
Thin.
"…That boy just got lucky."
At Kor Village—
The battle had already ended.
Broken weapons and scorch marks covered the streets as captured Gold Gang members knelt across the ground.
Some struggled.
Some cursed.
But none could escape.
Takashi stepped forward calmly.
Auris gathered around his hand.
"…Prison Cement."
The ground beneath the gangsters suddenly shifted.
Cement rose upward like living stone, wrapping tightly around their bodies.
One by one—
Their arms and legs were completely restrained.
The hardened cement locked them in place.
Several gangsters tried to force themselves free—
But the restraints didn't even crack.
Takashi exhaled softly.
"…Now that's done."
Nearby, Fein watched the restrained gangsters with crossed arms.
"…Not bad."
Takashi glanced toward him briefly.
Fein gave a slow nod.
"Now we just have to wait."
The night air grew quieter around them.
Soldiers continued patrolling the damaged streets while villagers slowly peeked out from inside their homes.
Takashi looked around once more.
Then frowned slightly.
"…Where is Gein?"
Fein answered immediately.
"Gein already went to guard the paths."
He adjusted his coat slightly.
"…To make sure the hostages get here safely."
Takashi nodded slowly.
"…Good."
Inside the slave tent—
The sound of chains hitting the ground echoed quietly as more prisoners were freed one after another.
Saito cut through another restraint with a sharp swing of his blade.
CLINK.
He looked toward Takeru.
"…Takeru."
Takeru glanced over while helping an older prisoner stand.
"Yeah?"
"After we free them… take them to Gein's squad."
Saito pointed toward the eastern side of the forest outside the tent.
"Follow the east path."
"There should be soldiers waiting there."
Takeru nodded immediately.
"…Got it."
Saito then turned toward Kaito.
"…Kaito."
Kaito stood near the tent entrance, quietly watching the camp outside through a small opening.
"Look outside."
"Warn us if the guards figure it out."
Kaito gave a short nod.
"…Already doing it."
Outside, distant voices and footsteps moved between the tents, but nothing suspicious yet.
Inside—
Several slaves were already free.
Some rubbed their wrists painfully.
Others tried holding back tears.
Takeru guided them carefully toward the back opening of the tent.
"…Follow this path," he said quietly.
"There'll be people waiting for you."
His ears twitched slightly as he listened to the camp outside.
"And stay quiet."
The freed prisoners nodded rapidly.
One woman bowed repeatedly.
"T-Thank you…"
Takeru scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"…Yeah, yeah. Just go."
The group slowly disappeared into the darkness beyond the tent.
Meanwhile—
Saito continued moving through the rows of prisoners, cutting chains one after another without stopping.
CLINK.
CLINK.
CLINK.
The number of freed people steadily grew.
Saito moved deeper into the tent, stepping past more rows of chained prisoners.
The farther he went—
The rougher the prisoners looked.
Scarred faces.
Torn jackets.
Gang tattoos.
Then he stopped.
A group of men sat chained together near the back corner of the tent.
On their clothes—
A familiar symbol.
A claw mark.
Saito narrowed his eyes slightly.
"…You guys are from Claw Gang?"
The prisoners looked up immediately.
One of them froze.
"…Hey."
His eyes widened.
"That's the newbie that defeated boss."
Another clicked his tongue.
"…Why are you here?"
Saito stepped closer calmly.
"…I'm here to save you."
A rough laugh came from the group.
"Tch."
One of the men leaned back against the wall.
"We don't need some newbie saving us."
"Our boss promised he'd free us."
Saito stayed quiet for a moment.
Then said,
"…Kuro's with me."
That immediately changed the atmosphere.
Several members looked at each other.
"…Boss is here?"
Saito nodded once.
"He's distracting their leader right now."
A short silence followed.
Then one of the gang members slowly extended his chained hands forward.
"…Fine."
Another sighed.
"Just hurry up already."
Saito crouched slightly and raised his sword.
SLASH.
The chains broke apart instantly.
More members pushed their restraints forward one after another.
"About damn time."
"These chains are irritating."
"…Boss actually came for us."
Saito continued cutting through the restraints while the Claw Gang members slowly stood back up, rubbing their wrists as the iron shackles hit the ground.
Inside the massive tent—
Goldy leaned back heavily in his chair, the metal of his armor creaking slightly.
"…Well."
A greedy grin spread across his face.
"Time to see my treasure."
He started to rise—
But Kuro suddenly raised a hand slightly.
"Wait a minute there, Goldy."
Goldy paused.
Kuro smiled casually.
"…How about we have a drink first?"
A short silence followed.
Then Goldy laughed loudly.
"HAH!"
"Now that's a good idea."
He slammed a hand against the armrest of his chair.
"Horun!"
Horun stepped forward immediately.
"Get us something to drink."
A few moments later—
Horun returned carrying a large bottle of beer along with two heavy glasses.
He placed them carefully on the table between the two gang leaders.
Goldy grabbed the bottle himself.
The liquid poured loudly into both glasses.
He lifted one.
"…Cheers."
Kuro looked at the drink for a brief moment.
A small hesitation.
Then—
Goldy drank first.
Only after watching him swallow did Kuro finally lift his own glass and take a sip.
Goldy smirked immediately.
"…You're pretty brave for someone weak."
Kuro lowered the glass slowly.
"Heh."
"I already knew the drink didn't have poison."
Goldy chuckled deeply.
"…Trust."
He leaned forward slightly, resting his arms on his knees.
"That's the kind of thing that eats its own master alive."
Saito stepped out of the slave tent and glanced behind him.
The last group of prisoners disappeared quietly into the eastern forest path.
He let out a small breath.
"…Ok."
"That's all the people."
Nearby, Kaito stood near the edge of the camp, eyes fixed ahead.
"…Well."
His expression sharpened slightly.
"They already noticed."
Saito followed his gaze.
Horun stood in the middle of the camp surrounded by armed Gold Gang members.
Torches lit the area around them as more gangsters slowly closed in.
Horun rested the massive sword against his shoulder.
"…You've got nerve coming here."
Saito stepped forward calmly.
"Your boss made the mistake of coming into this city."
Horun's eyes narrowed.
Then—
He gave a loud whistle.
A figure slowly emerged from the darkness behind the gangsters.
Masked.
Silent.
The same man from before.
The moment Saito saw him, his expression tightened slightly.
Horun smirked.
"…This one's also a villager we captured from another city."
He tilted his head toward the masked man.
"They just kidnapped your people from us."
A cruel grin spread across his face.
"Go get them back."
The masked man slowly stepped forward.
No hesitation.
No emotion.
Then—
CLAP.
His hands came together sharply.
Kaito's eyes widened instantly.
"Watch out!"
He shoved Saito sideways just as—
BOOOOM!
A violent explosion erupted between them.
Flames and dirt blasted upward as the ground shattered apart.
Saito rolled across the dirt before quickly forcing himself back up.
The masked man was already moving.
Fast.
He lunged directly toward Saito through the smoke.
"Kaito—"
CLANG!
Before Kaito could move—
Horun intercepted him.
The massive sword crashed against Kaito's knives.
Horun grinned.
"…You're mine, assassin."