ALL NOVEL Chapter 17 - Requiem for a Villain
“Damn it, trying to pull a fast one on me…”
Going back in time, it was four days after Letty… or rather, Ghost left the royal capital.
Greg, having finally found some free time, was sorting through various documents.
Recently, he’d been overwhelmed by managing job progress and other duties, leaving him with no time to go over the other finer details.
But at last, he was able to check them.
And so… he finally noticed.
“What the hell is this ledger? ah… looks like this one’s been fiddled with too. And this one… why the hell did I even hire this guy?”
Flipping through the papers one after another, he let out a sigh.
As the information organised itself in his mind, one conclusion took shape.
“I can’t believe it… I let my guard down…”
Sinking back into the relatively luxurious chair he used in the guild, he grumbled to himself.
He had trusted that guy too much.
Trust is important. But doubt is necessary too.
He had told himself that balance was key, yet…. He’d neglected it.
“Ah, damn it… That bastard, he’s got a way of making you let your guard down.”
In this world, he was unusually serious, timid, and meticulous.
That’s why Gregg had valued him so highly.
Maybe he’d let his guard down without even realising it.
“Now that I think about it, I had Ghost detect lies from clients and other suspicious individuals… but never from him.”
Despite having climbed his way to the top, it seemed he still had some soft spots.
And this was the result.
Then there was the sound of several people approaching him, they were trying to hide their footsteps while heading towards him.
They probably thought they hadn’t been noticed already, but this was Gregg’s territory.
There was no way he wouldn’t notice such half-baked attempts at sneaking.
He reached for two daggers, slipping them behind his back and into his boots.
He also hid a hand axe by his feet.
After a while, the door burst open with a bang.
People poured in, and at the very end of the line was…
“Well, well, Hans. Quite the dramatic entrance you’ve made.”
“…You’re surprisingly calm.”
Momentarily at a loss for words, Hans quickly regained his composure and puffed out his chest, trying to assert his authority.
“Greg. It seems that you understand the situation. I’m not a monster, you know. Surrender everything to me, and I might let you live.”
He spoke with an air of confidence, but it was just that — an air.
At the very least… his negotiation ‘partner’ had seen through him.
“Surrender? You worthless scumbag, you can’t even clean up your own mess.”
Leaning back in his chair, Greg laughed, clasping his hands in front of him, wearing a look of complete confidence.
“You’re scared, aren’t you? Even now, in this situation. That’s just the kind of guy you are.”
His voice was filled with mockery and provocation.
This was Greg — even in such a situation, he was the type to open up and taunt his opponent.
“What kind of nonsense are you saying, and in this situation?”
Between him and Greg was a wall of thugs.
Even Greg couldn’t break through them.
That’s what Hans told himself, desperately.
But Greg saw right through him.
“Hah, you’re really losing it, huh?
Your voice is shaking, your shoulders are trembling. Do you really think you can do this?”
As Greg’s words hit home, Hans quickly raised his hands to cover his mouth and shoulders.… Unfortunately, he really had been trembling.
Realising that, he felt his legs start to shake, and took a deep breath.
“Of course I can do this. I’ve come prepared, and I’ve made my move.”
“The moment you started ‘preparing,’ you already failed. In this line of work, you’ve got to act the second you decide to.”
There was still some distance between them.
The men who had barged in seemed intimidated by Greg and could only inch closer, little by little.
“I don’t care about your theories.
What matters now is this — tell me how to control Ghost.”
“Huh? What, you got a thing for her or something?”
Of course, Greg knew that wasn’t the case.
He was just trying to mess with him, to throw him off balance… He still hadn’t given up on survival.
“Of course not. Who would want a girl like that, with no charm whatsoever? She’ll be a powerful asset for the future. If you tell me how to control her, I’ll consider letting you live.”
“Well, ain’t that generous. I’m so moved I could cry.”
Gregg replied sarcastically, while scanning for an opening.
There were five men between him and Hans.
Normally, that would be an insurmountable difference in numbers.
He thought about how many attacks he could make.…No matter how many times he thought about it, it seemed hopeless.
“This is it. This thing controls her. She’s been trained to obey whoever wears it.”
Slowly, Gregg removed a ring from his right hand.
He calculated the distance.
At this range, he could make it.
“Here you go, catch!”
With that, he tossed the ring into the air.
The thugs’ eyes all followed its arc.
In that instant, Greg sprang into action, grabbing the dagger from his boot and the axe at his feet, and threw them.
The dagger buried itself in the forehead of the man on the far left.
The axe smashed into the forehead of the man standing in front of Hans.
The axe, spinning from the impact, flew up and came down… the handle striking Hans square in the forehead.
Not the blade, just the handle.
“Gah!”
“Argh!”
“Uwaaah!!”
Three different cries of pain rang out as Greg kicked over his desk and flipped it toward the men.
He kicked it again, sending it flying towards them.
“Damn it, this guy’s got some ridiculous luck!!”
Yelling, Greg launched himself at the men.
Staggered by the desk, they couldn’t properly dodge.
In the chaos, Greg drew another dagger and lunged at the man on the far right, plunging it into his chest.
He let the falling man’s weight carry him down as he rolled forward, trying to create some distance and regain his footing.
But…
“Guh!!”
He was just a moment too late.
A blade slashed his back, and he let out a grunt of pain, his legs faltering.
As he tumbled to the ground, he twisted his body, and threw the dagger in his hand.
It embedded itself in the chest of the man who had slashed him.
But the man collapsed on top of Greg.
“Damn it, you bastard!”
Falling backward, Gregg shoved the man off him.
He shoved him away.
The next blade… he couldn’t dodge.
“Damn it… Is this it for me?”
Greg grumbled, swallowing the pain as the sword pierced through his chest.
He looked down at the blade, which had punctured his lung.
“You bastard… At least stab me in the heart if you’re gonna do it.”
With a curse on his lips, his fingers brushed against a sword dropped by one of the men he’d stabbed earlier.
“If you don’t… this is what happens, you bastard!!”
Summoning the last of his strength, Gregg grabbed the sword, reversed his grip, and plunged it into the man’s side.
The man screamed in agony, thrashing wildly, and knocked Greg to the floor.
His lungs collapsed further, and oxygen was rapidly cut off as his strength drained away.
Blood was finally flowing freely from his wound.
Coughing up blood, it poured down from his mouth.
“You couldn’t even gather decent men, could you… That’s all you’re worth in the end…”
A mix of genuine disdain and bitter taunt laced his words, as he grinned.
“Shut up! Shut up!! I’m not like that, I can do more!!”
“That’s what makes you more shallow… you damn fool.”
With a look of exhaustion, as if offering final advice to what had once been his right-hand man, Greg closed his eyes.
His strength was gone. He couldn’t even lift his head anymore. With a thud, he rolled onto his back.
The familiar ceiling looked strangely distant.
“So this is it for me… Well, I guess that’s just how it is…”
Starting as nothing more than an errand boy, he’d built a network of guild branches across the nation. It wasn’t bad. He wasn’t satisfied, but it wasn’t bad.
“Yeah… not bad…”
Hans was no longer in his sight.
In the distance, his eyes focused hazily on something else.
“Take care of the rest for me… Egret.”
The words he whispered to his trusted secret weapon never reached her ears….
**Next: The Fate of a Minor Villain**