Chapter 37 Pre-Festival Night
That night, I started walking around the western part of the capital, taking my time.
I tried to look like I was just out for a stroll, shoving my hands in my jacket pockets and hunching over, aimlessly wandering for a bit before heading out to the main street and walking towards the harbor on the cobblestones that stretched west.
I walked by the harbor at sunset until it got dark, then casually took some random streets back home.
For the first 2 days of these walks, nothing happened, and I ended up just feeling a pleasant tiredness that helped me sleep a little better.
But on the third day, with the national founding festival starting tomorrow, the demands of the daytime rush of customers were intense.
"I'm sorry, really sorry, Mr. Momota!"
It seems everyone knows I'm Momota Kreis's grandson, with most people calling me 'Grandson.'
Next is 'Second Generation,' and occasionally 'Shop Owner.'
The ones who use the third title tend to be younger, probably second or third generation like me.
The regulars at the diner have recently started calling me Tsukumo.
"It just stopped working this morning... Can you fix it right away?"
The guy who looked on the verge of tears was the owner of a crêpe shop where Yuruyana sometimes eats.
He brought in a specialized grill with a round iron plate.
"I think it'll be fine."
It seems like it's just a bit out of whack from overuse.
I should be able to fix it quickly.
"Will it be ready by today?"
"Yes. Um... Can you come to pick it up after 2 PM?"
"No problem! Thank you so much!"
With one urgent request after another, some even asked if they could pick it up first thing in the morning.
I was planning to take a break.
As I was about to leave for my walk, later than usual, Yuruyana
"Aren't you done with that job yet?"
he nagged.
"I guess it'll end today."
I said something vague and locked the front entrance before starting my walk.
The sky looks a lot different, even if it's just a bit later in the evening.
As I walked, the setting sun disappeared behind the buildings.
The red sky gradually turned indigo from high up, and by the time I reached the harbor, just a hint of the sun's edge peeked above the horizon.
Squinting, I watched the light fade until it was gone, the gradient line between sea and sky slowly narrowing.
In the intermittent sound of waves crashing against the seawall, I suddenly remembered her words.
'I really like this time, after all.'
I couldn't recall the mission we were on, but I figured we were on watch together.
'Why? Isn't it a pain to see things so blurry?'
Come to think of it, that mission was near the sea too.
The strong scent of the rocks filled the air as the wind blew, everything around turning into dark silhouettes.
She was a bit further away, her profile turning towards me as she peered through her scope.
'You can see everything together, good and bad. Even faces get all blurry.'
I didn't understand what was so good about it, but for a moment, I thought I saw her confident face look like it was about to cry.
Maybe it was just a trick of the light since I couldn't see clearly.
Lost in sentiment, the horizon brightened subtly before the light faded, leaving only the moon and the small lights for preventing falls.
As they disappeared, I started walking again, heading into the narrow alleyways between the warehouses lining the harbor.
I moved until my body was hidden in the shadow of a building, illuminated by the moonlight.
Matching the faint sound of gravel being stepped on, I took out my hand from my pocket and gestured.
A sharp metallic sound accompanied sparks flying.
"Gotcha!"
Before the masked man could identify what I held, I knocked his weapon away.
In such a tight space, I had guessed right that a knife would be the weapon of choice.
In the moment my opponent's gaze shifted, I struck with my weapon of the day, a telescopic baton, hitting the man's temple and knocking him out.
"Don't be a coward!"
The voice of another man echoed off the walls as I ran in the opposite direction of the footsteps.
I could return the way I came to reach a wider area, but with multiple pursuers entering the alley, I had no choice but to head deeper into the warehouse district.
A few rounds of arcane gun bullets flew by, but they were just plain bullets, not even silenced.
"[Capture Net]"
"Ack!"
The people who chased me got caught perfectly in the trap I'd set just before exiting the alley.
I took a quick glance back to confirm: their weapons were a mix of knives, batons, and arcane guns.
"...Is there no Arcanist?"
They might not have deadly force, but it would take time for the untrained humans to escape from the capture net, so I figured I could leave them alone.
I stepped out into the moonlight.
The space between the neighboring warehouses was narrow, but the entrance across from me was wide enough for an Arcane Car to fit through, providing relatively good visibility.
However,
"You've really gathered quite the crowd..."
A group of armed individuals in drab uniforms emerged from the warehouse, surrounding me.
"How many of you are there just to take me down?"
Even against a disaster-level beast, it would've been fewer than this.
Of course, they were trained soldiers sent out.
"Y-You're the reason I've ended up like this!"
One of them, a lanky guy, said shakily while aiming his arcane gun.
That gun was clearly too large for someone like him to handle, and it was illegal for him to even possess it.
"I see. You managed to gather this many people thanks to that noble who was mixed up with that organization."
I was impressed he'd managed to rally such a crowd, but it seemed like they'd incited former nobles and others impacted by that incident to join in on the vengeance.
"Why me? If you're going to blame someone, it should be the military."
"You were the one who executed it!"
He fired excitedly, but the shot zoomed past my head, more than a fist's distance above me.
"Better stop, or you'll hit your buddies."
"Shut up!"
After he fired again, the guys behind me scrambled to avoid being in the line of fire.
Maybe I should make a run for it from here.
"We know you were at that scene, [Two Star Demon]!"
"...Is it because of that newspaper article?"
It looks like they saw my face in that tiny photo and were led to believe I was responsible for everything.
Sure, I was the one who brought down Isandro, but I didn't do it all by myself; it's a terrible thing to say.
"So? This is how many of you came to kill me?"
"That's right! I'll avenge my clan! Attack!"
It seemed they thought even I, an Arcanist, wouldn't stand a chance against nearly 20 people attacking at once.
But...
"Shadow Tag"
"Whaaa!?"
"Eek!"
Suddenly, the Arcane Art's pattern appeared at the feet of the armed group, and black shadows shot out, wrapping themselves around limbs as screams echoed everywhere.
They weren't just casually strolling without any precautions.
Seriously, knowing I'm an Arcanist, why do most of them still come at me with melee weapons?
"Demons! Demons are here!"
"Help! They're going to kill me!"
Like the Capture net, Shadow Tag is a magic used to immobilize or bind, but because it looks so creepy, it scares anyone who doesn't know magic well──both a strength and a problem.
Anyway, I'd felt something off the entire time before coming here.
"...What the hell is Isandro thinking?"
This sloppy, barely-planned revenge isn't his style at all.
Even the remnants said to be loyal to him aren't here, though I clearly memorized their faces after getting photos beforehand.
Probably, some unknown fallen noble who's crawling around after dropping their arcane gun is behind this.
They probably don't have any real info.
I tightened the Shadow Tag's grip until they passed out, then suddenly turned toward the warehouse where the magic power was flaring up.
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