Chapter 26 – Hatred and Anger (Three)

He opened the door and entered the small container inside the hotel.

Creak—

The warm scent of alcohol and medicine that wafted in as soon as he entered.

Medicines and medical tools were placed on shelves that lined the walls.

“Over here.”

Turning his gaze toward the voice, he saw Philip sitting up from the bed.

Thud. Thud.

Ray approached and sat in a chair, looking Philip up and down.

“You look in better shape than I expected.”

Bandages and gauze wrapped around his limbs.

Yellowish bruises staining his skin here and there.

Ointment applied over red wounds.

His face was also swollen, as if he’d been hit several times, but his eyes had regained some clarity.

“Thanks to you. I heard from the kids. They said you carried me here.”

Philip added in a weary voice that he had been on the verge of losing consciousness in the container.

“My mind is still a bit foggy. And my body probably won’t be able to move without a wheelchair for a while.”

“As long as you’re alive, that’s enough.”

At Ray’s characteristically dry way of speaking, Philip let out a stifled laugh.

“You’re right. As long as I’m alive, that’s enough.”

That really wasn’t a wrong thing to say.

Street orphans with tenacious grit could revive like weeds no matter how trampled they were, as long as they clung to life.

Ray continued the conversation.

“I didn’t expect you to be getting beaten up by Cedric there.”

“It was unexpected. Cedric never goes outside on days when the Black Rain falls. He’d send his underlings if he had to.”

Philip said with a genuinely surprised expression.

“I was planning to scout ahead. If the owner of the street changed to you, I could immediately send the hotel kids to that shopping district.”

“Bold. I thought you were incredibly timid.”

“You’re right. I am originally very timid. And cowardly too. But I try to overcome fear when the situation calls for it.”

Overcoming fear.

Ray’s interest was piqued.

“When is that?”

“When there’s a chance to make money. When I met you, and today’s incident too. Also…”

Ray lowered his gaze to look at Philip’s Vessel.

‘Usually, when talking about money, golden Mana seeps into the Vessel.’

Golden Mana appears when people harbor greed for money or material possessions.

But when talking about money, the amount of Golden Mana seeping into Philip’s Vessel wasn’t that great.

Rather, what occupied a large volume at that timing was pink Mana.

It wasn’t a color he had witnessed often.

But he knew that when people think of someone they want to meet but cannot meet…

The color of Mana that seeps into their Vessel at that time is pink.

‘Last time when talking about money, Golden Mana and pink Mana appeared together too. Similarly, the proportion of pink Mana was much higher.’

Outwardly, he looks like a perfect money-grubber, but in reality, his greed for money itself isn’t that great.

That meant there was another reason why he hoarded money so tenaciously.

“……”

Ray raised his gaze again.

It was merely personal curiosity, and anyway, it wasn’t an important story for now.

Because there were other things he clearly had to do right now.

“So, in my opinion…”

“You and Cedric seem to have known each other for a long time.”

Philip, who had closed his mouth for a moment.

He seemed to be organizing his thoughts, then continued the story.

“You’re quick-witted as expected. He probably wouldn’t have told you that himself.”

“……”

“Please know I didn’t intend to hide it with bad intentions first. I thought if you knew he was my friend, you might hesitate in the Duel, though you probably wouldn’t.”

Ray nodded in understanding.

“Tell me the story. Even trivial information could help in the Duel.”

Originally, Ray thought he could easily subdue Cedric.

But after seeing the growth of the Ring’s Mana today, his thoughts changed.

It seemed better to prepare.

Everything possible within reason.

“I don’t know where to start. First, Cedric was originally a hotel resident.”

“A hotel resident?”

“Yeah. He was a friend I’ve been with since we were very young.”

Philip said that before the hotel was completed, he and Cedric were always in the position of the weak on the streets.

Getting beaten. Having things taken. Being extorted.

Surviving the threat of death day by day.

“Only after creating the hotel could we live a stable life.”

No getting hit.

No starving.

No shivering from the cold.

But Cedric was always filled with dissatisfaction somewhere, he said.

“To be precise, he was angry. After work, he would always train his body obsessively.”

Ray recalled Cedric’s body and nodded.

His physique was small, but it was clearly a body with solid muscle.

“Then, half a year ago, he left the hotel on his own. He went around picking fights like crazy on the streets.”

“Even if he trained his body, I doubt he suddenly started winning all his fights.”

Philip agreed with Ray’s words.

“Right. As you know, street fights rely much more on physique than technique… Ah, of course your case is an exception. Anyway, Cedric isn’t on the larger side physically. Even if he trained desperately, there was a limit to how good he could get at fighting.”

To begin with, Cedric wasn’t particularly skilled at fighting either.

The impression Ray got was of someone wildly swinging his fists, backed by the power of the Ring.

Philip continued in a bitter voice.

“Cedric kept losing. Because there was a fundamental difference in size compared to the kids who ruled the streets.”

“Then the situation must have changed drastically.”

“Huh?”

Philip’s pupils widened.

As if asking how he knew that.

“Right. Cedric suddenly started fighting well. To be precise, he became strong. Lifting opponents with one hand. Knocking opponents out with one punch.”

That was two months ago.

After a winning streak, Cedric challenged the original Captain of the gang he now leads and took his place.

“No one understood it… but they had no choice. Because it was happening right before their eyes. Maybe he had been hiding his monstrous strength all along, everyone accepted it that way.”

Ray increasingly felt the puzzle pieces in his head fitting together.

He followed up with a question.

“When he was a hotel resident, did Cedric originally have something like a Ring?”

“A Ring? Ah, the one he’s been wearing lately? No, he originally had no interest in such things. Probably got it from somewhere as a showpiece after becoming the gang’s Captain. He always had a bit of a tendency to show off.”

Ray nodded.

He continued the hypothesis in his head.

‘If the man from the basement gave the Ring to Cedric, who was wandering the streets.’

Then the situation fits together.

But why.

Why give the Ring to Cedric?

The man said he offered the condition of making him a formal Operative if he formed a gang and filled the numbers.

So was it to give Cedric the strong power needed to form a gang?

‘But he seemed to have been expelled from the organization. He probably couldn’t really make him an Operative.’

Then what was the reason for telling him to gather a gang?

For what purpose.

For what reason.

Ray, sinking into a swamp of doubt, slightly narrowed his brow and continued his questions.

“Cedric’s personality wasn’t originally that violent either, right?”

“…You hit the nail on the head like a ghost. Right. His personality changed after leaving the hotel. Especially recently, drastically.”

Philip fell silent as if organizing his thoughts, then spoke.

“After Cedric went out to the streets, he kept his distance from me. Ignoring me even if I called his name from afar. Sometimes throwing contemptuous looks. Today he tried to kill me…”

The more he spoke, Philip’s face rapidly darkened.

Because as his mind gradually cleared, he was becoming properly aware of what he had experienced.

The rims of his eyes turned red, but he managed to hold back his emotions and didn’t shed tears.

“Since he kept his distance from you, he must have refused business too, of course.”

“That’s right. And actually, Cedric dislikes not just me, but all the hotel kids. There must be a reason for that too.”

Ray paused for a moment before speaking.

“I want to make you a proposal.”

A proposal here?

Philip’s eyes widened.

And he couldn’t help but be surprised once more by Ray’s next words.

“Would you like to try talking with Cedric?”

“Try… talking?”

Ray continued, checking the Color of Emotion in Philip’s Vessel.

“You’re old friends, right? Don’t you want to mend the broken relationship?”

“That’s… true. If I could.”

“Come to the Duel location with me. After the Duel ends, I’ll arrange a place for you to talk with Cedric.”

Ray’s thinking was simple.

Though he planned to take the Captain’s seat through the Duel, he intended to have someone else manage the gang.

If possible, Cedric.

Since he was a figure who ruled through fear, he could surely control the kids firmly.

‘To do that, I’ll need to take the Ring first, of course.’

If he cuts off the supply of red Mana, he should be able to win the Duel easily.

Without the red Mana to stir up emotions, his violent personality shouldn’t resurface afterward either.

But just in case, he wanted to have insurance in the form of Philip.

Philip possessed exceptional talent in observing people in a short time and turning their hearts through conversation.

If it’s a friend he’s spent a long time with, it goes without saying.

“I’d like it if you reconciled with Cedric.”

“……”

So if Cedric refuses to manage the gang, I’d like you to persuade him.

While Ray was thinking that.

Philip, who had been lost in thought, spoke.

“I’m not sure if just arranging a place means Cedric and I can reconcile, but more importantly, I can’t enter the Duel location.”

“Why?”

“From what I’ve figured out, only kids belonging to the three major gangs can enter the Duel location.”

“Ah, if that’s what you’re worried about, don’t. I already talked to Cedric about bringing you. On the condition that if he beats me, he can publicly execute you in front of all the gangs gathered at the Duel arena.”

“Ah, then entry is possible…?”

Philip’s words cut off abruptly.

He thought he heard something strange in Ray’s latter statement.

“Publicly execute me?”

“Yeah. If Cedric beats me, you’ll be executed.”

“Huh… execution, as in the execution I know? Usually execution means taking someone’s life, does Sector 50 use the meaning a bit differently?”

“That’s the one. You know it well.”

“……”

Philip blinked.

His mind raced tremendously in a short time, reaching the only conclusion that could make sense of the situation.

Philip slightly lifted the corner of his mouth and said.

“What, Ray, you make jokes too—”

“I don’t do that. If I lose the Duel, you’ll be executed. In a very cruel way.”

“You’re joking…”

“No.”

“Joking…”

“No.”

Philip fell silent.

It seemed the one who saved him from the beast’s jaws might be another beast after all.

With a flustered gesture, he put on his glasses with broken lenses and straightened his middle finger, pressing the bridge of his nose toward Ray.

He also sent a timid protesting look, but it didn’t seem to convey much meaning.

“……”

Actually, he had known from the start.

That the person before him existed at a distance from jokes as vast as the space between Sectors.

“Why? Are you scared?”

I’m not sure about scared, but it’s certain there’s an executioner right in front of me who’s going to drag me to the gallows.

“You won’t die. Execution is conditional on Cedric beating me.”

“……”

“I think I’ll win. You said the same before too.”

“Umm…”

For a moment, his head throbbed, but thinking about it, that was true.

His prediction that Ray would beat Cedric remained unchanged even now.

And if.

If Ray controls Cedric by force and arranges a place for conversation…

‘There’s no reason to refuse.’

Because he had wished for such a situation for a long time.

But did the conversation necessarily have to happen right there after the Duel?

Couldn’t it be possible at another place when the opportunity arises later?

“……”

After pondering, Philip soon shook his head inwardly.

He very much wanted to see Ray and Cedric’s Duel with his own eyes.

“I’ll do it. I’ll go to the Duel arena with you.”

A short but sincere statement.

Just as Philip was about to continue the next story.

“Good thinking. And there’s one more thing you need to do at the Duel arena. A second proposal.”

Ray’s next words flew in without giving him time to catch his breath.

Philip asked back with a bewildered face.

“A second proposal?”

“Yeah. Bet all the money you’ve saved up until now on me.”

Words that came without any warning.

Because of that, it took Philip a moment to fully understand the sentence.

“Bet money… on you? All the money I’ve saved up… all of it?”

“You heard correctly.”

Philip was at a loss for words.

Aha! So this is the real Sector 50-style joke! Ray has an excellent sense of humor! Hahahaha!

“Didn’t you say you try to overcome fear when there’s a chance to make money?”

Philip’s body, which had momentarily sent his consciousness elsewhere, flinched.

“……”

“Philip. I’ll say it again. I’m proposing a business deal to you. This is a chance to make a lot of money.”

When making money, he summons courage.

It was definitely something he said with his own mouth.

It felt like getting hit hard on the head with a hammer.

Also, he was always the one proposing business deals to others first; he never imagined he’d experience the opposite situation.

And from a peer, not an adult.

‘A chance to make a lot of money.’

It wasn’t a wrong statement.

The Duel taking place two days later wasn’t some clumsy fistfight commonly seen on the streets.

Cedric had set up a proper stage.

Kids from the three major gangs would attend in large numbers as spectators.

‘The other gang Captains, Jepper and Lotsson, will definitely show up too.’

That meant money on a scale different from usual would gather in one place.

If successful, he could rake in an enormous amount of money.

The sense of panic quickly subsided.

The inner businessman lying in the sickbed abruptly got up and began analyzing the situation coldly and rationally.

‘My thought that Ray will win the Duel remains unchanged.’

The problem was separate.

Could he really take the winnings out safely?

Far from taking the money out, he might not even save his own life, getting beaten by angry kids.

At that moment.

“Just beat Cedric. Even if a hundred others come at me, they can’t beat me.”

As if reading his thoughts, Ray’s voice came.

Startled, Philip slowly raised his bowed head.

He could meet Ray’s unwavering eyes.

“……”

“……”

Philip thought he understood.

What answer would ultimately come from his own mouth.

After several minutes of contemplation.

Scrape—

Philip got up from his seat, extended his hand to Ray, and said.

“It’s an honor to work with you, CEO Ray. Let’s draw up a contract first.”

Two days later.

A bright, sunny afternoon.

The Junkyard on the southern outskirts of Sector 49.

Thud. Thud.

A group of boys approached a car parked among Scrap Heaps, forming a wide encirclement.

Knock. Knock.

When they knocked on the front door, the window rolled down, revealing a face. It was Ray.

“Looks like you came to greet me.”

“We came to catch you. What if you ran away? I might get scared when it’s actually time to fight.”

It was a bit of a provocation, but Ray showed no reaction.

Not a hint of panic or tension was visible.

“If I ran away now, could you stop me with your strength?”

Rather, a counter-provocation.

The faces of Cedric’s gang instantly hardened.

Their chests tightened.

Irritation and anger welled up.

They thought he might be a little flustered if they suddenly appeared, but why is this guy so impassive?

But the boys couldn’t know.

That Ray had known for quite some time that he was under surveillance.

Swallowing their boiling insides, one of the gang members spoke.

“Don’t act cocky. Word is you sprained your ankle yesterday. Lots of people saw it. No matter how well you fight, if you can’t use your body properly, it’s over. Today will be the day you die. By our Boss. Got it?”

“……”

Seeing Ray’s lack of reaction, thinking they had hit a nerve, the gang members chuckled and laughed among themselves.

But this time too, they didn’t know.

「The Hunter is limping.」

「He badly injured his ankle in a fight.」

That it was a rumor Ray had intentionally spread using the hotel kids.

Ray put the red gems he had been clinking in his hand into his pocket, then opened the door and got out.

Creak—*

He deliberately limped, not forgetting to satisfy the audience’s expectations.

“What, he’s really limping?”

“Pfft. I have no idea what kind of confidence made him talk so big.”

Ray paid no mind to the sneers.

He straightened his posture, cast a glance at the guides, and said.

“Let’s go. To the Duel arena.”