Chapter 19: Children of God(5)

“Why do you say it can’t be done!!”

Meanwhile, the madam was throwing a glass onto the floor in frustration.

She was trying to take action against a guild she had never heard of, completely oblivious to the situation at hand.

But not only was the Hades Guild just sitting there, but even Nox was being so compliant?

I’ll concede that the Hades Guild might behave that way, but Nox shouldn’t be like this.

Just considering the tribute that the Tears of the Moon had given to Nox, it was enough money to buy several territories.

And when you add in bribes and gifts, the total was unfathomable.

“Pl-please calm down, Madam.”

“The Matron herself has given the order, so there’s nothing we can do, right?”

“What the hell is that old hag in the back so scary for!!”

The Matron was the woman leading Nox, the King of Night.

Naturally, the madam acknowledged that the Matron had achieved great things for Nox.

But now, she was just an old toothless tiger.

It was frustrating for the madam that she was still acting so fearful.

Is it really that hard to take care of a pathetic little guild?

“Ugh, no, forget it. Alright, we have to follow the Matron’s orders.”

The madam clutched her aching head and finally managed to speak rationally.

She didn’t need the Matron’s help; she could handle that guild perfectly well with her connections.

“What about the kid we caught again?”

“Still resisting.”

“After everything we did for them, they can’t even speak?”

The madam clicked her tongue in disdain.

She had taken in something completely useless and made it somewhat useful.

But she couldn’t dispose of it either, even though it was ungrateful and didn’t appreciate her kindness.

There were very few women without tongues, but there was demand for them.

When you insert something deeply into a hole, the tongue can get in the way, or so they say.

It doesn’t matter what excites the customers.

The most important thing is money.

And the customers who preferred women without tongues were wealthy clients, even by the picky madam’s standards.

The madam clicked her tongue.

If only she had thought of taking their friends as hostages.

‘I never even considered that because it was too dirty to think about.’

To the madam, the children of the gods were like little rats.

Hamsters were somewhat cute and could be kept as pets, but the other sewer rats were so disgusting she didn’t even want to deal with them.

“But I can’t just tell the kids to go catch the sewer rats.”

“Madam, one of those brats from earlier has come looking for you.”

“What? One of that kid’s friends came looking?”

“Yes, we’ve captured him for now. Should we kick him back outside?”

“No, no. This is actually good. It reduces my worries.”

Even those trash could be of help once or twice in their lives.

The madam stood up with a bright smile.

A moment later, a familiar face appeared where the madam had exited.

It was a boy with purple hair and a small scar on his cheek.

The madam approached Diego with a smile.

Even while being held by them, Diego didn’t wipe the vicious look from his eyes.

“The little rat doesn’t know its place and came back here again?”

“Shut up, just give Sasha back quickly. Otherwise…!!”

“I can’t return her, but I can arrange for you to meet her.”

At the madam’s gesture, the door opened, and Sasha appeared along with the staff.

Sasha was still wearing the clothes she had burned before.

Seeing Sasha, Diego’s body jerked, and he shouted.

“Sasha!!”

“……!!”

“Lift her up. And give me a hit.”

As per the madam’s orders, one of the men holding Diego shoved a hand under his armpit and held him tightly against his back.

And another punched Diego in the stomach.

“Ugh!!”

“Well~ at least that scream is worth something.”

“……! ……!!”

While watching Diego being beaten in front of her, Sasha desperately tried to stop it.

But there was no way a frail girl could withstand the strength of an adult.

The madam said with a smile,

“Hey, don’t you still want to work?”

“Don’t listen to that… I’m fine… Ugh!!”

“Oh dear, don’t hit him too hard. He might die.”

Despite her worried tone, her voice was full of mockery.

Sasha looked back and forth between Diego and the madam with a panicked expression.

And then she realized what she needed to do.

“How about it? Have you changed your mind a bit?”

She nodded.

Nothing would change in this situation.

If she didn’t take action, Diego would die.

Sasha didn’t want that to happen.

So, she reluctantly nodded her head.

Diego shouted.

“What are you planning to do!! Sa…………..”

“Good thinking, kid. Now let’s get ready.”

‘Damn it, damn it, damn it! Damn!!!’

Her fists clenched tightly.

But there was nothing she could do.

All Diego could do was blame the world.

He was the only friend she could confide in, in this abandoned place.

But.

Are you going to take that away from me too?

I didn’t ask for much.

Is it so hard just to be together with us?

Why is that?

If you hated us so much, you shouldn’t have given birth to us in the first place.

Why us!!

Anger. Helplessness.

And despair.

Feeling powerless in the face of his own inability, Diego was destined to become a monster.

At least if the door hadn’t broken down, things wouldn’t have been so different.

“What the hell is this chaos?”

The door shattered.

The situation was easy to grasp.

But the madam was not surprised.

Instead, she felt bewildered.

Are they really planning to mess with us this badly?

Which crazy bastard is this?

“Sophia, Hans.”

The silver-haired man who burst in and destroyed the door quietly spoke.

Then, the two who had been waiting behind him quickly organized the situation.

Diego and Sasha could only blink in confusion.

“Don’t move. This will be over soon.”

“The girl is fine, but the boy is badly hurt.”

“Looks like he has some broken bones. First, I’ll give him first aid.”

Looking at Diego, who was covered in wounds, and Sasha, who was openly exposing her genitals like a prostitute, Hans and Sophia felt a pang of guilt.

They realized this because of Isaac.

[When I first saw orphans on the battlefield, I felt very sorry for them. I also questioned what fault the children had.]

[······.]

[But now, that feeling has completely disappeared. I actually found them annoying and disgusting. Even though the kids are innocent………….]

[………….If they make mistakes, they can repent and correct them. It’s not too late yet.]

The previous day, they had received a tremendous shock.

They believed that nothing had really changed.

They thought they hadn’t done anything wrong.

But at some point, they had adapted too much to Gideon.

It was Isaac who made them realize this.

At first, they thought he was just a loudmouth.

They had no choice but to hold hands back then because the situation was so urgent.

But now it was different.

He had the power to lead people directly.

And that too, on the right path.

That’s why Sophia and Hans decided to trust Isaac.

And follow that path.

“How can you be so reckless in broad daylight……………!!”

“Shut up.”

……?!

To act so recklessly like this.

There’s a limit to how much you can look down on someone.

Naturally, the madam was ready to spew out her rage.

However, a chilling remark, like the cold of winter, silenced her.

As if her vocal cords had been cut, the madam could not utter a sound.

It was because of the overwhelming aura emanating from the silver-haired man standing in front of her.

He soon opened his mouth.

“I am extremely angry right now.”

“W-what on earth for…………?!”

“Because you people dared to touch the children I support and protect from the Iron Shield.”

‘What the hell are you talking about?!’

What? Support? Protect? Who? The children of the gods?

As a madam, she was about to go crazy, but she couldn’t say anything right now.

Her instincts were warning her.

If she made a wrong move, she would really die.

“I’m giving you one last chance.”

“…Ugh, e-extreme……!”

“Apologize directly to the children. And swear that you will never touch them again. If not………….”

“I-I will! I promise!!”

She still had some pride left.

As the owner of the Tears of the Moon, if she bowed her head to some unheard-of minor guild, her rivals would take advantage of that and tear her apart.

But now, she couldn’t even calculate that.

The overwhelming fear of death weighed down on her like a mountain, forcing the madam, who had looked down on the children of the gods, to bow her head.

“I-I’m sorry! I won’t do it again!! Please forgive me!”

‘For now, I just have to get through this. I’ll report to Nox and Hades right away……..!’

“Alright, you apologized. So I won’t take your life.”

“Th-thank you……..?”

However, the madam couldn’t finish her sentence.

Before she knew it, Isaac had taken his stance.

Even without learning to wield a sword, it was obvious.

Anyone could tell he was about to draw his sword and do something.

Swish.

A chilling noise echoed, as if something was being cut.

Warm sunlight could be felt on her head.

Wait, she felt sunlight?

The madam slowly lifted her head.

That unease quickly became reality.

“My, my Tears of the Moon?!?!”

That’s right.

Literally, Isaac had drawn his sword and split the Tears of the Moon in half.

She didn’t even hear the sound of the crack, nor did the building completely collapse.

It simply stood there, split in half.

As if he hadn’t even realized he had been cut.

Isaac sheathed his sword.

The madam hissed at him.

“What the hell is this madness?! What did I do wrong?!”

“Do you still not realize your mistake?”

“Gideon has always been a survival of the fittest!!”

Since Hades Guild took power, only the strong were treated well.

The weak were thoroughly eliminated.

She had simply followed that way of life.

But, but what did I do wrong…!?

“That’s not wrong.”

“Y-yeah! I’m stronger! I just did what I wanted!”

“I’ll return that exact sentiment to you.”

“What…?”

What is this nonsense?

The madam couldn’t think straight.

No, she couldn’t afford to think straight.

Her life’s work had been shattered.

For such a madam, Isaac said,

“I, the strongest, have decided to protect these children.”

So, it’s your fault for touching the children.

Isn’t it?

In the end, the madam couldn’t hold on any longer and fainted.