Next to the office for Crime Firm employees at the end of the black market, there was an old gentleman sitting on an empty desk.
He was also an employee of the Crime Firm and was in charge of selling "special products" that were mainly handled directly by the Crime Firm.
The corpse was, of course, one of them.
"I see. So, you need the Corpse of a doctor and a Warlock?”
"Yes, I hope the Warlock is not just a Warlock, but someone who was an expert in manipulation. The doctor's corpse should have surgical skills."
Oliver calmly explained the conditions he wanted.
The old gentleman, who wore gold-rimmed glasses, filled out the form according to the words.
After finishing writing, the old gentleman said, lifting his gold-rimmed glasses.
"The conditions are tricky. What's the grade you need?”
Grade.
Oliver had been informed about this beforehand by Joe.
Like the corpses Oliver wanted, corpses with special conditions were graded.
Naturally, the higher the grade, the higher the quality, and the higher the price.
It was divided into a total of five grades, and from the second grade, it will be the corpse of people who made their names known in their respective occupations.
"Um, about grade three?"
The old gentleman answered, fluttering through the documents.
"The doctor is 120 million and the Warlock is 200 million, but considering the conditions you wanted, the Warlock itself will cost 300 million."
“Um…”
For the first time, Oliver realized the fear of money.
He did not expect it would easily exceed the 400 million which he earned by risking his life.
To be honest, he thought he would have some money left after buying everything….. He thought everything would be too easy with the money he had.
When Oliver went silent, the old gentleman took off his glasses and said politely.
"The product itself is special and difficult to handle, so the price is a little high. We always try to maintain the quality of the product, if you want you can come after saving some more money. I'll always be here…"
"…By any chance, can I hear the price of grade 4? The doctor’s conditions remain the same, but the Warlock can be just the one who can use manipulation-type black magic with no other additional conditions."
The hesitant old gentleman put on his glasses again, opened a new document, and looked at it.
After Fluttering through the pages for a while, he then stopped at a file.
"Just in time, we have received one such body of a fourth-grade doctor. It's 90 million, but the expiration date is close, so I think we can give you a 10 percent discount for 81 million."
"Um, that's nice."
"Let's see… and for the Warlock, we can sell you one for 170 million."
81 million, 170 million, in total it was 251 million.
It was a huge cost, but it was not something Oliver couldn't pay.
However, if he combined other drugs, work tools, and equipment that he bought earlier, he would have used almost every penny he received from Edith Rock's job.
Oliver was a little hesitant.
The money itself was not a problem, but he was worried that if he used it up now, he would be in trouble at the moment if he needed money later.
He wondered if it was the right choice to make an assistant-corpse doll by spending this amount.
Oliver opened his mouth after thinking for a while.
"…I'd like to order those two. When can I get it?”
Oliver decided to focus on the present.
It was money – he thought he could make more money later, and decided that it was important to experiment as soon as possible.
Oliver could feel Joe behind him, who was slightly surprised at the fairly large sum.
The same was true of the gold-rimmed old gentleman sitting in front.
"Are you going to buy it?"
"Yes. Any problem….?”
"No… I can get the goods as early as a week or 10 days later. The total amount is 251 million."
"Yes."
Oliver replied with a nod.
It was a little late, but there was nothing he could do about the procedures and rules here.
As Oliver contemplated what to do before the corpses got delivered, the old gentleman spoke again.
"Then, may I ask you to fill out this form? And I'd like you to pay half the amount as a down payment now. It's a rule."
Oliver nodded and took out the purse-shaped glutton bag.
In preparation for such a case, he had already taken all the money out of the anonymous account, which was a relief.
Oliver forced the glutton bag mouth open and stuffed his forearm deep into it.
“Uuuuu….”
When he swung his arm in, a reaction came from the inside of the glutton bag.
Oliver held the glutton bag upside down in that state.
"Uuuuuuuuuu!”
With the sound of groaning from the inside, bundles of money poured onto the desk.
It was easy to clean up thanks to the vomit of the bundle of bills, but the person involved, the glutton bag, shed tears from its five eyes as if it was in pain.
Oliver did not miss the momentum and shook it up and down more.
"Sorry, just a little bit more. I'll give you a 10,000 bill later."
“Uuuuuuuu!”
“Uuuuuuuuuu!”
THUD
Finally, the glutton bag drooped, after spitting everything it had.
After being surprised for a moment, the old gentleman soon recovered his composure and began organizing the money.
He began to stack the tied bills one by one, and he checked the amount by touching the bills with his fingertips.
After a while, he said,
"125.5 million. It's exactly right."
"Yes… Um, and I filled out the papers here."
Oliver said as he turned over the completed form.
Even if it was written, all he wrote down was just his name, and checked if the product he ordered was on the document.
The old gentleman said, looking at the form.
"Is your name Dave Wright?"
"Yes."
"I see… We will make sure that you receive your order in time. Take this."
The old gentleman held out an iron key.
"I checked your face, but I'm giving you this just in case. It's not like you can't get the goods just because you lose it, but it'll be more convenient if you bring it."
Oliver understood what he meant – Procedures for security.
Oliver rose from his seat after saying he would not lose it.
When he tried to leave, the old gentleman said,
"It's an honor to make a deal with Mr. Dave."
"…Um, thank you."
Oliver replied with a strange sense of incompatibility, wondering why he was a little kinder after hearing his name.
Oliver, who finished his last business, left the black market with Joe.
As he climbed down the basement and came out of the parking lot, Landa's unique gloomy sky welcomed him.
"Now it's my turn to keep my word."
Oliver asked, looking at Joe who followed him.
Joe was silent, hiding his tension.
"But can you tell me why? Why do you want to fight me?”
⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩
Oliver and Joe went to a deserted corner outside District R.
It was the ruins where construction was stopped due to a series of incidents during redevelopment, and Joe explained as if he knew it because of his work in the black market.
"What's your job?"
"Executioner. I will execute the person who swindled in the black market or the employee who stole the goods here."
Although it was faint, Oliver could see bloodstains on Joe's clothes as if to prove his words.
"It might sound ironic, but this market also needs trust, and surprisingly, it manages it thoroughly. We always monitor and weed out tenants who sell defective products or employees who steal goods."
"Everyone is working hard. It's great."
Oliver spoke from the bottom of his heart, but Joe stared at Oliver with his eyes wide open.
"…Did I say anything wrong?”
"No, I just thought you were really a weird guy."
Joe answered, taking off his coat and watch and rolling up his shirt.
"Well then, let’s fight."
"Wait a minute. I haven't heard the answer yet. Why do you want to fight me?”
"That's…, first fight and then answer…!"
BAM
Joe kicked a piece of brick that was on the ground as soon as he finished speaking.
A brick the size of a fist flew toward Oliver's face.
Oliver reflexively swung his quarterstaff and smashed the brick.
At that moment, Joe, who strengthened his body with black magic, ran straight toward Oliver.
He was faster and more skillful than when Oliver first met him.
"Um…."
Joe’s fist flew straight at Oliver's face with a sound that cuts through the wind – as sharp as a razor, and Oliver narrowly backed away and avoided it.
"What?"
"Um, I'm sorry. I'll borrow some."
Oliver said after extracting some of the emotions in the black magic that Joe put in his body.
It was more of a reflex action than a deliberate one, and Joe was surprised by it.
"……."
Soon, Oliver extracted Life-force from the test tube he had put in his pocket, and then with the borrowed black magic, he weaved it together.
[Black suit ver. 2]
After making emotions and Life-force like a thread, he weaved it like a cloth, as if squeezing it, and then wrapped it around his body as well as the quarterstaff.
It reminded Joe of the first time he met Oliver in the past.
Perhaps because of that memory, Joe also took a posture again after strengthening his body by extracting emotions.
Oliver could see some resolution – a more serious one.
TAK TAK TAK
Joe clenched his fists, got into position, and started running toward Oliver once again.
His breathing was stable, and his eyes were sharp.
Oliver pushed the quarterstaff forward as if to respond to Joe’s resolution, in a position that best utilized the strengths of a long weapon – the quarterstaff.
BAM!
Joe moved, focusing all the energy on his legs.
He moved surprisingly quickly to narrow the distance.
The movement itself was flexible and sharp, making it difficult to follow with ordinary eyes – a normal one – which does not include Oliver.
BANG!
Joe approached with instantaneous speed, and Oliver swung his quarterstaff along the moving line.
Despite swinging at the right time, Joe quickly lowered his waist to avoid the attack.
As if it was not enough, he gathered energy into his fist in that crouching posture.
BANG!
The machine-like precision punch aimed at Oliver's chest went straight ahead like a bomb, and Oliver quickly pulled his quarterstaff to protect his chest.
Not all, but Oliver could now indirectly predict where the opponent would attack after his battle with Duncan – otherwise, he would have taken a great deal of damage.
Tung——!!!
The knuckle that collided with the quarterstaff roared.
The sound of a huge iron bump.
But Joe didn't care, he soon went for a kick.
In an instant, he concentrated his black magic energy on his legs to increase his attack power, and it was certainly better than before.
At that moment, instead of defending himself from Joe’s attack, Oliver went ahead and attacked him.
Oliver, who had high black magic firepower should have been disadvantageous if he were to exchange blows with Joe – But it was wrong.
Joe gathered his shoulders, spun around, and narrowly avoided Oliver’s attack.
Oliver asked in admiration looking at the physical skills that were unique and outstanding.
"Amazing. Where did you learn that?"
—BANG!!
Instead of answering, Joe continued his attack by attempting to punch, and Oliver raised his arm to block it.
There was no damage or pain because he was wearing a black suit, but he could feel the power indirectly.
It was a fist that would have turned the body of an average person into minced meat.
It was definitely stronger than before.
Oliver thought it was amazing and wondered whether he trained on his own.
Despite Oliver's thoughts, the blows continued, and every time Oliver and Joe exchanged blows, the sound of cutting the wind and the sound of iron hitting each other resonated like a storm.
Most of Oliver's attacks ended in dodging or bruising, but Joe's attacks hit Oliver's body properly once in three times.
It was Oliver who was actually getting pushed.
As expected, he was defeated by Joe in a close combat match once before.
However, in spite of his upper hand, Joe became increasingly nervous and pushed Oliver desperately.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"
When Joe kept attacking Oliver with his fist, he suddenly changed his attack to a headbutt.
Oliver responded a second later to the unexpected attack.
He tried to hold out somehow, but Joe used all his weight to push Oliver to the wall.
With a bump, Oliver was pushed toward the wall.
It was then. Joe concentrated all of the energy in his body on his right fist – and swung it with all his might.
BOOM————!!!
Oliver flew backward in shock.
Not only did he fly, but he also crashed through the wall that supported his back.
The incontinence in Oliver’s black suit represented how powerful the attack was.
Although it was an attack method that required a considerable burden on the body, the power was the real deal.
Oliver, who fell back, got up on his knees quickly as if rolling and swung his quarterstaff toward Joe who came running.
BOOM
Joe, who came running at a great speed, raised his guard in confusion, but the guard opened due to the difference in the power of the black magic.
"Kuegh!"
Joe's posture collapsed in shock and pain.
Oliver rose up quickly, swung his quarterstaff again, and Joe defended, but failed to stop the attack completely and flew back.
He was driven to the wall Oliver broke through earlier.
Joe looked quite shocked.
He did not understand how Oliver's skills improved this much compared to the past in close combat.
"Hey…"
"What?"
Joe said, breathing heavily.
"Do it right."
"What?"
"Don't go easy on me. Attack me properly, properly so that I can see your skills. Don't deal with me in moderation."
An inexplicable remark from the person who was losing, but Joe meant what he said.
His emotions couldn't be more serious.
Jealousy, curiosity, fear, courage, injustice, acknowledgment, anger, patience, sadness, hope, etc. kept shining.
Looking at the lights that looked pretty in his eyes, Oliver replied.
"Um… Okay, here I go."
(To be Continued)
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