How to Live as an Immortal Chapter 60

Novel: How to Live as an Immortal Author: Hellboy Updated: Jun 19, 2026

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Now reading: Chapter 60 from How to Live as an Immortal, a Action novel by Hellboy.

Chapter 60

Don’t Think You’ve Erased Your Debt

***

Unlike before, Ga-on, now equipped with expensive gear, opened for business with a renewed sense of spirit. Of course, it was not as if anything had changed dramatically.

In the first place, anyone desperate enough to hire a fixer in the underworld would usually seek out soone with a nickna.

Ga-on had also expected such an effect through the Eastern Gate, but unfortunately, as the two gacorps controlled the information, the related incident was reduced and covered up.

In a way, it had been inevitable. Lucas was an agent affiliated with the municipal governnt, taken away by Jin Geon, and Hald had been dealt with by the Mafia without leaving a trace.

With no clear target to hold fully responsible, it was bound to be undervalued.

Even so, Fernandez explained that his na was gradually spreading by word of mouth.

It did feel as though my weight class had grown, perhaps because rumors were circulating.

Only just a little.

Still, there were no clients willing to entrust with anything important, so most jobs ended as one-offs.

Given the circumstances, having a drink at Columbus and shaking off the day had sohow beco part of my daily routine.

Chatting with Fernandez was inevitable.

The topics varied.

Contrary to his appearance, Fernandez was remarkably well-read and made for an excellent conversational partner.

For , who was not yet accustod to life on Mars, he could be called a good ntor.

It was in that sa flow that I ended up ntioning the Mafia I had encountered on the previous job.

As if he knew the man well, Fernandez gasped the mont he heard the description.

“You fought Tyrant?”

“Tyrant? Must be a nickna. It suits him.”

It felt like a single word that perfectly sumd up the impression I had back then, and I found myself nodding.

“How are you even alive?”

“That tone makes it sound like dying would’ve been the natural outco.”

“Don’t tell you don’t know who Tyrant is?”

“Who is he, for you to make such a fuss?”

At my question, Fernandez began to explain.

Nickna, Tyrant.

Real na, Owen Cummings.

He was said to be one of the executives of the Lucchesia Family, one of the four massive dark factions dividing the Seed Colony into quarters, and the man considered closest to becoming the next boss.

He himself was an ardent hardliner—

“They say he has never lost in close combat.”

“Well, he was fairly strong.”

At the end of the day, he was still a civilian. If the Mars Defense Force moved in earnest, he would have to run.

For , who had even clashed with weapons that projected nothing but firepower to win wars, the introduction was nothing special.

“Ah, co to think of it, the equipnt you gave helped back then.”

“That’s good to hear. I wondered if it might’ve been ddling, but it seems my concern wasn’t wasted.”

“More importantly, what happened with the Black Market matter? Is there still sothing left for to prove?”

“That…”

Just as Fernandez was about to answer—

“You’re stingy with praise, fixer.”

A man with a coat draped over his shoulders sat down beside . He brushed his roughly cut hair back and made no effort to conceal his free-spirited deanor.

At the appearance of the wild, rugged man, Owen, I closed my mouth. I hadn’t expected him to show himself first.

Of course, it wasn’t sothing to be shocked about.

If he was an executive of the Lucchesia Family, finding a fixer who had only just set foot in the Seed Colony would be nothing to him.

So the question wasn’t how—

“Why are you here?”

“There are only two reasons to co to a bar. One is to et a good connection, and the other is to drink for free.”

“You’re not expecting to pay, are you?”

“Don’t be so cold. If not today, later you might have to stand in line even if you want to buy a drink.”

I didn’t like the way Owen acted so familiarly for no reason, but I couldn’t simply ignore him either.

“Next ti, you’re paying.”

“That goes without saying.”

Once I gave permission, Owen flicked his finger toward Fernandez.

“Macallan, on the rocks.”

“Got it.”

While Fernandez stepped away, Owen spoke in a low voice.

“You want to enter the Black Market?”

It was abrupt, but I wasn’t foolish enough not to grasp the intent behind it.

He had read my recent movents in their entirety.

And to make matters worse, it was by the one person I most wanted to avoid getting entangled with.

I glared at Fernandez, who had returned with the glass. If information had leaked, there was only one person to suspect.

“It wasn’t . Haven’t we had sothing like that before? I’ve taken it as a lifelong lesson.”

“Hey, don’t bully the wrong person. If you sit in this place long enough, you’re bound to hear all sorts of rumors.”

“That’s not really your place to say.”

“Heh, I suppose that’s true.”

Owen laughed cheerfully and lifted his glass. My gaze was drawn to his prosthetic arm, which glead conspicuously.

Resonance, the Unit equipped with a resonance-induced collapse device.

I had already witnessed its power before. Buildings and roads had crumbled like sandcastles. If Owen changed his mind even now, Columbus would be closing for good tonight.

“If you stare at that passionately, doesn’t it make your blood run hot? Do you rember that night too?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Relax. I don’t clench my fists recklessly. That lacks style. Otherwise, there’d be no difference between the Mafia and street thugs.”

“Aren’t they the sa thing anyway?”

“What matters is that I distinguish them differently.”

He was an arrogant man. The troubleso part was that he had the skill to back it up.

No sooner had I clicked my tongue than an unidentified ssage arrived on my device.

It was obvious that the Owen in front of had sent it.

“It’s an invitation that allows you to enter the Black Market operated by our Lucchesia Family. It feels like bragging to say it myself, but even if you work here for a long ti, it’s not sothing easy to obtain.”

If it was an organization that divided the underworld of the Seed Colony into four, then it was trustworthy.

Sure enough, Fernandez shook his head as if conceding defeat.

“Even if I pounded the pavent, I wouldn’t be confident I could get you anything better than that.”

“Even the broker you trust says so.”

It was a thoroughly intentional approach.

There was no way I wouldn’t be curious about the Mafia’s ulterior motive in bringing exactly the gift I needed at precisely the right ti. But—

“Don’t think this erases your debt. I’ll enjoy it to the fullest and then run.”

“Think of it as a gesture of reconciliation. Your equipnt got wrecked because of , didn’t it?”

“As if.”

***

District 15 was a bustling area. It penetrated distribution, industry, and culture alike.

Centered around Isabella Public University, it had ford a solid school district, making it a place where one could physically feel the air of the upper class.

The scenery was beautiful as well.

The roads, as if painted in watercolor, blended with the clear sky so seamlessly that it hardly felt like winter.

Leisure overflowed from the faces of the people passing by on the street.

Yes, to the point that it was hard to believe a tumor was growing beneath the surface.

Before coming here, when I checked the location written on the invitation, I had to blink for a mont. Absurdly enough, the Black Market was being held in a place the forces of the underworld should have avoided the most.

It wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.

Wasn’t there a saying that it’s darkest under the lamp?

In terms of deceiving the Public Enforcent Corps, there was hardly a better strategy.

Of course, in the case of the Lucchesia Family, it felt less like strategy and more like they had done it deliberately.

That much was evident from the sewer leading to the wastewater treatnt plant.

It was so dry that, if not for the ceiling being sealed off, one might mistake it for an ordinary road. There wasn’t even the usual stench.

It was clear evidence that it was being used for sothing other than its original function.

It could be called a hotbed of corruption, but for , who had already been walking for several minutes, it was nothing short of welco news.

I could take in my surroundings comfortably.

Before long, upon reaching a dead-end alley, I entered the access code attached to the invitation into the control pad.

The bulkhead rotated, revealing a hidden space in an instant.

At the end of it, an elevator stood waiting. Everything fell into place so neatly that it almost felt like an adventure. Not to ntion, I hadn’t encountered a single person on the way.

Most likely, separate entrances had been assigned by date and by attendee.

That assumption beca even clearer when I descended deep underground and walked along a single path. Structurally, it was blocked off to prevent straying elsewhere.

However, beyond the walls, I sensed nurous unfamiliar presences. They had probably restricted each other’s routes to guarantee anonymity.

Even if they were sworn enemies outside, here they were to behave as ordinary guests—it was as if I could glimpse the Lucchesia Family’s policy.

In any case, if one wanted to participate in the auction, the wisest course was to quietly enter an isolated booth.

Click.

What I saw upon opening the door and stepping inside was a large screen. Beside the seat, a hologram floated, allowing for closer inspection of the items.

I sat down and pulled up the catalog.

The funds I could imdiately mobilize amounted to roughly 5 billion.

Since I had no idea what might happen, I had to refrain from unexpected expenditures.

As the scheduled ti approached, the dry, matter-of-fact auction began.

With the environnt structured to allow participants to focus solely on purchasing, the pace was extraordinary. As if competing against one another, nurous items were either sold or passed over in rapid succession.

Representative examples included illegal Slots of all kinds—chips, fras, bodies, arms, legs, and modules—special Units discarded at the final stage of completion due to company circumstances, and more advanced yet dangerous genetic modifications.

Among them were even a few pieces of equipnt that had leaked from the Mars Defense Force.

Anything labeled military-grade generally demonstrated performance that easily surpassed an entire generation, so I watched with interest—but that was all.

There was sothing else I wanted.

But—

‘There isn’t a single unlocked android?’

Various modified models had been listed, yet none of them had truly obtained freedom.

If this were a Black Market anyone could enter with money, that might have been understandable. Being small-scale, their offerings would vary each ti.

But this place was a trading ground directly overseen by the Lucchesia Family.

They would have managed everything ticulously, from quality to selection—yet this was the result.

Just in case, I searched through the console, but no listings appeared.

Sothing was off.

The mont I reached that conclusion, the door swung open.

It was an unexpected developnt, yet I didn’t even turn around.

Even before he stepped inside, his distinctive scent had already stimulated my keen sense of sll.

“Mr. Tyrant.”

When I turned, I frowned. It wasn’t only Owen who had entered. Behind him, a man stood upright.

Naturally, he was a young man I had never seen before.

“A show of force? You even brought a lackey.”

“A lackey?”