Chapter 327 – Do You Need Money, By Any Chance?
I tore off the enemy’s limbs and stomped on their heads and torsos until they burst.
As I charged, blood and chunks of flesh splattered all around , bones shattered and flew through the air.
“Gg, Ggeaaahh!”
Agonized screams rang out.
Quanru of Steel was sturdy and destructive, but it was slow. Still, each ti it struck, at least one person died.
Kwajjik! Kwajak—!
Broken chunks of tal scattered everywhere.
“Cra, crazy! That thing’s a—Kuhugh!”
The artifact armor that had been emitting magic was shattered in a single blow, and the arms holding it were twisted and snapped.
The weapons were no different.
When Quanru spun with weight behind it, its destructive power beca terrifying.
A rampaging mad bull.
It trampled over everything in its path.
Puuhk—
“Gguk!”
My charge halted only after I caved in one man’s chest with a body slam.
It hadn’t even been thirty seconds.
Steam burst from my body.
Huff—huff—
I exhaled deeply, calming my racing heart.
I shook off the blood and flesh from my fists, then wiped the blood from my face.
When I slowly turned around, nothing was moving behind anymore.
All that remained were bodies, shattered and torn like broken dolls.
The clearing in front of the mansion was soaked in blood in an instant.
‘Not the prettiest sight.’
What I did was more brutal than ever before.
“But I had to make a point.”
Right now, I was acting as the representative of the World Tree Union, which stood for the non-human races.
And the ones who died by my fists were slave hunters who targeted non-humans exclusively.
I needed to engrave into everyone the consequences of touching a non-human.
I stared at a spot for a mont, then slowly walked toward it.
In the middle of the blood puddle sat Windsor, collapsed.
Drenched in blood, he stared blankly into space, and when he saw , his face went pale.
“...M-monster! Stay away!!!”
Windsor scrambled backwards, trying to get away from , then collapsed, trembling, with his face buried in the blood.
I clicked my tongue at the sight.
So this little punk was the one who started all this?
“Tsk, what a waste of a 3-star.”
I hadn’t been interested in him from the start.
I bent down and snatched the gold pouch that had fallen to the ground.
A whopping 1.5 million gold.
What better deal than picking up free money?
As I checked the pouch and nodded in satisfaction, a commotion arose behind .
More people were spilling out of the mansion.
This ti, they were soldiers in uniform—troops from a noble house.
Their number was in the hundreds.
They surrounded , gripping their spears nervously.
Their spears trembled in the face of the grueso scene.
‘Do I have to kill them too?’
As I debated, the soldiers quickly parted to the side, and a sharp-featured middle-aged man stepped forward.
Judging by his outfit, he was clearly a noble.
He surveyed the slaughtered hunters and let out a low groan. Then, pointing at Windsor, he instructed the soldiers.
They helped Windsor up and brought him to the noble.
The noble looked down at the drooping Windsor coldly, then sighed and walked toward . Surprisingly, he remained calm.
“I am Henry, the head of the Everfell Family’s rchant guild. It’s an honor to et you, Sir Alex, whom I’ve only heard about in rumors.”
“You’re a bit late, aren’t you?”
At my taunting remark, Henry replied with a dry smile.
“Had you sent word in advance, we would have prepared a grander welco. My apologies.”
“Grander?”
Am I the only one who hears the sarcasm in that?
I smirked and pointed at Windsor.
“I already received quite the welco from your son. So, are you going to continue this?”
As I casually glanced around at the soldiers, Henry swallowed dryly.
He was acting calm, but the tension in him was obvious.
The forces I had just faced were said to be elite, top-tier in Pri Root.
Other than the 'Black Star,' no one should’ve been able to face them alone. And yet, I ended it before anyone could intervene.
I annihilated them in an instant.
‘Everyone’s mistaken…’
Alex Marcia.
Overshadowed by the fa of Lochter Felice, his presence was often overlooked. But his strength was the real deal.
Lochter wasn’t enough—now there was Alex, too.
Now it was clear.
You must not make an enemy of the World Tree Union.
Henry shook his head and replied with a smile.
“Of course not. May I ask just one thing?”
“What is it?”
“Why did you attack them?”
Henry’s gaze lingered on the slaughtered hunters.
He clearly hadn’t intended to fight from the start. He had likely planned to pressure using the hunters, then negotiate—but Windsor, the idiot son of the house, had ruined it all.
“They started it.”
“Is that true?”
“Ask your son.”
As Henry looked at Windsor, Windsor shouted with an indignant face.
“N-no! He attacked first! He shot an arrow!”
Windsor stumbled forward and knelt down, reporting the situation.
He couldn’t even look in the eye, but with his father there, he mustered up the courage to tattle.
“What the hell are you saying? You’re the one who shot first.”
“That’s not—!”
“Elves.”
“I—it was just a slave of the house I shot at!”
“She’s not a slave. She’s an elf.”
As I glared sharply, Windsor lowered his eyes.
I turned to Henry and spoke clearly.
“All races are bound in a blood pact under the na of the World Tree.”
“A blood pact ans a relationship sealed in blood. Elves are mbers of the World Tree as well. And when a blood-bound ally is unjustly hard, repaying it tenfold in blood is the World Tree Union’s ironclad rule.”
“This is Aintrier. Do you believe that rule applies here?”
“Of course not.”
“Then do you acknowledge that today’s events could make the World Tree Union an enemy of Aintrier?”
“Are you saying I gave cause for that?”
“War may break out. If your Lord learns of today’s events.”
I chuckled.
That was quite the logical threat—but threats like that had no effect on .
I glanced around the mansion and muttered.
“Did you know the Everfell Guild is currently the World Tree Union’s top assassination target? I assu you know why.”
“A war, huh. Sounds good to . This place will be the first to burn.”
As I grinned, Windsor’s face turned pale.
Threats might work against easier opponents, but the strength of the World Tree Union had long surpassed what one noble house could handle.
“I’ll make you a promise. If war breaks out, Everfell will fall. No, be wiped out—just like the bodies around us.”
“…Mn…”
Henry was now the one being threatened and couldn’t easily retort.
‘If only I had accepted that proposal…’
Looking back, one overwhelming powerhouse would’ve been better than several moderate ones.
There had been a chance to recruit one of the Black Stars as a shield, but the amount he asked for was absurdly high, so he had to decline.
Had he known this day would co, he would’ve accepted the deal imdiately.
Then, he wouldn’t be standing here powerless.
As a seasoned rchant lord, Henry read the room.
Now was the ti to yield.
He welcod Alex not as an intruder but as a guest.
“Please, allow to escort you to the reception room.”
“I’ll need compensation first for the attack against .”
“What do you want?”
I pointed with my chin behind .
The ghost had finished ergency treatnt, but the elf’s injuries were worse than expected and she couldn’t be moved yet.
“A healer. And…”
Before I could finish, Henry responded.
“As of today, that elf is free. A healer will be prepared imdiately.”
“I’m relieved that we can talk. I was worried the father would be as stupid as the son.”
Windsor’s face turned crimson.
As I passed by him, I waved at the ghost.
With the ghost supporting the elf, I followed Henry into the mansion.
We arrived on the 4th floor, in the guild master’s study.
A quiet space used only by the owner.
As I looked around, Henry brought out tea himself.
“I figured this wouldn’t be the most pleasant eting, so I chose a quiet place.”
“Not bad.”
He probably didn’t want his subordinates to see him in a weak position.
A man quick to assess himself objectively.
With that level of awareness, it made sense he’d carved out a place for himself within a major faction.
Seated on the sofa, he looked directly at and asked bluntly,
“What brings you here?”
“Give up the slave trade.”
He must’ve already gathered a lot of information from other rchant guilds, because he replied instantly, without hesitation.
Normally, you try to set the tone before negotiations, but he skipped that, knowing it wouldn’t work against .
“I can’t give up the slave trade.”
“You can’t?”
“But I will no longer target non-humans.”
“So, you’re saying you’ll only enslave humans?”
He nodded and handed a stack of docunts—Everfell’s list of enslaved elves.
As I flipped through them, I let out a dry chuckle.
“You’ve captured quite a lot.”
The top slave guild lived up to its na.
Over two hundred elves.
“I’ll ban the capture of non-humans and hand over everyone listed. What will you offer?”
“How about distribution rights?”
“The right to first access to products made by the World Tree Union—correct?”
As I nodded, he wrote the number 10 on a piece of paper.
“I want ten percent.”
I laughed faintly.
Starting dirty, huh?
“Ten percent? Why should I give you ten?”
“All the key guilds work with Everfell. I’m the only one who can persuade them.”
I recalled the three major slave guilds that had refused my proposal before. They all told to convince Everfell first.
“That’s your price for persuading them?”
“If you accept, I’ll make sure the rest follow and cleanly end this.”
At first glance, it sounded decent.
But I shook my head.
“No deal unless you give up the slave trade entirely.”
“Aren’t you here to protect non-humans? Humans can be—”
“Do I look like a non-human? There are humans in the Union too.”
“I want slavery abolished in Aintrier.”
The mont we weakened, these people would go back to hunting non-humans. The right must be stripped entirely.
“End slavery? That’s impossible. The Lord would never allow it.”
“I’ll handle the Lord.”
“Then… how about 7%?”
“Give up the slave trade.”
“5%.”
When I stayed silent, clearly refusing even that, Henry stopped and pretended to consider.
I clicked my tongue.
‘Greedier than I thought.’
From the beginning, he never intended to give up the rights.
Slavery built his house—he wouldn’t let it go.
Even offering the captured elves was just for show.
No one was trading non-humans now, not with watching.
Elves, once golden treasures, had beco troubleso burdens.
I crossed my legs and dropped the docunts in front of Henry.
Honestly, I never planned to give him the distribution share.
I just wanted to read his thoughts. Now I was sure.
‘To this guy, the share itself doesn’t matter.’
If it did, he wouldn’t have lowered the percentage so easily.
To him, distribution shares were just a way to get cash. He’d sell them to another guild.
I smiled and asked,
“Do you need money, by any chance?”
The man desperately needed cash.
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