Episode 388

Delac added that he would stay in the labor camp for the time being, and would also meet with other randomly selected prisoners. I wondered why he was doing such a troublesome thing. Then when I thought about it, I realized it was for me.

Naturally, Delac was moving while hiding his identity. However, he was so famous that it would be difficult to completely hide his whereabouts, just as when Seren realized he had been in contact with the Golden Lord.

In other words, if his whereabouts were exposed and it was found that he'd he only met with one prisoner, I wouldn't be able to avoid suspicion. I would probably get people asking why I had a private audience with the Iron-Blooded Lord. I thus found out that Delac had already come to the labor camp two days ago and had completed visits with several prisoners.

In any case, after talking to him, I returned to the block and shared the information I'd heard with Leone, who showed uncharacteristic surprise.

She asked, "The punishment building? Is the Pope there?"

I answered, "That's right."

"Delac is the one saying this, so it is credible. There is no need for me to go to Block 106. Since it is the punishment building..." Leone organized her words for a moment before continuing, "You don't have to become an administrative inspector. You can work there just by becoming a model prisoner, which doesn't cost a lot of points. It means you can go there now."

It was the first good news in a while. Honestly, if necessary, I'd been planning to try to kill the underground monster they said was at least on the level of a decurion-class monster. Now I could put it off.

Leone continued, "Leave the matter of changing jobs to me. I will use my connections so that you can go to work at the punishment building by next week at the latest."

I asked, "What are you going to do after that?"

"Let's see. If the Pope is there, I would like to go with you." Leone looked around for a moment before adding, "However, one person should maintain this activity, right? The Pope might not be there, and it is true that Block 106 is suspicious."

I nodded. That had actually been the first request I was going to make. The living area's system wasn't developed enough to be left completely unattended.

"Use this." Leone handed me a dagger.

It was similar to the dagger I received while fighting the centurion-class monster on the first day I was admitted. However, I could feel that the shell and the essence were completely different. I wondered if it was an artifact, as there was a sense of something extraordinary flowing inside it. The material was probably a very rare metal.

I ran my finger over the blade of the dagger I received and asked, "What is this?"

"The Soul Origin Dagger. It is one of the divine relics of the church."

"What abilities does it have?"

Leone grinned and explained, "If you stab it into the heart of the Pope, his consciousness won't be able to flee from the puppet. More precisely, this will last until the puppet takes a blow that makes it unable to operate. As long as the consciousness is kept inside, there are many things you will be able to dig out."

"Ah."

All the puppets were imbued with the complete consciousness of the Pope, so I had to take advantage of that in reverse.

Leone warned, "It is precious, so don't lose it. It also can't be used twice, so be careful when using it. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Approach the Pope first without being caught and then ambush them."

Leone nodded and said, "Excellent."

***

The next day was a break day. I decided not to go out and to get a good rest. I wondered if that gloomy guy would come again as a messenger for Block 106, but that didn't happen.

"Hello, Director."

"Good morning, Director."

I nodded at the greetings of the prisoners I encountered in the hallway. Unexpectedly, they were an orc and a human. The two of them didn't seem completely close, but it was strange that they were walking together.

I was curious about what they were doing, so I followed them and listened to their conversation.

"I'm telling you that my Antar is stronger."

"How funny. My Baharam has never lost. It is much bigger."

"Does being bigger mean being stronger? That is an ignorant idea, just as expected of an orc. In addition, you lost yesterday."

"That wasn't a loss. It just fell off the field for a moment."

"That is why you lost!"

"Human rules are hard to understand."

What the hell are they talking about? I thought suspiciously. Then I soon laughed, as I could see the desert scarabs in the hands of the two prisoners. Aha.Insect fighting.

It was one of the only things to do in this part of the south where there was no entertainment area. The rules were also simple: Catch desert scarabs that could be easily found anywhere in the desert and watch them compete with each other.

I finally understood why the two of them were hanging out together. Insect fighting was a fairly popular game in the desert, but most people usually gave it up by the time they became adults except for some enthusiasts. In other words, these two were rivals and playmates who were finally meeting after a long time.

I want to stay for one more week, I thought suddenly.

I felt that the atmosphere of the living area had changed quite a bit recently. Thanks to the help of the meal control, the excessive arguments and fistfights were completely put to an end. The living areas were completely separated, so both groups rarely bumped into each other unless it was time to eat.

However, the most decisive thing was that they cooperated with each other to defeat the monsters. Since ancient times, the fastest way for two groups who didn't get along to become close was to create a common enemy.

Fortunately, they had a clear enemy in the form of monsters. My role had simply served to create an opportunity. I didn't know what would happen from now on. They could recognize each other as rare playmates hard to find, or they could end up fighting again over something trivial.

In any case, it was a bit disappointing that I couldn't watch the results from up close. The same applied to the performance of the lesser races.

Of course, the most important thing was that the lesser races were now fully equipped. Topepo seemed willing to die under my command and was actively taking care of their equipment. Thanks to that, the lesser races were able to go to fight the monsters fully armed. They found it strange at first, but quickly adapted, fighting better than the seven races.

In addition to their physical abilities, the lesser races basically had the temperament of being unafraid of death, so they quickly adapted to the environment. In a sense, they were more wild, with little fear.

I told Leone, "I would like to ask you to look after Block 107."

"Leave it to me. If I get the chance, I will stop by at least once."

I exchanged looks with Leone before heading to the punishment building in a carriage. It was located in a hollow basin at the very center of the otherwise flat labor field. It was as if a meteorite had fallen there in the past.

In any case, structurally, it was very difficult terrain to escape from. It felt like being in the middle of an anthill. In the center of it was a tower; I wondered what the structure was.

It was hard to erase the sudden feeling of unease that came over me. The terrain of the desert was weak, so it was hard to build a tall building. In addition, the labor camp was an area where earthquakes often occurred due to the appearance of monsters. Such a building had a high risk of collapse. However, the building looked sturdy and it seemed I didn't have to worry about it collapsing.

"Get off," a guard said.

On cue, I got off the carriage. As expected, the tower seemed to be the punishment building. I approached it without any guidance.

Then a pot-bellied guard who was smoking tobacco in front of the tower approached me. "Are you Luzard of Block 107? The first lesser race director, I see."

"That's right."

The pot-bellied man glanced at me and chuckled. "Well, it is an ugly face. You look like you have a nasty temper."

This bastard, I thought.

"Follow me."

I nodded and followed the pot-bellied man. As I climbed up the circular staircase, he continued speaking. "Do you have experience defeating centurion-class monsters? You must have some skills, but it would be better not to show off here. There are heinous criminals everywhere who can each defeat at least one centurion-class monster alone."

I responded, "I will keep that in mind."

The man snorted. "My name is Jisal. For now, I am both your senior and your overseer. I will only explain the work once, so make sure you understand it well. Got it?"

I hadn't even unpacked, but it seemed that the work would start right away. Still, this was a development that didn't hurt me, since I had no time to hesitate anyway.

Jisal explained, "The day's work basically begins with feeding the prisoners. It is usually two meals a day. It must not be more or less than the set amount. Not everyone is given two meals, however. The ones on the top floor of the tower are especially fierce, and they only need one meal a day. Also, depending on the race, there are those who only need to be fed once every three or four days, once a week, or once every few months. You are a lizardman, so you should know this, right?"

"That's right."

"But if they were just locked up and fed, this place wouldn't be called the punishment building. The most important task is naturally punishment. In simpler terms, it is correction." Jisal stopped and pointed to a room. "There is a prisoner in this room who just entered three days ago. You are a prisoner as well, so you can be called comrades."

I wondered if he was joking.

I was hesitating over whether to smile or not for the sake of smooth social interaction when Jisal continued, "He is someone who drove his roommate to the brink of death. In addition, there are many other assault charges. He is a dangerous guy."

I listened quietly as Jisal continued, "Get rid of that insolence by any means necessary. Just don't use weapons. Got it?"

With that, he left.

I stared at the door for a moment. Then I reached out and pushed it open. It moved more smoothly than I expected, but I frowned shortly afterward as the smell of blood pierced my nose.

"Ah... Is it the next prey already?"

There was a thick mist of blood in the room. In the center was the prisoner who had been detained. He was a handsome man with pale skin and blood-red eyes. He was somehow familiar.

Jisal had said we were comrades. So this was what he meant. He hadn't been talking about the punishment block, but the entire group that arrived at the labor camp.

"Berwick is the most notorious killer in Airuga.It turns out that he is a madman who killed forty-seven people.My prediction is that in truth, it must easily exceed one hundred people."

The one I'd been searched with on the first day of the labor camp, the vampire called Berwick, looked at me and laughed. "Lizardmen don't taste very good."

***

"You left Berwick in the care of a new model prisoner?"

In the monitoring room of the punishment building, Jisal kept scooping out canned food while replying to the junior guard, "Yes."

"Isn't it dangerous? That vampire turned a model prisoner trying to correct him yesterday into a bloody mess."

It happened in an instant. It had been the junior guard's first time witnessing a prisoner being able to free himself from the restraints all over his body.

Jisal replied, "Larsen. You haven't seen that lizardman, right?"

"Uh, not yet. He just came here."

"Just by looking, you can tell he has a nasty personality. A guy like that should be disciplined from the beginning. Otherwise, I am sure he will run wild."

"Um..."

"Ah, really. A lesser race model prisoner... What nonsense is this? The higher-ups just accept the bribes and think everything is over. It is always the working team who is affected every time."

The junior guard, Larsen, hesitated for a moment. Then he stood up and said, "Still, I am a bit anxious. I have to go and take a look."

Jisal asked, "Do you really have to do that?"

"If a newcomer dies or is seriously injured on the first day, won't the vice-principal make a fuss again?"

"Well, I guess so. I will take a short nap."

"Ah, yes."

Larsen looked at the back of Jisal's head with exasperation as the latter left the room. Then Larsen adjusted the controller, muttering to himself, "The cell containing Berwick is E7."

As the name suggested, the monitoring room was the central hub overseeing the communication devices scattered throughout the punishment building. All rooms except the top floor could be monitored by simply pressing a button. Once the controls were set, a stream of light entered and illuminated the interior of the confinement cell.

Of course, it wasn't easy to see inside the cell. As a vampire, Berwick exhaled blood-red breaths, which soon created a mist of blood inside the cell.

Larsen shuddered silently. He had also touched that breath. It had felt terrible, as if the fog had its own will and clung to his skin.

Where is that lizardman?Larsen squinted and stared at the screen.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

He could hear a faint sound like something was being hit.

Larsen's expression hardened. Could it be that the vampire had released his restraints again?

"S-stop...Please stop..."

This time, Larsen jumped up from his seat. As expected, Berwick had caused another accident. Larsen cursed Jisal's irresponsible behavior and immediately grabbed the key to the cell.

Please don't die, please don't get seriously hurt if possible, he thought. Still, the lesser races were generally strong.

At that moment, however, he suddenly stopped moving. It was because he was somehow familiar with the voice making the sounds of pain that he kept hearing.

There was no way the lizardman's voice could be familiar. Larson hadn't even met him yet.

Then he heard a voice again.

"S-save me...The people watching now...Huh?You guards... Stop this guy..."

That was Berwick's voice.

What is going on? Larsen blinked slowly with surprise.

Then, a satisfied voice spoke.

"Correction through violence. It looks like I have found my calling."