The Betrayed Necromancer - Chapter 5

 The Regional City of Borut

Inside the territory of the Ordeus Divine Kingdom lies the regional city of Borut.

As a transit point between major cities, it was a town that flourished through trade. However, in recent years, deteriorating public safety had caused fewer merchant guilds to pass through, and it was less bustling than before.

Even so, Borut was beginning to regain its vitality thanks to a certain person who had started using it as a base.

"Hah, hah...!"

A man was running through the streets of Borut. He was clutching a burlap sack, inside of which stolen precious metals were jumbled together.

"W-Wait! Please give that back!"

Chasing the man was a stout merchant. The merchant had his goods stolen while looking away from his cargo for just a moment. He was well aware that public safety in Borut had worsened recently, leading to an increase in such thefts, but he had still been caught off guard in an instant.

The merchant ran with all his might, but the thief was fast, and the distance between them kept growing. There were other people on the street, but they simply looked awkward and refused to help, fearing they might be retaliated against.

At this rate, the thief would get away. Just as the merchant fell into despair, someone appeared to block the thief's path.

"That's far enough. I won't let you do as you please in my turf anymore."

The one who appeared was a red-haired man with a well-trained physique.

Seeing him, the thief wore a look of frustration and muttered the man's name.

"Gaoran Roen...!!"

"Ha! Even a petty thief knows my name. So you must realize that even if you stood on your head, you couldn't beat a hero like me, right?"

The man called Gaoran smiled with a grin.

Gaoran Roen was a legendary pugilist who had once defeated the Demon King alongside the hero Ares. He was a hero.

After defeating the Demon King and becoming a hero, he made this city his base and engaged in vigilante-like activities.

"Come on. I'll play with you."

Gaoran readied his fists. His stance was deeply ingrained, revealing him to be an experienced warrior.

"Shut up! If you're not going to get out of the way... then die!"

The thief pulled a dagger from his cloak and slashed at Gaoran, who was blocking his path.

In response, Gaoran unleashed dozens of punches with blinding speed.

"Too slow."

Before the dagger could thrust forward and hit its mark, dozens of punches struck the thief's body faster than the eye could see. Each blow carried lethal force, and after taking the barrage, the thief dropped his dagger and collapsed to the ground.

"Gah... ugh..."

"Tsk, it's already over? How boring."

Saying this with a bored expression, Gaoran picked up the burlap sack dropped by the man and tossed it back to the merchant who had finally caught up.

"Here, try not to get it stolen again."

"Th-Thank you very much, Lord Gaoran! I'll never forget this kindness!"

"I didn't really do anything special. Just forget about it," Gaoran said lazily.

Witnessing this, the citizens of the town cheered for him one after another.

"Thank you, Lord Gaoran! You're the hero of this town!" "All hail Lord Gaoran!" "Thank you for always helping us!"

The citizens praised him loudly.

Gaoran dismissed them with an annoyed, "Tsk, noisy bunch," and walked away. The citizens continued to cheer for him until his figure disappeared from sight.

◇ ◇ ◇

"Ahhh! This is why being a hero is the best! I get paid just for crushing small fry like that! I could never go back to doing troublesome adventures."

Saying this in high spirits, Gaoran slumped heavily onto an expensive sofa.

This was his home and office combined. Inside were several of his subordinates, supporting his work.

"So, how is it? How much did that guy have hidden away?"

"Yes. He was a member of the thieves' guild, but he had quite a lot hidden in his hideout. There were four boxes of gold coins and some magical tools. I imagine they'll fetch a pretty penny if we sell them off."

"Okay, okay, convert all of it into cash. Make sure you're careful not to leave a trail. It would look uncool if it leaked out that a hero was pocketing stolen goods."

Having become a hero, Gaoran had stopped his activities as an adventurer.

Instead, he hunted down thieves in this city and claimed the money and goods they carried as his own. Thanks to this, his pockets were much warmer than when he was an active adventurer.

(When I was first given administrative control over a regional city like this, I was pissed, but I suppose it has its perks. I'll build up my power here and become much greater and richer...!)

Ares and the others who had defeated the Demon King became heroes and received various rewards. Initially, Gaoran was angry that he had drawn the short straw by being given control of a remote regional city, but now he had grown to love his position.

Public safety was poor, but thanks to that, he could easily acquire stolen goods and reap sweet profits. Moreover, the citizens praised him just for defeating opponents who were far weaker than him.

Obsessed with his own ego, Gaoran was thoroughly enjoying life here.

"I get the money and valuables. Were there any other things?" Gaoran asked with a vulgar smile.

Understanding the meaning behind those words, his subordinate checked the documents in his hand and replied.

"Yes. They were hiding about four female slaves. Their looks aren't bad, I'd say."

"Nice, nice. Naturally, nobody else knows about them, right?"

At Gaoran's words, his subordinate nodded.

"Well done... Excellent work. Send them to my second residence."

"Understood."

Gaoran gave the order while trying to suppress his grin.

(Heh heh heh... This is irresistible. Sourcing women used to be such a struggle when I was an adventurer, but now it's so easy. No matter how much I wear them out, more keep coming right to me.)

If Gaoran put his mind to it, the public safety of this city could be made as good as any other. However, by intentionally maintaining an unstable security situation, he continued to rake in sweet profits. When things started getting too safe, he would even work behind the scenes to bring in criminal organizations.

(A matched-up problem and solution is the best! Absolutely psycho! Being a hero is the best thing ever!)

Gaoran was savoring the spring of his life.

Just as he was laughing triumphantly in his mind, the door opened and one of his subordinates entered.

"There is a merchant outside who says she wants to meet Lord Gaoran. What should we do?"

"Hm? A merchant? I'm having a fun conversation right now, so have someone else deal with them."

Gaoran said dismissively, but his attitude changed entirely at his subordinate's next words.

"She mentioned she has a matter of profit to discuss with Lord Gaoran, so would that be alright? Besides... that merchant was quite a beauty..."

"What was that? Why didn't you say so sooner? Heh... Nice, so it's a bribe, huh?"

Understanding that this was just like the previous instances where organizations offered women as bribes to do business with him, Gaoran decided to accept.

"Let her in. I'll hear what she has to say."

Gaoran eagerly called for the merchant, waiting for her arrival with an amused expression.

――However, he had no way of knowing that this very choice would mark the beginning of his hell.

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