Lucifer: The Swamp Fruit

In the inner city, most doors were tightly shut. Only a few households still had their main gates open, and these, without exception, were displaying support for the faction now in control of the inner city. Wilder glanced in the direction of the sounds he'd heard, then his figure flickered and vanished from the rooftop.

"Find the intruder!"

Accompanied by dense, hurried footsteps, a loud shout came from the crowd. A group of people armed with blades and a few firearms rushed out from around the corner. Judging by their appearance and attire, they looked no different from ordinary town residents. Leading them was a burly, heavily bearded man. His eyes were bloodshot as he scanned the surrounding streets, his face filled with a violent madness, and… a barely perceptible trace of nervousness.

"K—" A subordinate approached, about to speak, but was met by a pair of bloodshot eyes. Cold sweat dripped down his face, and he hastily corrected himself: "Leader, we've searched everywhere around. No intruder found."

"Search again! You must find him!" the burly man waved his hand and said fiercely.

"Yes..." The subordinate departed, heart pounding with fear.

From the shadows, Wilder quietly observed all this, a thoughtful look in his eyes. It seems the city gate must have some kind of trigger mechanism. Anyone pushing it open to enter would be detected. But… why do it this way? If they're worried about people coming in, wouldn't it be better to seal the gate completely?

Wilder had learned before arriving that this island was a kingdom, controlled by a royal family. The outer city was the commoners' district, while the inner city was where the royalty and noble ministers lived. Yet, what he had just seen were no nobles, but rather a group of shabbily dressed, commoner-like people. Considering everything, it wasn't hard to guess that something had happened to this kingdom.

"Another uprising, is it?" Muttering his guess, Wilder stepped out from a dark spot, gazing for a long time in the direction the men had departed. "Might as well go back." He didn't intend to get involved; it wasn't his business. He had entered the inner city merely to look around and see if he could gather any useful information. But in its current state, there was clearly nothing much to see.

Just as he was about to leave, hurried footsteps sounded around him. Wilder halted his step and quietly watched as a group of people swarmed out from all directions. In the blink of an eye, they had surrounded him, three layers deep.

"Found you, intruder." Wary and hostile gazes converged on Wilder. Leading them was the same burly man from before.

Wilder became somewhat interested. These people… they actually understood tactics like feigning departure? Then why hadn't they caught him at the very beginning? Clearly, he hadn't actually been discovered before. More likely, he had picked up something upon entering that allowed them to roughly track his location.

"A potion?" Wilder's nose twitched. A faint, almost imperceptible scent entered his nostrils. "So, do they have someone skilled in tracking by scent…" None of that mattered. What mattered was what these people intended to do with him now.

The leader of the controlling faction, the heavily bearded man, stared fiercely at Wilder. "Are you from the outer city?"

"Yes." Wilder didn't know why he was asking, but it didn't stop him from answering.

"Very good!" The bearded man's expression suddenly changed, turning grim. "The Bazan Royal Family has been overthrown! This island needs a new kingdom and a new leader to rule it! Outsiders who want to enter must acknowledge the new royalty, swear an oath on the city walls, and proclaim the legitimacy of the royal line! You know this, right?"

"So, you need me to stand on the wall and swear an oath now, is that it?" Wilder said, his face perfectly calm, without a ripple of emotion.

"That's right." The bearded man's eyes blazed. This was the first one he'd caught... who was willing to make the proclamation... The others, after that decision had been made, were already killed. He thought Wilder had already submitted.

Wilder suddenly grinned. He understood. The reason they hadn't completely sealed the city gate was now clear… Some rebel leader, after succeeding, had a change of heart. On one hand, he craved acceptance and recognition from the people outside; on the other, he worried that going out would lead to being suppressed and driven away by the outer city's populace. The gate was like his heart, perhaps even hoping one or two people might slip in and tell him, "The people accept you"? That was probably his mindset—desperately wanting to control the country, yet also worried about the people outside who hadn't yet been suppressed by force.

Wilder hadn't yet answered when a commotion arose in the distance. Everyone looked over and saw two ruffians dragging a little girl towards them. The little girl struggled, her face filled with terror, but what strength did a child have to break free? She was quickly brought before the bearded man.

"It's her..." Wilder's eyebrow twitched, but he remained unmoved.

The little girl also saw Wilder then. Her hands were held captive, but her small mouth was set in a stubborn pout, holding back tears. "Mister... you got caught too." Her gaze was full of grievance as she looked at Wilder, as if blaming him for not heeding her warning. I don't want to… I don't want to see anyone else get killed! Beneath that small figure lay a kind and resolute heart. Since the destruction of the royal family, every day she saw people being killed. Remembering the scene of her parents being dragged from the throne by ruffians and dying under a flurry of blades filled her with helplessness and terror.

"Yes, I did," Wilder responded with a smile.

"Hurry up! Both of you, go up together. This is what you'll read," the bearded man said impatiently, waving his hand and handing Wilder a piece of paper. He glanced at the little girl beside them and added, "Later, you repeat whatever he reads. Got it?"

The little girl gave him a stubborn look, tossed her head, and turned away without speaking.

"Sorry, I never said I was going to give a speech," Wilder said faintly. Although none of this had anything to do with him, coercion was something he always disliked.

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's expression changed. Especially the bearded man; his face looked as if he'd eaten three pounds of dead flies, dark as a stormy sea.

"I see! In that case, then you can just die!" As he finished, the bearded man's face contorted viciously. The last sentence was almost a roar as he raised his large chopper and brought it down on Wilder! The chopper whistled through the air as it descended, testament to the force behind the blow.

The little girl's eyes flew wide. In that moment, time seemed to slow to a crawl. Countless scenes of murder flashed through her mind, finally settling on the image of her parents lying in pools of blood, waving at her to run.

"Don't!"

The blade halted its descent. The little girl stood before Wilder, her arms spread wide, her eyes squeezed shut in fear. After a long moment… sensing something was amiss with the atmosphere, she cautiously opened her bright, dark round eyes.

A large hand reached out from above her head, its five fingers gripping the sharp blade. The chopper could not move another inch, as if frozen in time, unable to advance or retreat.

"This is..." She stared in astonishment, her mouth forming an 'O'. Not just her; everyone around seemed to be petrified, as if under a binding spell. If the hand had merely caught the blade, that would have been one thing. But the blade had cracked. Someone rubbed their eyes and looked again, finally confirming they weren't mistaken. The blade gripped by the large hand was covered in cracks; it looked as if a child could shatter it with a light touch.

"To raise a blade against me... it seems you've prepared yourself for the consequences." Looking up, the owner of the large hand had terrifyingly still eyes, like a stagnant pool of water beneath which lurked a man-eating beast.

FWOOSH! The black cloak billowed—Wilder moved! His eyes flew open, killing intent erupting like a raging tempest! The blade shattered! In the blink of an eye, its fragments were scattered by a sudden gust of wind. The large hand shot out, reflected in the other man's terrified, wide-open eyes!

CRASH!

The next moment, the man was seized by the large hand and slammed heavily onto the ground! A shockwave rippled outwards, and the stone ground cratered, layers of it cracking and spreading outwards! The fierce wind, carrying grit and debris, spread outwards, forcing people to cover their eyes, grit their teeth, and stumble back.

Crack-crack-crack...! The ground fractured, cracks snaking outwards like vipers. Before the terrified eyes of several hundred ruffians, with a single, unheralded strike, the bearded leader lay motionless in the crater, blood pooling around him like a spring that had ceased to flow, slowly spreading.

"Anyone else planning on killing?" A voice, calm yet chilling to the bone, sounded. Wilder, beneath his black cloak, lifted his head, his icy gaze sweeping over everyone.

Clang! Clang! Blades and firearms fell to the ground with a light, almost melodious metallic sound. After the first, more and more people dropped their weapons, staring blankly at the corpse on the ground. Unconsciously letting go, discarding their weapons, did not earn them pardon, but slaughter!

Wilder moved again. His figure flickered and plunged into the crowd. A massacre began. Those who dared to raise their blades against the strong were worthy of praise. In the midst of the slaughter, Wilder noticed a few such individuals. After less than a second of thought, he unhesitatingly cut them down. He currently craved talent and subordinates, but these people… they wouldn't do.

A short while later, only two figures remained standing in the area: Wilder, and… the little girl. The little girl's gaze was unfocused, her pupils dilated and vacant.

Wilder frowned, walked over, and scooped her up. Throughout the process, the little girl showed no reaction.

Swoosh! His figure flashed. Wilder vanished from the spot, taking the unnamed little girl with him.

Half a day later, in Wilder's inn room in the outer city. Wilder was standing by the window, watching the bustling street outside. Suddenly, he seemed to sense something. His eyes shifted slightly, then returned to their previous state.

On the soft, large bed directly behind Wilder, the unnamed little girl had, at some point, opened her eyes. She stared blankly at the ceiling, lost in thought. Five or six minutes passed… The room remained silent. Wilder continued to gaze out the window. The little girl shifted her position, turning onto her side to look at Wilder's back. After a long while…

"Mister…" a faint voice, with the characteristic lilt of a child, sounded in the room.

"Hmm?" Wilder replied with a nasal sound, without turning his head.

"Are you a pirate?"

"No."

"Oh." The unnamed little girl burrowed deeper into the covers, only half her head showing. Timidly, she said, "I heard pirates kill a lot of people."

"Why did you kill them, but not me?" The question seemed unrelated to her previous one about pirates.

Wilder, by the window, paused for a moment, then regained his composure. He didn't know how to answer. "Because you're lucky. I don't have a penchant for abusing children." Faced with such situations, Wilder usually chose to be perfunctory.

"Oh." The unnamed little girl tilted her head, thought for a moment, but after a while, still couldn't figure out what "penchant for abusing children" meant.

The room fell silent again. After a while…

"Heehee…" Suppressed giggles came from under the covers, the kind that couldn't be held back despite trying. Wilder could imagine, even without looking, that the person under the covers was definitely covering her mouth, trying hard to stifle her laughter.

Wilder pretended not to hear. He considered this the entirety of their conversation. Thankfully, he wasn't good at handling such situations. If laughter was the full stop to their talk, he didn't mind; in fact… he was quite pleased.

Yearning for beauty is human nature, and Wilder was no different. He hadn't experienced a tragic childhood. If the world revered darkness and misery, then… the only noteworthy thing about his past might be his mother's murder by enemies. But it wasn't like that. So, Wilder actually had no desire to take revenge on the world or annihilate everything. All his actions were based solely on profit… and his own ambitions, and his inner pain. If saving someone—especially someone who was willing to shield him from a blade with their own life—came at no loss to himself, he was willing. Just like now, such crisp and pleasant laughter, like the purest, most natural music in the world. At least, it proved there was some small benefit to saving this person this time.

"There's bread and milk on the table. If you're hungry, you can help yourself."

"Also, go take a bath. You're really dirty. These sheets, including the blanket, will be thrown out by me later. If you don't want to have nowhere to sleep, you'd best get up now and… bathe."

"Oh." A timid reply came from the covers. After a moment, a small head peeked out, stealthily glanced towards the window, and seeing Wilder hadn't turned around, quickly scrambled out of bed and scurried into the bathroom.

Wilder suddenly thought of something, and his brow furrowed. "Seems I forgot about clothes for after the bath." His figure vanished from the room. A short while later, Wilder returned with several shopping bags in hand.

A day passed quickly. Some members of the Black Serpent organization had already arrived in the surrounding sea areas and islands near Wilder's location. These were, without exception, Black Serpent intelligence operatives who had already been active not far from here. A steady stream of information about the island with the transaction point and the auction house was being delivered to Wilder. From this, one could understand why Wilder wanted to develop his organization: because an individual's strength has limits. Some things required professionals, and only such people could provide him with various necessities, intelligence gathering being one part. For instance, right now, Wilder was on a different island, yet he could stay constantly informed about the situation on the island where the transaction was to take place.

Another half-day passed, and the first merchant ship had already secretly departed from the Black Serpent headquarters.

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