Chapter 51: I Will Establish New Rules (46k)

The second-floor lobby of the Red Rose Brothel.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The piercing shriek of arrows tearing through the air was especially harsh in the brothel’s opulent hall.

Once a place of lavish indulgence, where lust and vice reigned, it had now become a slaughterhouse.

Boge leaned against the wall, drawing his bow, each iron arrow streaking like a meteor to pierce the skulls of burly, bearded men, spraying foul clots of blood.

His movements flowed like water, utterly without hesitation—as if he were not slaying fellow humans, but beasts fleeing in panic.

Some had tried to resist, but their defiance was powerless against this cold-blooded hunter.

Three burly bouncers charged together, blades raised, but before they reached Boge, one had his eye pierced, another his throat nailed through, and the third turned to flee—only to be skewered through the backside, collapsing with a shrill scream.

“Forgot—when shooting someone running away, you don’t aim for that spot.”

The boy, fresh from his first kill of his own kind, slapped his forehead, a flicker of regret crossing his still youthful face.

Better to regret the bouncer’s suffering—after all, in his eyes, any enemy who could make his kind and merciful master so furious was a monster who deserved every torment the world’s laws could devise.

He merely regretted the iron arrow—worth several copper sols—that he could no longer recover.

Boge sighed as he pulled the blood-slicked arrows from the corpses and dropped them into his empty quiver behind his back.

Though he’d slain many bouncers here, the Red Rose, being the largest brothel in Ore Town, surely kept far more than this—new enemies could arrive at any moment.

Besides, even he, from Fruit Basket Village, had heard the legendary name of Lord Hoke—rumored to have single-handedly slaughtered the entire former brothel and underground gang of Ore Town.

That day, the stench of blood and corpses had spread through the whole town, yet Lord Hoke was never hunted by the guards; his infamy became legend, enough to silence crying children and freeze adults with terror.

Thinking of this, Boge’s eyes grew cautious.

He could die here—but his master must not suffer a single scratch.

Click.

At that moment, a door down the hall suddenly opened.

Swish!

Boge, nerves taut, reflexively loosed an arrow in that direction.

A well-dressed middle-aged man stepped out, his face twisted in terror as the arrow flew toward him.

The arrow struck his forehead cleanly—then clattered to the floor as if hitting an invisible barrier.

Illicit Protection.

“Wait! I’m not part of this brothel—I’m just a customer!” the man cried in panic.

Above his head, his Zhiyejiahu instantly appeared—“Liar Merchant.”

“Spare me! I’ll give you all my money!”

As he pleaded, he frantically pulled handfuls of gleaming silver coins from his pockets.

Yet Boge hesitated less than half a second before drawing his bow again, pulling the string taut as a full moon.

“Kill everyone in this brothel except the prostitutes!” He remembered his master’s order—his master’s orders were absolute.

Besides, if his profession had been Honest Merchant, he might have paused, considered asking his master—but Liar Merchant? Ha.

Swish! Swish!

The merchant panicked and tried to flee from the incoming arrows.

But the arrows were too fast!

The first arrow struck his barrier and clattered to the floor as before.

The second arrow pierced his throat cleanly, emerging from the back of his neck.

Blood spurted along the shaft, forming a fine mist in the air.

“No, no, no.”

The merchant’s pupils dilated wildly; his hands instinctively clawed at the fatal arrow—but his fingers only scraped empty air before collapsing uselessly.

Thud.

His body crashed to the ground.

“Should’ve agreed to go see the flowers with my wife today… never come to this brothel.”

That was his final thought, before his eyes locked open and he died.

Tap-tap-tap.

Before Boge could relax, heavy footsteps echoed up the stairs nearby.

A tall, muscular figure stepped forward, sword in hand.

Swish!

Without hesitation, Boge loosed another arrow.

Clang!

To Boge’s shock, the man split the arrow cleanly in two with a single sword stroke.

“Not bad aim,” the man said coolly.

Only then did Boge see the man’s face—he stood nearly two meters tall, half a head taller than Boge.

His muscles bulged like knotted ropes; his arms were thicker than an ordinary man’s thighs, like a living iron tower.

His longsword stretched over a meter, its blade as wide as a palm. He looked about forty, his face and body scarred, each mark a testament to countless battles.

Undoubtedly, a battle-hardened warrior.

“Hoke?” Boge asked warily.

He needed to confirm the man’s identity to better prepare.

“So you know me,” Hoke observed Boge with interest.

He hadn’t expected the troublemaker on his turf to be a boy who looked still young—ignoring the corpses littering the floor.

“Those eyes… you’re a Hunter who took the Hawk-Eye Potion. Rare. Who’d choose such a mad-dog profession?”

Hoke stared at the boy’s hawk-like gaze, murmuring in wonder.

Boge’s caution deepened—this man had identified his profession at a glance. He didn’t act like some local thug.

“Who’s behind you?”

Boge shouted, instantly drawing his bow and loosing an arrow straight at Hoke’s skull.

Clang!

Hoke didn’t shift his gaze or turn his head—he simply swung his sword, cleaving the arrow in two with a clang.

“Boy, I stopped using tricks like that long ago.”

Hoke’s face sneered, yet his eyes held a touch of admiration.

Ruthless. Decisive. Young.

And Hunters, by nature, excel at assassination. If he could recruit this boy for his master, it would be a fine gain.

After all, with age, he’d grown weaker—his master needed a new young hound.

“If I’m not mistaken, you came here to slaughter because you want to do what I did—take over this brothel and rule Ore Town, right?”

Hoke’s brutal face twisted into a grin.

Boge said nothing, his hawk eyes locked on Hoke, searching for an opening.

“If you want it, I can give you this brothel.”

“You killed so many of my men—and you still want to spare me?” Boge asked, puzzled.

“Hmph. A bunch of trash who only know how to fuck women. Better dead—saves me the cost of feeding them.” Hoke snorted.

In his eyes, every dead brute combined was worth less than one of the boy’s fingers.

“If you come with me to meet my master, swear loyalty to him, I’ll give you this brothel.”

“Die!”

Before Hoke finished speaking, Boge erupted in fury, drawing and loosing arrow after arrow—each sharp tip like a venomous snake striking Hoke’s heart, throat, eyes—every vital point.

“Is this guy insane from becoming a Hunter?”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Hoke frowned slightly, his massive sword whirling like a shield, deflecting every arrow with ease.

Boge, still raging, pulled his bow again—only to find it empty.

He’d recovered nine arrows from corpses, used three on the merchant, and the remaining six had all been fired in this fight.

“No arrows left. Now will you sit down and talk?” Hoke said, voice low.

He was a man past forty—had patience now. In his youth, he’d have already fought the boy to the death.

“Kill you.”

Boge drew his iron sword and lunged forward in a blur.

“Stubborn fool! Then I’ll break you!”

Hoke’s eyes hardened—he drew his sword and surged forward like a streak of light.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A rapid cascade of metallic strikes rang through the brothel’s hall like rain on banana leaves.

Hoke’s broadsword moved with effortless grace, as nimble as a finger; Boge, though untrained, struck with pure speed, precision, and cruelty—his blade a venomous snake striking every vulnerable spot.

The center of their clash became a storm of blades—paintings, tapestries, chairs—all shattered into splinters the instant they touched the whirlwind of steel.

“Boy, do you know who my master is?”

After several exchanges, Hoke broke off, breathing heavily.

At his age, by the standards of this world’s lifespan, he was middle-aged to elderly—no match for Boge’s youthful stamina.

Boge kept a cold face and said nothing, only quickly adjusting his breath to restore his strength.

“After seeing this, you should understand now!”

Slowly, a line of emerald text appeared above Hoke’s head—Knight.

In this world, knights serve only nobles, which means

“My liege is a noble!”

As he spoke, the face of this brutal man was filled with pride.

What puzzled him was that the boy before him showed no shock as expected, nor did he submit quietly; his expression remained cold, utterly unmoved.

Tap tap tap.

At that moment, Xia Mingyu descended the stairs from the third floor, leading the rescued prostitutes.

“There are knights in brothels?” he asked, staring at Hoke in surprise.

Hoke: “.”

“Aaaah, I’ll kill you!”

The man who had never shown anger no matter how Boge attacked now surged forward like a furious bull, face twisted, wielding his greatsword with lethal intent toward Xia Mingyu.

Swish!

Seeing this, Boge immediately blocked him.

Boom!

The instant the longsword met the greatsword, a thunderous crash echoed.

“Such immense strength.”

Boge gritted his teeth. As a Hunter elevated by the Hawk-Eye Elixir, he was never known for raw power; now, blocking this blow left his arms numb.

“Let me help you.”

“Water, freeze, strike.”

Seeing this, Xia Mingyu swiftly began drawing the magic rune.

“Wait, my liege—allow me to fight him alone.”

“How could I let you, my lord, involve yourself in battle against a mere peer?”

Boge answered swiftly, still parrying Hoke’s attacks.

“Fine.”

Xia Mingyu reluctantly slowed his rune-drawing.

As his boss, he was willing to indulge his capable subordinate’s desire to shine.

Of course, if Boge got hurt, he would cast his spell immediately.

Thud!

Boge leaped backward to create distance, then gripped his longsword tightly, his hawk-like gaze fixed unwaveringly on Hoke.

He decided to use the ability he gained upon ascending to Hunter.

He hadn’t used it earlier because he knew it drained immense stamina—only to be reserved as a final strike.

“Huh.”

Seeing this, Hoke took a deep breath; the muscles on his thick arms swelled rapidly, veins twisting like vines of dead trees.

Greatsword—this was the ability he gained upon becoming a Knight, greatly enhancing the strength in his arms.

“Die!”

Hoke gripped the greatsword with both hands and swung it horizontally at Boge, who stood motionless, like a mad demon.

The greatsword tore through the air, the wind it generated overturned tables and chairs, and the crystal chandelier above swayed precariously.

Without doubt, if this blow landed, it would cleave Boge clean in two.

“Sensory Enhancement.”

Boge silently murmured in his mind—and in the next instant, everything around him slowed.

The whistle of the blade slicing air, the falling chandelier, the blood seeping from corpses beneath his feet, the killing intent in Hoke’s eyes, the worry on his liege’s face—all five senses’ inputs exploded in intensity, amplified dozens of times, and flooded his mind for rapid processing.

Just as the greatsword neared his body, Boge moved.

Thump.

He leapt lightly, like a dragonfly skimming water, his toe landing precisely on the blade of the swinging greatsword.

Then, using the blade as a spring, he leapt again, spinning midair—his longsword darted like a dancing butterfly, piercing Hoke’s heart at an impossible angle.

“Guh.”

Hoke stared in shock at the sword through his chest, his hands going limp as the greatsword slipped away, then crashed to his knees with a thud.

He never imagined that a battle-hardened warrior like himself would fall to a boy. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be!

How could someone with a servant like this come to a small town’s brothel and slaughter without reason?

“Why… why did you attack us?” Hoke gasped through the pain, confronting Xia Mingyu.

From the earlier exchange between Xia Mingyu and Boge, he had realized: the black-haired youth with noble bearing was unquestionably a noble—and likely of higher rank than his own liege.

“To save the people behind me,” Xia Mingyu said calmly, standing before the prostitutes.

“Just for this?” Hoke stared in disbelief.

He could guess it was for seizing the brothel, or for revenge—but he never imagined it was to save these filthy prostitutes!

“What bad luck… Do you know how many brothels and prostitutes exist across the entire continent? Do you think you can save them all?”

“Survival of the fittest is the world’s rule. You defend these weaklings—do you think you can break this rule?”

Hoke demanded bitterly, feeling he’d been cursed to fall at the hands of a naive noble’s son.

Tap tap tap.

Xia Mingyu stepped forward until he stood before Hoke; seeing this, Boge swiftly withdrew the longsword from Hoke’s chest.

Supernaturals possessed far greater vitality than ordinary men—he had to consider the possibility of a final, desperate lunge.

Xia Mingyu extended his hand, expressionless.

After a moment’s hesitation, the boy handed his master the blood-smeared longsword.

“I will establish new rules,” Xia Mingyu said calmly.

He removed his black top hat with gentlemanly grace, revealing the long string of emerald text above his head.

“140,967—Fourteen Hundred Million!”

As if forgetting he was dying, the man who had committed countless crimes convulsed violently, his face twisted in utter shock.

But Xia Mingyu gave him no more time—he gripped the sword with both hands and brought it down with all his strength.

The man’s head split open like a watermelon.

As his consciousness faded, memories flooded him like a spinning lantern.

Learning swordsmanship as a youth, pledging loyalty to the lord’s eldest son, believing he would become a hero like those in “The Prince and the Knight.”

His liege was murdered by his own younger brother; he and his liege’s orphaned heir were cast out together.

Serving the young master, he sank into depravity, running brothels to earn enough gold.

Finally killed by a noble prince.

“In the end, I didn’t become the knight from ‘The Prince and the Knight’—I became the villain.”

“How I envy that boy!”

The knight’s soul cried out in sorrow.

Thank you all for your support—I feel much better now that my heartache is gone (*^▽^*)

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(End of Chapter)