walked through the sewers, warily looking around, for who knows how long. Mike and Hikurod began to show concern.

"There's really nothing here.

"Really?" I hope something will appear soon...

No wonder they asked to come here. What did they expect?

"I told you. It's just a request for a patrol, that's all.

This request was simple. With a borrowed video recorder on my head, I just had to go around the given route and see if anyone was hiding there. Well, maybe there will be a fight in the process, but they said that the predecessor found less than 30 people in 2 years. The very frequency of encounters with strangers was low. Even if we met someone, I explained that you don't have to run after every single one of them and fight them.

"Huh?" Don't we need to run after them?

"There is an additional fee if you catch them, but you don't need to dwell on it.

"Why?" Mike asked.

"That's because the request I received was about patrolling the sewers. Processing and arrest will be handled by new staff only after the administrative office checks the video recordings.

"I see...

While I was bringing Mike up to speed, Brown, who was leading the group in front, suddenly stopped.

"I feel something nearby.

There was a baseless statement based on his feelings, but at that one word, everyone in the group looked around. Since there was a musty smell in the sewers, his olfactory stats didn't shine as brightly here, but Brown had +50 to his Sixth Sense and +20 to Luck from Mimic Essence.

Then Mike pointed somewhere and exclaimed:

"Oh! This is a person!

When I turned my gaze to where she was pointing, I saw a man with a puzzled expression.

How did she see him?

A human body could hardly fit into a small crack. The man was hiding in the hole, crouched like a shrimp.

"Eek!"

I put my hand inside and pulled the man out by the neck. He was quite tall, but because he was so skinny, it was like picking up a Goblin. His behavior was also not much different from that of a goblin.

"Die!"

When he was pulled out, the man grabbed a dagger that he was holding in his hand.

It was a good attempt. You have to do what you have to do to live, right?

"Ugh!"

The struggle ended when I grabbed the wrist that held the dagger and bent it back.

"Why were you hiding there?"

The man quickly changed his position to my question.

"Have mercy!" You are welcome! I didn't hurt anyone, I just didn't have any money!

It wasn't the answer I was expecting, but if I had to interpret it, it probably meant that he couldn't pay his taxes and ran away. However, no one believed it.

"It reminds me of the old days!" Hikurod said. "In those days, when I worked in the blacksmith's shop, bandits often came to me with such tattoos. Hahaha!

His tattoos differed from the geometric designs of a barbarian tattoo; The flesh was covered with images of skulls, naked women and monsters. Of course, I did not judge the inner world of a person by the external.

"Bjorn, look at the mark on his forehead. It must be a criminal who escaped into the sewers," Brown pointed out.

The mark on the forehead, hidden under the hood, was evidence of a monstrous crime, which could not be canceled even by a fine. There was no room for sympathy. Even if he did not pay taxes, it would not change much.

"Bjorn, what are you going to do with him now?" Hikurod asked.

"I don't know.

"Shouldn't the administration have given you some instructions in advance?"

"Well, of course, they gave me some advice. The main policy was to catch the criminals and bring them back, but if the video was filmed properly, there would be no problem if I killed them and threw them in the sewers.

"Can you kill him?" And if he is an ordinary person?

"They said that there are no ordinary people who accidentally get into such a place," I replied.

"Hahaha!" It's the heartless administrative office I know!

Well, in my opinion, they were attentive to heartless researchers. Now there is no need to worry about this.

"So, what are you going to do?"

"We'll take him for now."

If I had been alone, things would have been different, but since there were five of us, we had our hands free. In addition, if we took him alive, we received an additional payment of 5,000 stones.

"P-Please let me go just this time." Just pretend you didn't see anything. I became like this only because I want to live...

"Stop it.

There was no need for long conversations. Was he a tax violator, a criminal, or did he commit a crime out of necessity, so what?

"I've been tasked, so I'll take you." The decision will be made by them.

— ... Whore! You fucking bastards! How are you different from me?

We are very different. If we were the same, you wouldn't beg me the way you do now.

"Dvalki, shut his mouth.

"Good.

Dvalki used his newly learned spell [Paralyzing Poison] to silence the person. His body tensed. I carried the prisoner on my shoulders like a sack of rice.

***

An hour or so passed.

"Rothmiller, how long do we have to go?"

"We are already halfway.

"Huh?" Do we still have half left? Mike took a deep breath, as if she regretted that she had followed us. Then she opened her mouth as if she was interested in something.

"Dvalki, why are you feeling so well?" Last time you vomited everywhere.

"Haha, is it?" I learned a spell to make a person lose his sense of smell. It turns out that it is considered necessary magic among mages who lived as explorers.

"Ahh, I see. But can't you cast this spell on other people as well?

"Uh... I, I'm not yet familiar with the formula changes—" Dvalki was proudly explaining his new spells when he stammered.

I grinned. It wasn't that he wasn't familiar with it, he just didn't know how to do it.

"Changing the formula" was practically what fed the magic tower mages. Although basic spells were taught for money, they never revealed how to transform magic or create new types of spells.

When the [Paralyzing Poison] expired, my prisoner suddenly began to scream and squirm.

"Let's make a deal!" If you let me go, I'll give you information!

"Information?"

After stopping Dvalki from using [Paralyzing Poison] again, I asked the man a question, and he hurriedly added,

"That's one crazy bitch!" If you catch her, you'll earn a lot more than you would for me!

"Bjorn, why are you listening to him?" It's clear that he's doing everything he can to survive.

I thought so too, but one word hooked me.

— ... Tell me more about that crazy.

It was worth listening to.

Negotiation: The act of persuasion and discussion to make a decision. It was both reasonable and irrational. If there were no equal conditions, in the end, someone would lose, as now.

— ... Before I tell you, I need a promise!

"Dvalki, just make it like before..."

"I'll tell you!" Not wanting to miss this opportunity, the man began to explain his situation. "There are many other people living in this sewer besides me. Usually they are just hard to see because they know the ways of the patrolmen to avoid them...

"Let's keep it short."

— ... Some crazy bitch stole my hideout a few days ago.

In short, the man's story looked like this. He was living well in the sewers when a woman came and took his house. She was not an ordinary woman. Although she looked small, he had no choice but to run away because she had brought skeletons with her.

"Skeletons?" Aren't they just people who have obtained the essence of Necramia?

Mike shook her head, taking the 7th rank monster Necramia as an example.

But the man seemed convinced.

"I don't know exactly what it is. However! They are completely different from the Skeletons in the maze! I was once a researcher too, so I'm sure!

"And what is your conclusion?"

"It must be evil black magic. If you give it to the temple, you will certainly receive a reward. Money that can't even compare to what you'll get for me!

I thought for a moment.

The time was too close to ignore it. The woman who hid in the sewers a few days ago and used evil black magic...

"Could it be that woman?"

— Elise Behenk. Of course, she had no choice but to hide here.

Brown and Hikurod were thinking the same thing. They swallowed and each added their own thoughts.

Damn, could it really be that bitch?

I needed to find out more because there wasn't enough evidence to be sure.

"What was she wearing?" Describe in detail.

"She was wearing a bathrobe, and her face was covered with a hood, so I couldn't see anything. I knew she was a woman from the lines of her body and her voice, but that was about it.

- I see.

"Oh! Come to think of it, she was wearing a very unusual necklace...

— What shape was it?

— It's hard to explain in words.

I guessed what it was, and quickly pulled an item out of my bag, the symbol of the Karui Church that I had found while digging through Hans' backpack the other day.

"Was it something like that?"

"Yes!" It was just like that!

I took a deep breath as I looked at the nodding man. The probability that it was really that bitch increased dramatically.

"What are you going to do?"

"I think so," I said to Mike.

"Hahaha, what are you thinking?!" We must go and catch her now and do justice!

Justice, damn it. You just want to be rewarded.

In any case, if Hikuroda was an extremist, then Brown was on the side of the moderates.

"I think it's better to go back to the administrative office and file an official report. We're not sure if it's that woman yet, so why should we take the risk?

Both opinions were undoubtedly correct. If we catch it ourselves, we'll get a reward, but if we don't take the risk, we'll leave it to someone else when we file a report.

Something's wrong.

If Eliza was the crazy bitch this guy was talking about, then it was especially frustrating to come back like this. Eliza wasn't just a bitch, she had a grudge against me. Because of this, I was internally worried that she might be plotting something in the shadows.

Even if the administration or the temple had sent people here, it would have taken several days.

In the meantime, if she escaped, I would have to continue to feel the same way.

"I want to check it out, but what do you guys think?"

Misha immediately agreed. Dvalki, who was in a neutral position, also cast one vote, as decided by his best friend, the dwarf.

Brown was worried, but followed the decision of the majority.

"Since the four of you agree, I'll follow you." But before that, how about finishing the patrol mission?

"You're right. Let's do it.

Soon we moved a little faster and finished patrolling the route indicated by the administrative office.

***

"Where is your hiding place?" Lead us there," I ordered the prisoner.

"Promise me that you will let me go."

"If this is the woman we're looking for, or if I feel it's worth it, I'll let you go."

"Okay, follow me.

I stopped him.

"Wait, put this on first.

"Huh?"

No, B!

I tied the rope around the man's waist. A puzzled expression appeared on his face. Then I grabbed the remaining long rope like a leash for the dog, as it would be annoying if he ran away, you know?

"Okay, now that everything is ready, grab the leash.

— ... The road is not on the map, so follow me.

Soon, the man began to find his way through this labyrinth-like sewer. Then I realized that the structure is really complex. Until now, we had only walked along the main road, along which the sewage flowed, but if we squeezed through a narrow crack that looked like a wall, we could find a new space. Then there was a fork in the middle, and somewhere you had to crawl through a hole in the ceiling.

At this moment, one question arose.

"Why did we get you if you could hide in such a place?"

— ... I wandered around the neighborhood looking for a new hiding place. Then I heard you from afar, so I had no choice but to hide in a hurry.

Got it. He was lucky, too.

"We're here.

The man stopped at a hole with a diameter of 2 meters. I did not know what this place was intended for, but it turned out that if you went along the path to the hole, you could find a large open area.

"From now on, everyone lower their voices," I instructed.

"Haha, this is quite a nerve-wracking activity.

Unlike Hikuroda, who looked a little excited, or Mishi, who was a little scared, I wasn't too worried. Coincidentally, all five of us were in the sewers together. Everyone was much stronger than they were then. If the woman hiding down there was Eliza Behenk...

"Hey, is there a place to escape from?" I asked the prisoner.

"There is no other entrance but this hole.

This time I will be able to show her what justice is.