Chapter 106: All Guns Firing!

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Dozens of drones lit up the street with bright spotlights, their red laser sights locked onto the target.

The assassin froze in his tracks.

Lili moved fast. She grabbed Yui and Ui, pulling them away from the killer.

"Fire!" Lili screamed.

The drones responded right away. Their red laser sights lined up directly on the half-dwarf assassin.

The mounted guns caught him by surprise and started shooting.

Brrrrrrrrrrrt!

A heavy stream of bullets rained down.

The assassin reacted on instinct. He threw himself back, moving so fast he was almost a blur.

"He's fast!" Yui exclaimed, amazed that an Adventurer blessed by the divine could outrun gunfire.

But speed didn't help when you were trying to outrun a storm of bullets. The drones followed his movements, aimed for his head, and fired again.

Three bullets hit his skull before he could even try to cast a spell.

"Whoa." Yui and Ui stared, stunned.

They thought the assassin would dodge bullets like a ninja or a movie hero. Clearly, they overestimated him.

Three shots ended his hopes.

Yui and Ui saw the assassin lying in a pool of his own blood, but they didn't feel afraid. The adrenaline from running had chased away their fear. Instead, they found the killer's quick end oddly interesting. It felt like they were in another world.

"Are you girls alright?" Two figures landed smoothly on the street.

August and Hestia had arrived.

With Hestia on his back, August let out a sigh of relief when he saw the girls were safe. He was honestly surprised. He never expected anyone to attack in the middle of an Orario street. Being extra careful had been the right move.

"I-I'm fine!" Yui stuttered, bowing politely. She pointed at the dead assassin. "But I don't think we can ask him any questions. He's dead."

Assassins going after them during a simple walk. It was ridiculous.

"An assassin?" August studied the corpse.

The man was large, but not in a normal way. He was covered in thick, rough hair, almost like a gorilla. That clearly marked him as a dwarf.

"A half-dwarf."

August noted in surprise. Thanks to Hestia's divine translation, August understood the race's unique traits. Without her help, he wouldn't have known what kind of person the man was.

Tsubaki Collbrande, carrying Hephaestus, landed nearby.

She walked over and looked down at the body, blood still pooling around it.

"A Level 4 Dwarf Hunter!" Tsubaki stated, immediately recognizing the killer.

"Dwarf Hunter?" August was confused. "What kind of title is that?"

"He's a half-dwarf, just like me," Tsubaki said. "But he came from a kingdom of assassins. They raised and trained killers. When that kingdom fell, he drifted into Orario like the rest of us."

"He was a psycho who hunted Pallums and dwarfs just for sport." Tsubaki never thought she would see this man dead in an alley. "He was universally hated by both races."

A Level 4 assassin with a dark past—August found the story interesting.

"No wonder I felt so uncomfortable," Lili said, shivering. She had been facing her natural enemy, someone meant to hunt her kind.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

A group of lightly armored Ganesha Familia members rushed onto the scene, reacting fast to the noise.

But compared to August's quick response, the city guards looked confused.

"Hello there. I'm Hashana Dorlia." A tall man stepped out from the squad, addressing August.

Hashana looked at the body, did a double-take, and quickly recognized the face.

"The Dwarf Hunter?" Hashana whistled.

This was the man every Pallum and dwarf in the city wanted gone. Now he was lying here, bleeding on the street. The Dwarf Hunter was known for hurting and killing small folk.

"This is the guy who even caused trouble for the Freya Familia's golden quartet," Hashana said, scratching his head. "I didn't expect him to die here."

He turned back to August with an apologetic sigh. "Sorry to drag you into this mess."

A nighttime street assassination was a huge problem for the city watch.

August frowned. He could see Hashana was having a hard time dealing with the situation.

"How do you plan to handle this?" August asked.

The Ganesha Familia kept the peace in the city. August's team was unharmed, but this was his first time dealing with what happened after an assassination attempt.

"If you start demanding answers right now, I honestly have no idea how to solve this."

Hashana glanced at Tsubaki, hoping for help.

"The Dwarf Hunter works alone. He only takes jobs from the underground bounty board," Tsubaki said, noticing Hashana struggling. "His Patron God lost a War Game long ago and was sent back to Heaven. If you're searching for the person behind this hit, you probably won't find anyone. This guy was just a rogue psycho."

"If you really want to look into the underground bounties, I can show you where to start," Hashana said honestly. He had no intention of playing hero or taking the blame.

Hearing about a Level 4 assassin on the loose scared him. These old-school killers belonged to another era. After Ares and the Rakia Kingdom wiped out the assassin nations, almost none remained.

"I can only show you where to look. If this was a regular assassin, I could probably find his status board. But the Dwarf Hunter was different," Hashana said, raising his hands.

Most psycho killers ended up with the dark factions. Unless he could catch an Evil God, there was nothing he could do.

"Fine." August agreed. If Hashana was willing to lead him to the underground bounty broker, he would take it. How he handled the broker was his business.

"You lot, clean up the street," Hashana ordered his junior squad members, gesturing to the corpse.

"Yes, sir!" The young guards didn't complain. If anything, they looked eager. It was their first time dealing with a high-profile assassin's corpse, and they wanted to study the body.

"Follow me," Hashana said, leading August's group away.

Hephaestus, Miach, Takemikazuchi, and Artemis followed at a distance. This was Hestia's problem, and her Familia would deal with it. The other Gods were just here to watch August in action.

Hashana kept glancing back at August, the young man whose reputation was already legendary.

"To be this strong at your age... Young people these days are quite something," Hashana sighed in admiration.

It was rare to see someone so powerful at such a young age.

Even though Hashana was almost thirty, he felt a little jealous. Seeing the Level 4 Dwarf Hunter defeated right before him, Hashana realized he wouldn't stand a chance against August either.

"You're impressive too, Mr. Hashana," August replied.

He never underestimated anyone. In this city, people kept their skills and magic secret. You could never tell what tricks an Adventurer might have.

"Hahaha, thanks for the compliment, kid," Hashana laughed. Being praised by the guy his Patron God, Ganesha, constantly raved about felt pretty good.

He glanced at Lili, Yui, and Ui. They looked totally lost.

Hashana's expression turned serious. "Hey, August. Have you pissed anyone off recently?"

If someone sent the Dwarf Hunter, it meant they wanted these girls dead.

"What makes you say that?" August blinked.

"Usually, assassins only target high-profile Adventurers," Hashana didn't hold back, pointing at the three girls.

"Those two are clearly brand new. Even assassins have standards—they don't hunt rookies. And the Supporter... sure, she looks experienced, but who wastes a high-level hit on a Supporter?"

Hashana explained.

Even a skilled Supporter was still just a Supporter, and rookies were still rookies. None of them were real targets for a professional assassin. Assassins went after people like themselves. Without a big name or bounty, there was no reason to attack.

"Oho. A Ganesha boy pointing out the obvious," Hestia crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Are you saying my Familia has been slapped on a hit list?"

Who would be crazy enough to pick a fight with them? She had kept August's power in check, and the assassins should have been thankful. Attacking first was just asking for trouble.

"You know how it is, Lady Hestia," Hashana sighed. "I honestly can't think of a single reason why someone would mobilize a Level 4 for a hit like this."

"Even if my juniors had called me in time, I wouldn't have bet on taking him down. And I definitely couldn't have stopped him from escaping."

Hashana voiced his concerns. Beating a Level 4 assassin was tough, and stopping one from escaping was almost impossible. Judging by the targets, he couldn't figure out who hated the Hestia Familia this much.

"I see..." Hestia narrowed her eyes. She thought about who might be gunning for them.

Freya and Loki were not suspects. They did not use cheap street assassins.

That left only one option: the Evilus, especially the Ikelos Familia.

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After winding through alleyways and side streets, they arrived at a distinct district.

The Pleasure Quarter of Orario.

"This is..."

As soon as they walked onto the main street, everything felt different.

Beautiful women in revealing clothes lined the streets, calling out to customers. They knew how to use their looks to draw men in, and they were very good at it.

"Whoa," Yui and Ui said, blushing. They were innocent and had never seen a place like this before.

Lili frowned, wondering if Hashana had led them down the wrong street.

August stopped and looked around. He wasn't surprised to find an assassin broker hiding here. It made sense that the darkest secrets would be hidden in the flashiest places.

It all made perfect sense.

"This is the Ishtar Familia's turf, isn't it?" August noted. If he remembered correctly, Ishtar ran the Pleasure Quarter.

"Do you still want to go in?" Hashana looked at August. As the Captain, it was his call.

"Yes," August stated coldly.

If someone tried to kill him and he did nothing, every criminal in the city would think they could attack him too.

Hestia nodded in agreement. She strongly suspected the Evilus were involved, likely Ikelos. But she didn't need to say that yet. Let August tear the place apart first.

They walked down the avenue.

The beautiful, powerful Amazons noticed them immediately.

"Well, well, if it isn't Hashana."

"Got some free time tonight?"

"Care to join us for a drink?"

Several stunning Amazons spotted Hashana and immediately approached. He was a familiar face, a potential customer, and not a creep. They liked him.

"No, no, no! I'm on duty!" Hashana waved them off frantically. Work time meant absolutely no distractions.

They pushed deeper into the district.

"Here we are," Hashana stopped and pointed. "That's the place."

August and Hestia halted, staring at a building disguised as a tavern.

August's expression went icy.

"Lili, Yui, Ui. Stay behind me," he ordered, raising his arm.

"All gun ports. Open fire."

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