Childhood Friend - M*rder
“This is all it’s worth?”
Leo had arrived at the large village market, intending to sell some dried meat at the same shop his father frequented. But the merchant offered him a pittance.
Dried meat was quite expensive. This amount was far too little for a fair trade.
“That’s the going rate these days. It also looks a bit poorly dried.”
Leo silently placed the received money on the counter and hoisted the dried meat back onto his shoulders. He didn’t even turn around when he heard the merchant say something behind him.
Unlike the goods other young men sold, dried meat had a long shelf life. In a pinch, he could just eat it himself.
His father had only told him to sell the meat, not what to buy with the earnings. It was just meant to be a learning experience.
While Leo didn’t mind not selling it, he didn’t want to give it away like this, treated poorly on his first attempt at selling.
After wandering for a while, he found a merchant who offered a reasonable price and unloaded the dried meat. Bowing his head in gratitude, he decided to only deal with this merchant in the future.
Leo returned to the village well.
The well was deserted, with only Hans and the young man guarding the perimeter lounging by the wagon. It seemed the other young men hadn’t returned yet.
Except for Hans.
“Hey, Leo’s back?”
“Yeah. You’re back early too.”
“Well… it didn’t take long for me.”
There was nothing left to do now. It took a long time for the others to sell their goods.
The dried meat Leo sold was always in demand, and its quality was easy to assess, making it a quick sell. On the other hand, the other young men sometimes struggled to sell everything, forcing them to leave the wagon behind and stay at the market for a few days to finish selling their goods.
However, that meant paying for lodging, being unable to buy anything on the way back, and facing additional risks. So usually, it was common practice to get rid of everything within the day, even at a lower price.
The wagon wouldn’t depart until dawn tomorrow.
Leo could have returned alone immediately since he had no more goods, but he didn’t want to do anything so heartless.
As he was contemplating whether to exercise to kill time, Hans approached and nudged his shoulder.
“Leo. Come with me for a bit.”
When men hear those words, most of them follow, regardless of the reason or situation.
Is there some kind of magic embedded in that phrase?
Come to think of it, if they were close, there were more instances where they wouldn’t follow, so it probably wasn’t magic.
Leo followed Hans.
“Where are we going?”
“Hehehe. I knew you’d never been here before.”
Hans led him deep into an alley and opened a shabby door. Leo then realized where they were.
Behind the open door was the sign of a brothel.
“Man, I’m out of here.”
“What? Why? We’re already here.”
“I’m not interested.”
As Leo turned around, Hans taunted him from behind.
“Hey! What’s wrong with it? Lena’s not even here anymore.”
The mention of Lena’s name triggered something within him.
“I told you, I’m good. It’s too dark to see their faces anyway. Just think of them as Lena while you’re at it. I’ve done it a few times, it’s not bad… Argh!”
Leo’s body spun around involuntarily. He threw a kick, mercilessly beating the staggering Hans.
The bastard had touched a nerve.
It was one thing to insult Lena, who had left to become a priestess, but it was another because it brought back memories of his younger sister… the Lena from their past as beggar siblings.
By the time he came to his senses, it was already too late. Hans lay motionless, bleeding profusely.
He was going to kill him anyway. He had planned to secretly kill him after saving up enough for travel expenses until next spring, but he hadn’t expected to do it so soon.
[Achievement: Civilian Kill - You have killed ‘1’ civilian. You feel slightly unhappier.]
“What’s with all the commotion? Oh!”
The guard of the brothel came out.
He wasn’t a gangster.
There were no Families that would set themselves up in a town the size of Torito. They were probably just thugs who had formed a gang.
‘Damn it… I have to get out of here.’
Leo briefly considered killing him too. But time was of the essence, so he ignored the yelling thug and ran.
He cursed under his breath as he ran. He had killed someone in broad daylight within the village, so he had to get out quickly. If caught, he would be executed on the spot.
He ran towards the market. He repurchased the dried meat, bought a water skin and rope, and tied them around his waist. He also stopped by the blacksmith and bought a hunting dagger, securing it to his waistband.
He wanted to buy a backpack, clothes, and shoes, but he didn’t have time.
He could hear shouts of “Murder!” in the distance. Fortunately, since the incident happened in front of the brothel, the news was slow to spread. The thugs were probably still panicking and scrambling.
Leo ran in the opposite direction.
Torito village was surrounded by a large wooden fence, with gates in the east, west, north, and south, each guarded by the village militia.
He could also spot the lord’s soldiers patrolling from time to time.
Catching his breath, he casually walked past the gate, pretending nothing was wrong. He felt like an arrow could pierce him in the back at any moment.
“Close the gate! Murder!”
Leo was already a good distance away from the village.
He could see the gate of Torito closing.
“Hey! You there, the one who just left! Come back!”
He was only a few dozen meters away, so there was no way he couldn’t hear them. But Leo continued walking, pretending he hadn’t heard a thing.
The stares of the people working in the nearby fields were piercing, but no one dared to intervene.
Leo veered off the main road and concealed himself in the forest.
And he never returned.