The Assassin's Seven Principles of Manipulation

Chapter 171: Chapter 168 — Forn

Though Dunwall was the capital of the South, as with many other places, it had both good and bad parts.

The streets he walked were unpaved and littered with cans, dirty wrappers, and even feces. A perpetual gloom clung to every corner. Everyone he saw was either dressed in tatters, stumbling around drunk, or locked in vicious brawls.

The houses were in terrible condition. Most were built from piles of plastic, pans, and scraps of junk haphazardly pieced together.

No matter how Zephyrion looked at it, this was definitely the bad part.

He moved through the disgusting streets at a brisk pace, Lumi and Kilo trailing behind him. The former’s frame had been swallowed entirely by her cloak. She looked less like a seventeen-year-old girl and more like a child wrapped in an oversized costume.

Even as they walked, Lumi seemed more occupied with avoiding the cracks on the ground than paying attention to her surroundings.

Kilo was far more reserved. Simply being near Zephyrion kept her constantly tense, like standing beside a wild beast that could lash out at any moment.

Numerous eyes followed the trio as they passed. Though they blended well enough with the night, Zephyrion could already imagine how glaringly out of place they looked simply by being fully clothed.

Zephyrion picked up the pace. After weaving through multiple corners and passing several feces-ridden alleyways, they eventually stopped before a small shack built alongside a larger wooden structure.

Large sheets of rusted metal covered the roof, while smaller scraps had been crudely hammered together to form the walls.

It was small. Barely the size of his room back at the mansion.

’This is it?’

He had known Tobias wasn’t in the best financial state, but this was simply miserable. Even here, the thick stench of waste lingered heavily in the air.

Seeing this, Zephyrion couldn’t help but understand the ward’s desperation better. Which, in turn, made his decision to leave carry even more weight.

Zephyrion spread out his perception before frowning a moment later.

’There’s no one here.’

He glanced around. There were no nearby neighbors they could ask, and searching the city blindly would only waste time.

”Yo, who the hell are you?”

Zephyrion turned. Approaching them were three men with fairly large builds. They wore oversized baggy clothes, their trousers sagging so low they barely clung to their knees, exposing filthy underwear beneath.

Massive fake golden chains hung around their necks, glinting beneath the moonlight and reflecting faintly in Zephyrion’s eyes. They were the perfect image of street thugs.

”Oi...” the man standing in the middle — clearly the leader — tilted his head with a menacing stare. ”Never seen you clowns around here before. Who the hell are ya supposed to be?”

”We—”

”We’re looking for Tobias,” Zephyrion interrupted calmly, stopping Kilo before she could step forward.

”Do you know where he is?”

”Oh, Toby boy?” The leader nodded slowly. ”Yeah, I know Toby boy. But you...” His eyes swept over them. ”You ain’t from around here, are ya? Can smell it all over you.”

”We’re not.”

”Good, good.” The leader’s eyes gradually sharpened. ”Then let me educate ya a little. Name’s Capon. I run this whole stretch of the slums. Anybody walks through my streets bows their head first... then pays tribute. Got it?”

Zephyrion slowly tilted his head.

”Tribute?”

”Yes, tribute.” The man flashed a grin full of yellowed teeth. ”Five gold coins. Hand ’em over. Nice and easy.”

Five gold coins was an absurd amount of money. Even a single gold coin was rarely seen in the slums. From the greed shining in their eyes, it was obvious they had recognized the quality of the cloaks and intended to extort them.

Kilo’s expression became one of pity.

’Stupid fools.’

She had seen through their intentions immediately and had even tried to save the bastards from the demon standing beside her. Unfortunately, it seemed they had already run out of luck.

”Take us to Tobias.”

”Huh?” The leader leaned closer, the foul stench of his breath nearly physical. The other two men spread out around them, cracking their knuckles. ”The hell’s wrong with you? You deaf or someth—”

Thud. Thud.

At the sound, the leader turned sharply. Both his subordinates had collapsed onto the ground unconscious, their jaws grotesquely caved in.

”Wha—”

An overwhelming pressure suddenly crushed him flat against the ground. His body trembled violently as he slowly lifted his head.

Beneath the silver moonlight, a pair of still purple eyes stared down at him without emotion.

In that instant, the leader felt as though his soul had been dunked into freezing water.

”Take us to Tobias.”

Without the slightest hesitation, the leader nodded frantically.

”...y-yes.”

...

The leader guided them deeper through the slums toward a noticeably better area. The streets here were paved, and the people somewhat cleaner and better dressed.

Eventually, they stopped at the mouth of an alleyway overlooking a large building at the end of the street.

”F-from what I heard, sir... Toby boy sold himself to Forn.” The leader swallowed nervously. ”Big loan shark around these parts. Runs the biggest gambling den too. If Toby’s anywhere, he’s there. I swear on my life, sir.”

The man’s entire demeanor had changed. His head remained deeply lowered, not daring to meet Zephyrion’s gaze. He looked less like a thug now and more like a terrified stray dog.

”Alright. You may leave.”

”Y-yes! Thank you, sir! Bless you, sir!”

He scrambled away as quickly as possible, repeatedly yanking his sagging trousers back up as he fled.

Zephyrion silently studied the building for a moment. It was larger than any other structure he had seen in the slums. Then he spoke.

”Get us some money.”

Beside him, Lumi nodded before vanishing instantly.

Kilo stared in utter disbelief. Get some money... did that mean steal?

She had seen Lumi’s abilities during the proving, but the thought of such an innocent-looking girl robbing people somehow felt deeply wrong.

’The poor girl...’

A moment later, Lumi reappeared carrying a large sack overflowing with gold coins. Her tiny fists were lightly bloodied, and beneath her hood was an oddly excited expression as she handed the sack over to Zephyrion.

Kilo gulped.

Clearly, both of them were insane.

Zephyrion accepted the gold without comment.

”I want you to stay nearby and watch my back. Only move if I call for you.”

Lumi nodded obediently.

”You too.”

”Y-yes, my lord.” Kilo hastily lowered her head beneath Zephyrion’s gaze.

With that, Zephyrion stepped out of the alleyway and entered the building.

The next moment, he found himself inside a vast bustling hall. The air was warm and heavy with sweat, alcohol, and the heat of countless bodies packed together.

Numerous gambling tables sprawled across the room, each surrounded by loud crowds and bursts of drunken laughter.

Zephyrion moved calmly through the hall, observing every detail without pause.

’There.’

Eventually, his eyes settled on his target.

Seated at a more secluded table was a massive man with a heavily tattooed frame. Thick golden chains hung around his neck, several of his teeth had been replaced with gold, and nearly every finger carried a ring. Through the opening of his robe, dense strands of chest hair spilled out freely.

The man laughed loudly while everyone else seated around the table remained stiff and tense.

Zephyrion shifted directions and began walking toward him.

A large burly man guarded the path leading to the table. He frowned deeply the moment he noticed the cloaked Zephyrion approaching.

”Oi...” Stepping forward, the burly man flexed slightly. ”You lost or somethi—”

He froze.

Zephyrion never even looked at him. Yet the faint bloodlust leaking from his body rooted the man in place like prey caught beneath a predator’s gaze.

Without slowing down, Zephyrion walked past him and arrived at the table.

Only then did he notice the hunched figure beneath Forn with dull, lifeless eyes. Tobias.

The boy was literally being used as a chair.

Zephyrion merely glanced at him before looking away as though he had seen nothing. Then he slammed the sack of gold onto the table.

Bam!

The table fell silent. Eyes slowly shifted toward Zephyrion in confusion.

”I’d like to play.”

A brief silence followed. Then one of the large men seated beside Forn slowly rose to his feet, glaring at Zephyrion coldly.

”Oi, who the hell let this guy through? Kid, you blind or just stupid? This table ain’t fo—”

”Buck.”

The thick burly voice cut him off instantly.

The massive fat man silently regarded Zephyrion, the grin on his face gradually widening.

”I don’t gamble with people hiding their faces.” He leaned back lazily. ”Take the hood off.”

”No.”

Buck took a threatening step forward.

”The hell you mea—”

”Buck.”

This time, the single word carried an icy edge to it. Buck immediately stiffened.

Forn slowly turned his gaze toward him, still smiling, though none of the amusement reached his eyes.

”You making me repeat myself now?”

”N-no, boss... my bad.”

Forn gave a short grunt before looking back at Zephyrion, his gaze lingering particularly on the heavy sack of gold resting atop the table.

”Hah...” His grin widened. ”You’ve got guts. I like that.”

He flicked a glance toward one of the men seated nearby.

”Move.”

The man instantly stood and vacated the seat.

”Sit.” Forn gestured casually. ”You know how the game works, right?”

As he took his seat, Zephyrion calmly studied the setup.

A roulette wheel.

Countless numbered slots lined the rotating circular structure while a small ball rolled along its edge. Each player selected a number before the wheel stopped, placed their wager, and whoever landed closest won the round. Simple.

”Yes.”

”Good.” Forn flashed a grin filled with gold teeth. ”Minimum wager’s twenty gold coins. No limit on the high end. Since you marched all the way here with that attitude...” He chuckled. ”I’ll be generous and let you join this round.”

Zephyrion glanced briefly at the sack beside him. Judging from the weight, there were at most a hundred gold coins inside.

”Alright.”

He turned toward Forn and nodded calmly.