Chapter 136: Free Rein
Before arriving at the town park to help Kia, Mwana had a very "productive" conversation with Apothecary Dawa.
From the medicine man's mouth, Mwana had learned that the Red Hawk Gang did not just rely on torture to get their way as kidnapping was also in their cards. In fact, the gang had kidnapped Dawa's daughter to blackmail him before resorting to good ol' torture.
When he heard this, Mwana had naturally been shocked at the time. He seemed to vaguely sense that this town was not as peaceful as it seemed. Whether it was shocking monsters or rampant gangs, Milele town seemed to have it all.
Peace in this town was just a thin veil that could be pierced at any time.
"Didn't you report it to the authorities?" Mwana asked Dawa about the kidnapping.
"You should know – a lot of the law enforcement in the town has been bribed by these gangs. They move like snails when it comes to any gang-related cases."
Although Mwana already guessed the outcome, there was still a feeling of incredulity at the lawlessness in the town.
When describing his pains, Dawa took the opportunity to ask Mwana for help. He was sure that Mwana had some people behind him. After all, the kid dared to do what he could not.
Not only did Mwana take on members of the Red Hawk gang but he also had a Silver Guard card which was apparently issued by Mr. Black himself. Even local officers and town guards would move sideways when Mwana whipped out the card. And that was not all. Possessing Mr. Black's card was also enough to grant Mwana some preferential treatment in the local branch of the silver guards.
Naturally, all this was due to a coincidence and Dawa's own assumptions but who was Mwana to refuse when blessings came knocking at his door. The medicine man had offered generous rewards after all, 'Am I supposed to just say no. There is a girl's life at stake here!'
"If it is within my power, I will do everything to help." Mwana responded to Dawa's request.
After entrusting Mwana to save his daughter, Dawa actually paid! A certain sum in advance and another promised after the task was complete.
It is not like Mwana would refuse to save someone without money but naturally cash makes any deal sweeter.
"Recently, the Red Hawks have intercepted a lot of herbs and medicinal treasures."
"If anyone can retrieve them along the way, they will receive a lot of gratitude from the medicine community in the town."
___An even sweeter deal in Mwana's ears.
"And if a few stalks of herbs are missing, who knows who took them. It is only natural for the gang to have used some of them, right?"
It was a question but also an implication.
Dawa did not need to say anymore to convince Mwana. His words sounded like honey to Mwana's ears – make some direct cash, earn the gratitude of the medicine community, and pocket some "free" loot somewhere along the way; and if anything went wrong, all the blame would still rightfully fall on the Red Hawk gang.
"You know how to talk, I like that." Mwana responded with a face full of smiles, all his teeth showing.
"Happy to advice," even with his broken fingers, the old apothecary still cupped his fist when speaking.
A period of silence followed in the dark alleyway and then laughter erupted, two voices – one old and one young.
"Men" could really understand one another.
...
Ramming Cannon: Deicide!
This attack was like a meteor shooting through the air. A sense of heat followed Barbarian Bull Queen's two fists as they expanded towards Mwana and Kia.
This was not just an expansion due to movement but also in size.
Barbarian Bull Queen had entered a half transformation state!
With deft footwork, the two youngsters narrowly dodged the older woman's attack. However, even though they successfully evaded the blow, just the force coming from the wind pressure on "Queen's" extended fists was enough to grate against their skin.
This alone made them understand that a full force attack like this would probably leave them bloody if it connected.
Just from its name – Deicide, this was an attack meant to slaughter the gods!
"Impossible! This kind of attack power should not be possible!" Mwana exclaimed in shock.
The power their opponent used clearly surpassed the perimeters of the Normalization Magic applied to Milele town.
"Shape up, she is about to attack again." Kia spoke from Mwana's side. In her mind, she thought the boy was losing it.
'What?!' Internally, all Mwana could do was exclaim at the "dig".
When Barbarian Bull Queen came barreling towards them again like a freight train passing through, the two of the dodged her attack by the skin again. But this time, Mwana dodged while turning over the fallen hyena man with his feet.
What he saw finally confirmed his suspicions.
"I knew it! There are remnant fluctuations emitted by the use of supernatural powers through Exception Cards on all of them! At least 5%." Mwana exclaimed, loudly at that.
After all, while allowing 5% usage of supernatural powers might seem negligible, even that was enough to make a huge difference in a battle.
"Exception card? What is that?" Kia asked.
The question left Mwana dumbfounded. Although he did not know much about these cards until meeting the patrolling officer and learning from Apothecary Dawa, Mwana was shocked to hear that Kia had no clue about them.
"Did you not feel that your opponents were stronger than usual?"
"Not really."
This exchange opened Mwana's eyes. He could only marvel at his own inadequacy, 'How strong do I gotta be to not even notice when my opponents are cheating?'
Learning that their enemies had access to exception cards also allowed the two youngsters to understand how deeply corruption was rooted in the structure of this town.
"Even some child traffickers can actually get exception cards!"
Exception cards – this was the only formally established way to exert supernatural power within Milele's boundaries.
The only power that could break this rule was the Paradise Ring – a power controlled by Paradise Elders stationed across various villages in Toro.
The elder who was in charge of the escort mission from Jua village during this trip, Elder Kirigiti was an example of a Paradise Elder. Naturally he also had a Paradise Ring. These rings actually functioned like the rings of a certain famous group of space corps.
Not only did the rings grant temporary peak level powers to their users, they could also bypass seals, formations, and bans that restricted other forms of supernatural powers. The unique power of these rings came from the material used to create them – shards from broken Holy Crystals.
When Mwana had first learned of these rings, not only did he desire them, but he also truly understood that 'the talents of humans are unfathomable.'
"Steel Smelting Palms!"
Barbarian Bull Queen was akin to a raging Minotaur as she continued her assault.
"Stand still you damned brats!"
"Just let me hit you. Just once."
"I promise it won't hurt."
While her attacks were fierce, the bull-like woman grew more frustrated as the battle continued. The two brats were too nimble!
Despite her immense strength, she was outclassed in speed.
However, in this clash, Barbarian Bull Queen still had no trouble holding her own against the two 'damned brats'.
While the battle was going on, Kia informed Mwana about the situation – including the child trafficking as well as the girls with space storage talismans in their stomachs who were locked away in the carriages.
Naturally, this was enough to raise Mwana's emotions of anger and wrath to the point that his fierceness in battle increased.
While Mwana had just witnessed members of the Red Hawk gang torture a man, it seemed that this cell of the gang did even more nefarious things.
The gang even hired actual monsters to do their dirty work and bribed town officials to get access to exception cards. It was clear that they had free rein in Milele town's underground scene.
"This gang cannot continue existing." Mwana said in a resolute tone.
....
___Mwana was still very young, and he obviously was not a saint, but it was very hard for him to tolerate the evil right in front of his eyes.
___If you asked someone to ignore something bad that happened a thousand miles away, they can ignore it and even sleep with peace of mind. But if you shine a light on the extreme evil a few meters away from them, it is very hard for anyone to even eat and sleep in peace.
Author Note: Unlock the second side-story – Exorcist Chronicles on my Patr*on.