Chapter 30 - Madame Anne

Chapter 30 - Madame Anne

I leaned against the wall with a round tray tucked under my arm, one hand casually stuffed into the pocket of my apron.

Anyone watching me would never guess I was a soldier in the Empire's Special Operations Unit.

Here, at the Anaconda Tavern, I blended in perfectly.

I'd need to adjust my more relaxed manner of speaking before returning to the unit, but for now...

"Mago! Take this order upstairs!"

The senior employee who had guided me on my first day yelled from across the room.

She had insisted I call her "senior" starting yesterday.

Taking the order slip from her, I headed to the second-floor kitchen.

It was just another repetition of the same routine.

But my eyes lingered on the stairs leading to the third floor.

"So they're not even letting me near the third floor, let alone the fourth..."

Stairs I couldn't ascend. Only half of the Anaconda building was accessible to me.

The upper floors felt like a massive fortress wall, the third and fourth floors strictly forbidden.

I could force my way up there if I wanted, but—

"Senior, the manager never seems to be around."

"Madame Anne? She's out on a business trip."

"A business trip?"

"Some idiot ran off with her money. She's hunting them down to the ends of hell."

"Does that count as a business trip?"

"Well, it's part of the tavern's operations, isn't it?" She shrugged.

"Right, he looked just like that..." She pointed to a man seated at a nearby table.

A man with short-cropped hair and an upward-curling mustache.

"Wait, exactly like that…"

"What is it?"

"It's him. It has to be."

"Could it just be the guy himself?"

"Now that you mention it...!"

She grabbed a mop, flipped it upside down, and charged at the man.

"What do you think you're doing here?"

"W-wait! I came back to return the money! I don't want to get struck by lightning or cursed!"

The man yanked off a fake mustache and raised his hands in surrender.

The first-floor patrons turned to stare at the commotion, eyes wide.

"Here! I'm giving it all back! Okay? I'm returning everything!"

He overturned a leather bag, spilling out wads of cash.

"Happy now? Just... put in a good word for me with Madame Anne."

"Get out of here."

The senior employee growled, mop still in hand.

"Alright! I swear I'll never come back! That's good enough, right?"

The man bolted for the exit, vanishing from the tavern.

The first-floor patrons soon lost interest, resuming their conversations as if nothing unusual had happened.

"Senior, are you just going to let him go?"

"It's fine..." She set the mop upright.

"He returned all the money, but... is that really it? Are we just letting this go?"

"Madame Anne will handle it."

"Still…"

I opened the tavern door and peered outside.

The man who had fled after dumping the money was now just a speck in the distance.

Chasing after him now would be pointless—or so I thought.

A sudden clap of thunder roared in my ears.

I recognized it instantly, memories from my past life surging to the surface.

—"I don't want to get struck by lightning!"

The man's words hadn't been a mere metaphor.

A bolt of lightning, thin as a whip, split the sky.

It wasn't a typical downward strike but a horizontal flash, slicing through the air with blinding speed.

In the blink of an eye, it happened.

I shut my eyes against the intense brightness, yet the electric blue afterimage seared itself onto my eyelids.

When I reopened them, the man lay face down, a smoldering hole in his back.

"Madame Anne..."

Returning to my earlier thoughts, I could probably force my way up to the Anaconda's fourth floor if I wanted.

But dealing with the aftermath? That was a different story.

Like Marcello Arnis's life-saving sword and death-dealing spear, Madame Anne, the Vampire Lord, wielded a magical artifact of her own.

If I wasn't careful, I'd end up like that man, struck down by her devastating lightning.

The range of her lightning seemed almost limitless, unimpeded by obstacles.

Dodging it was unthinkable. No one could react fast enough to escape such an attack.

Just as the man who tried to steal from the tavern couldn't escape, anyone who became prey to the Anaconda was as good as doomed.

If suspicion fell on me, I'd be crushed in the coils of the massive serpent.

The red sword I'd received from El—the cross-shaped blade—was the only thing that might stand a chance against her.

Until the time came to use it, I had no choice but to continue playing the part of a tavern worker while investigating the Anaconda.

"My poor knees..."

Madame Anne passed by me.

From her appearance, she looked to be in her mid-sixties.

A silver-haired elderly woman dressed in a modest gown, though it didn't suit her much.

She approached the lifeless man and muttered, "You dare run off with my money?"

"Madame Anne," I called out.

She turned her crimson eyes toward me.

"The money was returned."

"Returned? At this point?"

"I suppose he thought his life was worth more than keeping it, but it seems he's lost that too."

"Is that so? And who might you be?"

"My name is Mago. I'm a new hire here at the Anaconda. Today marks my third day."

I bowed my head respectfully to the Vampire Lord with her blood-red eyes.

***

The other half of the Anaconda.

To get a look at the third and fourth floors, I'd need Madam Anne's approval.

Winning her trust became the first goal.

Convincing her to rely on me, was next.

"Madam Anne is busy with preparations for another venue," my senior explained.

"Another venue?"

"She recently bought another building and is getting it ready. It's a storage facility for now."

"Wow, a building owner. Must be nice."

"You'd be envious for nothing. Most of this entertainment district belongs to Madam Anne."

"Is that why it's okay?"

"Why what's okay?"

"I mean, you all killed someone in the open."

"Word's already out that the Anaconda's funds were stolen and that Madam Anne is furious about it. Nobody in the district would dare cross her—she owns the whole area."

"Hmm…"

After that, the work barely gave me room to think.

By the time I snapped back to reality, it was already dawn.

My senior started turning off the lights on the first floor one by one.

"Mago, you should head out now too."

"You know, it's weird. I've been working here for three days, but I've never closed up with anyone else."

"Huh?"

"Why am I always sent off first? I'm the rookie."

"Exactly because you're the rookie. You don't know much yet, so just go home early. By the way, Mago, where do you live?"

"Are you doing some after-hours work or something?"

"What are you talking about? We all want to get home early too!"

"Well, that's obvious, I guess. Of course, people would want to leave early."

"Yeah, everyone does."

"Right, everyone. Anyone… human, at least, would think that way."

"Uh?"

"Huh?"

"Boss?"

Three puzzled looks—mine and two others'.

The moment I stepped out of the Anaconda, two men exited the tavern across the street.

"Boss!"

The square-faced man waved enthusiastically.

"Mago, boss!"

I recognized them instantly.

From the fourth training exam.

The same time as the second invasion.

They were the bandits who delivered the wagons full of orc dummies to the training center.

Their leader and his right-hand man.

The bandit leader sighed heavily, seemingly resigned to the fact that his lieutenant now called me "boss."

"White Hair, what brings you here?"

"Working."

"Huh? You're not supposed to be here, are you?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You don't belong in a place like this. Unless it's part of a mission?"

"I'm here as a free person, not a soldier. Want me to show you my emblem?"

"No, no, it's fine. So, where's Majo's 'Jo' half? Not with you?"

That nickname again—

"Not your concern."

"So, did you quit the Imperial Army or something?"

"Wait, seriously, boss?" the right-hand man asked, eyes wide as he stepped closer.

"If you've got something to say to me, let's do it somewhere quieter."

"What's wrong with here? Relax, White Hair. Enjoy the entertainment district while you can. Who knows when you'll kick the bucket?"

"Finally sinking in after fleeing the capital?"

"Yeah, you're not wrong," the bandit leader admitted, his expression hardening.

"Now I get it."

He crossed the narrow street to stand right in front of me, with his right-hand man trailing awkwardly behind.

"If not for your warning, we'd have been wiped out in the capital. I heard about it—while we were gone, the citizens hid in the tunnels we dug. That's why you told me to take the men and run, wasn't it? To clear the tunnels. Playing the hero, leaking Imperial Army intel… It was all you, wasn't it?"

"Quick-witted as ever. Must be the bandit instinct."

"You saved countless lives, White Hair. I won't thank you for it. In fact, it pisses me off. Feels like you toyed with our lives, and I don't like it. Got it?"

"Small-minded, aren't you?"

"This little—!"

"Hey!"

It was Madam Anne's voice.

She yelled from the second floor of a nearby building, holding a thick cigar in one hand and a drink in the other.

So this really was all her territory.

"If you're gonna fight, take it somewhere else! Don't go stirring up bad rumors. Especially you two with the scary faces."

"Madam Anne! My apologies! Bosses, let's move. Somewhere quiet," the bandit leader muttered.

Whether bandit or Imperial Special Unit, we were all reduced to being scolded by a tavern owner.

We ended up in a nearby park, sitting on a bench that barely fit the three of us, with me in the middle.

Staring blankly at a decorative waterwheel spinning aimlessly, I broke the silence.

"So, what are you two doing here?"

"The capital's wrecked."

"Yeah, no kidding. I meant, why were you in the entertainment district?"

"Mind your own business. The district's the district—why does it matter?" the leader retorted.

Ignoring him, I turned to his right-hand man.

"Earlier, you called her Madam Anne, didn't you?"

"Y-yes, boss…"

"Did you come out of the place across from Anaconda because you're working there?"

"White Hair, I've got my pride. Why would I stoop to being a grunt in someone else's shop?" the leader snapped.

At that, I turned to him with a sly grin.

"Madam Anne… Why'd you come all the way here yourself?"

"M-Madam!"

The leader whipped his head around.

But there was no one behind him.

He'd fallen for my bait.

"Ah, so your pride's back there somewhere, huh?"

"Damn it…" he muttered, rubbing his forehead.

"You're broke, aren't you?"

"White Hair…"

"You followed my advice and left the capital. You didn't prepare for anything serious, just ran off lightly, and then the invasion hit. Monsters fell from the sky."

"Yes… boss…" the right-hand man admitted, lowering his head.

"You left everything behind and fled south. Now the capital's a wasteland, and you can't go back. So here you are, scraping by."

"Yes…"

"No wonder you hate the Imperial Army."

"Exactly! You guys should be taking the capital back already, damn it!"

"You didn't even pay taxes. You made your money through banditry. Pretty sure you've got no right to complain. And like I said, I'm not here as part of the Imperial Army. Blame me all you want; it won't get you anywhere."

"Not really here for the Army?"

"I told you, I work at Anaconda."

I pointed toward the tall building, visible even from the park.

I hadn't expected to run into them here, but it was a stroke of luck.

Looks like I'll be able to use them again.