After leaving the alley, the two made a detour to the capital's guard station before heading to the slums.
At Adam's suggestion, Natsuki realized they needed to find another helper.
[Capital Guard Station]
"Is this enough?" Natsuki handed a letter to the guard station, "Will this really work? You're not lying to me, right? This is a matter of life and death — I'm counting on you!"
"Rest assured, young man. If Lord Reinhard comes today, I will definitely deliver this letter to him." The unnamed guard carefully tucked the letter into his breast pocket.
Natsuki, still worried, pleaded, "You have to give it to him — you absolutely must give it to him. Don't forget!"
"Don't worry! I'll keep it safe and deliver it to him personally. Though he's off duty today, so I'm not sure if he'll come in." The guard reassured him while patting his chest.
"What did you say—?!"
Before the stressed high-school boy could say anything more, Adam forcefully pulled him out of the guard station.
"Ow ow ow, what's the big idea, Carter!" Natsuki rubbed his reddened shoulder, "Finding help was your idea, so why are you stopping me?"
"You idiot, you've said it too many times!" Adam angrily knocked him on the head, "Besides, look at the time — it's almost time for the trade you mentioned!"
Natsuki was startled upon hearing this, hurriedly looking up at the sky and checking his flip phone for the time.
"Not good! We're running out of time, let's hurry!" His expression changed as he turned to run toward the slums, completely forgetting that he was the one who had been wasting time.
Finding help had been Adam's secret reminder to Natsuki. Since he couldn't protect him from Elsa's sneak attacks, they needed another helper — someone strong.
After all, ordinary guards couldn't stop that woman — they'd probably all be taken down in an instant.
And Reinhard was the perfect choice!
Strong and righteous, while also kindhearted, he wouldn't dismiss an anonymous letter as false information but would rather investigate personally.
The content of the letter they asked the guard to give to Reinhard was very concise:
[A woman suspected to be the Elsa Granhiert, the Bowel Hunter, will conduct an underground trade with someone this evening. Location: the waste storehouse in the slums. Trading goods unknown.]
The information about Elsa being the Bowel Hunter had been confirmed during Natsuki's 10 loops. Thanks to those loops, he had gathered most of the information about her.
"So you're saying that even if I activate my Slayer Mark, I'd only be evenly matched with her?" Adam's expression grew slightly grave after hearing his description.
Currently, his activation of the Demon Slayer Mark was his trump card. But even with that, he'd only be on par with Elsa — no, he'd probably be the weaker one.
The longer he maintained his Marked state, the greater the toll on his body — he couldn't sustain it for very long. Meanwhile, Elsa, thanks to her Curse Doll curse, excelled in endurance and quick recovery, making her unafraid of drawn-out battles.
As time went on, she would definitely find an opening to counterattack.
'I think I understand now why I couldn't protect Natsuki.'
In the end, he had overestimated his abilities, thinking he could hold off the 'vampire' Elsa, but in reality, he couldn't stop this battle-hardened Bowel Hunter.
{T/N: Vampire is a way people call the ones aflicted with this curse.}
If that's the case, then maybe he should use〘Explosion Magic〙to end it in one shot...
No, Elsa was too agile — she'd easily dodge before he could target her. Besides, unleashing such powerful〘Explosion Magic〙in a confined space would be suicide.
In an instant, everyone, including himself, would perish!
Adam muttered under his breath, "Tch, having to rely on someone uncertain is infuriating."
Whether Reinhard would arrive by evening remained unknown. For now, they could only proceed step by step.
In that moment, he understood the young boy's helplessness.
After their brief exchange, Natsuki sprinted ahead with Adam close behind. Weaving through several dark alleys, they emerged into the slums, where the scenery changed dramatically.
The area was devastatingly desolate, without a single building fully intact. It seemed impossible that such decay existed mere alleys away from the capital's prosperity.
The wealth gap was staggering!
Around the crumbling houses, malnourished people in tattered clothes lay motionless. If not for their shallow breathing, Adam might have mistaken them for corpses.
The elegantly dressed man and boy stood out starkly, yet their presence drew no reaction from the residents.
The locals stared with vacant eyes, showing not even a flicker of interest. They had long since lost their will, existing as mere shells of humanity.
Adam's steps faltered, lagging behind Natsuki.
He cursed under his breath, "Tch, every world has its wealth gap, stop being so damn sympathetic, idiot!"
"Hey! What are you doing, Carter! We're running out of time!" Natsuki called out to the halted man, urgently waving him forward.
"Just a moment!" Adam shouted back, then lurched forward into a run.
As he dashed ahead, someone stepped out from the side, and they collided. His vision darkened...
Sweet, soft, smooth — these unexpected sensations clouded his mind!
"Mmmmph!" Adam struggled for breath, thrashing as unseen hands held his head firmly in place.
"Mmm~ That tickles." Purred a sultry voice near his ear.
Huh?! What's going on?!
Adam redoubled his efforts, breaking free from the embrace and stumbling back several steps, gasping.
"Huff! Huff! Huff! I almost suffocated!"
"Hehehe~" A soft laugh drifted from before him.
Looking up, he saw an alluring face before him — large, dark eyes, full red lips, a delicate nose, and skin as smooth as jade.
She stood over 170cm tall with an enchanting figure — long graceful legs, and a slender yet curved form, though her skin held a sickly pallor. Her figure was the epitome of feminine beauty.
Her black cloak concealed most of her form, yet the occasional glimpse of white beneath only heightened her mysterious allure.
She gazed at Adam with predatory interest, her red tongue sliding across her lips like a hunter savoring the sight of prey.
It was the Bowel Hunter, Elsa Granhiert!
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