“Couuuuugh!”

“You’re worse than animals,” Lee Sang-Hee said.

“Kyahhh!”

Lee Seol-Ho screamed in pain while holding his severed arm and the guild’s guides subconsciously screamed. The blood that splattered in the air was unbelievable and the way Lee Seol-Ho painfully rolled on the floor while holding his arm was quite a sight.

During all of this, Lee Sang-Hee was collecting her breath and she was obviously very angry. It didn’t really fit her character, but her reaction was natural since the murderer that killed her family or lover was right in front of her. Even a monk would be angry about it. I was sure that wasn’t the only reason she got angry, though. To her, Lee Seol-Ho was someone she wanted to trust, and she had too much faith in him. I was sure that there were a few things that made her suspicious of him but despite that, she had held all that in and it showed what she thought about Lee Seol-Ho.

“Ha… ha… ha…”

“Ahhh! I… didn’t kill him. It wasn’t me! Sang-Hee… please believe me. You should know better than anyone that I’m not the kind of person to do something like that… ha… hoo…” Lee Seol-Ho said.

“Stop lying. I trusted you. And…and this is the result… of my trust?” she asked angrily.

“I’m telling you I’ve been framed…” he said again.

Lee Seol-Ho became a parrot that repeatedly said that he was framed while crying; obviously, I didn’t feel bad for him. Actually, I was really happy. It was a bit funny for me to feel this way while looking at the pitiful old man that had lost everything, but it was probably because I recalled Jung Ha-Yan’s condition from earlier.

“I’ve been framed! I didn’t kill him! Jung-Yeon! Please say something! There’s no reason for me to kill Seung-Joon…” he said desperately.

“Please shut up. Lee Seol-Ho, people like you are…”

“It’s not true… that’s not what happened. Jung-Yeon, I really didn’t kill the guild master,” he told her.

“You trash. How could you do that to him… when he did so much for you?” Hwang Jung-Yeon said.

“I didn’t kill him! Heuk…” he yelled.

I noticed the other gramps trembling beside him and some of them were even preparing to change their minds, but it was pointless.

“We really didn’t know.”

“I-I have nothing to do with it.”

‘What a bunch of bullshit.’

“Lock all of them up. There’s no exception,” Lee Sang-Hee said.

“L- Let go of me! I only did it because Lee Seol-Ho ordered me to, Miss Lee Sang-Hee! Bringing in the guild from Celia was entirely his idea! That’s all I know!” one of the gramps yelled.

“I really didn’t know anything about the guild master’s death. Please believe me. Please… that senile old man planned all of this!”

“Did you not hear me?! Lock all of them up,” Lee Sang-Hee yelled.

The guild’s guards pushed the gramps using their spears and started arresting them. The parrots that desperately yelled out that they were being framed established a chorus.

“I’m being framed! This is a set-up!’

“It’s all a lie! Miss Lee Sang-Hee! Please believe… ack!”

Even the people that were criticizing Lee Seol-Ho started protesting. What I found to be most ridiculous was the fact that those gramps also believed that Lee Seol-Ho killed Joo Seung-Joon. Even though this was the result of solid evidence, seeing them believe that it was the truth was still amusing.

“We don’t know anything, Miss Lee Sang-Hee! I never thought that Lee Seol-Ho would kill the Guildmaster. Please…”

It was natural for Lee Sang-Hee to feel complicated about this and she might even feel that the Blue Guild had instantly become a mess, but in order to start new, abandoning the old ways was the right thing to do. No matter how much freshwater we bring in, it would be difficult to purify it when there was already so much stagnant water, so getting rid of it all at once was the right decision. The guild may become a bit chaotic for the time being, but no matter how much I thought about it, this was the best way.

When it was difficult for me to get rid of my grin, I heard someone’s voice next to me and it was none other than Lee Seol-Ho.

“You… dirty alchemist! How dare you use that wicked silver tongue of yours to make a fool of the Blue Guild!”

“You’re the one that made a fool of the Blue Guild, you disgusting traitor,” I said to him.

“I didn’t kill him! This is all part of your setup,” he yelled at me.

“It’s ridiculous seeing you make excuses until the very end. I suggest you just acknowledge your sins since that’s the least you can do for the people that put faith in you all this time,” I said.

“I didn’t kill…”

“That’s what all the murderers say, but in the end, they confess with their own mouths. It’s really shocking to see you deny the facts even when there’s solid evidence. If you at least showed that you were reflecting, then we would have at least been considerate,” I said.

“Sang-Hee, please believe me just this once,” Lee Seol-Ho begged.

“Miss Lee Sang-Hee, you already trusted him many times,” I told her.

“It’s a setup. That dirty alchemist is like cancer to the guild. He needs to be killed. Locking him up is the right thing to do! That trash will one day become a monster that will swallow the entire guild,” he told her.

“Geez, you sure talk a lot. Look here, Mr. Lee Seol-Ho. I’m not sure what you did for the Blue Guild that you’re so obsessed with it, but you’re not the owner of the guild. You colluded with another guild behind Miss Lee Sang-Hee’s back, used assassins to try to kill the new guild members and you even killed the guild master, so you’re not even worthy of saying the guild’s name,” I explained.

“You bastard!” he yelled.

“People like you are nothing but stagnant water that causes trouble for the guild. Normal people would try to work together to take care of the problem that the group is experiencing because that’s the right thing to do, but people like you would never do something like that. To you, the things in your possession are more important,” I said.

In fact, when there had been a gold confiscation campaign in the past, the upper-class people were spared by not surrendering their possessions and Lee Seol-Ho was just like them.

He kept pleading with Lee Sang-Hee by using the relationship they had, but she was so shocked that she just sat in her chair quietly and was spacing out. I was worried about her mental health, but I was certain she was capable of overcoming it.

‘I’m sure Hyun-Sung will take care of her.’

Seeing how they had been together a lot recently, I was sure that he would take care of Lee Sang-Hee’s mental help when he arrived later.

She didn’t bother looking at Lee Seol-Ho. Perhaps it was because she thought that she would have a hard time suppressing her anger if she kept looking at him.

Anyway, the old forces that were eating away at the Blue Guild were taken to the basement like linked sausages, and the screams I kept hearing sounded really funny to me.

After confirming that the situation was coming to an end, I started moving and it was to check up on the old forces of the guild.

The guild felt much cleaner now that we had taken care of the stagnant water.

When I headed to the basement, I heard the parrots screaming. Seeing the guards forcefully handle the helpless old forces was such a refreshing sight and this became even more possible because some of the gramps were crying their eyes out.

When I kept looking around, I heard a voice beside me.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young, regarding Mr. Lee Seol-Ho, no, what should we do with them…” a guard asked.

I guess he was the guard of the basement prison. It was a bit surprising that the guard was a woman, but after checking her stats and nature, I discovered that she was capable enough of managing the prison.

“I think it’ll be best to leave them like this until the sub guild master makes a decision. You just need to provide them with enough water and food so that they don’t die,” I answered.

“Understood,” she said.

“Also, could you step outside for a moment? There’s something I need to ask these criminals,” I requested.

“Do you need to interrogate them more?” she asked.

“Yes, I do. Actually, I’d appreciate it if you could stand and watch the entrance for me just in case,” I said.

“Okay,” she said.

“The basement prison is quite big. I can tell that you’ve been taking good care of it,” I said, complimenting her.

“It’s nothing, but thank you,” she said.

“I’ll borrow one of the chairs here.”

“Yes, of course, Mr. Lee Ki-Young,” she said.

Seeing her walk away after our short conversation made me realize that she was quick to catch on.

When I slowly entered the prison while dragging the chair, the gramps that were in their cells stared at me. It was satisfying to see them looking at me for help behind bars. I heard a lot of voices. Some were cursing at me while others were trying to flatter me, but I obviously had no business with them. It was Lee Seol-Ho that I wanted to talk to.

When I sat down after placing the chair, I noticed a depressed Lee Seol-Ho staring at me with his missing arm. It was natural for him to feel agitated while looking at me and I immediately heard him cursing at me.

“You… you bastard! You bastard! Don’t think this is over, you dirty piece of shit!”

“That’s what I wanted to say, so thanks for saying that for me, you crazy old man,” I told him.

I started to envelop my surroundings with my mana. It was a small amount, but it was more than enough to create a space where Lee Seol-Ho and I could talk.

“What do you…”“Saying that this isn’t over is what I should be saying to you because I’m more spiteful than you think. I don’t show any mercy to my enemies… pffft. You’ve really made me mad. Really…” I told him.

“What…”

“You won’t be able to leave anything behind. You won’t be able to leave anything behind in this guild, Seol-Ho,” I said.

“What the hell are you…”

“The guild from Celia that you colluded with will rescue you from the guild’s basement prison,” I told him.

“What?” Lee Seol-Ho asked.

“Lee Seol-Ho, the murderer that killed the guild master and the criminal of the Blue Guild that betrayed Lee Sang-Hee’s trust will officially escape from the basement prison, but unofficially, you’ll be taken to the Red Mercenary Guild’s underground torture room. A priest that I’m close to will be personally taking care of you, so I hope you’re excited, gramps. You’ll be able to experience just how interesting a human’s body is and you’ll also experience just how spiteful a priest that volunteers for a god really is,” I explained.

“You… you bastard! You bastard!’ he yelled.

“All the gramps here including you will experience a horrible death and be thrown away somewhere. Of course, this will make it look like the guild from Celia killed you in order to get rid of the evidence. Hehe! The media will put Lee Seol-Ho, the traitor of the Blue Guild, in the headlines and people will start talking about it. Everyone in Lindel will talk about just how shitty you are over a few drinks. The Blue Guild that got hurt because of you will try their best to forget your name and even before half a year passes, your name will slowly be forgotten by everyone,” I told him.

“...”

“Everything will be forgotten including your death, the things that you contributed to the guild up until now, and all the things you achieved. One by one, they will be forgotten, as if the person named Lee Seol-Ho never existed. You’ll end up being nothing and you’ll die with nothing,” I added.

“You… you!”

“Don’t worry about it so much, gramps. I’ll remember you. While the priest that I’m close to kindly looks after you, I’ll quietly stand on the side and watch. The sound of your screams, your face filled with pain, and even your voice when you call out for help, I won’t forget any of it. Until all of that is over… I’m going to watch you quietly,” I said.

“You scum! You think you’ll be able to do that?! You! You?!” Lee Seol-Ho yelled.

“I’m going to offer your painful expression to my precious person who risked her life for me. Your voice will always remain in my head as the voice of the old man that had made a wrong decision, and you will always be a lesson for me. You’ll nourish my growth and in order to take that in, I’ll watch you quietly until the very end…” I told him.

“...”

Lee Seol-ho remained quiet and when I looked at him while leaning forward in my chair, he must have imagined what was going to happen to him in the future because his face had turned pale.

“Look… Ki-Young…” he said.

“...”

“How about we make a deal?” he asked.

“...”

“This isn’t right… even if we didn’t have a good relationship… I don’t think this is right. It’s such a dishonorable death. Not like this,” he said.

“...”

“I can’t die like this. Not like… heuk… heuuuk…”

Not being able to leave anything behind was a heartbreaking fact for people like him. I guess he must have felt that his existence was being denied because I noticed him crying and it was also probably because he was scared of the painful times he was going to experience from now on.

I didn’t bother saying anything to him and simply remained quiet while looking at him as if we were rehearsing what was going to happen to him in the future.

“...”

I didn’t say a word.