The Crown Prince Who Raises Alt Characters

#161 Suspect Isaac (5) - Ordinary Negotiation Methods The harmony between personal aptitude and profession is very important. In that sense, Tolendo, the thug from Chaudronbourg, was someone who enjoyed a work life that matched his aptitude very well. He had the discernment to assess which humans could be touched and which couldn't, the persistence to never let go of a target once marked, and most crucially, the personality to ruin others' lives without batting an eye. This means he was the optimal type of person for kidnapping children without backing and selling them to illegal labor sites. The businessman who employed him highly valued Tolendo's skillful scouting abilities and granted him considerable privileges, among which was the authority to call some of the workers from the site to his personal room. After finishing his pleasant shopping in the city, Tolendo headed to his personal room, even humming. 'That woman from earlier had quite a nice feel to her.' Since she was originally in a filthy state, he didn't touch her right away, but he was confident that once cleaned up and dressed properly, quite decent contents would emerge. Her gaze and way of speaking seemed somewhat simple, but originally such timid types had their own way of being enjoyed. Bang! "Are you all ready? Hm?" Tolendo, who boldly entered his personal playroom, soon narrowed his eyes. Because the woman was nowhere to be seen. Had she perhaps ignored his words, or had she gotten confused and been dragged off somewhere else? As Tolendo pondered various possibilities, the sound of splashing water from the bathroom reached his ears. 'Is she still washing?' Well, that's fine too, he thought as he approached the bathroom. Thud. Right after thinking something had caught his foot, his vision suddenly flipped. "Huh?" A floating sensation. A dizzying scene. And intense impact felt on his back. When a throw that would have made any third party inadvertently gasp in admiration landed perfectly, Tolendo couldn't even let out a proper scream. The sensation as if all the air in his lungs was escaping out of his mouth. However, the attacker continued the work calmly, as if even the time for Tolendo to recognize the situation was too precious to waste. Crack. Crunch. As if disassembling some toy, both of Tolendo's shoulder blades were lightly dislocated. His ankles were twisted in directions they shouldn't naturally go, and with some unknown cloth wrapped around his mouth, he couldn't even scream properly. As he struggled with his limbs gone limp like a mollusk, someone's voice reached his ears. "Please answer all the questions I'm about to ask. You're free to try pointless things, but please understand that the more you do so, the more violent methods I'll have to use. Do you understand? If you do, please nod your head." With terrible pain felt throughout his body, Tolendo desperately nodded his head. "Good, then I'll remove the gag." The cloth blocking his mouth loosened. Tolendo didn't miss the opportunity and tried to scream. Anyway, this place was his workplace and playground. His calculation was that if he could just gather people, he could easily eliminate an attacker or so. Of course, as is the case with those who mistake themselves for being smart, it wasn't a very wise judgment. Splash! Faster than Tolendo could utter a single word, his head was shoved into the wooden bathtub. "The preparatory posture is already different between trying to speak normally and trying to scream with all your might, isn't it? I warned you that if you came out uncooperatively like this, I'd have no choice but to get violent." If posture existed in speech, it was the kind of sound that would seem to shake one's head disapprovingly. Of course, Tolendo, who was swallowing water without even being able to breathe properly, had no leisure to care about such things, but the attacker didn't mind that. "It seems you've had many quite pleasant times in this room. No one will barge in on their own, and even if somewhat strange sounds are made, people around will naturally ignore them, so you'd better not expect any help. Now then, shall we have a calm conversation?" "...! ...!!" Bubbles rose frantically from underwater. It was impossible to tell if it was a plea to cooperate now, a threat asking if they thought they'd get away with this, or just a scream uttered out of sheer panic. But the attacker, no, Isadora didn't care. Fortunately, there was plenty of time, and water knew the answer. Before long, Isadora, who had learned the detailed structure of this place, the owner's name, and even the list of key personnel, placed the unconscious Tolendo in the room's blind spot and began her disguise using clothes from the wardrobe and several props. When Isadora came out of the room, a big guy who had been guarding nearby asked with a sinister face. "Oh, Brother Tolendo. How come you came out a bit early today? Was it not good?" Isadora, disguised as Tolendo, answered nonchalantly. "Not bad overall. I'm going to see the boss for a moment and then do it again, so make sure no strange guys get in." "When you're all done, will you share with me too?" "We'll see how you do." "Hehehe." Leaving behind the big guy who laughed unpleasantly, Isadora moved her steps without hesitation. No one suspected her. Not only was it hard to imagine that Isadora, who was a petite woman, had disguised herself as Tolendo, a man of considerable build, but her actions, gaze, and way of speaking were perfectly Tolendo himself. It was an achievement made possible by observational skills that would make some people shudder. Isadora's plan was going smoothly. So far, at least. *** Unlike Isadora, Isaac didn't have disguise abilities close to complete transformation. Such things weren't the abilities of an ordinary person. (E/N: Does he have any ability then? Kinda weird. First clone with nothing special) Therefore, Isaac implemented a very common-sense action that someone infiltrating enemy territory could do, namely sneaking around. As Isaac approached the coal mine, he could see children going in and out of the mine, diligently proceeding with mining work. Most of the children were skin and bones with faces worn by fatigue, but even so, they couldn't take breaks or slack off. "Move more quickly! Know that slow bastards will skip dinner!!" Crack! This was because supervisors with whips in one hand were glaring at them while threatening them with all their might. No, it didn't just end with threats; they would actually approach children who moved a bit slowly without hesitation and kick or whip them. Isaac frowned. "What an unsightly spectacle." It was naturally morally problematic, and in fact, that was an act with no great practical utility either. After all, human body and mind have limits, so beating them like that wouldn't make them faster; it would only reduce work efficiency. The only thing that would repeatedly rise from doing that was the supervisors' base satisfaction. "Hmm." Isaac pondered for a moment. He was an ordinary human, so it was impossible to overturn this illegal labor site and rescue the victims with individual force alone. Overturning a city with bare hands without using any mana was an achievement that would require being at least some kind of guard. Therefore, Isaac acted rationally. "You slugs! Be grateful that things like you are being fed and housed..." "There, wait a moment." "...Huh?" One of the supervisors who had been continuing his lengthy speech turned around with a puzzled face. He blinked his eyes when he saw Isaac. His lips twitched, as if he wanted to ask who on earth he was. Of course, Isaac didn't give him the right to speak. "I'm lost, so could you tell me where that person is? It's about the previous delivery matter." "D-delivery?" Isaac's eyebrows twitched. Perhaps noticing the commotion, supervisors scattered here and there quietly gathered. Just as they were about to open their mouths again, Isaac's mouth opened again as if seizing the initiative. "Among you all here, is there anyone who knows Code Orange?" The supervisors each quietly looked around at each other. At such a reaction, Isaac sighed as if disgusted. He pointed to the supervisor who had first spoken with him and said, "Hah. Fine. Just take me to your superior." "No, well." "I don't know what kind of guest reception this is to begin with. If you let someone through the main gate like a human being, shouldn't you naturally assign at least one guide? Are you perhaps looking down on our side? Or are you looking down on me? I thought we'd maintained quite a good business relationship until now, but it seems that was my misunderstanding." The more someone fills their self-esteem by trampling others, the more they go all out for self-preservation. Perhaps intuiting through Isaac's tone and expression that he would somehow take the blame if things continued like this, cold sweat flowed down the supervisor's back. "P-please calm down. Are you perhaps the boss's guest?" "Then would I have come in so openly like this because I'm a robber? Do you call that a question? Or do you mean that I look like a robber to your eyes?" "No! No! It's just that I didn't receive the work details properly... C-could you tell me where you came from?" "They'll understand if you say 'Orchard'." Those who had been listening understood. Both the Orange mentioned earlier and the organization's name—using appropriate slang instead of direct expressions was one of the basic skills in this industry. "T-this way, please. I'll escort you to the boss." The supervisor offered to guide him with a strangely obsequious attitude, and Isaac followed behind as if it were perfectly natural. Since the remaining supervisors began chatting to deduce Isaac's identity, the children suffering from labor could catch their breath for a moment. *** "Hehehe, good, good. Business should indeed be done like this." The republic's businessman, Gaston Clerson, counted bundles of money in his office while letting out a frivolous laugh. His main industry of mine development and extraction was going very smoothly. Thanks to actively 'hiring' young children, labor costs were much lower and extraction efficiency had increased considerably. "The problem is that the orphan brats in Chaudronbourg are gradually running out... Tsk. I don't know why the government bothered to make child labor restriction laws and such." Unlike orphans who couldn't even make reports to the police in the first place, touching children from families with proper parents would inevitably make the cleanup troublesome in various ways. Hadn't he already had to unnecessarily slip more money to police connections because those recovery team idiots stupidly touched children from families with parents instead of orphans? If that mother hadn't been just a lowly technician from a single-parent household with weak influence, it might have taken much greater effort to cover things up. "The problem is that many of the Chaudronbourg guys are crazy about performance, so they don't listen well to money alone. Especially that frustrating Inspector Pierre is really... Hm?" At the sudden knocking sound, Gaston's eyes narrowed. -Boss, it's me. "Tolendo? Come in." When Gaston gave permission, Tolendo entered his office with his usual cocky smile at the corner of his mouth. "What's the matter?" "Well, I heard some interesting information from the woman we caught this time. It was about Freeman's side." "Oho." Interest arose on Gaston's face at the name of one of his business rivals. Tolendo naturally approached Gaston to whisper something, but the guards who had been staying by Gaston's side like silent shadows blocked his path. Tolendo's face scowled, but Gaston said without concern. "It's fine, so just say it from there." "Ah, that's disappointing, Boss. Don't you trust me?" "This level of caution is natural. It's fine, so just tell the story." "Tsk. Understood." Just as Tolendo was about to open his mouth. Along with another knock, a new visitor came looking for Gaston. -Boss, a guest has come from the Orchard. "What? Orchard?" Gaston blinked his eyes. But perhaps thinking there would be no particular danger seeing the guards around him, he let the other party in with the feeling of wanting to see them first. The gaze of everyone who had originally been in the office focused on those who newly entered, and among them, Tolendo's body trembled with a start. "Hmm?" And Isaac didn't miss that reaction. The two people's gazes briefly crossed, and soon Isaac nodded his head. He unhesitatingly kicked the back of the supervisor who had guided him, pushing him toward where another guard was. The other guards who felt the threat tried to react quickly, but at that moment Isaac pulled something from his chest and shouted. "Don't move! It's a bomb!!" "!?" Tolendo. No, Isadora's pupils shook greatly.