The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 268

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 268
Chapter 268
After listing items at the Auction House.
I immediately summoned the branch manager who had been gathering intelligence for me.
“Yuris.”
“Yes, Marquis!”
“What’s the current situation?”
“The underworld forces in Labelt have been completely decimated. Smaller gangs are trying to fill the void, but honestly, none of them have any real power.”
The underworld factions had united to attack the Auction House.
But their plan failed, and most of their members were either killed or captured.
In other words, the Backstreets of Labelt had been left completely empty.
“On top of that, the Empire has mobilized knights and soldiers, including the Guard Captain, to sweep through the Backstreets. At this rate, it won’t be long before the Backstreets collapse entirely.”
The Emperor had noticed this as well.
And the intelligent Emperor wasn’t about to let such an opportunity slip away.
He mobilized all available forces to begin cleaning up the Backstreets.
Moreover, he demolished all the illegal structures in the Backstreets and proceeded with the previously planned construction of the Reform District.
Even so, underworld forces would inevitably emerge again someday, but with the Backstreets completely razed, it would be much harder for any new forces to establish themselves.
And there was one more thing.
There was one matter that concerned me most.
“What about Silver Veil?”
“Silver Veil is also one of the Emperor’s targets. They didn’t directly participate in the Grand Auction House attack, but they provided the underworld leaders with critical intelligence for the assault.”
The continent’s greatest Information Guild.
Silver Veil.
The reason was simple.
When I was defending the Warehouse, I heard someone mutter, “I never heard anything like this from Silver Veil…”
It was an incredibly faint voice, but my hearing had been enhanced by my Black Flame transformation, so I could hear it.
In fact, I was the one who reported to the Imperial Palace that Silver Veil had participated in this incident.
That’s why Silver Veil has become a target of the Empire.
And furthermore.
“Their location?”
“I’ve already reported it. By now, the Empire is probably attacking Silver Veil’s main headquarters. The Guild Master is likely fleeing as we speak.”
Through Yuris, I had revealed Silver Veil’s branch location and arranged for it to be attacked.
I had worried whether Yuris might betray me, but such a thing never happened.
True to the loyal demeanor she had recently displayed, she had now completely committed to following me.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, Marquis.”
Following her guidance, I headed toward Silver Veil’s branch.
Along the way, I was able to hear more news about Silver Veil from her.
“I had my suspicions, but they’ve done quite a lot. Especially in their connections with the underworld forces.”
“Of course they have.”
“Well, it’s unavoidable. Even if we provide information, we must operate in the shadows, so our primary clientele are inevitably the underworld factions.”
Silver Veil was far more than a mere Information Guild.
Silver Veil itself was one of the underworld factions.
As such, they provided assassination guilds with intelligence that aided their contracts, supplied human trafficking rings with various information, and so forth.
Silver Veil had amassed considerable wealth by serving the underworld.
This felt entirely different from the Information Guild of First that I’d envisioned.
And in my assessment, an Information Guild like this served no real purpose.
“They’re likely moving through the secret passage over there.”
“Let’s go in.”
“Are you certain? Even though the Guild Master is shrouded in veils, she should be quite formidable.”
“I’m certain.”
[ Activating Black Flame Transformation. ]
[ Borrowing the power of the Black Flame Dragon, Lucknir Desperate Ignoxtan. ]
A crimson inferno erupted.
“Ah… yes, this should be manageable.”
I entered the secret passage Yuris had indicated, cloaked in Black Flame Transformation.
I wondered how such a passage had been installed in a metropolis like Labelt, but as expected, it was exactly as I’d suspected.
‘I can see them.’
Utilizing Lugh’s dragon vision—this newly acquired power—I could clearly discern a figure moving swiftly through the darkness ahead.
Since the passage branched into multiple routes, I would need to track them directly, but that posed no problem.
With this dragon vision and the knowledge I’d honed during my time in First, finding the way was trivial.
A sharp gust of wind.
“Ugh!”
In my Black Flame Transformation state, my speed was extraordinary.
So much so that Yuris struggled to keep pace.
Following the secret passage, I emerged into Labelt’s Sewers.
Not long after, my target suddenly ceased moving.
Immediately after, their mana began to compress dramatically.
It was an unusual phenomenon, but I could discern its cause instantly.
‘They’ve noticed.’
My target.
The Silver Veil Guild Master had clearly detected my pursuit.
Judging that she couldn’t outpace me, she’d activated a concealment skill.
The fact that she was even suppressing her mana suggested her stealth skill possessed an extraordinary level.
Under normal circumstances, I might have lost such a formidable concealment technique.
‘It’s futile.’
Lugh’s dragon vision cannot be evaded.
In my blood-crimson field of vision, the Guild Master’s weakened mana—despite her concealment—shone with perfect clarity.
I feigned ignorance of her presence, dashing forward as if passing by her, luring her into lowering her guard, then—
[ Goblin Lord’s Paralysis Dagger ]
(Non-Tradeable)
Form: Short Sword
Grade: Legendary
Thwack!
“Gasp!”
I drove the short sword into her abdomen while she remained in her concealed state.
“How… how is this possible…?”
“If you’re going to run the Information Guild, you should have remained neutral.”
“Ugh…”
The paralytic toxin coating the legendary short sword caused her body to stiffen instantly into rigidity.
I didn’t kill her.
I planned to hand her over to the Guard Captain and demonstrate that Silver Veil had been completely destroyed.
And the reason I came all this way to capture the Guild Master myself was simple.
“Huff, huff. Marquis, wasn’t that a bit too fast?”
“Yuris.”
“Yes!”
“Can you gather all of Silver Veil’s remaining forces?”
“Well, honestly gathering everyone would be difficult. We’ll need to do a major purge to remove the rot, but…”
My true purpose was to destroy Silver Veil and collect its fragments to establish a new Information Guild, just as I had done with First.
It would have been difficult alone, but with Yuris, there would be no problem.
“As you’ve instructed, Marquis, I’ll get it up and running quickly. A new Information Guild—’Silver Shade’. Or rather, ‘Dark Shade’.”
“Then you’ll be able to find the information I need much faster?”
“Of course. I’ll find every single stone buried in the corners of the Continent for you.”
She had already proven her capabilities and loyalty sufficiently.
* * *
‘Truly, choosing to follow the Marquis properly was my best decision!’
After guiding Mir to the Grand Auction House.
She couldn’t help but be astonished.
The information about the Grand Auction House being attacked was something even she hadn’t known.
Because of that, she was able to quickly utilize her information network to discover that Silver Veil had secretly prepared for this incident.
She had worried whether Mir might scold her for this situation.
‘To think he would turn such a crisis into an opportunity like this!’
It was nothing of the sort.
Mir had completely destroyed Silver Veil through coordination with the Imperial Palace.
He even personally captured the Guild Master, who was renowned for her extraordinary concealment abilities and speed.
After that, Mir gave her an order.
“You’re confident, aren’t you?”
“Of course!”
To consolidate Silver Veil’s collapsed information network and rebuild a new Information Guild.
This was no ordinary task.
If she succeeded in this endeavor, she wouldn’t merely become the Caldera branch manager of Silver Veil—she would become the head of a newly established continental information guild, the greatest of its kind.
With such stakes, she threw herself into consolidating Silver Veil’s intelligence network with unwavering determination.
Fortunately, Silver Veil’s network was already in disarray, and her exceptional abilities allowed her to accelerate the process considerably.
Most importantly, Mir had her back.
Every branch manager and key operative who had resisted her, citing their displeasure, was swiftly eliminated—either by Mir directly or by Imperial forces acting on his intelligence.
Hehehehe!
A smile bloomed naturally across her face.
No matter how she reflected on it, choosing to follow Mir faithfully had been the finest decision of her entire life.
With that conviction, she completed the consolidation of Silver Veil’s scattered intelligence network and moved on to her next task.
She wasn’t opening a guild in the shadows.
After all, the underworld of Labelt had been completely eradicated by the Empire.
Instead, following Mir’s instructions precisely,
[ Information Guild, Dark Shade ]
“We’re stepping into the light!”
In the Reform District, where the Backstreets had been completely razed and rebuilt anew,
she boldly raised the banner of the information guild Dark Shade at the very forefront, stepping openly into the light.
* * *
The Grand Auction House attack had failed.
And seizing that opening, the Empire launched a total offensive.
As a result, the underworld forces of Labelt were utterly annihilated.
Infamous assassination syndicates and human trafficking rings fell, as did Silver Veil—that organization which quietly wielded notoriety by digging into citizens’ private affairs and extorting money through blackmail.
The underworld forces were completely eradicated, and the Imperial Palace itself came forward to prove it.
“What a relief, truly.”
“I was so terrified every time I had to pass through those Backstreets.”
“Now that I think about it, we owe the complete destruction of the underworld forces to Marquis Mir.”
“To Marquis Mir?”
“When the underworld forces attacked the Grand Auction House, Marquis Mir stepped forward, defeated them all, and protected the people.”
“Ah! So that’s what happened! No wonder the situation unfolded so rapidly—I thought something was off!”
The faces of Labelt’s citizens brightened.
Naturally, they did.
The existence of underworld forces had been a source of anxiety for the city’s inhabitants.
And there was another element that sparked anticipation.
“The Reform District, was it? I’m eager to see what becomes of it!”
“The Backstreets occupied quite a substantial area, didn’t they? To completely demolish it and build the Reform District in its place—how could one not be excited?”
“I concur.”
“Should we invest now?”
“It’s already too late. Those in the know have already begun investing, I hear.”
“Is that so?”
“Ah, and Marquis Mir, who earned the greatest merit in this affair, also received investment rights.”
“Splendid! Then the finest land will surely be occupied by Marquis Mir’s buildings.”
The Reform District.
Though Labelt was called a great city and sprawled across a vast expanse, space was always at a premium with so many people crowding in.
Yet now, the Reform District was being established in that very location.
It was only natural that people welcomed it.
Moreover, when word spread that Marquis Mir himself was investing in a building on prime real estate within the district, people were filled with anticipation.
In that spot, construction began swiftly thanks to the Empire’s advanced building techniques.
[ Information Guild, Dark Shade ]
“An Information Guild?”
“What is this?”
An Information Guild had suddenly appeared.
“An Information Guild? Could it be the rumored Silver Veil?”
“Silver Veil? Doesn’t it have a bad reputation? They spread information to shady forces and intimidate citizens…”
Information Guilds generally didn’t have a good image.
“Now, now. Isn’t this building owned by Marquis Mir himself? Surely Marquis Mir wouldn’t do such things?”
“That’s true. Marquis Mir wouldn’t be that kind of person.”
“He’s the one who defeated the Evil God for us.”
“Hmm, I’m curious. What kind of place will it be?”
Mir’s name purified the image of the newly established Information Guild.
Moreover.
“Oh, splendid!”
“I heard they don’t just sell information—they buy it too.”
“If you have good information, you can sell it for a high price, they say.”
“That’s great?”
“And they say there’s no information they can’t find—lost items, separated families, nothing.”
“How convenient!”
“The prices are steep, but a facility like this is essential to have.”
Dark Shade operated as a legitimate Information Guild, providing citizens with quality information.
And that wasn’t all.
“Wow, this place is serious?”
“Information about dungeons, monsters, imperial politics… even data on users?”
“Before, you had to meet specific conditions, venture into the Backstreets, and make contact with Silver Veil to access anything like this.”
“Right, a fantasy game needs something like this. How convenient is that?”
Dark Shade was buying and selling vast amounts of information, appealing not just to NPCs but to users as well.
Its popularity exceeded expectations, allowing Dark Shade to expand its scale rapidly.
“But is the owner of this building really Mir?”
“Mir? Could it be Mir, the Guild Master of the Black Flame Guild?”
“If that’s really true, doesn’t that mean Mir has all the information about Second?”
“No way…”
The rumors about Mir grew larger with each passing day, but what did it matter?
As time went on, Dark Shade became the greatest on the Continent.
And it had grown into the finest Information Guild in Second.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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