The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 298

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

Chapter 298
Chapter 298
There was no need for mind control, let alone torture.
“P-please! I’ll tell you everything! Everything, just please spare my life!”
Before I could even ask a question, the Baekbawi Clan Chief knelt before me and confessed everything.
Thanks to that, I was able to identify the other clan chiefs who had conspired with the Baekbawi Clan Chief to pay the assassination fee together.
However, there was one piece of information missing.
“You were trying to assassinate the Alliance Leader?”
“Th-that is….”
At that moment, the Baekbawi Clan Chief hesitated and flinched, stopping his answer.
Since he had been spilling information willingly, I had intended to leave him alone, but I changed my mind.
– Activating 5-Circle Dark Magic ‘Mind Control’.
“Grrrraahhh….”
I brainwashed the Baekbawi Clan Chief and extracted the information.
Of course, the assassination of the Alliance Leader wasn’t really my concern.
Well, it was the Alliance Leader who had promised ‘Black Scale’ as the tournament’s grand prize, so he needed to stay alive until the tournament ended.
Anyway, after I had gathered all the information.
I didn’t kill him.
There was one responsibility he needed to fulfill.
“When the warriors arrive shortly, confess all the wrongdoings you’ve committed. Even the attempt to assassinate the Alliance Leader.”
“Understood….”
“And don’t mention me. I’ve placed a curse on you—if you mention me, your heart will stop.”
“Understood….”
I had placed the curse, but the mind control was working so effectively that I had no concerns about him breaking it.
Anyway, my business here was finished.
Next on my agenda.
“There were more connections than I expected.”
The clan chiefs who had commissioned my assassination along with the Baekbawi Clan Chief.
Since they had drawn their blades against me, I needed to make sure they paid the price as well.
Before moving on to my next target.
‘Might as well collect some compensation.’
I borrowed Luke’s divine sight and began searching the surroundings for treasures.
These bastards had made me waste precious time, so I deserved compensation, didn’t I?
Fortunately, it seemed these creatures weren’t called the Desert’s greatest assassination organization for nothing.
“Found it.”
I was able to discover it.
The Assassins’ secret warehouse hidden in the deepest part of the basement.
Treasures so magnificent that even I, who had grown numb to money after earning such vast sums recently, widened my eyes in astonishment.
“Luke, gather it all.”
– Yes, Master.
I gathered all of them, and then.
Whoosh.
Pulling the Silent Assassin’s Hood deep over my head, I slipped out of the underground and began racing swiftly beneath the desert moon.
If I was to participate in tomorrow’s tournament in perfect condition, I needed to finish this business quickly and catch at least a brief nap.
* * *
Boom!
The earth of the Golden Sand Tribe Alliance trembled.
Since this was no natural seismic phenomenon, the Alliance’s warriors quickly gathered and mobilized to investigate the incident.
The source of the tremor lay not far from the Alliance.
The Giant Cactus Grove.
A beautiful place, but one where no one dared venture inside due to the threatening spines of the cacti.
What on earth could have happened within?
No matter how threatening the spines were, this matter had to be resolved.
“Cut through the spines! We advance toward the source!”
“Yes, sir!”
The warriors sliced through the cacti and pressed into the grove’s interior.
And there, they could discover it.
At the center of the grove.
A passage leading underground stood gaping wide open, with black dust and a foul stench rising thickly from within.
“An underground space?”
“Who would create such a space beneath the Giant Cactus Grove?”
The saying held true—the darkest place lies beneath the lamp.
No one had anticipated such a space existing in the Giant Cactus Grove, which lay so close to the Alliance.
Regardless, the investigation had to continue.
The warriors descending the stairs through the dust and stench soon discovered fallen corpses.
“Investigate their identities.”
“Yes, sir!”
The number of bodies was far greater than expected.
What manner of place was this that such a thing could occur?
And who were these people?
As the investigation continued, the Grand Warrior leading the Alliance’s forces sensed something suspicious.
‘Those garments….’
Stained by the mysterious black dust, they were difficult to discern properly.
Yet the equipment the corpses wore seemed oddly familiar, strangely suspicious.
At first glance, it was attire meant to conceal oneself in the shadows of the desert.
Moreover, that form reminded him of tales he’d heard long ago about the shadows of the desert.
And not long after.
“Grand Warrior, sir!”
“Have you found something?”
“There is something you must confirm!”
They could see it clearly.
“This is….”
“The Assassins…!”
“Good heavens, this was the Assassin Headquarters all along!”
“And it was this close to the Alliance!”
“Then all these fallen ones are Assassins?”
The emblem of the Assassins revealed itself distinctly despite the walls being covered in black dust.
Every desert dweller knew of them—the greatest assassination collective in the Great Desert.
The emblem of the Assassins.
“Scimitar! These weapons bear the same emblem!”
“They all have poison fangs lodged in their mouths!”
“We found an assassination ledger here!”
One after another, evidence confirming this as the true Assassin Headquarters began to surface.
The situation grew increasingly grave.
The legendary assassination collective, the Assassins, had been discovered—naturally, this was no trivial matter.
Yet what made it even more dire was the fact that the Assassins lay in utter ruin.
The assassins were all dead, and their headquarters was devastated.
As the investigation continued into the final chamber, they discovered.
“…White Rock Tribe Chief?”
Contrasting sharply with the blackened surroundings.
The White Rock Tribe Chief, clad in the distinctive pristine white armor of his tribe, knelt on the ground gnawing at his fingernails.
Why was the White Rock Tribe Chief here?
Before the question could even form, the Tribe Chief spotted the Grand Warrior and crawled desperately toward him, clutching at his pant leg.
What spilled from the Tribe Chief’s lips—as if he were about to beg for his life—proved shockingly revelatory.
“I’ve done everything wrong! It was me! I committed these sins!”
“What?”
“I could only become Tribe Chief because I hired the Assassins to kill the next heir of the White Rock Tribe!”
“C-Tribe Chief!”
“That’s not all! The warrior I selected this time—I took bribes and equipped him with the tribe’s sacred relics before sending him to compete. And look at this armor I’m wearing! I took it without the tribe’s permission for my own protection!”
The White Rock Tribe Chief suddenly began confessing his transgressions.
Each one was grave, but the most shocking revelation was yet to come.
“And in this very place! I was negotiating with the Assassins to assassinate the current Alliance Leader! Then the explosion occurred! I survived only because of this armor!”
“Y-You’re saying you placed an assassination contract on the Alliance Leader?”
“Yes! So please, arrest me at once! Throw me in prison! A prison no one can breach! A strong, impenetrable prison! Please!”
This was it.
A Tribe Chief had attempted to assassinate the Alliance Leader.
This was no trivial matter to be brushed aside.
Before the Grand Warrior could ask anything further.
“Ah, ah! There’s more I must tell! This wasn’t done by me alone! The Desert Hawk Tribe! And the Sunspear Tribe! The Thorncrystal Tribe also conspired with me!”
The accomplices who had aided the White Rock Tribe Chief were revealed.
The Grand Warrior realized this was no ordinary matter.
He immediately entrusted the scene cleanup to his warriors and arrested the Baekbawi Clan Chief as a suspect caught in the act.
“Investigate the Desert Hawk Tribe, Sunspear Tribe, and Thorncrystal Tribe immediately!”
He decided to investigate all the tribes that had come from the Baekbawi Clan Chief’s mouth.
But then something else happened.
Something strange occurred.
The Grand Warrior rushed to the Desert Hawk Tribe first, and their Tribe Chief—
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. I agreed to the contract to assassinate the Alliance Leader. I squandered the tribe’s wealth on my own whims. I’m sorry. I’m so sorr—”
—began apologizing to the Grand Warrior as if possessed by something.
The other Tribe Chiefs were no different.
“I’ll confess to everything. Please, just put me in Prison. Please. A sturdy, secure Prison. What do I need to do? I’ll expose every corrupt faction within the Alliance I know of. Please!”
“I killed every Elder who opposed my views. With my own hands. This time too, I framed a warrior stronger than my son and sent my son to compete instead.”
The Tribe Chiefs competed with one another, spilling their crimes and corruption.
Their behavior seemed so suspicious that he couldn’t believe everything they said.
Someone might have hypnotized the Tribe Chiefs to frame them.
Thinking this, I began the investigation.
“…It’s all true.”
“The ledgers match perfectly.”
“It aligns exactly with the list of recently deceased Elders.”
“This one too, as expected…”
It wasn’t.
Everything the Tribe Chiefs said was true.
Thus, in a single night in the Desert,
a massive purge of corruption in the Great Desert began.
* * *
The next day.
Ominous rumors circulated throughout the Golden Sand Tribe Alliance.
“Did you hear that sound yesterday?”
“The earthquake, you mean?”
“Yeah, that. Turns out it was an explosion from the Giant Cactus Grove, and apparently Assassins were hiding there.”
“Assassins? The legendary assassination group called the Shadows of the Desert? Come on, what are you talking about?”
“That’s not all—there’s talk that the Assassins are connected to several Tribe Chiefs.”
“…Don’t tell me. The Tribe Chiefs hired the Assassins to kill someone?”
“That’s exactly it!”
“That’s absurd. Where do these ridiculous rumors even come from?”
What in the world was happening?
The atmosphere in the Alliance was too tense for this to be mere gossip.
Several tribes left the Alliance with gloomy expressions.
A major Merchant Caravan with an already poor reputation was arrested wholesale, and the Alliance’s warriors moved without pause—
One thing was certain: something extraordinary was unfolding.
And shortly after.
Before the tournament began.
The current Alliance Leader of the Golden Sand Tribe Alliance made a shocking announcement.
“Last night, the headquarters of the assassination organization, the Assassins, was discovered.”
The Alliance Leader officially revealed the existence of the Assassins.
But something about it felt off.
The warriors hadn’t dealt with the Assassin headquarters that was discovered—all the assassins were already lying defeated.
What did this mean?
The revelation that followed was equally shocking.
“The White Rock Tribe, Desert Hawk Tribe, Sunspear Tribe, and Thorncrystal Tribe have been confirmed to be connected with the Assassins.”
“…!”
“Our warriors are currently moving swiftly to resolve the matter, so I ask that all desert dwellers remain at ease.”
The Assassins and the desert tribes were connected.
And not just one or two tribes—four of them, no less.
I noticed several tribes had bowed their heads and left the Alliance.
They must have been one of the four tribes named.
As time moved swiftly in the desert.
The tournament to determine the greatest warrior of the Great Desert proceeded as planned.
People set aside the grim news and flocked to the Colosseum to witness the desert’s mightiest warrior.
But then, another problem.
Arose.
“The Thorncrystal Tribe, opponent of the Sandclaw Tribe, has forfeited and left the Alliance, so the Sandclaw Tribe will advance by default.”
“The rumors were true, then.”
“A default victory! A default victory in the semifinals, the round of four!”
“It’s an expected outcome, but it’s a shame. I thought we’d see an exciting duel.”
Because the opponent had left the Alliance, the Sandclaw Tribe Representative advanced to the finals by default.
Fortunately, the other match proceeded properly.
And shortly after.
“At last, the final match to determine the greatest warrior of the Great Desert begins!”
“Roooaaarrr!”
Amid the ominous atmosphere, the long-awaited final match commenced.

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