The Foreigner on the Periphery (English Translation)

12. Three Ways to Kill a Boss (9)

Minjun quickly made his decision.

"Jeongpal."

Starting the engine, the orc spoke urgently.

"Let's head out there right now...!"

"No."

If they traveled the 10 km through Seoul's traffic, the situation would be over by the time they arrived.

"Listen carefully from now on."

Jeongpal waited for the next words with tension. However, without any further explanation, Minjun steadied his breath, grasped a stone knife in one hand, and then—

Thwack!

He stabbed his own hand with it!

"Hyung!"

Though Jeongpal understood this was part of the preparation for the dark magic activation, he was still startled by the sudden act, especially since it wasn't just a small cut like he'd seen before. The blade pierced through Minjun's left hand with no resistance, as easily as slicing tofu.

Huff.

Minjun let out a rare shallow sigh, and then—

Crack! Thud!

He slowly turned the handle of the knife in a clockwise direction. Watching the scene, Jeongpal became increasingly restless. Despite the knife still being lodged in, a mist of blood began to leak from the wound, slowly soaking his clothes.

"Hyung! Your hand..."

Only then did the intended effect begin to occur. First, the stone knife disappeared. Then, a large hole formed at the spot where it had been. The surrounding scenery seemed to melt into Minjun's body.

"Uh... huh?!"

Through the hole in his hand, Jeongpal could clearly see the glove compartment of the passenger side. The transparent glass seemed to reflect the image of Minjun, as if someone were slowly erasing it.

"It's warp magic."

"Ah!"

Jeongpal understood that it was a dark magic-based teleportation spell.

The blood mist that had been eating away at the wound gradually disappeared, and Minjun's left arm, up to the shoulder, was now sent to a distant place.

"There's no need for you to follow. Once I'm completely transmitted, you should head straight to HyoSeong Industries."

His tone was faster than usual, but it remained even, without much fluctuation. It was more like a simple transmission of information than a conversation—calmly, but efficiently issuing orders.

Jeongpal knew that this was a sign that Minjun was extremely angry.

"And secure Kim Yeonju's safety. Don't worry about the procedures. I'll take care of it."

They had obtained evidence through eavesdropping, but no warrant had been issued. Even so, Minjun promised he would take responsibility for cleaning up afterward.

"Don't take her to the police station. It'll cause trouble. Keep her locked up somewhere until I contact you."

He frowned.

"If things don't go well, we might need to use her as leverage."

Having already sent most of his body away, Minjun's head remained hovering above the passenger seat. Before his entire body disappeared, Jeongpal anxiously asked:

"Wait... Leverage? Are you threatening someone with Kim Yeonju?"

Minjun gave him a look as if to say, "Why ask such a thing?"

"Who else? The dragon, of course."

With those words, Minjun completely vanished.

"Come in...!"

The first customer that had arrived at the Evergreen Bookstore in a long time was a young human woman.

Her hair was dyed blue, short in a two-block style, and her arms were covered with various tattoos. Her face was pierced with more than ten piercings.

Ignoring the goblin who bowed and greeted her, she walked straight into the store. Inside, an old elf sat as usual, flipping through books. He sensed her presence and looked up.

Their gazes met.

The first to break the silence was the woman.

"Hey, elf."

The woman spoke insolently. Lakefield, with his keen elf senses, recognized the presence. A dragon.

Such an appearance could fool species like humans or orcs, but not an elf's eyes. The woman didn't wait for a response from the old man and immediately continued with her demand.

"Summon a spirit for me."

Lakefield added another descriptor to his assessment of her. A young dragon.

Older dragons have a variety of alternatives to summon spirits, so when a dragon insists on doing so, it shows inexperience. However, he didn't avoid the dragon's gaze and spoke calmly.

"A spirit is an inseparable familiar and soul companion to a spirit mage. Are you unaware that spirits should never be summoned in front of those you do not trust?"

The dragon laughed in response.

"Yeah, I know. All those spirit-summoners, they all chirp the same thing like parrots. The last guy I broke four fingers before he summoned anything. How many do you think it'll take for you to talk?"

The woman tossed a file onto the table in front of the elf.

Inside it was a photo of a human man that Lakefield had once investigated.

"Stop showing off and just make it easy. It's simple. Just find where this guy is. As quickly as possible. Got it?"

The old elf showed no emotion, but he recognized the man in the photo. He turned his eyes away from the file and spoke to the dragon.

"Did you not understand my words?"

The dragon, unable to contain himself, shouted angrily.

"Anyway, elves are such—!"

Roar!

The air trembled. Lakefield instantly felt the weight of the air, like water, pressing down on him.

Dragon's Fury.

Thud!

Dongcheol, who had been sweeping in front of the store, dropped his broom. He turned, trembling.

"Aah...!"

Violence surged from the bookstore. An instinct deeply ingrained in his genes whispered to him: Run! Hide! Now!

His ancestors had lived by burrowing underground and had evolved to fear dragons, the violent neighbors of the underworld. Now, the fear buried in Dongcheol's veins awoke, gripping him with a sense of impending doom, like a blade lodged in his throat. His muscles twitched, itching to flee, and his knees buckled.

But...

No... Boss!

Through the woman's body, Dongcheol could see the old elf's face. For just a moment, their gazes met, and Lakefield silently signaled to him: Run.

However, the goblin consciously held his ground. Battling his instincts, he recalled Minjun's words from when he first started working.

"Dongcheol, sometimes annoying customers might come in. Most of them I'll handle, but... there are always a few who keep coming back. Yeah? Forget that long word I just said. Anyway, I've got one request for you."

The goblin, with a lower intelligence than most species, had a poor memory, but that didn't mean he couldn't memorize anything. It just took more effort, but he could do it if he tried.

Muttering as if reciting a chant, the goblin whispered:

"Yellow light flashing... the biggest book, the black book... lower down... lever for eating hands... go straight... stairs, down."

He repeated it desperately, as if that was the only way to survive.

"Shall we start here?"

As the woman roughly grabbed the elf's wrist, the condition for activation was met.

"Paat!"

"...No?!"

A golden light filled the bookstore!

The source of the gentle wave of energy was at the entrance of the shop. Lakefield, who was as shocked as the dragon, looked towards it.

'That's!'

It was the cactus pot Minjun had given him not long ago. One of the plants he occasionally left behind every few months. From it, light was radiating. The magic being formed was...

'Exorcism barrier?!'

Although Lakefield was not a magician, his long experience had taught him that this type of barrier, when infused with an artifact, was only effective for a few months.

'So, all this time...!'

The dragon shouted in confusion.

"What is this?!"

As if entering a state of zero gravity, the dragon, now in human form, suddenly floated into the air. She struggled and flailed, but the barrier activated faster than she could react.

"Damn!"

Swish!

A violent storm raged. An invisible hand pushed the dragon out, as if expelling an unwanted guest. The force pushed her all the way to the door, finally tossing her outside the shop.

And in that moment—whoosh! A goblin dashed into the bookstore. The dragon, furious, reached out, but the two-story building was already surrounded by a golden protective shield like a dome. It was thick and protected the building, seemingly to reject any intruders.

"Yellow light flicker... The biggest book, the black book... Lower it... The lever for the eating hand... Go straight... When the stairs appear, go down!"

Sobbing and sniffling, the goblin muttered the incantation without stopping as he ran toward Lakefield. The reason the shop had an employee was revealed through the shopkeeper's gait. The elderly elf, unable to walk alone, was being assisted by the staff to move further inside the bookstore.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The dragon focused the fiery aura in both of her hands and tried to break the barrier. But it didn't budge.

"Can't you stand?!"

Growl!

The piercer expanded again.

Hearing the terrifying roar from behind, the goblin instinctively stopped but...

"...!"

Clenching his teeth, he overcame the fear and continued walking. Dongcheol, standing in front of the bookshelf, immediately grabbed the corner of a black-covered book. 'Elf-Korean Dictionary.' It was the thickest book in the store, one that Lakefield rarely opened.

Screech!

As he pulled the book, the entire bookshelf turned into a hidden door, revealing a passage. Once the goblin stepped inside, he turned the lever on the right, and the entrance disappeared.

Thus, the two escaped the bookstore.

"Those bastards!!"

The dragon, left outside the barrier, glared at the shop with an expression that could devour it.

"What's going on? What's that?"

"A wizard?"

"Should we report it to the police?"

People started gathering around. The once-normal building was now encased in a golden curtain. Anyone could see it was magic. Those who sensed danger fled immediately, but the foolish ones, paralyzed by instinct, gathered to take pictures and videos.

The dragon was contemplating. To dismantle the barrier, she would have to return to her dragon form. But in broad daylight, with witnesses around, that would invite a concentrated attack from Elder Dragons. Such an act would violate the Draconic Code and degrade her honor.

'Wait… I just need to make sure I'm not seen, right?'

The moment she seriously considered the option of killing the witnesses...

Someone appeared who would solve her dilemma.

Swoosh!

"What is that! Another weird thing is coming out!"

"This... isn't that the smell of blood?"

From the air, the mist of death began to spread.

Moments later, where it had vanished, a human man stood.

The dragon's eyes met his. Edelrinis, the young dragon, guessed his identity. With an expression full of irritation, she spoke.

"Are you the owner here?"

Well, this worked out. Though she didn't know his name or face, she had heard that the owner of the place was an immigration agent. In her mind, that translated to 'Jenkins, that old fool who has a leash around the human trickster.'

"Perfect timing. Good thing you showed up. You, go break that barrier and bring that old elf here."

"..."

Her tone was arrogantly casual.

With a small payment, this human had been made a servant to the dragon, so naturally, he was expected to follow the orders of any other dragon, no questions asked.

And, of course, she believed he would fear and revere her, as any other creature would. Dragons were a mighty race, and it was only natural.

"What's this? Didn't you hear me?"

As an agent, he should have easily noticed the dragon's aura, yet his reaction was slow.

Edelrinis felt her fury rising again.

'Why is it that every idiot I encounter today...!'

Growl!

Increasing the intensity of her aura, she was about to overwhelm the human entirely when Minjun, without even glancing at the dragon, looked inside the shop. The opaque golden barrier surrounded the empty store.

After confirming the two had safely escaped, Minjun spoke for the first time, and Edelrinis couldn't believe her ears.

With a tone packed with suppressed anger, Minjun spoke.

"...That damn bitch really has lost her mind!"