novelsmap Chapter 276 The Cleanup Work of the Ishtar Familia
Chapter 276 The Cleanup Work of the Ishtar Familia
Chapter 276 The Cleanup Work of the Ishtar Familia
After spending two days in the underground city, four or five days had passed on the surface. Roy returned to the Star Garden and heard the girls' voices as soon as he entered.
Based on observations from the war game, the titles bestowed upon the girls by the gods have been freshly released.
Tione is "The Wrathful Serpent," and Tiona is "The Great Severer." Just like in the original timeline, their fighting styles remain unchanged, showcasing the unrestrained spirit of the Amazons.
Lily is the "Stove Ash Girl," or "Unremarkable Girl," a title that sounds like a random passerby, but it's actually a trick by the gods.
That war game fully proved that Lily was a top assassin. Relying on her agility and dexterity, she could take the head of the enemy general from among thousands of troops. Coupled with the disguise magic "Cookhouse Girl", she had the best setup for stealthy assassination.
Anyone who believes this title and thinks Lily is just an NPC in Orario will be in for a big mistake.
The titles of the others remain unchanged.
Ryu's title "Swift Wind" sounds pleasant and cool, so there's absolutely no need to change it. If he wants to keep his original title, the gods won't force him.
Daphne's "Laurel Runaway" and Cassandra's "Dream Healer" sound incredibly embarrassing at first. When someone calls them by these titles on the street, the two girls feel like they could fight them one-on-one.
But this is like wearing new shoes. Once the break-in period is over, you feel comfortable with them and even develop an attachment to them, so you don't want to change them.
The same goes for Roy. Once he reaches LV.6 or LV.7, let the goddess exchange him for a more imposing title, so that "Sprout" can truly grow into a towering tree!
Upon seeing Roy's return, the goddess Astraea's bright, beautiful eyes softened, "Is it resolved?"
Roy nodded.
The two exchanged a knowing glance and smiled. For the time being, only they knew about the heretic's affairs.
"The captain is so cunning, what are you whispering to the goddess about?" Tione quickly returned to her defensive position, leaped up, and jumped onto Roy's back.
Roy felt a sinking sensation as he experienced the Amazonian girl's passion, as if he were on a vast, boundless grassland, with a wild and unrestrained atmosphere washing over him.
Girls like Daphne and Cassandra wouldn't dare to be so bold; they were both shy and envious. In this respect, the Amazons' racial talent was unparalleled.
Liu pursed her lips, her eyes flickering.
Roy asked, "Where's Tiona?"
"Stay there with Lily and take over the assets of the Ishtar Familia," Tione said with a beaming smile.
A level 5+ level 3 player is someone few people in Orario can afford to mess with. Roy's gaze returned to the hall, where he saw the spacious floor piled high with papers, standing like a small mountain, which was astonishing.
The number of applications to join the Astrea Familia is nearly 30,000, almost reaching the ceiling. We are still receiving four to five thousand applications every day. This wave of enthusiasm is unlikely to subside for several months.
Roy made up his mind to keep a low profile recently and try not to show the strength of his clan, otherwise he would add fuel to the fire and drive the gods and adventurers completely mad.
Defeating the Heavenly Ox yielded a treasure map of the Great Tree Sea, allowing me to leave and lay low for a while.
Ryu, Astrea, Haruhime, and others are processing these applications and conducting their initial review.
"Anything you like?" Roy leaned closer.
Although this large-scale recruitment fair was just a pretext used by Roy to appease the gods and explain the rapid increase in the strength of his clan members, Roy wouldn't mind recruiting any promising talents to help the clan grow stronger.
Astrea, Ryu, and the others all shook their heads, and Haruhime belatedly followed suit.
Their eyesight and experience are top-notch; they can spot falsified information on application forms at a glance, eliminating one-fifth of applicants in the initial screening.
The most important questions on the application form are the last two: What are your views on justice?
If you were asked to uphold justice, what would you do?
The answers are nothing more than punishing evil and promoting good, saving lives and healing the wounded, killing all the members of the dark factions in the world, and fighting for one's comrades—some very grand slogans.
That sounds unrealistic.
As expected, basically no one believed in "justice" or anything like that; they were all drawn by Roy's amazing ability to quickly boost people's stats.
Even if someone passed the preliminary test, they couldn't lie to the goddess Astraea during the interview and quickly gave themselves away. None of the tens of thousands of people passed!
The difficulty of joining the Astrea Familia has become an urban legend in Orario.
"hehe!"
Roy scoffed. If it were him, he wouldn't waste time on this kind of thing. He'd just burn all the forms and say, "Don't ask, the answer is no."
Only responsible people like Ryu and Astrea would carefully screen every application form and live up to everyone's good intentions.
At this moment, Roy noticed the fox-girl on the other side, who seemed hesitant to speak, looking timid and pitiful. He whispered, "Haruhime, is something the matter?"
Upon hearing Roy's question, Astraea, Ryu, and the others stopped what they were doing and looked at Haruhime.
Facing the gazes of everyone, Haruhime held her breath, visibly tense, but she still mustered her courage, "Lady Astrea, Lord Roy, as a sinner, it is very wrong of me to make such a request, but I beg you, grant me the unlocking medicine, I am willing to pay for it—"
Unlocking Drug!
Roy and the others immediately understood what was going on.
Astraea, Ryu, and the others turned their attention back to Roy. This matter still needed Roy to make the decision, since it wasn't just a matter of one or two bottles of unlocking potions.
Chunji kept her eyes tightly closed, her heart pounding wildly in her chest, like a sinner awaiting judgment.
Roy pondered for a moment and said, "I'll go with you, and check on Lily's situation while we're at it."
Chunji's pretty face froze for a moment, then she realized what she was doing and covered her mouth with her two small hands in disbelief, "Lord Roy, you really want to—"
Roy smiled. "We're all from the same clan, you should trust us even more!"
Haruhime looked at Ryu and the others with her emerald green eyes, and all she saw were kind smiles. Moved to tears, she said, "Lord Roy, Lady Astrea, everyone, thank you! Thank you so much!"
A sense of familial warmth enveloped the fox-woman girl who had left her home several years ago.
Astraea, Ryu, and the others all smiled. This was the captain they liked. Surprisingly, Tione didn't jump out to cause trouble.
After entrusting the processing of the application forms to Goddess Astraea and others, Roy took Haruhime to the former residence of the Ishtar Familia—the Pleasure District.
Haruhime wants the unlocking medicine, of course, for the sake of those prostitutes from the former Ishtar Familia. Aisha and the others who have switched to other Familias also need the unlocking medicine.
The war game failed, and the prostitutes' situation was even more difficult than they had imagined.
In the original timeline, Ishtar was sent back to the Celestial Realm by Freya's slap, and Aisha and the others' favors were also locked away. However, Ishtar's Familia left behind a vast amount of assets. Even though it was divided up by the guild and other Familias, the remaining amount was enough for the prostitutes to live comfortably.
The assets of the Ishtar Familia, who lost the war game, were controlled by the Astrea Familia.
Lacking even the money to buy the unlocking potion, and with the power of grace sealed away, Ishtar's arrogant attitude and unbridled actions over the years had offended many, including even the Freya Familia.
Ishtar was sent back to the heavens, while her family remained in Orario, where they had a very fulfilling life.
Roy and Chun-hime arrived at the entertainment district.
The once bustling pleasure district was a place where countless gods, adventurers, and the wealthy indulged in extravagant pleasures.
Now, only "ruins" can describe it.
The magnificent marble floor is shattered and covered with thick dust. Scorched wooden beams, broken stone carvings, and rusted signboard fragments are piled up haphazardly and scattered on the cracked street, desolate and lifeless!
The floor master Amphispina, summoned by Roy, wreaked havoc, resulting in the defeat of the war game and the instant annihilation of the once mighty A-rank Familia, never to return.
"Sixteen years old? That's so young!"
"Still running? You're wasting our time!"
"Hey, don't break it! This is a money tree!"
A conversation drifted from a nearby alley, interspersed with the sounds of punches and kicks. Moments later, several men emerged carrying a sack, inside which a human-shaped silhouette was struggling.
Seeing this, Roy frowned. Snatching someone in broad daylight was far too brazen!
The Ishtar Familia was wiped out, the Astrea Familia profited the most, and the others got a share, of course, through the experienced prostitutes.
People with a shred of decency will spend money. But in extreme cases, there are human traffickers who kidnap women, leaving the prostitutes, whose rights have been sealed, utterly defenseless.
If you resell it, you can make hundreds of thousands of fiat currency.
"Didn't notice? There's a pretty girl here!" At this moment, the group noticed Chun Ji, their eyes lighting up. The fox-girl from the East was incredibly beautiful, and her gentle and delicate demeanor instantly stirred up the dark desires deep within their hearts.
The men, their faces contorted with sinister smiles, brandished wooden sticks and surrounded Chun Ji.
Chunji had only encountered this situation a handful of times. Terrified, she trembled, her face turned deathly pale, and she clung tightly to Roy's clothes, shrinking behind him.
"The budding of justice?!"
The bewitched men finally noticed Roy's gloomy face. Through the mirror, the entire city was broadcasting live, making it extremely difficult for anyone in Orario and even the surrounding villages not to recognize Roy.
"So, it's because you've taken a fancy to that girl. Well then, I'll give you face," the leading man said warily. Without the Astrea Familia, they wouldn't have had the chance to make a fortune.
"Let's go!"
With a wave of his hand, the man behind him had no choice but to leave, but a trace of resentment lingered in their eyes. The fox-girl's gait and expression suggested she was a virgin, and she could definitely fetch a good price.
But while they were willing to leave, Roy was unwilling to let them go. His eyes were cold, thinking, "A bunch of LV.1 ants, do they even deserve to ask me for screen time?"
puff!
Roy's cold gaze locked onto the men, and his five fingers suddenly spread open like iron hooks, grabbing at the wall bricks covered with spider webs and cracks, and forcefully prying out a heavy brick with jagged edges.
Immediately afterwards, Roy's large hand suddenly clenched, and under his terrifying finger strength, the brick shattered into a dozen sharp-edged pebbles. Without the slightest pause, Roy's arm lashed out at the men!
Hiss hiss hiss hiss!
A sharp, piercing whistling sound tore through the deathly silence, and the dozen or so pebbles transformed into a rapid, gray-white rain of afterimages, striking the men's knee joints with precision and indiscriminate accuracy!
The level 1 minions couldn't react at all.
A series of chilling sounds of flesh being pierced and bones cracking rang out simultaneously!
"Ugh!"
"My legs!"
A heart-wrenching scream echoed through the sky. The men's faces, which had been filled with ferocity and greed, were now replaced by unspeakable pain and horror.
Their bodies seemed to be struck hard by an invisible hammer, causing them to fall forward uncontrollably.
Clumps of glaring scarlet, like bewitching flowers of death, suddenly burst open at the knee. Torn ligaments and torn tendons, along with fragments of fascia, grotesquely rolled out from the bowl-sized blood hole, and the leg bone presented a bizarre and reversed joint bend!
Bang!Bang!Bang!
The residual force of the rubble even penetrated flesh and bone, leaving deep, cracked pits in the walls and ground behind them! Smoke and dust mixed with a heavy stench of blood permeated the air.
The men who had been so arrogant and forcibly abducted people in broad daylight were now like wild dogs with broken legs, writhing in pain and howling incessantly in the filthy dust! Blood gushed from their broken knees, quickly staining the ground beneath them red.
The bag the other person was carrying fell to the ground, and a visibly shaken Amazonian prostitute crawled out.
"Are you alright?"
Chun-hime recognized her as a sister she had worked with before.
The other party also saw Haruhime, their expression complex. Compared to their destitute state, Haruhime was protected by the Astrea Familia, which was truly enviable.
"Do I need your respect?" Roy stood in front of the man from before, looking down at him with disdain.
The men turned pale with fright, never expecting Roy to be so ruthless. They wished they could tear the man's mouth apart. The Roy in front of them was a genuine LV.5, Level 1 adventurer!
As time has passed, people have more or less forgotten that Roy and Ryu were ruthless people who buried hundreds of Rudra's clan members in the underground city in one go.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they're ruthless killers!
Roy needs to make them remember.
This commotion attracted the attention of many, including former executives of the Ishtar clan.
Roy scanned the Ishtar Familia, whose women, who were usually dressed in flamboyant attire, now looked haggard and pale, their hair disheveled, their skin dull, their lips chapped and peeling into tight lines, and each of them bore injuries of varying degrees.
Those eyes were cloudy and bloodshot, their former sharpness replaced by an unfathomable weariness.
There was a deathly silence, broken only by suppressed, heavy breathing, faint groans from the pain of wounds, and the rumbling of someone's stomach due to hunger.
No need to ask any more questions, just one glance.
Roy could tell that this period had been quite difficult for them.
"Sister Aisha!"
Aisha, Samira, and the others stared warily at Roy until Haruhime's sorrowful, trembling call slightly eased the tense atmosphere.
Chunji's tears fell uncontrollably. She knew that Aisha and the others were having a hard time, but she didn't expect it to be this difficult. Meanwhile, she was living comfortably in the Star Garden, enjoying delicious food and a cozy bed.
Aisha nodded to the fox-girl.
Roy, Aisha, and their group entered a dilapidated house, while Haruhime stayed outside to take care of the injured and hungry prostitutes.
"Justice is sprouting, thank you for saving our sister," Aisha said earnestly. She didn't want to dwell on who was right and who was wrong about the past.
"What about the military police of the Ganesha's clan?" Roy asked.
"Are you serious about this question?" Aisha looked at Roy with a strange expression.
A thoughtful look appeared on Roy's face, as if he understood something. After the War Game, the Pleasure District was tacitly considered to be the territory of the Astrea Familia.
Considering the relationship between the two clans, the Ganesha clan's military police could not intervene.
Otherwise, there wouldn't have been a scene of robbery on the street; the entire Happy Street area would have been in complete chaos.
Roy's large hand swept through the air, and three bottles of unlocking potions quietly appeared on the table.
"Unlocking drug!"
Samira and the other prostitutes recognized it immediately, their eyes burning with desire. This was exactly what they desperately needed right now; if they could just find any god, the seal could be broken immediately, restoring their strength as high-level adventurers.
A single bottle costs over a million fali. Of course, that was the price they used to pay; now it's estimated to be more than ten times that. The black market is a shady place, unregulated, where they can arbitrarily raise prices and rip off newcomers—that's their usual practice.
Destitute women, even if they had money, dared not easily enter the black market, for they could easily lose both their money and their lives.
Now Roy has brought the unlocking drug to them.
Unlike the others, Aisha wasn't overwhelmed by the unexpected windfall. Her eyes remained calm, yet tinged with a hint of wariness. "What does Yi want?"
"Don't think of people as so calculating. This is Chunji's request." Roy shrugged.
Aisha remained noncommittal, quietly watching Roy, who seemed to have an air of "I won't accept unless he sets a condition," and it was unclear who was actually asking for a favor.
Roy's smile faded, and he said, "From now on, I don't want any former members of the Ishtar Familia to cause us trouble, is that alright?"
Roy's voice was so calm, like a neighbor chatting casually, but the people present were not fools; behind this roar lay a bloody storm!
Aisha sighed softly; she knew these unlocking potions wouldn't be so easy to obtain.
But now they have no other choice; the longer it drags on, the more their sisters will suffer.
Aisha replied, "Understood!"
Having achieved his goal, Roy smiled slightly. He didn't care about the prostitutes, but the problem was Ishtar's men, a group led by Tamms. Those men were sycophants of the goddess of beauty, and with Ishtar being sent back to the heavens, there was a possibility that they would get out of control and inevitably do some things that would displease people.
Roy arrived at just the right time.
Given Aisha and the others' strength, even if Jingluo didn't give them the unlocking potion, many other clans would still try to recruit them and unlock their favors.
Compared to a bunch of high-level adventurers at LV.3 and LV.4, the value of unlocking potions is negligible.
The reason they are in such a miserable state is that the various clans are unsure of Roy's intentions and are afraid of offending the Astrea Spring Clan by recruiting Aisha and others.
The Aslania Familia, ranked third in Orario, possesses a truly terrifying power.
Once you offend them, your future will be anything but easy. If you meet them in the dungeon, Roy and his crew can easily make them disappear forever with just a little bit of force.
Roy didn't personally deal with Tamms and his men, not because he couldn't, but because there was no need to dirty his hands. He also wanted to give Aisha a chance to pledge her loyalty, whether to distance herself from them or be purged.
"Justice is sprouting, I finally understand what kind of person Roy is." Aisha sighed. Roy wasn't the kind of nice guy people talked about, but with this guy around, at least her little sister wouldn't be bullied anymore.
Aisha and the others took the unlocking potion.
Many battle prostitutes dispersed among the various neutral clans of Orario, regaining their original power.
"It was given to me by that guy from the sprout of justice!" Aisha placed the unlocking potion on the table.
"I see!"
Hermes laughed, and then converted Aisha, leaving everything unsaid.
A similar scene unfolded throughout Orario, as the world-famous Battle Prostitutes' Gathering revived once again!
into the night.
Beneath Orario's glamorous exterior, in the underground passages, dark alleys, and even in the most unseen corners, a bloody hunt unfolds—a civil war among the former Ishtar Familia.
It was a final battle where all pretense of civility was torn apart.
The targets of the massacre were, of course, Tamms and others who worshipped Ishtar as if she were a religion.
It couldn't even be called a battle!
This was a meticulously planned massacre.
Once a Level 4, Tammus was sent flying by a single punch, crashing into a solid stone pillar. The crisp sound of bones shattering was clearly audible, his entire chest cavity caved in, and blood and fragments of broken internal organs gushed from his mouth.
Immediately afterwards, several sharp daggers with tricky angles extended from the darkness, piercing his heart, and scalding blood splattered on the dark and damp wall.
The last seat of God in his eyes vanished.
The men of Ishtar were lambs to be slaughtered. Without exception, they were caught up and pounced on by the fighting prostitutes. Daggers precisely slit their throats, short swords viciously pierced their vests, and heavy blunt weapons, carrying brutal force, swung down and smashed their heads to pieces!
The screams rose and fell, yet were extremely brief.
The process was breathtakingly fast. Tamms and the others, still sealed by the Grace, were powerless to fight back. In the dark corners, mutilated corpses lay scattered everywhere, and the stench of blood was overwhelming.
Cleaning complete!
The former Ishtar Familia, the most loyal members of Ishtar, were wiped out in the darkest, most ruthless way by Aisha and others, in a place unknown to anyone.