Lynn the Weak

Luckily, Constantine did not have a habit of pausing dramatically while he spoke, or Lynn's heart might have leaped straight out of his mouth.

Trigon... had a daughter.

Lynn had no idea who Trigon's daughter was or what elementary school she attended, but he knew the name Trigon.

That was a badass who could trade insults with Darkseid!

The top-tier demon Constantine had mentioned was actually this top-tier?!

Lynn might have been crazy, but he was not stupid.

Was someone at Trigon's level really an opponent he could even try to measure himself against? To put it bluntly, that demon god from another dimension only needed to pour the slightest trace of his aura into Lynn, and he might be directly "stuffed to death."

Fighting someone like that with a little pistol—what was that if not complete bullshit? Even if he wanted to die, he could not get this fancy with it!

Thinking it over now, Lynn realized that everything they had done had gone a little too... smoothly.

They had found the town at just the right time, noticed they were being watched at just the right time, and directly found the person behind it at just the right time...

Constantine's improvisation had been flawless. The magic circle he drew looked as though he had rehearsed it ten thousand times, and the magical item hidden in his trench coat belt just happened to counter the other side...

Clearly, Lynn had been set up by Constantine.

Lynn was not especially surprised by that result. It was just that the danger involved had far exceeded what he had anticipated.

If anything had gone wrong just now, he would have been reduced to ashes. To hell with studying the system or making use of his cheat.

Now that he thought back on all the reckless, overconfident things he had done since entering the town, every one of them felt like dancing blindfolded, then taking the blindfold off only to discover that he was not standing on solid ground, but on a wooden plank suspended over a bottomless abyss.

A cold sweat broke out all over him. Lynn was genuinely afraid.

And the price he had paid with his life hanging by a thread had not earned him enough value to ease the pressure in his mind.

So, after rapidly reviewing and piecing together everything that had happened, Lynn brought his thoughts back to the present and focused on what was before him.

When he lowered his head and turned, seeing Constantine lying in the grass with a relaxed smile, a blade of grass in his mouth, basking in the sunlight after the thick fog had dispersed, looking utterly carefree and unconstrained—

Lynn's fury erupted.

"I'll beat you to death, you little bastard!"

Constantine could not understand the language Lynn had suddenly blurted out. But every language carried emotional rises and falls, as well as varying tones of emphasis.

Oh no! This guy isn't the type to take a loss and be too embarrassed to talk back!

Constantine suddenly realized his predicament. While deeply regretting that he had not run away sooner, he clasped his hands over his head and shouted repeatedly, "Lynn! Calm—"

A clump of dirt with grass still attached smashed into Constantine's mouth, and the next second, Lynn's sandbag-sized fists rained down on him.

The little cat had no idea what was happening, but the feeling of being steeped in terror when that girl had held it still had not completely faded.

Now that it saw Lynn beating Constantine senseless, there was no way the little cat would not help out!

"Meow! Meow! Meow!"

Lynn straddled Constantine and pummeled him with heavy fists, occasionally grabbing the little cat by the tail and tossing it away whenever it got in the way. ]|I{•------» «------•}I|[ The little cat would then come running back with a string of meows and rejoin the battle.

Mixed with Constantine's intermittent explanations and pleas for mercy, along with the little cat's meowing, Lynn beat him for five full minutes. For those entire five minutes, Lynn did not say a word.

At first, Constantine still begged for mercy and put on an act. Later, when he never heard Lynn talking back, he guessed that Lynn was truly angry.

Constantine stopped talking too and merely protected his face with all his might.

That had always been his way. If taking a beating could earn him a powerful helper and someone willing to enter this life-or-death game with him, Constantine could never take enough punches.

This deal was an absolute steal!

Of course, Lynn had not truly intended to do anything serious to Constantine. He was just furious. Not because he had nearly been tricked to death, but because he had guarded against this and that, only to get thoroughly played in the end.

And judging from the outcome, he had lost this from the very beginning—lost completely, messily, disastrously.

All the precautions he had taken afterward had been a joke. The moment he had opened his mouth to demand "compensation" from Constantine, he had already stepped into Constantine's trap.

Now that he thought about it, Lynn had even helped dig the pit himself.

How humiliating...

In the end, Lynn still found an opportunity to give Constantine another hit to the face. He did not know whether Constantine's handsome looks had survived, but at least both of his eyes were blackened like a panda's. He looked much more pleasing that way.

Nicely symmetrical.

"Lynn, I'm sorry I dragged you into this."

Constantine began putting on a show of deep emotion. His acting was not very smooth, though; with panda eyes, it was hard to look natural.

Still, he persisted in repeating all the things he had once said to every helper he had screwed over before.

He had to go through the motions.

After saying it, Constantine believed it himself a little more and was genuinely moved by his own performance. He even felt a little wronged. How could someone hit a man in the face? Seriously!

Lynn did not see it that way. He had been a pig butcher in his previous life. His heart had long become as cold as the increasingly thin butcher's knife he sharpened.

"Constantine, you'd better give me an explanation. Otherwise, I guarantee that by tomorrow morning, a video of you violating an anthill will be all over the internet. Uncensored."

Constantine greatly doubted Lynn had the ability to pull that off, but he had absolutely no desire to verify it.

"Okay, okay!"

Pointing around at the wandering souls gradually closing in from every direction, Constantine spread his hands. "These are Fugitives from different eras and regions. They aren't recognized anywhere, and before they are destroyed, they gradually become evil spirits wandering the human world. They're all yours! All of them!"

Lynn glanced around, his mouth twisting. "These were what you owed me in the first place."

Constantine really wanted to argue. I only owed you ten demon souls. The fugitives here add up to nearly thirty demon souls. Do you have no shame?

But he did not say it. Being in the wrong was one thing, compensation was another, and besides...

Ah, they were only fair-weather brothers. Who knew when he might need Lynn again?

"Okay, um... this. This is for you."

Constantine had clearly come prepared, completely confirming that he had planned to screw Lynn over from the start.

He took what looked like a silver lighter from his pocket and placed it in Lynn's hand.

Lynn swore that while they had been in the cabin, he had not found anything at all in Constantine's pockets.

"What does this thing do?"

Constantine gave a mysterious smile. "Heh heh, if you want to go to hell..."

"You're the one who wants to go to hell!"

"Right, right, right. I-I want to go to hell, I want to go to hell..."

Before Lynn's fist could fall again, Constantine rapidly explained how to use it, then watched Lynn summon the Lantern Hammer once more.

Covering his head, Constantine's expression changed. "That's not necessary, brother."

Lynn shot him an impatient glare. "It has nothing to do with you. I'm collecting my interest."

Lynn realized that he was still too weak.

Fortunately, these so-called fugitives gathering around them could solve his urgent problem.

I'm going to draw prizes!!

P.S.: First battle on the solo lane: Constantine wins.

Something came up, so there will only be one chapter today.

The bonus chapter rules are more or less ready. One version is for before release, and one is for after release. We'll see this Friday whether I can get a recommendation. If I can, I'll post both. If not...

Then I'll only post the post-release version. T^T

Please vote!