Chapter 13: Baron Rat - Ratlord②

Jin eats exactly the way his size suggests—like a beast.
Our food budget hurts.

Can’t he just catch birds for himself or something?
Or maybe get a part-time job already.

His face isn’t all that well-known, so I think it could work. Maybe.

…Nah, those scars are a dealbreaker. That’s how I realized he was Ironclad in the first place.

And honestly, with a face like a straight-up yakuza, customer service is impossible.
If he put those metal-manipulating powers into construction, though, he’d be a star.

There must be tons of gifted people who could contribute to society, but this world doesn’t let outsiders like him.

Either way, food costs are food costs.

I was just adding “look up budget recipes on my phone” to my mental To-Do list when someone called out to me.

I was on the narrow path that connects two buildings on campus.
It’s barely wide enough for two people to pass.

And standing right in the way was a small man.

His clothes were ragged, like a homeless guy.
The scarf around his neck seemed to flutter even though there wasn’t any wind.

"Got some hot info to sell, interested?"

The one making the offer was a villain with rat ears and a tail.
If I remembered right, his name was Baron Rat, Ratlord.

The shady “rat man” Professor Tsukishima mentioned?
Yeah, this guy.

Great.
Villains are roaming around on campus now.
So much for security.
So much for my safe zone.

Hell, one already broke into my house.
…Though that was on me.

I’d seen Ratlord before when I met Yukiko, but his abilities weren’t suited for fighting.
With those big ears giving him super-hearing and rat-like quickness, he played more the role of an informant.

Still…

"Did you just say ‘-yans’?"

"Branding is important, you know! Gotta be memorable to survive-yans!"

Apparently he had struggles I couldn’t understand.
Even villains had marketing strategies?

Maybe because he was in the info-selling business.
I guess you need repeat customers.

But honestly, middle-aged dude with rat ears is already a strong enough character.
Bet the furries would love him.
Not that I know.

"I go by the name Ratlord, Baron Rat the Informant."

"The value of information isn’t known until you hear it, and once you hear it, there’s no reason to pay. How the hell do you even sell info?"

"Great question, missy!"

"Who’re you calling missy?"

Ratlord grinned, flashing his crooked teeth.

"I do a first-time free service so folks know the value of my info-yans. If they think it’s worth it, they’ll buy next time. If not, they can ignore me. No loss either way-yans."

"Did you just say ‘asshi’?"

"‘-Yans’ goes hand in hand with ‘asshi,’ don’t it?"

…If you say so.

I’d heard of Ratlord as a villain, but he didn’t exactly feel threatening.
No violence, but he reeked of the underworld.
And he looked filthy.

"Even with the ‘first-time free’ thing, is it like one of those scams where they start auto-billing you in a month unless you cancel?"

"If I could run a subscription scam, I’d be a lot richer-yans."

"Now you’re saying ‘oira.’"

"Shit."

So which was it, “asshi” or “oira”?

After a pause, Ratlord tacked on, “…-yans.”

"You’re actually kinda funny, so I’ll listen. Villain or not, it’s not like you’ve ever hurt me."

"Oh! That’s wonderful to hear! -Yans!"

His big ears twitched in delight.
Ratlord’s self-branding with his “-yans” speech was a success.

He was amusing enough that I wanted to hear more.

"I can tell you about the purpose of the villains’ boss, Delta-yans."

"Eh? Doesn’t sound that exciting."

"What!? The TV is full of nothing but speculation about Delta’s purpose, y’know!?"

"Whatever his goal is, the fact is he’s doing villain shit. Whether I agree with his ideology or not, he still has to be stopped. So knowing his goal doesn’t matter."

"Hahhh…"

Ratlord let out an oddly impressed sound.

"That’s a good way of putting it-yans. If you heard it, even you might end up wanting to follow Delta."

"He got mind-control powers or something?"

"Who knows? Personally, I think it’s just CHARISMA-yans."

Charisma.

He must have a silver tongue if he can gather so many villains.

Well, better that than actual brainwashing powers.
If he could enslave every villain, beating him would be nearly impossible.

"This isn’t information, just some casual talk, mind you."

Ratlord gave a preface before continuing.

"The way Delta reels in misfits one after another is by telling them this: 『We are a new species with special powers. We’ll destroy the old humanity and move the world forward.』"

"Supremacy, world conquest—wow, straight-up cliché evil organization. Not much of a mystery."

"Sounds incredible when you hear it from him, though! This is all I’ve got-yans!"

Ratlord looked frustrated.
Maybe I should’ve reacted more.

"So are you calling out to people like this to recruit for Delta?"

"Nah, I don’t work for free. Even if the world was mutants only, if they don’t pay me, what’s the point-yans?"

Beautiful mindset.

A pure money-chaser who never strays from cash as his one guiding principle.

Way more relatable than Delta’s supremacist crap.
I grew up in capitalism.

"Since I like you, I’ll tell you something I was saving for next time—Missy, you’re being targeted by Delta."

"Huh?"

"The next villain scheduled to cause trouble, Flux. His ability is merging with liquid. I heard from Delta’s orders that he’s been told to target you—Katagiri Inori. Kill if necessary, but rough you up either way."

"The hell?"

That explained why Ratlord approached me.

Not because of any assumption about my powers.

He hadn’t mentioned my regeneration at all, despite having seen me frozen solid by Yukiko.

Instead, it was because Delta had marked me as a target.
That alone gave Ratlord reason to reach out.

He could size me up, gather info on the mysterious woman Delta wanted.

"Didn’t you just say no point in thinking about Delta’s purpose ‘cause he’s a villain regardless-yans?"

Ratlord repeated my earlier words.
Sharp memory, fitting for an info broker.

"I like that way of thinking. When you sell info, everyone just keeps asking why, why, why. All I’ve got are facts. Connecting the dots is the buyer’s job. Missy, I think you could make good use of what I sell-yans."

So yeah, his “-yans” self-branding was working.

I’d pegged him as just some goofy weirdo, but he was sharp.

He never let me ask why Delta was after me.

He sold facts, but made it clear: thinking beyond that wasn’t his business.

Still, I respected his method.

Selling information without twisting it or adding speculation was the better way to keep accuracy.

He wasn’t aiming to manipulate people with lies or shape society.

That made me start to trust him.

Whether that was good marketing or not, I’d have to judge with time.