Upon hearing Klein's words, Roy King's expression shifted several times. Then, placing a hand on his chest, he offered a formal bow: "On behalf of our organization, I thank you for your assistance. Personally, I also thank you and that highness for the rescue..."
After finishing, he opened his eyes and looked toward his student, Darkwill, silently asking what was going on.
Darkwill took the cue and said, "His fee was 1000 pounds... but I only had a little over 300, so that's all I could pay upfront. The rest is up to you..."
Roy King's lips twitched as he replied, "I don't have any money on me either..."
Just as Gehrman's expression grew colder by the second, the demigod of the School of Life seemed to remember something and suddenly said, "But I can pay in another way..."
"What way?" Klein didn't want to pressure a demigod too much, even if the other party knew he had an angel behind him, even if the chairman of the School of Life's council might have to call him "uncle"...
If it weren't for maintaining Gehrman's persona, he might've allowed the man to owe him temporarily.
"It's that I..." Roy King suddenly recalled the terrifying scene he had glimpsed in Klein earlier and immediately swallowed his words. He hesitated for a moment, patted Darkwill on the shoulder, then dragged him to the window and pointed at a narrow alley outside. "Go down to that alley now. When you see the first person enter it, use your 'talent' to insult him a few times, then bring him upstairs."
"Teacher, what is this for?" Darkwill was completely confused, not understanding his teacher's intentions, to the point that he forgot to protest against the mention of his so-called "talent."
"Just do as I say, go!" Roy King snapped.
"Yes." Darkwill didn't dare talk back. He grabbed his whip and pistol and went downstairs.
Roy King closed his eyes again and turned back to Klein. "Please wait a moment. Your reward will arrive shortly."
Klein didn't know what he was planning either, but he gave a barely visible nod and said, "Alright."
Watching all this unfold, Danitz glanced at Roy King's refined face and muttered softly, "Pretty boys like him can't be trusted... should I remind that lunatic so he doesn't run off..."
At that moment, under the watchful eyes of Klein and the others, a fierce-looking man with greenish-black tattoos covering his arms, shoulders, and cheeks dragged a little girl into the alley.
Seeing the girl's mouth stuffed and her struggling desperately, Klein furrowed his brow and was about to step in.
But before he could act, Darkwill mustered his courage and began mercilessly taunting the brute.
The man was stunned for a moment, then his entire face twisted in rage. With a loud roar, he threw the girl aside and lunged forward.
Though Darkwill was a bit useless, he was still a Sequence 8 Beyonder. His basic combat instincts were intact. He immediately raised his pistol with one hand and wielded his whip with the other, ready for battle.
Yet in the very next moment, the brute tripped and fell flat on his face right in front of Darkwill... leaving him frozen in place, whip mid-air, while Klein and Danitz, who were about to use their abilities upstairs, also halted.
After more than ten seconds, the man still lay motionless in a collapsed position... Darkwill recalled his teacher's words and cautiously squatted beside him.
Out of caution and habit as an "apothecary," he checked the man's body slightly, and to his surprise found that the man was already dead... The cause of death was cerebral hemorrhage...
So... he had a pre-existing condition, drank a lot of alcohol, was excited, and then, provoked by my words, his brain blood vessel burst? Judging by his speed earlier, he seemed to be an extraordinary being...
Is this bad luck for him, or good luck for me?
Darkwill thought of the slap from his teacher and knew it was probably the latter.
After having a clearer idea, Darkwill first untied the girl who had been thrown aside and let her go, then followed his teacher's instructions to carry the man's corpse upstairs.
Because it was dark and there were few people near the inn, his actions fortunately went unnoticed, and he successfully returned to the room where Klein and the others were.
Danitz looked carefully at the burly man under the room's light and said:"This is 'Walrus' Anson, the first mate of the Bloodsword Pirates, bounty 500 pounds, suspected extraordinary being on the 'Warrior' path."
In the pirate world, bounty is an important indicator of identity and status. A 500-pound bounty 'Warrior' shouldn't exceed rank 8... Klein, who knew this well, was silent for a few seconds and then asked:"Bloodsword Pirates?"
Danitz casually answered:"A mid-sized faction. Their captain, 'Bloodsword' Larson, has a bounty of 800 pounds. They operate long-term in the Suniya Sea, reportedly backed by the Feysac people."
Klein nodded, thinking that even if he collected the bounty himself, such a faction wouldn't cause him trouble. Or rather, he somewhat hoped someone would come for revenge.
Roy King smiled and said:"Even after the cut, a 500-pound bounty should net you at least 300. Adding his 'Warrior' trait, it should be worth around 700 pounds."
Klein calculated and approved of this "payment" method.
Hearing this, Roy King slightly relaxed. He also didn't want to offend someone backed by an angel and whose fate was so "terrifying."
He thought for a moment, then took out a round ornament made of golden gears covered by transparent glass and said:"Thanks again for your rescue... Though I already paid you 1,000 pounds, that sum is far less than the value of my life... So, I want to give you this item as my personal token of gratitude."
Klein didn't take the ornament directly but divined it on the spot. After confirming it was safe, he signaled Roy King to continue explaining its origin.
"This item comes from a real 'alchemist' and is his token. Holding it allows you to make a request to that master." Roy King stroked the glass surface of the ornament and recalled, "I got it because I helped that master complete one of his proudest works."
Seems luck is needed for that to succeed... Klein murmured internally, then finally took the ornament and asked:"Who is that master, and where is he?"
Please don't tell me he's at the Steam Church headquarters...
"He lives in Nas, the capital of the Gargas Archipelago. I don't know his real name, but people call him the 'Fool of Nas'... because he's obsessed with researching the impossible 'floating city'...
"Oh, he loves canned wolffish. If you visit, it's best to bring him a can..."
As Roy King said this, Danitz, who had been listening in, couldn't help but gag.
(End of chapter)