Chapter 474, Bullet Factory
Philipa panted heavily, struggling to express herself.
But her explanation was somewhat chaotic.
"Don't rush, take your time," Wu Heng said.
Philipa took a deep breath and sat down on the sofa. "Minnie, pour me a glass of water."
"Pour it yourself," Minnie replied without turning her head.
Wu Heng waved his hand, and the kettle floated up, pouring a glass of water in front of Philipa.
Philipa blew on the water, found it not too hot, and downed it in one gulp before saying, "Last night, this woman went to the tavern. She wanted to kill me, and then another bald guy barged in, saying you had gone to sea, and they wanted to go after you."
Wu Heng raised an eyebrow, and the two women nearby also looked over in surprise.
They even found their way to the Nautilus Tavern?
And they wanted to kill Philipa?
"And then?" Wu Heng asked, frowning.
Philipa continued, "Then I fainted. When I woke up today, I ran over to find you."
Wu Heng listened, still somewhat surprised.
The timing Philipa mentioned wasn't too different from when he went to sea.
This meant the witch's original plan was to kill Philipa but changed plans because Wu Heng went to sea.
However, since they intended to kill him anyway.
Killing Philipa on the spot shouldn't have been a challenge.
"So you were unconscious until now?" Minnie asked.
Philipa replied, "I was knocked out. It scared my mom half to death. I came looking for you as soon as I woke up this morning."
"I know about this. Yesterday, the Steward and I killed the bald guy. The woman escaped but definitely wouldn't dare return to the island. Don't worry," Wu Heng reassured.
Philipa fiddled with her braids. "I'm not scared. I'm just worried about you, the mage. I've seen all kinds of situations at sea."
Wu Heng asked, "You often see Level 18 Professionals at sea?"
Philipa froze, then realized, "Damn, they were Level 18?"
"Why else would the Steward intervene?"
"Damn~!"
Wu Heng stood up and said, "Let's go. We'll take a look at your tavern."
"Oh, okay!"
The two left the Guild and hired a carriage to head to the Nautilus Tavern.
...
Inside the tavern's private room.
Milisen spoke nervously, "My lord, sorry for troubling you again."
"What trouble? I came to get news," Philipa said from the side.
Wu Heng added, "It's fine. One of them was killed, and the other fled. They definitely wouldn't dare return to the island."
"That's good," Milisen sighed in relief.
Wu Heng glanced around the untouched private room and asked, "Did that woman leave anything behind?"
"Let me check," Philipa said, rummaging through the room.
She found a copper button under a wooden chair. "Does this count? It should belong to that woman."
"Yes, it counts," Wu Heng said, storing it in his spatial ring. He then told Milisen, "Resume normal operations. Delegate some tasks; no need for the boss to stay busy every day."
"Yes, sir. I'll do as you say," Milisen nodded.
Wu Heng exited the tavern and got into the carriage, with Philipa following into the compartment.
The carriage headed toward their residence.
Philipa sat intimately on Wu Heng's lap and said, "Wu Heng, I need to talk to you about something."
Wu Heng slid his hand inside her clothes, gently stroking her smooth stomach before resting it on her chest. "Go on."
"Get me a job. My mom keeps making me serve tables," Philipa said, loosening her leather armor. "Yesterday, I wasn't scared when that woman wanted to kill me, but when she asked why I wasn't a captain and was serving tables instead, I honestly felt embarrassed."
"It's not that bad."
"It is bad! I have some reputation out there. Serving tables is humiliating. I don't care; find me something to do, anything but working in the tavern," Philipa insisted, wriggling in place.
Wu Heng thought for a moment. "I'll ask around tomorrow to get you a job at the Guild."
"Sounds good. I know quite a few people there already."
...
Back at the residence.
Wu Heng told her to wait in the living room while he went upstairs to the 'Skeleton Prophet's' room.
The robed skeleton sat on a wooden chair, gazing out the window.
"Take a look at this. Can you discern anything?" Wu Heng handed over the copper button.
The Skeleton Prophet took it, hovering one bony hand over the button while grabbing Wu Heng's arm with the other.
In the next moment, fragmented images appeared in Wu Heng's mind.
An old fabric shop.
A seductive-looking woman walked in. "Boss, how much for this cloak?"
"You've got good taste. Fine material, 70 copper."
"Alright, I'll take it."
She tossed the money, grabbed the cloak, put it on, and left the shop.
...
A luxurious lounge.
The woman held a shriveled head in her hands.
The head looked menacing. "Wait for another Guardian to arrive nearby. Kill that boy before the Guild's latest appointments are finalized."
"Isn't it unnecessary for just a Deputy Steward?"
"Do as I say."
...
A dim ship cabin.
A mercenary delivering intelligence reported the Guild's situation.
Gray mist coalesced into a venomous snake, killing the mercenary.
"We can't act on the island. Imiro and Janvito are enough to keep us here."
"Then we wait for him to leave the island."
...
The sequence of images ended.
Wu Heng regained clarity.
He hadn't expected the skeleton to play back scenes like this.
Unlike the first-person view shared with wraiths, this felt like observing events from an outsider's perspective.
But overall, the situation became clear.
The Divine Punishment Sect wasn't avenging the Guild but acting on orders from the talking head to kill him.
"So they're targeting me."
Wu Heng asked, "Can you see where she is now?"
The Skeleton Prophet grabbed Wu Heng's arm again.
A spinning sensation filled his mind.
He saw a merchant ship sailing away, with the woman standing on the deck, gazing into the distance.
The next second, the woman suddenly looked up, as if making eye contact with Wu Heng.
The vision ended.
Wu Heng put the copper button away.
He went downstairs, where Philipa was kicking a hacky sack. "What's the result?"
"The woman left. I need you to head to the port and check where the merchant ship 'Saldari' is headed next."
"Alright." Philipa nodded and left the residence.
Wu Heng checked the skeletons' rooms.
He confirmed there were no changes.
Before long, Philipa returned by carriage. "It's heading to Netarei City in the Ekow Kingdom."
"Got it."
Philipa smiled and coyly approached. "Tonight, I'll keep you company?"
Wu Heng hugged her shoulders. "Not tonight. I have things to handle. I'll come to the tavern in the next couple of days."
"Alright, just don't forget."
After a while, Philipa returned to the tavern.
Wu Heng went back to his room and stepped through a portal.
...
Zombie World.
Releasing Xiaoxiao, Zhao Yanqiu soon arrived. "My King, Vice Leader Li Yanhong sent a message. She's made contact with survivors abroad and asks that you visit when you have time."
Survivors abroad?
News already?
"Prepare a car. I'll head to the mall now."
"Understood."
Before long, Wu Heng arrived at the mall.
Li Yanhong walked in and said, "We've contacted survivors from different countries. One of them worked in a military factory and can guide us to seize it, provided we supply enough food."
"Oh? Which country?"
"Myanmar. Communication wasn't an issue since they speak Chinese. For other countries, we've only found survivors fluent in English, Japanese, and Korean. No one else speaks our language fluently yet."
Myanmar?
Wu Heng frowned slightly.
This wasn't quite what he expected. The region's weapon development wasn't particularly advanced.
Most equipment was imported from other nations or major powers.
"What type of factory?"
"A bullet factory. They said it can produce rifle and machine gun bullets. They also listed several models, which I've written down in my notebook."