Chapter 202: The Commission
"Jiu Ping"—did he fail to guard his territory and have it snatched away? Luo En wondered to himself.
"Alright, young man," Kaspars Canlinin interrupted his thoughts, his eyes, somewhat cloudy from alcohol, fixed intently on him. "You haven't answered my question. What exactly do you want with that damned Fusak barbarian?"
"I want to find him to do a little… 'that kind' of business." Luo En's face broke into a meaningful smile. "What?
Did you take over all of his 'special' business too?"
Kaspars nodded noncommittally.
"Then talking to you is the same." Saying this, Luo En very tactfully pulled out a one-pound note from his pocket and handed it over.
Kaspars unceremoniously accepted the money, then looked Luo En up and down again, saying, "You're much more straightforward than you look. Come with me."
With that, he limped and led Luo En to the innermost billiard room on the first floor.
After locking the door, Kaspars asked, "Speak. What do you want?"
After a few seconds of hesitation, Luo En said, "Jiu Ping once took me to a very special gathering. I want to… go again."
"A gathering?"
"Yes." Luo En nodded. "The host of that gathering is called the 'Eye of Wisdom'."
Upon hearing this, Kaspars' expression instantly became serious. He pondered for a moment before saying, "I can also take you to that gathering. However, the next one won't be until tomorrow night."
"What else do I need to pay?" Luo En asked sincerely.
"Smart." Kaspars' face showed a hint of approval. "You'll need to pay me two more pounds."
"Alright, then I'll come back tomorrow."
Luo En then carefully brought up his true objective. "Also, I need a helper, or rather—a bodyguard.
Do you have connections for that?"
"I don't need just any ordinary thug," Luo En added. "I need someone with—transcendent power."
Kaspars rubbed his red nose, his gaze turning cold.
"Come with me," he said, turning around.
Luo En followed the limping figure out of the Gray Bear Bar, down a small alley, across half a block, and arrived at the entrance of a larger bar called "Braveheart Bar."
"If you need to find me tomorrow, just come straight here," Kaspars said. "This is my main territory."
He then arranged Luo En in a billiard room inside the bar and said, "Wait here for a moment. I'll go ask for you.
But I can't guarantee if anyone will be willing to take on your task."
This person—he knows more than one Beyonder.
Luo En nodded, "Thank you for your trouble."
He waited for about ten minutes, then Kaspars returned, saying in a deep voice, "He wants to meet you first, and then he'll decide."
Luo En understood. He followed behind the somewhat struggling Kaspars, heading towards the second floor of the bar.
Suddenly—Luo En's spiritual premonition began to stir.
Something—unpleasant but somewhat familiar—was nearby.
However—it doesn't seem to hold any ill will towards me. Otherwise, my Calamity perception would have already activated—Luo En thought rapidly to himself.
Kaspars suddenly stopped in front of a seemingly ordinary door. He raised his hand and knocked on the door with a special rhythm. After hearing permission from inside, he led Luo En in, pushing open the door to a card room.
Inside the room, a dozen people sat around a large card table, quietly playing poker.
Seeing the two of them enter, a pale young man in a white shirt and black vest slowly stood up. The others at the card table all stopped their movements, and not a single person in the entire room made a sound.
Luo En silently activated his Spirit Vision.
With just one glance, his heart sank.
In the entire room—there was only one living person! The rest were all dead!
No mistake, these were—Zombies!
Rose School of Thought!
Luo En's expression remained calm, but he subconsciously clenched his fists.
Playing cards with a group of corpses—that certainly fits the behavior of those Lunatics.
The young man walked forward, scrutinizing Luo En for a few moments, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
Luo En immediately took a small step back, perfectly demonstrating a posture of "showing weakness."
Meanwhile, Kaspars had already quietly exited the card room, closing the door from the outside.
"Are you looking for a helper?" Maric asked.
"Yes." Luo En nodded, not showing much reaction.
"Why do you need a helper? And what kind of reward are you willing to pay for it?" Maric continued to ask.
Luo En pondered for a moment and said, "I can tell you the specifics of the task first. After you assess the risks, then give me a reasonable price."
Maric gestured for Luo En to continue.
"I've recently been targeted by some very powerful individuals. So, I'd like to ask you to help me investigate their true identities and their intentions."
"Of course," Luo En added, "considering they might attack me, you could also choose to be my bodyguard to protect my safety. Until—I completely resolve this matter."
"Do you have any information on the individuals who are targeting you?" Maric asked.
"Not much. I only know that there are at least two people. Their strength—" Luo En looked Maric up and down and said, "Their strength should be no less than yours."
"Uh—" Luo En's words instantly froze Maric's movements. He fell into a long period of contemplation.
To be honest, the moment he saw Maric, Luo En had already decided that asking him to be his bodyguard was absolutely not a good idea.
Ask someone from the "Rose School of Thought" to be a bodyguard? I must be a Lunatic to even think of such a thing!
Even if he isn't one of the so-called 'Hedonists,' I've barely met any normal Beyonders from this Pathway, including that damned Blood Admiral! They might be good as bloodthirsty killers, but as bodyguards—
After nearly a minute, Maric spoke again: "I need to—think about it some more. I'll give you an answer tomorrow."
"Alright." Luo En nodded and promptly chose to leave.
Before leaving, he casually glanced at an inconspicuous corner.
In this room—there must be something else.
After Luo En left.
Maric slowly looked towards the corner of the room.
A graceful figure in a Gothic court dress, as exquisite as a doll, slowly emerged from the shadows. She spoke with an ethereal voice:
"He seems to—have noticed me."
Maric's face showed a hint of surprise, then he said, "It seems he's not a simple character. And he has—"
Sharon gently nodded: "Hmm. He has the aura of a 'Hedonist' on him. But he himself doesn't seem like a 'Hedonist' person—"
— —
"How did it go?"
Seeing Luo En emerge from the card room, Kaspars, who had been waiting outside, immediately stepped forward and asked.
"He needs to think about it and will give me an answer tomorrow." Luo En didn't hide anything, telling him the truth.
Kaspars' brows instantly furrowed. "That fellow Maric is the most terrifying person I know.
He's not even afraid of bullets. If even he needs a day to hesitate, it seems your commission is indeed very difficult."
I'm not afraid of bullets either—uh, of course, that doesn't mean I can take a bullet head-on. The Monster Pathway doesn't grant steel bones and iron skin—Luo En silently grumbled to himself.
He said to Kaspars, "I'll come back around this time tomorrow. Also, you can try to ask around for other powerful individuals. I'll pay you a reward when the task is done."
After receiving an affirmative answer from the other party, Luo En quickly left the Braveheart Bar.
On his way back, he took out a coin and tossed it into the air.
The coin tumbled in the air, finally landing in his palm with its reverse side up.
This indicated that he currently had no immediate danger.
After returning to 69 Rose Street.
Luo En sat in his room, took out his pendulum, and began to divine.
"Hiring Maric will pose a risk to me."
The pendulum in his hand began to slowly rotate clockwise. However, the rotation was very small and slow.
There is a certain risk, but—it's quite low. This person is basically reliable—
"Meow~"
While stroking the purring Orange Cat in his arms, he whispered, "Lachi, it seems you should also be promoted."
To be honest, at first, he wasn't too keen on Lachi consuming a potion. After all, potions themselves carry great risks. If that's true for humans, it's even more so for a cat.
But—he now urgently needed to improve the overall strength around him. It might be difficult for him to get a Sequence 5 formula, but a sequence 8 formula should not be a big problem—
"Lachi, do you want to be promoted?" Luo En asked softly, looking at the Orange Cat curled in his arms.
"Meow!"
Upon hearing this, the originally lazy Lachi immediately perked up! She raised her head, staring intently at Luo En with her bright amber eyes, looking eager.
"Alright, alright, I know." Luo En chuckled awkwardly. "When I go to that gathering tomorrow, I'll ask for you."
After some more time, Luo En took out some Beyonder materials he had prepared earlier from his "portable space" and began to set up a ritual magic in the room, a tracing ritual Edwina had taught him.
A moment later, accompanied by a faint flash, two sketches appeared before Luo En's eyes.
So, these are the dangerous individuals who broke into my room?
Luo En carefully examined the portraits of the man and woman in the sketches.
The portraits were a bit rough, but some features were still discernible.
A young man and a very beautiful woman.
They should—not be from the Rose School of Thought. If they were those Lunatics, my room would probably have been completely destroyed by now—I'll try divining again later.
But—it's strange. Why do these two people feel so familiar?
Are they—people I knew before? Luo En felt a hint of confusion.
Too little information, I probably can't divine their identities—
Perhaps I can hire a detective to investigate a bit—Luo En mused to himself.
— —
After much thought, Luo En still went to see his landlady, Mrs. Griffin. Although he didn't want to trouble her again, the current situation was special.
As a capable Beyonder, Mrs. Griffin also held a lot of information that ordinary people couldn't access.
But after learning Luo En's purpose, she merely told him not to worry too much. With her around, at least in this house, he was absolutely safe.
"Little Luo En, do you not trust my strength?"
"No—but I can't hide here my whole life." Luo En said.
"This—"
Upon hearing this, Mrs. Griffin could only sigh.
She eventually gave Luo En several addresses for Beyonder gatherings and also enthusiastically recommended a few private detectives in Backlund who had a decent reputation.
Through this conversation, Luo En even learned that there was a so-called "Detective Guild" in Backlund—
Although curious about it, he didn't plan to go there.
A place like a guild, with its many eyes and ears, wasn't suitable for his current need to keep a low profile.
Early the next morning, Luo En took a hansom cab to Backlund's Hillston District, stopping in front of a somewhat gloomy, somber-looking house.
An assistant-like person greeted him.
He then met Isengard Stanton, a middle-aged man with temples already streaked with white, holding a dark brown pipe, in the living room.
He had heard from Mrs. Griffin that this was one of Backlund's most famous great detectives.
Although he hadn't activated his Spirit Vision, Luo En could still sense a faint spiritual fluctuation from him. This indicated that the other party was most likely also a Beyonder.
A Beyonder detective—that wasn't a bad thing. It at least meant that the other party would likely be willing to take on some dangerous special tasks.
Isengard, dressed in a proper white shirt and black vest, brought the pipe to his lips, took a deep, satisfied puff, and then slowly exhaled a plume of white smoke.
"Consultation fee for half an hour is 1 pound."
"I'm not here for a consultation." Luo En shook his head and said, "I have a commission. I heard you are a truly great detective. I believe you should be capable of helping me resolve this matter."
"A commission?" Isengard's gaze fell on Luo En, signaling him to continue.
"My residence was illegally broken into some time ago. These are—the portraits of the group." Luo En took out the two sketches drawn through ritual magic from his in my arms and handed them over. At the same time, he also gave him a few photos he had taken of the scene's traces.
He then briefly explained the current situation.
He didn't explicitly mention anything about Beyonders, only subtly hinting at it in some key places.
If he's truly skilled, he should be able to deduce the relevant situation, Luo En thought.
"I'd like to ask you to help me investigate their true identities. At least, find the whereabouts of one of them."
"Of course, safety is paramount."
Hearing Luo En's words, Isengard's brows furrowed slightly. It was clear that, with his experience, he had already anticipated that this case was certainly connected to Beyonders.
After pondering for a moment, he spoke:
"From your description, there should be a professional Bounty Hunter in their team, or—also a detective," Isengard deduced.
Quite efficient, I see—Luo En didn't speak, merely nodded.
After a moment of thought, Isengard continued, "I can take this commission. But my fee is 1000 pounds."
He looked at Luo En and continued, "Don't think it's expensive. You should be very clear about how great the risks involved are."
Luo En asked, "How much time do you need?"
Isengard put down his pipe and said, "At least about a week."
"Alright."