A handsome young man yawned and slowly got off the train as the Magic Train pulled into the station.
This was Acalypha, a city fifty kilometers from Magnolia, and also where Noah's client for this trip was located.
The atmosphere of this city gave Noah a feeling that could be summed up in two words: "Get Rich."
As soon as Noah walked out of Acalypha Station, he was handed a stack of flyers by several people. Opening them, he found they were all advertisements for financial products.
"Tsk tsk, if they were useful, they wouldn't be handing out flyers on the street."
Noah casually handed the flyers back to a promoter and, amidst the latter's bewildered expression, headed towards his destination.
Along the way, there were voices everywhere promoting or discussing economics. The reason the people of Acalypha were so keen on "making money" was entirely due to the existence of a commercial guild.
Stopping in front of a magnificent building, Noah looked up at the name on the commercial guild's sign—"Love & Lucky."
It seemed luck couldn't be obtained through love, otherwise why would they turn to a Magic Guild?
"Hello, how can I help you?"
A young man in a sharp suit, carrying a briefcase, appeared behind Noah. He was a salesman here.
After Noah explained his purpose, the young salesman enthusiastically invited Noah into the guild to wait while he went to report to the president.
Compared to the financial discussions on the street outside, the interior of this commercial guild was surprisingly peaceful.
Noah had expected to be pulled aside by staff promoting products, but surprisingly, he wasn't. However, he still learned from several staff members why the people of Acalypha were so keen on making money.
It turned out that the renowned Heartfilia Konzern, the financial behemoth, was founded by Jude Heartfilia, who originated from the Love & Lucky Commercial Guild.
To build a vast commercial empire in just ten years—such a legendary experience was no wonder people revered him.
However, a senior staff member stated that no one else could ever replicate Jude's success.
Before Noah could get an answer to his curiosity, the young salesman returned. "Mr. Mage, President Reina is waiting for you. Please follow me."
In the grand president's office, a visibly tired middle-aged man wearily waved the young salesman away. It seemed commercial guilds required no less worry than Magic Guilds.
Reina forced a smile onto his tired face. "I've posted this job to many Magic Guilds over the past two years, but you're the only one who has come until now. As expected of Fairy Tail, full of talented individuals."
Noah gave a helpless smile. If not for his joining, Fairy Tail would be just like other Magic Guilds.
Overall, the members of Magic Guilds weren't interested in financial operations that could make you "soar to the sky one moment and crash to the ground the next." They preferred to earn rewards through their own labor and effort.
"President Reina, please explain the details of your job."
Noah didn't want to hear Reina ramble. He wanted to return to his dorm quickly and continue to be a homebody.
Reina nodded. "I'd like to ask you to investigate the forces behind the Black Bird Conglomerate. I suspect they are members of the Black Magic Cult."
Black Magic Cult?!
Noah raised an eyebrow. How was it that he heard about them on both his outings? They were truly persistent nuisances.
Seeing no expression on Noah's face, clearly not putting that notorious group in his eyes, Roland felt he'd found a reliable Mage.
"President Roland, since you have suspicions, why don't you report directly to the Magic Council?"
"Given the Council's 'no tolerance' attitude towards the Black Magic Cult, they would surely conduct a forced search of Black Bird."
Regarding Noah's question, Roland gave a bitter smile. "Because my good friend had his funds tied up by the Black Bird Conglomerate through various means. If the Council came, the confiscated assets would not be returned to him afterwards."
"And your friend is?"
"You should have heard of him. His name is Jude, the helmsman of the Heartfilia Konzern."
Noah hadn't expected to hear the name Heartfilia in this job, but could a shrewd businessman like Jude actually have his funds tied up?
Noticing Noah's curiosity, Roland didn't hide anything and said in a deep voice, "Jude and I joined the guild at the same time. His original surname was not 'Heartfilia.' He changed it after marrying into the family."
"Oh, and his wife, Layla Heartfilia, also worked in our guild, but they both left after getting married."
"With the help of the Heartfilia family's funds, Jude quickly began his commercial expansion, and Layla also gave birth to a lovely daughter."
"With both family and career thriving, I was actually a little jealous of how happy Jude was back then."
"But tragedy struck quickly. Layla suddenly passed away, and the shock made Jude become very extreme, focusing entirely on expanding his business and neglecting his daughter."
"When he first partnered with Black Bird, I tried to dissuade him, but Jude still went his own way... After his funds were tied up, the Heartfilia Konzern also faced difficulties with cash flow stagnation. Then, someone leaked the information, and Jude, left with no choice, even sold off a significant portion of his core railway industry."
Did he change so drastically because of his wife's sudden death?
He was truly a devoted husband, but unfortunately, not a good father.
Jude was lucky. Even after becoming like this, he still had a good brother like Roland who cared for him.
With all that said, how could Noah not see that Roland had issued the job for Jude's sake?
Roland would help Noah disguise himself as a naive young master to enter the Black Bird Conglomerate under the guise of an investment inspection, taking the opportunity to find evidence that they were the Black Magic Cult.
With the evidence, Roland could make Jude realize the truth and use it to negotiate with Black Bird to get Jude's money back.
Noah sighed inwardly. President Roland's thinking was still confined by a businessman's approach.
What kind of people were the Black Magic Cult?
Trying to get Jude's money back from a group of ruthless killers through negotiation and threats was simply wishful thinking.
Noah outwardly agreed with Roland's method. After all, he, as an ordinary person, wouldn't participate in the infiltration. Noah would solve the problem in his own way when the time came.