I, Jona, who was now stuck in a difficult situation, had arrived in the Patalpur District sitting in a carriage with Helena and Misty. This area was completely different from the rest of the city and extremely dangerous. Misty and I were both thinking the same thing—where exactly were we going? My curiosity finally got the better of me, and I asked Helena, "Helena, where are we going?"
Helena looked at me with her mischievous smile and replied, "To a place… where we might find some clues related to Misty's father's disappearance."
Just then, our carriage came to a sudden stop. I saw Helena pull out a hood from beside her seat and hand it to me, saying, "Wear this. No one here will be able to recognize you because of it." I hesitated slightly, then took the hood and put it on. After that, Helena and I got down from the carriage. Helena had also worn a hood like mine, completely hiding her face.
Misty was ready to come along with us, but Helena stopped her. She told Misty that the place we were going to was dangerous, so she shouldn't come with us. Then Helena pointed toward a passage. That passage was very narrow and filthy. Just by looking at it, it felt like not even a single ray of light had entered it for a long time—and ahead of it was a dark road whose end couldn't be seen at all.
Seeing it, even I felt scared for a moment. Helena advised Misty to stay there and wait for us, and Misty agreed. I handed my bag to Misty and said, "Keep this safe until I return." To be honest, I was a little worried about my bag because my ring was inside it.
After that, Helena moved forward without stopping and told me to follow her. There was hesitation in my heart, and I could feel an unknown fear, but still I followed Helena into the depths of that dark passage.
As Helena and I moved deeper into the dark alley, the sharp smell of damp walls and the distant drip-drip sound of water made the atmosphere even more terrifying. A question kept surfacing in my mind—why would a rich and noble girl like Helena help an ordinary maid like Misty?
The darkness was so thick that I could barely see Helena. Unable to suppress my curiosity, I finally asked, "Excuse me, Helena, but can you tell me one thing? Why do you want to help Misty?"
A light, careless laugh escaped Helena's throat. She said, "Sorry, Jona, but I'm not doing this to help her—I'm doing it for my own 'fun.'"
That raised another question in my mind—who does such dangerous things just for fun? Sensing my confusion, Helena continued, "Actually, I really enjoy detective-type work, and I also love fighting. But since I belong to a rich family, I'm always expected to behave like a 'gentlewoman.' So I get involved in things like this. Finding Misty's father is just an excuse for me to take part in such adventures."
While she was saying this, Helena stopped near an old door in the alley. I looked up and saw a thin strip of sky between the tall walls. The faint light filtering down was just enough to vaguely make out the things lying in the alley.
Helena stood near the door and whispered to me, "Get ready."
Hearing that, I panicked. For my safety, I immediately began softly reciting Heater's summoning spell. I recited the entire chant except for the final line, so that the moment I sensed danger, I could just say the last word and summon Heater instantly. According to my estimate, I could hold this state for about five minutes.
Helena rang a bell hanging beside the door twice, then knocked on the door three times, and finally rang the bell twice again. I understood immediately—this was definitely some kind of secret code.
Soon, the heavy sound of locks opening came from inside. I was completely alert, ready to face anything. The door opened, and I saw a man around 35 to 40 years old standing there. He gestured for us to come inside. Helena entered without any fear, and unwillingly, I had no choice but to follow her.
As soon as we stepped inside, the man closed the door. The inside looked like a junk room or storage space. But my eyes got fixed on one thing—an electric light bulb! Since coming to this world, this was probably the first time I had really noticed an electric bulb. Its dim light bathed the entire room in a yellow glow.
In the middle of the room was a table, on which a double-barrel shotgun lay, looking quite worn out. But my attention shifted from the shotgun to the wall in front of me, where…
…a very long and impressive sniper rifle was hanging. The shine of its wooden body and nozzle looked even more lethal under the yellow bulb's light.
The man then looked at Helena and asked in a heavy voice, "Who is this boy, Helena?"
Helena introduced me casually, "This is Jona." She only told him my name. Then she turned toward me and told me the man's name—Kizen. Hearing such a strange name, I felt that this place truly was filled with strange people and personalities. It was proof that even though the capital looked beautiful because of its tall towers, those towers were also there to hide the city's darker shortcomings.
Kizen noticed that my eyes had been fixed on the sniper for quite some time. He pointed toward the rifle and began explaining it to me:
"Look at this, Jona. This is the Mauser Model 98k. It has a Zf.39 scope mounted on it, which is known for the most precise targeting in the world. Its design itself never betrays you. After every shot, you only need to pull the bolt back once and then… you can see its magic. The scope attached to it works perfectly to eliminate an enemy sitting even 1200 meters away."
While Kizen was trying to entangle me in the rifle's features, Helena interrupted him with a hand gesture. "Kizen, you don't need to sell him anything. We just came here for some information."
Kizen frowned and asked, "Oh? What kind of information?"
Helena took out a photograph from her pocket—the same photo she had taken from Misty. Placing it in front of Kizen, she asked directly, "Do you know anything about this man?"
Kizen examined the picture carefully, narrowed his eyes, but eventually shook his head. He didn't know anything about that person. I was confused—why was Helena asking a weapons dealer about Misty's father? Helena read my silent confusion and turned toward me, explaining who Kizen really was.
"Jona, Kizen isn't an ordinary weapons dealer. He's connected to almost every major gang in Patalpur. If someone disappears in these streets, the news definitely reaches Kizen. That's why we came here."
Kizen interrupted, "Look, I work with gangs, not for them. I'm not a member. The big gangs here, like the Iron Serpent, usually don't kidnap men. Their focus is on young girls. But…" His tone turned serious. "Lately, there have been strange reports of men aged between 35 and 45 going missing. Maybe this man is one of them."
Leaning on the table, Kizen continued, "If you really want to dig deeper, I can tell you about a guy. Go to him and bribe him with some money. He's connected to the internal affairs of a few gangs—maybe he'll give you your answers. That's all the help I can offer."
Just then, an odd disturbance ran through my mind. I realized that the summoning time for Heater's spell—the final line I had saved—had expired! If danger appeared now, I wouldn't be able to summon him instantly. I would have to recite the entire spell again.
At that moment, Kizen said, "Alright, now pay my fee for this information."
I was slightly shocked. We hadn't even gotten any solid information yet, and he already wanted payment? Before I could say anything, Helena handled the situation. In a professional tone, she said, "Kizen, you'll get your fee. But do you have twenty .45 caliber bullets? I want to buy those from you."
Kizen nodded. "Yes, they're in the cupboard. I'll get them."
I was wondering what Helena would do with bullets when she reached near her waist and pulled out a pistol from beside her hood. My eyes widened in shock. It was a magnificent silver revolver. Its long barrel and solid grip gleamed under the yellow light. It looked so deadly and beautiful that for a moment, I forgot all my fear.
I thought to myself—If a girl like Helena can carry such a gun, then I'm a Paragon! I should also have something like this for my protection.
Excited, I interrupted Kizen, "Kizen! Can I also get a gun like that?"
Hearing this, Helena burst into laughter. Mocking me, she said, "You? What will you do with this gun, Jona? Can you even handle it?"
Then she twirled her revolver and started listing its features. "Look, this is called the Super Redhawk."
She continued, "This isn't an ordinary revolver. It's built to fire extremely powerful rounds like .454 Casull and .45 Colt. Its long barrel and heavy grip give it a very powerful look. It can take down any major threat in a single shot."
Seeing the power and design of that gun made me want it even more. Kizen returned with the bullets and placed them on the table. Helena paid him and put the bullets into her pocket.
Kizen had heard my request and said, "Alright, if you want that gun, I have it." He went to the cupboard and brought out a brand-new, shining Super Redhawk.
He came over and placed the heavy revolver and six extra bullets into my hands. Then he said, "Here's your gun and six bullets. The gun already has six bullets loaded inside, so you now have a total of twelve bullets. Now pay up… it costs one Guptis Gold Coin."
Hearing that price, I was stunned! One gold coin? I asked why it was so expensive, and he shrugged indifferently. "Fine, if it's too expensive, don't buy it."
I hesitated, but considering my safety and the gun's power, I paid him. I was already feeling a bit depressed after spending so much money when Kizen pointed toward the sniper hanging on the wall. "If you want, you can buy that sniper too. Considering its amazing attributes and your personality, I'll give it to you for just sixty-five Guptis Gold Coins."
Sixty-five gold coins! I was even more shocked and asked, "What's so special about this sniper that it costs so much?"
Kizen explained, "This Mauser Model 98k isn't an ordinary sniper. It's designed to synchronize with the user's Aurum, making it even more dangerous. It's specially made for Thunder Nature users. If a Thunder Nature Paragon uses it, the power of lightning will multiply both its range and bullet speed several times."
Even after hearing all this, it was clear that I absolutely could not afford this sniper.