The moon's brilliance cast upon the streets, and the nightlife began in Klown City.
Apollo opened his eyes, a sigh escaping his mouth. "That's him, I'm sure of it."
He brought up his mission and saw that he only had around two and a half weeks left before the deadline. Lightning tribulation… that's going to be another death, the beggar thought with a bitter smile.
Shaking his head, he thought about his plan. This morning, that young man came and was definitely looking for him. Thinking about it, it's very strange. That guy left him in an alley even though he was tasked to send the Leone heir to a specific place, probably the rendezvous point, and left with the money. But why is he looking for him now?
Apollo suspected that something was at play here that he didn't know of.
"Hmm, the mansion was destroyed by an unknown man, then he was left by Arke, but now he's looking for him…" Apollo muttered and realized something. "A third party perhaps?"
The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. But he didn't jump to conclusions yet. He just kept this doubt in his heart and decided to focus on another thing.
"Gail said that guy is at the 4th-Step of the Foundation Building Stage, two stages above mine," Apollo muttered. "If I want to defeat that guy, I have to be on the same cultivation stage. But killing him…"
A frown appeared on his face. Killing the hooded man who threw him in the alley is a prerequisite to complete the mission. He has to be stronger than Arke in order to do that, and Arke seems to be a smart person. Being smart and strong, he will be a tough opponent.
If I calculate my pace, it's going to take at most a week before I reach the fourth step, and the remaining time… I should use that to kill him, Apollo's eyes turned cold.
Even in his past, he had many bloods on his hands, competitors who tried to do funny things to him first. He is a very easy-going person, but that doesn't mean he is soft-hearted. He won't let others bully him, and if they did, he would seek revenge, petty or not.
But how? This thought caused him to ruffle his own hair.
Suddenly, two men wearing uniforms with a crossed swords and shield insignia on their chests walked past in front of him.
"I didn't know they had such rules."
"Yeah, right? We have to protect our invitation, or else we won't be able to participate in the Advancement Examination. And if it's stolen, it could be used by others even if they're not enrolled!"
"That's the first time I've heard that rule."
"Well, they said it's been that way for many years. Those who didn't manage to participate in the Advancement without any proper excuse were expelled, and those who got the invitation and passed the advancement became official students. That's what some of our seniors did to enter the school."
As they walked away, their voices became lower.
"Eh?" Apollo couldn't help but be surprised. "Did I buy the Wish Me Luck Item?"
Just as he was thinking about how to kill Arke, these two Martial Students walked in front of him and shared such crucial information at the right time. Coincidence? Or is the god in this world so generous that they will help him solve this problem?
Wait, is she the god? Apollo suddenly recalled that faceless woman. Shaking his head, he glanced at the corner and saw the rolled-up invitation scroll.
"So they have these kinds of rules," Apollo took hold of the invitation. "The guy who lost this is such a fool. Why would he carry such a precious item around with him? Anyway, with this, I can now participate in the Advancement Examination, and Arke will definitely be there."
Apollo smiled before it vanished as quickly as it had come, as another problem occurred to him: his identity. If he goes , it's equivalent to exposing that he is the Leone Heir, which is the last thing he wants to do.
The beggar began to think of a solution in the dark night.
"This is really amazing. The meat doesn't stick to the pan, and the smell is more intense than before," Temor said with amazement in his voice.
"Yeah," Filly nodded, salivating at the sight of cooked meat from a monster called Bronze Reinforced Cow.
"It's done!" Temor said, taking the meat out of the pan and placing it on a plate.
Just like before, they held their forks and started taking pieces of meat. Gail, who was quietly standing on the side, closed her eyes to savor the moment.
"I'm never going to get tired of this," Filly said after a while.
"Me too," Gail commented from the side. "Ah, I wish Mr. Beggar had agreed to my request."
Filly turned to her in surprise. "Y-you met up with him? Didn't I tell you that we shouldn't bother him?"
"It's just a coincidence. I happened to see him being dragged by Arke, so I had to step in," Gail explained with a wave of her hand.
"Oh? Arke?" Filly raised an eyebrow. "That guy dared to disrespect my honorable guest?"
"But I managed to handle it—wait, I mean, Mr. Beggar did," Gail recounted the story, and Filly couldn't help but laugh.
"He deserves it," Filly said with a chuckle. Then she remembered something. "What is the request you're talking about?"
"Oh, I asked if he wanted to come here, but he declined, saying we can recreate the recipes in the journal," Gail said, disappointment still evident in her voice.
"That's unfortunate," Filly sighed. "He doesn't want to be bothered."
Gail nodded and glanced at the plate, but the meat was already gone. She noticed that Temor was smacking his lips in satisfaction, causing her to pout.
"What are you guys talking about? I was busy studying the taste," Temor said shamelessly.
"Nothing. Anyway, let's focus on what we have to do. Now that we've proven that this oil can be used on any meat, we could start implementing it in our dishes," Filly said, one of her hands under her chin.
"Miss Filly, isn't it too soon?" Temor asked worriedly.
"I know, but at least we should show them that we are fighting back. Besides, I hope that with this improvement in our dish, some customers will come back," Filly explained.
"Then what about the other recipes? The so-called spices, the fried chicken, and the spaghetti?" Temor asked.
"We will continue our research with that," Filly said. "And we will start with the fried chicken starting tomorrow. The journal says that this recipe basically only needs two or three ingredients to cook, excluding the chicken itself. There are still a lot of ingredients that we don't have, especially for the spices."
Then she turned to Gail. "That is your job from now on—find all the ingredients in the journal."