"You're done already?"
"Yes."
In the backdoor of a bar, a muscular man looked at the papers glued together.
He was the owner of the bar.
“Hmm… was there such a store? It looks like a new one?”
"An illegal brewery in the back alley often looks like a mushroom after rain."
“Ha… Thank you. We should make a deal with this store too.”
"I don't want your thanks, I want you to just pay for it."
Kent said while rubbing his thumb and index finger.
The bar owner smiled and pulled out a bundle of money from his pocket.
Just as he was about to hand it over, the owner of the bar took the money back and asked.
“How did you do it so quickly? It usually takes a few weeks to complete a normal request, isn’t it?”
"Is it a problem to be fast?"
“It’s not a problem, but I’m curious.”
“You’re asking for someone else’s business secret, and I wish you could give me my money.”
The bar owner looked at Kent for a moment and then gave the money.
“Could you work one more time at the same speed?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“You know, we've got a lot of customers here and there, right? You made it just in time and there is a guest who needs your talent."
“Who is the client?”
“It’s a solver.”
"What about the sheet?"
“Um… about 40 sheets?”
"What's the price?
"It's a big one under the premise of restoring everything. Normally, I'd have to get a commission, but I decided to wave it off for you. Also, it should be done in a single week. My guest is in a hurry."
Thinking about the generous conditions, Kent showed interest.
But instead of accepting it right away, he looked at Oliver.
Seeing Oliver nodding his head, Kent opened his mouth.
“… Great. I’ll take it.”
"All right. Wait a moment."
The bar owner brought a bundle of garbage in a bag as if he had been waiting for the moment.
It was quite bulky and Kent wrapped it lightly.
Before Kent was about to leave, the man spoke as if giving a warning.
"Now I'm going to tell my guests not to worry. That means if you fail, I fail, which means I will lose my credibility. I warn you, never fail. I value my credibility."
"All you have to do is prepare the money. Don't bullsh*t me like you used to."
“When did that happen, and you still remember that?”
"Time doesn't matter. What's important is what you did."
"Ugh… Keep your promise. Now, get out."
The bar owner slammed the back door after saying that.
As Oliver and Kent started walking, Oliver asked Kent.
“What happened?”
“Huh? Ahhh… Someone kept stealing my money when I was working here. So I made a lot of fuss.”
"Ah…."
“For some reason, it almost turned into a big fight, but in the end, everything turned out well. And the stealing was gone.”
“I see. Did your money got stolen a lot?”
"Yes, quite a lot… That's why it's important to work, but more than that, it's important to protect your money. How miserable would it be if you can't even touch a single penny of your hard-earned money? You need to be vigilant so that they won’t take what’s yours.”
“… Was it the same when you were a solver?”
"Huh? Well.., yeah. I
At times, you may lose something more important than money."
"Um…"
"Okay, now it's my turn to ask the question. What happened after you escaped the crisis thanks to the Paladin?"
To understand the conversation now, we had to go back in time, a few days ago.
When Oliver first helped with organizing and inferring the shredded papers in the trash, Oliver, while pretending to be asking about Freckle, asked about Kent and the former head, and got caught.
Kent called Oliver privately and asked why he was asking that.
Oliver judged that it was not possible to avoid the question, so he answered honestly because he was curious.
He said that everyone here knows about Kent and the former head, and he was so curious because he didn’t know anything about them.
Kent looked at Oliver without saying a word and then ordered him to put the papers together again.
Oliver thought of this as a kind of opportunity and used his best abilities to complete more documents faster than everyone else combined.
As soon as Kent confirmed his talent, Kent gave him a suggestion.
“If you keep helping, I will answer your questions. Instead, you have to answer my questions too.”
Thus, Oliver was formally qualified to question Kent.
Of course, Oliver also had to answer Kent's question, but it was not a big problem.
He told him about his experience by making a slight change to the existing facts.
For example, the fact that he was brought from the mine by Joseph was honestly told, but he omitted killing Joseph.
He only told some facts about Joseph being dedicated to a strange ritual, and when his life was in danger, he was saved thanks to the Paladins of the church who came to catch the warlock at that time.
Hence, a great lie was born with just a few omissions.
“Um… I ran away. And I hid in a truck parked on the side of the road, and somehow I ended up here.”
“Uh-huh…”
Kent looked at Oliver with a doubtful look.
His emotions showed that Kent didn't believe everything Oliver had said, but he didn't question it.
Oliver didn't know why.
Oliver can read emotions but not thoughts.
The undeniable fact was, that Kent now thinks Oliver is suspicious, but he didn’t dig deeper into it.
Why?
Maybe because Oliver is doing a job that makes money?
However, something was not quite right.
It was because Kent showed a faint glow of pity towards Oliver.
Oliver wondered, why would Kent show those emotions toward him.
He wanted to ask about it right away, but he didn't.
Oliver knew Kent’s emotions were hidden so deep that he wouldn't easily answer that question…
So Oliver drew Kent's willingness to answer by asking relatively easy questions.
Kent asked again.
“There is something I don’t understand, why did you run away alone without asking the Paladins for help?”
"Um… I was so scared after seeing them beating and killing Warlocks."
"Ha…In a way, it was a good thing. After getting picked by a lunatic, this time, you might have been caught by a fanatic.”
“Fanatic?”
“Yeah, even though most of the Paladins have common sense, there is a considerable number of Fanatics, who lacks common sense among them… After all, this is the age of Wizards rather than Gods.”
Age of Wizards rather than Gods…
Oliver found the word interesting.
“Mr.Kent, do you happen to know about Paladins?”
“Huh? No, it’s just something I happened to see and hear while working as a solver in the past. I’m not at the level of being familiar with them.”
“I see. Can you tell me what a Paladin is?”
“The guardian of mankind who protects the human world from evil according to the will of the great God…”
It was a boring answer.
Oliver’s interest dropped sharply, but soon rose, hearing Kent’s words.
“…and at the same time, they are the private forces of the Parter religion, and a group of powerful people, spread all over the world claiming to be a guardian of mankind. However, there is nothing wrong with them being the guardians of mankind.
The guardians of mankind…
“In what sense do you call them guardians of mankind?”
“Why do you want to know?”
"… I saw them fighting. They killed warlocks without any hesitation, regardless of what group they are under, and most of them were even proud of it. So, why are they the guardians of mankind?"
“There are cases where the Paladins and the Servants under them misuse their power… But it’s also true that they are the guardians of mankind. Every time a crazy warlock tries to summon a demon, they unite everyone and block it.”
“A demon summoning?
"Yeah… well, it's a legend these days."
Demon summoning…
Oliver discovered that Warlocks not only trade with demons but can also summon them.
It was not even found in the books in Joseph's study.
Oliver gradually realized how ignorant he was.
This time, Kent asked.
"I understand why you came all the way to Landa, but how did you come to District X? That too, pretty deep?"
“I just got off in a hurry and walked around, and I ended up there before I knew it…. I’m sorry that I lied to you the first time we met. I know you don’t like lies.”
“Well… it’s okay. If you want to live in a place like this, you should be able to tell lies.”
“Thank you. Then, can I ask you another question?
“Oh my God. You really have a lot of questions.”
“Um, yes… I’m sorry.”
“Haha…what do you want to know?”
“How did Mr.Kent end up in this place? You know a lot, and I heard you were an excellent solver?”
Kent's emotion fluctuated for a moment.
Oliver seemed to have touched a sensitive part, and after a long silence, Kent opened his mouth.
“… If I had to answer, I would say I was unlucky.”
“Unlucky?”
"Yeah, all of a sudden misfortune came, and I rolled over here. It's okay. It's a common, very common story."
Kent was telling the truth.
However, even though he pretended to be calm on the outside, a deep sadness shone on the inside.
In fact, Kent talked about something he hid deep inside him, but it was only a fraction of it.
Oliver wanted to know everything.
"… I think you have another question?"
“Um, yes.”
"Is it about me again?"
"Yes."
"I'm really curious, why do you have so many questions about me? Are you a homo?"
"Homo…? I don't know what you're talking about”
“That’s good. It’s better not to know.”
“……”
“……”
“I’m just curious.”
"About what?"
"Everyone in the beggars union believes in Mr.Kent so much. They obey everything Mr.Kent says, so I wonder how did you get so much trust."
"Ha! I have a bit of a reliable personality. Isn't it amazing?”
"Yes, it’s amazing. It's my first time seeing someone like that."
“……?”
“Without you hitting them or threatening them, they trust you and follow you…. That’s why I’m curious.”
Kent looked at Oliver sadly.
"…it's not that great. I'm just taking over what my predecessor did. I'm just maintaining his deeds."
"Even maintaining it, isn’t an easy thing to do, right?
Kent stopped his steps and looked down at Oliver.
“You are a very strange child.”
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
At that moment, another question came up in Oliver's mind.
The question was none other than why Kent was keeping him close, even though he finds him strange.
Usually, those who felt something like that about Oliver, either resorted to violence or kept their distance, and while Kent also felt something strange, there was no sign of him doing either.
Rather, Oliver felt that he was trying to help him while showing emotions of little longing and regret.
The emotion was so deep and so secretive.
It was like a gem in the underground, so Oliver wanted to know more.
Why did he help him without any purpose when they first met, and why does he still help him even when he feels suspicious about him?
Why would he discard a comfortable life and protect the fellow beggars?
Kent spoke as Oliver pondered with so many questions in his mind.
“By the way, can this request be completed in a week? Judging by the amount of money, I think it's going to be a few months' worth."
Oliver said while looking at the paper-filled garbage bag.
“Yes, I think it’s possible.”
"That's a relief. Winter is coming soon, so we have to make a lot of money so that we don’t freeze to death."
"Freeze to death?"
"Yeah, on a cold day, you have to stay in the church, and we need money to stay there too. It's much harder…..!! What’s happening over there?"
Kent stopped talking all of a sudden as he looked at the people wandering around at the entrance to the residence.
They were Kent’s gang beggars, and they were all in a state of panic.
It seemed like something had happened.
“Kent, Mr.Kent…!”
Sensing the unusual atmosphere. Kent put off his usual playfulness and asked.
"What? What's going on?"
“Ugh, it’s bad… Harmonica has been kidnapped."
"What?"
"Harmonica got kidnapped! She was attacked on her way back with Rednose while escaping the crackdown..”
(To be Continued on Sept 5{MON})
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