Chapter 54: Renard
The moment Kale read those words, it was as if thunder struck him on the head; he stood there motionless, almost feeling the taste of hopelessness at the tip of his tongue, but he clenched his teeth and read the next few sentences.
"But... just in case you do need something, you can go to Grandmaster Oram or Kraul. They should still be within the Association; at least one of them should. Okay, good luck...."
But Kale’s mood did not improve; if the odds of his master granting him the favor were at least 1%, the probability that Grandmaster Oram and Kraul would help him would be less than 0.001%.
Brushing down all the growing frustration in his heart, he directly went to the Pillcraft tower to ask for Grandmaster Oram’s help, since the man was much more amiable compared to Kraul and was perhaps more inclined to help him.
And when he asked the Guard of the Pillcraft tower about where Grandmaster Oram’s chamber was, the guard said, "Apprentice Kale, unfortunately, Grandmaster Oram is not within the Association; he has gone outside of the capital for some work."
Kale stumbled on his feet, his heart growing heavy; with hesitant steps, he went closer and closer to the Toolcraft tower, but all the negative probability had already taken hold of his mind, as if he were only walking closer to his doom.
The guard of that tower said, "Grandmaster Kraul is out of the capital."
Kale’s face went stark pale; he laughed at the sheer absurdity of the situation- that’s right, he laughed.
Just what the fuck happened that all three of the Grandmasters had to go outside the capital, and it had to be at this very moment.
The system also had issued him a death warrant with even greater difficulty of resolving, as if it wasn’t bad enough before.
Just what kind fucked up luck did he have for literally every single thing to go south at the moment of his utmost need?
Kale let out a deep, exhausted, and defeated sigh.
The worst part was that he was experiencing despair right after he thought that everything was close to being over.
Kale stood in a certain isolated corner between a few buildings, not wanting to meet anyone at this moment.
BANG!!!
He bashed his fist onto the walls once more and whispered in a lost tone, "I have no other choice but to ask for Renard’s help."
Kale had a hideous grimace on his face; he really did not want to go ask that guy for help. Because Kale might make his own situation worse, revealing himself to the untrustworthy party was always the wrong move.
The most frightening part was that guy’s status. Which he barely managed to discover.
Despite his hesitation and fear, he did not allow himself to wait and waste any more time. For the first time since joining the Association, Kale left its area. He brought out a strange-looking, red-tinted coin in his hand, and there was an address in it.
He went to that location, which seemed a bit on the outskirts, moving through the narrow alleyways between the buildings; he reached a dull-looking inn.
He knocked on the door, but it did not open; an old woman’s voice came from inside: "This place is closed; get lost."
Kale did not mind the words and said, "I have the red-tinted coin with me."
For a moment, there was a looming silence until the wooden door opened with a creaking sound. An older, hunched-over woman was seen with hair and facial wrinkles, and an unhealthy complexion. But her gaze was piercing.
Kale sensed danger in the woman, but he could not determine her rank. He sighed and tossed the coin to the woman. Her gaze did not waver from Kale as she caught it.
But she did briefly glance at the one-star Association robe Kale was wearing. But the moment she caught the coin, her expression changed drastically. Recognizing the object’s authenticity, he gave Kale another scrutinizing look.
Her cold demeanor vanished, and the woman said in a respectful tone, wrapping her fists, "I apologize for my previous conduct, but please be understanding of my position and forgive me."
Kale did not speak; he did not care about any of that. His expression remained the same as always.
The woman added, understanding his intentions, "Please come inside; I shall immediately send a message to him."
As Kale entered the dark, empty inn, he sat quietly in the chair and said, "Tell him that I need to meet him right now...."
The older woman stopped in her tracks for a moment and nodded, then hurried to another chamber to do her job.
While the Cursed Tamer waited in that place, he was in truth not as calm as he presented himself to be.
He really, really did not want to reveal himself to someone of such high position.
The old woman came back in a minute and said, "He will be here within 10 minutes; meanwhile, would you like some snacks?"
"NO." Kale cut her off, and the old woman did not bother him anymore and left him be.
With each second he waited, it felt like an eternity; with each moment, doubts began to form in his mind: what if his master just came back within a day?
Wouldn’t he deeply regret asking for Renard’s favor?
More unwanted thoughts and negative outcomes flowed through his mind. But all of it stopped as he finally heard the door opening with a creaking sound, and a figure walked in, shedding light upon the dark and damp inn.
The figure had a striking appearance, with black hair and black eyes. Even though he was also 12 years of age, like Kale, the person did not look like only 12 years old, not only in his visage but also in his posture and confident gaze.
The person was, of course, Renard.
The instant Renard spotted Kale, his face beamed in joy as he grinned from ear to ear and said aloud, "Oh by the Dragons, if it isn’t the mighty Tamer blessed by the heavens, Kale Ardentis himself....."
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