Chapter 44: Transaction Complete:: The Only Way To Go back
(In the city)
Thud!!!
Leo slammed the Berold’s horn on the shop owner’s desk.
"Done!"
The shop owner froze for a second, his mind not fully comprehending what had just appeared on his desk.
"Yo, you killed a Berold!!"
He shouted as if talking loudly would’ve made the situation less confusing than it already was.
"I heard from some people that it is very, very expensive to have, so on top of the information, you will also give us some cash!"
Leo had entered serious negotiation mode. His ears had gotten deaf to any word that meant he wouldn’t get any profit.
The shop owner hesitated at first. Now that they had somehow gotten in contact with other people, his plan of using them was completely ruined. There is nothing a con fears more than the people he’s conning having a lot of information.
"It is expensive, but that’s too much, and I don’t really want it that much. But since I am a good guy, I will even give you extra information. Where to get the most beautiful women, perhaps!"
He tempted Leo to change his mind, striving to make him feel like he never actually cared for it. But to Leo, that would’ve maybe worked if the shop owner’s eyes hadn’t just glowed the moment he set them on the horn.
So slowly, he picked up the horn from the desk.
"Perhaps we will take our business elsewhere."
"No, stop!"
The shop owner waved at them to halt in their tracks, putting a guilty smile on his face.
"Alright, I will give you the information and 50 Cells."
Leo’s system screen popped up out of nowhere.
[1 Cell is equivalent to one thousand dollars, so since he has 50 of them, it directly means that if he accepted the deal, he would have fifty thousand dollars.]
Without wasting much more time, the transaction started. The shop owner closed his door using telekinesis, along with all the windows. By the end of the transition, it was three people in a dark shop that only had a single candle as its light source.
"The information I’m about to tell you is a secret that not many people in this world know."
He began, whispering so quietly that it required pure concentration for the two to hear him properly.
"There is a castle down in the west. Rumor has it there is a celebration that happens there every single year, a birthday celebration of some sort."
Leo and Vegor looked at each other in surprise. They never expected that type of beginning.
"People say there is also a tournament of high-class people where the winner gets any wish they want."
"So we could wish to get out of here!"
Leo completed the sentence as a light bulb lit up in his mind.
"Given it’s a high-class event, you can’t just enter it. You need to go with someone."
The shop owner opened a drawer full of different things—condoms, custom eyes—then pulled out a paper with a drawing on it along with a compass to its right.
"Use that map to go to an old woman’s house. She is one of the cooks for the banquet, but..."
He paused as his tone changed to a more serious one.
"She is going to ask you to do her three different favors. If you manage that, then you’ve got your way there."
He finished as he pulled out a bag with 50 Cells inside. Aside from being weird, they did look like normal Earth coins once Leo took a look at them.
"I know that you’re optimistic, kid, but I’m not sure if you can manage to do all of this and win the tournament before you forget your memories."
He muttered, almost like he had enjoyed their company.
Leo and Vegor didn’t reply to him until they reached the door.
"I know that everything is against us, but I can’t just give up. There are important people waiting for me."
With that, the boy and his knight went out of the shop. By then, it was already nearing midnight, so the boys began searching for somewhere to sleep. During their search, they came across some of the weirdest places ever.
A line of prostitutes, all dressed in inappropriate clothing, whispered words like, "I will make you have a good time," into their ears as they passed by.
Surprisingly, a kid even tried to rob Leo. Luckily, his intuition was fast enough to catch him in the act. The kid was thin and looked like he wasn’t really being cared for properly, so Leo gave him a single coin and then let him continue on his journey.
Luckily, after asking around, they found a hotel for travelers. It wasn’t very packed since most fighters in this world didn’t quite stay in one place for a long time. They got a two-bedroom room, which, after eating like hungry wolves, they were fortunate enough to lie down in as a magical bulb shined all over the room.
"Should we trust what he said, Master?"
Vegor was the first to talk as they lay flat on their beds, staring at the ceiling.
"I think we should. He did give us information that the woman in the forest said she didn’t know."
Leo referred to the woman he had saved from being butchered by the Berold.
The conversation of how it all played out was still fresh in his mind.
¤¤¤¤¤
EARLIER (HOURS AGO, IN THE FOREST AFTER SHE ASKED LEO A QUESTION ABOUT THE GODDESS)
"You were sent here by the goddess, weren’t you?"
She repeated once again, trying to uncover the truth like some sort of journalist.
"What does it matter if I am?"
"That means you’re an Uncrowned Thane."
Leo’s and Vegor’s gazes magnetized towards the woman, who was just barely standing.
"There are different reasons we are here."
She began explaining.
"There is us, the offspring of beings who were thrown here hundreds of years ago. The Last Planet is mainly filled with us. And then there are people with a medium class of power. They were abolished here by their own people using transportation techniques, afraid of their evil doings."
’That means in some other worlds people know of this world then!’
Leo figured.
"And then there are people like you, who were abolished here by the gods themselves. Your sin was of the greatest level, one that even angered the divine. They are the greatest forces in each of their own worlds. Those powerful beings are called the Thanes."
Leo’s heart sank at her words. He did relate to that. In the goddess’s eyes, he was an evil rat that couldn’t just follow the destiny created for him by her. As she spoke, images of how these people might look imprinted themselves in his mind.
Would they be stronger than him? Do they have systems?
It was all a riddle he never comprehended.
"Why did you call me an Uncrowned Thane?"
"Each Thane has their own power or deeds they are referred to. Since you aren’t called by one yet, you’re Uncrowned!!"
Leo’s mind rushed all over, like a bomb of information had fallen into his brain. Leo tried to dig more about ways to get out of the planet, but she came up with nothing.
¤¤¤¤¤
To the Present
Sigh!!
Sleep started to cloud Vegor’s eyes, but Leo was wide awake, empowered by fear and excitement.
"I don’t know why, but I have a feeling that we are going to meet these Thanes sooner than later ."
