Werewolf Hunting Rules.

Chapter 568 Ebb Tide

How ridiculous! He appears confident and invincible in front of outsiders, yet he remains a cowardly wretch inside.

He told Clayton that he was going to be promoted in the spring, hoping that his shame would spur him on before the deadline. However, with the unexpected duel agreement, his wish was ruthlessly crushed.

Even when faced with a life-or-death crisis, he did not have the courage to use his own medicine.

Can shame be stronger than the threat of death?
Perhaps Clayton was right; he felt guilty towards Ian Lazarus because of his remaining kindness, and the threat of death wasn't enough to embolden him. If he felt he deserved to die, how could he muster the courage to face it? So even knowing this, Julius couldn't resolve it.

Even after the drink in the cup was emptied, Julius remained bewildered.

As for his love interest, who was far away in Strasbourg—he would never ask her for help.

Even though he was reluctant to admit it, Julius, like any young man in love, did not want his beloved woman to see his vulnerable side.

Putting that aside, the wizard's work has also run into trouble.

Julius is a member of the Soul Reaper school, which focuses more on academic theory than practical application. Their unique magic, when combined with secret teachings, can indeed produce several amazing effects. However, the deeper the influence of secret teachings, the greater the harm to fertility. Even if he had the opportunity to obtain secret teachings, he would not be willing to accept this power.

Without the secret teachings, the techniques of the Soul Reaper School were rarely available for him to use. His greatest value to his employer, Clayton Bello, lay in his medical skills and his less-than-accurate divination.

But if Clayton Bello doesn't fight, both skills are useless.

Even if he advances to the Bronze Ring, what can he do if his employer doesn't need those abilities?
Julius only knew that the only breakthrough was that Clayton Bello was also looking for ways to make money but did not want to obey the elders. Perhaps he should look for opportunities that met the criteria and then work with the werewolves.

The wizard's channels haven't received any relevant information for a long time; he should go and see his worldly friends.

After leaving "home", Julius headed straight for a nearby apartment.

The so-called friends certainly existed. He hadn't lived in Sasha as long as Clayton had, but he still had one or two influential people in the area. The reason he unexpectedly formed a partnership with Clayton Bello was because of a bet with him.

Trout.

After Julius refused to join the Druids, he lost Gloria's attention. At the time, she was still "him," and she sent her youngest son to find work for Des Joanrard. However, although Sir Joanrard recognized Julius's abilities, he couldn't find a suitable job for him and instead sent him to find work through his acquaintances.

Trout and Julius met at a dinner hosted by Sir Jonard.

Trout was the second son of an aristocratic family. According to Dorne's inheritance laws, he could only inherit five percent of his father's fortune. Since his father wasn't particularly wealthy, he started out no different from ordinary people. His only notable asset was his education. Even now, Trout wasn't considered a tycoon; he wasn't as rich as Clayton Bello. However, his job was quite leisurely and stable, and it allowed him access to a lot of secret knowledge that ordinary people couldn't access—albeit only through fleeting glimpses.

In short, Trout's company makes covers for hardcover books.

Even extraordinary individuals have a love of beauty, so they occasionally contact Trout to embellish their knowledge legacy. Being able to interact with them frequently is itself an invaluable asset.

Trout wasn't handsome; beneath his blond hair were short, thick eyebrows, and below that were cunning green eyes. He was short but sturdy, and it was clear at a glance that he was a gambler and a skilled gambler.

They did indeed meet at the gambling table.

Julius's unexpected visit also brought a smile to his face, clearly indicating that he had recently encountered some good fortune.

“Julius, would you like me to do a divination to find out why I’m so happy?” Trout asked smugly.

"You've found a new girlfriend."

Julius gave a definitely wrong answer and began to miss the simple way he communicated with Clayton. As he expected, Trout shook his head and shook his finger, which made him even happier that the wizard was wrong.

"No, no, I made a fortune this year."

Trout was overjoyed, and since his method of making a fortune wasn't exactly a secret, he readily told the wizard that he had amassed a fortune by hoarding silver.

Extraordinary individuals would request Trout & Co. to add silver to the covers or binding locks of their hardcover books for mystical purposes—silver can interfere with most magic, thus preventing wizards from using magic to peek at the secret knowledge recorded in the books.

Because of this demand, and because he didn't want to pay shipping fees repeatedly, Trout stockpiled a lot of silver.

At the end of last year, the local church collected a large amount of silver from various sources. Trout's silver was originally slated for collection, but Sir Jonard sent someone to plead for him, classifying the silver for a third purpose—defense—thus saving it. At the same time, local craft manufacturers also needed silver, and the church's actions took away their silver, leading to a shortage of raw materials and an inability to complete orders on time. As a result, the black market price for silver quadrupled.

Trout kept a small portion of his silver and sold the rest, thus making a fortune.

This was beyond Julius's comprehension: "You sold it back then? Aren't you afraid the church will rescind its pardon for you?"

“The clergy don’t have time for me,” Trout said nonchalantly, picking up the cross pendant on his chest to show Julius, the kind of gambler who didn’t believe in God and whose apparent faith was just a means for him to maintain his social standing.

"Because of this legal expropriation, the city's metal manufacturing and processing industry has been hit hard. As for the economy, well... you know. Due to the depletion of mineral veins, the city's manufacturing industry has been shrinking for decades. This is like a blow to the head of a seriously ill patient. It's a miracle that they didn't die. Now the gold and silver testing institute is almost out of work. For the past week, people have been blocking the church entrance every day, insulting the clergy, which has made them very embarrassed."

“The clergy can’t even return the silver in time. A hundred days have passed since the collection began, and many excellent workers, seeing no way out, have all fled by train. The manufacturing tools they borrowed to buy have also been mortgaged to the banks. This is irreparable damage to the industry. I’m reselling this batch of silver to save the market and preserve some life for this trade. I shouldn’t be criticized; in fact, I should receive some outward gratitude.”

Julius never imagined that his delightful robbery of the Friendship Society's silver in Weaudi with Clayton Bello would lead to a silver shortage in his own hometown.

He knew what was happening here, but he didn't know the consequences would be so severe.

I should have thought of more ways to bring the money back.

"How did other cities resolve this? Don't the clergy in other places collect silver?" he asked.

According to the male wizard, in order to deal with the surge in the number of Dark Ones last year, all parishes strengthened their defenses in accordance with the law, and collecting silver was the most basic and necessary step.

At the time, many people did not believe that this was an obligation that the church was legally required to fulfill. After searching through the legal provisions for a long time, they found that it really existed, and their expressions were like those of Clayton Bello when he first learned that his country's laws prohibited alchemy.

“The clergy in other cities are much smarter than those here,” Trout said. “They collect silver while secretly selling it back at a lower price, essentially adding a tax on precious metal transactions. It’s expensive, but it doesn’t affect actual production.”

"That would be terrible when they desperately need money to fight the Darkin," Julius thought. "Not every city has an elders council to manage the local Darkin."

He was unable to immediately assess the actions and consequences of the city's churches.

Who would have thought that doing one's duty could be considered a mistake?
However, this matter may also affect some subsequent policies. He had previously talked to Clayton about the Earth Mother Cult's advertising. The Earth Mother Cult hopes to restart the mine. If the underground alum veins are indeed not cut off as they say, this would definitely be a good thing for the citizens and could revitalize the local manufacturing industry.

Mayor Kunti probably thinks the same way, and thus gives more preferential treatment to the people of the Earth Mother Cult.

Even if the Book of Earth falls into the hands of the Earth Mother Cult, the mayor might agree not to return for the time being.

It's even possible that they'll publicize it extensively.

If such a remarkable object could prove that there are still considerable mineral resources in the area, reduce population loss, and provide employment opportunities, then it would definitely be worth publicizing extensively.

Julius shook his head violently, feeling as if his mind had been influenced by the Bello family's ways.

Things are never that simple.

"Oh dear, I almost forgot about the important matter." He pretended to be enthusiastic towards Trout: "I've invested a lot of money in research lately and urgently need to find another job that pays well. Do you have any leads?"

Trout looked at the wizard for a few seconds, then raised an eyebrow: "Are you interested in betting on horses?"

He didn't know I was working as a referee for the horse racing convention. Julius smiled: "Do you know about the behind-the-scenes rules that run the races?"

"I won't delve into that much detail, but there are a few horses with odds that are clearly abnormal right now."

Trout shrank back in his chair. "I suspect someone is rigging the game, but why bother investigating? If someone wants to make money off this, we might as well take advantage of the situation."

Out of consideration for the friendship between the two, Julius still offered a word of advice.

"I think it's best to be cautious. Who knows if the situation will change? If someone reports them, the bookmakers might not return the money they collected earlier."

“What you said makes sense, but I’ve already invested the money.” Trout seemed a little hesitant, but showed no sign of repentance. He finally changed the subject: “You want to find a job that pays well, and I happen to know someone who is looking for help. It’s a bit dangerous, but if you agree, I can introduce you to her.”

"A woman?" Julius asked in surprise.