A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 127 All teahouses on the continent are shady establishments!

Rorschach wanted to ask the Chamber of Commerce partners if they knew Bart, but with the manager present, he decided to wait until the chattering... gentleman left.

Unexpectedly, the manager went on and on, even starting to promote stocks. Luo Xia finished his meal but didn't see him leave. Luo Xia didn't want to listen to the manager's sales pitch anymore. If he had to say, he was more interested in how to safely liquidate his stocks, preferably by exchanging them for currency.

If you won't leave, I will!

Rorschach got up to say goodbye, paid the bill, and went to the opposite side of the tavern.

This is a street lined with restaurants and teahouses. Luo Xia found a seat in the open-air area across the street and ordered a cup of hot tea.

"A cup of hot licorice tea, no sugar. Do you have any newspapers or magazines?"

"How's the Century Daily? The latest issue has a new serialization by Little Dumas." The waiters here wore floral handkerchiefs, giving them a more artistic air than the bar staff.

Actually, Rorschach had never heard of who Little Dumas was, so he casually asked, "Okay, how much?"

"It's free, sir. Just don't spill the tea on it and leave it with you when you leave."

"Thank you very much."

Rorschach didn't pay attention to the newspaper either; he kept glancing at the restaurant, waiting for the gentleman from the Baldorom Chamber of Commerce to come out.

After the second cup of tea was served, the man in the trench coat finally came out, followed by two burly men, one of whom was wearing an eye patch, making one wonder if he was a sailor or a pirate.

Were these two men waiting for their partner on the first floor of the tavern? Bodyguards? Or hostage-takers? The man in the trench coat tightened his hood and carried a leather suitcase. He spread out a map and, along with the two large men behind him, slipped into the alleyway of the street.

Rorschach weighed down the newspaper and two one-lives bills with his teacup, quickly got up and followed, calling out to the waitress before leaving, "Keep the change!"

The waiter went over to get the money, then paused for a moment: "Guest, it's a total of two livres and twelve danils." Danils are copper coins, and this was the first time Rorschach had heard someone use their "official name" since arriving in the Holy Kingdom.

Are all teahouses ridiculously expensive? Rorschach remembered the six silver coins for boiling water with a twig. He pulled out two Rivers: "This time I won't need change, right?" he said, chasing after him into the alley.

"We suggest a 20% tip." The waiter was still rambling on when the boy had already jumped over the fence and disappeared. Unaware onlookers thought he was a customer trying to skip out on his bill.

I thought it was nice to read the newspaper for free, but it turns out I wouldn't be at a loss if you gave me this stack of papers. Luo Xia hurriedly crossed the road and ran into the alley.

The person had disappeared, but Rorschach could still hear the conversation.

"Hey, hand it over! You son of a bitch, turn your pockets clean and give it to me!"

"It's all in my bag. If you took the money, could you please give it back to me?"

"You little brat, you're trying to negotiate with me, your old man?" Bang bang, ah~ The sounds of fists and kicks and screams rang out alternately.

I was so stupid, really, I deserved to have been a mid-level partner for over twenty years. At this moment, Hassai, a merchant from the Baldorom Chamber of Commerce, was enveloped in regret and pain.

One punch.

The person throwing the punch wasn't actually very strong, but their knuckles were prominent. When the punch hit their face, it collided with their cheekbone and gums, causing a dull pain that dominated the facial muscles.

Why did I take the alley? Yes, relying on bodyguards, I took the shortcut according to that damn map. They were skilled merchants who had made their way in the seas, ruthless characters who could fight pirates.

Why were they knocked out? These two must have been drunk; they couldn't even hear their footsteps properly... Once they got ashore, they were like fish out of water, capsizing on dry land... These thugs covered their heads with a cloth and they passed out.

The cloth must have been soaked in anesthetic.

Another kick landed on his partner's shinbone. The other person probably hadn't studied martial arts; at least for now, they were just throwing punches and kicks at will, without any specific target.

But it still hurt a lot. Hasai almost lost his balance. He was now hunched over, holding his head in his hands.

Why did I come to this godforsaken place? Well, the Holy Kingdom is doing so well right now, and the Baldorom Merchant Guild wants to expand its trade with it. They need capable and qualified partners to investigate and negotiate business.

But it's all a lie. Right now, the old foxes of the Chamber of Commerce are scrambling around Young Master Bart's residence, vying to make a good impression on the next generation of bosses…

They took advantage of me because I'm an honest person, pushing the unsuccessful Ha Sai here, and even saying they were giving me a rare opportunity...

Okay, I'll show you what I'm capable of!

The third punch landed in the effective area, an uppercut to his chest that left him breathless.

The Empire doesn't have that many street urchins. Idle young men are sent to the Imperial Army to learn loyalty and obedience... or if they commit crimes, they're immediately sent to the manors in the northeast, where the lords have always treated these kinds of people like livestock...

While being beaten, Hasai's thoughts raced. He thought he knew these boring young people well; the groans couldn't be silent, nor could they be too loud—either would only provoke their ruthlessness. When they still had their senses, they wouldn't dare kill; after venting their useless energy, they would ultimately take the money and leave.

Sure enough, the beating stopped. But to Hasai's surprise, when he moved his arms away from his head, he saw that the thug's face was completely distorted, as if all his features were wrinkles of dough.

It was an expression of extreme pain, but he couldn't open his mouth, not even to howl, only snot and weak groans came out.

Hassa noticed that the arm that hit him was twisted into an unbelievable state, with two joints appearing under the skin of the wrist and elbow, giving the limb full freedom of movement.

Then he knelt down before Mr. Hassai with a thud. It turned out that his ankle had also been dislocated. If the ligaments could not be restored, he would probably have to walk with a limp for the rest of his life.

There were four scoundrels in this winding alley. When they saw their leader's limbs suddenly broken, the remaining three were momentarily confused.

Is that man a wizard? Then why did he get beaten up first?

If these people had played video games, they might even suspect that Mr. Hassai had a "damage reflection" buff.

The sound of joint dislocation rang out again, and in the moment of stunned silence, the second thug lost his ability to move.

There's someone else! The remaining two idiots finally realized that in the twilight, the silhouette of a boy appeared in the darkness, but they couldn't see who it was; they only saw that he was surrounded by a strange mist.

The two men took completely opposite actions: one unfolded the narcotic-laced headscarf again, the very thing that had incapacitated Hassa's bodyguard; the other abandoned his companion and ran away.

"Careful, there's anesthetic on the cloth!" Hasai felt it necessary to warn the kind-hearted mage who had saved him. Clearly, the newcomer was a mage.

However, his warning was unnecessary. Before the thugs could get close to the fog, his limbs were also dislocated, and his whole body was grabbed and squeezed into a strip by an invisible giant hand, and then pressed to the ground.

The thug who was trying to escape suddenly tripped over something and fell flat on his face. The ground was soft, so the fall didn't hurt at all! Before he could even feel relieved, he suddenly realized that the surrounding land seemed to have turned into a swamp, and he couldn't get up no matter what he did.

It's too soft, too soft! I need to find something firm to hold onto and get up quickly. It's almost as if you can hear his inner voice. The ground is starting to harden again, but this escape artist is still half-buried in the road, unable to move.

Fortunately, he managed to lift his head in time; smelling the dirt and excrement on the ground was better than suffocating.

The earth and stones at both ends of the alley slowly rise up, revealing brick-like patterns. When pedestrians pass by in the darkness of night, they will only find that they have reached a dead end.

The raised wall obscured the four thugs' tearful eyes, filled with pain and despair.

My cold is getting better, but I have experiments today, so my update will be a little late tonight. Sorry (_)

(End of this chapter)