Chapter 328: The Vanished He (Patreon)

After hearing Caesar and Lucy's request, Belle thought it over for a moment, then nodded to show she was taking the commission.

There was still one problem that needed some serious discussion, though.

"Since you're willing to trust me, I'll naturally do everything I can to help you. But before that, shouldn't we talk about the commission fee?"

Belle put on her best business smile. Bikers from the Outer Ring couldn't be that short on cash, right?

"Uh, about that, we..."

Lucy had seen this moment coming the instant she carelessly tossed out the topic.

It just didn't match her plan at all. She'd meant to build a good relationship with the Proxy first, then use that to haggle the price down. But in this situation, how could she possibly haggle now?!

While she was hesitating over how to bring it up, Caesar's voice rang out again, as blunt and decisive as ever.

"Just name your price for the commission. We won't haggle, not for anything."

"You dumb boar!!!!!!"

Enough was enough. No need to hold back any longer!

Lucy launched into a flying kick aimed straight at Caesar's face.

This boar, who never ran a single word past her brain, was going to be the death of her!

Who negotiates a deal like that?! Did the Sons of Calydon's money just blow in on the wind?!

But before Lucy even reached her, Caesar stepped aside and dodged.

Luckily Lucy adjusted her posture in midair, so her landing wasn't too embarrassing.

"Lucy, what's your problem?"

"What's my problem?! You wrecked my whole plan! And now you're throwing out offers all over the place. Are you trying to make me explode?!"

"Don't be so dramatic. We're set on having Phaethon as our Proxy anyway, so isn't letting them name the price the best way to show our sincerity?"

Back on her feet, Lucy listened to Caesar's argument, and the anger that had gone to her head settled down. A stubborn, sour feeling still lingered in her chest, though.

So even though her temper had flared up and cooled off just as fast, she kept her mouth hard and snapped right back at Caesar.

"Grrr, damn it, let's settle this once and for all, you dumb boar!"

"Bring it on! Like I'm scared of you!"

Without another word, the two girls started brawling again, leaving Geno and the other two standing off to the side, blinking blankly.

"Are they always like this?"

Geno scratched his head and asked Burnice, who had only just come back.

"Yep. We're all used to it. Lucy and Caesar get into a few fights every single day. It's practically a daily activity by now."

Burnice's complete indifference made Geno accept the situation once and for all, and all he could do in the end was let out a helpless sigh.

"The Outer Ring really does shape a person..."

In the evening, once Lucy and Caesar's friendly exchange was over, quarters were finally prepared for Geno and the others.

Belle got a room to herself, while Billy and Geno shared one.

"ε=('o'*))) Sigh. I never expected so much trouble the moment we got here."

Geno made up his bedding, then flopped onto a secondhand mattress of mysterious origin and started reflecting.

Thinking back on the day, he had a feeling this trip to the Outer Ring wasn't going to be as simple as he'd imagined.

After Lighter and Barry's quarrel had been mediated, Lucy had interrogated the gang a second time.

They stuck to the same story: Lighter had given the order and they'd gone out to rob people. But the moment anyone pressed for finer details, the whole bunch went blank like they'd lost their memories, unable to recall a thing.

That only piled more pressure on Geno.

He'd thought he was just an adventurer who'd come here to hunt a little monster and bring home the commission payout. Looking at it now, though, it seemed Mayflower had set him up.

"Now I don't just have to track down the monster. I also have to watch out for attacks from the Exaltists' leftovers hiding in the shadows. My head hurts just thinking about it."

In a head-on fight, Geno had never feared anyone. If he could win, he fought; if he couldn't, he ran. His whole philosophy was to play the coward when it made sense and the hero when it counted.

But against sneaks who loved playing dirty tricks behind people's backs, Geno had no good answer.

"You're right. Still, with the Manager and the others around, finding that monster shouldn't be hard. As for the Exaltists, if they're active in the Outer Ring, there's no way they won't slip up somewhere."

Billy folded his arms, completely confident about it.

The Outer Ring might look huge, but the moment something big happened or a stranger showed up, word spread fast.

That was how quick bikers were.

As his thoughts drifted, Billy suddenly remembered that Geno had vanished for a while during the day, and he curiously asked where he'd gone.

"Actually, before that boulder fell, I sensed a strange presence on the hillside. But when I went to check, I found nothing. I suspect there's some dark secret behind all this."

Just as Geno said, he had been the first to notice something wrong when the boulder came down. And when Billy swerved the car sideways, Geno had teleported out of it right away and gone to inspect where the rock had fallen, only to find nothing.

"I didn't find anything, but I have a hunch that this person is the key to everything."

Hearing Geno say that, Billy remembered something too.

"Now that you mention it, something does feel off to me."

Billy had no eyebrows to furrow, but his flickering eyes showed he was deep in thought.

Suddenly, his eyes went wide and he smacked his palms together.

"I remember now! There was someone missing from that group. Right before the Sacrifice appeared, that person stepped forward to block me. But I didn't see them among the people we brought back, and the others don't seem to remember what they looked like at all."

At Billy's words, a sharp gleam flashed in Geno's eyes. This missing person had to be the key to the whole incident.

"Billy, can you still remember what that person looked like?"

Billy thought for a moment, pulled up his earlier records from his logic core, and described the person to Geno.

"I'll keep an eye out. It's late, so let's get some rest."

Billy nodded and went back to his own bed to sleep.

Geno lay back down on his bed too, but he didn't fall asleep. Instead, he kept turning over what to do next.

'So much happened the very day we arrived in the Outer Ring. Who knows what other strange things are waiting for us.'

After a while of aimless musings, Geno finally let his thoughts go quiet and slipped into a meditative state.

There was still work to do tomorrow. For tonight, he'd just rest well.