*Click-clack, click-clack, click-clack*A rickety merchant"s wagon traveled south-east down the well-worn road, making regular and rhythmic clacking sounds as it rolled along at a steady pace. It was pulled by 2 strong-looking farm horses, strong with thick, heavily-muscled bodies, but not very agile or quick. At the helm was just a regular scrawny old man biting a reed, chewing on it absent-mindedly as he held the reins of the horses.
The man had dirty brown-blonde hair and a face full of wrinkles - though, perhaps he was not as old as the wrinkles suggested. Those wrinkles were was probably more due to a hard life, one full of vicissitudes and constant struggling to put food on the table for himself and his family.
The wooden wagon looked old, just as old as it"s driver, just as wrinkled and worn-out with the light-yellow wooden frame having turned brown, orange or even grey in some spots with age. It meandered along at what seemed to be a slow pace, but was really quick, belying the clumsy and unstable appearance it gave off.
On closer look, one would notice that the old and wisened wagon was not really that old after all - in fact, the materials used were st.u.r.dy and firm, freshly chosen from the best woods available. The construction style was also based on the most recent trends in wood-working and wagon engineering, leading to a firm ride with far less in the form of vibrations or bouncing.
And even the stains of age on the wood were nothing but artificially-induced discolourations used to mislead all but the keenest watchers. Even if the observers were paying the closest attention to just another merchant wagon, they would have to also be familiar enough with wood-working and wagon design to tell that there was anything amiss with this particular vehicle!
Seated within the wagon was... No-one. That did not mean that the wagon was empty, though. It was full of boxes packed with dry food supplies - rice, grains, wheat, flour and corn, packed to the brim with box after box of these food-stuffs.
However, all these were just a smoke-screen and ruse for the actual wares being s.h.i.+pped - the driver, Lars himself!
Lars flicked the reins, urging on his war-steeds which had been fattened up and disguised as farm horses, raised and bred as a matter of course and provided by the Underworld.
Or "provided", as the Underworld was collapsed and no longer existed in it"s previous form in the city of Gorun. From that day forth on which the Laughing Man had fallen with his lieutenants, the organised crime scene of Gorun City had undergone a great uprising and revolution.
Lars thought back to what had happened over the last 24 hours since the dawn of the first day after the Underworld collapsed.
* * * * *
[22:42 PM - barely 21 hours after the Laughing Man"s death]
"Master Lars, I am here to report."
A plain-faced middle-aged man of average height and barely pa.s.sable looks emerged from the shadows in Lars" study, located on the 2nd floor of the inn where they were all lodging.
Boa bowed deeply as he spoke, waiting for Lars" permission to continue before he spoke any further. Lars looked up from the pile of doc.u.ments before him, a condensed report on the status of the New World Order, the newly established criminal group that Seline had a.s.sembled from the remnants of the Underworld"s army.
He marked the page where he had stopped in the stack of papers and raised his head to look at Boa before nodding.
"Please, go ahead. No need to maintain these formalities, Boa."
"Yes, master Lars. Thank you." Boa bowed even deeper in thanks before straightening up, causing Lars to smile wryly at his verbal agreement but complete disregard for his request to do away with formalities.
Boa began his report to Lars with a stoic face, "Master Lars, I have successfully gotten in touch with all the former agents of the Celestial Shadows and held the joint operation with Susano"s Black Swords. We have placed groups of 3 to 5 scattered around the city to quell the unrest and rogue criminals who have run amok."
"Additionally, per your instructions, we have placed the new combined unit, the Celestial Shadow Swords, under the command of Mistress Seline"s goodself. With the cooperation of Duke Leanne"s City Guards, we have successfully apprehended the dozens of corrupted officials, evil n.o.bles and countless other individuals involved with the darkest of the Underworld"s activities."
"With these completed in the last 12 hours, Susano and I have instructed our people to take a break as it is likely that there will continue to be much work to be done before the situation in Gorun City fully settles down."
Lars blinked twice, processing the information just given to him then smiled, saying, "Well done! I"m truly glad to have reliable comrades, trustworthy companions with whom I can share this burden of turning Gorun City around!"
Lars cracked his fingers and stretched his arms out above him, cricking his neck and ma.s.saging his shoulders. He suddenly realised that he had been seated in this same chair in this very room for nearly 15 hours by now and was growing sore and stiff. However, he knew he could not let himself rest until they had sorted out the hostile take-over of the Underworld and all it"s activities within these 2 days.
Lars then continued, "I know Susano must be still working on the ground leading the troops personally as we speak. Please pa.s.s on my grat.i.tude to him and Byrus. And if there"s nothing else, you may take a break too. It must be tough on you leading the ground operations for the entirety of our people! Please, make sure you rest and take care of yourself too, alright...?"
The expressionless Boa of the Stars quickly bowed once more, this time even deeper as he said, "Not at all, Master Lars! It is my duty and my pleasure to be of service to you! I am grateful to be part of this cause... And to see the children just like me taken care of, no longer enslaved and no longer exploited just for the selfish gain of the rich and the mighty...!"
Lars smiled once more, touched by his recently added subordinates pa.s.sion towards the cause, even if the man spoke like a robot even at such a time. Then he waved Boa away, urging him to take a rest if there were nothing left to report.
But Boa raised his hand slightly, adding, "Master Lars, there is another thing to report. May I speak...?"
Lars nodded, raising his brows and asking, "Yes...? I mean, yes! Yes, you may speak. What is it...?"
"Master... There is one thing that I think you would be interested to know. If you remember my earlier report when I had newly joined your team, I had mentioned that Patricia Trenel was the master-mind behind the entirety of the Trenel household"s activities, whether criminal or legal. After her death, Patriarch Mallard Trenel withdrew for many days, being unwilling to be distracted from his training and practice. In the meantime, the head steward of the household has been working together with the treasurer to stabilise things while waiting for new directions from their Patriarch..."
"Yes, I recall this. Has something happened recently...? Some new developments...?"
"Master, Patriarch Mallard Trenel... He recently executed his head steward and treasurer."
These words made Lars freeze in the midst of his flipping through the doc.u.ments before him, before he turned his gaze to Boa and asked, "...Has he gone mad...?"
"On the contrary, Master Lars. The Patriarch emerged from his solitary training and announced that he deeply regrets his behaviour in the past. He stated that he had long known about his family"s involvement in the flesh trade, and is truly ashamed and does not deserve to live anymore as a husband who had not curbed the behaviour of his wife and descendants. He regretted not speaking out earlier and taking a firm hand to prevent things from going so far. He expressed his sorrow that, due to his abdication of leaders.h.i.+p, the family had fallen to such depths of crime..."
"To make amends for all that has pa.s.sed, he has stated that he will lead the household on the path of integrity and righteousness, starting from an internal clean-up... And therefore, to show an example to the Trenel house, he executed the head steward and treasurer who he believed to have been working with Patricia Trenel..."
"As such, I do not think we will have to worry about a clash against House Trenel any longer; in fact, he has openly begged for forgiveness for not executing Patricia Trenel with his own hands, and even sworn to stamp out the flesh trade altogether!"
Lars" expression brightened once more, tired though his neck and shoulders were.
"That"s really good news! Thank you, Boa. Please, have a good rest."
Boa once more bowed, then turned into a pool of shadows and melted into the shadows cast by the flickering light around him before his presence disappeared completely.
Lars sighed in relief - it looked like everything was slowly falling into place. Even the deal with Duke Silvan had gone smoothly, with both sides relatively happy with the conclusion they had arrived at.
That morning, before any other visitors had turned up at Lars" place of abode, Duke Silvan had made a sudden appearance, scaring each and every one of Lars" companions who could recognise him out of their wits!
What was as Legendary powerhouse standing at the apex of the Kingdom of the Sands doing in the merchant"s district, visiting their leader...?!? Who was their leader for such a luminary, apex warrior and grand member of royalty to come to visit...?!? Wasn"t it always the other way round, for a youth such as Lars to be summoned to the royal premises...?
Lars had quickly shushed his companions and requested them to grant them privacy as he stood up to greet Duke Silvan. He gave a warm smile as he held out his hand to shake Duke Silvan"s, but was immediately rebuffed.
"Let"s cut to the chase. Tell me what you want in exchange for cancellation of the contract. And don"t push me! If it becomes too serious, I"d rather commit suicide and die than comply!! Don"t think I"m too cowardly to sacrifice my mana core and pull you down into the grave with me!!"
Duke Silvan"s mild-mannered expression belied his words and thoughts as he quietly and coolly sat down in one of the wooden chairs in Lars" study, while Lars continued to smile even as he withdrew his hand.
He then returned to his own seat behind his study table, folding his fingers together and tapped one finger on the wooden desk for half a minute before he finally gave his answer.
"I want 1 billion platinum coins."
Duke Silvan"s eyes widened and he immediately began to consider it. Surprised, he asked, "With our fates bound together by this contract seal, I"ll not beat around the bush with you. What is the catch? It can"t be that you"re just asking for that much in view of my networth! The time for deception and games is over! Just spit it out!"
Lars" eyes sparkled with delight, but he did not change his request as he explained, "Duke Silvan... Please, don"t worry. I know that you are probably the richest person in the entire nation excluding the King himself... However, I believe that you have misunderstood something. That 1 billion platinum coins is not for the REMOVAL of the contract seal, but rather for the formation of a new contract between us."
Duke Silvan"s face grew stiff upon hearing this, turning slightly pale as he was filled with apprehension at the boy"s words. By now he knew that Lars was no simple peak-Expert level boy but rather a Legendary powerhouse on par with himself! How this was possible, he had no idea, but the fact of the matter was that Lars at the age of 15 years old was an authentic Legendary-realm monster!
As such, he swallowed his rage and spoke slowly with measured words. "What do you mean...? What is the purpose of a new contract seal...? Do you think I would so easily submit to further restrictions on myself...? Hah!"
Lars shook his head, cracking his knuckles as he replied, "No, once more you have me wrong. This contract is not for you... It will be for me."
Lars stood up and walked around the desk, coming closer to Duke Silvan as he spoke further, "...For my safety, those bindings on your soul must continue - the contract to not take any action to harm me! However, in exchange for those 1 billion platinum coins, I will form a contract seal on my mana core to not take advantage of the binding on you, to not make any requests of you beyond what has already been agreed!"
Duke Silvan considered this for awhile before he realised that this was a rather cheap price to pay. Essentially this payment was one to say, "You stay out of my way, I stay out of yours!". The price was definitely worth it as opposed to becoming a pseudo-slave to the boy!
With that, they struck the deal and formed the contract, with Duke Silvan promising to deliver the 1 billion coins within the week and to reunite him with Moira after the National-level compet.i.tion.
Lars let out another sigh of relief as he was glad to be done and over with the negotiations with Duke Silvan - despite him having many contingency plans ready, there was still the risk of all-out conflict breaking out with the royal family - something he did not desire at all!
Just then, Lars heard a knock on the door - a soft, gentle double *knock-knock* that told him immediately who it was who sought him out - Seline.
Clearing his throat, Lars spoke, "Seline! Please, enter. What brings you here at this time...? You must be dead tired, why don"t you rest...?"
"Lars. I will... I"m just about to get some sleep, but I need to update you on something before that. The man you rescued in the Underworld hideout has woken up - he wants to see you."