Chapter 150: A Minor Trouble, Already Taken Care Of

Chapter 150: A Minor Trouble, Already Taken Care Of



As Rain's understanding of Tokkar Hammer Technique reached level 4 (3/1000), fragments of training memories flooded his mind, allowing him to quickly digest and incorporate them into his muscle memory.

These memory fragments were scattered pieces of hammer technique training, which Rain was rapidly absorbing and integrating into his physical memory.

The entire process felt to Rain as if he had suddenly gained a year's worth of rigorous practice in Tokkar Hammer Technique.

Previously overlooked details of the hammer technique were now refined and supplemented.

Additionally, Rain noticed that his Knight (Extraordinary) profession level had reached lv3 (476/500), and he was about to break into lv4.

Of course, the Sorcerer Apprentice profession level, already at lv4, was still far from another promotion.

"Cough, Rain, I never thought...cough...that you'd be able to kill that guy, Adams," Hamilton patted Rain on the shoulder, expressing his relief.

However, it seemed that Hamilton's physical condition wasn't at its best, possibly due to the backlash from the 'Minor Physical Reflection Shield' he had just received. He coughed incessantly, his body affected by some unknown energy.

"By the way, are you planning to claim the bounty directly or report it through your position as the Deputy Marshal of Flashgold Town?" Hamilton asked, prompting Rain to ponder.

Rain couldn't help but consider Hamilton's words. He understood the implied meaning—if he claimed the bounty directly, he would receive 1000 Imperial Gold Coins as a reward and could further enhance his bounty hunter level.

However, if he reported it through his position as the Deputy Marshal, there would be no gold coin reward; instead, it would be converted into merit points. Additionally, the defeat of Adams would be recorded as a separate achievement in his resume.

"Cough, with your performance in this battle, I believe you'll receive a substantial merit reward. Once you pass the ennoblement assessment, there's a high chance of an immediate promotion in your position," Hamilton offered his opinion, seeing Rain's hesitation.

In truth, Rain was inclined towards the first option. During the previous battle, he had witnessed Adams' strength and the power unleashed by a Third-Level Apprentice Wizard with a few Wizardry Scrolls.

Evidently, these required money, specifically gold coins, to support!

But would he still lack money if he climbed the ranks? Just look at the reward offered by the Crowley Family when they hired him as their Guardian Knight.

Thinking of this, a smile crept onto Rain's face.

Furthermore, reporting through the Deputy Marshal's position would allow Hamilton and the Night Watch colleagues to add a commendable achievement to their resumes and earn a certain amount of merit rewards.

"Of course, Lord Hamilton. I'll report it as a collaborative effort with the Flashgold Town Security Force. Please don't hold back in documenting your and the Night Watch's contributions to this victory," Rain replied.

"Good lad, you've got a heart!" Hamilton coughed and laughed.

Rain's words resonated with the Night Watch members.

Many of them, injured by the female vengeful spirit, initially grimaced as they tended to their wounds, but their expressions softened, and some even smiled.

For the ordinary Night Watch members, it was more of a livelihood than a heroic profession.

"Putting aside other things, the Deputy Marshal is truly generous when it comes to sharing the glory of battle," most of the Night Watch elite thought.

Thinking of the female vengeful spirit, Rain turned to look around again. He noticed that she had disappeared from the spot where Adams had been defeated.

Rain recalled that at the end of the battle, he had glimpsed a hint of a smile on her face as she dissipated at the alley's entrance.

"Marshal, Deputy Marshal, look at this body," a Night Watch elite reported.

"Leave it to the Deputy Marshal to handle!" Hamilton smiled and waved his hand.

At that moment, Rain realized he hadn't collected his spoils of war yet.

He couldn't help but wonder what kind of loot this strongest enemy he had encountered so far would yield.

A sense of long-lost anticipation welled up within Rain.

However, when Rain approached the pile of black robe and shredded flesh, he was taken aback.

This was...a bit difficult to handle!

After hesitating for a moment, Rain forced himself to search through the black robe, enduring the sticky and warm sensation on his hands.

The bottles and jars in the waist pouch were shattered, but their contents remained intact.

So, Rain carefully avoided disturbing them and focused on collecting other items first.

Soon, Rain gathered all the spoils—a crooked wooden staff resembling a cane, a white, slender finger bone, an iron key, and a purse containing a small amount of gold coins.

That was all.

Rain couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed.

It felt similar to Rain's past gaming experiences, where a group would defeat a powerful boss only to find trash drops.

However, Rain carefully examined the three spoils of war.

First was the wooden stick, more accurately a short staff, with a slightly thicker head and a much narrower base, its entire body a deep gray, seemingly carved from a single piece of unknown wood.

The moment Rain held it, he felt its cool, smooth, and heavy texture, indicating the wood's high density.

For a moment, Rain couldn't determine the value or rarity of this material.

The slender white finger bone, on the other hand, piqued Rain's interest even more.

With his Mental Power already at 20 points, he immediately discerned the faint presence of the female vengeful spirit on the white finger bone.

This suggested that the finger bone might have belonged to the woman during her lifetime.

Of course, there was also a possibility that the finger bone had no connection to the female vengeful spirit in life, and it was only after Adams modified it in some way that the bone became a medium for casting spells.

Next was the purse, which Rain opened to find a mere thirty to forty Imperial Gold coins.

This amount of wealth was completely disproportionate to the opponent's strength.

He weighed the purse in his hand before putting it away.

Finally, Rain played with the iron key in his hand.

"Clearly, the items Adams carried on him didn't match his strength at all, and there's a high chance he hid something somewhere."

"Perhaps this iron key in my hand is the key to his request, or {} if required

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"Unfortunately, it's unlikely that I can directly locate and find his secret location through this key."

At this moment, Rain's peripheral vision caught two familiar slender figures appearing at the alley's entrance.

It was Ragle and Anna.

Both of them had come.

Rain wasn't surprised that Ragle, with her rich combat experience, had sensed the commotion, especially since the battle had taken place not far from her bedroom.

However, how did Anna wake up as well?

Currently, they were each in separate rooms.

That's right, Rain suddenly remembered that Anna had practiced the Basic Meditation Technique at the same time as him, and it was most likely due to the effects of this technique.

Practicing the Basic Meditation Technique gradually enhances Mental Power, and naturally, perception abilities improve as well.

"Anna, Ragle, what brings you here?" Rain called out.

"Rain, over here," the two women looked around, but due to the distance, they couldn't see Adams's corpse at the end of the alley.

"It's just a minor issue, and it's been taken care of," Rain reassured them.

Minor issue? Hamilton's lips twitched at Rain's words!

A fugitive with a bounty of one thousand Imperial Gold coins was just a minor issue in his eyes?

Alright then.

"Woof!" At this moment, the Lynx Dog 'Cookie' poked his head out from beside Ragle's legs.

This action...

It's the same as what Mint, his sister, did! Rain couldn't help but think.

Hmm!

A flash of inspiration crossed Rain's mind, causing his eyes to widen. He quickly ran towards the alley where Ragle and Anna were standing.

The two women, seeing Rain rushing towards them, had different thoughts.

"It seems like Rain and the others won the fight, that's great!"

"Hmm, Rain is running towards me, could he be coming to give me a victory hug?"

"Should I respond or should I just give him a light hug too?"

Anna was torn.

As for Ragle, when she saw Rain running towards them, her first thought was that he wanted to hug both her and Anna.

"This guy is getting more and more outrageous!"

"Aunt Emma is also to blame, always telling her son that once he becomes a noble, he can have a wife and a mistress, no, a wife and multiple mistresses!"

"Doesn't he know that we barbarian maidens are very traditional?"

"Oh well, a hug isn't a big deal!" Ragle thought to herself.

Just as the two women were anxiously waiting for Rain's embrace, he suddenly squatted down right in front of them.

Rain lifted Cookie's head and said, "Cookie, come with me."

Instantly, Cookie's eyes lit up.

His expression seemed to say, "Could it be that my status in my master's heart has surpassed that of the two mistresses?"

Rain couldn't shake the feeling that Cookie seemed to have become smarter after consuming the Mutation Growth Potion.

Rain led Cookie quickly to the pile of black robe fragments.

This caused the two women to exchange glances, and they both felt a sense of loss.

Rain then directed Cookie to first sniff the blood-soaked black robe on the ground, followed by the short staff and the iron key.

After Rain gestured, Cookie's eyes lit up, and he began sniffing and running towards the north of Shangjin Town.

This immediately delighted Rain.

Indeed, just as the book had said, a dog's sense of smell was thousands of times more sensitive than a human's!

"Master, perhaps we'll have an unexpected harvest."

"Rain turned to Hamilton and spoke."

Hamilton glanced at the Lynx Dog, which was sniffing and running, and immediately understood Rain's words.

He couldn't help but laugh and said, "I won't go. It's just a burden, and you should pick a few people to accompany you."

"Okay, sir," Rain nodded.

Rain waved to Matteo from a distance.

Matteo quickly ran over.

"Call a couple of smart ones to come with me," Rain said.

"No problem, Lieutenant!" Matteo smiled and patted his chest.

Hamilton felt that his recent performance must have satisfied the lieutenant.

"Yes, sir!" Two sturdy Night Watchmen stepped forward.

As Rain prepared to follow 'Cookie' to the north of Shangjin Town with the three men, he soon became aware of two familiar footsteps behind him.

He turned to see Ragle and Anna.

"Rain, do you need us to accompany you?"

After a moment's thought, Rain said, "Anna, you should go home first. There might be some danger later. Ragle, you can come with me."

Anna nodded, and at the same time, she slightly lowered her head.

As expected, Rain must have thought she was a burden.

She glanced at Ragle, who was holding a new metal shield, looking valiant and graceful.

When would she be able to be like Ragle, how wonderful that would be!

Soon, Rain and the group of five quickly arrived at the northern edge of Shangjin Town.

However, Rain was slightly puzzled as 'Cookie' continued to run and sniff, even after reaching the outskirts of the town, showing no signs of stopping.

Could Adams' residence be in a manor on the outskirts of Shangjin Town? Rain wondered.

But an hour passed!

'Cookie' kept running and sniffing, and they were getting closer and closer to the county town.

In an instant, Rain immediately realized! Indeed, a powerful individual like Adams would most likely be hiding in the county town.

After all, the resources required for a Level 3 Sorcerer Apprentice to advance were not something a small town could easily provide.

The group quickly passed through the town gate, and 'Cookie' ran towards a place Rain was becoming more and more familiar with.

Hmm!

They were near Frank's Tavern.

A flash of insight crossed Rain's mind!

Could Adams have been hiding in Bat Market all this time?

Indeed, the Lynx Dog 'Cookie' entered an alley with a bat sign, where it barked a few times.

It seemed to be saying, 'It should be here, but the scent stops here, there's nothing ahead!'

Rain smiled and turned to Matteo and the others, saying, "Your uniforms are too eye-catching, wait here for now."

"Yes, sir!" Matteo replied with a smile.

Rain then thought for a moment and said to Ragle, "Your shield and figure are too noticeable as well. Wait here with Matteo."

"Okay!" Ragle tightened her grip on the shield and nodded.

She currently had a significant gap in strength compared to Rain, so she didn't raise any objections.

Rain picked up 'Cookie' and entered the Bat Market.

The four of them watched in astonishment as Rain suddenly disappeared from their sight!

At that moment, the four of them exchanged glances in surprise.

The sky was just beginning to brighten.

Perhaps, in a typical morning market, there would be early-rising merchants and pedestrians, but in the Bat Market, the flow of people was extremely scarce, and the streets were empty.

As soon as Rain entered, he released the Lynx Dog 'Cookie', whose dog eyes regained their liveliness, sniffed, and began to quickly scout ahead.

Soon, the man and dog arrived at a shop with a signboard featuring stars, the sun, and the moon.

"Woof," 'Cookie' barked softly.

Then, it wagged its tail and walked back and forth in front of the closed shop door.

Obviously, this was the place 'Cookie' identified as Adams' previous stop.

Rain's eyebrows rose slightly, and he smiled.

After tracking and rushing from Shangjin Town to the county town, he had finally found a place where the other party had stayed.

Rain first looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to him and 'Cookie'. He immediately circled the shop, observing carefully.

Soon, he discovered that one of the windows was half-open.

After a moment's thought, Rain began to use the Beast Tamer core skill 'Beast Eye'.

The next second, Rain's vision switched to 'Cookie'.

In a while, a male voice could be heard from inside, "Get out of here, you stray dog!"

Soon, 'Cookie' jumped out of the window again.

At this moment, Rain also finished using the skill 'Beast Eye' and smiled.

"There's only one adult male inside, and he's very weak. He seems to be Adam's servant, or perhaps just a regular employee helping out at the shop."

"Should be easy to handle."

So, Rain approached and knocked on the door.

"Knock knock knock!"

Inside, the person cautiously asked, "Who's there?"

"It's not business hours yet, and the Seer isn't here," the other party explained.

Seer? It seemed likely that this was a fake identity Adam used as a cover.

Not opening the door? Rain raised his right hand, which was wearing a plate gauntlet, and struck the wooden door with force! "Smash!"

Wooden splinters flew!

Rain chose to break in.

A hole the size of a washbasin appeared on the shop's wooden door, and Rain pulled the latch, opened the door, and walked in.

"Who are you?" A man in his twenties inside, seeing Rain in his full knight armor, couldn't help but retreat, asking fearfully.

"As an accomplice of Adam, you're under arrest!" Rain declared.

"Adam?"

"Sir, I think you've made a mistake. We don't have that person here," the young man replied, looking confused.

"Do you recognize this?" Rain took out the cane that belonged to Adam from behind his back.

The white finger bones—Adam probably hadn't shown them off, but Rain felt that Adam wouldn't hide this seemingly ordinary cane.

Sure enough!

"The boss's cane?" The young man's eyes widened, as if realizing something. "Is your boss's real name Adam, the imperial fugitive? Do you have anything else to say?"

"Sir, I'm innocent!"

"I only started working at this seer's shop last month. I didn't know our boss was an imperial fugitive," the young man said, his legs going soft. He leaned against the wall, looking incredulous as he cried out his innocence.

"Well, if what you say is true, you'll be released soon."

"Now, please cooperate with my work. I'm asking you, where is Adam's bedroom, or rather, your boss's bedroom?" Rain asked calmly.

Ten minutes later, Rain walked out of the seer's shop carrying a large black bag, followed by a dejected young man.

Just as Rain was about to leave the Bat Market, two men in black robes with hoods covering their faces approached him from the street ahead.

Rain's pupils constricted, and his expression turned stern.

He could sense the active mental power from the two men.

It seemed they were on the level of second-level wizard apprentices, or perhaps even higher, like third-level wizard apprentices, deliberately concealing their true level.

"Young man, no fighting is allowed within the Bat Market. Any disputes must be reported to the market's administrators," one of the black-robed men said.

"Are you the administrators of the Bat Market?" Rain asked.

"I'm here to capture the imperial fugitive, Adam. I believe even the Bat Market can't shield a wanted criminal, right?" Rain pointed to himself, indicating his official status.

"This..." The two black-robed men were surprised by Rain's response.

They exchanged glances and said, "Since it's an official duty, it's a different matter."

Indeed, backing a powerful force! Rain thought.

When Rain left the Bat Market, Matteo, who was waiting at the entrance, immediately approached him. "Sir, was it successful?"

"Matteo, detain this person and interrogate him about his relationship with Adam later," Rain instructed.

Although Rain was almost certain that the man before him was just an ordinary person, the only difference being his slightly higher mental power compared to the average person, which was quite common in the Bat Market.

"Yes, sir!" Matteo immediately had two Night Watch Elites escort the man, following Rain back to Shangjin Town.

Upon returning home, Rain immediately went to the storeroom and placed the black package directly on the table.

His expression brightened, and he waved his hands in the air with satisfaction.

Calming his excited heart, Rain began to inventory his loot.

One crystal ball, two wizardry scrolls, three books written in Arcanese (Arcadian Language), and a pile of miscellaneous materials.

Currently, Rain didn't know the effects of these items.

So, Rain first opened the three books written in Arcanese.

"Not bad!"

"Not a decent person."

"There's a diary!"

"In that case, I should be able to identify the origins and uses of these items in my possession!" Rain smiled, holding one of the books.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end