Chapter 399
Chapter 399
«Are you… Are you fucking kidding me, jerk?» – Horace barked at the sound transmitter.
«Ah, I forgot to say that my demands can’t be altered. They are irreversible.»
«You… You are…» – The patriarch was steaming. He grabbed a bottle of sedatives and swallowed five pills at once.
«Don’t make me a demon. It’s all your fault. I didn’t start the fire.»
«Who did? I just wanted to talk to you in person! I offered you a reward! I treated you kindly, and you couldn’t care less! You started to blackmail me like the devil’s spawn! You want to destroy the honor of my family and my dear daughter, but I haven’t done anything to you! You can’t blame the head of a noble family! I gave you a chance. Not just once. But twice!»
«That’s it. I can’t treat a hypocritical jerk like you with respect.» – Kyon said with disdain.
«What are you talking about, jackass?»
«Half an hour ago, you ordered an investigator to finish me off. I heard everything. The spying formation is hidden in the armchair!» – Lovr grinned. – «I am the victim here, and I need to protect myself from such a maniac like you! As for bribing you, it’s compensation for moral damage.»
Horace’s face contorted with shock. He looked carefully at his armchair and found a little ball. The patriarch felt devastated and confused. He had no leverage against the blackmailer because Dick’s actions were justified.
After a long pause, the patriarch asked in a low, gravelly voice: «Why seven months?»
«I have some business to attend to in Dantes. I can’t give you any more details.»
Horace suspected that the greedy Bakers were always looking for ways to cash in on something. Dick Baker seemed to be telling the truth, and yet, the patriarch couldn’t hide his anxiety: «How can I make sure that I will receive the recordings in seven months? I want to speak to someone in charge!»
«I am in charge here. There are no guarantees. It will be totally my fault if I fail. But ask yourself, what I will gain from deceiving you? Тo one will pay me, not even the Valentines. The honor of their family is not at stake. Only an idiot will stay in Dantes when the whole second-rank family is after him. I will keep my word if you keep yours.»
The patriarch gritted his teeth and decided to restrain from trading barbs: «Then tell me why one million keys of the superior phase? Why not money?»
«You ask too many questions, that’s why.» – Kyon retorted. In fact, there was a shortage of keys on the market. It would take too many years and too much money to buy a million superior phase keys. Even a billion spheres wouldn’t be enough if time is short. Simply put, demand was greater than supply.
Horace grunted something under his breath and then barked: «And why do you need Andrew’s body?»
«I’m tired of this conversation. You know my demands, but I will send you a letter with everything I’ve said in case you have memory problems. Whether Lindia’s honor is ruined or not is entirely up to you.» – Kyon said and ended the call.
The patriarch pondered his options. Like it or not, Dick Baker was untouchable. Even if Horace somehow captured him, what about the recordings in the guild? Only a few chosen had the connections in the Golden Pig to get into the VIP cell. The fat investigator too, but Horace couldn’t harm him in any way. No visible injuries or subjugating formations! Any other tortures were out of the question: as soon as Dick got inside the sanctity of the guild premises, he would request protection. The Bakers had thought of everything. The swindlers had honed their methods to perfection.
Horace had only two options left: to ruin his dearest child with his own hands or do as the jerk said and fulfill all his demands.
At the patriarch’s order, the superintendent entered the office and bowed respectfully: «Good afternoon, patriarch. How may I help you?»
Horace checked the room for bugs and uttered in sepulchral tones: «You have to get information on Dick Baker! As much as possible! And be discreet!»
…
The inner territory of the Order. A spacious house designed for one student. A candle-lit cozy room.
Two people were sitting at the table opposite each other. A large crystal sphere on the table emitted a dim colorful glow like a rainbow kaleidoscope. A young man fidgeted in his chair, a dazzlingly beautiful blonde girl sat calmly in hers.
~ring~
The bell rang. Elsa squinted and saw a messenger at the front door. She said coldly: «We’ll finish the session earlier today. You will get a discount next time.»
«I am really grateful, Lady Elsa. I will come again.» – The Order student bowed and left.
Elsa picked up the spatial ring delivered to her and took out 10 A-rank cases.
{Finally!} – Burning with anticipation, Elsa took the first folder and began to study it. She had never seen A-rank cases whose value was recognized by the government and society. Elsa was eager to perform her heroic deeds and increase her fame tenfold!
Elsa grinned dismissively after reading the first page: {Holy angels! The incompetent fat investigator has scribbled some hints for me.} – For some unknown reason, she looked through his pathetic attempts. Did he really think he could end their deal sooner this way? How ridiculous of him!
As Elsa continued reading, her smile faded. Finally, she gasped in disbelief. Dick’s hints were simple, understandable, and logical. At the same time, it was extremely difficult, if not impossible, to come up with them!
{Somebody must have helped him!} – Elsa picked up the next case dotted with similar notes. All the cases had Dick Baker’s directions! How could he do so much work in one day? It was impossible!
Elsa spent half a day studying the A-rank cases. Nobody had ever seen Demon Huntress look like this. She was shocked! It must have taken a team of professional investigators to solve each case! The notes on the cases were so simple that even a child could understand them. Elsa literally didn’t have to do anything but get changed and follow the step-by-step instructions. It’s pure madness!
{I’ve underestimated Dick.} – Elsa admitted to herself with a heavy sigh. However, she did not feel regret. Anyone who saw the fat freak would think that they were dealing with a clinical idiot. Who knew that Mother Nature had endowed him with brains as compensation for his ugly looks? Now it was clear how he had got the job! It all seemed to add up. The only thing that she couldn’t understand was why he gave up so quickly after taking up that sensational case.
Anyway, Elsa had yet to prove if Dick Baker’s notes were really helpful.
…
It was already evening. Kyon had been productive today: he had sent 10 A-rank cases to Elsa, killed Albert and stolen his identity as the best alchemist in the empire, risen in Milan’s esteem, and put forward his demands to Horace. Could he make this day even better? Kyon knew the answer.
Lovr went to a secluded place, transformed into late Albert, activated numerous visual formations and made a recording where he announced that he was breaking all contracts and agreements because he had found a student blessed by heaven. From now on, he would spend his free time training the young genius. Everyone would soon hear about his new student. A star was born.
Kyon put the recordings in envelopes with forged signatures. He found a seal in the ring of the deceased alchemist and sent the letters to the patriarchs of the first ten families, including the Clintons and the trade guilds under the name of Albert. He added a ring with a batch of medicine he made back in Cernos for the Golden Pig Guild.
Why did Kyon need to become the alchemist’s genius student? To take advantage of it, that’s why!
Late at night, Lovr tucked his girls in and went to one of the run-down neighborhoods. Soon, his updated hearing allowed him to find an abandoned warehouse filled with laughter and shouting.
With the help of birds, Kyon watched through the broken window a typical street gang. Unkempt, brutal, armed men were smoking and drinking alcohol, celebrating a good week.
Lovr could easily determine who was their leader. He waited until the morning when the scum of society went about their business and began to follow the boss.
The man with a stubble beard and a raincoat was heading in a certain direction, looking around. In one of the darkest alleys, he met a man in black and gave him a ring with money.
{I’ve got the messenger.} – Kyon nodded to himself.
Then the man in the black raincoat returned home. Early in the morning, he sent five identical parcels to different addresses by bird mail at a certain hour.
He was an ordinary citizen in a financial crisis, ready to do any job. It was a cushy job: he had to pick up the delivery at a certain hour, take five identical envelopes and send them to different addresses. It had to be done at certain intervals with no delay. If there was a tail, the original parcel must be sent to another address, or his family and friends were in danger.
Kyon spent the next day tracking down the mail birds’ routes. Three… No, four levels of security, each of them more complicated than another and well-thought-out. No one would ever make heads or tails of them. Dozens and hundreds of routes stretched throughout the city to anonymously deliver the weekly profit of a small, crappy gang to the clan leader. The scheme involved more than 50 civilians with money problems and a family, which meant they were tied up with this job.
At the fifth level of security, Lovr noticed that one of the many postal birds wasn’t registered in the postal system, which meant that no one was tracking her route! That bird was going to the clan leader!
{Valeera… Your uncle made a monster of you!} – Lovr thought admiringly. No investigator in the world could ever find her location. Even he couldn’t do it without the horde of feathered zombies, not in 1 day for sure. The security level was incredible! Small wonder that the government was wary of a shadow mega-clan that might appear any day soon.