Mystery: From Celestial Venerable's Backup to Red Priest

Kasperas Kanlinin scrutinized Evan again, trying to figure out who he really was. Even though he owned a bar, it was rare to see someone put up a 10-pound deposit right away.

But he still couldn't figure it out, and finally took the deposit from the bar and said to Evan:

"Come again tomorrow night, and I'll give you an answer then!"

Evan finished his beer in one gulp, nodded to Kasperas Kanlinin, and then left with his shovel.

Not long after Evan left, the bartender returned to the bar with the maids who had just cleaned, and continued doing what they had been doing.

Kasperas Kanlinen asked the bartender to pour him a drink, which he sipped slowly for nearly two hours before leaving through the back door of the Brave Ones Bar.

While Kasperas Kanlinen was battling wits with thin air, Evan had already arrived in the East District.

Because it was already noon and the sun was shining directly, even though Evan's physique had been greatly enhanced by the two magical potions, his back was still covered in sweat, soaking through his work clothes.

After wandering around for two hours, Evan had a general understanding of the layout of the eastern part of the Backlund Bridge area, so he wouldn't be completely clueless about the place.

Now that he has decided to join MI9, Evan will inevitably face many complicated missions. The locations of these missions and the people he is to capture are very likely to be in these two mixed and chaotic areas, so Evan has to do his homework in advance.

Although the entire East District is very large, there are not many people on the streets at this time. Most people have gone to work in factories to earn a meager wage that barely keeps them from starving. So there are only a few unemployed "living corpses" on the streets, some very old beggars slumped in corners begging for food, and some dirty children who are eyeing every passerby, assessing whether they are worth a shot.

Such a scene was quite shocking to Evan, who had grown up under the red flag in his previous life, and it was impossible for him to remain indifferent. However, since he was now disguised as a worker in the East District, it was impossible for him to give them alms.

Moreover, even if they were given money, they couldn't protect it. They might even be robbed by other East District residents or gangsters while spending money on food, which could hasten their death. This is no longer a human society, but a jungle world.

So Evan would often buy some food on one street, then go to a corner of another street to distribute some to them, and he would be careful not to be seen by anyone, so as not to cause unnecessary trouble.

By noon, Evan was feeling tired. Luckily, there was a restaurant at the end of Dalavi Street in the East District, so Evan decided to grab a bite.

The restaurant was full of workers who had just finished their shifts. Unlike what Evan had imagined, they weren't teasing or bragging to each other. Instead, they were all quietly enjoying their lunches—clearly, after a morning's work, they didn't have the energy to talk.

Evan casually ordered two slices of bread, a sausage, and a beer, then found a place to eat.

Evan couldn't eat any more bread after just one bite. The bread was as hard as a brick, and even after finally managing to chew it, it felt more like eating wood.

Evan had never eaten this kind of bread in his life, so of course he couldn't finish it. He could only manage to finish the sausage and then planned to leave after drinking his beer.

Just as Evan was about to leave the restaurant and find himself a safe house in the East District, the restaurant door was suddenly kicked open, drawing everyone's attention.

A short girl, no more than 1.5 meters tall, with delicate and soft features, but her eyebrows and eyes were not yet fully developed, and she looked quite naive, was dressed in a knight's outfit. She led a girl who looked no more than 20 years old, but was heavily made up and had a face full of injuries, into the room.

Although the shorter girl had shoulder-length, frizzy blond hair, she possessed a dignified air that commanded respect. Wherever her gaze swept, the workers looking at her lowered their heads, unable to meet her eyes.

Evan raised an eyebrow, realizing he might have run into someone, and couldn't help but feel a surge of joy. He hadn't expected to meet "Hugh Deercha" on his first visit; what a coincidence!

Hugh Deercha burst in and went straight to the waiter, asking:

Where is Cornish?

The waiter remained silent because Cornish was his boss and also one of the heads of the local gangs. Hugh Deercha was clearly there to cause trouble, so he dared not speak.

Just then, a burly man emerged from the kitchen with several of his men. Seeing the aggressive young woman before him, he immediately recognized her as the bounty hunter who had recently risen to prominence in the East District. Therefore, he softened his tone slightly and said:

"I'm Cornish, the person in charge of this street. What do you want with me?"

Hugh Deercha pointed to the woman standing behind him and said in a stern voice:

"Your men went to collect protection money, and she paid all the fees as required by your regulations. However, when your men saw that she still had money, they robbed her of it all despite her pleas and even injured her. Shouldn't you give them an explanation?"

Cornish believed the story as soon as he saw the girl behind Hugh Deercha.

This kind of thing is actually very common. Gang leaders condone and tacitly approve of their subordinates' unsustainable exploitation of their resources, because this way they can give their subordinates less benefits, and the cost is simply passed on to the lowest-ranking people.

The East District never lacks the lowest-level workers and prostitutes. This makes it seem fair that the gang leaders set clear protection fee standards, and the people below also benefit. The lowest-level people, fearing the violence and threats of the thugs, can only endure it but will still obey the management of the gang leaders.

But unexpectedly, things went wrong today. Someone actually said it in front of everyone, and if he doesn't give an explanation, he won't be able to manage others in the future.

Because his subordinates broke his protection fee standards and he remained indifferent, no one will listen to him anymore, whether it's the lowest-level civilians or his own men, because what this boss says is just bullshit; even gangsters have rules.

So Cornish coughed, looked at his men behind him, and asked in a friendly tone:

"Who collected this lady's money today? How much overcharged her?"

One of his men stepped forward tremblingly and said:

"I took a total of 3 soles and 7 pence from her, and I took an extra 1 sole..."

Before he could finish speaking, Cornish picked up a bottle and smashed it on his subordinate's head. The bottle shattered, and blood immediately flowed from the subordinate's head, covering half of his face. He didn't dare to dodge or even utter a sound.

Setting down the broken bottle, Cornish turned to Hugh Deercha and said:

"This lady can pay one week's fee less, as an apology from me, how about it?"

Cornish thought he had been generous enough, but to his surprise, Hugh Deercha gently shook his head and said:

"not enough!"

Konis was surprised to receive such an answer, and his already fierce face immediately darkened, making him look even more ferocious and frightening.

"This lady already had extra money robbed by your men, so it's only right that you charge her less protection money for a week."

Moreover, she has now been injured in the face and will be unable to work for at least two weeks, leaving her without any source of income. If she does not receive compensation, she may starve to death.

So besides waiving her protection money for two weeks, you should also give her at least 5 sul for medical expenses and lost wages. Plus, she asked me for help and needed to give me 1 sul, so you should give her 6 sul.

Ignoring Cornish's increasingly grim expression, Hugh Deercha counted on his fingers and then made the final "arbitration."

After Hugh Deercha finished settling the accounts, Cornish's face was ashen. In all his years in the underworld, this was the first time he had ever seen someone ask him for medical expenses and lost wages. And you helped her arbitrate, and now you want me to pay for it?

Cornish was so angry he almost lost his temper on the spot, but faced with Hugh Deercha, who looked at him with great confidence and without fear, he ultimately chose not to make a move.

Because he had a feeling that although he was a "hunter", he might not be able to beat his opponent, so he chose to "endure" and directly reached out to the bartender who was watching in a daze.

The bartender then seemed to realize what was happening and quickly counted out 6 sous from the money he had received for the meal that day, handing it to Cornish. Because most of it was in pennies, it seemed like a lot of money, a whole handful.

Cornish handed the book to Hugh Deercha without even counting it, while Hugh Deercha solemnly counted it twice in front of Cornish before handing it to the girl behind him, who then counted it again.

After confirming that everything was correct, Hugh Deercha left the restaurant with the girl.

Cornish stood there, watching Hugh leave with a gloomy expression, then glared fiercely at the diners who were all staring at him.

Upon seeing this, the diners all lowered their heads, pretending not to have seen what had just happened.

"Take Parker to the hospital."

Cornish gave one last instruction before leaving the restaurant.

After finishing the remaining beer in his glass in one gulp, holding the half-eaten bread in his hand, Evan left the restaurant with his head down.

As a hunter, Evan could see tracks that many others couldn't, but Hugh Deercha's tracks were very conspicuous, so he followed behind at a leisurely pace, casually tossing a loaf of bread to a beggar on the roadside.

Gradually, Evan noticed that the footprints of the woman who had just been with Hugh were heading in another direction, while Hugh Deercha's footprints were slowly moving towards a hidden corner.

Evan chuckled lightly, not taking it to heart, and simply followed in the footsteps without any hesitation.

When Evan followed the footprints to a deserted dead end, a very young female voice came from behind him:

"Who are you, and why are you following me?"

Evan smiled, turned around, looked Hugh Deercha up and down, and then said:

"You went to the restaurant in front of everyone to settle the matter and ask for money. Aren't you afraid of retaliation from the gang? I reckon it won't be long before a group of people come looking for trouble with you."

As Evan sized up Hugh, Hugh was also sizing him up, quickly trying to discern in his mind who Evan might be.

"The Zmanger gang just took over this block. If they cause me trouble, I'll help another gang. You still haven't answered my question: why are you following me?"