Chapter 92: Chapter 92
Chapter 92 - The Missing Young Noble
Sea kings are one of the most illogical species in this world. Considering their size, number, and appetite, it's hard to fathom how the ecosystem here remains balanced.
Perhaps their population, diversity, and reproduction rates far surpass those of Earth.
For the current tavern, its most important role is to provide good food.
And it's beneficial for Adrian and Rui Mengmeng, who haven't reached their strongest states yet.
After a hearty meal, Adrian devoured several dozen pounds of meat and other side dishes, leaving nothing behind, even the soup in his plate was mopped up by Tom using bread.
Washing dishes today might be much easier.
Tom finished the last bite of his meal and let out a satisfied burp, visible white vapor escaping his mouth. Then he patted his round belly and lazily slouched in his chair.
Adrian rubbed his own belly and felt a sensation that it might have expanded a bit, although not as visibly as Tom's.
Whenever he ate to his heart's content, he would envy Artoria; no matter how much she ate, her body never changed – the dream physique for a food lover.
Although in a way, that could be a bit sympathetic as well.
Now it's the post-meal digestion time, and both Adrian and Tom found it quite challenging to get up from their chairs.
Artoria left her seat to find tea leaves and a teapot, while Rui Mengmeng busied herself cleaning the table.
"Are you okay, Mengmeng?" Adrian remembered that she ate a lot too, yet she seemed unaffected.
Mengmeng wondered, "Me? I'm fine. This is the first time I've had something so delicious. It's even better than the meat of that sea beast last time. And Professor Tom's cooking skills are amazing. I'm stuffed."
"Seeing you running back and forth, you don't seem stuffed at all. It's okay to clean the table later," Adrian felt like he was somehow bullying her by sitting there watching her work.
"It's fine. Every time after I eat, I feel like I have endless energy. Today it's even more noticeable than before. I might even be able to run a marathon right now," Mengmeng flexed her arm, showing off her not-so-developed muscles.
Though within her slender arms hid unimaginable strength for an ordinary person.
"Alright, I'll leave it to you then. Going by my past experience of overeating, I'll probably need another three to five minutes of lying down," Adrian's laziness was on full display, seemingly finding excuses to relax.
Five minutes later, Adrian fully revived and began preparing for the evening's business after helping tidy up the tables and chairs.
"Hey, Lieutenant Kuro," Adrian greeted a familiar figure shortly after opening the door.
"So, your tavern is the rebranded version of Bob's tavern. How's old Bob doing?" Lieutenant Kuro casually sat at the counter; he knew Bob.
After all, Bob had been wanting to retire just like him these past few years, so they got along well.
"He's doing great, spending his days fishing with a few old friends. Living the easy life," Adrian said.
"Envious life," Kuro glanced at the prices of the drinks, "Why's there such a price hike? By the way, any discounts for old acquaintances?"
Adrian pondered, "Can I get a discount when I exchange bounties next time?"
"... Dream on."
"Yeah, dream on." Adrian playfully bantered with him, feeling that he had a good personality.
"So heartless," Kuro ordered a type of alcohol and looked at Adrian, "Do you mind if I ask you about someone?"
"Looking for someone? Is it a search mission? Go ahead and ask."
"Not exactly a mission," Kuro explained, "A few days ago, a noble went missing in the Fishman Island. Today, his family's elders came to the naval base demanding action. Quite a bother."
"Uh... What does his disappearance have to do with the Navy?" Adrian's heart skipped a beat. It's hard to say if this matter was related to the Navy, but there's a high chance it was.
"If it were up to me, I'd love to ask. However, that family is insisting that their son was kidnapped by pirates, blaming the Navy for not eliminating the pirates on the island. They have some influence, and if left unattended, it could become troublesome."
"Alright, you guys really have it tough. So, what kind of person is he?"
"Here, take a look." Kuro handed a photo to Adrian, "See if you recognize him."
Tom glanced at it casually and seemed to recognize the person, leaning in to get a better look.
Adrian took the photo with one hand and patted Tom's head with the other, making sure he didn't miss any spots.
Not only did he recognize this person, but he also buried him.
Adrian looked at the photo, organized his thoughts, and handed it back, saying, "He looks unfamiliar. Definitely hasn't been to my tavern."
Telling the truth while lying, a confident strategy. He believed his expression showed no flaws.
"Oh." Kuro put away the photo and continued to drink his alcohol, not even glancing at Adrian's expression.
Adrian was speechless. "You're wasting my acting skills. You said his family has influence. Why does your investigation seem so half-hearted?"
"I wasn't planning on putting in too much effort to investigate anyway. If that were the case, Rear Admiral T-Bone should've been leading this, not me, the lazy one."
Adrian had no response; Kuro's self-awareness was indeed clear.
Kuro casually explained, "We've been quite busy lately. Rear Admiral Kadar isn't in the mood to deal with noble affairs. These past few days... well, forget it. You'll know from the news tomorrow."
"So what's the news about then?" Adrian disliked people who only revealed half the story.
"Anyway, my task is done. I couldn't find any leads about the missing noble. In case someone questions my effort, make sure you're a witness for me!" Kuro put down some money, turned around, and walked away, "Off duty, off duty!"
"Boss, what if we're discovered?" Mengmeng asked anxiously in a low voice.
"Doesn't seem likely, but in any case, the Navy doesn't seem too interested in a thorough investigation." Adrian thought for a moment, "I think we should recover Tom's 100-ton iron at some point. Who knows, I might throw out similar items again, and next time, let's not bother with the pretense."
Mengmeng sighed, "We're doing the right thing, but we have to sneak around. It feels weird."
"That's why some say this world is sick. Let's just focus on becoming stronger. Once we're powerful enough, we won't need to cater to others." Adrian considered adding more training to his schedule; his appetite seemed to be growing again.
"Yeah, I understand." Mengmeng nodded vigorously.
"By the way, Artoria, any major news in the newspapers lately? Anything related to recent Navy actions?"
Adrian was still curious about Kuro's matter.
Artoria answered, "Nothing special, but he mentioned Rear Admiral Kadar. Perhaps it's related to the Seven Warlords like he mentioned when Rear Admiral Kadar was drunk?"
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