Capítulo 178: Harvest and Report
"Aetris?!"
Ebner screamed in his heart. He did not expect to meet this friend here. And from the looks of it, he should be the "tough bone" that the bald man had mentioned before, who failed to assassinate and was caught instead.
At this moment, Aetris looked extremely miserable. His clothes were torn and tattered, and his entire body was covered in deep black marks. Even his limbs were broken!
Hearing the noise, Aetris raised his head with difficulty. Through his blurred vision, he barely understood what was going on in the basement. He nodded at Ebner, who had already revealed himself, and tried to squeeze out a smile. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Friend, although I don't know who you are, I'm very grateful that you saved me… I'll repay you later."
He did his best to show his worth and emphasized that he did not know the man, lest he be silenced.
You're thinking too much. I originally came here to 'create something out of nothing' and find out some information…
Ebner, who was wearing a clown mask and had a female face, cursed silently. However, he was not in a hurry to untie Aetris. Instead, he first used his "physician" ability to treat his injuries.
Although the "treatment" he simulated was much less effective than the original version, it was enough for emergency treatment. At the very least, it stabilized the other party's condition temporarily and did not worsen.
And the injuries were no longer worsening. It was enough for a strong "hunter."
"Thank you," said Aetris, relieved to see that Ebner meant no harm. If he had, he would not have been so unnecessary.
Ebner nodded and didn't say a word. Instead, he turned around and went to the three dead Beyonders. After carefully identifying them, he wanted to put away the Beyonder characteristics that they had extracted.
Corpse Collector characteristic. This was produced by the brownish-yellow-skinned man who opened the closet… I remember seeing him back when I was recalling Morella's memories. He should be called Godotpos… Yes, according to the three people, it was this Godotpos who protected the so-called Mr. Aubrey. That's how Aetris was captured? Heh heh, forget the fact that Hunter can't beat Corpse Collector, he was even captured… How embarrassing…
"Uh, alright. This Godotpos has a Beyonder item? That makes sense."
Ebner grumbled to himself as he searched Godotpos for another jet-black revolver.
After analyzing it with the Eye of Pure White, he realized that it only had the ability of Silent Shooting. Although it wasn't very powerful, it was still quite useful.
After stowing away the characteristics and revolvers, Ebner looked at the other brown-skinned man beside Godotpos.
They were both from the Southern Continent's Balam race, but this person's clothes were more exquisite, and he maintained his skin better than Godotpos. Ebner even analyzed several types of skincare products from his face…
This should be the 'Lord Lima' mentioned by those ordinary people, right? His status should be above Godotpos…
As expected, this is a Gravedigger… Tsk tsk, thankfully, a Witch's invisibility can hide from wandering spirits. Otherwise, I would've had to do more…
There's actually no Beyonder item? That's right. He doesn't seem to be a combatant, so there's no need for him to carry a dangerous Sealed Artifact with him… Yes, the Sealed Artifact of the Everlasting Society shouldn't be in this stronghold either. It probably has other places to store it.
"Eh? He has a letter on him?"
After Ebner put away the characteristic, he unfolded the letter and found only one sentence:
"It has been confirmed that Earl Wolf has a mask that he brought out from the Eggers family mausoleum."
The Eggers family's mask… This was lost by Mr. Azik, wasn't it? The Eternal Life Society is already planning on it? However, I can imitate this handwriting. When the time comes, I'll hand this letter and the forged intelligence to the military…
As his thoughts raced, Ebner turned his attention back to the last man poisoned to death.
It was an elder in his sixties. He had a big nose, grayish-blue eyes, and his facial skin was loose. He didn't have a beard, and his hair was very thin. And on his body was a dark red object that resembled jelly. It was the Beyonder characteristic of a Provoker.
"That person is Donald Aubrey. On the surface, he's the boss of a bar in East Borough, but in fact, he's a pirate who disguised himself after he came ashore! His nickname at sea is Laughter Longman, with a bounty of 1,000 pounds."
At this moment, Aetris finally regained some strength. He introduced the man to Ebner with a complicated look in his eyes.
Provoker… From the looks of it, the hunting mission Anderson gave him wasn't just to train Aetris. It also had the intention of allowing him to 'act' and obtain the ingredients for his advancement…
Unfortunately, Aetris had screwed up.
Ebner nodded slightly but had no intention of replying. It would be awkward if Aetris knew who he truly was.
He placed the Provoker characteristic into the tin box and left the basement through the hidden entrance in the closet. Upstairs, he found a large bag in the house and returned to the basement to store the so-called Grinning Man's corpse inside it.
Carrying the bag on his back, Ebner untied the ropes binding Aetris. Ignoring his words of gratitude, he silently left the stronghold of the Eternal Life Society.
However, just as he stepped out of the door at 79 Durham Street, a young man blocked his path.
The newcomer wore a white shirt, black vest, and black pants. His medium build, blond hair, and blue eyes made him unmistakably recognizable—he was the Strongest Hunter, Anderson.
Isn't he supposed to be heading to the sea near the ruins of the battle of gods? Why is he in Backlund? Could he be secretly protecting Aetris?
Ebner immediately became alert, his body tensing, ready to "fly" away at any moment.
"Don't be nervous, sir. I just want to make a deal with you." Anderson touched his earlobe and smiled.
"What do you want to trade?" Ebner asked, deliberately squeezing his throat to mask his voice, even though he already had a guess.
"The Provoker's Beyonder characteristic. I want to buy it," Anderson said seriously.
As expected... Ebner thought to himself before pretending to consider the offer. After a brief pause, he named his price. "700 pounds."
"That's a fair price, but I don't have that much cash on me. Can I use this to exchange instead?" Anderson replied as he took a small, eyeball-like item from his pocket.
Ebner carefully examined the object and immediately recognized it—it was a Gravedigger's Beyonder characteristic, identical to the one he had just stored away earlier.
After a moment of thought, Ebner, who had no desire to get further entangled with Anderson, nodded in agreement.
The two cautiously made the exchange. Once it was completed, Ebner didn't hesitate any longer. Carrying the bag, he "flew" away from the stronghold.
Anderson watched him leave before turning back toward the Eternal Life Society's stronghold. He kicked open the door and stepped inside.
When he saw Aetris still standing in the basement, he grinned and said,
"Dear Aetris, I hope this unforgettable lesson has taught you that being a Hunter requires brains, not just brawn.
"If you haven't realized that yet, don't worry—I'll assign you another mission that will leave an even deeper impression on you."
...
Since he was carrying a bag containing a corpse, Ebner didn't return to his teacher's office. Instead, he headed to the one-bedroom apartment he rented in East Borough.
After taking off the Clown Mask and returning to his original appearance, Ebner glanced at the sky. The faint glow of dawn was beginning to emerge, though it couldn't pierce the thick fog that blanketed Backlund.
It's almost five… Mr. Fool shouldn't mind waking up early, right?
With that thought, Ebner clasped his hands and brought them to his nose and mouth, as though praying. In a low voice, he sincerely recited,
"The Fool that doesn't belong to this era..."
...
Tingen, at a terrace house on 2 Daffodil Street.
Klein, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly opened his eyes. He heard layers of illusory pleas echoing faintly in the air.
"Who is it this time? Tower? Or The Hanged Man?" Klein muttered as he rolled over in bed a few times before finally getting up in resignation.
He picked up his silver dagger and constructed a wall of spirituality, sealing the room. Taking four steps counterclockwise, he arrived above the gray fog. The crimson star corresponding to "Tower" expanded and contracted incessantly before his eyes.
Indeed...
Klein sat down on the high-back chair, leaned against it, and spread his spirituality, allowing Tower's voice to ring clear.
"Honorable Mr. Fool, I received some information regarding Admiral Hell Ludwell. According to it, the Black Tulip will pass through Pritz Harbor's outer sea at dawn on the sixteenth day...
"I wish to use the 'contributions' I've accumulated to confirm the authenticity of this news. If it's true, I hope you can pass it on to Mr. Hanged Man and have him report it to the Church of Storms as soon as possible.
"I understand it will place him at some risk, so I'm willing to pay a certain amount... The payment will be handed over via 'sacrifice' shortly."
In the towering palace, Klein tapped his fingers rhythmically on the edge of the long bronze table, pondering how to handle Tower's request.
The information about the Black Tulip and Admiral Hell seems detailed enough. Perhaps I can divine it?
With that thought, Klein conjured a fountain pen and wrote:
"The information that Tower obtained is accurate."
He set the fountain pen down, removed the silver chain wrapped around his wrist, and let the topaz pendant hang steadily above the divination statement.
Klein closed his eyes and calmly recited the sentence.
After repeating it seven times, he opened his eyes and saw the topaz pendant spinning clockwise.
That's a confirmation.
Nodding in satisfaction, Klein used his spirituality to inform Tower of the divination result. He added cautiously, "This is based on the current observations. It doesn't account for any future interference by other entities."
Just as he was about to contact The Hanged Man to relay the information, another prayer from Tower reached him. It was for a sacrificial ritual.
Moments later, a large, tattered bag was "sacrificed" and appeared within the gray fog.
"What's this?" Klein muttered, picking up the note attached to the bag while habitually untying the string at its mouth.
PENSAMENTOS DOS CRIADORES 
ordinary_people
ordinary_people another chapter? 1 ko-fi .com /ordinaryppl
want to ask? discord. gg/ vFxQmxr8
Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder