Chapter 711: An Uneasy Night (3k)
“There’s another way?”
Upon hearing this, Su Jiu was slightly stunned. She didn’t quite understand what the other party meant. After understanding the mission process and the general purpose of the “poacher” from Dean Zi, she guessed that some big shot wanted to contract a monster beast and therefore needed the power of contract, leading to an unregulated hunt.
“Yes, this method requires the beast pet to enter a state of suspended animation. If the connection with the original owner is not deep, an alchemical artifact can be used to sever the contract power between the two. Then, the beast pet is moved a great distance from its original owner. After about ten days, the beast pet will regain its freedom.”
Wenders didn’t play coy; he directly shared what he knew with Su Jiu. Then, he continued with a smile, “This method is something I remember some black magicians with inheritances would use. In the Middle Ages, they specifically developed this method for powerful nobles, usually serving nobles who wanted to forcefully seize things.”
E Huo, listening to their conversation, yawned. Bored, he looked towards the door and saw some university students handing out stacks of flyers.
“Actually, I don’t think this is much different from the poachers. One kills to obtain the power of contract, and the other steals the beast pet itself.”
After a moment of thought, Su Jiu felt that she still had to investigate with those people to understand the actual situation. For now, she could only rely on speculation.
Wenders nodded, agreeing.
She and Wenders learned more about the profession of “black magician” and discovered that it was not very popular in modern times. Firstly, it did not align with the mainstream professions of modern society. Secondly, it was similar to the “quack doctors” of the past, touching upon taboo topics and not being recognized by the state.
Su Jiu didn’t take this profession too seriously, as the probability was too low. Even black magicians wouldn’t bother with such thieving activities. Therefore, the first possibility, “obtaining the power of contract,” was the most likely.
…
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that kid Bai Ming. I wonder where he’s off gallivanting. I remember that when I checked if this book was good in my past life, the cover of the next volume had an illustration similar to ‘The Old Man and the Sea.'”
After bidding farewell to the two, Su Jiu walked towards a nearby inn. As she walked, she noticed the streets were decorated with lanterns and festive lights, with some Western-style decorations. Ghost Face stuck to the billboard, looking lifelike. Beside the streetlights were some carved smiling pumpkins, emitting faint glows, and even a swaying alchemical streetlight made “Duang Duang” sounds.
“Mommy, this thing is so fun!”
This made E Huo, who had grown up with Su Jiu in Dragon Country, very curious. He couldn’t help but walk over and touch the streetlight.
“Ah!”
Unexpectedly, a few Gugu Birds appeared with a “bang,” startling the little girl, who almost unleashed her strength and destroyed the entire area. Fortunately, Su Jiu stopped her in time, pressing her hand against the girl’s subtly flexing right hand.
It was somewhat like the meme “[Brother, listen to my advice.jpg].”
Glancing at a white shadow spreading its wings towards the sky, Su Jiu felt a sense of novelty. Upon arriving at the inn, she was informed by the receptionist with an apologetic smile that it was fully booked.
“I apologize, but a large circus has come to perform here recently, and many people from surrounding cities have come to watch. The local tour performance just ended, and the crowd has not yet dispersed…”
Su Jiu was not too surprised by this outcome. Given how grand the decorations were, it was normal for there to be many people. After visiting a few more inns, she found that most of them were the same, which made her a little frustrated.
“My luck is really bad today.”
Sighing, Su Jiu had no choice but to hold E Huo’s hand and find a guesthouse. She turned into an alley and walked through the narrow and dim path. As she was walking through a more secluded area, she encountered some young thugs following her. They had clearly coordinated their actions, with some using external qi to block out the sounds from the outside world.
“I’ve never seen such a beautiful woman come to a place like this…”
The leading young man, wearing tight pants, chuckled and slowly approached Su Jiu, his eyes filled with possessiveness. Such beautiful girls were only found at Magical Capital University, but they wouldn’t dare provoke Magical Capital University.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve encountered trouble like this.”
With a glance at the malicious gazes coming from behind her, Su Jiu’s eyebrows shot up. She slowly stopped, intending to teach them a lesson.
“Please be gentlemen.”
However, at this moment, a voice came, a bit low, speaking in non-standard Dragon Country language. Su Jiu turned her head towards a dim streetlight.
She saw a Western-faced man wearing a black fedora and a light brown leather jacket climbing a ladder, carrying something resembling a kerosene lamp, as if he were refueling and lighting the streetlight.
The young thugs were first stunned when they saw this white man. They turned to look at the young man, who was an advanced stage warrior, as if asking for instructions.
“Who do you think you are…”
The leading youth’s face turned slightly grim. Just as he was about to take half a step forward, he suddenly stopped. He realized that several blue flames had suddenly ignited around him. The flames flickered, as if warning him that if he took a few more steps, unfriendly things would happen.
The young thugs felt the pressure emanating from the flames. Instantly, they turned and fled, without a moment’s hesitation.
“Bang!”
The leading youth’s gaze fell on the white man’s face. He wanted to say something, but the flames in front of him suddenly exploded. He leaped up and, without bothering to issue any threats, hurriedly fled.
Su Jiu’s gaze fell upon the place where the flames had exploded. She saw fireworks scatter, and a flock of carrion crows shot out, soaring into the sky, just like magic.
“Thank you.”
Su Jiu thanked the gentlemanly dressed Western man.
“Miss, it’s very dangerous for you to come to an alley like this alone.”
The white man smiled but didn’t pay her any more attention. Instead, he transferred the lantern he was holding to the streetlight. Warmth spread slowly with the lighting of the streetlight, bringing some warmth to the season, which was still spring.
“Uncle, what are you doing?”
As she passed the streetlight, Su Jiu stopped and curiously asked the white man who was slowly descending the iron ladder. She could feel a sense of being watched from the streetlight, as if it were a surveillance camera. Why was this lamplighter lighting this seemingly temporary streetlight in such a narrow alley?
“Lighting the lamps…”
Descending the iron ladder, the white man moved slowly and elegantly, like an old gentleman from Western Europe. He continued to speak unhurriedly, “Too many dark corners hide unseen dangers. Just like just now, if someone were to suffer misfortune because of our circus performance, we would be deeply sorry.”
After he completely descended the iron ladder, he smiled again and handed Su Jiu a flyer. He took off his hat and said with a smile, “Little Monster Circus welcomes you.”
“Circus?”
After taking the flyer, Su Jiu scanned it and noticed many monsters in costumes. At the center, there seemed to be a youth in a magician’s hat whose gender was indistinguishable.
Continuing to walk with E Huo, her phone’s light illuminated her face. She searched online for information about this circus and discovered that it was a large international circus.
“Wait, could it be…”
Just as she was wondering if this circus was related to the missing beast pets, she suddenly saw the “Magic City Cultural Festival.” Many international performers had been invited to this area.
Su Jiu pouted. She knew it wouldn’t be that simple, otherwise, they wouldn’t have established a special task force for phased investigations. She put the flyer in her pocket and headed towards the guesthouse.
She wasn’t particularly interested in watching the circus at night, as she was more of a homebody. Compared to lively places like the circus, she preferred playing games and watching anime.
The young girl lay on the guesthouse sofa wrapped in a bath towel, setting the air conditioner to around 28°C. She lightly sipped the wine, her eyes hazy as she watched “Doraemon” on television. She then turned to look at E Huo eating snacks, seemingly returning to her childhood.
“Mmm… I should have bought some barbecue.”
With the air conditioner on, the night wasn’t too cold. The warm breeze and the wine made the girl feel a bit drowsy. She planned to return to Huainan to see Xiao Yezi after this trip.
The next day, the white clouds still drifted leisurely, but the morning wind was a bit chilly. The young girl spread out her bath towel, smiling sweetly. She was wearing only black lace underwear, and her hair obscured her chest, leaving only a faint outline.
“Dududu!!”
“Who is it!”
Smacking her lips, Su Jiu fumbled for her phone. When she got it, she saw 99+ new group messages and Zi Yi repeatedly calling her, instantly sobering her up.
“I forgot, I have to go to Lanhai City today!”
After washing up, Su Jiu changed into an outfit similar to Lin’s: a beige sweater paired with hot pants and black stockings. She quickly replied to messages from both sides, then tugged E Huo, who was still playing on his phone, and muttered,
“You woke up early and just played games here, you didn’t even call me!”
As for why she liked wearing stockings, they were convenient for fighting, had good elasticity, and wouldn’t easily break, causing embarrassing situations.
The guesthouse was not far from the school. Su Jiu sent her location to Zi Yi. After waiting a few minutes, she saw a girl in a standard priest’s uniform running over.
“Student Su, are we going to Lanhai City now?”
The latter looked around and asked. The arrogance in her speech was gone. A small notebook was clipped to her waist, convenient for recording Su Jiu’s words.
Su Jiu nodded and led her towards the exit. When they reached the intersection to catch a ride, she suddenly saw many Law Enforcement Chapel Members walking around, questioning people step by step. She felt confused.
“What are these people doing?”
“The commotion last night was so big, do you not know, Student Su, in Magic City?”
Zi Yi blinked her eyes, as if genuinely seeing the innocence of a university student in Su Jiu’s eyes. She took out her phone, found some news, and said word by word:
“Last night, the new collection of the Mayor of Magic City was poached.”
