Chapter 2

Chapter 2: PAYDAY

When Reid handed over the sleeping noble lady to his successor colleague, he deliberately placed a cup of honey water beside her.

This young viscountess had been murmuring Reid’s name all night long, and at this moment, she finally quieted down, with only her eyelashes still trembling restlessly.

Reid took a gentle step back, confirming that no one was paying attention before slipping into the corner of the wine cellar.

Here, expired beer barrels were piled high, and even the most diligent cleaners couldn’t be bothered to come.

Reid’s pupils narrowed as a faint blue light curtain, visible only to him, unfurled in response.

Reid had crossed over into this body two years ago, binding him to a system that rewarded him for completing others’ commissions.

As long as he accumulated a hundred points, he could draw random abilities from the system.

The bartending skill he had just used to sedate the noble lady was one of the rewards he drew from the system.

But in these two years since his crossing, he had only obtained this one ability.

It couldn’t be said that Reid wasn’t trying hard.

This system was very stingy; returning a lost child home was worth only 0.1 points, and helping a widow find her cat didn’t earn any points at all.

Today’s single point was equivalent to a month’s worth of trivial commissions.

Over the past two years, Reid had roughly figured out the system’s tendencies: the higher the status of the commissioner, the more difficult the commission, and the higher the reward points.

For example, despite the simplicity of the commission from that noble lady just now, the system still awarded 1 point because her signet ring was engraved with the golden flower symbolizing an earl.

Compared to his job as a tavern waiter, earning 1 point at once was considered a huge income.

Reid had thought about switching to a job with an easier way to earn system points, but he also inherited the memories of this body when he crossed over.

It seemed he was someone with significant influence.

The original owner was a prince of the Augustus Empire who had lost a power struggle for the throne and, after much hardship, escaped to the Victoria Kingdom, which was in a state of war with the Augustus Empire.

Reid instinctively touched his left rib, where the original owner bore a sword wound, and a vivid, bloody image suddenly surged in his memory:

A boy curled up in the bottom of a coal barge, swallowing the last half of a moldy biscuit dipped in seeped-in dirty water, while tightening his belt to combat the searing hunger in his stomach.

Now that belt had been tied to a stone along with bloodstained clothes and thrown by Reid into the Black Thorn River.

Reid did not have a citizen’s certificate from the Victoria Kingdom, so finding a job in a foreign land was indeed lucky, and he could not ask for too much.

But the good news was that he could gather the hundred points he needed for a second draw today.

Although there was still a two-point shortfall, today was the payday at the Afterlife Tavern.

Receiving his salary certainly counted as a symbolic completion of a commission.

When Reid’s fingertips touched the first coin, the system would undoubtedly pop up a prompt on time: 【Commission Completed · Monthly Salary Paid】.

In the past two years, it had never been delayed and had never been less than two points.

Even when the tavern was newly established and had lost so much that they had to dilute beer with water, this salary reward was consistently a solid two points.

Reid’s Adam’s apple bobbed.

Every time the Afterlife Tavern issued salaries, the points reward given by the system was even higher than that for completing a commission for a viscount’s daughter—

Even if the tavern owner claimed she was merely a bankrupt merchant’s daughter.

It was illogical.

But so what?

Reid thought to himself and closed the system interface.

After all, who doesn’t have their own secrets?

Standing in front of the Afterlife Tavern owner’s office door, Reid’s facial muscles, which should have relaxed, tensed up in an instant, no longer able to maintain the professional fake smile in front of the guests.

A wooden door couldn’t block the smoke billowing from inside.

Reid had worked at the Afterlife Tavern for two years but still couldn’t get used to the choking smoky smell.

Frowning slightly, he glanced at the brand-new no-smoking sign on the door.

In this Afterlife Tavern, there was only one person who dared to act so brazenly against the rules.

Reid pushed open the door, and smoke billowed out like a tide.

He squinted, catching sight of a figure by the window through the haze.

The culprit, Heloise, the tavern’s female owner, was slouched on a recliner, a cigarette dangling from her fingers, sparks flickering, illuminating her fingertips in a blood-red hue.

Even wrapped tightly in a low-key dark red dress from head to toe, her danger-evoking curves still couldn’t be concealed.

Like a curved dagger sheathed, poised to sever someone’s throat at any moment.

Reid quickly stepped forward, taking the half-burnt cigarette from her fingers, then opened the window and casually tossed the butt into the Black Thorn River outside.

“Heloise, your smoking ban announcement was just made a week ago,” Reid sighed.

The swirling smoke circled Heloise’s face, making her outline occasionally clear and then blurred, as if she might vanish along with the smoke.

Although Reid had caught her in the act, she showed no sign of disturbance and even sounded a bit disdainful:

“Little Reid,” Heloise said with a soft laugh, tilting her head, her hair falling to cover half her face, “You don’t actually believe what adults say, do you?”

“Come on, what do you want with me?”

Reid rolled his eyes, “I missed you, Heloise.”

“Is it me you miss, or your salary?”

She pointed at the table, where a gold coin was sitting, its edge glinting coldly.

Combined with the commission from selling a cup of spade A, Reid’s salary this month was quite substantial.

Reid grinned widely, his acting exaggerated: “How could I lie to you, Heloise?”

Heloise snorted but didn’t call him out.

“Go fix a drink.”

“It’s after hours.”

“I’m the boss,” Heloise paused and surprisingly added, “To keep you awake.”

“Drinking can keep you awake?”

“Less chatter! Don’t you want your salary?”

It was routine for Reid and Heloise to bicker, but Reid knew she was just putting on a show.

Aside from a few bad habits, Heloise was generous with money and didn’t constantly meddle.

Moreover, even if she required Reid to work overtime like today, she would secretly give him extra pay in his salary afterwards.

She could easily be called a good boss.

Two years ago, when she was still a novice who couldn’t even understand the accounts, it was Reid who helped her figure out her first profit.

And when Reid had first crossed over, standing dazed in front of the ruins of the tavern, she had tossed him a rag and said:

“Clean it up, you brat; from now on, this is your home.”

Reid turned towards the door, and Heloise’s rare soft voice called out from behind—

“Reid.”

He looked back.

Through the smoke, Heloise’s gaze was unusually serious, and in her fingers was an additional gold coin, gleaming coldly.

“There’s a foolish girl from a duke’s house looking for a lover,” she flicked the gold coin towards Reid, “I recommended you.”

“A lover?” Reid frowned slightly, “What are the requirements?”

“Be obedient and sensible.”

“Well, what if she wants me to act for real…”

“Injury at work.”