Chapter: 99
“Jack seems to dislike you?”
I was hesitant to throw away the necklace without making any effort, so I approached Arthur to figure out what was going on.
Since he was one of the few people who knew Jack, it made sense to ask him.
“He himself isn’t sure what he’s thinking. We haven’t talked since we entered the dungeon together. He’s blatantly avoiding me, so it’s awkward to get closer.”
The response I got for my question, which I asked with slight anticipation, was just a shrug.
Since our duel, Jack had been avoiding Arthur.
“Others probably feel the same. That guy feels like he’s hiding more and more in his room.”
What’s going on?
He wasn’t like this before we entered the dungeon.
Did almost dying turn into a trauma?
But then, why does he hate me?
I saved his life!
What’s the problem here?
sigh I really don’t understand anything.
What triggered Jack’s inferiority complex?
Is it me? Me?
Originally, the only person more talented than him was Arthur, but did another irregular show up and crush his spirits?
There really are no other variables, but then why won’t he accept the necklace?
In the game, even if the protagonist performed excellently and made others jealous, they still accepted the necklace!
It’s just giving me a headache, and I can’t figure anything out.
I wondered if things might change with time, so I tried talking to Jack again, but the result was the same.
He hated me, and he hated even more when I mentioned Zyle’s necklace.
As a result, Jack consistently ignored whatever I said.
I finally managed to get a necklace, and now I have to throw it away without being able to use it.
This thing means nothing unless it’s from the House of Burrow.
More precisely, it would have no meaning if it wasn’t Jack holding it.
I traded information with Alsatine to get this one, and I never imagined the necklace would end up being trash.
At least it’s fortunate that I could blame him for messing up since he made a mistake.
Sitting where Alsatine usually would, I crossed my legs and looked up.
Then I saw Alsatine with his head down.
‘Alsatine, do you know why I’m here?’
“Shoddy information peddler. You know why I’m here? Oh, wait. You’re so stupid that you might not know.”
Alsatine’s shoulders trembled, but he couldn’t retort.
This was clearly his mistake.
To be blunt, what did Alsatine do to help me get that necklace?
All he did was get chased by the Newman family and lose the item.
Getting the necklace was solely my achievement.
‘We can end our relationship here, and I wouldn’t mind.’
“I don’t want to talk to a shoddy information peddler like you anymore. You’re way too incompetent.”
Originally, the deal between Alsatine and me was that I’d give information, and he’d get the necklace.
But what if he completely lost his contribution to getting the necklace?
I would have no reason to give Alsatine information.
If the information I have isn’t what Alsatine wants, he wouldn’t cling to me like this.
He’d have treated it as an expense by now.
However, the information I have is priceless to Alsatine.
How could I let it go?
If he wanted to, he’d probably threaten me just to get it.
If I weren’t from the Changback family, I might have done something rough.
But what’s this?
I’m someone he can’t lay a finger on.
‘So, let me ask. What can you give me?’
“Then tell me. Why would I need to transact with a useless idiot like you? You’re supposedly an information peddler, can’t you do better than that? Huh?”
A term that terrorized numerous players in past RPG games flashed in my mind.
From the buyer’s perspective, it’s all about trembling limbs, breathy gasps, and baking heat in your head, but it’s different for the seller.
If there’s something enticing, they make the deal; if not, they just walk away.
Of course, doing this way can sour relationships, but I’m fine right now.
Soon enough, I’ll be getting the Crow’s Seal.
That means everything Alsatine could do can now be covered by the Newman family.
Whether Alsatine likes me or not is irrelevant.
I really don’t care about him anymore.
It’s more like, if he’s there, great; if not, no big deal.
“Do you have any requests?”
‘Why are you asking me that?’
“Why are you asking me? I’m not your mom, am I? Do I have to tell you everything? Hmm, sure. If you call me ‘Mommy~’ and cry, maybe I’ll think about it. Go for it. Huh? Sounds fun, right?”
“… No. I will think about it myself.”
I was a bit worried he might actually want me to call him that, but thankfully, that wasn’t the case.
Still, if I just randomly say to bring back some good items, who knows? He might bring me something utterly useless, so I should define the scope a bit.
Knowing that I could get almost anything through the Newman family, it makes sense to ask for something they can’t get.
The first thing that comes to mind is, of course.
‘I want information related to Jushin Church.’
“Nope. It’s too risky to leave it to a useless information peddler like you, so I’ll set the scope. I want information related to Jushin Church.”
“Exactly what information?”
‘It should be information worth opening my mouth for.’
“For a shoddy, incompetent, and clueless information peddler like you, I’ll tell you specially: bring me information worth opening my mouth for. I don’t know if a useless information peddler can manage that.”
The Newman family can’t gather information related to Jushin Church.
They’ve constantly crossed paths with the church while trying to operate in the underworld.
How could they find out that I lifted Agra’s curse just by looking at my necklace? They don’t have an information network back there!
But Alsatine is different.
He’s definitely part of the underworld but isn’t on bad terms with Jushin Church.
“Uh… No. Alright, I’ll do my best.”
Alsatine opened his mouth to say something but then shut it.
He likely knows he won’t give me a proper answer no matter what.
Don’t worry. Once you dig through the Jushin Church, you’ll naturally learn what information I want.
I believe that Phoebe won’t fall apart in the end, but she might waver in between.
At that time, I want to help her.
And while doing that, subtly raise my favorability.
If we can manage to include Phoebe as our party healer, that would be the perfect plan.
We already have a tank in the front line and a damage dealer at the back; now, we just need a healer, and we can put anyone in the last slot.
While looking at Alsatine with his head down, I was grinning with satisfaction until I heard a knock on the door.
“Lady Allen, Alsatine, may I interrupt for a moment?”
At the question, Alsatine glanced at me, asking if it was okay to let them in.
I nodded as a sign of agreement, so Alsatine called his subordinate.
“Come in.”
The subordinate of Alsatine, seeing me sitting in the middle and Alsatine with his head bowed before me, trembled a little and bent at the waist.
“Excuse me.”
‘What’s the matter?’
“What is it, you lousy junior?”
“There’s a message from the Newman family. They said they’ve obtained the medicine.”
Already? That was fast.
I thought it would take a few more days.
It seems Kurze Newman has been working hard to heal his son.
Then it won’t be long before Kurze Newman hands me the Crow’s Seal to fulfill our pact.
Hmm. What should I ask for first?
I was quite overwhelmed with the number of requests I wanted to make when Alsatine’s subordinate continued speaking quietly.
“The Newman family has requested that you visit the family for your son’s treatment.”
‘I see.’
“Really?”
The moment I heard that, I immediately understood.
They must have deliberately put that clause in there.
To ensure that I personally go and lift Agra’s curse.
[I didn’t expect you to call for me first.]
‘Indeed.’
Even if I go to the Newman family, will there be any changes?
I have no idea.
Even if I go to the Newman family, Kurze Newman wouldn’t dare to touch me.
Even if I lift Agra’s curse, it wouldn’t change anything.
Ah, but of course, Agra will probably hate me even more.
But that’s not a problem.
I’ve probably been hated by Agra since the moment I became Armadi’s apostle.
Look at the mess every time I step into the dungeon.
They wouldn’t go that far just for one curse.
To reach this level of frequency, I’d need to lift every curse Agra has in the continent.
If something like this happened when I was playing the game Soul Academy, I would’ve immediately reported a bug.
There are far fewer penalties for this much gain.
If I report the lifting of Agra’s curse to Jushin Church, my reputation will go up.
Of course, it’ll be easier to gain favor with the church’s members.
The necklace’s function will also strengthen.
Perhaps our sloppy lord Jushin will even give me a gift.
Based on past experience, if I mess with Agra, the sloppy lord usually claps and gives me something.
So heading to the Newman family, I might just be wasting a bit of my time.
But even that can be quickly done using Translocation Technique.
I have no idea what their intention is, but what does it even matter?
Even if they didn’t call, I had planned on going anyway, so they’ve given me an excuse.
I should be thanking them.
‘When should I go?’
“How long do I have to stay with that lousy family?”
“They said they would like you to come as soon as possible.”
Hmm. Is that so?
Let’s see.
It’s still the weekend afternoon, so even if I visit the Newman family, I’ll still have time left.
‘I’ll head over now.’
“I’m going now. Get ready, shoddy information peddler.”
Alright then, let’s go provoke Agra one more time.
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