Chapter 77: Tidying Up Some Loose Ends

Michelle dragged Reina outta the "Musket Inn."

Roy, finally handing Reina off, felt like a weight was lifted off his shoulders.

He never thought a simple trial guide gig would turn into such a wild ride. After a bunch of intense fights and getting banged up pretty bad, he was beat.

Figuring Michelle and the gang leaders had it all under control, Roy decided to crash at the inn for the night.

But instead of Room 304, he snagged a new room next door.

Just in case things went sideways and someone came looking for him, he wanted a bit of a buffer.

Next morning, Roy woke up from his meditation right on time.

Checked the clock; time for the daily patrol. He didn't have much to pack, so after making sure his musket was loaded, he headed out.

No signs of anyone messing with Room 304 next door, so Roy figured everything was cool.

At seven sharp, at the rundown building.

The Cross Association crew for Green Street was already there.

Roy gave a nod to a few of the old-timers and then squatted on the curb to catch their gossip.

"Yo, did you hear? Something big went down at the courtyard house yesterday. A bunch of pros from the inner city showed up, and it was wild."

"Yeah, I heard. They say dozens of troop carriers rolled in, like a war was about to pop off."

"What's up with that? Think some crazy mutated monster showed up underground?"

"No clue. Heard it's top secret, and a bunch of gang leaders were there."

Roy just listened, keeping his mouth shut.

Not many knew about his gig as a guide for the Dark Tower Academy trial group, and with all the chaos, info was locked down tight.

No one had a clue that Roy, one of the key players, was squatting right next to them.

Soon enough, Captain Kai rolled up on his motorcycle, looking rushed.

First time Roy could remember him being late. Kai said he just got back from HQ.

Without much chit-chat, they kicked off their daily patrol.

The gang members kept flirting and joking with the streetwalkers, then wandered through bar street and casino street.

Kai found a moment to walk next to Roy, saying, "Sorry, man. Didn't think this would turn into such a mess."

"No biggie."

Roy grinned.

Kai meant well. If things hadn't gone sideways, this mission would've been a sweet payday.

Kai didn't seem to know the whole story and thought Roy was just some bystander in the mess. He pursed his lips and said, "Man, those rich folks from the inner city are cutthroat. Heard it was all 'cause of some family feud. They sent a hitman to take out a student, which freaked out the trial group and caused all that chaos. Lucky nothing major went down. If it had, since it happened on Green Street, we'd be in deep trouble too."

Roy just nodded, keeping his mouth shut.

Looked like the bigwigs wanted to keep the scandal under wraps, so even Kai didn't know it was the Reyes family's eldest daughter, Reina, who was the target. Plus, two students and three mentors had died, but that news was locked down tight.

Kai, thinking the topic was a drag, said, "Forget it, man. The bosses don't want us talking about this stuff."

After a pause, he looked at Roy and asked, "Bro, you still planning to hit up the Crimson Fortress?"

Roy grinned and nodded, "Yep. Heard tonight's gladiator match at the Crimson Fortress is gonna be wild. Gotta check it out."

Kai pursed his lips, looking bored, and said, "I probably can't make it. The bosses said there might be big shake-ups 'cause of yesterday, so I gotta patrol more."

Roy, knowing Kai well, joked, "Well, you go do your patrol, and I'll go enjoy the match."

Kai just shook his head, speechless.

That's the downside of being a captain—too many responsibilities.

This was also why Roy had turned down Kai's offer to promote him to vice-captain, with a shot at becoming captain later.

Roy was a regular at the gladiator arena. He strolled into the casino, greeted some familiar faces, and then headed to his usual spot by the octagon.

Listening to the betting girl’s hints, he found out there'd be three back-to-back gladiator matches tonight, featuring pros from the inner city.

Most folks didn't know the backstory and were just there for the thrill.

Roy figured that after the botched hit on Reina, the Reyes family was cleaning house. This kind of action would probably keep going for a while.

Then Roy got down to his usual "work"—betting, cheering, and raking in the rewards.

For some reason, Roy wasn't all that into watching the matches today.

Later, he realized it was probably 'cause the "harvest" from the corpses had dulled his excitement.

In the underground, he had snagged soul fragments from two Dark Tower Academy assistants, a second-tier pro, and an elite student, gaining a ton of knowledge.

Compared to those high-quality fragments, the regular corpses in the gladiator arena, which weren't even pros, didn't offer much of a thrill.

It was like hitting the jackpot a bunch of times and then trying to get hyped over pocket change.

But while he was gambling, Roy felt something soft and warm against his arm. He turned and saw Michelle, all excited, leaning in close.

Without missing a beat, Michelle threw her arm around Roy's shoulder and asked, "Roy, who do you think's gonna win the next match?"

Feeling chill, Roy replied, "I'm putting my money on the Red Team."

Hearing that, Michelle called over the betting girl and shouted, "Red Team, 10,000 copper coins."

Roy was used to this; Michelle was probably trying out her so-called mystical betting technique again.

Before the gladiator match kicked off, Michelle pulled out a fancy silver mechanical box and handed it to Roy. "Here, take this."

Roy gave her a puzzled look but took the box.

It was heavy, hinting at something valuable inside.

Michelle explained, "It's a thank-you gift from Reina for looking out for her in the underground."

Roy, getting the gist, was curious about what a top-tier heiress like Reina would give as a thank-you. Just as he was about to open it, Michelle stopped him.

She leaned in close and whispered, "If you open this here and people find out what you have, you'll probably be dead in the street by tomorrow."

The stakes were that high.

Hearing this, Roy got even more curious about what was inside the box.

He didn't know what it was, but it was clearly something big.

But Michelle, never one to beat around the bush, spilled the beans. "That girl doesn't know how to pick gifts. If these two famous guns show up in the outer city, who knows how many murders they'll cause."

"Famous guns."

Roy's eyes lit up, thinking: Reina really knows her stuff.

If it were anything else, he might not care much. But "famous guns" had an inexplicable allure for a gunslinger.

Plus, if Michelle thought these guns were a big deal, they had to be something special.

At that moment, Michelle pulled out another box.

This time, she didn't hide it but opened a corner to reveal green bills. "This is 500,000 copper coins. Another thank-you gift from Reina."

She paused and added, "Young Master Charlie from the Leonard family also sent a message, asking if you'd be interested in becoming his personal bodyguard in the inner city."

Looking at the box of money, Roy immediately thought of that chubby student who looked like he was wearing a swim ring.

Charlie, always the charmer, never disappoints.

Roy accepted the box of money and said, "I'll take the gifts, but I'll pass on being a bodyguard."

Michelle raised an eyebrow and said, "I knew you wouldn't be interested, so I turned him down for you. Being a bodyguard in the inner city is nothing compared to hanging out with me."

Roy just smiled and kept quiet.

He had initially pegged Michelle as just another gang leader, but now that he knew she was Reina's aunt, he realized her background was way more complicated.

But he didn't dig. No need to stir up any old drama for Michelle.

By this time, the gladiator match had wrapped up.

The Blue Team won, totally against Roy's prediction.

Michelle lost 10,000 copper coins, pursed her lips, and looked at Roy again. "Who you betting on next?"

Knowing he couldn't change her mind, Roy said, "Still the Red Team."

Michelle raised an eyebrow, called over the betting girl, and doubled down in the opposite direction. "Blue Team, 20,000 copper coins!"

Roy couldn't help but laugh. Michelle was probably betting against the unlucky guy.

During the break, Michelle said, "Everything's mostly sorted. Reina took all the heat and even sent folks to clean up the mess in the underground. But there was some trouble during the cleanup; a nasty mutated monster showed up, causing a lot of casualties. The courtyard house's underground entrance is sealed off now, and no one's allowed near it."

Hearing this, Roy felt a wave of relief.

The whole deal with killing Jack hadn't come to light, and no one from the inner city had come knocking. Best outcome he could hope for.

From now on, he'd just be a low-key member of the Cross Association on Green Street, a nobody under Kai's command.

Michelle, with a slightly teasing look, glanced at Roy and said, "I heard that an old second-tier mentor and two assistant mentors from the elite class of Dark Tower Academy died in the underground. So, people are speculating that there must have been at least a second-tier professional among the assassins. But they still couldn't kill Reina."

Roy listened with a calm expression, like it had nothing to do with him.

It was only natural for outsiders to make such guesses. The assassins wouldn't have made a move unless they were sure they could pull it off, so there had to be second-tier pros involved.

But the fact that the assassins, despite being so well-prepared, failed to kill Reina made the whole thing seem "bizarre."

Michelle dropped her probing look, seemingly uninterested in the actual truth, and smiled. "Now that high-level mutated monsters have been discovered in the underground, everyone has concluded that the problem probably lies with those monsters."

Roy feigned a look of realization.

It made sense; no one would suspect an ordinary gang member from the outer city of being able to handle a team of assassins that included at least a second-tier professional. Even if Roy was a "gun expert."

This was good; the monsters took the blame, and the logical gaps in the story were filled.