Tavern

Chapter 35

To be honest.

Han Dong had made a slight miscalculation with this Police Bureau incident.

Frightening the criminals in the underground holding cells had actually been deliberate on Han Dong's part... the purpose, naturally, had been to indirectly confirm that he was a Returner.

But he had not expected to happen upon the Black Knight who had escorted him yesterday.

This was a high-ranking individual.

Having successfully graduated from the Royal Knights Academy and been selected for the Black Rose Knights, one of the Twelve Knight Orders, Knight Barton far surpassed Han Dong, a Knight-Errant, in both strength and status—and was far above the local Police Commissioner as well.

Under Barton Forges's questioning,

information regarding the Faceless Head might be exposed. It would depend on Han Dong's ability to adapt.

Their subsequent conversation did not continue on the streets crawling with rats and insects, where sewage flowed everywhere.

They mounted the mechanical Black Horse once more.

Knight Barton took him to the neighboring Gana Commoner District.

Though it was also one of the four major Slums, its public safety, environment, and architectural layout were far better than those of the Samael District... it ranked first among the four major Slums.

Hammer and Fire Tavern

The Black Horse stopped before the uniquely styled tavern.

Its exterior walls were made of black iron, with intricate metal pipes embedded across their surface, along with a massive cylindrical chimney rising from the Back Kitchen.

Had several stubbled men reeking of alcohol not emerged from the entrance, Han Dong would have mistaken this place for a Blacksmith Shop.

The Black Horse's metallic body was covered with a cloth before it was left in the stable behind the tavern, where someone was assigned to watch over it.

After leaving the stable, Barton Forges removed his seemingly heavy black iron armor and changed into a plain linen shirt and a small leather vest.

The noble majesty he had radiated as a knight vanished completely.

At this moment, Barton Forges blended perfectly into the commoner district. Strangers would never recognize his true identity.

"Just call me Barton here. There's no need for formal honorifics."

"Alright!"

"Come have a seat in the tavern with me."

Pushing open the black iron tavern doors, Han Dong found that most of those inside were plainly dressed drinkers—bald, fat-eared men with bulging bellies, each clutching a huge mug of malt beer.

As they approached the bar, a voice thick with a country accent rang out:

"Old friend Barton, it's been a long time!

I thought you'd gone 'up there' and forgotten about this place... I was afraid your reputation would scare off my customers, so I reserved a private room in the back just for you."

The speaker was the tavern owner, a man with a thick goatee.

"Old John, business is as good as ever."

Old John leaned closer and spoke quietly.

"How could it not be? My tavern once produced a noble and powerful Black Rose Knight! Look, your portraits are pasted all around, and there's even a metal figurine of you on the bar.

Haha, don't mind me using you for advertising behind your back."

"Use it as you please... I don't have much time outside this time. Take us to the private room."

"Sure."

Old John was warm and bold. On the way to the private room, he asked the frail-looking Han Dong, "What does this weak little friend of yours do? Don't tell me he's your attendant?"

"He's a Knight-Errant who just became a Returner. Like me, he came from the commoner class, though he's from the Samael District."

"The Samael District?"

Han Dong replied with a smile, "Yes... my name is Valen Nicholas."

Old John looked Han Dong over from head to toe, then suddenly stroked his beard and burst into laughter.

"Haha, these old eyes of mine can't see much, but it's truly impressive that you crawled out of the lowest-level Samael District!

Young man... you have to try this tavern's signature Hammer Spirit today. As long as your body can handle it, Old John will consider you a friend for life!

If you come here to drink in the future, everything will be forty percent off."

"Heh, I'll give it a try..."

Han Dong truly did not think this body of his could handle much. If he drank too much and suffered liver failure later, that would be troublesome.

The sealed black iron private room could be considered luxurious.

A beast-fur carpet,

antler decorations,

and kerosene lamps.

Old John personally delivered two enormous cups of Hammer Spirit.

The high-proof malt liquor was served in gigantic hammer-shaped containers... merely staring at his cup made Han Dong's body feel uncomfortable.

It also came with local specialties such as peppered pork sausages and fried cod strips, delicious snacks to go with the alcohol.

"Old John, I have private matters to discuss with this friend."

"Understood... if you need anything, just mention my name."

The door was locked.

After some simple food and drink, the conversation returned to the main subject.

"Returners rarely appear in the Slums, and I'm personally very curious about how you managed it... I originally intended to learn about your past through local records.

Since we happened to meet, I'll ask you directly.

Can you tell me about your abilities in private? After all, once you enter the academy, there will be people assigned to question you as well. I can help you prepare some 'confidential work' in advance."

These words expressed Barton's stance. He seemed to be on Han Dong's side... but Han Dong still held something back.

"Yes. Before entering Destiny Space, I taught myself a little mysticism."

"Taught yourself?" Barton did not quite believe him. "You never received an education, did you?"

"My mother taught me how to read... I was born in poor health and couldn't go out to work. I had nothing to do at home every day... so I read to pass the time.

By chance, I discovered that a scrap station not far from my home had quite a few discarded books that had come down from above. They were very cheap.

I could find books like 'A Brief Discussion on the Development of Modern Mysticism,' 'An Overview of Mysticism,' and 'Astrological Theory.'

I also tried copying secret texts and drawing magic circles on rough paper... about a year ago, I read until late at night. After putting down my book and falling asleep, I had a very strange dream.

I couldn't remember the dream's details. I only vaguely remembered that it had been chaotic, like various fragments pieced together.

After waking up, there was an 'energy' inside my brain."

After hearing this explanation, Barton Forges went from complete disbelief to uncertainty.

Han Dong continued, "Through physical contact with my palms, I can issue an instruction on the Consciousness Layer to a target. The effect is not particularly strong—I cannot change a person's beliefs, only implant a subconscious suggestion.

This technique allowed me to smoothly approach the people involved during Destiny Events and quickly establish relationships.

Later, the allocation of Destiny Points made me more familiar with this technique.

At the Police Bureau earlier, I used contact to quickly plant Fear Seeds in those people's minds. They looked at me as though they had seen a demon, frightened out of their wits.

That is roughly the situation."

At the same time.

In the Samael District, inside Han Dong's home.

A stealth operative cloaked in shadows was secretly inspecting his room.

During the search, the operative found a large number of old books related to mysticism. The books were filled with notes, and several crudely drawn magic circles were found in a drawer.

Two days earlier, none of these books had existed in Nicholas's room.

Han Dong had instructed his younger sister Nina to do all of this. Such old discarded books were easy to find at recycling stations and could be bought with a small amount of money.

Han Dong had been considering how to conceal the matter of the Faceless Head.

Since it was related to mysticism, he could create the illusion that he had become skilled through self-study... Han Dong was now a Mysticism Apprentice. As long as his story matched the circumstances in his room, even if those above wanted to investigate, it would be difficult for them to uncover the real issue.