Sudden Performance

Sudden Performance

Kind people were easily bullied in the East End, and it was even less likely for gang members there to be kind.

So when Hobart and Xue saw DakHorm's genial smile, they knew it was a disguise.

Hobart said to DakHorm, "If you can take us to Zachary, I can promise that he will never again interfere with your becoming the boss of the Azalea Bar. I believe that is the best price."

DakHorm shook his head, grinning as he bargained. "Honored sir, I am a very loyal man to Boss Zachary. I will only betray him if I see tangible benefits."

Hobart's mouth twitched. Does that mean I need to pay more?

He said, "All right, all right. How about 2 Pounds?"

"10 Pounds!"

Hobart smiled. "Zachary's life is not even worth that much. 3 Pounds!"

"Honored sir, as a gentleman, you should not argue with a lowly person like me over such a small sum. 8 Pounds, no less. Any lower, and my conscience will hurt."

"Who told you I was a gentleman? You are the gentleman! Your whole family is gentlemen! 5 Pounds, not one Penny more." This time, he was spending his own money, so Hobart was far less generous than when he had been spending the Law Firm's funds.

Xue watched Hobart disregard all decorum as he bargained with DakHorm. Hadn't she heard that lawyers were all rich? Why did this lawyer seem so poor?

Then she thought of how she, too, was saving money to buy the Potion Recipe for Sequence 8, "Sheriff." It seemed poverty was a common affliction among Wild Extraordinaries.

While Xue was musing, Hobart and DakHorm concluded their friendly negotiations. Zachary's hiding place was sold for 5 Pounds 10 Sols, payable immediately upon meeting Zachary himself.

A thin layer of cold sweat appeared on DakHorm's face. "I have never seen a gentleman as skilled at bargaining as you, sir. I have one small request: you do not need to pay me the commission immediately, but please let me see your wallet to prove that you can afford it."

Somewhat impatiently, Hobart took out a 5 Pound banknote and a 1 Pound banknote. "Hurry up. It will be dark if we keep dawdling."

"As you wish." Upon seeing the money, DakHorm's genial smile reappeared. "Please follow me."

As he led Hobart and Xue onward, he introduced them to the streets and distinctive features of the East End in a somewhat humble manner.

After walking for several minutes, DakHorm brought them to a small circular courtyard.

Several families lived in this courtyard. Upon seeing DakHorm, they hurriedly threw down the clothes they were washing or the matchboxes they were halfway through pasting, then ran back into their homes and shut their doors and windows.

DakHorm's expression changed as he called coldly, "Come in, all of you!"

More than a dozen thugs appeared outside the courtyard gate, blocking the entrance completely.

This courtyard was quite distinctive. Its walls were high, and it had only one exit, as though it had been made specifically to provide these thugs with a convenient place for extortion.

Some of them Smirked as they looked Xue up and down, while others glared viciously at Hobart, as if trying to intimidate him with their stares.

DakHorm smiled at Hobart. "My apologies, sir, but I would like a larger commission. I do not wish to use force against you or this young lady, so please hand over all the money and valuables on you. Please also leave behind that respectable trench coat, your finely tailored shirt, and your genuine leather wallet. To preserve your dignity, we will leave you a pair of trousers."

Hobart immediately understood. DakHorm might not have known anything about Zachary's whereabouts at all. His pretense of betraying Zachary had merely been a way to determine whether Hobart carried cash worth robbing.

Because Hobart had bargained with him, DakHorm suspected that he might be poor, so he had specifically checked Hobart's wallet.

If they had been ordinary people, they would certainly have suffered a setback this time. But neither Hobart nor Xue panicked.

Hobart handed his cane to Xue. "Miss Arbiter, I think you need a suitable weapon."

Xue accepted the cane. "What about you?"

Hobart drew a Revolver from his holster. "My marksmanship is not very good, but at this distance, six bullets should be enough to deal with two or three enemies. Please buy me time to reload."

When Hobart drew his gun, DakHorm's subordinates visibly panicked.

As gang members, they had handguns too, but they were not carrying them because none of them had a Gun License. Carrying a gun through the streets in broad daylight would be the same as handing money to the police.

More importantly, DakHorm had never expected Hobart to have a handgun. This was Backlund—the wealthier the area, the better the security. Besides, Gun Licenses were not easy to obtain. In middle-class areas like Jowood District and St. George's District, few people owned guns.

Queens and the West End had more Tycoons and Nobles, and they generally possessed Gun Licenses as well. But noble lords and Tycoons would never come to the East End.

To DakHorm and his men, a "prey" with a gun was absolutely a Black Swan Event.

"He only has one gun!" DakHorm quickly came to his senses. "But he has dozens of Pounds in cash on him, worth more than all your lives! Rush him and take the gun!"

Bang! Hobart fired. The bullet grazed past the thugs' hair and embedded itself in the wall. "That shot was only a warning. The next one will be aimed at your heads!"

A layer of cold sweat had already formed on his palms. It was his first time firing a gun at living people, and he was still somewhat nervous.

Fortunately, that shot completely shattered the thugs' will to fight. They scrambled to flee through the courtyard gate, wishing their parents had given them two more legs.

DakHorm also turned to run, but Xue was already striding forward with the cane in hand. She swung it at DakHorm's back and knocked him to the ground.

At Sequence 9, the Arbiter pathway already granted exceptional combat ability, while the Lawyer's Sequence 9 only strengthened one's tongue.

Hobart also stepped forward quickly and pointed his handgun at DakHorm. Suddenly, an idea occurred to him. "Mr. DakHorm, everything that just happened is evidence of your extortion. I am filing a lawsuit with Miss Arbiter Xue. Under the relevant provisions of criminal law, you will face two to five years in prison. If you have any objections, you may hire a Lawyer to speak with me."

DakHorm, sitting on the ground with his hands raised, was dumbfounded. "Huh? Huh?"

Xue also looked at Hobart strangely, unable to understand what he was doing. Hobart continued, "Given that the procedures for punishing DakHorm involve many impracticalities, I recommend a simplified resolution: break one of DakHorm's legs. Miss Arbiter, please make the final arbitration."

Xue thought this was Hobart's way of interrogating him. "My arbitration is this: your punishment proposal is precise. Execute it immediately!"

Hobart took a deep breath in intoxication. For the first time, he felt signs that his Potion was loosening.

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