People of Mairui Country really had experience dealing with robbers—if they could not resist, they had to cooperate obediently.
"Is that so?" The man chuckled again. "Then why don't you look up at me?"
The museum owner kept his head lowered and answered honestly, "I don't dare look up. I want to live."
"But I heard you were quite bold," the man said leisurely. There was another soft click of a lighter, followed by the faint scent of smoke. "You actually dared to put out a private bounty. You know, I especially admire brave people like you."
The museum owner's heart sank. What he feared most had come to pass. The grudge he had been most worried about had verified Murphy's Law.
But recalling his conversation with his younger brother, he gathered his courage and explained, "I only said it casually. I never actually acted on it. You caused me nearly thirty million in losses. If I didn't make some kind of gesture, people would look down on me. Don't you think so?"
"Heh." A crisp female voice rang out, followed by a cold sneer. "You put my lost property in your warehouse. Did you ask me, its owner, first?"
Hearing that, the museum owner could not help turning his head for a glance, but he saw nothing. His heart sank again. "Is that Miss Sophia? I'm terribly sorry. The Church seems to have a different view regarding ownership of the holy relic."
At that moment, he felt exceptionally grateful to his younger brother. Not only had his younger brother stopped the bounty, but he had also analyzed the other side's way of doing things for him—they seemed ruthless, but they were actually willing to reason things out.
So now, he tried to reason with them.
"Tch." Sophia snorted disdainfully.