The Reason

"Fifty Nalang!" That was just the fee for translating a notebook.

After the other party named that price, Gallo's breathing grew heavier. Fifty Nalang could completely turn his family's current situation around.

They could move away from the filthy, impoverished neighborhood on Valen Street. It was practically a slum in Tin City. His family lived in a drafty attic, with a tiny open-air balcony converted into a kitchen and no private washroom at all.

Every morning after getting up, Gallo had to carry the chamber pot out to the public washroom on Valen Street to empty it. Then he would come back and scoop a ladleful of cold water from the bucket on their balcony to wash up.

With a private washroom, his mother and sister would have an easier time going about their daily lives, too.

Ideally, they could move into an apartment nearby, with a living room and two bedrooms. His mother and sister could share one room, and there would be a private washroom. Oh, and there had to be a fireplace in the living room. Tin City was simply too cold in winter.

During winter, the only thing keeping them warm in the attic was a tiny charcoal brazier, which barely made any difference.

Gallo took a deep breath and asked Sacia seriously, "Fifty Nalang just to translate a notebook you happened to buy at a market on the Southern Continent? Miss Taylor, are you sure you want to make this deal with me?"

"Of course! If I make a discovery in this notebook, the benefits to me personally will far outweigh fifty Nalang. And you don't need to worry about getting paid." As if to put Gallo at ease so he would translate the notebook, Sacia took a paper voucher from the small handbag she carried with her.

She slid it across the table in front of Gallo and said, "It's a small-denomination voucher from Fengman Bank. You can take it to any Fengman Bank branch in Tin City and withdraw twenty Nalang directly.

"This twenty Nalang is your deposit, Mr. Gallo. The remaining thirty Nalang will be paid once you've finished translating the notebook."

Gallo was stunned. Twenty Nalang was almost a year's wages for an adult laborer working hard, yet in her hands, it was only a small-denomination voucher.

Even Stur, sitting beside him, was staring at it with wide eyes. He had never seen a bank voucher for twenty Nalang, either. Redeeming one required almost no paperwork. Unlike with a check, which involved all sorts of formalities at the bank, a check could take up to three business days to cash, and that was considered quick.

Gallo picked up the voucher. The paper felt somewhat stiff in his hand and had a distinctive scent of ink. It also bore Fengman Bank's logo, printed in gleaming gold.

Only after putting the notebook away did he slip the voucher into his pocket. Perhaps that would make him seem less mercenary, less concerned with money—or at least leave a good impression on Miss Sacia, the wealthy beauty sitting before him.

"I'll do my best to finish within two days. But translating is essentially rewriting the original content from my own perspective, so if you find any discrepancies later, feel free to come back to me. I'll try to read more books and materials about the history of the Southern Continent so I can refine the translation." A deal worth fifty Nalang made her one of Gallo's most important clients, so he had to provide good service afterward, too.

"Thank you, Mr. Gallo. I'll come by again in two days."

After saying goodbye to Gallo, Sacia stood up and left. Stur, sitting off to the side, looked rather awkward. When Sacia left, she didn't even spare him a second glance.

Stur, sitting there, didn't know whether he should follow her.

"Ahem." Gallo gave a light cough. It seemed the biggest beneficiary of Stur's encounter with Sacia was Gallo, who had landed a fifty-Nalang deal. If Stur looked upset in a moment, he would offer him a few words of comfort. Sacia hadn't even bothered to say goodbye to Stur.

Her manner of turning and walking straight off, as if she never wanted anything to do with Stur again, had been rather rude. But she was rich, and she got things done without beating around the bush. Gallo was quite pleased. If Stur felt slighted and complained about Sacia, Gallo would certainly speak up for her.

She hadn't been interested in him in the first place. A clean break like that was probably better for Stur, too. After all, wasn't it better to suffer a brief pain than a long one?

But to Gallo's surprise, Stur took out a one-Fenso coin and set it on the table in front of him.

"This is your fee for this morning's fortune-telling. Looks like your reading wasn't wrong after all." Stur sounded dejected.

Gallo picked up the one-Fenso coin and questioned him. "So for a reading that accurate, you're paying me one Fenso?"

Stur gave him a sidelong look. "You wrote 'Pay whatever you like!' on the sign!"

In the evening, when the Clock Tower struck five, Gallo packed everything up. A female employee helped carry his cardboard sign inside the café.

That way, Gallo wouldn't have to keep carrying the sign back and forth between home and work.

He had put the Fengman Bank voucher for twenty Nalang in his inner coat pocket, and tucked the leather notebook inside his jacket.

On his way back, Gallo made a point of looking around for a decent apartment to rent nearby. His family currently paid one Nalang and fifty Copper Nil a month on Valen Street. Renting around here would cost several times as much.

Really, as long as it had a kitchen, a washroom, and a fireplace, even a single bedroom would do. His mother and Lily could sleep in the bedroom, and he could sleep in the living room by himself.

"Hmm?"

As Gallo walked home, the feeling of being watched from the shadows suddenly intensified. It was completely different from the past few days, as if a spotlight had shone down on him. Whoever was following him was keeping a much closer eye on him now.

"Heh! It's not about money, and it's not because of my ability. I still don't know why." The feeling of being watched and followed weighed heavily on Gallo as he walked.

"The only thing I did differently today... was accept a bank voucher for twenty Nalang."

He shook his head to himself. "That probably isn't it. The only other thing is the notebook Miss Taylor gave me to translate."

Gallo slowed to a stop. Suddenly, he felt the notebook might connect several things he had overlooked. It was a notebook Miss Taylor had happened to buy at a market on the Southern Continent, and it was filled with records written in the hieroglyphs of the Ancient Askia Dynasty.

Gallo had looked at one of the pages, and he could understand everything written there. He had Professor Vanason's research materials on the Askia Dynasty's hieroglyphs from a few days ago to thank for that.

It suddenly occurred to Gallo that Miss Taylor's reason for wanting to be the first to discover what was in the notebook, without consulting an authority from the History Department, felt rather far-fetched.

He took the completely black Divination Coin out of his pocket and tossed it as he walked.

"Are the people following me in secret connected to the notebook Miss Taylor gave me?"

The coin rose to the level of his brows. As soon as it landed on the back of his hand, he covered it with his other hand.

When he slowly lifted his hand, the side of the coin with the number on it was facing up!