Of Course, We Split the Money

Qi Yan and Elfman went next door, where the mayor warmly came forward to greet them.

"Mr. Qi Yan, you're awake! Thanks to you and Mr. Elfman last night, otherwise I would have been killed."

The mayor was immensely grateful to Qi Yan. He had witnessed the entire battle last night. Those Ancient Knight Order members from the Magic Council had looked formidable, yet so many of them had been wiped out by the Phantom Thief Guild. They had been completely unreliable.

Luckily, Qi Yan had displayed his might and dealt with every one of them. Otherwise, the mayor would have been chopped into pieces by now.

Qi Yan said righteously, "No need to thank me, Mr. Mayor. You are our client. Protecting our clients is the foremost duty of us mages from the Fairy Tail Guild."

"What an outstanding mage!"

The mayor then walked to the table and placed a chest of money on it.

"Mr. Qi Yan, this is the payment for this commission. Please count it."

Qi Yan's eyes immediately lit up at the sight of so much money. Elfman was not much better. He only earned a little over 100,000 J from an ordinary job, and even difficult ones paid just over 200,000 J. At most, he could only take on four or five jobs a month.

Seven million J. Even if he worked himself to death without eating or drinking for an entire year, he would not earn that much. Seeing 7 million J earned in one go was truly shocking.

"Your Honor is too kind. Of course, we trust you, Mr. Mayor."

Though Qi Yan said that, his hands were not idle. He directly picked up the money chest, and even his form of address had changed from Mr. Mayor to Your Honor.

The mayor was delighted. "Hahaha! If you two are not in a hurry, why not stay in the city for a few more days? I would like to properly entertain my saviors."

Qi Yan waved his hand. "We appreciate your kindness, Your Honor, but there's no need for hospitality. We need to return to the guild quickly and report the completion of the mission. If we stay away too long, everyone at the guild will worry. Besides, something this serious happened here, so you must have much to deal with. Maybe next time!"

"Very well! Then I won't keep you any longer. Safe travels to you both."

"Then we'll be leaving. If anything like this happens again, remember to come to the Fairy Tail Guild!"

The mayor shook his head with a bitter smile. "I don't want to encounter anything like this again."

Once was enough. If it happened again, his heart would not be able to take it.

Qi Yan and Elfman left by carriage.

Inside the carriage, Qi Yan opened the money chest. The gleaming banknotes within were dazzling.

"Gulp!"

Both of them swallowed involuntarily. They had never seen so much money before.

Qi Yan took out half and placed it directly into Elfman's arms.

"Huh? Qi Yan, what are you doing?"

Elfman held the money, looking utterly dazed.

"What am I doing? What do you mean, what am I doing? Of course, we're splitting the money!"

"Spl-spl-splitting the money?!"

Hearing Qi Yan's words, Elfman was completely stunned, and he began to stammer.

"Of course! You came out on this mission with me, so naturally we split the payment after we get it!"

Qi Yan said it as if it were only natural.

"No, no, no! That's not right! I was only guiding a newcomer, not teaming up for a mission. Besides, I didn't do anything on this mission. You completed it all by yourself. I can't take the money!"

Elfman hurriedly put all the money back. Guiding newcomers was an obligation for senior guild members, and they normally did not accept payment for it.

Qi Yan handed the money back to Elfman. "You gave up your own time, and you protected the client. It's only right that you receive payment."

"Even so, I don't need this much. This much is enough for me."

Elfman took out 100,000 J.

"No, that's too little. This mission was different from the usual ones. You risked your life, so how can you take only that much?"

After much back-and-forth, Elfman finally accepted 1 million J. Seeing him take the money, Qi Yan nodded in satisfaction.

Elfman had gotten dragged into this mess because of him. Since he had risked his life, he naturally deserved greater compensation.

Yet Elfman felt as though the money was burning in his hands. After all, he had done nothing this time. One million J was enough to keep him busy for several months.

Qi Yan was far too generous. Maybe he should introduce his sister to him.

Fairy Tail Guild

Mira went to collect the guild's mail as usual. Most of it consisted of commission requests sent by clients. Every day, she had to sort and record them before posting them on the request board for the guild's mages to accept.

"Huh?"

At that moment, Mira noticed a document envelope marked with a large "S." This meant it was an S-Rank commission.

S-Rank commissions were extremely rare due to their high level of danger. However, precisely because they were so dangerous, S-Rank Missions also offered generous rewards, starting at no less than 5 million J. Thus, every guild took S-Rank commissions very seriously.

Mira opened the S-Rank commission envelope. The moment she saw the request inside, her face turned deathly pale.

At that moment, the guild was as lively as ever.

Mira rushed in with an anxious expression. "Something terrible has happened, Master!"

"Hm? What is it, Mira?"

"The Phantom Thief Guild mission... has been changed to S-Rank!!"

"Pfft—!"

Makarov sprayed out the wine he had just drunk.

"What?!!"

The guild fell silent at once. S-Rank Missions were jobs only S-Rank Mages were qualified to accept. Moreover, even S-Rank Mages would not lightly accept such difficult commissions, because S-Rank Missions were extremely dangerous even for them. One misjudgment could cost them their lives.

"What exactly happened?! Why was it changed into an S-Rank Mission?!"

Mira hurriedly handed the commission letter to Makarov.

Makarov quickly read it, and his expression changed drastically as well. "Camille, the King of Assassins? That man is actually the leader of the Phantom Thief Guild."

"What?!"

"Camille, the King of Assassins?!"

Everyone in the guild changed expression as well. Camille, the King of Assassins, was tremendously famous. No one knew how many powerful mages he had killed to earn that title. It was said that no one targeted by him had ever survived. His strength was terrifying.

"Master, what should we do now?"

Mira was extremely anxious. This time, not only Qi Yan but also her younger brother Elfman was out there. Her younger sister Lisanna had died during an S-Rank Mission. If her younger brother also died on an S-Rank Mission, leaving only her behind, she did not know how she could go on living.

"I'll go myself!"

None of the guild's S-Rank Mages were present at the moment. Even if they were, facing the King of Assassins would carry enormous risks, so Makarov prepared to go personally.

Just as Makarov was about to open the door.

Creak—!

The guild doors opened, and Qi Yan and Elfman appeared in the doorway.

"Qi Yan!!"