Swain

"Excuse me, is Boss Swain here?" Though he had changed on the inside, Aster still retained the original owner's habits of communication: modest, polite, and refined.

Since most of what he said had been carefully considered beforehand, no one had yet noticed that the "Aster" mecha had changed pilots.

Of course, that was also related to the fact that few people familiar with "Aster Crowley" himself were still alive... After a brief sarcastic remark drifted through his mind, Aster, radiating an icy aura, soon saw the sturdy man who had guarded the secret door of the Evil Dragon Bar yesterday poke half his body out from it and beckon to him.

Understanding at once, Aster followed him through the secret door. The sturdy man led Aster down another narrow path. After passing through two abandoned classrooms, Aster finally met Swain.

The old man sitting in a recliner straightened up. He wore only a thin, worn shirt on his upper body. Though he reeked of alcohol, his blue eyes remained sharp as they fixed on Aster. "Young man, you're not from Tingen, are you?"

"That's right, but that won't affect the fact that I can help you." Aster's lips curled slightly. "Mr. Swain, former captain of Tingen's Mandated Punishers squad."

"I retired long ago." Swain rose to his feet. He was broad and solidly built, with well-developed muscles. Compared to him, Aster's slender frame looked like a bean sprout. "But if you think that lets you threaten me..."

Two figures had appeared at the doorway behind Aster at some point.

Old bastard, playing the intimidation game again.

Clicking his tongue inwardly, Aster spoke again with a sincere expression. "No, Mr. Swain, this is merely a misunderstanding... In fact, I happened to hear about the trouble you encountered, and I was tempted by the reward you offered. That is why I came all the way here from distant Backlund."

"Part of that is false, but it's sincere enough." The male voice behind Aster made Swain abandon the idea of intimidating him. The old man scratched his messy brown hair and frowned. "Then you'd better be straightforward and not raise too many conditions... Also, which commission are you talking about?"

What other commission could it be? Still trying to fish for information... If I weren't familiar enough with you, I'd probably take you for nothing but a reckless brute too... Aster turned the hat in his hand. "The one in Vinia Town."

Vinia Town was the first small town the Tussock River passed through after leaving Tingen.

"Fine. I hope you have what it takes to solve the problem. I don't want to collect your corpse." Swain decisively grabbed the worn naval coat hanging on the wall and draped it over himself. "Follow me. We're going now."

Swain strode out of the room, but the two subordinates who had blocked Aster at the door did not follow him.

Aster smiled and followed Swain at an unhurried pace.

Swain was not afraid that there might be something wrong with Aster. Or rather, everyone from the Church of Storms was like that. Aster, meanwhile, was also quite at ease with Swain and did not suspect for a moment that this was a trap laid by the Mandated Punishers to capture wild Beyonders.

It was not only because of the information provided by that copywriting guy, but also because Swain had been his mentor in the game.

In truth, Swain had been the class mentor for the Storm Pathway during version 1.0. If players chose the Storm Pathway, he was the one who guided them in using skills and issued daily quests. Unlike most Mandated Punishers, Swain's recklessness was only superficial. Beneath it, he was someone who knew how to adapt. Moreover, Aster knew exactly what Swain's quest was about.

"Is this the place?" On the outskirts outside Vinia Town, Aster had just jumped down from the carriage and put on his hat, blocking the afternoon sunlight. Swain's voice came low from behind him. "Yes. I need you to let the spirit in this house rest in peace. Remember, you cannot banish or purify it! My requirement is for him to rest in peace!" As he spoke, his voice lowered, as if he were recalling something.

"As you wish." Aster smiled, removed his bowler hat and set it on the grass by his feet. With one hand in his pocket, he walked inside. His originally silver eyes lost some of their color and became even clearer.

Silently activating Eye of Death, Aster surveyed the small house.

The furnishings inside were battered and rotten, giving off a strong smell of mildew. The stairs leading to the second floor had decayed and broken apart, making Aster frown slightly. "That guy Swain couldn't even fix this..."

With a light press of his palm against the handrail, Aster floated over the gap in the stairs and reached the second floor.

This was not an ability of the Death Pathway, but a combat technique from the Twilight Giant Pathway—one of the few effects that even those outside the Twilight Giant Pathway could achieve in a simplified form. Aster had played a Twilight Giant Pathway alt before as well.

The instant his leather boot stepped onto the second-floor boards, Aster heard a pained, piercing shriek and saw a bizarre man's face.

The man was a translucent, distorted figure. He passed through Aster's body almost instantly, but that power could only make Aster, as a Gravedigger, feel a chill.

An ordinary spirit body with lingering resentment. The undead affinity of Undead Body is ineffective, but it's very weak... It can barely cause me any real harm. At most, it can harass the ordinary people living nearby every night... Aster made his judgment inwardly.

His eyes became increasingly transparent, as though assimilated by the Underworld. He stared down at the drifting resentful spirit. In Aster's eyes at that moment, the spirit was being sustained in an extremely strange state, faintly connected to something.

"If only I were a Soul Assurer, this wouldn't be so troublesome..." After muttering a quiet complaint, Aster gave a small leap into the second-floor space, dodging the strange resentful spirit's charge once more.

His gaze had shifted from the connection on the resentful spirit to the most conspicuous object on the second floor—a coffin.

"This is so awkward... Couldn't he just ask someone from the Church of Evernight for help when something went wrong?" With a sigh, Aster rushed toward the coffin in long strides, making the floorboards creak beneath his feet. The resentful spirit screamed furiously behind him, but a Shriek of that intensity only made Aster's ears ring slightly.

Rolling aside to evade the resentful spirit's pounce from behind once more, Aster smoothly drew a bone-white long-handled dining knife from inside his leather boot.

Creak!

Aster gripped the dining knife in both hands and viciously plunged it into the upper-right side of the coffin. Even after the knife pierced the wooden coffin board, he did not stop exerting force. He drove it in until even the handle was buried before finally stopping.

Almost at the same time, he felt the icy sensation behind him disappear.

"Done." Whistling, Aster did not look at the coffin beside him, nor did he plan to retrieve the dining knife embedded in it. He did not even intend to return the way he came. Instead, he jumped directly from the second-floor window.

He rolled three times across the ground, collecting plenty of grass blades and mud on himself, and came to a stop right beside Swain. Leisurely brushing the dirt from his clothes, Aster picked up the hat from the ground and placed it on his head, then extended a hand. "He has gone to rest. I used a Grade 3 Sealed Artifact, so I suggest you provide me with another item of roughly equal value in addition to the reward."

There was not the slightest hint of regret in his tone over losing the item. It was as though he had merely said, "We're having steak for dinner tonight."

"You'd better take that back!" Swain's brows twisted together. Only now did he truly look like a Mandated Punisher from the Church of Storms. "The reward I'm offering is far more generous than you can imagine! It already includes any items you might expend! And... and I need to check whether his spirit body has been damaged! If it has..."

Tch, failed to raise the price. What a cheapskate... Ignoring the roar of this "Raging Citizen," Aster extended a hand toward the house and bowed slightly with a smile. "Be my guest."

I hope it goes like it did in the game. Nothing unexpected should happen... Watching Swain slam the little wooden door of the house shut, Aster narrowed his eyes slightly as his mirror-like pupils gradually returned to normal. It was worth using the Sleeping Slaughter Knife here. There's something questionable about where that thing came from, so it isn't suitable for long-term use... If Swain keeps his word and gives me that item, my current equipment setup should be enough for Tingen City.

Aster lowered the brim of his hat and pressed a hand to his chest—he could feel the pendant beneath his clothes even through the fabric.

Swain did not take long. By the time his broad arm entered Aster's view again, he held a pair of pure white gloves. He tossed them over from afar. Aster stepped forward to catch them and immediately felt a strange pull from his hand—the gloves seemed to be drawing in his body, wanting to merge with him.

"This thing is yours. You're a lucky kid. If I didn't need to keep this confidential, I wouldn't use it as payment for such an easy job!" Swain said gruffly as he headed toward the carriage.

Without hesitation, Aster stuffed the gloves into the inner pocket of his formal suit, a crafty smile appearing on his face. "As the Lord says, I merely have more... courage than others." He struck his chest with his fist, and his expression suddenly turned solemn.

"The Storm is above!"

Swain looked at him, then looked at him again. After remaining silent for a long while, he could not say anything. In the end, he simply walked to the carriage without a word. This guy believed in the Lord of Storms? He would not believe it even if beaten to death.

Aster nimbly sprang onto the carriage, memories of this quest surfacing in his mind.

Calling them memories was not quite accurate. They were only some cutscenes he had not skipped. Aster only remembered that this strange resentful spirit was connected to the Mandated Punishers. He seemed to have been a former member who later lost control and killed someone, after which Swain personally killed him. After killing him, Swain had buried him here out of personal sentiment, but improper handling had caused his spirit body to turn into a resentful spirit.

Because the matter required secrecy, Swain could not seek assistance from the Mandated Punishers or the Nighthawks, who were skilled at dealing with spirit bodies. He could only place his hopes on unaffiliated Beyonders. But his personal circle was limited, and many people knew he was a former Mandated Punisher. Combined with the excessively generous reward, anyone even slightly cautious suspected it was a Mandated Punishers trap. This directly led the Beyonders capable of handling the matter to wait and see. Aster was the first to accept the quest.

If I'd arrived one week later, this quest would probably have been taken by someone else... He rested both hands behind his head and thought leisurely.

After completing this quest, there would be a long chain of follow-up quests concerning the resentful spirit's identity. However, the rewards were mediocre, and Aster had no intention of continuing.