Stop Cursing, Stop Cursing! No More Spinning

Having seen him take everyone down effortlessly, the leader no longer dared throw his weight around. He hurriedly waved his hands and said awkwardly:

"Spare us, sir! We're just hired muscle running errands for someone else! We-we'll take you to our boss right away."

What a joke. Why risk their lives for a few tens of thousands of Mora a month? Whatever the problem was, these big shots could talk it out themselves.

Xingsu lifted his chin and tipped his head slightly without another word. His meaning was obvious: lead the way.

The mercenary leader dared not disobey in the slightest. Enduring the pain throughout his body, he scrambled awkwardly to his feet and trembled as he led the way. The other mercenaries sprawled on the ground did not dare flee on their own either. They hunched up and followed at the rear, the whole group trudging dejectedly deeper into the rainforest.

"Huff, huff, huff... Boss, we've got trouble!" A panicked mercenary stumbled inside, gasping for breath.

Dori sat cross-legged on a cushion, her fingertips cheerfully sifting through a small mountain of gold Mora coins. Hearing her subordinate's commotion, she did not even raise her head, her voice carrying a hint of impatience:

"What are you panicking for? It's not as if the sky is going to fall."

"One man beat up all the boys we sent out to collect the debt!"

With a clatter, several coins slipped from Dori's hands. She jerked her head up, her round face filled with astonishment:

"What?!!! Who beat them up?"

She rapidly ran through the possibilities, privately wondering: those hired thugs were more than enough to handle ordinary people. Just what sort of tough customer had they managed to provoke?

Her subordinate swallowed and answered, still shaken:

"His name is Xingsu! I thought he looked all weak and scholarly, but who could've guessed he'd be so frighteningly quick and efficient in a fight?"

It was hardly the mercenary's fault that he did not recognize Xingsu. After all, however much of a stir something caused in academic circles, outsiders like him would not hear about it within the information bubble of the Akasha Terminal. Besides, Xingsu kept a low profile. Few people outside the Akademiya knew him.

"What?!!"

I'm done for, I'm done for! How did I forget to put that man on the whitelist?!

Don't panic, Dori. Stay calm. There's still a chance to mend relations with this big shot.

It was an accident this time, but he still has an outstanding balance. I might as well go along with it and waive the remainder, so there's no hard feelings.

The door suddenly opened.

Xingsu swept a cool glance over her, his voice carrying a teasing edge of pressure. "Oh, I was wondering who it was. So it's Boss Dori.

"What's this? Given up being a perfectly good merchant to become a loan shark? Do you need me to contact a Matra?"

Cold sweat instantly broke out on Dori's forehead. She hurriedly waved her hands to smooth things over, giving a dry laugh as she tried to bluff her way through:

"Ahaha, a misunderstanding! A tremendous misunderstanding! Everyone got things mixed up. They said they were going to collect the two months' wages you agreed to pay for procuring those materials last time..."

"If I remember correctly, I paid you in full the last time we met?"

What?! How is that possible?

Something's wrong. There's a problem here.

She rubbed her hands sheepishly and ventured cautiously, "Um... if I may ask, your monthly salary is..."

"I was previously an assistant librarian at the Akademiya, earning eighty thousand Mora a month. I was just promoted to a full librarian this month."

He's actually just a librarian?!

When she thought of the complete set of materials she had gone to such lengths to gather-the restricted Akasha radio-frequency chips and alloy sheets-the costs and the risk premium for pulling strings added up to nearly a million Mora in real value. Yet he had secured the whole lot for just a hundred and sixty thousand Mora.

And he even took back another five thousand Mora to buy that shawarma thing!

Besides, there was no way to draw up a written contract for a secret transaction like this. She could only swallow the loss in silence.

Gathering her scattered thoughts, Dori forced a smooth smile back onto her face and looked at Xingsu.

"My deepest apologies, Mr. Xingsu! It's all that blockheaded debt collector's fault! Well... um... er, at this hour, you must be hungry. Dinner is on me tonight. Would you do me the honor of sparing some time to join me for a meal?"

Xingsu rubbed his stomach and considered it for a moment.

The complete set of goods Dori had gathered was worth nearly a million Mora, yet he had secured the deal for only a hundred and sixty thousand. He had already gotten quite a bargain.

Although the mercenaries had attacked him roughly earlier, he had easily dealt with them on instinct and had not suffered so much as a scratch from start to finish. There was no real need to pursue the matter further.

So he gave the uneasy Dori a slight nod and accepted her apology dinner.

Dori instantly let out a huge sigh of relief.

Lambad's Tavern

Night had only just fallen, and Lambad's Tavern was bustling with voices. Meat sizzled on the grill, and the aroma of ale drifted through the air.

Lambad was wiping glasses and tending to the front room when he looked up and saw Dori accompanying Xingsu through the tavern doors. This merchant, normally so calculating and determined to haggle over every last coin, was being especially humble now, turning sideways to guide him along without any of her usual forcefulness in business.

There was even a trace of... fawning in her eyes?!

Before they even sat down, Dori tossed out a bag of Mora and briskly booked the private dining room upstairs, ordering that no unauthorized people be allowed near it.

The sight left the rag in Lambad's hand frozen in midair, astonishment written all over the tavern owner's face.

He still remembered Xingsu, a big shot whose information was kept confidential even on the Akasha Terminal, but whose manner was understated and gentle, without the slightest airs.

But the scene before him gave him a new understanding of Xingsu's status. Dori, whose connections reached everywhere throughout Sumeru's business circles, was actually going out of her way to curry favor with him.

Could it be...

Hiss. Don't ask questions you shouldn't.

Lambad inwardly marveled and quietly sent instructions to the kitchen to prioritize delivering the tavern's finest signature dishes upstairs. He already understood.

This young scholar, so plain and unassuming in appearance, had a background far more unfathomable than it seemed.

Shut away from the clamor of the tavern below, the private room upstairs was warm and cozy. The long table was crowded with the most expensive signature dishes Lambad's Tavern offered, with glistening roast meats, rich soups and stews, and sweet flower-and-fruit pastries arrayed across it.

Xingsu's stomach had long since been empty. Dispensing with restraint, he picked up his utensils and ate in large mouthfuls, quietly but decisively, rapidly clearing plate after plate of expensive food.

Dori sat opposite him with her chin propped on her hand, the corner of her eye twitching slightly. Her heart felt as though a little knife were slicing into it over and over, all her thoughts consumed by the pain of watching Mora pour away.

A serving of roasted Sumpter Beast leg costs over twenty thousand Mora, and that aged fruit wine is obviously expensive. Lambad actually brought out stock like that! Watching the table full of delicacies rapidly disappear, she felt as though gold coins were flying out of her purse with every mouthful he swallowed.

Dori still wore a polite, ingratiating smile, but inwardly she was wailing.

Yet she was the one in the wrong. Never mind fretting over the expense-even if more dishes had to be added, she could only steel herself and raise a hand to summon a waiter, not daring to show the slightest reluctance.

She quietly clutched her chest and comforted herself inwardly: Bear with it. As long as I can befriend this formidable scholar, this little expense is barely worth it compared with the favors it could earn me later. I absolutely cannot let all my efforts go to waste just because I can't bear to part with some Mora.