Magnolia Town, Angel’s Covenant Legal Office.
“Mr.
Eugene, what’s the meaning of this?
You only gave us a deposit of seventy-five thousand Jewels.”
Inside the office, a broad, bearded man frowned across the desk at the thin man seated opposite him.
Seven burly subordinates stood behind him, all wearing equally hostile expressions.
“We agreed on eighty thousand up front.”
The bald gang leader clutched the bag of money tightly in both hands while his men glared at Eugene.
The thin lawyer wore a top hat and had both feet propped casually on his desk.
Without even looking at them, he continued filing his nails.
“Let’s be clear.
Hiring you is nothing more than a precaution.”
He blew the dust from beneath his fingernails, still refusing to meet their eyes.
“All I’m asking you to do is rough up one harmless middle-aged man and grab a ten-year-old boy.
Does a job that easy really justify such an outrageous fee?”
Only then did Eugene glance sideways at the gang leader, shamelessly adding, “Not satisfied?
Put the deposit back on the desk, and I’ll find another gang.”
The bald man’s frown deepened.
“You…!”
One of his subordinates finally lost his temper.
A vein bulged on his forehead as he stepped forward, but the leader raised one hand and stopped him.
The man reluctantly backed down.
The gang leader drew a slow breath through clenched teeth.
“We’ll take the job.”
“I look forward to hearing good news.”
The bald man seized the cane leaning against the desk and stood.
“We’re leaving.”
He turned and limped toward the front door, his seven men following close behind after casting one last furious glare at Eugene.
Bang!
The door slammed shut.
Only then did Eugene lower his feet from the desk.
“Hmph.
A pack of bottom-feeding thugs thinks they can negotiate with me?”
His lips curled into a contemptuous sneer.
The only reason they had received the job at all was because they were cheap.
How dare they question him?
And if they failed to handle something this simple, he had no intention of paying them the remaining half.
Outside, the bald gang leader glanced up at the wooden sign beside the entrance.
“Ptooey!”
He spat on it to vent some of his frustration.
No one passing through the busy street seemed to notice.
“Boss, are we really going to let him talk to us like that?” one of his men asked.
The bald leader laughed bitterly.
“Teach him a lesson?
People like us aren’t in any position to teach anyone a lesson right now.”
“We’ll do what we’re told.
First, let’s search the kid’s house.”
“Uh, Boss…
isn’t that man over there the target Lawyer Eugene showed us?
He looks exactly like the photograph.”
The gang leader followed his subordinate’s pointing finger and saw three distinct figures approaching from down the street.
One was tall, while the other two were short.
The tall man matched the photograph of Wes.
Beside him was an unfamiliar white-haired old man, and walking slightly ahead of them was a child who might have been Ron White.
“Wait.
Why does the kid have orange hair?
Wasn’t it supposed to be gray?”
…
Ron walked ahead of Wes and Makarov, then glanced back to give one final reminder.
“Master Makarov, once we’re inside, you don’t need to say anything.
I’ll deal with the lawyer myself.”
“But the moment someone tries to use force, you’ll need to protect us.”
Makarov smiled reassuringly.
“Don’t worry.
With me there, no one will lay a hand on you.”
Wes followed in silence, fully convinced that Ron would somehow resolve everything.
The gang leader started toward them, then glanced down at the cane in his hand and shoved it at one of his men.
“This thing will get in the way.
Get rid of it.”
He straightened his back and forced himself to walk toward Ron’s group despite the pain in his leg.
The subordinate stared after him, then glanced around helplessly.
There were no trash bins nearby, so he had no choice but to pretend he was the injured one and keep the cane firmly in hand.
Ron was still chatting with Wes when a massive shadow suddenly blocked the sunlight, covering both him and Makarov.
He looked up to find a huge bald man with a thick beard standing in their path.
Sunlight reflected off the man’s bare scalp with almost blinding intensity.
“You’re here to see Mr.
Eugene?”
The moment Ron saw him, his entire body began trembling.
He put on a frightened expression, his eyes darting nervously from side to side while his index fingers fidgeted together in front of his chest.
“U-Um…
we came to see Mr.
Eugene and sign some papers.”
Wes and Makarov both froze at the sudden transformation.
Ron had warned them that he would put on an act in front of the enemy, but the shift had been so smooth that it still caught them off guard.
How had he slipped into character that quickly?
The gang leader merely smiled, clearly noticing nothing suspicious.
“Good.
Then come with us.
We’ll take you inside.”
His men surrounded the three of them while the leader stepped aside and gestured for Ron’s group to move first.
“Move.
What are you waiting for?”
One of the thugs behind Wes bumped him with a shoulder.
Afraid the man might become more aggressive, Wes reluctantly started walking.
Makarov’s smile disappeared, but Ron quietly met his gaze and gave him a subtle signal.
The Guild Master said nothing and followed Ron and Wes inside.
Although Ron appeared to be trembling, the hand hidden inside his sleeve remained perfectly relaxed.
His eyes moved constantly, studying everything around him as they approached the wooden door of the legal office.
Before the door closed behind them, he glanced at the gang leader bringing up the rear and noticed that the man’s right leg moved rather stiffly.
Then he looked at the subordinate ahead of them, who was leaning on the cane.
A thoughtful look flickered through his eyes.
…
Hearing the commotion outside, Eugene frowned.
What was going on?
Why had those idiots come back already?
A moment later, the bald leader shoved Ron and the others into the office.
“Mr.
Eugene, we brought them to you.”
Eugene stared at him in disbelief.
They had finished that quickly?
He examined the three newcomers.
Once he recognized Wes and Ron, a pleased smile spread across his face.
Wes and the boy were both here, but who was the third person?
Eugene looked at Makarov.
The old man in the jester cap seemed oddly familiar.
After a moment, Eugene dismissed the thought.
It did not matter.
Business came first.
He turned toward Ron and put on his most professional smile.
“Master White, you finally came.”
Ron looked at him with a troubled expression.
“Mr.
Eugene, I came because I wanted to discuss the debts.”
“My parents never mentioned any of the loans listed on that statement.”
Eugene sat up straight and laced his fingers together.
“Master White, those debts truly were left behind by your parents.
We have written proof of every one.
They were very busy people, so perhaps they simply forgot to tell you.”
“B-But…”
“Please don’t worry, Master White.
You don’t need to trouble yourself with any of this.
Leave everything to our office, and all your problems will disappear.”
As he spoke, Eugene reached beneath the desk and produced two contracts.
He placed them in front of Ron with a pleasant smile.
“Sign these two documents, and everything will be taken care of.”
Ron widened his eyes in surprise.
“If I sign them, you’ll solve everything for me?
Even all those debts?”
Eugene’s false smile stretched wider.
He leaned forward, bringing his face closer to Ron’s as he spoke in a coaxing voice.
“That’s right.
As long as you sign, every problem you have can be settled.”
Ron’s eyes shone with pure, innocent trust.
While smiling, he stepped forward and picked up the pen on the desk.
He carefully read the words written across the contracts and lowered the pen toward the signature line.
Just before the tip touched the paper, it slipped from his fingers.
The pen struck the floor, bounced twice, and rolled to a stop.
“Ah my bad.
My hand slipped.”
Ron lowered his head as the corner of his mouth curled upward.
It was time to muddy the waters.