It wasn’t long before the brown-haired boy brought up Roy’s lunch.
Steak, beef and potato stew, fish and chips, a sausage and pudding roast, and a savory pie.
Along with a large mug of wheat ale.
After placing the food on the table, the brown-haired boy gave Roy a slight bow, then turned and left, gently closing the door behind him.
Although the food before him couldn’t compare to the meals he’d had in Ice Wolf Castle, Roy paid it no mind and began to eat at a leisurely pace.
When he finished eating, he picked up the copper bell on the table and gave it a shake.
DRING-A-LING!
The crisp chime of the bell rang out.
Soon, a server came to the room to clear away the plates and glasses.
His hunger sated and thirst quenched, Roy didn’t immediately enter Chaos Square to begin his Cultivation. Instead, he started planning the assassinations of Baron Red Eagle and Baron Giant Dog.
With his current strength, killing Baron Red Eagle and Baron Giant Dog would be no problem at all.
The only problem was that they weren’t in the same location. He would have to travel to Red Eagle Castle and Giant Dog Castle separately.
After a moment’s thought, Roy decided to travel to the Red Eagle Domain and the Giant Dog Domain to kill Baron Red Eagle and Baron Giant Dog before returning to the Ice Wolf Domain.
And he didn’t plan on sparing the other High Tier Knights in their castles, either.
That way, once he returned to the Ice Wolf Domain, he wouldn’t have to sneak out of Ice Wolf Castle at night to assassinate them.
With his plan in place, he focused his mind, entered Chaos Square, and began his Cultivation of the Black Crow Breathing Technique.
After nightfall, Roy had dinner sent to his room.
After dinner, he entered Chaos Square once again and began his Cultivation of the Purgatory Dragon Meditation Method.
He continued his Cultivation late into the night. Only then did he remove his Silver-White Armor and change into the black armor of the Dark Night Knight.
He donned his white mask with its red stripes, equipped his Fine Steel Cross Sword, and returned to his room at the inn. Then, he pushed open the window and leaped out.
Before long, he arrived at the Blood and Flames tavern.
Upon entering the tavern’s main hall, he ignored the bar and walked straight toward the wooden door that led to the backyard.
He gave the large man guarding the door a Silver Coin and entered the backyard.
As soon as he entered the backyard, he saw Sonia sitting at a corner table, dressed in a red robe. Across from her sat a black-robed figure, their face wrapped in black cloth.
The moment he saw Sonia, she saw him too. A look of pleasant surprise appeared on her exquisite, fair, oval face.
Roy hadn’t shown up as arranged last night, which had made her wonder if something had happened to him.
Now, seeing him appear safe and sound, she knew she had just been overthinking things.
"My apologies," Roy said as he reached their table. "Something came up last night, so I couldn’t make it on time."
"It’s all right."
"Let me introduce you. This gentleman is the client willing to sell an Exemplary Breathing Technique," Sonia glanced around, then spoke quickly in a low voice that only the three of them could hear.
Roy nodded and said to the black-robed man, "Let’s talk in one of the side rooms."
"Alright," the black-robed man replied instantly.
The backyard had several small rooms specifically for Black Market Merchants and their clients to discuss confidential matters.
People used these rooms for conversations and transactions they didn’t want others to overhear.
Once inside one of the rooms, Roy and the black-robed man sat down first.
Sonia closed the door before taking a seat beside them.
Roy didn’t waste any time. He asked the black-robed man, "What’s the name of the Breathing Technique you’re selling?"
"The Iron Claw Bear Breathing Technique," the black-robed man replied.
’The Iron Claw Bear Breathing Technique?’
Roy’s brow furrowed slightly upon hearing the black-robed man’s answer.
Breathing Techniques of the Excellent Level were far more renowned than those of the Ordinary Level.
As far as he knew, only one family in the Laine Kingdom cultivated the Iron Claw Bear Breathing Technique: the Compton Clan.
The Compton Clan wasn’t based in Yorkshire, but in Gaoyan County, to the east.
Roy had never dealt with the Compton Clan before, but he was no stranger to them.
The previous owner of his body had been a homebody who loved to read. In fact, books detailing the histories and deeds of the great clans of the Laine Kingdom had been among his childhood favorites.
"Are you a member of the Compton Clan?" Roy continued.
’It’s possible he stole the Iron Claw Bear Breathing Technique from the Compton Clan, but I don’t think he has that kind of strength. For the nobles of this continent, two things are of the utmost importance. One is their domain. The other is their ancestral Breathing Technique. If this man had the power to steal the Iron Claw Bear Breathing Technique from the Compton Clan, he wouldn’t need to hire the Dark Night Knight to assassinate Jeremy. He could just do it himself.’
The black-robed man didn’t answer Roy right away.
After a few seconds of silence, he pulled back the hood of his robe and removed the black cloth from his face, revealing his true features. "That’s right," he said slowly. "I am a member of the Compton Clan."
"Baron Iron Claw Bear is my father. I am his eldest son, John Compton."
John didn’t look old, perhaps twenty-five or twenty-six.
He would have been handsome, if not for the long scar across his face.
Roy didn’t know how John had gotten the scar, but he could tell it wasn’t an old wound. It was fresh, only a few months old at most.
After sizing John up for a moment, he spoke. "If I recall correctly, your father and Count Rock Lion get along quite well."
"They were good friends back when they studied together at the Royal Capital Knight Academy."
"So now I’m very curious. What could Jeremy have possibly done to make you offer up your ancestral Iron Claw Bear Breathing Technique just to have him assassinated?"
The moment Roy finished speaking, an unrestrainable killing intent flooded John’s face, his expression twisting into a ferocious snarl.
"Jeremy raped my sister!"
"And this scar on my face? Count Rock Lion was the one who gave it to me!"
John didn’t look like he was lying, but Roy wasn’t one to blindly believe everything he was told.
"What exactly happened?" Roy pressed.
John knew Roy wouldn’t be easily convinced. He took several deep breaths to compose himself, then began to recount the whole story.
Three months ago, Baron Iron Claw Bear hosted a coming-of-age banquet for his youngest daughter, Chris.
Count Rock Lion was invited and traveled to Iron Claw Bear Castle with Jeremy.
This should have been a perfectly normal occasion.
However, after the banquet, Jeremy was overcome with lust. He snuck into Chris’s room and raped her.
When he was finished, he threatened Chris, then swaggered off as if nothing had happened.
After a complex internal struggle, Chris went to her father, Baron Iron Claw Bear, and told him what had happened.
Upon learning what had happened, Baron Iron Claw Bear flew into a rage. He took John and his Clan Knights, stormed into Jeremy’s bedroom, and dragged the soundly sleeping young man before Count Rock Lion.
Baron Iron Claw Bear expected Count Rock Lion to allow him to punish Jeremy. He never imagined that the Count was the type to side with family over justice.
What happened next was simple.
A fight broke out between the two sides in the castle. Relying on his strength as a Black Iron Great Knight, Count Rock Lion easily defeated Baron Iron Claw Bear, John, and their men, and rescued Jeremy.
Then, he made a false show of leaving a few dozen Gold Coins as compensation before taking Jeremy and his Guard and leaving Iron Claw Bear Castle under the cover of night.
...