After Roy spoke, Kario Knight’s already foul expression soured even more.
He shot Roy a murderous glare and said through gritted teeth, "You’re Roy Wesley, aren’t you!"
"Good. I’ll remember you!"
With that, Kario Knight immediately rose to his feet and stormed out of the parlor without a backward glance.
A short while later, he and his retinue of knights departed from Ice Wolf Castle.
Only after they were clear of Ice Wolf Castle did Tony say to Roy, "You were too reckless. What if he had actually attacked you? Sir Adam and I might not have been able to stop him."
"Relax, he wouldn’t dare."
"He’s just a piece of trash who gets his courage from his master’s power. He doesn’t have the guts to be charged with murdering a nobleman."
Roy replied calmly.
To Tony, who was unaware of his true strength, Roy’s provocation of Kario Knight seemed no different from walking a tightrope over a cliff.
But in Roy’s eyes, killing Kario Knight would have been no more difficult than crushing a chicken.
Unless Count Rock Lion himself intervened, no one in Yorkshire could threaten him.
"But what if he had been blinded by rage!"
"Even if he were to die later for the crime of murdering a noble, you wouldn’t come back to life!"
Tony continued.
"If he had really made a move, I had a way to make him cool down."
"Alright, that’s enough. I’m going to sleep."
With that, Roy got up, left the parlor, and headed for his bedroom.
After returning to his bedroom, he didn’t change his clothes as planned. Instead, he sat down at his desk and casually picked up a book on common medicinal herbs.
’Knowing Tony, he’s probably gone to find Erin right now.’
’After talking with Erin, Tony will come to my bedroom and earnestly warn me not to be so reckless in the future, and especially not to gamble with my life.’
Sure enough, just five or six minutes later, a knock sounded at the door.
"Can I come in?"
Tony asked from outside the door.
"Come in."
Roy replied.
Hearing the reply, Tony pushed the door open and came to stand before him.
Just as Roy had predicted, Tony started nagging like a worried father.
Don’t be so reckless!
Never gamble with your life, no matter the situation!
No matter what happens, just leave it to him to handle, and so on and so forth.
Although Tony’s words were long-winded, there was no denying he was a genuinely good brother.
Growing up, the only time Tony had ever schemed against his younger brother was regarding the arranged marriage.
Other than that, he had been exceptionally good to the former Roy.
To put it simply, Tony had a serious brother complex.
After Tony finished his earnest lecture, Roy said, "Since you’re so worried about me, maybe I should start cultivating the Ice Wolf Breathing Technique."
What?
Tony stared at Roy, dumbfounded, unable to process what he’d just heard.
When the Old Baron was still alive, he had adamantly insisted, on more than one occasion, that the former Roy cultivate the Ice Wolf Breathing Technique.
But the boy had shown no interest in cultivation whatsoever.
No matter how the Old Baron pressured him, he refused to cultivate.
After trying to force his younger son several times, the Old Baron realized he would never agree to cultivate the Ice Wolf Breathing Technique. Frustrated, he had placed all his hopes on Tony instead.
"Did I hear that right?"
"Don’t you hate cultivation more than anything?"
"Are you feeling sick? Do you have a fever?"
With that, Tony instinctively reached out and placed his right hand on Roy’s forehead.
Roy immediately brushed Tony’s hand away, saying calmly, "I don’t have a fever, and I’m not sick."
"I’ll admit, I used to dislike cultivation, but people change."
"I plan to travel the continent and experience the cultures and customs of every kingdom for myself."
"To do that, I think it’s necessary for me to start cultivating a Breathing Technique and learn how to protect myself."
Traveling the continent had always been the former Roy’s dream. Both the Old Baron and Tony had heard him speak of it before.
However, neither of them had ever taken his dream seriously.
In their eyes, traveling across the entire continent was out of the question; even a tour of the Laine Kingdom would be a monumental task.
Tony fell silent.
After a few seconds of careful thought, he looked at Roy seriously and said, "I thought you’d given up on that dream of traveling the continent long ago. I’m surprised you’ve held onto it."
"It’s good to have a dream, but traveling the continent isn’t as easy as you think."
"How about this: if you can become a High Tier Knight, I’ll support your dream of traveling the continent."
"If you only make it to Middle Tier Knight, then the most I can support is a trip around the Laine Kingdom."
In Tony’s opinion, Roy had already missed the best age for cultivation. The most he could ever hope to achieve in his lifetime was becoming an Initial Tier Knight.
"You’re the one who said it!"
"Remember to give me the Inheritance Map for the Ice Wolf Breathing Technique tomorrow!"
Roy replied.
"Alright!"
"It’s getting late. You should get some rest."
Tony patted Roy on the shoulder, then turned and left the bedroom, closing the door behind him.
Once Tony had gone, Roy bolted the door, retrieved a practical set of black Hunter’s Clothing from Chaos Square, and put it on.
Then, he pushed open the window and jumped out.
「Two hours later.」
Yorkshire Capital City Redwood City.
Before entering the city, Roy had already changed into his Dark Night Knight armor, donning his ruby-inlaid Fine Steel Cross Sword and the white mask with red stripes.
Neither the soldiers on the city walls nor the patrols in the streets detected his presence.
Once inside the city, he expertly navigated his way to a tavern in the South District.
Blood and Flames!
That was the name of the tavern.
From the outside, the Blood and Flames tavern looked utterly unremarkable, with nothing to distinguish it.
In reality, however, it was a gathering place for bounty hunters, assassins, black market merchants, and their ilk.
There were no official bounty hunter or assassin guilds on the continent.
However, every city had taverns much like Blood and Flames.
Larger cities, like the Royal Capital, might have dozens of such establishments.
Here in Yorkshire, however, there were only two.
One was the Blood and Flames tavern in the South District.
The other was the Black Goat Horn tavern in the West District.
Even before he entered, Roy could hear a cacophony of sounds from within.
He pushed open the tavern doors and walked inside, his expression placid.
The tavern was filled with a motley crew of patrons.
Some were Official Knights, while others were ordinary folk who had never cultivated a Breathing Technique.
In addition to them, there were also quite a few scantily clad women.
These women weren’t waitresses; they were prostitutes plying their trade.
As the most famous bounty hunter to emerge in Redwood City in the last six months, Roy drew everyone’s attention the moment he entered.
He hadn’t taken on a great number of contracts.
But the ones he did accept were, without exception, all high-level contracts.
More importantly, he completed every single contract he took on.
Ignoring the stares, Roy walked straight to the bar. He placed a Silver Coin on the counter and asked the bartender, who was wiping a glass, "’Left Foot’ Ticky, is he here tonight?"
"Left Foot" Ticky was one of the biggest black market merchants in Redwood City.
The Giant Elephant Breathing Technique he was currently cultivating had been purchased from Ticky.
"He’s here. In the back courtyard!"
The bartender pocketed the Silver Coin and replied swiftly.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Roy headed for a small door at the back of the main room.
The main room was for pleasure and taking contracts.
The back courtyard was where the real deals were made.
A burly man with thick, exposed arms stood guard before the small door, which was only a meter wide and two meters tall.
Roy took out a Silver Coin and handed it to the man.
After accepting the Silver Coin, the man stepped aside and pushed open the small door.
Unlike the rowdy main room, the back courtyard was much quieter and far less crowded.
Scanning the courtyard, Roy spotted "Left Foot" Ticky in a corner, talking business with someone.
Ticky was an unremarkable-looking, middle-aged man in his forties.
He was called "Left Foot" Ticky not because his left foot was particularly formidable, but because it was gone.
As for how he’d lost it, several different stories made the rounds.
One story said he was caught by the City Guard selling contraband in the Royal Capital, and they cut off his left foot as punishment.
Another claimed he lost it in a fight when he was young.
A third, more gruesome tale, was that he got lost in the wilderness and, to survive, cut off his own left foot for food.
There were many versions of the story, but only Ticky himself knew the truth.
Roy didn’t approach Ticky right away.
He waited until Ticky had finished his business with a black-robed figure before walking over and sitting down opposite him.
...