Artifact Report

Chapter 196: Chai Si: A good leader is one who knows how to assign people to the right positions
"...What a rare visitor, Mr. Monroe."

The bartender, who looked like a dejected Shar-Pei dog, couldn't help but raise his drooping eyebrows and turned them into flat eyebrows when he recognized Chase - and when he saw Han Liuyue, he almost smashed the glass.

He looked around first, as if trying to find something to defend himself. When he found nothing, he pretended not to see Han Liuyue and said, "If there's anything I can help with, just let me know... Well, fighting isn't allowed in a bar."

Chai Si sometimes wonders what kind of reputation he has.

He's not a violent psychopath.

"We are here to announce a purchase request," Jin Xueli seemed to know that he was weak and took the initiative to speak.

The Shar-Pei bartender seemed to have just noticed her standing there and was surprised again.

"Hmm? It's you? When did you... Um, what was the purchase request? Tell us. We have a lot of customers tonight, maybe we can close the deal right here and there."

It felt like he swallowed back a lot of words.

The bartender was right. There seemed to be more customers in the bar than usual - although if he closed his eyes, Chase might mistakenly think that the bar was deserted tonight.

That was because after the three of them entered, the bar's noisy voices receded like the tide, instantly dropping to a vast silence. Countless eyes swept past them, unwilling to linger, yet daring not to look again; only after they began talking to the bartender did whispers begin to sparsely return to the bar behind them.

This isn't entirely because of Chai Si.

Everyone present was a hunter; as soon as they looked at Han Liuyue's face, they knew that this was something that came out of a nest - even if it was not a resident, it was definitely not a 100% living person.

If the person accompanying him was not Chai Si, I'm afraid someone would have protested or even taken action long ago.

“I need an artifact that numbs the artifact.”

Chai Si watched as the bartender took out a pen and paper and wrote down his words.

"...anything like paralyzing, temporarily disabling, forcibly destroying, disarming, or bypassing alerts and attention, etc., against the artifacts, is all possible. Also, I heard a few months ago that an artifact appeared that could fool others into thinking the user was 'one of us,' right? If anyone's willing to sell it, the price is negotiable."

In addition to collecting, testing, purchasing and selling, Chai Si also pays attention to every new artifact that emerges in the hunter circle. At this moment, he reported the names and handlers of four or five artifacts in a row as if he knew them all by heart.

"...For the above items, I can also ask if anyone can contact the buyer to sell them."

"Very detailed and thorough," the bartender nodded, putting away his pen and paper. "With such a targeted approach, we should have news soon."

Even Han Liuyue seemed to have a look of satisfaction on her face.

"Then we don't have to wait here, right?" Jin Xueli said, yawning. "When there's news, have him call you..."

Before she finished speaking, she suddenly changed the subject: "No, actually, we can wait for half an hour first - hey, is your kitchen still open?"

Chase glanced at her, then pulled a card from the pocket of his tight jacket and handed it to the bartender. "Here. And give me another whiskey on the rocks."

"Are you starting to repay your gratitude?"

As the waitress led the group to a corner of the bar, Jin Xueli added, "That's a good start. We can discuss other rewards in detail. There are other rewards, right?"

"... Is your business the same as my life?"

"There are other rewards, right?" Jin Xueli emphasized.

"……Yes."

Chase agreed, then turned to the waitress and said, "Don't stop giving me the whiskey. No, you can keep the bottle."

Hunters who have just awakened seem to have a rubber stomach that can expand infinitely.

When Tianxi called again, Jin Xueli was diligently finishing the mountain of buffalo spicy chicken wings in front of her - one portion contained six, and she actually ordered five.

She was sweating while eating, not caring about table manners. The smacking of her lips and chewing were so loud that even Tianxi could hear them.

"Brother Chai Si, are you...are you eating?"

“…That’s not me.”

Chai Si felt sick to his stomach just looking at the food. He didn't dare look at the table full of hamburgers and chicken wings, nor did he want to look at Han Liuyue across from him. With nowhere to rest his eyes, he could only stare at the distant bar entrance. "What's the news?"

"The area around that apartment is being guarded by Morgan hunters. There are people watching from the street below in their cars, and there are guards in the hallway and the apartment. I sent someone to sneak into the building and take a rough look at the situation. They can't get into the apartment without using force."

Even though Fu Tailan was seriously injured, he did not leave any loopholes... Rather, if he really left an unattended apartment, Chai Si would have suspected something was wrong.

"Brother Chai," Tianxi said with some hesitation, "Do we need to take action? We have always been at peace with the Morgan family, and there is no conflict of interest..."

The Hunter Clan is all about profit and is not willing to fight easily.

What's more, they all hold power that should not exist in the human world. Once a conflict arises between families, the consequences will be unpredictable.

When Chai Si first took over the position of second-in-command, he realized this and deliberately made the Kai family's style of operation more and more similar to that of a gangster - when everyone was hesitant to take action, he, as the only unscrupulous person, had more advantages.

But in the past, this style of action was always targeted at individuals. If you attack the leader of a rival faction, it would undoubtedly be tantamount to provoking a war...

"You don't want to eat, right?"

Jin Xueli suddenly looked up from her chicken wings, the lower half of her face stained a mottled orange-red by the chili sauce. She said to Han Liuyue across the table, "If you're not eating, stop staring at me. I'm losing my appetite when you stare at me like that."

...It's hard to imagine that this is her poor appetite.

As expected, Chai Si was distracted by her again. His eyes swept across the messy table and landed on Han Liuyue's face, which was indeed very close to the food. It was more like curiosity than hunger. Perhaps the thing occupying her body couldn't be hungry.

Han Liuyue hasn't had any food or water since she came out of the nest. Even from this perspective, she needs to eat as soon as possible - wait.

"Don't do anything yet. I might have a solution..." Shibaji said into the phone, his eyes fixed on the Noh mask. "You stay nearby and watch the situation. Wait for my news."

He hung up the phone, and neither of the two people at the table asked "What's wrong?"

Chase finished his second glass of whiskey, the cool liquid igniting his esophagus like a cold fire. He put the glass down, feeling a little more alert. He looked around the bar, considering his situation.

The rule of the hunting trade is not to act in "backlight".

This bar, like a fleeting lake on the African savannah, is a place where lions and zebras can coexist peacefully—but that was before the "den domination game."

The four contestants participating today will absolutely not care about past rules when they can obtain the target artifact...

"Have you finished eating?" asked Chai Si.

Jin Xueli was looking at the last half of the burger with a bit of regret, as if she was unwilling to give up and was still thinking about how to stuff it into her stomach.

"I'm done," she finally put down the burger and said, "What's wrong? You want to leave? Indeed, someone is chasing you now, and it's not safe for you to stay here."

"……Thanks."

I finally thought of it after I finished eating.

"I have something to ask of you." said Chai Si.

"what's up?"

It was difficult to say this next sentence tactfully and politely, so he simply cut to the chase: "Since you love to talk so much, you must have a lot of friends who love to gossip just like you, right?"

"You talk—"

"Five thousand dollars."

"You go on."

"If you spread the news that I'm in the 'Backlight Room,' how confident are you that Morando will hear it tonight?"

Jin Xueli was stunned, as if she wanted to ask "why" and say "let me see" at the same time. Her mouth was tied for a moment, so she simply took out her mobile phone and carefully looked at her contact list.

"I don't think it's a big problem,"

I don't know how much of this was said in response to the five thousand dollars.

"She has a friend named Qiao Xiyue. Qiao Xiyue and I both joined the same Telegram group. She recommended me to join..."

"But she must not know that the news leaked from you."

"That's fine," Jin Xueli said unconcernedly. "I have a friend named Amber, who's the accountant for the Morgan family. She can tell the Morgan hunters. I think there must be Morgan hunters in the group..."

What a web of tongues.

"Then do it." Chase nodded. "The sooner the news reaches Morando, the sooner you can collect the money. By tomorrow morning, this deal will be outdated."

Jin Xueli's eyes lit up, and without even asking "why", she lowered her head and started typing quickly.

"I don't know."

A few words slowly escaped from Han Liuyue's frozen face. "Mo Landao... that's the one who just tried to kill you, right? You're weak now, and you've revealed your whereabouts to her. Aren't you afraid she'll take advantage of the situation and strike again?"

Morando could be quite lazy sometimes, especially when her mood was volatile. She probably wouldn't move tonight; the person behind her might not.

"Afraid."

Chase poured himself a third glass of whiskey. "Look, I'm shaking a little even lifting the bottle right now, let alone fighting."

"I don't understand. Then why are you still—"

Chase took a sip of his wine, looked at her, and smiled. "I just thought about it. I'm the only person in the world who will help you transfer to the mayor."

Nengmian Han Liuyue looked at him and said nothing.

"This Miss Jin Xueli, not to mention that she doesn't have the channels to bring you before the mayor... even if she could, she would only bring you before the mayor. Because completing that step will allow her to receive a reward. She would never pay out of her own pocket to buy a fake image for you."

Chai Si put down his wine glass and said slowly, "The only person who can acquire the artifact, take you to the mayor, find a way to crack the mayor's protection, and help you transfer smoothly... is me. If I die, you will always be just an ordinary hunter, Han Liuyue."

"……so?"

"Someone is going to come and trouble me soon."

Chai Si leaned back on his chair, but unfortunately the booth was too small and he couldn't stretch his legs.

"You want me to live? Then it's up to you what you do."

　I seem to have a more severe cold today, so I feel a little groggy when writing this chapter.

　　It feels so good to write. If I don’t write, as a person with few friends, I will never receive so many birthday wishes in my life. I am completely immersed in everyone’s warmth... I am so happy!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)