As one of the more secluded streets in Saint Roland City, Oak Street served as the boundary between the residential area and the slums.
On one side of Oak Street lay the densely packed and heavily populated slums, while on the other side was the relatively well-off area where true citizens of the imperial capital resided.
Oak Street itself stood as the dividing line between these two areas.
The Orchid Tavern, which catered to both ordinary citizens and slum dwellers, bore characteristics of both worlds—it had modern facilities but also drew in patrons of questionable deanor.
Of course, patrons who paid to access the tavern’s second floor were treated to a much more refined environnt.
When Orson arrived at the entrance, a server glanced at the decorations on Orson’s attire and respectfully bowed.
“Angel,” Orson said.
The server froze for a mont before a knowing smile appeared on his face.
“I understand, sir. Please follow .” With that, the server led Orson to the third floor.
The third floor contained only a single large private room. After leading Orson to the base of the staircase, the server departed.
At the top of the stairs stood an orange-haired, cat-eared beastkin girl who bowed politely upon seeing Orson. She then gestured for him to follow her to the private room door, which she opened before stepping aside to let Orson in.
Throughout the entire process, Orson remained vigilant.
On the first floor, he hadn’t felt much. But upon reaching the second floor, he noticed that the bartenders and servers working there were mostly at the fourth tier of power. When Orson arrived on the third floor and saw the beastkin girl, he paused at the staircase for a brief second.
From what he could sense, the aura emanating from the beastkin girl wasn’t any weaker than his own.
She was at least at Tier 7.
Clearly, this ti, he was dealing with formidable opponents.
With these thoughts in mind, Orson stepped into the private room.
Inside, just as in the alley earlier, a similarly cloaked figure sat on a chair.
Thanks to the table obscuring part of his view, Orson couldn’t see the figure’s lower half.
However, this ti, Orson could clearly sense that the person before him was real, not just an empty, magically controlled garnt.
With that realization, Orson seated himself on the sofa.
“Nice to et you, Young Master Orson,” the cloaked figure said. “I am the one you seek—the ‘Angel of Death.'”
Of course, the voice was still altered by magic, making it impossible to discern the speaker’s natural tone.
“Though I’d love to et you face-to-face without concealnt, as I ntioned earlier, people in my profession cannot afford such risks—it’s a sha, truly.”
“Understood,” Orson nodded. “I can empathize. Now, please answer a question for .”
“You wish to know who commissioned to arrange the kidnapping of Litte’s adoptive parents, correct?”
“Since you already know, I won’t waste ti asking. Just tell .” Orson said, growing impatient. With Tier 7 guard outside and an opponent whose strength he couldn’t gauge, Orson had no intention of lingering here too long.
“Don’t be so hasty, Young Master Orson,” the Angel of Death said.
“Before we get to that, do you know why I invited you here?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care to know,” Orson shook his head.
“We interdiaries are also known as the ‘Black Gloves’ of the nobility.”
“Unlike the ‘White Gloves,’ the noble retainers who perform tasks worthy of public recognition, we handle the darker deeds that must remain in the shadows.”
“Assassinations, kidnappings—those are our specialties.”
“As such, we proudly call ourselves the nobility’s ‘Black Gloves.'”
“Why are you telling all this?” Orson frowned.
“I want to say, Young Master Orson, that if you ever need anything, you can co directly to . There’s no need to cultivate your own similar organization.”
Hearing this, Orson’s eyes widened slightly.
“I don’t recall ever sharing this information with anyone.” Orson’s tone grew serious.
Not even his father, Lucius, knew about the organization he was building.
“I’m here to propose a partnership, Young Master Orson.” As the other party spoke, there was an unmistakable hint of sincerity in their tone.
“You see, though we work for money, it’s sotis wise to find a reliable master for ourselves.”
“Only with such backing can we find stability.”
“So, what you’re suggesting is that I beco your master?”
“No, no, no. At your current stage, Young Master Orson, you’re far from qualified,” the figure said.
Although the other party was speaking the truth, Orson couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable hearing it.
“What we admire is your potential and your ambition,” the Angel of Death continued, turning their cloaked head to face Orson directly.
“Do you know why assassins, despite their effectiveness, are rarely cultivated by nobles?”
“Because once discovered, they’re branded as treacherous and beco targets of the entire imperial nobility.”
“Isn’t it amusing? Nobles themselves frequently use such underhanded thods, but when brought to light, they hypocritically condemn them under the guise of justice.”
“That’s why we greatly admire you, Young Master Orson. You have both the ambition and the courage.”
“Now, we want to see if you have the capability as well.”
“What exactly are you trying to say?” Orson frowned as he looked at the other party.
“You want to know who commissioned the kidnapping, correct? Due to professional ethics, I cannot reveal the client’s na directly. However, three days from now, there will be an assassination attempt on soone close to you.”
Hearing this, Orson’s gaze turned completely cold.
“What did you say?”
“Ah, I think you’ve misunderstood sothing, Young Master Orson,” the Angel of Death said, looked at Orson, and let out a hoarse laugh.
“The person targeting you wasn’t arranged by us. Within the empire, there are countless interdiaries like myself. Many are even more skilled than I am.”
“Perhaps my business capabilities were deed lacking. Regardless, while they switched to a different interdiary for this job, they didn’t realize that one of my people works for their new contractor.”
“I figured that, for soone like you, Young Master Orson, providing this information in advance would allow you to prepare.”
“When the ti cos, you can settle both old and new scores at once, can’t you?” the Angel of Death said.
Seated on the sofa, Orson rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
After a long silence, he finally spoke. “Since you claim to be interested in working with , I have a commission for you right now.”
“Of course.” The Angel of Death nodded.
“I’ll pay 300,000 gold coins for the head of the mastermind.”
“...” Hearing this, the other party pondered for a long ti before shaking their head. “Apologies. Based on our evaluation, the target is worth far more than 300,000 gold coins, and the risks involved are too high. We must decline.”
“Understood.” As Orson said this, he stood up and gave the other party a smile.”Thank you for your ti. I’m sure we’ll have opportunities to work together in the future.”
“I certainly hope so.” The other party responded politely but did not stand up to see him off, simply watching as Orson walked out of the room.
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