CHAPTER 476: A BLOODBATH? (1/2)

“Hmm? What are you talking about?” Jill innocently blinked at us. “I don’t get what you’re asking.”

Regine wasn’t buying that act however. She coldly eyed the girl before saying, “I’m talking about those smoke bombs, you can keep them now.”

“Oh… there’s no need to be so distant, Regine. I never intended to use them against my senior.” Having said that, Jill pulled out the two arms she kept behind her back and opened up her palms. “See, nothing at all!”

Naturally, I didn’t buy that either. Between Regine and a girl that I had just met, I was clearly going to trust Regine more. But the fact that she could so effortlessly hide her tracks like that was proof that she wasn’t just your run-of-the-mill Thief either.

“I’m not here to cause trouble. There’s something I need done and I wanted you to help.” Said Regine, candid to a fault as always. Yet at the rate this conversation was falling apart, it was only a matter of time before this whole meeting went sour.

I quickly intervened with a more palatable subject. “Money is not an issue, as long as you’re able to do the job.”

“Woo~ a rich sister then. But my fees aren’t cheap, I’ll have you know.” Jill winked at me at that point. “But if it’s for our dear senior’s master, I will be sure the job is done well, assuming the money is sufficient, of course.”

“All right, I won’t beat about the bush then. I need you to find someone for me.” I began recounting what I knew of Nicole. “She’s called Nicole, she should look like a sixteen or seventeen year old, long red hair, and a warm, gentle personality. Her hometown is Chaik Village but she went to Azure City roughly three years ago to attend the Warrior Academy… I’m not sure if she’s still there, but that’s where you come in.”

“Nicole… red hair… Now that you mention it, I have heard about someone matching this description from a fellow colleague.” She paused in thought for a second then continued in an unsure voice. “I’m not sure if her personality is as warm as you say, but I was told she rarely speaks and has a cold attitude to anyone she meets -kind of like senior Regine. The red hair is a match though.”

“Location’s a match; name’s a match; hair’s a match… that should be her, it has to be!” I excitedly concluded. This was the first true clue I had to her whereabouts and I couldn’t help but lose control of myself for a moment. I profusely shook Jill about in hopes of getting more out of her, “Bring me to her… quickly!”

“I get it, I get it. Just stop shaking me, I’m about to faint…” Her eyes began to swim as she said that, and it was then that I realised how inappropriate I was being.

“I apologise, it wasn’t on purpose…” I quickly let go of her then slowly took a couple steps back. “I was just too excited…”

“You can?!”

“Of course. However…” She then rubbed her fingers together in a surprisingly universal sign of money. “It won’t be cheap.”

“Like I said before, just state your price, I will pay it.”

“I’ll take your words for it then.” She deliberately paused for a second, as if in thought, before saying ,”I can help you find this Nicole of yours, but it will cost you a hundred gold coins.”

“Done.” I swiftly pulled out a coin sack from the dimensional ring on my right hand and tossed it to her. “Here’s the deposit. There will be more once you complete the job.”

“Woah! A dimensional ring!” Jill exclaimed in surprise as she caught the sack by reflex. She then glanced at me from top to toe before saying, “I never thought that our sister Mo Ke is so rich as well. There has to be at least a hundred coins in this sack!”

“I want you to find Nicole as soon as possible. Once you locate her, I will have more to give.”

Money naturally wasn’t a problem for me anymore, given my identity as the holy child of Lolthe. Prior to leaving, I was given a dimensional ring by the Matriarchs along with some spending money. In fact, even Jezsere was given a dimensional ring as a sign of goodwill.

If it’s a problem that can be solved by money, then it’s not a problem at all! Basically, that was my current situation.

Having had a taste of the money to be made, Jill flew off at blinding speeds to complete her task. Whenever we passed by a settled location on our way to Azure City, she would be up before dawn, checking out the local Thieves’s Guild to get more information about Nicole. Such a routine continued every day for a whole week before she finally came back with good news.

We were in the midst of having a meal in the tavern when she arrived, dashing through the door yelling, “Sister Mo Ke, I got the news!”

“You do?!” That had to be the best news I had heard in a long while. “Tell me, quick, where is she?”

“I just got word from the other guild members that Nicole accepted a Demon Hunter mission not too long ago. And the location of the mission just so happens to be a nearby village.” Jill reported in a voice that was as excited as my own. “In other words, we do not even need to seek her out. We merely have to wait for her along a route that she has to take.”

“But how can you be sure that she accepted this mission?” Having spent seven days with Jill, I had learnt from her that Nicole joined the Demon Hunters stationed in Azure City, and had even been accepted as the disciple of Aques Lumen. However, such tasks were usually confidential, so how did they learn about it?

“Hah, don’t look down on the Thieves’ Guild. Have you forgotten? One of our main businesses is the sale of information.” She then made the universal sign of money once more. “As long as you have the gold, nothing’s impossible.”