Chapter 25: Breakthrough

Chapter 25: Breakthrough

Next, Hank didn’t respond to Mori but shifted his gaze toward Shadow.

Mori followed Hank’s line of sight, and a glimmer flickered in his eyes as he looked at Shadow.

Once both their gazes focused on him, Shadow knew it was his turn to speak.

“Mr. Mori, to be precise, I have something to discuss with you; Hank is just helping me out.”

“Oh, I see. May I ask how to address you, and what do you need my assistance with?”

Facing the unfamiliar Shadow, Mori’s enthusiasm didn’t wane.

Seeing this, Hank couldn’t help but twitch his lips for the umpteenth time, fully aware that this was how it would go.

Mr. Mori was indeed a businessman in every sense.

For him, the customer was king.

Providing satisfactory service to clients was, naturally, a businessman’s duty.

However, after enjoying his service, one must also offer compensation that leaves him satisfied.

“You can call me Lance. I’ve heard that Mr. Mori is a renowned merchant in the Elven Merchant Association.”

Shadow looked at Mori, giving only his “name,” but sidestepped Mori’s second question, instead steering towards a seemingly unrelated topic.

Although Mori had no idea what this Mr. Lance was up to, he still responded congenially, “I’m just a man with a bit of a reputation.”

“Mr. Mori, you’re too humble; I’ve arrived because of your fame.”

Faced with Shadow’s stubborn praise, Mori said directly, “Mr. Lance, could you please tell me what you need me to do? I have other matters to attend to.”

Shadow gave off an air of complexity.

Such a guy continuously flattering a relatively unknown merchant made him feel uneasy.

Thus, his attitude started to grow a bit colder.

Mori’s demeanor made Hank’s heart race.

He truly couldn’t figure out what this noble wanted to do.

Since he had approached Mori, why not just discuss business straightforwardly? Why this convoluted route?

If things soured with Mori, his plans would quickly fall apart.

“Well, since Mr. Mori is so busy, I’ll be direct.”

Shadow appeared calm and unruffled.

“Please go ahead.”

As they were about to get to the crux of the matter, Mori’s expression turned serious.

“We are here to ask for your help in finding someone.”

“Finding someone? Is there someone missing? You should consult the city guards about such matters; it’s not my responsibility as I’m just a merchant.”

“If consulting the guards was effective, we wouldn’t have come to you, Mr. Mori.”

Shadow chuckled.

“I’m just a merchant.”

“Indeed, Mr. Mori, you are a merchant, but this is also a transaction. It depends on whether you’re willing to take this deal.”

With that, Shadow pulled out a small bag of gold coins, placing it on the stone table with a distinct clink.

That bulging little bag—Mori didn’t even need to count it; a quick glance told him there were about two hundred gold coins inside.

“Just the deposit alone is two hundred gold coins. The person you need to find must be quite exceptional.”

“Indeed, she is a powerful mage. After arriving in Avalon from the human world a year ago, we lost all trace of her.”

Shadow revealed some information.

“A year ago? It’s been so long; that complicates things!” Mori exclaimed.

“I trust Mr. Mori won’t let me down. This deposit is only one-tenth of the reward.”

Two thousand gold coins made Mori’s heart flutter.

And this was solid two thousand gold coins, tax-free, all going straight into his pocket.

Yet, thinking of the potential risks involved made him hesitate.

Mori fell silent, not replying, and Shadow also stayed quiet, the two of them facing off.

“Ahem—!”

Clearing his throat twice to break the awkwardness, Mori finally spoke, “I can agree to this transaction, but I must state one point upfront. Although you haven’t explicitly mentioned it, since you’re offering such a generous reward, I understand the risks involved must be substantial.”

Mori’s words made Hank’s heart tighten.

This indirectly indicated that his esteemed Master Ailia was in a precarious situation at that moment.

“If I find that the risks exceed what I can accept, I will back out promptly, and you will still need to pay me half of the reward. What do you think?”

“Mr. Mori, that seems a bit unreasonable. I don’t know how much risk you can bear.”

“When the time comes, I will inform you of what I gained before withdrawing.”

Shadow thought for a moment and found this outcome acceptable, nodding in agreement: “Alright, but I believe Mr. Mori’s capabilities should be able to handle the risk. After all, we’re simply asking Mr. Mori to help us locate someone; finding someone is not against the law among the Elven Race, is it?”

“Finding someone isn’t illegal, but there are some individuals we cannot intrude upon.”

Mori replied.

“Next, please provide me with the characteristics of the individual you’re looking for, preferably with a picture, and I will arrange for someone to gather information immediately.”

Mori took out a folded paper from his pocket and opened it.

Though a bit wrinkled, the image of Airael on it was still vividly lifelike, as if she were right there.

In that moment, both Hank and Mori were momentarily dumbfounded.

“Ahem—!”

Shadow had to cough twice to wake the two up.

Recovering from his daze, Hank’s face flushed as he looked down, too embarrassed to glance at the image again.

Although Mori felt awkward, his thick-skinned nature allowed him to keep staring at the image, feigning admiration as he said, “I never thought a beauty like this existed among humans.”

“This world is quite magical; it’s not always the case that human women are less attractive than elven women.”

“Indeed, like this human beauty before us. However, if this human woman were to appear among the Elven Race, it would certainly cause a sensation, yet I’ve never heard of her.”

As he spoke, Mori’s brow furrowed tightly.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt this matter wasn’t so simple.

“Mr. Mori, sometimes beauty is also a curse, especially when out and about. Therefore, the lady in the picture, Miss Ailia, prefers to conceal her face with a cloak.”

With that, Shadow pulled out another piece of paper.

On it was an image of Airael wearing a cloak.

Her breathtaking beauty was mostly hidden under the cloak.

Mori nodded, understanding.

“That makes sense.”

“Mr. Mori, I’ll leave the images and the deposit in your hands. Please don’t let me down.”

After speaking, Shadow stood up to leave.

Hank followed suit.

“Gentlemen, take care.”

Once outside Mori’s courtyard, Hank said joyfully, “Sir, this is great! We finally have a breakthrough!”