Arknightcraft Modpack
Chapter 524: What Exactly Did You Realize?
When Steven saw the somewhat strange-looking elderly Zalak man, the latter also noticed the two of them walking out from the hidden passage.
A trace of confusion flashed through the old yet still clear eyes. It was common for his daughter to come looking for him, but this was the first time she brought along an unfamiliar young man like this.
Had someone secretly snuck in and charmed his daughter while he wasn't paying attention? Otherwise, with his daughter's personality, she would never bring someone here so easily.
"Do you need something from me, my dear daughter?"
He half-squinted and gave Steven and the others a gentle smile. Judging by his appearance alone, it was really hard to associate him with the legendary Lin Gray, the man said to rule Lungmen's entire underground kingdom.
He just looked like a kind old rat. Honestly, if someone said he had four humanoid turtle disciples, Steven would probably believe that too.
Lin Yuhsia, however, remained silent as she led Steven into the candy shop—which was actually a bit too simple and cramped. After locking the door behind them, she shook her head at her father.
"It's not me who wants to see you. The gentleman beside me has something he wants to discuss with you."
She glanced at Steven but did not mention the fact that he had enough explosives strapped to his body to blow everyone present into the sky. Instead, she simply explained their purpose in a straightforward way.
"Oh? This is the first time you've ever brought someone here on your own initiative. I almost thought you were introducing your boyfriend to me."
He looked Steven up and down. To be fair, when Steven wasn't having one of his episodes, his appearance was actually quite decent. His slightly handsome face paired with the naturally clean aura he carried meant that, at the very least, he didn't give off an immediately unpleasant impression.
"Right… after all, he's basically a walking bomb. At this point, you're the only one who can handle him."
Muttering quietly so that only she herself could hear it, Lin Yuhsia complained under her breath. She hadn't wanted to bring Steven here at all, but from the moment he revealed the explosives strapped to his body, the situation had already gone beyond her control.
"That's alright, senior. Maybe there really will be such an opportunity in the future. A beautiful girl like Miss Lin—who wouldn't want to spend time with someone like her? She's kind-hearted and so willing to help others. The only reason I was able to find you today is all thanks to her."
Steven grinned broadly. At the moment he looked exactly like a boy visiting a classmate's home, making it impossible to connect him with the crazy man who's covered in explosives.
"And what use would an old man running a candy shop be to you? Is there really anything I could help you with?"
Lin Kojui examined Steven with a puzzled gaze. He trusted that his daughter wouldn't casually reveal his identity, yet Steven's behavior clearly showed that he had come here specifically looking for him.
"Of course there is. I actually just wanted to ask you a question. With your life experience, I'm sure you can give me a satisfactory answer."
Steven politely nodded to the old man. Admittedly, such a large humanoid rat did look somewhat out of place—but this was Terra. With the existence of the Duck in the suit and the Penguin, such appearances were normal enough, so Steven simply accepted it.
Moreover, the Rat King clearly took great care of his hygiene. His fur was clean and fluffy from head to toe. If Steven hadn't known that the old man possessed a fully human mind, he would have already thrown a Pokéball at him the moment he saw him in the wild.
Since he needed the old man's help answering a question, Steven was more than willing to show some courtesy. After all, the conversation and potential deal hadn't fallen apart yet, if things could be resolved through communication, why make everything unnecessarily complicated?
"Is that so? Then I'm quite curious, what exactly is it that you want to ask?"
The Rat King glanced at Lin Yuhsia beside him. Her expression and eyes clearly looked a little off. He knew very well that things were definitely not as simple as Steven made them sound, but under the circumstances, he would first have to hear what Steven himself intended to say.
"Then I'll get straight to the point. As the ruler of Lungmen's underground world, I assume you're well aware that recently a group of people arrived intending to target a Sankta lady from Rhodes Island, right? Unfortunately, I got dragged into it. So I came here to ask you—who exactly planned this attack?"
Steven stated his question frankly and without hesitation. Since the old man seemed so easy to talk to, there was no need to beat around the bush.
"Oh? Dragged you into it… I think I understand now. You must be the missing Rhodes Island shareholder the Lungmen Guard Department is currently looking for?"
Lin Kojui froze for a moment upon hearing Steven's question, then quickly figured out his identity. He had already heard about the explosion incident that occurred earlier outside the Guard Department, and he also knew that two of the three Rhodes Island members who were supposed to remain under protection had somehow disappeared.
"How can you call it 'missing'? I just figured that some things are more meaningful if you personally experience them. Also, I don't recall ever mentioning that I'm a Rhodes Island shareholder."
Steven smiled. The big rat in front of him had methods even more impressive than he expected. After all, only a handful of people knew about his shareholder status in Rhodes Island. The only plausible source was likely Wei Yenwu, who had been informed by Kal'tsit.
"Well, you're still considered a rather important figure. Paying a little attention to you is only natural for an old man like me. In that case, the explosion that just occurred in the slums… I assume it has something to do with you as well?"
As expected of the underground emperor, the Rat King had already received full information about an event that had occurred less than half an hour ago. He even quickly connected it to the Steven standing before him.
"That has nothing to do with me. I'm an innocent bystander who got dragged into it. If you want to talk about the person involved, it's actually your rather mischievous daughter here. I don't really have much to do with it—aside from the final explosion."
Steven waved his hand. He refused to take the blame for that one. Originally, he had only gone there to kick down the door—at most it would've been armed robbery with a firearm. There was no way he would have caused such a huge commotion. The way things escalated was purely an accident.
"I already understand the situation. Naturally, I know that you were essentially my daughter's savior. Logically speaking, I should directly answer your question as repayment. However, you understand—people who live in the shadows like us must sometimes value rules above many other things."
The Rat King nodded at Steven and began speaking in a somewhat cryptic manner.
"And selling someone else's information… clearly violates certain rules."
"So if I break the rules first, then you won't have to bear that responsibility anymore. Is that what you mean?"
Steven looked at the smiling old man, and his face immediately showed an expression of 'Ah, I get it now.'
When he said that, even the usually composed Rat King became confused.
What he meant was that he needed to hint indirectly and point Steven toward the right direction without explicitly revealing the information. But what exactly did Steven mean by that response?
What exactly did he "realize"?
Just as the Rat King was about to ask what he meant, Steven suddenly moved.
He grabbed Lin Yuhsia—who had only been standing nearby listening—and placed his finger once again on the detonator of the explosive vest strapped to his body.
"Your daughter is in my hands. If you want her to live, tell me who did it!"
"???"
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This is how the Rat King, Lin Kojui, looks like:
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Note: Character Illustration is in this Google Drive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iuyfwNVFHzIi9H4rWNT_lAm7jTSiah_M
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Tn: I updated the story daily, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.
Latest Chapter: Chapter 617: A Bold Guess[1]
Link: https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628[2]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628
[2] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628