Edmond Sand gently stroked the young man's back, belched from drinking, and tilted his head with a smirk, saying to Roy, "You're pretty lucky, kid, marrying a good wife, catching Master Simon's eye. Otherwise, the nice task of collecting spirits wouldn't have fallen to you."
Master Simon... Deputy Commander of the Security Corps... Roy searched Andrew Cooper's memory, and an image of a man with a large hooked nose flashed in his mind. The man's frame was slender, forever wearing a monocle, and his smile always sent chills down Roy's spine, a chilling sensation he couldn't quite describe....
Roy placed his right hand on his chest, humbly bowing to Edmond Sand, saying, "All thanks to Master Edmond's guidance. Without you, there would be no Andrew today."
"Hehehe... Save those pleasantries, after all, we're practically friends who went through the same 'hole,'" Edmond Sand joked with a mischievous smile, "Your wife is my wife too. You perform well, and I can shine before Master Simon."
"Yes,"
"Alright, tell me, how's the progress?" Edmond Sand lazily sank into his chair, supporting his chin with his hand... Roy thought of Old Mark, Lady Nora, thought of young Marty's skin peeled off, made into a wine jug, and those men and women willing to feed the magical beast just so their children could enter the city for a better life, fathers, mothers, grandfathers, grandmothers...
Suppressing the anger rising in his heart, he said, "According to Master Edmond's instructions, eleven have been collected."
"Eleven?" Edmond frowned, his face dropping immediately: "Why so few? What about quality ones? How many of those?"
Quality ones... meaning the souls of 'Nen users'...
[Nen] differs from ordinary humans, the soul strength is clearly not as strong as a Nen user whose acupoints have opened and Nenryoku awakened... even Posthumous Nen from ordinary humans doesn't hold up against Nen users.....
Roy searched Andrew Cooper's memory and instantly understood what [quality ones] meant... bowing his head, he said, "Sorry, Master Edmond, none have been collected yet...."
"Hoo—"
The atmosphere in the living room instantly dropped, like a mute button was pressed, turning cold......
A moment later, Edmond Sand laughed,
He lightly nodded: "Hmm."
Ignoring Roy, he suddenly asked the trembling boy in his arms: "Why are you shaking? Are you scared?"
The boy, with a bare back and only wearing a pair of triangular pants, stammered out a smile, saying: "Master, I am not."
"Nonsense, you clearly are afraid!"
"Master, I am not."
"Still lying!" Edmond suddenly changed his expression, grabbing the boy's neck, his thick hand directly using [Ten], and like lifting a chick, he grabbed the neck and raised him up, visibly... the boy's cheeks began turning purple at a fast speed, struggling desperately, kicking legs and slapping Edmond's arm... like a drowning person, teetering on the edge of drowning, ready to sink....
"Ugh... ugh....." Breathing weakened.....
Edmond seemed to finally remember Roy, turning his head again to look at him: "Andrew, does he look like you?"
Roy's body trembled suddenly, looking up, red anger surged uncontrollably in his eyes, exploding instantly!
"Sizzle!" [Laser] out!
Two blazing lasers suddenly shot from Roy's eyes towards Edmond Sand!
Before the man could react, instantly severing the fat hand that was gripping the boy, causing him to scream like a pig being slaughtered!
"Thud~" The boy with his neck gripped fell limply with the severed hand, finally able to breathe a breath, his knees buckled, falling directly to the floor... With heavy breathing, he seemed yet to recover from the scare, blankly staring at Roy who saved his life, his figure flickered, instantly turning into a ray of sunlight, suddenly seeing....
He stepped on Edmond Sand's fat face, the red glow in his eyes almost tainted with blood-red fury!
"Why?"
"Why do you have to scare me?"
"Don't you know I'm timid and can't take fright?"
"Creak~" Foot grinds against face skin, pressing deeper into bone... Edmond Sand's screams grew louder... quickly alarming Dunn West and a dozen guards at the villa who hadn't gone far!
Dunn West just reached outside the corridor, his expression changed, "Master Edmond!"
Turning abruptly, rushing into the living room, followed by a clatter of more than ten guards holding various weapons!
Mad! The door bursts open! Seeing Edmond Sand, trampled underfoot by Roy transformed into Andrew Cooper, Dunn West and guards paused collectively, then charging forward with shouts!
"Andrew Cooper, do you know what you're doing?"
"Thunder above, damn it... let go of Master Edmond!"
"Don't come closer!" Suddenly a sharp shout stopped Dunn West and others in their tracks, Roy squinted slightly, sensing the powerful Nen wave from beneath his feet, his figure flickered, using sunlight again for light transformation, retreating to the side, suddenly.....
Stepped underfoot, the one-handed Edmond Sand burst!
Chest, head, arms, thighs slowly appeared various corpse spots, the body rapidly expanded, forming a massive [Titanic Presence], finally unable to support, bursting open!
"Boom! No one come near! I want to tear him apart!"
Suddenly a furious roar, following the explosion of [Titanic Presence], scattering countless rancid-smelling "Nen Bullets," suddenly merging again, condensing into a "Rancid Torrent" charging at Roy....
Roy's pupils surged with red light, [Laser] instantly switched to [True Eyes] staring intently... an information stream emerged in his mind.
[Edmond Sand]
[Knight...]
[Constitution: 1543]
[Apparent Nen Amount: 110,000/1,000,000]
[Potential Nen Amount: 870,000/1,000,000 (fake)]
[Rating: B—]
[Remark: Elite Ant Master General Level 1, not matching Three Guards, yet surpassing ordinary elite Ant Master Generals]
Roy's brows frowned, giving [fake] another glance, sharply noticing... Edmond Sand charging at him, like Dunn West watching by the side, suspected of having undergone one, maybe two, three... [Blessings]!
Then comes the question?
All are "outcasts" abandoned by [God], forced to eke out a living in Usurping Forest... where does the [Blessing] on him come from?
Many doubts flowed into his mind like thoughts, cutting off one another and endlessly tangled.....
Roy simply steeled his heart, not bothering anymore, directly summoning [En], dispatching [Heart Bugs], while spitting out a wave of "sleepiness," instantly enshrouding the entire villa, including the corridor and garden behind the living room, hearing him say:
"Sleep."
[Dream Domain]... activated!
"Buzz~" Invisible waves spread like ripples....
Piercing through Edmond Sand's rotten torrent, halting the torrent,
Piercing through Dunn West observing, dazing him, suddenly staggering,
Piercing through guards, causing weapons in their hands to clang down, falling to the ground like dumplings "Thud~" "Thud~".....
No need to mention unfortunate boys and girls who hadn't unlocked acupoints, birds, bugs, fish... any living thing facing eyes marked with a large "sleep word," all stiffened, obediently lying down.....
"You... you're not Andrew Cooper!"
"Master Edmond beware, this guy's not Andrew Cooper!"
"His Nen's odd!"