After leaving the café and finalizing the deal, Xiaobing decided to head towards some shops selling flowers and plants.
Xiaobing entered and bought some fertilizer for the Sky Flower in the cabin for one bronze lira. He also bought some cakes from a bakery in the market, also for one lira. He packed them up and carried them.
Then he headed towards the gate he had entered through that morning. He remembered the incident with that guard, and also the merchant he had beaten severely, but a member of the mysterious Organization had reversed time, so he didn't have to worry.
He also remembered he had left a "gift" for James earlier, which made him smile coldly and cunningly.
'Hahaha, it seems, James, that my lady Madeleine will be scolding you today! Didn't you notice something strange? Hahaha yes, I mentioned the fabric shop and didn't mention old man Herbert's glasses shop! Hahaha, I realized you got flustered and mentioned the wrong shop, but instead of correcting you, I pushed you over the edge. What an ungrateful person I am.' Xiaobing spoke to himself, carrying the fertilizer and cakes in separate packages with one hand, and the black umbrella in the other.
He had gotten everything he wanted today in terms of clothing and food, but he hadn't gotten shelter, nor had he destroyed the factories as he said. But he left that for the future, if he became stronger.
Instead, he had obtained the Black Abyss Pistol and a map of the surveillance network of the official power-bearers. But all of that came at two costs: the first was the ephemeral ritual contract to protect the old man Herbert's granddaughter, and the second was finding the person who transformed into an ancient monster in the artifact's scenario.
And although he told Simon and Lizzy he would search inside the cemetery, he wouldn't go looking tonight, maybe tomorrow or the day after.
He still couldn't trust them, so he didn't lower his guard at all; instead, he became more cautious when Lizzy said: "If you find out what happened to him, you might understand something about the nature of dark powers. And that might help you control your own powers."
These words made Xiaobing extremely cautious about this matter, because he had underestimated the abilities of the official power-bearers! They had managed to see him and James when they landed with the flying rock on top of that doll.
Xiaobing said in a low voice: "It doesn't matter. None of this matters. What matters is that I got what I wanted. So there's no need to stay in the city any longer. I must return to the cabin quickly; I'm mentally and physically exhausted from the amount of events that happened to me today! ...I suspect it's unnatural, even if the Entity told me I'm a magnet for power-bearers. This is too much and unnatural. Also, I think what the Entity told me earlier about there being 11 paths... is also a deliberate lie." Saying this, his eyes narrowed.
He continued moving forward until he reached the end of "Monarako" Street, where the bustling market at its end was almost empty of people, and even some shops were closed.
Xiaobing walked from the end of Monarako Street to its beginning, then headed outside. After a few minutes, he reached the same place where that merchant's caravan had been, with the giant gate in front of him.
Boooooom!
A loud thunderclap sounded, illuminating the giant iron gate in front of Xiaobing, where two knights in armor stood, with swords in their scabbards hanging on their hips.
Xiaobing walked to that giant gate and wanted to exit, but he heard a familiar voice, so he stopped. The rain was pouring heavily on his black umbrella.
"Sir! Please... you must head to your home. There's a curfew tonight!" said the knight with the brown beard, who was very familiar to Xiaobing.
'Sir? Why this change in address? Oh, right. When I came earlier I was wearing beggar's clothes, so he didn't treat me the same way!' Xiaobing thought to himself, then said: "And why is there a curfew tonight? Open the gate, my home is outside the city!"
"Ah, sir, there's a curfew tonight because of that serial killer who terrified the city's residents. And I received orders not to open the gate from the city's mayor, so we're just following orders... As for you going to your home outside the city, that's something I can't do for you! Please understand." That guard stood in front of Xiaobing, chattering.
"Why? Just because the city's mayor said so? But I told you my home is outside the city, don't you understand?" Xiaobing replied coldly.
"Sir, please understand!" The second guard jumped beside his comrade in front of Xiaobing.
"I'm saying: get out of my way!" Xiaobing said angrily.
"Sorry, I can't do that!" replied that familiar guard.
"Open the gate for him to leave! But, after he shows you the card!" Suddenly a voice rang out from atop the watchtower. There was a person wearing a round hat and a black coat, his brown hair tossed by the wind blowing over the tower. His deep gray eyes were examining the commotion below leisurely.
"But..." The familiar guard tried to evade the orders, but that person said: "No buts! Carry out the orders!"
'Who is that person?!' Xiaobing looked towards that watchtower, and his eyes met that person's eyes as a powerful thunderclap coincidentally illuminated their faces strongly in the sky.
'Who are you?!' That person and Xiaobing both asked themselves the same question at that moment.
Their gazes were deep towards each other, but Xiaobing decided to withdraw from that staring contest and looked towards the guard who had extended his hand to him wanting the card. So Xiaobing gave the packages to that guard to hold. He wasn't afraid they would get wet from the rain, because the packages were wrapped in a water-resistant bag. Xiaobing took out his card under the name "Lycos" and gave it to the guard after retrieving the packages from him, of course.
"Impossible! Is that you from this morning?" The guard asked in astonishment when he saw that familiar card.
"Yes! Hahaha." Xiaobing replied with cold laughs that gave the guard chills.
"How!" The guard asked again, but Xiaobing moved his hand holding the packages and snatched that card with high speed. And said: "That's none of your business now. Open the gate for me quickly!" Xiaobing looked into the guard's eyes with cold, deadly gazes.
'You'll regret this!' Xiaobing said to himself while looking at him. The guard stood stunned for moments, but his comrade shouted at him to open the gate for Xiaobing.
They rotated the giant gears that were grinding against each other, emitting creaks and noises whenever raindrops hit them.
After opening it just wide enough for an adult, Xiaobing exited that giant gate to outside the city's massive walls. But he turned when he felt someone's gaze on him, and saw it was that person. But this time he ignored him, looked ahead, and walked.
'Damn it, I forgot to buy a lantern for lighting in the cabin!' Xiaobing grumbled to himself, then turned back and looked at that person and said: "Do you have a lantern? I'll buy it or return it tomorrow!"
'Who do you think you're dealing with? Is this a lighting shop?' thought that familiar guard as he looked at Xiaobing, screaming internally.
But he was surprised to hear the guard captain say: "Take this lantern! It's a gift from me!" That person said while throwing a medium-sized lantern, and added: "You'll need to refill it with gas every seven days if you use it seven hours a day!"
'A gift? Since when does the Captain give gifts to people? Is that person an acquaintance of his? Damn, if so, then I wronged him earlier.' The guard thought to himself in terror.
Xiaobing caught that lantern using the umbrella, but that was at the cost of getting slightly wet with rainwater. But it was worth the trouble, as he got a free lantern. However, he didn't forget to say: "Thank you, I accept your gift! And also, thanks for the side notes!" Xiaobing said while waving his hand holding the packages.
Then he turned and walked towards the cabin under the gaze of that person and the guards.
'I don't know how you survived the V-0 weapon, boy! But, believe me, I'll visit you very soon!' That person's eyes narrowed, while he shouted loudly: "Close the gate now!"
"As you command!" The Captain's shout snapped the guards out of their state of anger and fright from Xiaobing being an acquaintance of their Captain.
Xiaobing heard the sound of the massive gears moving again behind him as he headed towards the cabin in the rain. He didn't look back again, but walked carrying the lantern and illuminating his path in the darkness.
Xiaobing walked on the muddy ground from the rain, which was full of small puddles. Xiaobing walked carefully so as not to dirty the shoes James had given him today.
After half an hour, Xiaobing reached the agricultural fields belonging to the villagers, making him remember their talk in the morning. But he kept his face cold and unaffected.
He walked through the middle of those fields, and there was no one in them, except for spiky scarecrows of strange and scary shapes. He hadn't seen them or focused on them before, because he had been covering his eyes and ignoring the villagers' gazes earlier.
He didn't stop, but continued walking, and began climbing that mountain. Then many lights from the villagers' cabins appeared in his eyes, but he still didn't stop, continuing until he reached the circular path behind and below the cabin, and walked carefully along the winding path so as not to trip or slip, because it was wet from rainwater flowing down from the mountain. The trees around him made sounds from raindrops hitting their branches.
And when Xiaobing finally managed to climb up from behind the cabin, he turned and came from his right, but stopped for a moment and looked towards the front of the cabin. Specifically beside the front of the cabin, the Sky Flower stood tall, not showing the previous exhaustion from the morning. Strangely, the raindrops couldn't fall on it, and there was something around it preventing them from reaching the flower.
"There you are!" Xiaobing said, looking at the Sky Flower.
Suddenly, the flower moved in a way and directed its body towards Xiaobing.
At that moment, a silver thread appeared directly above it and was aimed at Xiaobing.
"Are you directing your power at the person who saved your life?" Xiaobing asked coldly, advancing towards it without any fear.
That flower didn't listen, and struck that silver energy thread towards Xiaobing's head with speed... But suddenly, something appeared and cut that silver thread.
"What? Is this all you can do? For your information, if you understand my words... I'm no longer that weak, naive person from this morning! So you need to get a little more serious!" Xiaobing said disappointedly, while advancing towards it further.
That Sky Flower ignored Xiaobing's disappointed words, and increased the number of silver threads, as if it understood, and sent them towards Xiaobing, who with every step forward cut its silver threads.
This was a clear development in Xiaobing's abilities. Because of his ascension to the second tier, he was able to cut energy threads faster and in greater numbers because of it.
...
End of Chapter ~ To be continued.