The Innkeeper

Five men had entered the Innkeeper’s office, but while Lex’s gaze swept past all of them, it paused nearly imperceptibly on the last person Lex saw. But the brief pause was not a reflection of how shocked Lex was, but rather a result of Lex’s advancing cultivation and the absolute control his Host Attire afforded him.

The man was the spitting image of Lex, to the point where they even had the same height and physique. After the initial surprise wore off, Lex came up with a few explanations. After all, the universe was so wide and the human population was so vast. It shouldn’t be impossible that two unrelated people happened to look identical.

As if having already accepted his explanation, Lex scanned him as if his information would somehow shed light on the matter. But instead it only added to the confusion of the situation.

Name: William Sephore

Age: 467,223

Sex: Male

Cultivation Details: ???(Too high for host to see)

Species: Human

Midnight Inn Prestige Level: 2

Condition: There is an incredibly strong restriction on his body, suppressing a disease. The Inn is currently incapable of treating the guest.

Remarks: Great, now there’s two of them!

William was a common name. Just because it was his last name didn’t mean others couldn’t have it. In fact, Will Bentham, one of his old guests, was actually named William. The same name did not mean they were related. But the situation was just too coincidental. Too many coincidences made Lex uncomfortable, and reminded of his fight with the murderer back in the Crystal realm. He had been incredibly wary of luck since then.

Whatever the truth was, Lex would definitely investigate now that his attention had been brought to it. There was no reason to lose composure over it. It would have been so convenient if his intuition gave him some information, but it only provided him with one clear piece of data: the group opposite to him were too strong for his intuition to play any role whatsoever.

All of that had happened in less than the blink of an eye, and none of the others in the room seemed to have picked up on it. But the reason it was nearly an imperceptible pause, instead of directly an imperceptible one, was because William himself had detected it. Moreover, the subtle change in the expression within his eyes let Lex know that the man had noticed.

But Lex was not put off balance by the fact that his lapse had been detected. There were too many ways to deal with the situation, and as the Innkeeper, he held all the cards. In fact, he could completely pretend like he wanted his gaze to be detected by William to begin with.

“Welcome, my guests,” the Innkeeper turned his attention back to Jotun, as he decided to scan all three. “My apologies for making you wait so long to meet.”

While he was speaking, Lex already scanned the remaining four.

First, of course, he scanned the famous emperor.

Name: Jotun Marcus Sephore

Age: 467,227

Sex: Male

Cultivation Details: ???(Too high for host to see)

Species: Human

Midnight Inn Prestige Level: 1

Remarks: He is formidable – perfect to be hired as a bodyguard.

Then came the advisor standing closest to him.

Name: Nisar Sephore Butt

Age: 467,218

Sex: Male

Cultivation Details: ???(Too high for host to see)

Species: Human

Midnight Inn Prestige Level: 1

Remarks: He looks like a tax evader, but the Inn does not charge GST!

Then the remaining two.

Name: Batu Sephore Togoldor

Age: 467,215

Sex: Male

Cultivation Details: ???(Too high for host to see)

Species: Human

Midnight Inn Prestige Level: 1

Remarks: He looks like he makes his bed every morning to boost productivity through the day. It can only be speculated about the last time he actually used the bed for anything other than making it.

Name: Henry Sephore Knight𝞸𝗏𝓵xt.𝕔𝑶𝗆

Age: 467,210

Sex: Male

Cultivation Details: ???(Too high for host to see)

Species: Human

Midnight Inn Prestige Level: 1

Remarks: He carries the scent of murder. A definite potential client for the Murder Grounds!

“It’s no trouble at all,” said the emperor, Jotun, with a chuckle as he approached the Innkeeper. “After all, I know how hectic managing things can be. Every day, over 30,000 planets in my empire face an armageddon level event. Just making sure my subjects don’t all accidentally die over every small apocalypse that comes their way takes up so much time. I can’t even imagine the workload you must have.”

Jotun’s tone was extremely relaxed and casual, and he did not appear at all as if he was an emperor. His carefree attitude and easygoing behavior gave Lex a positive impression of the man.

“Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jotun, and these are my little brothers, William, Nisar, Batu and Henry.”

“It’s a pleasure, Jotun. Please, guests, have a seat. I hope you have found the Inn suitable for your stay these past few days. It is unfortunate that you did not arrive a few days earlier, or you could have taken advantage of the situation like everyone else.”

“Haha not all Innkeeper, a few days here or there won’t make a difference to us. Besides, if I began cultivating now, it would be years before I become free again. But I have already sent one of your golden keys towards my wife, and am anxiously awaiting her arrival. It’s been over a decade since I saw her last. My heart can endure another millenia to cultivate, but not yet another moment to hold her!”

Jotun winked at the Innkeeper as he burst into a fit of excited laughter. Even though Lex always made sure to maintain a light smile when he was acting as the Innkeeper, feeling Jotun’s genuine happiness, he could not help but smile a little wider.

His gaze turned to Jotun’s ‘brother’. He had no idea the advisors were actually from his family, as nowhere on the Henali portal was that mentioned. But then again, it made sense for people of such importance to keep their secrets close.

As his younger brothers, as Lex had confirmed by checking their ages, they were completely immune to Jotun’s behavior and maintained their polite expressions.