Trafford’s Trading Club

Chapter 1277: Chapter 4: The Grand Prize

[Mistakes are not scary; what’s scary is finding excuses to escape responsibility after making them.]——Knight Klein’s Code.

…

Until he returned to the social work center with the three young men—still a bit uneasy—Knight Klein followed them all the way, and only after reaching the center did he shake off his last doubts.

After confirming their identities, Klein suddenly recalled a saying from the distant East: I smoke, tattoo, drink, fight, and have abortions, but I’m a good woman.

When the three of them removed their makeup and changed back into ordinary clothes, they looked like completely different people. Will, after putting on glasses, even exuded a scholarly air… making Klein apologize profusely once more.

“Hahaha, to be honest, we were startled too. You suddenly barged in, all covered in injuries. We were afraid of causing a conflict and getting you hurt again.”

The young man named Will had been working at the social work center for three years… Also, he was a rock enthusiast who formed a band with two friends, often participating in charity performances.

Unexpected, right?

If Mr. Gareth were here, he would probably speak to me in a teasing tone, wouldn’t he?

Klein knew he was in the wrong from the start, so he corrected his attitude—truthfully, there wasn’t much for him to do next. Although the girl remained silent on the way, her fear and other emotions were evident. But as she was now at the social work center, she would receive good care, so Klein didn’t need to worry.

He planned to bid farewell to Will and the others.

Just as he was about to leave, a female social worker from the center returned quickly, looking somewhat displeased—it was this female social worker whom Will had instructed to help the girl wash and change clothes.

After all, they were all men…

“Will, I really doubt your judgment,” the plain-looking female social worker said expressionlessly. “This child is obviously a boy, yet you asked me to bathe him?”

“Oh, it’s a boy… what, a boy???”

…

Inside the room, the girl…or rather, the boy had changed into a set of temporary clothes (which were donations), and his brown, medium-length hair was simply tied with a rubber band… His gentle facial features, emerald-like eyes, slender figure, and fair skin… as well as the Adam’s apple that was faint but indeed present.

Of course, other sexual characteristics had also been subtly confirmed—this delicate individual exuded a fragile beauty inside and out, and was indeed male.

Will and Klein looked on in astonishment, but the other two band members with Will held their eyes in pain.

“Hmm… what are you planning to do with him?” Klein adjusted his surprise, changing ‘she’ to ‘he.’

“She… he hasn’t spoken all along,” Will steadied himself and said, “My colleague just said he has a lot of bruises, especially concentrated on the back. We suspect he may have suffered severe abuse, and due to shock, has suffered mental trauma… We also couldn’t find any identification on him. I think we’ll contact the police to clarify his identity. Don’t worry, he’ll receive good care here. We have excellent psychological counselors—though they’re off today.”

He could see that Klein was a kind-hearted person—even though riding a Harley, bandaged from head to toe, made it easy to misinterpret.

“Thank you,” Klein nodded, then took out a business card, “This is my contact information. If I can help in any way, please don’t hesitate… If the police need a statement, they can contact me directly.”

“A shoe store?” Will glanced at the name on the card.

Klein smiled and said, “Just a family craft.”

He quickly bid a formal farewell to Will and the others, then rode his bike away from the community center, back to where he lived—also where his shoe store was tucked away.

Before becoming an apprentice knight, Klein was a qualified shoemaker… His father was also a shoemaker, and a knight too, though he never achieved the name of the Twelve Knights and only became a Great Knight in the Round Table Organization before passing away.

…

…

When going out, Luo Qiu declined the vehicle arranged by Chen Peter, opting for a double-decker bus instead.

Sightseeing, taking photos, enjoying food, and street performances by young people and artists… like the most ordinary travelers.

During dinner, Luo Qiu didn’t seek out a restaurant. Instead, he planned to visit some famous spots since it was rare to be here—even though it was just a passing visit.

Basically, after 5:30 pm, all major attractions in the Fog Capital stop public access—especially with an unexpected rain, these sites seemed particularly deserted.

Desolation has its advantages… at least it offers a sense of exclusivity—though some places remain open at night.

“Shall we ride that?”

Across the riverbank, Luo Qiu pointed to the giant ‘eye’ rotating on the opposite side—the enormous ferris wheel known as the Fog Capital’s Eye.

The Maid enthusiastically agreed, though she wondered if they could get a cabin for just her and the master… If another couple were present, it might spoil the mood.

…

On the street, a man in a yellow trench coat was strolling… with his collar turned up, partially concealing his face; his lowered hat brim also hid his eyes.

He walked alone.

Men and women of all sorts passed him by—he suddenly paused in front of a store window, fixing his appearance in the glass reflection.

Abruptly, in a moment unnoticed by the passersby, the man in the yellow trench coat took a step—directly into the window glass.

Or rather, he seemed to pass through the window, vanishing instantly.

Almost simultaneously, from different spots on the street, three men rushed over to where the trench coat man had vanished and converged.

One angrily exclaimed, “It’s a teleportation trick, we’ve been detected!”

Another quickly took out a communicator, “This is Raptors Team, we’ve lost the target!”

…

Across the street from the clothing store, in an alley, a swirling vortex suddenly appeared, and a figure emerged from it.

The man in the yellow trench coat steadied his hat, a slight smile on his lips as he continued forward.

However, a bouncing red ball blocked his path.

A fist-sized red ball bounced up and down… Suddenly, it jumped higher than before, landing on a fire escape railing three meters up… into the hand of a Clown.

Called a clown only because of the makeup, not the attire—in fact, the Clown wore a black suit.

The Clown’s left eye makeup appeared to run, resembling a teardrop on his white-pink face. But his wide red lips showed no smile.

The man in the yellow trench coat looked up, removed his hat politely and smiled, “A true honor, to have you, sir, known as [Dagonet], block my path.”

The Clown on the walkway… the Knight known as [Dagonet] leaped down gracefully, lips either crying or smiling, speaking melodiously, “As a senior cadre of ‘Doomsday Myth,’ it’s my honor to personally apprehend you… Mr. Red, are you interested in accompanying me back?”

The man in the yellow trench coat… Red shrugged, “I’m just a sightseeing guest, it’s quite unkind for the Knights of the Round Table Organization to treat a tourist this way. I heard several Beastmen were lost today… which is troubling, especially if they go berserk in the busy streets?”

The Clown sneered, “You’re the one who tipped us off about illegally captured Beastmen passing through the Fog Capital’s port… I’m curious, why provide such intel? Now, most of my colleagues are busy searching for these missing Beastmen while Mr. Red leisurely strolls through the Fog Capital’s streets… I’m truly intrigued by your intentions.”

“Do I have the right to refuse?” Mr. Red questioned as if testing… but he seemed far from fearful.

Mr. Clown toyed with the red ball in his hand, gently tossing it to the ground where it bounced back into his hand.

This seemed to act as a signal.

The signal to act.

The moment the red ball was obtained, it shot straight from the Clown’s palm—its target, naturally, Mr. Red.

But he was prepared; the instant the red ball shot toward him, the hat in his hand spun around—the red ball shot directly into the hat.

The hat kept spinning, and the moment it spun back again, the red ball shot out again, this time back toward the Clown… just like a magician’s prop.

A simple skirmish, with neither side gaining an advantage.

“Knight, I imagine you wouldn’t want to have a brawl in the streets of the Fog Capital, would you?” said the high-ranking officer of the ‘Doomsday Myth’ calmly. “After all, you’re not like a criminal like me… We don’t have such concerns.”

“Just as well,” Mr. Clown shrugged. “I was actually planning to get some discipline, to take a nice suspension holiday… Work has been too busy lately.”

Red squinted his eyes… perhaps by luck, he encountered this very Clown.

Clearly, Clown [Dagonet] isn’t the strongest knight in the Round Table Organization, but certainly the one with the least scruples… to some extent, even describable as a madman.

He had more important things to do today, so he didn’t intend to waste time here with this madman.

“Alright.” Red suddenly raised his hands. “I’ll go back with you.

Hearing this, Mr. Clown didn’t seem to lower his guard—in the next instant, Red vanished on the spot, just as he had disappeared in front of that clothing store window.

Mr. Clown wasn’t surprised—at the moment Red escaped, he slightly bent his legs, and his body leapt up instantly—yes, with that powerful jumping ability, his body shot like an arrow—toward a certain direction.

On a rooftop somewhere in the street, after a distortion, Mr. Red landed slowly—only for Mr. Clown to arrive almost simultaneously.

Mr. Red’s expression slightly changed… his crossing technique had limitations; he couldn’t teleport over long distances.

“Truly terrifying physical prowess…”

“An enjoyable game of cat and mouse.”

Once again, Red used his crossing technique… his body disappeared and appeared repeatedly in the night sky, constantly moving over the streets of the Fog Capital—as if he had gained the ability to fly.

Yet, the Clown behind him could always catch up, relying on terrifying perception and extraordinary physical abilities.

Just as Mr. Clown said, this was truly just a cat-and-mouse game.

Finally, after another chase, Red suddenly stopped and didn’t use his crossing technique again.

“Tired of this game already?”

Mr. Clown also stopped.

The two faced off… atop a gigantic structure. The colorful lights around them shone precisely on their bodies.

“Mr. Clown, is the view here nice?” Red slightly smiled… looking below.

Below, men and women of all shapes and sizes were waiting… below where the Clown and Red faced off, on the support of the world-famous massive Ferris wheel, the Fog Capital’s Eye.

Mr. Clown took a glance.

Unexpectedly, Red placed both hands on the support of the Ferris wheel, with a touch of madness, “The serpent of shadows is about to reappear… and this is its beginning, from death it starts.”

A powerful magic power fed into the Ferris wheel’s supports instantly… the axle deformed under the pressure of the magic.

As the Fog Capital’s Eye slowly rotated, it might fall from the supports the next second and crash onto the many tourists below.

In that thunderous moment, Mr. Clown showed no hesitation… his unpredictable behavior obviously didn’t wish to see such a loss of life under the collapse of the Fog Capital’s Eye.

He had to abandon the perfect opportunity to attack Red, instead leaping solo to the axle position, intending to use sheer force to keep the Fog Capital’s Eye from detaching from its support.

However, the prematurely broken support caused the Fog Capital’s Eye to shake… those who had already boarded the cabins to enjoy the Fog Capital’s night view became terrified.

Can’t make it in time… Mr. Clown’s face turned extremely grim.

“You’re too late!”

Red’s voice came from above… so crazed, “The serpent of shadows is about to reappear! And this is its beginning, from death it starts!”

He repeated that proclamation once more!

Mr. Clown, one of the Twelve Knights, was ultimately… just one fraction too late; the Fog Capital’s Eye completely detached from its axis.

A pathological smile appeared on Red’s face… below the Fog Capital’s Eye, the music played for the tourists was now wondrous, like a symphony of death.

“What a beautiful sound.”

As if seeing the mass destruction and the Clown’s frustrated and angry expression, he opened his arms and closed his eyes, wanting to embrace the beautiful moment.

The music… the music still played, joyful mixed with a pleasant atmosphere.

The projected, scattered lights of the Fog Capital’s Eye swept over Mr. Red again… seconds later, Mr. Red opened his eyes in shock.

The expected collapse of the Fog Capital’s Eye hadn’t happened; a cold wind blew as Mr. Red foolishly watched the still-rotating Fog Capital’s Eye, his mouth agape…

Not only he was like this, but Mr. Clown, standing on the axle, was the same—because he was close enough to clearly see what had just happened.

The axle, which had already fallen, miraculously returned to its original position before his eyes… more than that, the broken nails and screws magically flew back from all directions, steadfastly securing the axle once more.

The Ferris wheel slowly rotated… a bloody crisis vanished just like that.

At this time, a black flame suddenly surged from beneath the axle, its speed like thunder… the black flame flew along the support’s main beam, reaching Mr. Red in an instant.

Boom—!

The black flame erupted, and Mr. Red didn’t even have time to scream before his whole body was enveloped in black flames, falling from above.

Mr. Clown, once again astonished, watched this unexpected change, even directly facing the falling Mr. Red…

…

At a cabin of the Fog Capital’s Eye, the face of a certain boss was quirking as he looked out… he had only planned to come for sightseeing, and it was already the last stop of the day.

Despite having closed the deal, does he still attract troubles…?

“The atmosphere was obviously nice…”

The black flame bounced at the Maid’s fingertips… the Maid, who had started to seem less indifferent, seemed to be angry now.

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PS1: A recommendation: a book called “I Really Cannot Die” by the author xiahua Empress, no need for me to say more…

PS2: A late supplementary chapter.

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