After returning to his personal dormitory from the messy lounge and getting groomed, Flick left the Great Library. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

Today's appointment is very important, so even if he is really entangled in the sequelae of the procedure, he must go according to the agreement. Frick was still wondering how long it would take for the street boy he caught that day to gather information for himself, but he didn't expect to get a response so quickly.

Rather, it was the person who wanted to invite him to turn against him - when he went to the designated place as he had promised to the street boy, the expected adventurer did not show up. The only one waiting there was the boy, and in the distance he could see other street boys who might still be his companions.

There are a large number of street children wandering around the meeting point, consciously or unconsciously, keeping a distance from them, and being able to disperse in time if something happens.

He said that you should not jump into a pit dug by someone else so casually, and if Mr. Scrivener wanted to show sincerity, do as he said on the note. The young man's attitude was still not good, "As for the transaction on the other side, since I have accepted your money, I will definitely try my best to help you gather information." ”

That's what he said to Frick, the man who taught the boy to use magic seemed to be quite wary of the outside world, so after listening to the words that were brought to him by the way, he just asked the boy to bring a note as a message, and did not take the initiative to come to Hans Dock to meet Frick.

The request from his side not only changed the time and place of the meeting, but also asked Frick and Dean to come up with something that could prove their identity. Obviously, the other party does not believe them at all and wants to move the place of the meeting to a place that is beneficial to them.

Dean guessed that the other party was most likely an adventurer wanted by the guild, and that he might also have a criminal record in the guard's records, so he couldn't appear in the docklands where the crowds were mixed. And the reason why some companions were arranged around there was probably to prevent Frick from harming the teenager.

Did he really think he was going to be bad for that little imp?

Frick almost laughed out loud when Dean pointed this out after the boy's safe departure, and after listening to Dean's analysis, he had some idea of how neurotic the illegal adventurers who broke away from the guild's control, but he didn't expect them to be so self-defeating.

Originally, the reason why he chose to meet at the most lively wharf on the banks of the White River had already taken into account the vigilance of the other party, there were many people coming and going here, and he always had to take into account the impact when acting. And no matter what the reason, he will not fight with the people on the streets of the city.

"After all, that's the kind of person they are"

Dean shrugged his shoulders and explained helplessly, "You know, once a person starts to run, it will be difficult for him to change from that state of mind for the rest of his life. The same goes for those who are in the slums, and if there is no way to return to normal life, it is hard to imagine staying in that kind of place for the rest of their lives. ”

Indeed, as Dean said, there is no need for an able-bodied person to huddle in a slum without really having to live in seclusion. Even if it's just to go to the dock to carry things, there are so many ways to keep the average person living in this city.

Thinking back to his conversation with Dean, Frick walked slowly through some damp, rancid white mist down the road that led to a stumbling shanty town at the foot of the city walls. The streets are full of sewage and garbage, and it is hard to imagine that the glossy urban area exists in the same city.

No matter how large the city was at first, it was like a living thing growing slowly, and the walls could not completely limit the pace of its sprawl. In the process of growth, there are always things that are difficult to enter the main urban area that accumulate around it, forming shanty towns of various sizes.

If you see a vision here, you don't know what will appear in front of your eyes - after hesitating for a while with such doubts, Frick walked through a wooden gate built along the edge of the building and walked into the shanty town that the homeless had built haphazardly under the walls.

From this narrow courtyard made of simple bricks and wood, only the faint light of oil lamps and candles can barely be seen. Just looking at the exterior of the complex gives an idea of how the inhabitants live, and there is a world of difference between the intoxicating choral sounds of the church in the distance.

"Oh, you're here too?" Dean, who had already arrived early, was already waiting there as he approached the door of the compound, "almost ten years ago, the imps said they were going to go in and inform 'the man,' and then they didn't show up again—and he must have appeared soon." ”

He sat on a rock seemingly casually, with two glass bottles at his feet, and even prepared a side dish for the wine in advance. One bottle of Burke's specialty wine and the other bottle of southern rum are among the more expensive varieties in the city's liquor shops.

But it would be a mistake to think that he had only come to drink with someone, because in addition to wine and food, he also carried the usual short-handled axe. The last time the crow learned the simple spells that the mages attached to them had long since lost their effect, but even then they had the power to easily cut off the heads of most monsters.

Sensing that Frick was intrigued by what he had brought, Dean casually said, "It's our habit of meeting adventurers over there, wine is an elixir to keep the tongue alive, and weapons are a tool to prove courage - if that guy is an adventurer, then you should respond accordingly." ”

After saying that, he picked up a bottle at his feet and shook it, as if inviting Frick to join them in the party. Frick glanced at the words written on the label, the bottle was some years old, and it was Dean's treasure.

The seekers of mysteries have their own rituals, the scribes relate recorded knowledge, and the sorcerers write the calculations that construct phenomena. Unlike the occult rituals that are rightfully held by those who are supposed to have secrets, the rituals of exchange among adventurers are obviously more straightforward.

While drinking and talking about his adventures, he waved his weapons to exchange their martial arts. It is said that this ritual was spread long before the guild was powerful enough to influence almost all adventurers, and at some point it became an unrecognized form of communication.

It's always been said that the warriors are more literal in their quest for a sense of identity in strength - but at least as far as Flick is concerned, they also want to tell their stories. Like the old legends that poets once told, many adventurers want to be legends.

"I must say, I don't know about your so-called rituals. ”

Frick had no choice but to admit his ignorance to Dean's words: "But this format sounds at least a little better than the tedious process of welcoming the new recruits, and the dozing greetings and rituals that made people doze off when I joined the Scribes were not interesting except to make people feel uncomfortable." ”

Perhaps this is a habit that adventurers have had since they only existed at the level of "self-proclaimed", after all, the profession of "adventurer" was originally a term with the same meaning as unorganized mercenaries. Exchanging martial arts skills and drinking and chatting together is almost the only way to relax during the rare leisure time.

Mercenaries sell their forces and exchange their swords and lives for shining gold coins, so mercenaries are also known as "sword sellers". In contrast, adventurers may have a more flexible job, and while they also sell their own technology in return, they are also unreliable due to the lack of corresponding restraints - and this is why guilds are created.

Whether it's a ritual, a norm, or a system, these things must be organized in order for them to be universally accessible to all participants. To the people it is the state, and to the adventurers, the organization is the guild of trades that controls the channels of contracts and commissions.

In the past, there were many people who were reluctant to be governed by trade associations, believing that if they were, they were bound to accept jobs or take risks as they pleased. But it soon became clear that the organization had grown to such a size, that not joining it meant that they could not be protected by it - and in fact, their work was even made more difficult by the exclusion of the guilds.

And some of those who joined it, but did not act according to its rules, found themselves in danger by their "maverick" behavior, because this organization not only had a near monopoly on risk-taking commissions throughout the empire, but also hardly tolerated those unstable elements.

In hindsight, it appears that the guild had premeditated various schemes to exclude a small group of people who were deemed to threaten the Order's dominance over all adventurers. And those who are wanted by them have really become wanted criminals of the empire because of various crimes.

If Dean's information and personal speculation are true, then Frick's luck may have been really good this time, and he caught a big fish that knows a lot of information. And even if the other party is just a small character, he can get some useful information.

"Hey, you two!"

Not long after, the young man who returned to the shantytown to report the news brought the news: "That man asked me to tell the adventurer among you, 'Wine for wine, sword for sword,' and he said that if you are a qualified adventurer, then you must know what this means." ”

It seems that the other party is finally willing to respond to their invitation.