NOVEL NEXT Chapter 148: Adults Are Talking
Shortly after Aiken had its four limbs crushed, Darius's personal guard calmly took over the task of tossing the former outside the Fragrant Garden.
Having been drenched in his own blood, it didn't take long before berserk slaves sniffed him out.
Aiken's face was filled with horror when he spotted two berserk slaves rushing toward him. He wanted to crawl away, but to no avail.
"No, don't come any closer—"
Aiken couldn't even finish his statement when the berserk slaves already latched onto him. They pressed him down and began devouring and draining his blood.
Just like how Aiken coldheartedly watched the other victims begging for entry, he was now suffering the same fate. His eyes darted at the garden's entrance door, unable to reach the interior to be protected by the formation.
'Is this retribution?' That was Aiken's final thought process as he succumbed to his death.
His ending held no significance to the people inside the garden.
Inside the garden, Darius pondered for a moment before coming to a realization. "Merchant Vincent, huh. Isn't that the newly arrived gold ranked merchant of the Merchant Guild in our city?"
"That is correct, Marquis Darius," Caroline confirmed his mindset. Though she was certain the former already knew about it. Everything was merely a formality and an act to cover his tracks of hiding and biding his time to shine.
The moment Darius emerged, he effectively took the center stage with his ruthlessness and decisiveness.
At the same time, his blatant cruelty was used to serve as a warning to Leonard to beware of his actions.
He may have gotten away lightly with the torture of Gardener Aiken, but the latter was ultimately still a part of the Noble Faction.
And in the Noble Faction, nobody but he was allowed to make the decision for other people's lives.
Darius wished to intimidate and somewhat put Leonard in his place. But he was surely disappointed when Leonard gave none of the reaction he was anticipating.
'Hoh, are you trying to hold some fake courage, or do you actually have some hidden card?' Darius wondered silently. He refused to believe a gold ranked merchant would be so unruly and careless enough to intrude upon a sacred garden and commit such a violence beating for no reason.
There was bound to be something fishy about his arrival alongside Researcher Caroline.
'The spies told me that these two had business deals. But how could it possibly be anything more valuable than mine?' Darius was informed of the situation at Lord Wesley's banquet, so he was intrigued by Leonard's identity and background.
What sort of person could they be to poach someone like Caroline into their side?
As Darius and Leonard held a staring contest, the crowd was left dazed, unsure of what to do next.
After an unknown amount of time, Darius finally made the first move.
"Mr. Vincent, I was certain there was a banquet being held in the Merchant Guild today. Why have you appeared in the Fragrant Garden instead?" His eyes squinted, inspecting Leonard's bloodied clothes. From nearly top to bottom, his clothes were stained with the blood of a mere gardener.
A merchant rarely used violence. They only cared about profit and whether a business was worth it.
After all, they cared too much about their reputation and the trust built on profit.
Thus, they refrained from using violence to resolve any issues, at least not in public.
And even in the off-chance that they wanted to use violence in public, it was usually done through another servant or guard.
This particular style was similar to that of a noble's behavior.
Yet the gold ranked merchant in front of him was completely out of the norm!
Not of Merchant Guild Style nor the Noble Faction Style!
'Which faction does he actually belong to?' Darius was curious. His question served as a probe and also a demand for an explanation.
'Killing someone like a pig in front of me, setting up a domineering front to suppress, you sure know how to play.' Leonard sneered inwardly.
If it were prior to the assassination attempt, he might truly continue to play around. But now, he had lost interest and the mood to play on someone's chessboard.
"Marquis Darius, right? When is it your authority to inquire about a merchant's whereabouts in Velastra?" Leonard mused.
"You dare!" Before Darius could respond, his personal guard raised their voice and was about to unsheathe their weapon.
"The adults are talking! When is it a child's turn to interrupt?" Leonard scolded harshly in response.
The personal guard was alarmed by the audacity. They were about to make a move, but Mirelle was already a step ahead.
She directly restrained the personal guard with her mana.
'A sixth circle mage?' Darius's eyes squinted slightly upon sensing the mana residue. His suspicion deepened. Not just having Caroline accompany him, but also having a sixth circle mage as a bodyguard.
These two factors weren't just something a gold ranked merchant could achieve.
Since the situation didn't seem right, especially how his attempt to establish dominance had failed spectacularly, Darius didn't want to have a fallout with Leonard yet.
From the intel reported, it was said even Lord Wesley had to tread carefully with him, going as far as offering him the coveted Rosalia Troupe.
Who didn't know the three women in the Rosalia Troupe were trained expertly?
"Stand down!" Darius raised his voice and scolded his personal guard. "I'm having a conversation with Mr. Vincent over here. Mr. Vincent was just joking with me, and you dare try to escalate the matter?"
"Naturally, it's a joke!" Leonard acknowledged the claim.
"I didn't expect the guard to be so rigid and couldn't even discern a joke."
"Do pardon my personal guard. They have always been so numb to everything and can't think straight." Darius shook his head in defeat.
"Aish, you don't need to feel too sad, Marquis Darius." Leonard consoled.
"Why don't you give your bodyguard to me and let me train them on your behalf?" He offered.
"..."
Darius was rendered speechless. He nearly cursed aloud at the blatant, shameless suggestion.