Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

After giving it some thought, Val eventually gave up on the repair.

Since the repair shop was close to the Luke family's house, the Chevrolet sedan was temporarily kept at their place.

In the evening, Val invited Luke to dinner.

The two went to a nearby kebab restaurant.

Val picked up a beer, clinked glasses with Luke, and took a big gulp, "You worked hard today."

"What do you plan to do with that car?"

"I don't know… it's a total mess." Val scratched his head with his right hand, "I've been driving that car for over four years, and I know it's pretty old and not in great shape.

I had been planning to save up and buy a better second-hand car, but then it just conked out on me."

Luke pressed, "What kind of second-hand car are you thinking of buying?"

"A sedan with better performance, of course, doesn't have to be too fancy, something around ten thousand dollars would be okay."

"How much have you saved up now?"

"Should be about three thousand dollars."

"You could take out a loan."

"My credit is terrible, no bank is willing to lend me money, and if they do, the interest rates would be so high it's terrifying.

I don't know if I can afford it."

Luke bit into a kebab and suggested, "I've been thinking about buying a car myself recently, how about we chip in together and buy one?"

Val laughed, "Chip in to buy a car, you mean, what kind of car do you want? A Lamborghini?

Stop kidding around."

Luke explained, "You should know, Pinkerton Detective Agency invited me to be a consultant a while ago, and I occasionally do some detective work.

This Mercedes G500 is too conspicuous, I need a low-profile car for tasks."

"Are you serious?"

"Of course.

We could buy a second-hand car for over ten thousand dollars according to your needs, normally you would drive it, and I would come to you when I need it."

After thinking it over, Val said, "Sounds good, but what if we both need the car?"

"You could ride the Harley."

"Wow, oh wow, I'm not dreaming, right? You'd actually let me ride the Harley?"

"It's not that I'm not willing; it's just that you used to stagger around like you were constantly hungover, and I worried you'd get into an accident.

After all, I'd rather not indirectly kill my own uncle.

But it's different now, you've got a real job, and you're in good shape every day. I'm more at ease."

Val confirmed, "I get to decide what car we buy?"

"As long as it's nothing too extravagant, that's fine."

"I agree," Val agreed readily; he couldn't think of a reason to refuse.

He only had three thousand dollars in cash, and this old car could probably be sold for a bit over a thousand dollars at most, so his total assets were just over four thousand dollars.

Yet, to buy a second-hand car that's in good condition and performs well, you'd need at least ten thousand dollars. With loan interest and other expenses, the total would exceed fifteen thousand.

Luke had the money, and if he covered the rest, they could save on interest.

For Val, spending four thousand dollars to get a quality second-hand car seemed like a worthwhile deal, no matter how you looked at it.

And Luke wouldn't lose out either.

He wanted to buy an ordinary car for detective work.

He wouldn't normally use the car, so letting his uncle drive it wasn't a loss.

What mattered most was that the car would be registered under his uncle's name, which was very important to Luke.

If anything happened, Val would be the one to take the heat.

This wasn't to say that Luke had a cold heart, but his identity was quite special, and Val didn't have so many scruples.

Even if Val really got into trouble because of the car, Luke could help him solve it, effectively acting as a barrier and a buffer.

There was still some risk, of course, and Luke didn't hide anything. He told Val about his thoughts and the potential issues.

Val himself wasn't too worried; he knew full well that Luke didn't care about that four thousand dollars. Chipping in to buy the car was also a way of helping him.

If Luke could help him out, he was naturally willing to help his nephew.

Besides, he was in such a poor state, even if trouble came knocking, he didn't have much to worry about.

Even if trouble did arise, would Luke ignore him?

Val's transportation problem was solved.

He was an optimistic person by nature, and he quickly became cheerful, discussing with Luke which brand and model of car to buy...

...

The next day.

Luke had scheduled a Jujutsu practice with Natasha.

At nine o'clock in the morning, Luke arrived at the Jujutsu Club on time.

He exchanged two Jujutsu cards, consuming 40 points, leaving 20 points remaining in the Detective System.

This time, Natasha changed the way Luke trained.

She had Luke practice with other members.

Those training at Natasha's were mostly teenagers, the youngest being around seven or eight, and the oldest around seventeen or eighteen, and Luke's opponent was a Latin American teenager around seventeen or eighteen.

This was a teenager, but his height was similar to Luke's, and his build was nearly catching up to Luke's, essentially making him an opponent on the same level.

After exchanging greetings, they began their sparring session.

After two rounds of probing, Luke realized the teenager's level of Jujutsu was not below his, making for a good match.

Luke could go all out.

In the initial sparring, both had their wins and losses, and the Latin American teenager, being fiercely competitive for his age, didn't show any signs of intimidation because Luke was older.

Sparring with someone of a similar build was also a new experience for Luke, and they were well-matched, both very engaged in the exercise.

After each sparring session, they would rest for twenty to thirty minutes, and during this time, Natasha, acting as the referee, would provide technical guidance to both, promptly correcting any mistakes and weaknesses.