Embers of Embers

Chapter 231 Arrogance
For the first time, Lorenzo felt... the fatigue of going to work. Camu seemed to have anticipated all of Lorenzo's situation. In the rocking carriage, he put a blanket on Lorenzo that he had prepared in advance, and also prepared some small snacks. dessert.
But Lorenzo had no desire to eat at all. He had just climbed out of the ground, and his whole body was filled with that unspeakable sour smell.
Looking at Kamu in front of the carriage, the homeless man looked brand new at this moment, wearing brand new clothes, driving the carriage, and taking Lorenzo through the streets of Old Dunling. He did not have much ill will towards Lorenzo, and he was not even wary. Lorenzo's weapon was as if it was expected that Lorenzo would not harm him.
Lorenzo closed his eyes and meditated. He had a strange feeling at this moment.
He didn't quite know how to describe this feeling. In short, it was very strange. He had just fought the demon for [-] rounds, climbed out of the river, and was caught in another incident.
In fact, this is not considered "another thing". From the beginning to now, Lorenzo can clearly feel that all the events he has experienced are a whole, being manipulated at will by the big hand behind the scenes.
rat king.
I don't know where to start, Lorenzo stepped into his chessboard, and from the beginning, the Rat King was involved in this series of events.
In this dark and filthy place, the omnipresent rat guided him. It led him to find the secret stronghold, and also led him into the battle of demons. It was even said that Lorenzo felt that the arrival of Su Yalan Hall was also influenced by Driven by the Rat King, they were involved in this fatal danger.
Lorenzo thought of the former intelligence dealers who collected huge amounts of information and made conjectures and calculations to restore the cause of an event. At best, this kind of power was only a certain amount of intelligence and agility, but when reaching the void, Time limit... This seems to be the omniscience within human reach.
Perhaps this is how the Rat King did it. He calculated everything and randomly threw the pieces on the chessboard, resulting in the current situation.
In this way, these seemingly coincidental experiences of Lorenzo are not accidental, but premeditated by a wise man, and he took advantage of everyone.
Lorenzo was full of expectations for the next meeting. This mysterious person hidden in the shadow of the old Dun Ling and separated from the purification mechanism was so exciting for Lorenzo.
"How long will it take to arrive?" Lorenzo asked.
"Soon." Kamu replied.
"What happened next?" Lorenzo continued.
"What later?"
"That's when..." Lorenzo recalled that time, he went up the wall and continued to pursue the enemy. He asked the intelligence agent and Camu to wait for them where they were, "Where did you go?"
"Run away. So many people died at that time. We are just unarmed mortals. Of course we have to run far away."
Judging from Camu's words, they didn't wait for Lorenzo at all. Also, these bad rats were very smart, and fools couldn't survive in that chaos.
"And you met the Rat King?" Lorenzo asked again.
At that time, Camu was just a tramp, but now he is a neatly dressed coachman or a subordinate. In short, he is much better than before. With such a change in such a short period of time, Lorenzo dares to It was concluded that something must have happened after that.
"Well, I met the Rat King and he gave me a new job, which is what you see now."
Kamu said frankly, sincerely and without any disguise.
Such a submissive look made Lorenzo a little uneasy. His previous opponents were all vicious, and they would say crazy words when they met. They wanted to put a knife on your neck to speak, but this time the Rat King in the darkness appeared like this. easy going.
"You're going to like him, he's a... very, very sweet guy."
As if thinking of something interesting, Kamu turned around with a weird smile.
This smile and the adjective made Lorenzo even more uncomfortable. He was not afraid of those vicious villains, but he was wary of such mysterious and strange characters. The Rat King sounded like he had some strange quirks... He was even thinking about it. Do you want to jump out of the car now?
But there was no time for Lorenzo to jump out of the carriage. The carriage suddenly stopped in front of a tavern.
Lorenzo looked around vigilantly. This location was not very good. On one side were bustling buildings and on the other side was an abandoned city. This was the junction of Xiacheng District and Xicheng District. This was usually the place where black money was processed and wealth was transferred. Move from downtown to other places.
Camu motioned for Lorenzo to get out of the car.
"Of course, you still need to pass a small test before meeting him."
"That sounds like choosing a concubine."
Lorenzo said he didn't want to go, but he pushed open the door of the tavern. Camu didn't follow, but stopped beside the carriage, watching Lorenzo.
The air was mixed with the smell of alcohol, and it smelled of an intoxicating fragrance. It was different from the chaos expected. Everyone sat in their respective seats, drank in silence, and talked in low voices. Their anger was like iron and stone. Even the sweetness of alcohol could not overcome it. Soothing.
Lorenzo's arrival attracted their attention... It was actually hard not to notice. The wet clothes had a strange smell and a little blood, as if they had just experienced a fight.
The customers who come here are not good people, and most of the business they talk about is related to gangs. They are not surprised by people like Lorenzo.
Lorenzo walked directly to the bar. Although he didn't know what the strange test was, it was definitely right to order a bottle of wine first.
The bartender, who had a mustache and a kind smile, served Lorenzo drinks, and just like many ordinary bartenders, he talked casually with this new face.
"Is it raining heavily outside?"
Lorenzo glanced at him. The window was not far away. He could see whether it was raining or not.
"No... I just accidentally fell into the river." Lorenzo explained.
"Did you kill a few more people by the way?"
Lorenzo's drinking action stopped, the bartender smiled, and pointed to Lorenzo's clothes. On both sides of the clothes, there were scars cut by sharp instruments, which were left by Ber.
"Pretty much, it's a mess here after all."
Lorenzo paused and randomly found an excuse. This was the edge of the Lower City, the junction with the West City, and anything chaotic and bloody could happen.
"Yeah, it's really messy. Even that kind of weird creature exists. I always thought it was some kind of demon or something."
The bartender wiped the empty glass.
"Hmm... It looks like your skills are really good, just like before. It's really amazing. I can't do it anymore. I have to take a breath after running a few steps."
He continued to speak, but stopped immediately, and the bartender saw Lorenzo's extremely vigilant eyes, and the hand that had reached into his pocket and was already holding the jackknife.
"Don't be nervous, Mr. Lorenzo Holmes, it's not the first time we've met, is it?"
Lorenzo was startled when he heard his words, and then he kept searching the bartender's face in his mind, and finally determined his identity.
"Information agent?"
"Looks like you haven't forgotten me yet."
The intelligence agent put the cleaned wine glass aside and poured himself a glass of wine.
"Actually, I thought you could recognize me the first time you saw me, but unfortunately, my deception may be too perfect."
The intelligence agent looked completely different from when he was in the Rat's Nest. At that time, he was wearing heavy clothes and his whole body was covered in dirty dirt. But now he behaves elegantly and is neatly dressed. No one would have thought that they could be the same person. .
"It's perfect. No one can associate you with the dirty guy you were back then."
Lorenzo picked up the glass.
"Aren't you afraid of poisons? Or are you physically strong enough to ignore poisons?" The intelligence agent said as if he was testing Lorenzo's ability.
Lorenzo felt a little confused, but he still took a sip, and then he put down the glass.
"what do you want to say in the end?"
"It's nothing, I just have a lot of speculations that I want to confirm. Although I think you might be willing to tell them directly, I still prefer the process of decryption."
The intelligence agent said, extending his hand and speaking in a friendly manner.
"Hercule Christie."
Lorenzo hesitantly stretched out his hand and held it with him. Hercule had the things Lorenzo hated most, which were unknown and uncontrollable.
"So you are the Rat King?"
"How is it possible? I'm just an intelligence agent under him." Hercule said.
"Then what are you doing here? And what is the test that Kamu is talking about?"
Lorenzo continued to ask. He no longer wanted to play this strange decryption game with Hercule, but Hercule seemed very happy and continued to wear down Lorenzo's patience.
"You killed that monster...what do you usually call that monster? But that's not important. It's just a name. You can call it whatever you want."
Hercule was about to ask a question, but he dismissed it as if talking to himself.
"You came out alive. I have seen such power. There is no chance of escape. Your appearance here means that you have eliminated everyone in that stronghold... and those monsters."
Hercule's eyes lit up and he asked excitedly.
"You are just a human, but you have powers that humans simply cannot possess. You are really curious, Mr. Holmes."
"Are you my biggest fan?"
Sure enough, all of this was arranged by others, and Lorenzo was used by them. What is even more frightening is that it can be heard from Hercule's words that he knew the existence of demons, but what he knew Not much, they just seem to know they are monsters.
"No, I am just a seeker who is curious about everything unknown."
Seeker, Hercule called himself.
"I know you really want to know the reason for all this, and the Rat King, but please be more patient, Mr. Holmes. I still have some things I want to confirm initially. After all, I haven't seen your big The scene of killing everyone."
Hercule's speaking speed increased. Although he tried his best to restrain himself, Lorenzo could detect his excitement. This man was extremely happy, as if he were a treasure.
He suddenly leaned out from behind the bar, held Lorenzo's head with one hand, and motioned him to look at the people behind him.
"I remember you were a detective, right? What could you see?"
Hercule pointed at the people who were drinking in silence. They didn't pay attention to what was happening here. Although they were just drinking, their eyes were looking at the opposite side.
Lorenzo resisted a little, but Hercule really didn't have any hostility. He saw Lorenzo's weapon, and he approached it without warning. We were already here anyway, so we might as well see what he wanted to do. .
"They... they are the enemy."
Lorenzo looked at the two groups of people. He didn't pay attention when they arrived, but at this moment he could clearly feel the murderous intent of the two parties. Just like a broken negotiation, the two groups of people were ready to fight at any time.
"Yes, these people are always like this. When they negotiate with me, they fight when the negotiation breaks down. Sometimes people die, sometimes they smash my newly bought table, and sometimes blood splashes on me, but what I want to say is , they would never compensate me for it.”
Hercule looked at Lorenzo with a smile.
"Are you really a bartender?"
"Of course, otherwise, how would I have money to give to those bad rats who help me collect information?"
"So this is the final test?"
"To be precise, it's a test. I know you can kill such a monster, but I don't have a specific reference to know how far you can do it."
Hercule drew back and looked expectantly at Lorenzo.
"These ordinary people can't see any... reference..."
Lorenzo's power was too strong. In his eyes, killing an ordinary person was not much different from killing a fully armed warrior. But as soon as he finished speaking the harsh words, he noticed something strange.
His body was paralyzed, and he tried to get up from his seat, but it was much more difficult. When he looked up suddenly, Hercule was calculating something with a pen and paper.
"I know how powerful you are. After all, I have seen it in the Rat's Nest, so I will impose some restrictions on you this time."
"Is there poison in the drink?"
Lorenzo stood up staggeringly. The strength of the demon hunter's body slowed down his perception of danger. For ordinary people, this numbness would be noticed very early on, but the body of the demon hunter Ignoring these, like a common cold, went unnoticed, and by the time Lorenzo realized it, it was already too late.
"It's not poison, just a normal dose of anesthetic."
Hercule explained, "With this restriction, you should be able to better distinguish yourself from ordinary people, right?"
"Of course, this is also a warning to you, Mr. Holmes."
Hercule lowered himself.
"Don't be arrogant towards mortals because of your own strength. No, no, no, don't rush to refute. I know you don't have that superior feeling, but you are still too confident in yourself, or in other words, when facing me Such a mortal is overconfident."
Hercule looked down at Lorenzo. He warned Lorenzo, but he showed a different kind of arrogance at this moment.
"Like I said at the beginning, I said, this drink may be poisonous, but you still drank it without fear... You believed in your armor too much."
Lorenzo stared at Hercule fiercely. Just when he was about to say something, the thugs behind him all stood up, and the test of meeting the Rat King began.
(End of this chapter)