Chapter 70

As soon as Evelyn's hologram disappeared, Jenny lowered her gaze to her phone.

"The same amount as last operation has been deposited into the account. It seems they really intend to pay the success fee this time too. How reasonable."

"Evelyn Marcia didn't lie, I guess."

Given that they had discovered the involvement of the black mages in the city, it wasn't strange for the agents to think this way.

On the contrary, there was a high possibility that they now regarded her as an excellent partner who actively cooperated in the operation without being asked.

There was no need to explain to Evelyn how Renock got involved in matters related to the pillars.

"Do you follow our way of sharing information?"

"Probably. After all, it's an open secret that both the city government and the agents use the deep web. Since they secretly use the remaining resources from the city government's main network, their security must be perfect."

Jenny said this, put a cigarette in her mouth, and glanced up at Renock.

"But will it be okay?"

"What?"

"When we started, you didn't think things would get this big, did you?"

"......"

"I thought it would be fine if it was just about chasing the legacy of the black mages, but things change when a terrorist organization gets involved. Especially Palsion, which is one of the worst... if we're being picky, they are incredibly cruel."

She pursed her lips, saying it wouldn't be easy to see a good outcome.

The smoke that faintly billowed out slowly filled the office air.

"If you want, it might be better to pull out now."

"Jenny."

Renock chuckled and said,

"If I had been worried about that, I should have stopped you when I first came into this bar."

"......"

She knows why she's saying this now.

A lot has changed since Renock first came to her.

Now, Renock is one of the best freelancers in her bar, and a very capable mage that everyone envies.

His consecutive battles with the key figures of the gangs.

Even in those battles, where he fought almost one-on-one, his combat skills have become more famous than the realm of magic he possesses.

It's been over a year since he started coming to this bar.

Now, Renock's reputation extends beyond the 49th district to other areas.

Regardless of personal feelings, Jenny also feels the need to manage the risks to prevent such a powerful card from being wasted here.

"Don't worry too much."

He extinguished the cigarette in the ashtray and stood up.

"I've been working to avoid that kind of situation."

"Hmm... I know all the hotshots are like this, but I really don't understand what you're thinking."

If she had to watch him dive into the combined forces of black mages and a terrorist organization without a clear goal, she might feel that way.

But Renock had his own calculations.

It was awkward to get deeply involved in the black mages' conflict just by accepting Raoul's request, but if agents like Evelyn were involved, it was different.

Agents, one of the sharpest blades of the city government. If he could make a good impression on them here, the scope of what Renock could do in this city would continue to expand.

He had already gained a reputation as someone who could negotiate directly with companies, not just a simple back-alley freelancer, through his collaboration with Dike.

A close collaboration with the agents could bring a synergy far beyond what Renock wanted.

Jenny probably knew this roughly, which is why she hadn't actively tried to stop him until now.

This was a testament to the power of the name 'Evelyn Marcia.'

She could offer advice, but she couldn't change his decision.

Renock had always chosen what he wanted and what he had to do on his own.

That fact had never changed since he fell into this world.

Priscilla

Jenny shook her head, as if it couldn't be helped.

"Right. If this operation goes well, maintaining a connection with the agents shouldn't be difficult. That woman seems to have a very good impression of you."

"Is that so?"

"Can't you tell from the number of times she contacts you directly? Despite being incredibly busy with expanding her arms trading business, she always shows up in person. She wants to give you the impression that she values you."

"......"

"Are you not interested in becoming an agent?"

"No way."

Regardless of the agents' dedication to the city's peace, he had little interest in that law enforcement organization.

Unless there was a reward he could obtain through them.

"The city government's agents should have a lot of information on rare items that I can't easily get. For example..."

"Elixirs?"

"...Exactly."

Jenny had been carefully reviewing the requests coming through her hands, even while executing operations with the agents.

The problem was that requests for the elixirs or unique magic systems Renock wanted, or requests offering such items as rewards, were still hard to come by.

He thought he had raised his reputation and value quite a bit, but it seemed he still had a long way to go to get his hands on such items.

"Hmm... Actually, the easiest way to solve this problem is to get a ticket to the underground auction."

"Underground auction..."

Come to think of it, Dike Corporation had obtained the artifact known as Enakfil's Five Fingers through the VIP auction hosted by the city council.

It seemed that to find valuable items, not only money but also the right connections were needed.

"Just getting into the auction isn't enough. To get the item you want, you need to first obtain a high-level ticket that allows you to bid."

"Even to participate, you need qualifications."

"Exactly. The level of items that come up for auction improves when valuable customers are admitted. It's because of the unique feature of the auction where participants can also become bidders."

Jenny continued, "I casually asked Panoa, and she said it's hard to get a ticket to the underground auction, not the public one."

"...... Have you already hinted at it?"

"I'm just doing what I can."

She's the type to find a solution on her own before bringing it up.

Renock couldn't help but laugh, seeing how her proactive approach was revealed.

"I'll casually mention it to Evelyn after this operation succeeds. Even if they're tough, they should offer a reward that can help you, more so than Dike Corporation."

"Alright."

Holding the doorknob of the office, Renock muttered,

"To do that, I need to bring her a result that will make her very happy."