Chapter 983: Balalaika
The woman in the pub answered Sundersâ question, much to Senneferâs surprise, âRules? We do. Though it remains to be seen whether you are an
honest
customer.â
Her alluring voice caused Sunders to space out for a moment. But he recovered soon enough. He raised a hand, rubbed his thumb and index finger, and released a puff of glittering sand into the air, which was carried away by a sudden gust of wind.
The âshiny dustâ was blown to a far cliff where people couldnât see. There, a woman with a fine body curve appeared and caught Sundersâ âgiftâ in her hand.
âNice quality. Taken from the Scorched Forest from level 6? Heh. Heâs a brave one.â
She stepped to the edge of the cliff and scattered the sand below, into an endless ocean.
The calm water responded to her with calm tides.
Seeing this, the woman began humming her song with a gentle look. It was a song of endless remembrance.
âHere it comes againâŠâ Madelyne frowned as the sound traveled to the graveyard. âSheâs no longer in the pub?â
âCompared to that, I want to know what Mister Phantom meant. Whatâs with this âcustomerâ thing?â Vifet questioned with an inquisitive look.
âHe came here on his own will. Heâs looking for something,â Brofen added. âIf heâs only here to rescue Angor, he could have done it from the outside.â
People were all busy wondering what this place meant to Sunders, so they werenât paying attention to the womanâs song.
The skeleton army and the Grave Knights were her only audience, who quietly enjoyed her performance before they slowly returned to their resting places.
The entire graveyard returned to be a silent ground again when the song ended. There were only broken gravestones and random craters that signified an intense battle.
When there was only the reverberation of her voice echoing in the graveyard, she cast one last glance at the calm ocean and disappeared.
âThe trade is on. Get inside,â she said from inside the pub house this time. The apathetic hostility in her voice was replaced by imperceptible sadness.
Sunders removed his hat and bowed slightly before entering through the entrance. The light barrier did not appear.
Sennefer hesitated and tried moving into the building as well, only to see the barrier coming back.
âHumph!â Furious, she returned to Dokibell.
âTrade?â Brofen questioned. âWhat trade? Is Mister Phantom buying stuff?â
âHe paid with that dust, or whatever that is,â Sennefer commented. She was right behind Sunders when Sunders offered his âpriceâ. âJust wait for him to come back out and weâll know the answer.â
For now, they could see nothing other than the dim yellow light coming from the windows.
Sennefer tried to meditate and recover her mana, but the faint smell of good wine prevented her.
About ten minutes later, Sunders reappeared at the door, walked outside, and put on his top hat.
âThank you for your kind hospitality.â Sunders bowed toward the door again.
People heard the sound of another set of footsteps approaching the entrance and quickly looked that way.
A pair of red, polished high-heels entered their view, followed by white, slim legs. Then a hand with silky skin and red fingernails slowly pushed the door open.
When people finally saw the woman for real, they realized that she didnât look as breathtaking as they expected from her beautiful voice.
She had long, curly hair combed into perfect waves. A single beauty spot was right beside her slightly unbalanced lips. However, her common look did not give people the boring impression they should be feeling. Instead, they feel captivated.
Her strange charm was fully enchanted by the other details on her, such as her fine body, her unintended yet suggestive moves, and a long-handled smoking pipe that amplified her appeal of maturity.
It was a different kind of beauty.
âI once heard that Balalaika is more fascinating a being than the most seasoned succubus. I see it was not a lie,â Sunders spoke softly.
Balalaika smiled brightly. âI appreciate your commendation. However, note that I do not take beautiful words as payment. Should you come again, remember to bring whatâs due.â
âOf course.â
âWhat are you two trading?â Sennefer suddenly chipped in. Telling from her hasty voice, she had yet to get rid of her frustration.
Sunders looked at Sennefer but did not answer.
Balalaika inhaled from her pipe and released a cloud of white smoke in front of her. âWe have rules, if you donât know already. We donât share the privacy of our customers to those not involved in our agreement. Of course, you may choose to become another customer and buy the information you need, in which case Iâll not refuse.â
âSo youâre trading information?â Sennefer insisted. âWhat do I need to pay you?â
âSand of Resurrection.â
Sennefer frowned. She never heard of such a thing before.
âIf you donât have it, let me see if you have something else of interest.â Balalaika seemed more friendly to the team, probably because she just spent some time with a human.
âSuch as?â
Instead of answering, Balalaika scanned everyone as her eyes glowed, which allowed her to look at every single object the team was carrying, including those protected by personal storage containers.
âWhat have you done??â Sennefer didnât look pleased.
âPfft. You want to know what Iâm interested in, no? I saw⊠two particular items on you. Too bad they donât belong to you, telling from the magic marks.â
Sennefer widened her eyes because what Balalaika said was true. She carried two items entrusted by Mister Monkey, and this was supposed to be a secret.
Disappointed, Balalaika looked away, only to get attracted by another individual behind SenneferâAngor.
She raised a hand and pointed Angorâs way. âYou. You have something fun. Do you want to trade with me?â
Angor instantly became the center of everyoneâs attention.
Sunders was the one who looked surprised now. âThis boy has something you need?â
âCorrect. More than one, actually.â
How come?
Sennefer was also astonished now.
Itâs natural that Mister Monkeyâs possessions are of great value. So is Angor holding something equally important??!
âMay I know what youâre referring too?â asked Sunders, not so friendly this time.
âOf course. His hand⊠I mean, the right one.â
People all gazed at Angorâs right hand and carefully checked. When they fully focused, they managed to see through the illusion and find out that this hand was slightly larger than the other one. They also saw the green symbols floating around it.
They had no idea what all these meant. But since Balalaika said that it was worth noticing, then the strange sight must be holding a great mystery.
Sennefer just remembered that Brofen once attempted to look into Angorâs hand but failed to do so.
Brofen, on the other hand, was greatly frustrated that he would never find a chance to check Angor as long as Sunders was here.
Sunders took a closer look at Angor and saw Angorâs entire right wrist tainted by nightmare energy. Whatever had gotten into Angorâs body grew worse, since the last time they were together.
âAngor ran into the blond stranger again? Is that why he must talk to me at the time like this?â Sunders mumbled.
Balalaika suddenly spoke again, âOther than his interesting hand, thereâs something around his chestâŠâ
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