Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1275: The Jackpot

【Making mistakes isn’t scary. What’s scary is finding excuses to evade responsibility after making them.】—Knight Klein’s Code.

…

Klein followed the three youths all the way to the social services center. He was still a little uneasy, so he only finally put his mind at ease after arriving there with them.

Once their identities were confirmed, Klein suddenly recalled a saying from the distant East: I smoke, get tattoos, drink, fight, have abortions—but I’m still a good woman.

After the three removed their makeup and changed back into ordinary clothes, they truly looked like completely different people. Will, after putting on glasses, even had a scholarly air about him… which led Klein to apologize again and again.

“Hahaha, honestly, we were startled too,” Will said. “You suddenly charged in, covered in injuries. We were afraid a conflict might break out and get you hurt again.”

The young man was named Will and had worked at the social services center for three years. He was also a rock music enthusiast who had formed a band with two friends and often participated in charity performances.

Surprising, right?

If Mr. Gareth were here, he would probably tease him with a grin.

Klein knew he had been in the wrong from the start, so his attitude became increasingly proper. In truth, there was nothing more for him to do. The girl—though silent along the way and clearly frightened—had been brought to the social services center, where she would receive proper care. There was no need for Klein to worry.He was about to say goodbye.

Just as he was leaving, a female social worker hurried back in, displeasure written on her face. She was the one Will had sent to help the girl wash up and change clothes—after all, they were all men.

“Will, I seriously doubt your judgment,” the plain-looking social worker said expressionlessly. “This child is clearly a boy. And you had me help him bathe?”

“Oh, a boy… what, a boy?!”

…

In the room, the girl—no, the boy—had changed into a set of temporary clothes donated by others. His brown, medium-length hair was loosely tied with a rubber band. Soft facial features, emerald-like eyes, a slender build, fair skin… and a not-so-obvious but unmistakable Adam’s apple.

Other physical traits had also been discreetly confirmed. This delicate, fragile-looking person was indeed male.

Will and Klein clicked their tongues in amazement, while the other two band members covered their eyes in heartbreak.

“So… how do you plan to handle him?” Klein asked, suppressing his surprise and switching from she to he.

“He… hasn’t said a word,” Will steadied himself. “My colleague said he has many bruises, especially on his back. We suspect severe physical abuse. Due to fright, he’s likely suffered psychological trauma. We also didn’t find any identification on him. I think we’ll contact the police to clarify his identity first. Don’t worry—he’ll be well taken care of here. We have good counselors, though today happens to be a day off.”

Will could tell Klein was a kind-hearted person—though riding a Harley around town wrapped in bandages did invite misunderstandings.

“Thank you for the trouble,” Klein nodded, then handed over a business card. “Here’s my contact information. If there’s anything I can help with, please don’t hesitate. If the police need a statement, they can contact me directly.”

“A shoe shop?” Will glanced at the name on the card.

Klein smiled. “A family trade.”

He soon formally bade farewell to Will and the others, then rode his motorcycle away from the community center, back to where he lived—and where his shoe shop was tucked away.

Before becoming an apprentice knight, Klein had been a qualified shoemaker. His father had been one as well. His father was also a knight, though until his death he never obtained one of the Twelve Knights’ titles, serving only as a Grand Knight within the Round Table organization.

…

…

When heading out, Luo Qiu declined the car Peter Chen had arranged and chose a double-decker bus instead.

Sightseeing, photos, food, street performers—young people and artists everywhere, just like ordinary travelers.

For dinner, Luo Qiu didn’t go looking for a restaurant. He planned to visit a few famous landmarks instead—it was a rare stopover, after all.

After 5:30 p.m., most major attractions in Foggy City had already closed. With the sudden rain, the areas felt especially quiet.

Quiet had its benefits—almost like having the place to oneself. Of course, some spots were still open at night.

“Shall we ride that?” Luo Qiu said, pointing across the river to the huge rotating “eye”—the Foggy City Eye Ferris wheel.

Miss Maid naturally agreed, though she wondered whether they could get a cabin just for the two of them. Sharing with another couple would really spoil the mood.

…

On the street, a man in a yellow trench coat strolled along. His collar was raised, partly hiding his profile, and the lowered brim of his hat concealed his eyes.

He walked alone.

Men and women of all kinds passed by him. He suddenly stopped before a clothing store’s display window, checking his reflection in the glass and tidying his appearance.

In the blink of an eye—when no one was paying attention—the man in the yellow coat took a single step forward, straight into the display window.

Or rather, he passed straight through it and vanished.

Almost simultaneously, three men hurried over from different directions, converging at the spot where he disappeared.

One of them said angrily, “Teleportation—we’ve been discovered!”

Another quickly pulled out a communicator. “This is the Raptor Team. We’ve lost the target!”

…

In an alley on the next street over, a swirling vortex suddenly appeared. A figure emerged from it.

The man in the yellow coat steadied his hat and smiled faintly before continuing forward.

But a bouncing red ball blocked his path.

The fist-sized red ball hopped up and down, then suddenly sprang higher—leaping onto a rear staircase railing three meters above—and landed in Joker’s hand.

He was called Joker only because of his makeup. His attire was actually a black formal suit.

The makeup around his left eye had melted, like a teardrop hanging on his pale face. His wide red lips, however, showed no smile.

The man in the yellow coat looked up, removed his hat, and smiled politely. “What an honor—to have someone bearing the name 【Dagonet】 stand in my way.”

Joker on the stairs—Knight Dagonet—leapt lightly down. Whether the painted lips signified laughter or tears was unclear as he spoke in a pleasant voice, “As a senior executive of the ‘Doomsday Myth,’ it would be my honor to personally arrest you… Mr. Red. Would you be interested in coming back with me?”

The man in the yellow coat—Red—chuckled. “I’m just a tourist. Treating a traveler this way is hardly courteous for the Knights of the Round Table. I hear several beastmen went missing today… That’s not good. What if they suddenly go berserk in a crowded district?”

Joker sneered coldly. “You’re the one who fed us the intel saying a batch of illegally captured beastmen would pass through Foggy City’s docks, aren’t you? I’m very curious—what was your motive for giving me that information? Right now, most of my colleagues are out on the streets searching for those missing beastmen, yet Mr. Red, you’re strolling around Foggy City so brazenly instead… I’m really interested in your intentions.”

“Do I even have the right to say no?” Red asked, as if testing the waters. He showed no sign of fear.

Joker toyed with the red ball in his hand, tossing it lightly to the ground. After bouncing, it returned to his palm.

It was a signal.

A signal to act.

The moment the red ball landed in his hand, it shot straight out from Joker’s palm—its target naturally Mr. Red.

But Red was prepared. The instant the ball flew at him, the hat in his hand suddenly spun, swallowing the red ball whole.

The hat kept rotating. When it spun back around, the red ball shot out again—this time toward Joker, like a magician’s prop.

The brief exchange ended with neither side gaining an advantage.

“Sir Knight,” said the senior executive of ‘Doomsday Myth’ calmly, “I imagine you wouldn’t want a full-scale battle with me on the streets of Foggy City, would you? After all, you’re not like criminals such as myself… we don’t have so many scruples.”

“Perfect,” Joker shrugged. “I was just thinking of accepting some disciplinary action to earn myself a nice suspension. Work’s been too heavy lately.”

Red narrowed his eyes. Perhaps it was just his luck—to run into this particular clown.

Clearly, 【Dagonet】 was not the strongest knight of the Round Table, but he was certainly the most unruly—bordering on outright madness.

Red still had more important matters to attend to today. He had no intention of wasting time with this lunatic.

“All right,” Red suddenly raised both hands. “I’ll go back with you.”

Hearing this, Joker did not relax his guard. In the very next instant, Red vanished on the spot—just as he had earlier through the shop window.

Joker was not surprised. The moment Red escaped, Joker bent his knees and launched himself forward. With terrifying jumping power, his body shot out like an arrow.

On a rooftop somewhere in the city, space twisted and Red landed lightly. Almost at the same moment, Joker arrived as well.

Red’s expression changed slightly. His teleportation had limits—it couldn’t carry him far.

“What frightening physical ability…”

“A delightful game of cat and mouse.”

Red used his teleportation again. His body vanished and reappeared repeatedly in the night sky, moving above Foggy City’s streets as if he could fly.

Yet Joker behind him, relying on terrifying perception and overwhelming physical strength, caught up time and again.

Just as Joker said—it really was nothing more than a game.

Finally, after another pursuit, Red stopped. This time, he did not teleport again.

“Have you grown tired of the game?” Joker asked, also stopping.

They faced each other atop a massive support structure. Colorful lights shone around them, illuminating both figures.

“Mr. Joker, isn’t the view nice here?” Red smiled faintly and looked downward.

Below them, countless men and women had gathered, waiting. The place where Red and Joker confronted each other was none other than the support frame of the world-famous giant Ferris wheel—the Foggy City Eye.

Joker glanced down as well.

Suddenly, Red pressed both hands against the Ferris wheel’s support, madness flickering across his face. “The shadow serpent will soon reappear… and this is the beginning—starting with death.”

A powerful surge of magical power poured into the support. The axle, unable to withstand the pressure, began to deform.

The slowly rotating Foggy City Eye looked as though it might detach from its frame in the next second, crashing down onto the mass of tourists below.

In that thunderous instant, Joker did not hesitate. As erratic as he was, he clearly did not wish to see so many people die beneath the Ferris wheel’s collapse.

He abandoned the perfect chance to attack Red and leapt alone to the axle, intending to use sheer physical strength to hold the Foggy City Eye in place.

But the abruptly severed support had already caused violent tremors. The tourists who had boarded early and were admiring Foggy City’s night view were thrown into panic.

Too late… Joker’s face grew grim.

“You’re too late!”

Red’s voice rang out from above, crazed. “The shadow serpent will soon reappear! This is the beginning—starting with death!”

He repeated the proclamation.

One of the Twelve Knights—Joker—was ultimately just a fraction too slow. The Foggy City Eye completely detached at the axle.

A sickly smile spread across Red’s face. Below, the music meant for the tourists played on—beautiful, like a requiem of death.

“What a wonderful sound.”

As if already witnessing mass death and Joker’s frustration and rage, Red spread his arms and closed his eyes, embracing the moment.

The music continued—pleasant, cheerful.

The colorful lights of the Foggy City Eye swept over Red once more. Seconds later, he opened his eyes in shock.

The anticipated collapse never came. Cold wind brushed past as Red stared blankly at the Ferris wheel, still rotating slowly, his mouth hanging wide open.

He wasn’t the only one. Joker standing on the axle was the same—because he was closer, he clearly saw what had just happened.

The axle that had already fallen away had miraculously returned to its original position before his eyes. Not only that—the steel pins and screws blasted loose by magical power flew back from all directions, fixing the axle in place again.

The Ferris wheel turned steadily on. A bloody crisis vanished just like that.

At that moment, black flames suddenly surged upward from beneath the axle, moving as fast as lightning. The flames raced along the central support and instantly engulfed Red.

Boom!

Black fire erupted. Red had no time to scream as his entire body was wrapped in the flames, then he fell from above.

Joker stared in astonishment at this unforeseen turn of events—meeting the falling Red face to face.

…

Inside one of the Foggy City Eye’s cabins, a certain Boss looked outside with a strange expression. He really had only come sightseeing—and this was supposed to be the last stop of the day.

Even after closing all transactions, was he still such a magnet for trouble…?

"The atmosphere was obviously so good though..."

Black flames danced at Miss Maid’s fingertips. No longer so indifferent, she now looked genuinely angry.

￥￥￥￥￥￥￥￥￥￥

A note from the Author.

PS1: As a little bonus, I recommend the novel I Really Am Immortal, by Xia Hua Niangniang—no need for introductions.

(End of Chapter)

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