nagpurpolice Chapter 586 Neighbors
Chapter 586 Neighbors
Chapter 586 Neighbors
"The Book of Sige is in Kules's hands? So you can joke after all, green-haired guy."
Clayton smiled at Julius, whose gaze, still dripping with malice, sent shivers down the wizard's spine, but he persisted in his answer. "This is no joke, Clayton. Apart from those who possess the Book of Earth, no monarch today has the power to touch with such force."
The Book of the Land is in Cures's possession; killing him could pollute the land.
Clara fell from the roof beam and landed squarely on the werewolf's head.
Clara, whom he couldn't throw away, was caught in a struggle. Clayton's expression shifted several times before he finally managed to suppress his anger and toss her onto his shoulder.
“Tell Des Joannard this. I don’t want to do it myself this time.” Clayton tilted his head back, not glancing at Donna, lest he reveal that he “really wanted to do it himself.”
He didn't mention Franklin. If Franklin knew that the Book of Styx was in Curles's hands, even if he could take the Book of Styx, it would take a long time. During this time, the High Rock Knight would definitely stop Clayton from killing Caroline Curles, and the opportunity to duel with Caroline would be hard to come by.
"Actually, I have an idea."
Freed from the pressure, Julius's eyes gleamed: "Since the Book of Styx is such a good thing, why can't we take it ourselves? Kules can't let anyone else know that the Book of Styx is in his possession. Take the book, then kill him, and no one else in the world will know about it."
Upon hearing his words, Donna's eyes widened with excitement as she looked at Clayton expectantly—even though she knew very little about the book.
That's not a good idea.
Clayton wasn't as excited as they were; thanks to Vahtu's effects, he calmed down much faster.
"Why not?" Donna was the first to question him.
“Because I’m not human!” Clayton was angry again, sparks flying from his eyes like a red-hot sword being forged. “If the Book of Earth is so useful, then it’s unforgivable for a non-human to fall into its hands. If I take it, I can expect endless trouble. Or do you want it?” he asked, glaring at Julius.
Julius looked hurt: "If I wanted it, I would tell Gloria about it."
“We’ll keep it a secret,” Donna said. “Nobody knows, nobody investigates, nobody punishes.”
Clayton narrowed his eyes: "You're all wizards, do I need to remind you how many people in this world know how to divine and have precognitive abilities? Just shut up, and others won't know?"
The two wizards were only temporarily blinded by greed. After being reminded by the werewolf, they quickly abandoned the idea and returned to their business.
These horses are either cursed or blessed by Cures and need to be purified.
It wouldn't be easy for the wizards to solve this on their own, but Clayton remembered that a powerful ally was right in front of them.
The Paradise Mountain Choir, affiliated with the church, arrived in Sasha a few days ago and will perform two shows every day.
"Before the army sets out, the chaplain will bless the cannons. It's also reasonable for us to have the choir bless the horses before the competition. People will like it."
This matter needs to be resolved today.
Julius thought he could persuade the chairman of the city life committee to pay for the event, but if that failed, Clayton would have to pay for it himself.
Clayton is ready.
At the same time, he also planned to take the opportunity to publish this good news in the newspaper—not for vanity, but to repair his tarnished reputation.
"Public opinion attacks, duels and murders, self-praise—look how much I've sacrificed for my hobby!" the werewolf muttered as he and the others handed the "divine herb" from their pockets to the superstitious horse, temporarily ending their work here.
Next, Julius went to find his Druid accomplices, and the Bello uncle and nephew began to gather the staff who were finishing lunch, and together they carried the braziers from the warehouse to the side of the track prepared for tomorrow.
The special charcoal used to make signal fires shouldn't be taken out yet, as it might get damp or be stolen. Filling it with fuel is tomorrow's task.
Clayton didn't just direct the workers; he was involved himself.
For him, labor is also a way to calm his mind, allowing him to recall the past.
Donna wanted to work, but Clayton wouldn't allow it, so she could only take boring walks near the track.
As an annual event in Sasha, the horse races require a considerable venue, and the participating horses are the best from the stables, with an average level exceeding that of military horses. Local horse racing events comprehensively test both speed and endurance, with a single race lasting several hours.
The track layout is not a ring track, but rather emphasizes moderate terrain and relies on increasing the number of laps to extend the actual distance.
In this way, the spectator area is naturally expanded to the entire track, and no matter where they stand on the track, they can judge the ranking by the number of times the athletes appear in their field of vision.
In addition to the rider's skill and the horse's quality, the competition also tests the rider's ability to adapt to changing circumstances.
The referees confirm the course route the afternoon before the race. Without lighting the beacon fire, it is very difficult for riders to find their way through the complex network of paths surrounded by trees and familiarize themselves with the course in advance. Even with good luck, they can only ride it once at most. Therefore, locals have an advantage in this respect.
And just like this unspoken advantage, Donna also noticed some of Clayton Bello's subtle expectations.
He hopes that this experience as a referee will change his situation. He is not satisfied with just living here; he wants to be a "citizen" and needs more respect and affection from people.
He wanted to be further accepted by the city.
So at this critical juncture, the fact that Sir Courles' men had the newspapers defame him would enrage him to the point of murder. Donna couldn't tolerate anyone harming her family like that.
Even after the horse races, which would be followed by the duel between Sir Courles and Clayton, she still had her own revenge to carry out while Courles was still alive.
A bird landed on her palm for a moment, then took off again, carrying her message on the wind.
As a well-known figure, Caroline Curles's address is no secret, and her revenge will soon be completed.
Just then, Donna heard hurried footsteps crunching on dry branches in the woods. She turned around and looked back, and the hateful expression of eager revenge faded from her face, replaced by a friendly and lovely one.
"Hello, Mr. Melcher!"
When Melcher saw her, he immediately ran over. He was covered in sweat, looked very tired, and responded hastily.
“Oh, Miss Donna, how are you?” He swallowed, looking rather thirsty, and got straight to the point: “Where is your uncle? I just heard he’s here and I’m looking for him.”
Donna pointed behind her: "He's right ahead. You'll see him in less than a hundred steps."
Melcher waved at her haphazardly and ran off down the road.
He hadn't walked a few steps when he stopped again, turning around in horror to look at Donna.
"Isn't school supposed to be in session today?!"
"I was supposed to go to school today, but something unexpected happened," Donna said honestly. "Local students can choose to go home. My home is in St. Benedict, so I rode straight back. Alice also wrote home to ask the servant to fetch her. Didn't you receive the letter?"
Mr. Melcher's face turned deathly pale, and he turned and ran like a madman until he crashed into Clayton, who was walking towards him.
"What happened?"
Clayton heard Melcher's voice from afar, which is why he stopped working and walked over. His relaxed posture and tone, with his hands outstretched, did not sway Melcher in the slightest; instead, they made Melcher even more anxious.
"Charlie, that wanted criminal... that drunk Charlie is at my house! Alice is going back too!"
In his extreme emotional state, Melcher's words became fragmented. Clayton patted him on the shoulder to comfort him, then glanced at Donna and beckoned to her, indicating that she should go and bring Clara along first.
"Let's go get the horses first, we'll talk on the way."
Although Clayton took on the mission to kill Charlie primarily for Julius's sake, it was clearly too late to call Julius now, so they had to set off first.
Once the three of them reached the road, Melcher calmed down a bit and explained everything that had happened to him recently.
The fugitive, with whom he had a past relationship, broke his promise and threatened his wife's life to force him to continue providing shelter. He also revealed everything about Charlie's aristocratic background without reservation.
Because Charlie insisted on staying, Melcher's relationship with him became very strained, and if Alice returned home, he was very likely to hurt her.
Worst of all, to prevent his wife and daughter from reacting out of panic and potentially being harmed by Charlie, Melcher kept it a secret that Charlie was hiding at home, so that even if he appeared in front of them, they wouldn't be wary enough.
Finding Charlie was a stroke of good luck for Clayton, but there was one thing he didn't understand.
"Sir Jonard promised me protection for you, so why didn't you seek protection from the guards he sent? Has he failed to keep his promise?"
Melcher also responded to this.
Sir Jonard did offer Melcher protection, but his approach differed from Clayton's.
Instead of sending someone to guard Melcher at all times, he publicly expressed his interest in animal behavior, then mentioned Melcher at Sasha University, then announced long-term funding for Melcher's research project, and sent two of his own people of high standing to visit Melcher while he was working, letting everyone around know that Sir Jonard was keeping an eye on Melcher.
These measures could indeed prevent Sir Courles from plotting against Melcher, and even if he were angered, his men would have to consider Jonard's reputation and dare not really harm him, but they were useless against a notorious bandit like Charlie.
Melcher went to see Jonard in person, but the old man had been going out these past few days and hadn't come home at night, so Melcher's visits were always fruitless.
“Aristocratic tricks!” Clayton was annoyed, but he couldn’t bring himself to criticize Jonard any further.
After all, Jonard only promised not to let Sir Culles harm Melcher; Charlie's appearance was not part of the agreement, and no one expected it.
Before arriving at Melcher's house, he proposed tactics.
“A vicious criminal like him would be very cautious and would likely be watching the guests who come in. My size would easily alert him, and he could directly take Mr. Melcher’s family hostage. Donna, you and Mr. Melcher go inside first, so that the others have a reason to come down and entertain the guests, thus diverting his attention. I will follow him into the house.”
"If you spot him on the first floor, find a way to close the door to the room he's in, then signal me. You know what to do."
Donna was so excited she almost jumped off her horse to salute.
"As ordered!"