Tik Tik Tik.
The repair of the warehouse that got damaged by the wizard's attack began on the morning of the next day.
Due to the good skills of the workers, the repair works of the workshop entered the final stage within a few days, and the magic wine factory was almost nearing its completion.
“Wow… damn, did they really drop lightning?!”
“Yes… Is it hard to believe?”
"No, I believe! Because the other guys also said that lightning struck! wow…… Seven times? Here, bang! Over there! Bang! …. say it again! How did you subdue the wizards?! ”
A boy talked to Oliver, who was a little far away from the warehouse so as not to interfere with the repair works.
The boy's name was Milo Kimbell, the youngest brother of Murphy Kimbell.
He went home with his Aunt Maggie before the wizard's attack, and a few days after the raid, he and his aunt came to the warehouse and heard about Oliver's achievement.
From then on Milo hung around Oliver for several days, asking questions about the battle.
" I avoided the lightning, went forward, blocked the magic missile, disturbed the lightning, and then got close."
Oliver numbly explained what he did during the battle.
He should have fallen asleep just listening to the explanation that felt like reading an encyclopedia, but Milo's eyes were sparkling more than ever.
“Oh my gosh… that’s great… I should have been here to see that. Aww… I missed it, Damn!!”
The boy was filled with emotions such as ecstasy, longing, envy, and excitement. He believed in whatever Oliver was saying, and didn’t have an ounce of doubt in what Oliver said. He would have even believed that the potatoes grow on trees if Oliver said so.
In a sense, his reaction was normal, because, he had seen the magic tower wizards who were in deep sleep with his own eyes.
And, by the way, the wizards were now transferred to a family with high status at the Crime Firm in exchange for protecting the Kimbell family.
The help of the higher class family in the Crime Firm was indispensable to negotiate with other families and with the Magic Tower to which the wizards belong and to demand compensation for the damage.
Some members of the Kimbell Family felt that it was a waste to give the big fish they caught to the top, but Oliver, the one who caught them did not feel disappointed.
Of course, he felt disappointed that the opportunity to talk with the wizards had disappeared, but considering their emotional state, there was a high probability that they would start to swear at him rather than talk with him. He thought there would be another chance.
“Sir Warlock!”
Oliver turned his head at the loud voice.
Milo, who was unable to control his excitement, asked.
“Please tell me! How was it when you were fighting the wizards?!”
“Um… well, I was a little scared and trembling.”
“Eh? Really?”
"Yes."
“You knocked down four of them by yourself, didn’t you?”
"Thanks to luck, I was able to succeed. Everyone was careless and didn't care about me. I don't know what would have happened that day if they had attacked unitedly from the beginning."
Oliver spoke frankly about how he truly felt.
It was true that he won, but the situation might have been different if the wizards had decided to attack together from the beginning.
The same was the case with the Lightning Wizard's Electric Shock. If he hadn't been a little lucky, Oliver wouldn't have won the battle.
Oliver then looked at Milo wondering if his words would disappoint him, but the boy's eyes shone with admiration.
“Damn…. That's so cool. Is this the attitude of a strong person? Acknowledging the opponent’s strength?"
"Pardon?"
Milo kindly patted Oliver on the arm and asked, Posing as a kid whining for a toy.
“Sir Warlock! Can I learn that, too? The Black Magic! I can get money from my brother!”
The boy's emotions shone with pure curiosity and desire.
As Oliver was about to answer, a hand appeared and pulled Milo's ear.
It was someone Oliver had seen before.
It was Maggie.
"Ah! Ahhh! Aunt! Aunt! My Ears! My Ears!"
“Stop bothering Sir. Warlock and stay away.”
Maggie said to her nephew with a tray in one hand.
On the tray was a hot dog with chopped onion and pickles, along with french fries and a cup of juice.
Maggie swung her hand strongly letting go of Milo’s ears, who then walked away while rubbing his sore ears.
“Well, Sir Warlock. I’ll come back later!”
At Milo's words, Maggie tried to pull his ear again, but Milo had already run quite a distance.
It became quiet in an instant, and Maggie suggested Oliver eat while putting the tray on the small table.
“Come on, eat something.”
"Thank you."
About eating halfway through the hot dog, Maggie opened her mouth cautiously.
"I'm sorry if he bothered you, Sir Warlock. I’ll apologize if you were offended."
“What? Oh, Mr. Milo… it’s fine. I know what it’s to be to have a lot of questions.”
“You are kind.”
"Is that so?"
"Yeah… Everyone says that Warlocks are scary, but Sir Warlock seems to be a little different."
Warlocks are scary…
Oliver thought of his Master, Joseph, and other warlocks.
Marie, Peter, Dominic, Anthony, etc.
"Um… I don't know. Anyway, you don't have to scold Milo. I don’t have anything to do anyway."
After defeating the wizards, other gangs and Solvers who had been attacking from time to time did not appear anymore.
When Oliver asked Murphy about this, he said, ‘It's all thanks to the rumors about you defeating those wizards.’
Of course, there were a lot of people who didn't believe it and thought of it as a half-cooked lie, but they didn’t dare to attack the place.
Thanks to that, Oliver was earning money by just sitting and eating the food.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Question?”
"Yes, Mr. Murphy said he was going to negotiate by handing the wizards over to higher-ups in the organization, what does that mean specifically? I heard that the wizard and the tower are going to consult, but I don't understand well. "
“Ah, that’s what it means literally. The Mattel Research Institute to which the higher-up belongs and the family the wizards belong will negotiate about this matter.”
“Negotiation? Are you talking about the ransom?”
“Yeah, that’s also included. There are also other things like hush money and compensation for the damage.”
“Hush money?”
"To put it simply, it's to save face. Can I be a little honest with you?"
"…? Yes."
“Wizards used to have great status in the past, but now their social position and reputation are at their peak. In the early days of Landa, they were in a position where they helped the capitalists, but now they are in a position to fight with that capitalists for supremacy. In particular, Magic tower has a unique position in the hearts of such wizards. They're also famous for producing great wizards of this time. What happens if they're rumored to have lost to a Solver?”
"Um, is it a matter of pride?"
"There's a practical problem beyond just pride. If this is revealed, it's not just a disgrace, it's a matter of loss of reputation and trust. For example, in the case of undergraduate departments, grants and sponsorships will be reduced, and the competitive wizard family may even get pushed out of the internal competition. To be honest, attacking the warehouse is not a big deal. Losing is the big problem."
Oliver nodded.
It wasn't something that he could sympathize with, but he got a rough idea of what she meant.
"That's why we handed over the wizards to the higher-ups of the Crime Firm who can negotiate with the tower officials and the family of the wizards. Then they'll get a mountain of damage compensation on our behalf… Most of the compensation will be eaten by those higher-ups in the name of the commission, but we will also benefit greatly. To the point where our financial situation will continue getting better due to excessive expansion of business. In that sense, we sincerely thank you, Sir Warlock. I'll tell Murphy to thank you further for this."
“No, it’s fine. I just did my job.”
Oliver shook his hand. He had thought of making a lot of money, but only as the payment for the job. There was nothing more dangerous than free money.
“Can I ask you to do something else instead?”
“What do you want?”
At Oliver's request, Maggie asked kindly.
Of course, it was a calculated favor rather than a favor with a kind heart.
"I think the workshop will be completed safely. Then, Mr. Murphy said he would give me an additional 30 million by the fall of next year.”
“Yes, I think it’s a reasonable price.”
“Yes, but can I get it in a different form other than money?”
“Other than money? What specifically are you talking about?”
"Like I.D. or something."
Actually, Oliver hadn't planned on using the ID yet, but he thought he'd prepare something like this in advance.
Forrest said that a fake ID was not cheap. He said on average, it would be around 30-50 million.
Oliver brought this up right now because he knew he had made a contribution.
Fortunately, Maggie answered with a smile.
“Yes, I think it would be possible. I’ll try to talk to Murphy and get back to you as soon as possible.”
"Thank you."
After a moment of silence, Maggie spoke again.
“Sir Warlock?
"Yes?"
“… Please take good care of us for the rest of the time.”
“Um, yes, I will.”
⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩
When the contract period with the Warlock ended, the warehouse repairs and the Magic wine Factory were completed.
The factory's production facility finally started operating with Herbert tied in chains, and the red steam generated during the production process rose up into the sky through a huge pipe.
Maggie asked her nephew, Murphy.
“Won’t we get caught because of this smoke?”
“Don’t worry, Auntie, we have installed a vapor filter on the ceiling, so it won’t be noticed at all. It’s expensive, but still, it’s worth it.”
Maggie nodded at her nephew's words and looked at the liquor, potatoes, and corn stacked on one side of the studio.
And what stood out the most among them was the box in the corner of the warehouse.
The box contained potions that were supplied directly by the Magic Tower.
It was a miracle drug that treats any trauma in an instant. The problem was its price was very expensive.
“If it's worth that much, wouldn’t it be worthwhile to just sell it on a black market?”
"If we process and sell it as Magic wine, we will get a lot of money, which is not a small amount. There are only a few companies that make proper magic wine…"
"You can use that much for months, right?"
"Yes, even if it's magic wine, it dilutes the potion a lot. The people above said that it would be delivered on a regular basis.”
In the process of safely returning the wizards that attacked the warehouse, Crime Firm made a huge profit.
They also received a huge ransom for the captured wizards and the hush money, as well as a promise to secretly sell potions managed by the Magic Tower on a regular basis.
Magic Tower Potion was something that could not be easily obtained even if you wanted to, so it was a great thing just getting sold.
Naturally, Murphy was not very convinced by the rewards but Maggie comforted him by saying.
"Even if it's a waste, thanks to that, we've become safer, right? If it's just that, it's more than enough to support our production."
The amount Murphy received will hold up to three months' worth of production.
Maggie smiled lightly because it was enough to supply magic wine to all of England.
Their business scale could be compared to that of the influence of the Crime Firm.
It was a pretty risky choice, but Maggie didn't hate her nephew's ambition.
To run a company, you need not only money but also power.
Originally, She was going to invite Dave to be their family as an exclusive warlock.
She knew that a warlock with that skill wouldn't even look at the contract that won’t be beneficial to him, but Dave looked a bit immature, so she thought she might as well just try to persuade him.
For example, by handing over a stake of the company, or by giving away a certain percentage of the net profit of the Magic Wine Factory.
However, when she was actually trying to put her plan into action, Maggie unknowingly quit it.
She didn’t know whether she was frightened by the warlock who defeated the wizards, but an unknown fear crept over her.
She felt like some kind of monster was hidden under those foolish looks.
She felt strongly that the monster should not be touched prematurely.
So Maggie quit recruiting Dave.
It was an uncertain risk, and it was too ominous… even though it was a relationship that was too precious to miss in this way.
Murphy said as if noticing Maggie’s thoughts.
“Did you talk to the Warlock? Did you ask him to become our exclusive Warlock?”
“… No. I was going to, but I quit it.”
“You did a good job.”
“When you talk about him…you make the same expression like when you talk about wizards.”
When Murphy returned from the army, he talked a lot about the wizards he saw on the battlefield. Although the change in his expression was extremely limited due to the surgery to transform him into a Reinforced human, Maggie could still see the fear, and despair he felt.
It was like being a human being, and feeling the indescribable sense of deprivation and inferiority when confronted with a superior being.
“Well…yes, He defeated not one, but four wizards.”
"….Did that person really knock down the wizards? I didn’t see it, so I’m having a hard time believing it. To be honest, he didn’t feel like someone who could fight. Milo had been bothering him for hours, but he didn't say anything.”
"Really?”
Murphy smoked.
"…well, warlocks and wizards are hard to understand from our point of view anyway. All you have to know is, we got his help at the decisive moment. He said he wants an ID, right?”
"Yes."
“Then, I have to prepare for a first-grade card. It’s expensive, but the profit we got from that person is greater than that.”
“Because he defeated the wizards?”
"Yeah, no matter how much you hide, in this field, rumors spread somehow. Some of the people above are already showing interest in knowing the truth about his identity. Well, after all, A warlock defeating wizards is an amazing feat."
"He's going to get busy."
Maggie said sincerely.
Although she didn't know much about the field, from the back alley pub to the Kimbell family secretary, having lived in the back alley all her life, the rumors she heard did not lose to anyone.
In the case of a solver, the stronger the solver, the higher their price, and at the same time, the possibility of getting caught up in a commotion was also high.
Excessive demands beyond one's ability, or dirty work that even the city is reluctant to do.
If he was useful, politicians, capitalists, and other organizations that will try to exploit him will increase exponentially along with the bundles of money he will receive.
There was nothing to be sad about that. In fact, it was such a world in the first place.
Above all, she was curious, she wondered what kind of existence the warlock named Dave would be if he survived after overcoming all those hurdles…
(To be Continued)
