Chapter 465: "There's Someone Who Can Help You

He and Sean had exchanged numbers, but on second thought, he figured, ‘Since Sean isn’t here, there’s no need to tell him right away, is there?’

‘I’ll wait until Sean gets back and give him a surprise.’

‘It’s a Duke Family, after all. You don’t get to meet people like that every day.’

Howard was sure that once Sean met the Daeli Duke, he would be grateful for the invitation to stay with the Grev Family.

…

「Elsewhere.」

「Downtown.」

Walking down the street, Sean suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, and he was instantly on alert.

Elise noticed his expression and had to ask, “What’s wrong, Mr. Writer?”

“I suddenly have a bad feeling,” Sean said. “Do you?”

“A bad feeling?” Elise asked, puzzled. “No, I don’t.”

She even made a point to look back, but she didn’t see anyone suspicious following them.

Sean pointed to his eye. “Look, my eyelid is twitching.”

Elise leaned in for a closer look. It really was twitching.

“But that’s your left eye, Mr. Writer.”

She said with a smile, “A twitching left eye means something good is about to happen.”

“Really?” Sean was skeptical. “What good could possibly happen to us here?”

‘We’re in a completely new place, and it’s a pain just to dig up some information. Good things? Yeah, right.’

Elise thought for a moment, then said, “For instance, me having your child?”

Sean: “?”

“You can stop right there.”

He said irritably, “There’s no way to have a child like that. Don’t try that nonsense with me.”

Elise blinked. “What if Mr. Writer wants to try a different way tonight?”

Sean: “We’re not switching!”

Elise: “Oh, I get it. So Mr. Writer likes my mouth.”

Sean: “?”

‘Was that what I meant?’

‘This woman is just…’

‘Forget it. If she says so, she says so.’

Sean couldn’t be bothered with Elise’s games and walked toward the newsstand ahead.

This was the fifth newsstand they’d tried.

Unsurprisingly, the owner was completely clueless.

He asked if anything big had happened recently.

The owner told him to buy a paper and find out for himself.

If one wasn’t enough, he should buy two. Buy yesterday’s, the day before’s… buy all of last week’s issues, and he’d be guaranteed to know everything from past to present.

‘As if I’d buy them.’

Clearly, the newsstands here didn’t traffic in information.

Separated by a vast ocean, everything here was different from the Inland. It wasn’t just the clothing, food, and architecture—even the way of life was distinct. The most obvious difference was transportation. There was no strict division between roads and sidewalks. You could take a stroll down the middle of the street if you felt like it. The cars all drove slowly anyway, and they would always yield to pedestrians.

In the downtown of this seaside city, cars weren’t for getting somewhere in a hurry. They were more like status symbols for the rich—a means of transport that was closer to a leisurely stroll.

As a result, taxis were basically nonexistent.

They only appeared outside the downtown area.

The so-called “hailing a ride” more often meant hailing a broomstick.

Some Wizards, with time on their hands, would ride their brooms to earn extra cash. It was like how some people in the Inland enjoyed driving their luxury cars as taxis. Sean and Elise had already spotted several on their walk.

Different regions meant different lifestyles, which was to be expected. Still, it made things tricky for Sean. His original plan was to ask around and get a preliminary fix on the whereabouts of Fan Ke’er and the others. Then, once Howard was free, he could ask his “old friend” for help. By comparing and cross-referencing multiple sources of information, the final result would be far more accurate.

But now, it looked like he would have to rely completely on Howard.

He and Elise had already used their old trick to view the port’s surveillance footage. It showed Fan Ke’er and the others disembarking from a cargo ship two days ago and heading straight into the city. To see the city’s surveillance, however, they’d have to go to the police station. The New World wasn’t like the farm; Sean wasn’t confident he could infiltrate the police station here without leaving a trace. Moreover, this was the Grev Family’s territory, so they undoubtedly had connections with the police. Rather than forcing their way in or sneaking in, it was better to ask Howard for help. That way, they wouldn’t risk creating bad blood.

“Let’s go. Time to head back,” Sean said.

“Aren’t you going to ask around a bit more?” Elise gave him an encouraging look. “The Mr. Writer I know has never been one to give up so easily, you know.”

“Are you treating me like a kid?”

Sean rolled his eyes. “Speak plainly.”

He could tell there was a hidden meaning in her words.

“Alright,” Elise confessed with a bright smile. “I just want to spend a little more time with you. Can we go back later?”

‘Even if we haven’t made progress on business, we can make progress on personal matters.’

‘Strolling through the streets of a strange city with the person you like… Everything is unfamiliar, except for each other. It’s so romantic.’

But speaking of “going back,” Sean’s bad premonition returned. He couldn’t help but ask, “You really don’t feel anything?”

“Really, I don’t,” Elise said. “But don’t you worry, Mr. Writer. If something does happen, I’ll stand in front of you.”

When Sean had given her the Fantasy Potion from Lauden, she had promised to protect him from then on. She would spend the rest of her life fulfilling that promise, no matter when or where.

“Alright.” Since Elise truly didn’t feel anything, Sean decided not to dwell on it. “Then let’s go check out the pedestrian street and find a place to eat?”

Elise said happily, “So you’re saying yes, Mr. Writer?”

Sean snorted. “You talk too much.”

“Are you coming or not? If you’re not, I’ll go by myself.”

“I’m coming, I’m coming!” Elise quickly stepped forward and looped her arm through Sean’s, saying sweetly, “Thank you, Master~”

“Shut up, you vixen!”

…

「Time ticked by.」

The sun gradually sank beneath the waves.

By the time Sean and Elise returned to Grev Castle, night had fallen.

As soon as they arrived, they saw Howard waiting for them at the entrance to the Guest Castle.