CHAPTER 26: ONE IN PUBLIC, ANOTHER IN PRIVATE, AND SEVERAL MORE IN THE SUBURBS

“Who’s the big shot?”

“I don’t know.”

Feeling the hard object pressed to the back of his head harder, the man in black almost broke down in tears. “I really don’t know. Boss didn’t say anything. I get paid so little every month, the information is literally above my pay grade.”

A reasonable explanation Wayne couldn’t find fault with. He intimidated the man a few more times, but seeing he wouldn’t get any more information, he hit the man’s head with the butt of the gun, knocking him unconscious.

It was his first time knocking someone out, and he misjudged the force needed. He hoped the guy would be okay.

He kicked the other man in black awake and went through the same process, getting a similar result: he had gotten on the wrong side of someone influential, who was only short of being fully in control of everything in Londan, having both the criminal underworld and law enforcement eating out of their hands.

In other words, even the police were after Wayne.

He frowned deeply. It was absurd. Why would a big whale suddenly be interested in a little shrimp like him?! And according to the two men, it wasn’t every day that someone like that got personally offended; they weren’t in the same world, and he shouldn’t be qualified to be an eyesore. He couldn’t even find the right door to grovel at.

“Could the big shot be a shareholder of the pet shelter? Did they trace the press I’ve used to rally the public back to me and decide to retaliate?”

That was the only possibility he could think of. In this materialistic society, kind-hearted young people in pursuit of justice always faced oppression on various fronts.

Of course, there was another possibility—he was taking the blame for the original Wayne. Perhaps the original Wayne had offended someone important, perhaps by sleeping with their wife, mistress, girlfriend, sweetheart, or darling; he put his pants back on and left, leaving Wayne with the mess.

“Damn it, why have you left in such a hurry? Couldn’t you have at least left visual clues?”

Looking at the two unconscious men in black, Wayne felt a headache brewing. He had planned to quietly farm and get stronger, but suddenly, trouble of such magnitude came knocking...

And he didn’t even know why! That meant he wouldn’t know how to get out of the trouble.

Using violence to counter violence was out of the question. That would only make the matter snowball further, which wasn’t conducive to his plan to grow stronger while keeping a low profile. As they said, an under-the-table matter had to be resolved through an under-the-table method. His only option was to have someone represent him and set the stage for an apology.

It’s my bad for bedding your wife, but trust me, she’s been calling out your name!

He nodded to himself. Yes, fighting and killing were unnecessarily violent. The big shot couldn’t have gotten to where they were today without learning the value of maintaining bridges rather than burning them.

But first, he had to find someone with a high enough status to deal with the matter for him.

“Who should I ask...”

The first he thought of was Veronica. The young lady was a Londan local with considerable wealth, so Wayne’s father-in-law had to have decent social standing. Even if he couldn’t match the big shot in influence, he should know someone on equal footing with them.

This can work!

He gave himself a thumbs-up, but now begged a new question: why would his father-in-law stick his neck out for him? Why would he owe favors for some boar’s benefit when the boar was going to steal his precious princess from him?

Putting himself in the shoes of Veronica’s father, Wayne realized how unviable the method was; however, he couldn’t think of another father-in-law for the job.

Dick? Don’t be ridiculous. That dick would sooner laugh at my face!

After a bemused moment, he pocketed the two guns and picked up his birdcage and bag, returning to the Power and Faith Bodybuilding Center. He had no prompt way to contact Veronica, so he would have to relay a message through Vera, asking Veronica to meet him as soon as possible at the detective agency.

If his future father-in-law wasn’t willing to help, that was fine. He would be doing Wayne a favor by helping, and so it was within his right not to give Wayne a hand. Wayne would be grateful just to find out what he had done wrong.

***

Power and Faith Bodybuilding Center.

The trainers were wary of Wayne when he returned. Although they hadn’t kicked him out, they kept their eyes locked on him as they pumped iron, grunting and huffing.

Better watch yourself, punk! I’m watching you!

That was the thought they all shared.

Dick, after lifting the curtain of the birdcage and staring at the white owl for a moment, kept sneering at Wayne. That unnerved him. Previously, Dick had clearly not taken him seriously despite the warnings and threats, but now, Dick was showing genuine wariness and hostility!

Vera appeared just in time and took Wayne to the office. After learning about the situation, she asked while tilting her head, “Both the underworld and law enforcement are investigating you? Tell me, what heinous crime did you commit? Are you the culprit responsible for the missing women?”

Wayne rolled his eyes at her. “Really? I used to tremble when I walked outside at night. How would I be capable of that?”

She hissed with widened eyes, pressing her hands to her chest so hard that her shirt became deformed. “You didn’t deny that you would want to do it!”

Yeah, and I’ll kidnap you and lock you in the agency’s basement the moment I’m strong enough!

With a scoff, he told her to stop joking around and contact Veronica already. He didn’t want to waste too much energy on this matter; he needed it to learn magic!

Vera cocked her head. “Actually, Dick... Never mind, let’s just contact Veronica. Her father is influential. As long as she is willing to speak for you, he can resolve the trouble for you quickly.”

“Then I’ll be troubling her.”

“You will. Veronica has a terrible relationship with her father...”

She made the call, but no one picked up. In this era, with only landlines and no cell phones, not getting through was normal. She sent a message via her owl instead, asking Veronica to find Wayne at the agency as soon as she could.

He thanked her again, taking a taxi to his detective agency on Belker Street in the Eastern District. The driver scammed him with detours! This happened too often!

Money was a hero’s courage, and gold was a man’s backbone. The blasted driver drained Wayne of his last bit of valor and vitality, thus reaffirming potatoes’ prominent position on his dinner table.

Despite his grievances, he couldn’t do anything about the driver’s dishonesty without GPS serving as proof. The driver would just claim that he hadn’t taken the long route. And Wayne was welcome to drive himself and suffer from the gas prices!

Wayne arrived at the entrance to his agency. As soon as he touched the door handle, he knew someone was inside, and their lock-picking skills were so masterful that it was as if they had a spare key to the door. He sniffed and smelled a mixture of hair conditioner, cream, chocolate, and the fragrance of a young woman. Only then did he relax.

Not an outsider, just Veronica. She did have a spare key.

“You got here fast. I definitely got scammed.”

Veronica was reading the new entries in his diary at the desk. She didn’t even look up when she heard his voice. “Vera said that you’ve gotten on the wrong side of someone powerful, and they already sent people to investigate you.”

“That’s not all. I encountered two gang members from the local Black Snake Gang. They followed me from the Eastern District all the way to the Northern District. I would’ve gotten kidnapped if I hadn’t been careful enough.” Wayne tried to play the victim to evoke Veronica’s sympathy. It didn’t work very well. She laughed about something in the diary.

Diary, not something any self-respecting person would keep. Who wrote their thoughts down on paper? Would written thoughts still be considered thoughts? Such a questionable act! So the diary would only fool strangers. To Veronica, who knew everything about Wayne, the diary was nothing but a collection of jokes.

He had no choice but to show her the two guns, telling her that things had been dangerous. His fists were still swollen and aching!

“That bad?” she said in surprise. “It’s unusual for a local gang to chase someone to the Northern District, even bringing guns. Who exactly did you offend?”

“If I knew, I wouldn’t be asking for your help.” He shrugged, getting to the point. “I heard your father is influential and knows a lot of important people, so would you please find out for me what I did wrong?”

Veronica frowned. After a moment, she said, “Fine, but you’ll owe me a favor. You have to agree to one of my requests unconditionally in the future.”

He nodded, lowering the bag and birdcage. Veronica walked out to find a phone booth and dialed home.

Flickering yellow light illuminated the red phone booth in the mist. She dialed a different number, then another. It was what it was. His father had as many real estates as he had faces. One in public, another in private, and several more in the suburbs. She could never reach him without calling multiple places.

Finally, she managed to get her father on the line—Auston Lando.

Her tone was frosty, as if she were talking to a stranger. Wayne stood outside the phone booth and noticed how dark her expression was. He shook his head. Every family had their problem. Vera had it hard, but so did Veronica.

He wondered what Kristen’s situation was like. He would ask during their one-on-one tutoring session. If she also had a tragic past, he wouldn’t mind lending her a shoulder to lean on throughout the night as she wept.

“I understand. I’m fine. Thank you for your concern.”

A few minutes later, she hung up and walked out of the phone booth with a sour expression. Wayne followed her and stayed silent. It would be too scummy to make a move right now, even by his standards.

She entered the agency and picked up the diary. The easy entertainment soon improved her mood. “I asked. You did offend a powerful figure.”

“Who is it?” he asked impatiently.

“Mr. Lando didn’t say. He told me that you don’t need to know who it is. Whether you know their identity, you can’t change their mind. If the big shot has their eyes on you, they will put you in a barrel of cement and sink you in the river.”

Her expression turned confused, too. To her knowledge, her poor excuse of a father enjoyed a great status in Londan, keeping many parliament members in his pocket. If he was unwilling to reveal the person...

Could Wayne have offended Her Majesty the Queen?!

Nah, she’s in a different league!

“Then...”

“Mr. Lando said that he will smooth things over for you, but you’ll owe him a favor. He’ll collect it when the time is right.”

“No problem.”

Wayne nodded readily. It wouldn’t be a big deal to owe his future father-in-law a few more favors; he wouldn’t have to repay him once they became family.

Freeloading is great!

“Mr. Lando is amazing!”

“Ha, he’s just rich. He’s abandoned his conscience for money.”

“If I may ask, what does Mr. Lando do for a living?”

“He’s a banker.”

“...Hm.”