19.A chance to prominence

"Considering the various misunderstandings we've had, Lord Bard believes that if we are to continue our cooperation, we must understand each other. As the proposer of the partnership, and to show respect, we will start by telling you some things," the butler Duncan said solemnly.

It was the same evening. After Klaw had caused a commotion at Lord Bard's mansion, he couldn't have imagined that someone from Bard's household would visit him at the dock's cabin so late at night. After all, people need some distance and space between them, and those with entanglements should especially maintain such boundaries, right?

Perhaps for this reason, Lord Bard did not make a personal appearance but delegated this awkward task to his two capable aides, Duncan and Joe.

"You've got it all wrong," Klaw said irritably. "Your lord speaks eloquently, but have you ever seen a partner who is essentially held captive in a dilapidated house by the sea?"

"He has a point," Joe chimed in, but Duncan ignored him, proceeding to the corners of the room as if it were routine—examining the accumulation of dust, inspecting the health of the potted plants, and checking if the stains on the glass windows obstructed the view.

The very picture of a meticulous head butler.

"Firstly, Mr. Klaw," he said, "this is not a dilapidated house. You must admit that compared to the guild's communal housing in the dock area and the soft soil under the back stairs of the Sea Breeze Tavern, this is a decent house, and you don't have to worry about food and drink. You can even entertain those pitiful children from the guild—"

"How did you know?" Klaw exclaimed in surprise. It went without saying that he would entertain Yemir, but he hadn't slept on the ground behind the tavern for a long time—at least not in the past six months. Could it be that Lord Bard had been keeping tabs on him since then?

"Intelligence gathering is an art. It's not something that can be explained in a few words... Please let me continue. Secondly, we are not holding you captive. You are free to walk out of this house, go to the dock, the lower city, or continue to the upper city to ply your trade in deception. There is no problem with that, provided you can bear the risks that come with it."

"This is imprisonment, threats, intimidation and psychological suggestion. Even though you try to change its nature with the rhetoric, this is imprisonment, undeniably so!"

Duncan let out a laugh—a rare occurrence that even surprised Joe.

"The rhetoric, indeed. I've made a foolish attempt, quite out of place. My lord does have a keen eye: you are not only skilled with words but also possess the top-notch intuition to strike at the heart with a single blow."

Klaw did not understand the meaning of this statement and took it as a metaphorical compliment.

"So, what is it that you've come to explain?" he asked irritably, but his attitude had softened somewhat.

"The first thing is, we haven't harmed your partner, even though he tried every trick in the book to frame you. You can blame Lord Bard for that, but we only provided support for his actions and are not responsible for them."

"This is true!" Joe chimed in, eager to agree. "We didn't 'finish' him off, believe me, I wanted to, but I didn't."

"Then where is Rat-Eye?" Klaw pressed.

"Most likely, he's been kidnapped by the villain chasing the gold coin. Which brings us to the second thing: you can no longer walk around conspicuously, whether by day or by night; you must stay here."

"Why?"

"Because Lord Bard has spread your name far and wide, just as we did with Rat-Eye... the red-haired thief who stole the pirate's gold coin, currently hiding in the lower city of Silver Port..."

Klaw was nearly frantic, he stood up in shock, trembling from head to toe, whether from anger or fear, he could no longer control his limbs.

"Why..." he managed to ask a relatively civil question, his mind filled with bloody images of smashing Duncan's skull — he restrained his violent impulse, he hated being kidnapped, both physically and mentally. And given that the burly Joe was standing beside Duncan, eyeing him menacingly, Klaw did not expect to take revenge on Duncan. He had to escape, through the window or just walk out the front door, and then, and then...

Then, he realized there was no 'and then' for him.

"Since we are bound by fate on the same ship," Klaw quickly changed his attitude, thinking constantly in the direction of survival. "I must ask clearly, what exactly is Lord Bard plotting?"

Duncan began pacing, clearly familiar with the layout of the room. He walked to the cabinet under the window, took out some tea, and started boiling water on the stove.

"A great treasure," Duncan said softly.

"That's a treasure greater than Henry Every's wealth!" Joe added excitedly. "Because the legend of the pirate's gold coin is true, the story of the swindler Lawrence is true!"

"You..." Klaw was already seething with anger, "you, these rich but heartless people, are the parasites of this world, the real swindlers! You speak nonsense and turn a deaf ear to what really matters. Why should I believe you, what can I get from your great treasure?"

Duncan and Joe exchanged glances and both burst into laughter.

"What do you get? What do you get?" Joe kept repeating, his pink, plump face creasing with joy.

"What you can get, of course, is a part of the treasure, Klaw."

This statement caught Klaw's attention, pulling him out of his entanglement of anger and fear.

"I won't... I won't believe it," he stammered, seemingly trying to convince himself.

"You certainly will, Klaw. Lord Bard believes that you are the kind of person he needs. However, we don't have the luxury of daydreaming. The hidden enemy should not be underestimated; they are our competitors for the great treasure and the biggest obstacle on your road to wealth. They are the ones we used you and Rat-Eye as bait to lure out."

"In this way, those long-hidden guys like the smelly rats will definitely show their tails!" Joe said, rubbing his hands together. Duncan had already made himself a cup of tea, took a sip, and shook his head slightly.

"The last thing, Mr. Klaw, no matter what method you use, please take good care of that gold coin. Perhaps, it will become your life-saving amulet."

"Where did that gold coin come from?"

"Even Lord Bard occasionally tells the truth," Duncan said briefly, looking at Joe.

"It's like this," Joe began to explain, "that thing was not originally the master's. You know, all his property was obtained through legitimate and legal transactions—most of it anyway—but that gold coin was left by a guest who was on credit. He was sick and had been eating and drinking for free in the tavern that the master opened in Bristol for a long time, but he had no intention of paying at all. This is the kind of thing you idle little thieves like to do, right?"

He raised his eyebrows and continued, "At that time, I happened to be following the lord on business in England, and we went to take a look at that tavern. You know, no owner wants guests to be on credit all the time, so the lord wanted to see if he could urge the debt, but at that time, the man was on the verge of dying, and he was constantly talking nonsense..."

"What did he say?" Klaw asked curiously.

"Well... it was all out of tune, he kept asking for wine to drink—as if he wasn't dying fast enough—but his story was very tempting and vivid. This guy was probably a crew member of some pirate ship, and his captain was named Frank Pain, and he had a family heirloom gold coin... but a pirate parliament or something betrayed this Captain Pain, they were chased and blocked by pirates, the captain died, and the ship was also shattered, this young man survived by holding onto a plank, he sneaked back to his hometown of Bristol, but unfortunately, he got sick, and when he died, he was still holding this gold coin tightly in his hand."

"So you just took the gold coin from the dead man?" Klaw asked.

"Oh come on, you little thieves only like to take advantage of others and never reflect on yourselves! The debt he owed before he died was enough to cover ten such gold coins, you know, the quality of that thing is not top-notch... That's what I thought at the time, and later, as you all know, Lord Bard discovered the value of that gold coin, a lot of old books, documents, and testimonies all indicate that this is not an ordinary gold coin..."

Duncan finished his tea, stood up, and signaled Joe to get ready to leave.

"Continue!" Klaw asked anxiously.

"It's getting late, and besides, Mr. Klaw has not yet proven that you are a trustworthy partner."

"What do you want me to do?" Klaw asked, completely forgetting the hint he had just given himself.

"Wait," Duncan said briefly. "Be a smart cat, waiting patiently, safely, and quietly in the dark."