Chapter 187: Meeting Victor

Click—

Rebecca pulled out her gun and pressed it against the woman's chin.

The woman shut her mouth awkwardly and silently stepped aside.

The other people in the hallway also tacitly made way for Leon and Rebecca.

In an instant, the crowd wasn't so packed anymore.

Rebecca put away her gun, walked to Leon's side, and lowered her voice, "We're not regulars here. The people at the entrance are the 'inspectors.' If you don't show them some deterrence, you won't be able to take a single step in this place."

Leon understood the 'unspoken rules' Rebecca was talking about. Every gray area had its own survival tactics.

What he didn't understand was why Victor, after leaving the Dragon Slayers, ended up working in such a rotten and shady place.

'Has he given up on himself? Or is there another reason?'

This guy had always been a lifelong runner-up, but he had the resilience and bottom line of a second-place finisher. He gave his all in everything and set high standards for himself.

A person like that shouldn't fit in with a place like this.

Looks like he'd have to ask Victor himself once they found him.

Leon and Rebecca passed through the dance floor and arrived at the bar counter.

"What would you two like to drink?", The bartender greeted them.

"A glass of water," Leon had terrible alcohol tolerance, and besides, they weren't here to drink tonight.

"I'll have a Black Moon," Rebecca said. She used to drink often and was quite familiar with these bizarre drink names.

She claimed that she aimed better after drinking, though Leon didn't know if that was true.

The bartender glanced at Rebecca's petite frame and said, "We don't serve alcohol to kids."

The moment the bartender finished speaking, Leon, who had been about to suggest Rebecca get juice instead, swallowed his words back down.

Then, he subtly shifted his seat a little to the side, just in case blood splattered on him in a moment.

If Leon's biggest taboo was his wife and kids…

Then Rebecca's was her age.

"I am an adult! Open your damn eyes and look closely! I! Am! An! Adult!", The twin-tailed girl stood on the barstool, both hands pressed against the counter.

If the bartender dared to say another word, Leon had no doubt she would pull out her gun.

Fortunately, the bartender was quick to assess the situation and nodded obediently. "Alright, alright. One Black Moon, coming right up."

"Wait! I changed my mind. I'll have water too."

"Okay, two glasses of water."

Only then did Rebecca sit back down, crossing her arms and puffing her cheeks in anger as she glared at the bartender's back, "This is exactly why I hate all bartenders in this world."

Leon shook his head with a smile, saying nothing as he began observing the crowd.

A moment later, the lights in the bar suddenly dimmed, leaving only a single spotlight shining on the stage.

Under that light sat a tall, thin man on a barstool, a simple guitar in his arms.

He was dressed plainly, his face slightly weathered, and his hair had grown down to his shoulders.

But the moment he appeared, the men and women in the dance floor erupted in cheers.

"Victor! Victor! Victor!"

"Victor, sing 'By the Riverside'!"

"He sang that yesterday! Today, he should sing 'Evening Breeze'!"

They called out Victor's name and shouted their song requests.

Leon sat at the bar, watching his former second-in-command Victor from across the entire dance floor.

Compared to Rebecca, Victor had changed a lot. He used to have short hair and looked much more energetic back then.

"What happened to him?", Leon muttered.

"Artists. They're all like this," Rebecca sipped her water through a straw.

As the crowd quieted down a little, Victor took off the pendant around his neck.

It was a guitar pick.

Unlike cheap, ordinary picks, Victor's was a delicate ivory white, crafted with great precision.

It was particularly eye-catching under the lights.

With a gentle stroke of the guitar strings, Victor began to sing.

His singing skills were excellent, by the standards of this bar, he was at an exceptionally high level.

Back in the Dragon Slayers, he used to sing around the campfire at night.

That was how he had gathered quite a few fangirls.

Still, not as many as Leon.

"Perpetual second place" seemed like a curse, always placing Victor right behind Leon in every aspect.

No matter how hard he tried, Leon was always like an insurmountable mountain standing in his way.

Funny enough, from the conversations of nearby patrons, Leon learned that the song Victor was singing was called "Climbing Over This Mountain."

Leon had never thought of himself as Victor's mountain or anything like that.

In his eyes, Victor was a reliable deputy and vice-captain.

At least, until Leon was framed in the Silver Dragon Battle.

And now, caught in the empire's swirling conspiracy, who could truly emerge unscathed?

Leon withdrew his thoughts and quietly waited for Victor to finish his performance.

As a popular resident singer, one song wasn't enough to satisfy the audience.

For the next hour, Victor played his guitar and performed many classic songs.

Some of them were songs he had sung back in the Dragon Slayers.

Even someone as unartistic as Leon found himself listening with interest, reminiscing about the past.

As for the twin-tailed girl beside him, she was already dozing off.

Leon turned to look at her and snapped his fingers crisply by her ear.

Rebecca jolted awake, "Ah! Who—who fired a gun?"

"Wake up. We're heading backstage to find Victor."

"Oh, right!"

The two of them circled around the dance floor and headed to the backstage area.

There were many rooms backstage, but fortunately, each one had a nameplate for the bar staff.

They found Victor's room and knocked on the door.

"The performance is over for tonight. Come back tomorrow," came Victor's voice from inside.

"Hey, big-shot singer, have you gotten so famous now that you don't even want to see old teammates?", Rebecca taunted from outside.

As soon as she finished speaking, they heard hurried footsteps inside.

Creak—

The door opened, and the weary, thin man stood in the doorway, looking down at the much shorter girl in front of him.

"Rebecca? What are you doing here?"

"Here to support a big-shot singer."

"Cut the jokes. You wouldn't come looking for me unless you had business."

Rebecca shrugged, "That's true. But it's not my business—it's his."

She reached out and pulled the man from behind the door into view.

Victor looked up and was immediately stunned.

———

At Victor's place, Leon only told him about his purpose for returning to the Empire.

As for what happened after Leon was captured back then, what his relationship with the Silver Dragon Queen was, and his speculations on the cooperation between Constantine and the Empire, Leon did not mention a single word.

Because Victor was different from Rebecca.

That crazy girl had undergone a first review by the master, a second review by Leon, and was ultimately confirmed to be absolutely not a mole before she was assigned to the "old, weak and cripled" squad.

Then, the mole who betrayed Leon back then had to be one of the two, Victor or Martin.

The more you say, the more mistakes you make. Leon wasn't so excited about reuniting with an old friend that he forgot the purpose of his visit.

Inside the room, after hearing Leon's account, Victor's reaction was similar to Rebecca's at the time.

First, he was shocked, then he mentioned that he had also fallen into an illusion back then, and by the time he came to his senses, Leon was already severely injured and lying on the ground.

"Oh, so it seems this was a large-scale group illusion," Leon said in a faint voice.

"Yeah, it's just a pity I broke free from the illusion too late. Otherwise, maybe I could've saved you, Captain," Victor said.

Leon's eyes moved slightly as he quietly observed Victor.

That sentence of his was quite intriguing.

"Maybe I could've saved you, Captain", Wasn't that just another way of saying "I'm not the mole"?

'Interesting', Leon thought.

But he didn't show any reaction. He simply nodded and said, "It's fine, don't take it to heart. I'm perfectly fine now, aren't I?"

"Then, Captain, what are you planning to do next? Are you going to find Martin?", Victor asked.

Leon raised an eyebrow slightly. He didn't rush to answer Victor's question but instead looked toward Rebecca.

The twin-tailed loli was sitting by the table, where Victor's old guitar was placed.

She wasn't particularly artistic, she was just idly plucking at the guitar strings with that ivory-white pick.

Alright, it seemed the only person in this world who could exchange glances with Leon and open a team voice chat was Rossweise.

Leon withdrew his gaze and turned back to Victor.

"No rush. Martin's family background is special. It's not that easy for us to see him."

Although Rebecca had mentioned that Martin was often oppressed by his stepmother at home, he was still the youngest son of a royal minister, not someone they could just meet whenever they wanted.

Victor pondered for a moment before saying, "Meeting him wouldn't be that difficult."

"Oh? You have a way?"

Victor nodded, "Two days from now, it will be the birthday banquet of Martin's stepmother. She has invited various friends, as well as many politicians and ministers. At that time, we can disguise ourselves and sneak in to find Martin."

Leon fell into thought, "That is indeed a good opportunity…"

'But… isn't this a bit too much of a coincidence?'

Leon had just returned to the Empire and thought it would be difficult to meet Martin, yet at this exact moment, Martin's stepmother just happened to be having her birthday? Not that she couldn't have a birthday, but the timing was just too perfect.

Leon didn't voice this suspicion directly. Instead, he scrutinized Victor, his mind racing before finally asking,

"How is Martin's relationship with his stepmother? Ah, I just want to confirm, will Martin definitely attend his stepmother's birthday banquet?"

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