C17 Discussion

The night slipped away quietly, and as dawn broke, Egerton woke up around six o'clock as he always did. However, he noticed that Lankro, who typically rose earlier than him, was still deeply asleep. Her tranquil and serene slumber was a beautiful sight to behold.

"She must be having her first peaceful sleep since arriving here," Egerton mused with a chuckle. It seemed the Catwoman had only been with him for a mere two days.

As he was about to get up and leave quietly, he realized that Lankro was gripping his hand firmly. A gentle tug was enough to rouse her.

"Hmm, why are you here?" Lankro asked groggily, surprised to see him.

"Did you lose your memory?" Egerton teased, smiling at her as she inadvertently revealed more of herself in the process of sitting up.

"Oh, right... Thank you," Lankro said, her cheeks coloring as she remembered the events of the previous night.

"No problem. But could you let go of my hand? I need to get started on breakfast," Egerton said with a playful tone.

"Ah!" Lankro exclaimed, suddenly aware that she was still clutching Egerton's hand, her face turning even redder.

"I'll make breakfast!" she quickly offered, seeing that Egerton was preparing to leave.

"You? Dressed like that?" Egerton turned back, giving Lankro a quizzical look.

"Ah!" It was only then that she realized she was wearing just a sheer nightgown. Lankro quickly burrowed back under the cashmere blanket, but her adorable cat tail peeked out, swishing endearingly.

After breakfast, with occasional glances from Lankro, Egerton left the house and made his way toward Belleroc Avenue.

"The meeting is at eight, and it's only seven now. I've got plenty of time to pick up a mission. I just wonder if I'll run into Sophia again today," he pondered.

He soon reached the Bounty Guild. Amidst the bustling crowd, Sophia sat at the mission counter, her beautiful face set in a stern expression as if someone owed her a great deal of money.

"Here's hoping I can snag a mission today," Egerton silently wished as he approached Sophia.

"You're here," Sophia greeted, bringing a sense of relief to Egerton, but his relief quickly turned to dismay. "How come you didn't meet your end in the Skyreach Spire yesterday? Or did you chicken out and run back home instead?"

Egerton couldn't help but wonder if he was dealing with a completely different person, given the extremely unpleasant attitude he was encountering.

"May I take on a few missions?" Egerton inquired tentatively.

To fulfill his mission of building a church, he needed more than just strength; a substantial amount of money and a strong network were also essential. Thus, Egerton was not willing to let even the slightest profit from a mission slip through his fingers.

"I'm the one who assigns the missions. Do you really think I have the power to decide whether or not you can take one?" The voice remained indifferent.

"You were the one who refused to stamp my request yesterday," Egerton mused silently, not daring to voice his thoughts.

Sophia's demeanor suggested she wouldn't be too difficult today, and Egerton felt hopeful about securing a mission.

"Hehe, I was just hoping you might offer some advice, seeing as I'm new to this," Egerton said with a conciliatory grin.

"My advice? Go home right now and forget about taking on any missions," Sophia retorted, though her hands deftly sorted through the mission catalog. In no time, she compiled a list of missions suitable for a Class 2 adventurer.

"Just take a look and get a sense of your own limitations," Sophia said as she handed the catalog to Egerton.

"You have a way of saying one thing and meaning another that's quite endearing," Egerton blurted out, just as the catalog was snatched from his grasp.

Looking up, he saw Sophia glaring at him, her lips slightly parted and a dark aura brooding between her brows, as if she were on the verge of telling him off.

"Cough, cough, I was actually talking about my cat, not you. It was being fussy with me this morning, but once I petted its belly, it wouldn't leave my side," Egerton quickly clarified, but his explanations only seemed to intensify the dark aura around Sophia.

"Kid, if Sophia doesn't want to deal with you, you'd better wise up and scram!" came a harsh voice, leaving Egerton feeling exasperated.

Was this going to be a repeat of yesterday's scene?

Without even turning around, Egerton recognized the voice as belonging to Harper, the drunkard from the day before.

Harper had wised up this time. He refrained from getting physical with Egerton or provoking Sophia. Instead, he simply fanned the flames from the sidelines. Egerton, not wanting to initiate a confrontation, couldn't help but furrow his brow in frustration.

"If you dare to lay a hand on me again, do you really think you'll ever get another mission from the Bounty Guild?" Sophia warned, mistaking Egerton's silence for impending aggression.

"Wow, no need to be so harsh. Do you have a thing for him?" Egerton asked, incredulous.

Harper, momentarily taken aback, quickly became ecstatic.

He had come early in the morning to foster a connection with Sophia and to mitigate the negative impact of his embarrassing behavior the day before. Upon arrival, he noticed Sophia's stern demeanor and decided to sit back and assess the situation. Seeing Sophia and Egerton converse so naturally worried him, prompting him to sneak closer to eavesdrop. That's when he overheard Sophia's words.

"So Sophia's bad mood is all because of this kid. She's been stone-faced because I didn't approach her to chat!" Harper thought, emboldened by the revelation.

"Kid, let's put yesterday's incident behind us. But if you don't scram and stop ruining the mood for Sophia and me..."

"And what if I don't?" Egerton asked, barely giving Harper a glance.

"Then get ready to be thrown out by me!" Harper boasted.

"Oh, seems to me the person who got caught yesterday wasn't me, right?" Egerton retorted with a cold laugh.

"That's because I had too much to drink and wasn't paying attention. You can't count a sneak attack!" Harper argued.

He was somewhat baffled himself. As an Awakened One of Class 2, even inebriated, he shouldn't have been so easily subdued.

Even when overpowered, his superhuman strength should have allowed him to resist.

Of course, Harper couldn't have known that Egerton's profound knowledge of the human body far exceeded that of the average person. Even without using his cultivator's powers, Egerton's Penetrator abilities enabled him to swiftly identify and exploit the body's vulnerabilities, preventing any easy exertion of force.

"Alright, even if I did sneak attack you, let's go another round," Egerton said with a laugh.

Harper could be fast, but he'd never outpace Egerton. Speed was the key; without it, strength was inconsequential.

"If you two are intent on fighting, take it to the Fighting Techniques Arena. This is the Bounty Guild, not your personal playground!" Sophia interjected, just as Harper was gearing up to show this upstart a lesson.

Her anger seemed even more palpable than before, and even Egerton felt a twinge of trepidation.

"Do you really need to be this angry? Let's just drop it. I already gave her man a lesson yesterday. If we go at it again today, I doubt there'll be any missions left for me to consider," Egerton mused, assuming Sophia was simply looking out for her own. With future earnings in mind, he chose to back down—for now.

"Kid, you think you can just walk away? Are you dismissing me that easily?" Harper, however, wasn't ready to let things slide. He mistook Sophia's warning as concern for him, especially since Egerton had bested him the day before. His pride wounded, Harper was ready to make another rash move.

"What's going on now?" Sophia, on the verge of losing her temper, was about to intervene when a voice, familiar to both Egerton and Harper, cut through the tension. The crowd fell silent at the sound.

"Can't be. He was here yesterday, and now again? Is Ryan really that free these days?"

"Who knows? Maybe he's just checking in after yesterday's disturbance."

"Harper's got some bad luck, running into Ryan twice."

"You two again? Are you just fooling around this time?" Ryan approached swiftly, his tone icy.

"Erm, we were just—" "Lord Ryan, please don't believe his lies. This troublemaker here was causing a scene, and I was merely trying to escort him out, assisting in your duties. If you're skeptical, just ask Sophia. She was just harassed by this brat," Harper interjected, shooting a glance at Sophia that nearly provoked her to violence.

"Sophia, is this related to you again?" Ryan's gaze turned to Sophia, as cold as ever.

"Leyn, listen to me," Harper implored. "Yes, Lord Ryan, it was actually this kid who was harassing Sophia yesterday. I couldn't just watch and tried to intervene, but he ambushed me while I was drunk. What do you think? Shouldn't we banish him from the Bounty Guild for good, so he doesn't interfere with your work?"

"Are you trying to dictate how I should handle this?" Ryan finally gave Harper a glance.

That single look obliterated Harper's bravado, and he quickly backpedaled, "No, no, no, I was merely offering a bit of advice. If you don't like it, feel free to ignore it."

"Do you have anything to add?" Ryan asked, casting a glance at the anxious Sophia before turning to Egerton.

"Me? I simply came here to pick up a mission. But while I was at it, this guy started making snide remarks and goading me into a brawl. I was ready to leave, and he still wouldn't drop it. That's the whole story," Egerton recounted truthfully.

He refrained from mentioning that Sophia had been deliberately troublesome. For one thing, despite her poor attitude, she hadn't obstructed him on this occasion. Moreover, Egerton had a hunch that Ryan's presence might be somehow connected to Sophia.