Chapter 136: An Imperfect Date

"You little bastard! You broke my gem and think you can just walk away?!"

“...Hm?”

Muen paused, eyes narrowing.

"Uncle, what do you mean by that?"

"Look!"

The scabby-headed old man still clung to Muen’s ankle with one hand, while raising the gem in the other.

In the sunlight, a clear crack could be seen on the gem's surface.

But when Muen had held it earlier, it had been completely intact.

"You must’ve cracked it just now when you were handling it!"

The scabby-headed old man glared with resentment.

"You have to pay for it!"

"It broke just from me weighing it?"

Muen blinked in disbelief, then looked at the old man.

"How much are you asking for?"

"I..."

The old man’s eyes swept over Muen’s expensive-looking attire, and a glint of greed appeared in his eyes.

"One hundred thousand—I want a hundred thousand!"

"One hundred thousand?"

Muen raised a brow.

Now that was an interesting number.

If that gem were truly the Tear of True Love, a hundred thousand Emirs wouldn’t even buy the box it came in. But this gem was clearly fake—judging by the shoddy craftsmanship, you could buy a pile of them at the wholesale market for ten Emir.

In other words...

"Extortion?"

Muen suddenly found it amusing.

"Extortion?! What extortion!"

The scabby-headed old man shouted with hatred.

"You broke my gem, so you have to pay!"

"And if I don’t?"

Muen looked at him, smiling faintly.

"You don’t—?!"

The old man’s beady eyes darted, then he suddenly threw himself to the ground and started rolling around.

"Aiyo! Everyone come look! This kid broke my property and won’t pay! Is there no justice?! Is there no law?! Is this how honest people get treated?!"

On this already bustling street, his outburst quickly drew a crowd. People started pointing and whispering at Muen and the old man.

At that moment, someone in uniform pushed through the crowd.

"What’s going on here? Why’s everyone gathered?"

A patrol officer.

Gripping a baton, the officer glanced around the scene, his eyes lighting up when they landed on Muen. He then looked at the old man and asked:

"What happened?"

"Officer, you must uphold justice for me!"

The scabby-headed old man suddenly had more confidence with the officer’s arrival. He stood up and pointed at Muen.

"He broke my merchandise and won’t pay! Just because I’m an old man with no one to rely on, he thinks he can bully me!"

"Is that so?"

The patrolman walked closer, slapping his baton into his palm, then looked at Muen.

"Kid, if you damage someone’s property, you have to compensate them. That’s basic common sense—you’re not pretending you don’t know that, are you?"

"Of course I know."

"Then pay up and settle this. Don’t block the road and waste everyone’s time," the officer said impatiently.

"Looking at your clothes, pulling out a hundred thousand Emir shouldn’t be a problem, right?"

"Exactly, exactly—paying for damages is the right thing to do."

"Kid, you’re not thinking of skipping out on this, are you?"

With the patrolman’s prompting, several people in the crowd began criticizing Muen.

In an instant, Muen looked like a complete bastard who had broken an old, lonely man’s precious gem and was now trying to avoid paying for it.

But when Muen glanced around, he quickly noticed that the voices were coming from the same few people hiding within the crowd.

"My my, junior, looks like you’ve run into one of Belrand’s Lower City specialties."

Senior Anna watched the scene unfold with a smile, as if she were enjoying a good show. She didn’t look worried in the slightest.

"Specialties?"

"This kind of collusion between crooked cops and local cons. They usually target people like you—ones who clearly look like they have money. Plenty of folks fall for this every year. I thought this street would be better, but I guess as long as it’s the Lower City, nothing changes?"

"They’re this bold? Not afraid of biting into something too hard and cracking a tooth?"

"This is the Lower City, after all. The bigshots up top don’t even spare it a glance—it’s full of filth and stench. There are no ‘hard bones’ here. These kinds of people usually have gang ties and have memorized the list of locals they shouldn’t mess with. That’s why they go after someone like you—a clueless outsider."

"Do I really look that easy to bully?"

Muen scratched his head.

Even with his villain-blond hair and face, why did he keep running into these protagonist-exclusive side quests?

"What nonsense are you spewing?"

The patrolman’s face darkened when he heard Anna’s words. But then his gaze scanned her seductive figure, barely concealed even under her dress, and his eyes grew hot.

With a sneer, he said, "You don’t look like a decent woman either. I suspect you stole something and hid it on you. You’ll have to come with me to the station for a full search."

At those words, Muen’s expression immediately turned cold.

He stepped forward, blocking the officer’s line of sight, and said in a low voice:

"Well now, isn’t this interesting. A mere patrol officer thinks he can arrest someone without evidence?"

"What do you mean without evidence? We've got both a witness and the item right here!" the officer sneered, like he’d done this dozens of times before. It was all routine.

After all, just a bit of intimidation and most people would behave obediently.

"Hah... Looks like talking to you is just a waste of time."

Muen sighed and pulled out a family crest engraved with the emblem of a longsword.

"You recognize this?"

"What’s that?"

"You don’t? Then go find someone who does."

"Who the hell do you think you are? Why should I listen to you?"

The patrolman still sneered coldly.

What, no pass from the Chihuo Gang? Then stop acting all high and mighty.

But in the very next second, he saw a giant fist, the size of a stewpot, rapidly growing in his field of vision.

"Why? Because of this."

For once, unrestrained fury burst from Muen’s eyes. He threw a heavy punch.

"I didn’t want to resort to violence, especially in front of senior—I didn’t want to seem brutish. But apparently, this is the faster way!"

The patrolman's still-arrogant face twisted grotesquely under Muen's fist and he flew backward like a rag doll.

While the officer writhed on the ground, still barely conscious, Muen coldly added:

"Of course, more importantly—your eyes were too filthy."

...

"Shit... we hit the wrong guy."

On the other side, the scabby-headed old man’s face turned ghostly pale as he saw the patrol officer go flying.

He tried to crawl away in the confusion of the crowd—but a white leather boot stomped firmly down on his hand.

Anna held down her skirt to protect her sanctity, then looked down at the terrified old man with a smile:

"What’s wrong, old man? Don’t want your compensation anymore?"

...

Just as Muen had said—once he physically “assaulted” a patrol officer, things escalated rapidly.

First, a fat, potbellied man arrived with a crowd, cursing all the way. But when he saw the family crest in Muen’s hand, his rage instantly turned into fear—he looked like he’d shed a few dozen pounds in pure terror.

Next, a black carriage came hurtling down the street, its wheels nearly flying off. A middle-aged man with panda-like eye bags and a bald head jumped out, practically tripping over himself as he rushed up to Muen.

“Y-Y-Young Master Campbell...”

The balding man wiped his forehead nonstop.

“What brings you to the Lower City?”

“What, I can’t come here?”

Muen gave the man a brief glance—he vaguely remembered seeing him once before.

“Viscount Goon, was it? Your Lower City management seems... lacking.”

“My fault, my fault! I’ll fix it, I swear I will!”

Viscount Goon bowed and scraped, his insides already in shambles.

Did I trample someone’s ancestral grave recently?

First the son of a count dies and brings down a princess...

Now even a duke’s son is roaming around, and just happens to run into this incident?

What is going on?! Since when did the Lower City become a tourist spot for all you highborn nobles?!

If this keeps up, I’m going to lose what little hair I have left!

“I’ve already understood the situation. I’ll handle it properly and give Young Master Campbell a satisfactory explanation.

Do you have any other requests?”

Viscount Goon wiped the cold sweat from his brow and asked carefully.

“No. Get out of my sight.”

Muen waved his hand impatiently.

Like receiving a royal pardon, Goon scurried away with his men, dragging the patrol officer and the old man with them.

Peace quickly returned to the street.

When Muen turned toward his waiting senior, the gloom on his face vanished, replaced with a wry smile:

“I feel like... my good mood’s been ruined.”

“Really?”

Anna tilted her head and smiled:

“But I thought junior looked really cool just now.”

“...Did I?”

“Of course you did. Especially when you said, ‘your eyes are too filthy.’ You were like a prince straight out of a story.”

“That’s exaggerating.”

“But it’s true.”

“......”

At that moment, looking into senior Anna’s crescent-shaped smiling eyes, Muen’s heart skipped again.

“Shall we continue?”

“Mhm. Let’s.”

And so, the date continued.

Muen once again opened his Belrand Dating Guide to map out the next destination.

He was still hesitating—should they go left to that highly rated food street, or right toward the riverside where fireworks were rumored to light up the night—when Anna’s attention was suddenly caught by something else.

“Junior, look, it’s a cat.”

On a stone bench by the roadside, a milk-white kitten was curled up, meowing softly.

“Senior, you like cats?”

Muen asked reflexively.

But the answer was clear—Anna was already skipping over with light steps.

“Meow~”

“Meow meow...”

“Meow meow~”

“Meow meow meow meow...”

Mimicking its cries, Anna cautiously approached the kitten.

She was surprisingly convincing, and the kitten’s guard quickly melted.

In Muen’s dazed eyes, senior Anna seemed to transform into a cat herself—lazily mewling beneath the sunlight.

“So cute...” Muen murmured without thinking.

“Right? This cat is adorable.”

Anna had already scooped the kitten into her arms and was gently scratching its chin. The kitten purred happily.

“It seems injured.”

Anna looked with concern at the kitten’s hind leg. There was a gaping wound—deep enough to see the bone. ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ No wonder it hadn’t run away.

After a moment’s thought, Anna took out scissors and a small knife and shaved the fur and rotted flesh from the wound.

The kitten cried out in pain, and its claws scratched deep red welts across Anna’s hand.

“Senior!”

“I’m fine.”

Anna didn’t mind. She held the kitten steady and poured healing potion on its wound.

The injury visibly healed before their eyes, and Anna carefully wrapped it with bandages.

Once she was done, the kitten had recovered enough to move. Startled by the earlier pain, it kicked off Anna’s leg and leapt up a nearby tree, vanishing quickly.

“Oh dear. What a shame.”

Watching the kitten disappear, Anna looked a bit reluctant.

“I wanted to pet it a little longer.”

“Senior, are you okay?”

Muen walked over to check her wounds.

“It’s fine. Just a few scratches.”

Anna poured the rest of the potion on her hand. The wounds disappeared instantly, not even a scar left behind.

“See? Magic potions are amazing.”

Anna said with a hint of pride.

“They are. Senior is the most amazing.”

Muen couldn’t help laughing. He hadn’t expected this childish side of her.

“But junior...”

Anna suddenly cupped her cheek and looked at Muen with a sly smile.

“You’ve had plenty of time by now—surely you’ve figured out our next destination?”

“......”

Muen’s smile stiffened.

Crap. He’d been too focused on watching her... and forgot.

...

In the end, he decided to find a restaurant and settle lunch first.

His stomach had growled so loudly it reminded him he hadn’t eaten in over thirty hours.

He’d long since been starving, but his excitement for the date had suppressed his bodily urges.

Even though the date he’d been looking forward to... had been going horribly so far.

"But this time, nothing will go wrong!"

Muen clenched his fist with confidence.

There’s a saying—the way to a woman’s heart is through her stomach. That’s why he’d studied the date guide’s restaurant section the most.

After many comparisons, Muen settled on a privately-run restaurant with great reviews and gorgeous photos.

Its only flaw was its location—it was tucked away in a residential street called Durank, far from the commercial district.

But for a date, wasn’t a quiet environment, paired with soothing music and candlelight... the perfect atmosphere?

No woman could resist a perfect candlelit din—no, lunch!

"Looks like I should start getting excited," Anna smiled as she watched Muen's confident face.

...

...

"...Why is this happening."

Half an hour later, after finally finding the hidden restaurant, Muen began to doubt his entire existence.

"Why... is it closed?"

He stared at the big “Temporarily Closed” sign on the door. Then glanced at senior’s subtly odd expression. And once again, he felt the crushing despair of being cursed by fate.

What the hell?

Am I really this unlucky?

Getting scammed was one thing. But to find the perfect restaurant only for it to be closed?

Isn’t today Sunday?

What restaurant closes on Sundays?!

Is it really that hard to just have a good date?!

"I don’t believe this! Damned heavens, bring it on—make me even more unlucky if you dare!"

Muen’s eyes burned red with rage as he howled to the sky.

And then—just like when you forget something important and fate slaps you for it—he heard a familiar voice behind him.

“M-Muen... Muen Campbell?”