Chương 190: Striking A Deal With The Fluff

Talk about a stroke of good luck–Leou's office is literally at the very top of the tallest building in town, and it isn't just the tallest because the rest are average or short, it is just short of being just as tall as the immense walls of the city… I really have no clue what she would be doing in such a rowdy and smelly place as the composite guild. I guess she has some contacts there, or something like that? I have no idea, and I wasn't going to bother asking for now. I let the snow leopard speak.

"Welcome to my office. Careful of the ceiling beams–I would have loved to offer you a seat, but I don't typically receive ladies of your stature, so… You can sit on the floor or stand, do whatever you want" The beastfolk's tail swung from side to side as she talked–Curiously, although her hands did not feature the soft feline paw pads, her feet did.

In fact, they were nearly exactly identical to those of a genuine snow leopard, which made her completely silent walking around, even as she was clearly not even trying to be quiet. She sat behind the desk, interlocking her fingers while leaning forward. I chose to keep standing. The leopard cleared her throat and smiled pleasantly, her fangs showing.

"Alright, you don't strike me as someone who enjoys drawing-out discussions unnecessarily, so… You are a killer, right? Like… Maybe not quite a 'professional professional', but still someone who is skilled at it. As a beastfolk in touch with my species, I can recognise another predator when I see one… Well, usually at least. I couldn't tell for most of our conversation until you revealed that you killed a bandit. Only then was I able to tell""You're quite good, aren't you?"

"I gu–guess you could say that I–I have–ve experience""Oh, so humble! But there is no need. I have been looking for someone who would be willing to work for me on certain… Cases, you could say. I have met a whole bunch of assassins, the sort who are part of freaking assassin guilds or whatever, but they either strike me as not good enough, or you know… Untrustworthy as hell.

Hard to believe a professional murderer won't stab you in the back, especially when they are in it for the money""The second a bigger offer comes into play, they have no loyalty whatsoever, and they usually prioritise their organisation over clients as well… Urgh, just a big mess, not to mention that they overcharge for their services""Anyway… When I talked to you, I got a good feeling. You seem like someone I can trust to do a good job. I don't quite know why… I guess you have a good aura" Huh…

The only aura I have is the one that makes people experience negativity, siphons their bad emotions, and infects them with nightmares… Yes, that is a good aura, actually. It gets the job done.

"You–ou want to hi–hire me for a–a–an assassination?"

"Actually, I think we should partner up in the long term! But yes, it is indeed better if you would be willing to do a job before we officialise everything. My old man is no longer around to pull my ear if I do something silly, but I swear I can hear him yelling at me in the distance when I am about to… What do you think? We can discuss your initial payment, and if you succeed and want to continue working with me, then we can talk about the long-term payment""I mean, you are a rather well-built woman.

I think you would kill it as a bodyguard as well. Like, standing behind me and stuff? You're quite impressive""Mmh… You have–haven't even seen what I rea–really look like yet, th–though""I don't really put much importance on what people look like, as long as they are efficient and aren't annoying, I think that's all that really matters. Looks are only important when you intend to bring them into your bed, don't you agree?"

"I su–suppose–pose that you are correct, but…" I pulled back my hood, revealing the mechanical monster hiding beneath it–Or in other words, my beautiful face of steel.

"... Alright, I'll admit that I sort of imagine you with a humanoid face, like, tough amazonian-looking gal? That's good too, though. How hard can you bite someone with this?"

"I be–believe that the average–age knight will be bitten–en in half even in ar–armour""Sweet! So, can I assume that you agree to kill someone for me?"

"Yes""Lovely" Leou opened drawers, eventually pulling out what I believe was a picture. This is an image created through magic rather than mechanical means Nara commented inside my head. Inside the alternate reality, I had been introduced to several means of capturing images and even 'videos' through the use of machines. As far as I knew for now, Leton hadn't spread such things around just yet, or at least, not to the wider public. He was always careful about everything he did.

Even in this alternate reality, the impression of the past that I was left with was that Leton had only really shown a large extent of his capabilities because I had been pushing him to, and even then, I had ended up finding plenty of projects he had worked on in secret and never released. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. I guess some things are constant across the different realities–Whatever it is that this Dreamland truly is…

The picture of a young-looking man who was clearly drunk out of his mind at the moment the image was made. I could already guess a few things just from this, but I let Leou elaborate.

"This is Hulil Boorizar. Are you familiar with the noble families of Heldinot?"

"I am n–not""Basically, the Boorizar family is the head of the espionage and information-gathering network of the crown. They are all owl-folks, but don't be fooled by their human appearance. They are beastfolks of the shapeshifting kind. They can transform into an array of different owls, ranging from animals to beasts, and even monsters in some cases…"

"And… Well. Let's just say that they are very owllike even when in their human form. I met a girl from there once at a birthday party. She turned her neck a whole one-hundred and eighty degrees to look at a commotion. They just do that on instinct""Anyway, Hulil Boorizar is a good-for-nothing, prodigal scion from the family.

He was sort of pushed aside from the main family matters and lives on a separate, smaller residence nowadays, so you won't have to worry about dealing with the true defensive measures of the Boorizar family""Mmh… Why–Why is he a tar–tar–get?"

"... I would like to say that it is because of his underground founding of a devil cult in an attempt to grow powerful enough to be accepted back in the main residence of his family, but it's actually because of something else. I can't tell you about them just yet, but I have my own shady contacts, and Hulil has been incessantly trying to court one of my main allies.

She has to hang low and is nearly always under surveillance by the crown, so I am just trying to help her out by taking the sleazy bastard out""So–o it is per–personal, heh?"

"Pretty much. Do you accept? I have more information about the residence and the defensive measures in place there. I even have the list of guards. The only unknown quantity is possible guests, but knowing him, those are more likely to be 'ladies of the night', if you see what I mean""Mmh…" I took my time sifting through everything Leou handed to me. It did not seem easy, but the target was very clearly a fool who had a problem with alcohol. It was literally a part of his description…

Easily enters a drunken stage after a few cups. When drunk, will first get annoying and try to flirt with anything remotely feminine-looking before quickly passing out. A charming individual, for sure. How could someone be born with a silver spoon in their mouth and still end up as a wreck? This man was the living embodiment of a failure.

"Sh–Should I not be wo–rr–ied about his cultist frien–ends?"

"Not really, no. They hang around deep underground and enter through a tunnel far away from the woods behind his residence–I guess you could gain entry through there, but I don't have information on the cultists themselves. They might actually have some powerful members" I tilted my head a bit before putting down the papers on her desk.

"Should I leave a body? Or should I make him disappear?" My perfect delivery seemed to take the snow leopard aback for a second.

"You can do whatever you want. His family will take care of announcing whether he is dead or not. They should have ways to know""I ta–take it that I ca–can kill as many people as I wan–want to do the job?"

"Sure. Unless he happens to have an important guest or something, it is open season""I see… T–Then, I'll do it–it" The fluffy beastfolk seemed quite pleased by my agreement and proceeded to put all of the papers away, leaning forward against her desk.

"What would you like as payment for this job? I have mountains of money. I have contacts with the biggest merchants of the country, and as you could tell, I have ties with the 'Underground' as well. So, I should be able to get most of what you ask for, as long as it isn't too crazy" Since I was planning on continuing to work with her after this, my demands were quite simple. The first job was where I needed to show my willingness to make friends with her, so I couldn't ask her for a heavy payment just yet…

I simply asked for a room inside this building, which she granted immediately without second thought.

"It actually works fine for me, my old man built this place to loom over the city, and nothing else! We have so many empty rooms, it is obscene. Take the largest one, and if you want, the stairs to the roof are right here. I don't know if sapient golems like fresh air, but the view is great" She even offered to furnish the room for me. The second simple thing I wanted was clothes, basically replicas of what I was wearing right now. The violet suited me well, but I wasn't opposed to other colours.

Turns out bright and flashy colours actually fit just fine on me. I wasn't going to ask for steel, flesh, or anything that I was going to consume just yet. I alluded to the fact that I quite enjoyed those, but I ended up asking if it would be possible to get a computer somewhere inside the building for me. I knew that one of the forms I was on my way toward unlocking had to do with computers. She agreed to this as well, though she clearly knew nothing about machinery.

"... That's it? You can ask for more, you know? He is a low-life, but Hulil is still a noble. He's a pretty big target. The usual assassin would want a bag of gold coins thrice as heavy as their own weight for this""I am cer–certain. We can see–see for more once I am do–done""So you intend on sticking around?"

"I do""That's great to hear! I hope you'll be able to meet more of my contacts soon! They have their own means, and I am sure I'll be able to convince them to pay for your services as well" The snow leopard and I discussed for a long while, but just as she was leaving. I stopped her.

"Actually… I think I want something else as pay–payment""What is it?"

"May–May I touch your ear–ear fluff? Or your t–tail? Or your–our tummy? Your pa–paws, perhaps?"

"Huh… I… The ears are fine, but the rest is off-limits!"

"Great!" Mmh… What is it, Nara? Nothing. Nothing at all. I am simply… Noticing things