"If I'd known this idiot was this crazy, I wouldn't have brought him." Kayn sighed.

His eyes stayed locked on the giant figure of Black Scar. With the kind of personality he knew he had, there was no chance of running.

At best, they'd have to fight.

"Look what happened now! Mr. Narcissist walked into a trap."

"Is he planning to keep the pretty girl for himself?"

"Poor guys, may they rest in peace."

"Wait, is that spoiled brat still staring at him? What an idiot…"

But Daniel… suddenly laughed. A short, mocking, and slightly eerie chuckle.

"Azrak, come out," he whispered.

Boom.

A massive shadow, like a black wall, formed behind Daniel.

A three-meter-tall knight, in broken armor, holding a massive and terrifying sword, with glowing eyes under his helmet.

His heavy presence drowned Black Scar in darkness.

"Sorry… who were you calling 'little' again?" Daniel said with sarcasm.

"If you think this clown show scares me—" Black Scar frowned and gave Azraq a sharp look.

But his sentence was cut off.

"Come," Daniel raised his hand and said calmly.

Pride, and the rest of his Fallen Knights, bloomed one after another out of the shadows.

Many mouths dropped open. Eyes bounced between Daniel and his companions.

"Well? What do you think now?" Daniel took a step forward and said.

Black Scar's frown deepened. He evaluated—if he fought, he might win… maybe.

But even if he did, the cost would be too high. His subordinates would definitely die, and his base would be destroyed.

"Get out. All of you," he grumbled, turning back and slumping into his couch.

His subordinates were shocked.

"Boss… are you sure?"

"But they—"

"I said get out, or I'll throw your corpses to the dogs!" Black Scar shouted.

In terrified silence, all his subordinates, including the two women, rushed out of the room.

"You can go rest now," Daniel turned and looked at his Fallen Knights.

"Are you sure, my Lord?" Pride stepped forward and said calmly.

"Yeah." Daniel gave a brief smile.

With a graceful bow, they disappeared one by one.

Kayn was still in shock. He hadn't expected Daniel to be a summoner. Was that aura in the bar really from a summoner?

Daniel just smiled and didn't say anything.

"What do you want?" Black Scar huffed.

"Just answer the question… I'll pay the price," Daniel calmly pulled a chair from the corner of the hall, placed it in front of Black Scar, sat down, and said.

"I don't know much. The Duke's family and the security guards locked the whole thing down. Even the other noble families haven't figured anything out," Black Scar shrugged.

"You really don't know anything?" Daniel frowned.

"Depends on how much you're willing to pay," Black Scar said with a smirk.

Daniel sighed and tossed five shiny gold bars onto the table.

Clink. Clink. Clink. Clink. Clink.

His heart sank. Even though he had gotten a lot of gold from the goblins, his resources weren't unlimited. At this rate, he'd go broke soon.

"I didn't find out anything special myself. Things were so serious I had to forbid all my guys from any shady business for now," Black Scar glanced briefly at the bars and said.

He paused for a moment.

"But… when my boss was talking, a few things slipped. He said apparently the Duke's daughter was against this whole tournament and marriage thing… and ran away."

He glanced at the gold bars again.

Kayn frowned. Daniel lowered his head too.

"While she was running, a bunch of bandits stopped her. They tried to rob her, but then another group showed up. Slaughtered all the bandits… but kidnapped the princess." Black Scar continued.

'So… it wasn't about the item… it was about the Duke's daughter getting kidnapped.' Daniel's expression turned cold. He hadn't even considered that.

"You know anything else?" he stared at Black Scar.

"Nope. That's all," Black Scar shrugged again.

Daniel let out a breath.

"Five gold bars… just for this? Damn it." A heaviness settled in his chest.

Kayn, still in shock, followed after him as he stood up.

They said their goodbyes and left the hall, the mansion, and finally, the depths of the western ruins.

The city streets were lit and buzzing with noise. The sun was setting, and shadows stretched across the stone-paved square.

Daniel and the other two were walking silently toward the inn after the talk with Black Scar.

Kayn was trailing behind. He had nowhere to stay, and Daniel had invited him to join them at the inn.

Their path led to one of the city's main squares. In the center stood a tall, majestic statue of the Empire's founder.

Lots of people had gathered around it. Some brought flowers, some were praying, and others just watched with respect.

"He's really famous, huh…" Daniel muttered.

"Yeah, more than most heroes. People see him like a saint," Kayn said seriously.

"I thought he was born in the capital," Daniel asked.

"They say he was born right here. But after conquering all the lands that now make up the Empire, he picked a more central, advanced city as the capital," Eva replied this time.

"In the end, since this is where he was born, it became super prosperous and turned into the Empire's economic capital."

Daniel looked at the people, staring at the statue with awe and respect.

"Anyway, I'm hungry. Anyone want ice cream?" Kayn said with a playful tone.

"Ice cream?" Daniel blinked. He hadn't expected that.

"Wow… I haven't had ice cream in forever… I want some too!" Eva said with sparkling eyes.

"There's a famous shop around here. But it's probably crowded," Kayn laughed.

"I don't mind waiting in line!" Eva said excitedly.

"Go. Get some for us too." Daniel smiled and pulled out some gold and silver coins, handing them to Eva.

Eva grabbed the coins and ran off like a happy child.

"Seriously?" Kayn gave Daniel a weird look.

"Well, gotta be useful for something," Daniel shrugged.

"Sigh… let's go," Kayn gave a crooked smile.

But just as they turned around, Daniel's shoulder bumped into someone. A handsome young guy, with neatly combed blond hair and an academy uniform that screamed expensive from a mile away.

"Hey, are you blind, idiot?! Do you know how much these clothes cost?!" the guy snapped and turned around.

Daniel tilted his head slightly, glanced at the guy's clothes… then looked up and stared at him. A short silence fell between them.

Another thing he hadn't expected. Really? This kind of stupid crap still existed?