Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

Altashia cleared her throat and made introductions.

"Eren, meet Morty Derringer. My batchmate from Royal Ren.

Morty, meet Eren Idril. He is my squad member, assigned as the deputy vice-captain."

Altashia made a short introduction. But Eren registered the surname Derringer and thought of a famous weapon-making family active in Edinburgh. He smiled at Morty courteously and the other nodded at him as a formality.

"Altashia, would you mind coming with me to do some sightseeing in the city? I had planned to go with our batchmates who had come here with me. But they are a rowdy bunch. I'd rather prefer to have the company of someone calm and collected beside me. Hehe! What do you say?"

Morty asked and looked at Altashia's expressions. She was looking at Eren who was busy eating his freshly served food. It seemed that it didn't affect the butcher that his city exploration plans with her for the day were being ruined by a stranger.

Morty once again followed Altashia's gaze and looked at Eren. The guy was having a good time eating and talking to another girl he had with him.

'Just what else can you expect from a student of LA?'

Morty sighed internally when he looked at Eren's lack of table manners. But now was not the time to belittle the guy. It seemed that Altashia had already made plans with him. And him asking her out for an outing was going to put a dent in that plan.

Morty knew Altashia wouldn't do something like that. Since she had said so from the beginning, she would honour her agreement with the goofball in front of him. So he needed to get his permission for Altashia to come with him.

"Eren…buddy! Would you mind if Altashia came sightseeing with me? We have a lot to talk about during our time in Royal Renar you see. So I'd owe you one if you could just, you know, go do your own thing."

Morty asked with a gracious smile. Eren stopped eating and looked at the man. Then he opened the Frostfoam up before pouring it into his mug.

The butcher took the first sip of elven ale Marla had introduced him to and let a shiver run through his body, calming everything down. He answered only after feeling that calmness.

"Al, do you remember the conversation we had before we came to the city? Hehe. Do what you feel is right. Our friend here needs company after all."

Morty thought that Eren had cancelled his plans at the mere suggestion of him. He liked people who knew their position in the hierarchy.

Al on the other hand understood it completely differently.

'I want you to fight for me. I want you to be on the frontline for me.'

Eren's words reverberated in Altashia's head when he made her remember the talk in the carriage. She sighed when she understood his intentions.

"Morty, I don't think I'll come with you. Besides, Eren and I have more to talk about regarding our upcoming missions. Thank you for asking though."

Altashia politely declined Morty's offer. She knew that the guy was trying to get close to her. She even doubted that her meeting him was a coincidence like he had said it was.

Morty was left speechless by Altashia's statement. It took him some time to regain his composure before speaking up.

"Alright. See you around Altashia."

Morty was about to leave when Eren placed his empty ale on the table and addressed him.

"Hehehe! Morty, how serious were you when you said you owe me one? I had given Al clearance from my side, as you can see. If she doesn't take it, it is her call."

Eren finished his platter as he spoke. Morty looked at him with a surprised look on his face.

'Is this guy for real? Are you planning to make me pay for his gratitude that became useless to me in the end?'

Morty thought before responding.

"Of course, Eren. Tell me, what can I do for you?"

Morty said that regardless of what he felt at the time. Because, unlike someone who had ravaged his food as if he had never eaten food in his entire life, Morty Derringer had a reputation to keep.

"Brrrrrugh!"

Eren nodded before burping aloud. He had to admit that his hunger as a slime half-blood was no joke. It was taking an increasingly large amount of food for him to feel satiated with each passing month.

The butcher then ran his mana through his body and made the residual food and stains on him disappear into thin air. While taking his smoke out, he started speaking.

"Your name is Derringer, right? Are you perhaps related to the house that gets Edinburgh's weapon-making contracts?"

Morty didn't want to sit by the table anymore now that Altashia had said no to him. But Eren's topic soothed his ego a bit. So he smiled and nodded his head before replying.

"That's right, Eren. A large part of the army-issue weapons and artefacts you guys use in the active service are made by us. You want me to place a custom order for…"

Morty didn't mind fixing an artefact or two for Eren to up his image in Altashia's eyes. But Eren interrupted him before he could finish.

"No, Morty. You are not getting it. I'm not looking to place a custom order. Rather, I want to know if you guys want to place an order with me."

Eren said this while hitting the inside of his mouth with the back of his hand. Then he put that into his mouth before lighting it up with his fire mana.

Morty had a puzzled look on his face when he heard Eren. He didn't get what the guy was saying. He asked for an explanation.

"What do you mean, Eren?"

Eren took a long drag from his smoke and released it in the air. He spoke up only after indulging in the effects of his smoke for a bit.

"Well, you need raw materials for artefact manufacturing, right? I want to ask if you can place an order for those raw products. Don't worry. I'm not talking about a meagre amount or a one-time deal.

Let's say you will be charged 20% less than the market price for a certain period in exchange for placing a security detail in your name.

We can discuss other finer details of the deal at a later time. But this is roughly the deal I'm offering. I think you will soon find out that it is not something you want to miss out on. The choice is yours though.

And yeah….

The offer closes soon!"

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AN: Thanks a ton Drin27 and ketsueki_Hasu for your super gifts. Two castles in a day at the start of the month was a pleasant treat.

Thank you Venom30, Pietys, TrafalgarLaws, Dream98, _DaRk_MiST_, GojoVir, Drifter, and Waakaranai for your gifts.

Also, special thanks to Daoist_Culture for the luxury car and consistent engagement through all your comments.

VEH will have a mass release by the second or third week of the month. Cheers! ;)