"Little Rose... can you hear me? Little Rose!!"
She tried to wake her up, yet Rose was still unconscious.
Probably, after such an arduous journey and after remaining without Chaos Energy for too long, her body and mind were utterly exhausted.
"Atlas... what happened to her? Why is she still unconscious? What..."
Being questioned so much by her, Atlas didn't know how to respond.
Clearly, he couldn't say anything about the mystical island. Otherwise, who knew what could happen?
He wasn't the best at finding an excuse, so after thinking carefully, he replied: "Well... I'm not so sure, either. I followed the compass and reached her on an island. Unfortunately, when I found her, she was caged in a place consumed by terrible flames and lava. It was difficult to even breathe, and I almost used all my energy to survive there. Maybe she was strangled in that place for so long that she used all her resources and energy to endure. Now her body is currently recovering from a huge shock..."
The best lies always contain a bit of truth, so Atlas used this excuse.
Alas, there was still a loophole.
"And how did you escape from that place? Were you not with the other adventurer? They returned days ago after that terrible storm... so hwy did I not hear anything about your return?"
Atlas was momentarily lost. What could he reply?
Frantically thinking about an answer, Atlas hoped for a miracle, and luckily...
"ROSE!!!"
A mighty shout came from downstairs, halting their discussion.
"Rose, where are you?"
Knowing it was not the right time to keep talking, Elisabeth responded to the newcomer: "Oakur, we are upstairs."
Swoosh!
Atlas felt something passing by, and suddenly, someone was near the bed where Rose was sleeping.
"Little Rose..."
After checking her pulse, Oakur looked around and asked: "What happened to her? Atlas... you really brought her back... Thank You! Thank you so much!"
It was the first time he had received such sincere thanks from someone other than his grandparents, so he felt pretty satisfied and a little embarrassed.
Meanwhile, Elisabeth started repeating Atlas's words, giving Oakur a brief summary.
"Why did this stupid girl end up in such a place? What was she looking for?"
"We should ask her about it... why don't you give her a pill? I heard they are more powerful than potions..."
"It's useless... her body and mind are fine. It's just that she is probably overtired. So it would take a long time before she woke up."
Strangely, no one asked how he returned, making Atlas quite relieved.
The duo kept looking at her condition, yet other than some burning wounds, there was nothing relevant.
"You two should go back. I will bring Rose to the bathroom to clean up her body... Oakur, do you have any good ointment for her skin?"
"Yes... take this... this is the best in the world. Thank you, Elisabeth."
After giving her the ointment, Oakur brought Atlas downstairs.
After a while, the two faced each other, but no one dared to speak.
Oakur's gaze was quite strange. He was looking at him as if searching for something.
Under such gaze, Atlas felt such pressure that he could not bear it anymore: "Ugh... Sir Oakur... I'm short of time, so... pardon my boldness, but I would like to receive my reward and then take my leave..."
Oakur had heard his words clearly, yet he only replied after a long minute: "So you don't like too much attention? Well, after what I discovered about you, I don't find it too strange. In this city, you are a celebrity, but strangely, only a few people knew that all those things never happened in truth."
His response shocked him a lot.
"Damn... finally someone found out the truth... Sir Oakur, can you help me clean my name from those ill stories?"
"Well... I don't think it's good for you. Of course, those who want to kill you will never stop doing that, but if you renounce such a good fortune, you will lose some benefit from those stupid merchants who still gratify your name so loud."
He didn't expect such an answer...
Indeed, it was pretty tricky. After all, having the favor of the merchant was not so bad.
After thinking a bit, he continued: "It's a pity... anyway, do you know who wants to kill me? Who are they?"
"The list is pretty long... and most of them are powerful people from wealthy families. I suggest you use camouflage around this city to escape their claws, or they will eat you alive. Unfortunately, I can't help you directly with this problem because there are too many even for me, but I can help you in another way..."
Oakur took a few objects from his space ring and placed them on the table between them.
"This is your reward for saving my daughter. I changed it to something more useful for someone in your realm. Inside, there are more than 100.000 Low-Grade Chaos Stones. This should be more than enough to show my sincerity. Then this is the Harmony Platinum Card. With this, you will be treated like an emperor in all my facilities around the continent. Lastly, there are some treasures in this space ring that will be extremely useful to you. I have heard that you are quite knowledgeable in various fields, so you will benefit greatly from its content."
Atlas was waiting for a good reward, yet a considerable bomb dropped from the sky.
Gulp...
'This father and daughter due are beyond salvation. They are so bold to throw me all those riches?'
Gulp...
Atlas didn't refuse like he did with Rose and snatched all those treasures immediately.
"Hehehe... thank you, Sir Oakur, but why did you give me all this stuff?"
"You are quite an interesting type. First, you snatch and then ask..."
Atlas wasn't even embarrassed and asked again: "Hehe... So why did you give me all this stuff?"
"You saved my daughter's life. Clearly, I will not be stingy with my benefactor. Anyway, you can consider them to be me helping you indirectly against your enemies. If you grow stronger, no one will bother you anymore. But, alas, you should still be careful because a powerful opponent is out there... and he is waiting for you more ardently than anyone else..."
"Shit... who is that?"
Oakur's words alerted him a lot because, from his expression, he could see that this was not a simple threat.
"... well, when the city lord purged the forest using your so-called misadventures. The hangman killed a woman. The problem is that she was quite an important guest from the bandit coalition from the West. The precious Concubine of the Bloody Butcher of Saints..."
Hearing that name, Atlas paled instantly because he knew that name well.
He even recalled the only woman on the platform that day...
'Holy shit, so... Damn, that stupid hangman, and screw this cursed city... why the hell did I end up always in a huge pile of shit every time I came here? WHY???"