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The "black cherry" that seemed to be pulsing in Calvin's hand was the hope of the Balk family.
With it, the Balk family could avoid producing another madman in the future.
Their family possessed a sealed artifact capable of separating Beyonder characteristics, which was the key to their continued survival. Once a characteristic was reclaimed, it would be separated again and passed on to the next generation.
Typically, Beyonder characteristics are inherited by direct descendants. For instance, the characteristic Elliott carried came from his father, who had passed away when Elliott was seven.
When Elliott's father died, he was at Sequence 7. This meant Elliott could only inherit the potions from Sequence 9 to Sequence 7 for free. If he wanted to advance further, he'd have to find his own way.
Alternatively, he could wait for an unclaimed Beyonder characteristic, but Elliott wasn't hopeful about that since such opportunities were exceedingly rare.
Elliott had long completed the acting for Barbarian and had digested the potion.
With Calvin's help, he immediately consumed the Briber potion.
Hobert's orderly influence on Elliott was still effective, so after taking the potion, Elliott didn't experience any severe adverse reactions.
In his heart, Elliott praised the Creator, knowing that for the next six months, he wouldn't need to worry about mad ravings and losing control.
After consulting Calvin on how others had acted as Briber, Elliott bid him farewell.
Watching Elliott leave, Calvin felt somewhat dazed. He thought that Elliott had been a bit too fortunate lately.
While Calvin was lost in thought, Harvey Hayden, who had returned from a mission with Elliott, came to report on the mission as usual.
But after seeing Elliott walk away, he immediately reported, "Elder Calvin, I have something important to report. On the night Elliott received the Barbarian characteristic, he acted a little out of the ordinary."
Calvin immediately took this seriously. "Tell me in detail!"
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On Saturday morning, Hobert, carrying the jewelry and gold looted from Heyman's hideout, went to the club for a transaction.
After verifying the goods, the other party offered a price of 1,300 pounds. They tried to argue that Hobert should accept the 1,300-pound offer, but they had picked the wrong opponent. After some friendly negotiation, they settled at 1,380 pounds.
Hobert's asking price of 1,500 pounds was indeed inflated; the ideal price was between 1,350 and 1,400 pounds.
Had the other party not been so boastful, like a combative rooster trying to reason with Hobert, the deal might have been closed at 1,350 pounds.
Aside from the jewelry and gold, they had also found more than 600 pounds in cash at the time. Hobert and Xio each took 316 pounds.
Including the transaction just concluded, Hobert now had a total of 1,696 pounds in dirty money.
Hobert originally wanted to keep the extra 96 pounds as his commission and give the rest of the money to Mr. Robin and his cousin.
However, his previous life experience told him that this approach was inappropriate. It would cheapen his labor and efforts. He might earn Mr. Robin's temporary gratitude but not the respect of others.
So, Hobert first pocketed the 96 pounds, then divided the remaining 1,600 pounds in two. He planned to count his commission in front of Mr. Robin, teaching him a lesson.
That afternoon, Mr. Robin and his cousin arrived as scheduled.
Hobert received them in a small reception room. "After some investigation, and using certain... special methods, I finally found Mr. Zachary and Mr. Heyman."
Neither Mr. Robin nor his cousin had held out much hope, so when Hobert dropped such heavy news right at the start, they both stood up excitedly.
"After some friendly 'negotiation' with them, I retrieved the money that was stolen from you." Hobert placed a small suitcase on the table. "But you must understand, this money was recovered through special means, so please don't publicize it."
Mr. Robin nodded repeatedly, staring at the suitcase. When Hobert finally opened it, they saw two stacks of notes made up of 5-pound and 10-pound bills.
What followed was the sound of excited counting. They counted multiple times, their emotions shifting from disbelief to excitement, and eventually to tears of joy.
After a while, Mr. Robin finally steadied himself. "Lawyer, your skills far exceeded our expectations."
Hobert smiled. "Thank you for the compliment. Now, it's time to fulfill your end of the bargain."
Though Mr. Robin was reluctant, he still counted out 160 pounds and handed it to Hobert.
His cousin grumbled, "Don't most lawyers charge 15%?" But he also painfully handed over 160 pounds.
Hobert took the money and said, "I hope you both remember this lesson. This city is more like a dark forest, full of traps laid by hunters.
"Don't always dream of becoming rich overnight. It's the easiest way to fall into a trap."
He then returned 80 pounds to Mr. Robin and his cousin. "This time, I'll only take a 10% commission. If there's a next time, I'll charge the full 20%. Don't complain about the high commission then because it will be your own doing."
Mr. Robin and his cousin were overjoyed, even feeling like they had earned an extra 80 pounds.
Hobert sighed at how the culture in Loen wasn't as "profound" as he had thought. In the modern era, such tactics were common, and few would fall for them anymore. Yet in Loen, they worked surprisingly well.
In any case, Mr. Robin's case was finally closed with a perfect ending.
To prevent any unexpected incidents, Hobert asked the firm's coachman to drive Mr. Robin and his cousin to the bank. Since this wasn't part of the coachman's usual duties, Hobert generously gave him 5 soli as an "outdoor subsidy."
Afterward, Hobert went to his rented room and gathered all his cash.
The commission from Mr. Robin's case was 160 pounds, plus the 96 pounds of extra loot, and the 47 pounds, 13 soli, and 8 pence he already had. Now, his cash totaled 303 pounds, 13 soli, and 8 pence.
With the Secrets Supplicant characteristic and the income from the "mutated eyeball," Hobert estimated he could get around 180 more, bringing his total savings to nearly 500 pounds—a sum larger than most middle-class families had in savings.
It would be a lie to say he wasn't happy to suddenly have so much money. He went to a restaurant and ordered several portions of specialty Desi pie, then bought a fruitcake and some desserts from a bakery.
Returning home, Hobert told his family that he had received a commission that day and wanted to share the feast with them.
Donna remarked, "Ever since Hobert started working, dinners have been much more interesting."
Tayron, gobbling down desserts, added, "And Hobert seems much more cheerful now."
Hobert smiled, "That's because I've found my value, so naturally, I'm different from before."
This served as his explanation for why he had been acting less like "Hobert." When he first arrived in this world, he had to carefully act as "Hobert" every day.
On Sunday, Hobert finally got to sleep in. He didn't leave the house until after 10 AM, planning to sell the Secrets Supplicant characteristic.