“Yes, that person with no wishes had long realized that he was walking with a demon.”
Mr. Asmont nodded, leaning forward to watch Xia De and the Poet each draw the first face-down card of the second round.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, as if recalling more details of the story:
“The person with no wishes and the demon who granted wishes walked together for a long time. Until one day, that person could no longer walk, and the long road called life had reached its end.”
Xia De and the Poet drew their second cards. Xia De looked at the Star 6 in his hand with a troubled expression, while his face-down card was star 10. After much deliberation, he decided to draw another card. Meanwhile, the Poet on the other side smiled and revealed the Flower 9 【Brave Saga: Bard Fletcher】 in his hand, placing it next to the wine glass on the table.
“Your luck seems good too, Mr. Shelley. So, is your face-down card a Flower suit?”
“No.”
So, although he drew a special card, the young Poet did not trigger the special rule.
“The person with no wishes finally collapsed, falling into a patch of ebony bushes. Then the demon emerged from his soul and asked him if he was willing to exchange all his clothes for ten years of life.”
As Mr. Asmont recounted, both Xia De and Mr. Shelley looked at him:
“That’s a good deal, very cost-effective.”
“I think that’s an insult to the person with no wishes, isn’t it?”
“The demon didn’t believe anyone could be without wishes, which is why it proposed such a deal at that moment.”
Mr. Asmont said calmly, while Xia De and the Poet lowered their heads and drew their third cards together.
“‘No, I will not trade with you,’ the person said. The demon was very curious and asked if he truly had no wishes.”
For the third card, Xia De drew Flower 2, making his total 18 points. He immediately stopped, as there was no need to gamble further. The young Poet’s third card was actually sun 13, which, combined with his second card, Flower 【Brave Saga: Bard Fletcher】, already busted him.
But he didn’t seem to care, instead, he was very interested in the ending of Mr. Asmont’s story.
“He actually had his own wish. When life came to an end, just like many years ago, he and the demon sat on the ground, talking face to face. The person who claimed to have no wishes said: ‘My wish is nothing more than to seal you with my life.’”
Although Xia De and the Poet were surprised, they both smiled, while the long-faced man spoke the final ending of the story:
“He had long realized that the demon had not left him, and therefore walked his entire life, just to keep the demon in his soul, and also to find the most distant place to keep the demon away from those he once cared for and loved.”
“Is this praising human courage? That’s great, the person in this story should be called a Brave!”
The Poet couldn't help but exclaim, taking the roll of banknotes Xia De handed him to count. Xia De picked up the cards on the table, smiling as he inserted them into his deck. Even if he couldn't find the Demon Hunter’s sword today, this trip into the mountains was already worth it:
“No, Mr. Shelley, I don't think this story is over yet.”
Xia De looked at the Demon Scholar, whose corners of his mouth turned up, revealing deep lines on his sallow face:
“Mr. Asmont, I don’t think the end of this story is so beautiful.”
“Yes, will there really be a good outcome when walking with a demon?”
Those black eyes stared at Xia De:
“The demon laughed, because it still fulfilled this human’s wish; it fulfilled the wish to be sealed by a human for life. So, it devoured the human’s soul, transformed into his appearance, and walked back to his hometown. That was the direction he came from.”
“Tsk tsk.”
The Poet Mr. Shelley clicked his tongue, put the banknotes into his pocket, and then tidied up his scattered deck on the table:
“I thought this would be a heartwarming story.”
“No, how could a story related to a demon have a heartwarming ending?”
This should be the first sentence Mr. Asmont said to the young Poet. When stared at by those black eyes, the young Poet was clearly a little scared, but then he found his timidity amusing.
“Yes, although Mr. Asmont is a Demon Scholar, he is very wary of anything related to demons.”
Xia De introduced.
“Then what about you? Mr. Watson, what is your attitude towards the legendary demons?”
So the bald, long-faced man asked Xia De again in the dim light of the kerosene lamp. They sat by the wall of the tavern, and because the other side was the back kitchen, this wall had no windows. The lamp oil used in the tavern was probably of poor quality, so the light was dim and unstable. But fortunately, it was bustling and lively here, so it didn't matter if the light was a bit dim.
Xia De smiled:
“Cherish your soul, stay away from demons, that’s it.”
“Yes, cherish your soul.”
Mr. Asmont nodded with his eyes closed.
The young Poet was quite interested in the profession of Demon Scholar, so he pulled Mr. Asmont, wanting to ask more interesting things. Just then, Captain Rades also walked into the tavern, so Xia De gathered his cards, bid farewell to the two who were chatting, and stood up to walk towards the Captain who was standing at the counter, looking around:
“Good afternoon, Captain.”
Seeing Xia De walk from the wall, Captain Rades knew he had arrived:
“Good afternoon, Xia—cough, Mr. Watson. Have you been waiting for me a long time?”
The Captain shook Xia De’s hand, then stretched his neck to look in the direction of the wall:
“Are those two your friends?”
“I arrived after twelve o'clock. I had lunch just now and played a game of rhode cards with a friend I know.”
“Did you win?”
The Captain asked with a smile, lowering his voice:
“The champion of Great City Player can’t lose here.”
Xia De put his hand into his pocket, but did not touch the deck. Instead, he gently hooked his finger, and the Flower 9 【Brave Saga: Bard Fletcher】, which had just been assimilated by the Miracle 【Treasured Possessions】, automatically flew into his hand:
“Of course I won.”
He showed the card to the Captain, deliberately covering the card face to avoid the noisy people in front of the counter. The Captain took it with surprise and examined it under the counter’s light:
“Brave Saga? Oh, I didn’t expect to see this series again.”
“Have you seen it before?”
Now it was Xia De’s turn to be curious.
“Yes, the current commander of Red Water Camp is Carter Brigadier General, and he has a 【Brave Saga: Swordsman Sebaron】.”
The military strength of Red Water Camp is probably about a regiment, but it is also responsible for the dispatch and arrangements of other camps in Sicar Mountain, which is why an officer with the rank of Brigadier General serves as the camp commander.
PS: Chapter 386 has been renamed from “Demon Scholar” to “Demon Scholar and Demon Story.”
