Deep Sea Embers

Deng confirmed his composure, and walked towards the two security officers at the door.

He was honest in his heart—he didn’t do any damage anyway, and he didn’t have any conflicts with the authorities. Although Captain Duncan was well-known, what did the moving natural disasters on the Infinite Sea have to do with him being an honest and responsible antique store manager? related?

Think carefully about his most suspicious behavior, which is to attend a gathering of cultists-then he enthusiastically reported it after he came out!

Wait...report?

Duncan suddenly remembered this incident, and immediately vaguely guessed the reason why the two sheriffs came to the door, and immediately stepped forward with more confidence, but Nina obviously did not have this composure. Hastily came up to him, and at the same time said in a low voice and hurriedly from an angle that the two justices could not see: "Uncle, when the two justices ask questions later, you must be honest..."

Duncan staggered suddenly, looking at his "niece" with strange eyes: "Is this the image I have in your heart?"

Nina looked aggrieved at her "uncle" who had a bad reputation and was approached every now and then because of alcoholism or casino fights: "...otherwise, why would Mr. Sheriff come to you?"

Duncan: "..."

He sighed helplessly, came to the door of the store, and smiled brightly at the two sheriffs in dark blue uniforms: "Good morning, gentlemen, what can I do?"

"Mr. Duncan Strain," said the older of the two sheriffs, politely and in a businesslike tone, "we found this place according to the registered address - you reported it to the patrol officers yesterday. The clues have been confirmed, and on behalf of the city hall, we thank you for your contribution to maintaining the order of the city-state, and we will send you a reward."

After finishing the words, the young sheriff next to him took a step forward and handed over a rather thick paper bag.

Nina who was standing aside had her eyes widened.

Duncan had already guessed the purpose of the two sheriffs just now, and guessed that there should be a follow-up to his previous reporting of the cultist's den, but he didn't expect that they would directly send the reward money to the door. He took the paper with some surprise package, where the disposable wax seal reads "435 Sola" on the seal—a very lucrative bonus for the residents of the lower town.

"So there is still money to take..." Duncan squeezed the paper bag, feeling the thickness of the banknotes, "I didn't think so much at the time."

"Of course there is a bounty - the consul attaches great importance to cracking down on the crimes in the city-state, especially in the recent period, all effective reports will be rewarded practically and generously," the young magistrate laughed. "What's more, the clues you provided... are very unusual."

Hearing this, Duncan couldn't help being moved, and pretended to ask casually: "By the way, I didn't dare to go over there to take a closer look when I heard something was wrong... What happened there?"

The two sheriffs looked at each other, and then took two steps forward to enter the store. Nina was stunned when she saw this, and after realizing it, she quickly stepped forward to close the store door.

"We didn't go to the scene. The guards are handling this matter, but according to the news... the situation at the scene is very tragic," said the younger sheriff, who has not yet fully learned the business of the seniors. In an official tone, "You are right that you did not approach rashly but went to the patrol officer and reported it immediately, otherwise you will definitely be in danger."

After the young man's voice fell, another security officer followed suit: "Ordinary citizens don't need to know the specific situation. We just want to remind you that there are more and more cult activities in the city recently. Don't mention to outsiders about you reporting and receiving rewards."

Duncan was taken aback for a moment, but quickly realized.

This is the lower city, where the sewage and poisonous barriers fall and converge. The most shady things in Plant are hidden in these dilapidated and winding alleys, and when heresy is about to move, they will inevitably hide in this kind of place.

Although the block where the antique shop is located is considered a relatively decent place in the lower city, and it is still some distance away from the most dilapidated slums, but from the perspective of filth, the whole lower city is actually similar.

On the other hand, even if you don’t consider that there may be cultists lurking among ordinary people in the lower city, a “person who reports to the authorities and collects a reward” here is very likely to be the object of vigilance by others.

The sheriffs who are familiar with the local situation certainly know this. They are a routine reminder, but they are indeed out of good intentions.

Duncan thought about it and felt that the reminder was right.

This place is indeed prone to cultists-he still has the sun emblem in his pocket.

"Thank you for reminding me," he thanked sincerely. Although he didn't know the average level of most of the sheriffs here, at least the two in front of him gave him a good impression. "Do you want to rest here?"

"No need," the older sheriff waved his hand, turned and walked towards the store door, "We still have patrolling duties."

The young magistrate turned his head back before leaving: "If you still encounter clues about this in the future, please report it in time - the safety of the city-state affects each of us."

"Of course," Duncan squeezed the paper bag in his hand, with a heartfelt smile on his face, "I have always been a good citizen who cares about the order of the city-state."

The two sheriffs left the antique shop of "the enthusiastic and good citizen Mr. Duncan", and it wasn't until the two figures in uniform disappeared on the street that Nina finally recovered and looked at her uncle—Uncle Duncan was opening the shop. The paper bag, counting the blue and green banknotes inside, the pleasant voice from the flipping of the banknotes made her feel a little bit real: "Uncle... this is really a reward from the city hall? You actually...really ..."

The girl opened her mouth for a long time, but in the end she still didn't have the nerve to ask the question "You can really do good things".

But Duncan knew what Nina was thinking and what she was wondering about. He laughed: "It was just that I reported some illegal activities when I got home yesterday——Uncle, I have always been enthusiastic about public welfare."

Nina: "..."

"However, I was surprised to have such a high bonus," Duncan didn't wait for Nina to speak, then lowered his head and looked at the banknote in his hand thoughtfully, and muttered, "This is faster than doing business... "

There is one more thing he didn't say: According to the information he had before, there are still many cultists from various city-states hiding in the city.

That's all money!

Nina didn't react immediately: "Uncle, what did you say?"

"It's nothing," Duncan waved his hand, and said casually while thinking about this new way of making money in his heart, "shouldn't you go to school? Start early and don't be late—by the way, when will Mr. Morris come to visit?"

"Afternoon, I only have one class in the afternoon," Nina said, as if thinking of something, "Uncle, are you going out today?"

Duncan nodded: "Well, I will go out for a while, but I will go home before your history teacher arrives."

When Nina heard this, she immediately cast suspicious eyes: "Uncle, what are you going to do?"

Duncan smiled brightly: "Uncle is going hunting."

He already had an idea, since the sun badge is so useful, and the authorities are so happy to distribute money, this method is not in vain - anyway, even if there is no factor of "reporting money", just to ensure the stability of his surrounding environment, he would High and low are trying to find trouble with the cultists, now that they are sure that they can do it again after they have troubled them, why not?

But Nina is a smart girl. Even if she didn't know other details about Duncan, she could guess what "hunting" in her uncle's words meant, and the girl's delicate eyebrows immediately frowned: "...Uncle, are you doing this wrong?" Yes, you said yesterday that you want to open a store in a down-to-earth manner, that you want to rectify the situation in the store, and that you need to recruit shop assistants..."

"Caring about the law and order of the city-state is not contradictory to opening a store in a down-to-earth manner," Duncan waved his hand, "You go to school, uncle has his own measure."

However, what he didn't expect was that Nina found a chair beside her and sat down after hearing this.

"Nina?"

"Uncle, it's dangerous." Nina raised her head and looked directly at Duncan.

Duncan: "Ah...Actually..."

"I want to watch you," Nina sat there stubbornly, "The two gentlemen of the peace just said that the city-state is not safe recently... It's fine if you accidentally encounter something, how can you take the initiative to find those people?" Where is the danger?"

Duncan looked at the seventeen-year-old girl in a daze.

He suddenly realized that the other party really cared about him—in a persistent way that she thought was right and safe, caring about Uncle Duncan, who in her eyes was "seriously ill for many years, weak in body, reckless in his actions, and eager to make money recently." ".

"I don't want a bicycle." Nina lowered her head and muttered softly.

"Go to school." Duncan exhaled suddenly, stepped forward with a smile and pressed Nina's head.

Nina looked up in surprise.

"You're right, it's dangerous," Duncan looked at Nina seriously, "I'm not going anywhere, I'll wait for you in the shop."