Ch 281: Never Tempt Fate; Jinxing Yourself Is Dangerous

In the Kingdom, General Deritry suffered a defeat, but he hasn’t returned yet. Cres Orphanage, however, is facing trouble, or rather, is about to face trouble.

Let’s rewind to this afternoon.

“Today is a good day for shirking responsibilities!”

After finishing prayers, Cohen secretly slipped out of the Orphanage. As usual, he went to the alley opposite the Orphanage to find Wu Xian.

“Uncle Wu Xian, I’m here to play with you.”

Cohen shouted into the empty alley. After a while, Wu Xian jumped down from a nearby rooftop.

“Cohen, why are you out again?”

Wu Xian took a candy from his jacket pocket and gave it to Cohen. He gently stroked Cohen’s head with his large, thick hand.

“It’s just too stuffy in the Orphanage. There’s cleaning, prayers, and we have to make handicrafts. I got bored and snuck out. Uncle Wu Xian, how’s it going on your side?”

“I’m fine. Lately, there have been fewer people trying to harass the Orphanage, and those who did were driven away by me.”

“I wonder what Uncle Barn is doing. He said he’s looking for someone.”

“He’ll definitely be able to find those children and bring them back.”

“Huh? You seem to trust him a lot. Did you know him before?”

“We weren’t exactly acquainted, just a few encounters.”

“Oh? This is the first time I’ve heard of this. Can you tell me about the first time you met Uncle Barn?”

Wu Xian looked up and thought for a moment, then slowly spoke.

“He used to study at the Magic Academy in the Royal Capital. Back then, he was much more honest than now, although compared to other students, he wasn’t exactly honest.”

“Uncle Barn had that side to him? I didn’t expect that.”

“That time, one of his classmates was bullied, and my shopkeeper had a connection with his classmate so he planned to help his classmate. When he arrived, he saw Barn knocking down several people. My boss thought Barn was bullying his classmate and immediately ordered me to deal with Barn.”

“Hey! So who won in the end?”

“No one won.”

“Ah?”

“Barn and I just exchanged a couple of moves when his classmate immediately reacted and told my boss that it wasn’t Barn who did it, so my boss quickly stopped Barn and me. That’s how Barn got to know me and my boss.”

“Tsk, I thought you had a big fight and then respected each other because you thought the other was strong.”

“Kid, sometimes, martial prowess isn’t the only solution.”

Wu Xian ruffled Cohen’s hair.

“Sometimes, you don’t have to fight to the death. You’ll understand later. Only when wisdom and strength work together can you survive in this world.”

Cohen listened to what Wu Xian said, and he thought it was all rather vague.

“Forget it, anyway, I don’t have to worry about these things for now. Can you teach me martial arts when I grow up?”

“Hahahaha, my martial skill isn’t something everyone can learn. But if you still want to when you grow up, you can come find me, and I’ll teach you some practical skills.”

“Miser, I’m going back. If I’m late, Madam Winidel will punish me with confinement.”

“Yeah, go on.”

Watching Cohen leave the alley, Wu Xian jumped back onto the rooftop. But the moment he landed, Cohen was taken away.

————

After resting at home for a night, Bal and Phia returned to God’s Country.

“You, why are you so attentive when buying things for Philia, but you forget completely when buying things for other children?”

Disguised Phia and Bal walked down Commercial Street in God’s Kingdom Capital. Phia scolded Bal, and Bal could only respond with a wry smile.

“After all, Philia is my good daughter. As her father, I have to do my best to fulfill my daughter’s requests.”

“Forget it, the God Statue Necklace, right? Buy it quickly and let’s go home.”

While Phia closed her eyes and sighed, Bal kissed Phia’s forehead, and Phia opened her eyes to unleash a flurry of punches.

“Being a hooligan on the street, you’re terrible!”

“Hehe, my wife is lovely.”

After appeasing Phia with God’s Country food, Bal and Phia bought a God Statue Necklace. Bal specifically instructed the shopkeeper to wrap it well.

After buying the necklace, Bal and Phia found an uninhabited corner and teleported to Sphia City, the Royal Capital of the Kingdom.

“Finally back. It felt like a month had passed.”

“Don’t sigh. Hurry and find Madam Winidel. It’s settled, if she’s not polite this time, I’m going to scold her.”

“Then please bear with it.”

Bal took Phia’s hand and went to the alley where Wu Xian was keeping watch.

“Wu Xian, are you there?”

There was no reply, only the wind.

“Strange, where did he go?”

“Did he go to buy breakfast?”

“Possible, let’s go straight to Nirvana’s Tavern.”

Bal and Phia went to the Orphanage. As soon as they entered, they felt that the atmosphere was somewhat off. Bal stopped a child at random and asked.

“What happened?”

“Cohen is missing! He didn’t return to his room last night. His roommate found his bed empty in the morning and immediately told Madam Winidel. Now we’re all looking for Cohen.”

“I see.”

Bal stood up. He felt that things had gotten serious.

“Let’s go find him.”

“Not go find Madam Winidel?”

“It’s no use looking for her now. Cohen hasn’t come back, she definitely won’t give us a good face.”

“Alright.”

Bal knelt down and continued to ask the child.

“Do you know where Cohen’s roommate is?”

“I’ll go get him for you.”

“Thank you.”

The child ran off quickly. A few minutes later, he ran back with a frail boy.

“Uncle Barn, this is him.”

“Thank you. Here’s some candy for you.”

“So much! Really?”

“You can share it with your friends.”

“Then I’ll go now, goodbye Uncle Barn!”

Bal watched the unknown child leave with a smile, then looked at the frail boy in front of him.

“You’re Cohen’s roommate?”

“Yeah, my name is Cody.”

“Cody, do you know where Cohen might have gone? Don’t worry, I won’t tell Madam Winidel.”

After much thought, Cody decided to tell Bal.

“Yesterday afternoon, after prayers, Cohen ran out, saying he was going to play with a very powerful uncle, and then he didn’t come back.”

“Okay, I understand. You can go now.”

Bal stood up, but Cody grabbed his clothes as he turned around.

“Please bring Cohen back. Madam Winidel didn’t say anything, but we all know she’s very worried.”

“Don’t worry, I will.”

Bal left the Orphanage and returned to the alley.

“Use magic to detect if you can find Wu Xian.”

“I’ll try.”

Phia closed her eyes and began to release her magic. A bird’s-eye view of the Royal City appeared in her mind. After a while, Phia opened her eyes.

“Found him?”

“Yeah, come with me.”

Bal followed Phia and ran, feeling a sense of unease. When they stopped, they saw Cohen lying on the ground, covered in blood, Wu Xian going berserk with his eyes rolling back, and several people beaten to a pulp by Wu Xian.