Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1496: Chapter 223: Uninvited Guest

The text finally translated after toiling for most of the night turned out to be just a name… [Prin Hades]. Although this name carries the name of Hades from the Greek Pantheon, when Zhong Luoyue read it aloud, the bracelet showed no reaction.

“Elizabeth, could you teach me the correct pronunciation of these words?” Zhong Luoyue suddenly asked.

Perhaps approaching it from a different angle—translating the content isn’t enough; knowing its correct pronunciation is crucial—this is the power of Word Spirit highly regarded by some ancient wizards within the Association. They believe all ancient writings harbor immense power.

However, the young bloodsucker claimed she could only deduce the meaning of the characters from their appearance in the books—they did not come with phonetic annotations.

“Is there really no other way?” Zhong Luoyue looked at the bracelet that could not be removed… If it remained stuck, it wasn’t particularly troublesome—just a bit hard to match clothing with, usually.

But matching clothes is a minor issue; the key is this thing might attract attacks from the Soth Divine Tribe… The third lady did not wish to place herself in such danger.

“Perhaps I can ask the teacher tomorrow,” Elizabeth pondered. “This book on the study of Titan Deity Clan’s script was compiled by the teacher himself. He might know the pronunciation of Titan Deity Clan’s script… and perhaps, regarding the bracelet, we could discuss it with the teacher directly.”

This might as well—be the best option.

“Why don’t you first learn the pronunciation of the Titan Divine Script?” Zhong Luoyue shook her head. “The Luminous Tower Master has countless affairs to manage. I don’t wish to bother him with something trivial… If we truly can’t solve it, then we’ll go to him, alright? Of course, there are many capable Masters in the Association; I can ask them tomorrow how to open this bracelet.”

The most important point is—it’s almost dawn, and Zhong Luoyue is incredibly exhausted.

Unlike Elizabeth, who is just a newborn bloodsucker—her first metamorphosis within the Thirteen Clans was eventually thwarted by the chaos caused by the Golden Dragon Fafnir.

Zhong Luoyue naturally underwent a metamorphosis on her first day at the Association—the result, as expected, wasn’t ideal without the proper foundation… hence her potential was deemed mediocre.

In short, at present, she is still a weak bloodsucker, unable to resist the sleepiness brought by daylight.

“Mmm… Alright, I’m a bit sleepy too, after having read so many books today.” Elizabeth then bid farewell to Zhong Luoyue, returning to her own coffin.

Zhong Luoyue surreptitiously glanced at Elizabeth’s coffin; its construction was actually similar to her own, prepared by the people inside the Association.

But different from the simplicity of her coffin, Elizabeth’s coffin clearly exuded a more girlish aura—the most striking feature being a large pillow within, sewn sloppily with a human face… No need to say who that face belonged to.

“Brother Luo Qiu, good night~”

The slight sound of Elizabeth’s voice faintly emanated from the closed coffin lid… Zhong Luoyue shook her head and fell into her own coffin.

The Unhuman Domain soon welcomed a new day; some people were already waking up to work, while others were just falling asleep.

The third lady dreamt of becoming a giant beast, a monster with an immensely massive body, similar to the colossal beings recorded in ancient texts about the Titan Deity Clan.

It tore the sky apart, crushed the land underfoot, and even broke through the mainland… Beyond the world it shattered lay a void, and from that rift, a swarm of monsters surged in.

These monsters frantically tore at all life on the land, even launching themselves at the beast… Transformed into a beast, she fiercely battled these creatures.

The battle raged on endlessly—finally, it seemed that all life on the land was extinct, blood covering the earth, and the sky began to rain gray snow.

Then, the sky cracked open… and the mainland followed.

All around, it seemed that only death remained, all was quiet…

…

…

“Why haven’t I seen your little tail today?”

This morning, there were no classes taught by Teacher Prin… Two rather dull theoretical courses were taken instead.

The Theology Institute’s lessons were already dull, and with added monotony, the outcome was that, after two classes, more than half of the classmates were already asleep.

The teacher didn’t seem to mind, leaving the classroom immediately after the bell rang—a moment later, Claudia quickly approached Luo Qiu, sitting beside him.

“Little tail?” Boss Luo blinked.

“That girl.” Claudia shrugged, “She’s always trailing behind you, isn’t she just like a tail?”

Boss Luo smiled; he couldn’t tell her the maid was busy with… something in another world, “She had something to do, so she’s taking a few days off.”

“Taking leave just on her second day… Who exactly are you celestial beings?” Claudia chuckled wryly. Since coming out of the Butterfly Society yesterday, she had become curious and checked it out, discovering the club was only approved the day before yesterday—and was officially launched yesterday.

That was fine, but to have it so exquisitely arranged in such a short time was really making Claudia wonder if these two newcomers had families rich from oil sales.

“Did you have something in mind?” Boss Luo was unperturbed by Claudia’s speculations, packing up his textbooks and asking.

Claudia frowned, then lowered her voice anxiously, “About yesterday?”

“Hmm… Miss Claudia, it’s already lunchtime,” Boss Luo smiled, “Why don’t we continue this discussion in my department… I think we need a quieter environment.”

Upon hearing this, Claudia nodded first, then, cautiously using her textbook to cover her chest, said, “Only business, I’m not interested in anything else! And you’re not my type!”

Emmmm… Isn’t a quiet place better for discussing things?

Boss Luo thought for a moment; he hadn’t said anything particularly out of line, right?

“Rest assured,” Luo Qiu shook his head, “I have no romantic thoughts towards Miss Claudia, only a pure interest in what lies behind this matter.”

“That’s for the best,” Claudia nodded, “During university, I just want to study hard and not waste time in trivial hormonal thrills!”

“Then, shall we head to the Butterfly Society,” Boss Luo chuckled like a guide leading her forward.

Claudia watched Luo Qiu walk away, hurriedly adjusting her glasses, taking a deep breath, holding the textbook tightly against her chest, and lowering her head, quickly followed along—truth be told, she had never been alone with a peer male before.

“Wait for me…” Claudia called out hastily.

At this moment, something seemed to flash past the corridor outside the window, causing Claudia to instinctively look over… Was it a black cat?

Perhaps it was just an illusion?

…

Butterfly Society.

On the upper floor of the old school building, after opening the window, one could see a grove of artificially cultivated trees in front… The old school building could basically be said to be surrounded by tree shade, making it quite quiet and cool.

Claudia sat on the sofa even more nervously than yesterday, while Luo Qiu was personally brewing tea to entertain her.

“I seldom do this, so it might not taste very good.” Luo Qiu smiled and said, “Please don’t mind.”

Claudia had always considered herself the iron-willed virgin everyone talked about; she not only had no interest in matters of romance but also refused all fan-based activities.

Compared to popular supermodel-level male stars, she obviously found the professors from the mathematics department more handsome and charming… Yet, at this moment, she had to admit that the smile of this new classmate from the East was quite attractive.

She quietly erased her initial perceptions like “the son of a nouveau riche,” “a playboy,” “possibly has been with more women than she’s read books,” leaving only an impression of “someone with a charming smile.”

“W-we should get back to business!” Claudia adjusted her glasses and gazed out the window, saying, “No need to waste time on tea-drinking; actually, water is better! Water is the origin of life.”

Boss Luo gave a small smile; he had always been accustomed to drinking water, but later his habit turned to tea—someone once said, forming a habit takes only three days.

He imagined he had let the maid develop the habit for far more days than that.

“Ms. Claudia,” Luo Qiu thought for a moment, “have you ever considered going in person to the place where your father, Professor Xie Jiatu, conducted his last research visit?”

Claudia furrowed her brows, “You mean my father’s disappearance is indeed related to his research project?”

Luo Qiu shook his head, “I wouldn’t suggest jumping to conclusions just yet, Ms. Claudia… What I mean is, perhaps there might be some clues found locally.”

Claudia thought for a moment, “Actually, I have considered that… But the key is, I don’t know the exact location where my father and his team conducted their survey—I’ve examined all his office documents, but still found no clues.”

Luo Qiu said, “Regarding the survey location, I’ve found it.”

“What?” Claudia was so startled that she pounded the table and stood up abruptly, “You found it? How did you find it?”

Luo Qiu replied, “Actually, by normal means, just investigating your father’s immigration records should easily reveal it, right.”

“You’re right,” Claudia frowned even more deeply, “That’s the usual method, but the police checked that long ago—and they couldn’t find any information on my father, which is why I suspect he might have used a fake passport at the time… So, how did you do what the police couldn’t?”

Luo Qiu unexpectedly asked, “Ms. Claudia, do you think we are mysterious?”

Without thinking, Claudia nodded, speaking directly, “You give me the impression of being anything but ordinary; indeed very mysterious—even managing overnight what the police couldn’t achieve in half a year! So… what exactly is your background?”

“Mysterious, indeed,” Luo Qiu chuckled, “Your father, Professor Xie Jiatu, also mysteriously disappeared… And now you’ve found us, who appear mysterious, to investigate this matter, making everything seem so enigmatic… Ms. Claudia, don’t you think this is quite a thrilling experience?”

“And then when I’m close to taking my last breath, I can turn this into a fantastical tale to amuse my newly curious grandchildren about mysterious events, right?” Claudia rolled her eyes, “As for your mystery, I can’t conclude for now, but one thing I can determine… you might be crazy!”

“Feeling more at ease now?” Luo Qiu placed a sugar cube into Claudia’s cup.

At this point, the previously stiff Claudia was now rolling her eyes and displaying a spirited and natural demeanor.

Claudia opened her mouth, then shook her head, sitting back down, “Can you at least tell me how you got the information?”

“Trade secret… can’t disclose for now.” Luo Qiu shook his head.

Claudia rolled her eyes again, “Can you at least tell me where my father’s survey took place?”

Luo Qiu whispered, “Egypt.”

Claudia opened her mouth, then gritted her teeth and stood up abruptly, “Wait here! I need to step out for a moment!”

“Is something wrong?” Boss Luo asked in confusion.

Claudia answered straightforwardly, “I’m going to ask for leave! Since it’s in Egypt, so far away, can we even come back within a day?”

Saying this, she didn’t wait for Luo Qiu’s response and hurriedly dashed out the door of the Butterfly Society… Clearly possessing high action capability.

Luo Qiu chuckled, holding a teacup as he moved to the window, looking at the small grove outside the old school building… In a place a bit farther off, there was a cliff, and even further beyond, the sea.

Luo Qiu didn’t plan to put aside or ignore Claudia’s matter due to Nero’s sudden disappearance—after all, Nero’s disappearance might reveal information about his future self.

And Claudia’s case eventually connected to the matter concerning Golden Eyes—a person who initially translated the text information left by the previous Club Owner for him.

“The previous one… the past,” Luo Qiu murmured to himself, “my future self… the future, my current self… the present… Trinity? Hmm…”

Just at this moment, the distant sea suddenly darkened a bit… Boss Luo glanced once and suddenly closed the window.

…

The sea surface dimmed briefly, but soon returned to normal—and now, on or above the seawater, a figure appeared.

It was a man in a black cloak, holding a gray crystal: Mai Rada.

Feeling the information coming from the gray crystal, Mai Rada moved his gaze, finally locking onto the small seaside town ahead.

“Is it here… Hades!”

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PS: (1/54)