Leveling Up by Executing Monsters

Chapter 90: Chapter 90: Have You Been Working Hard?

In short, Lloyd’s ambitions were great, but he still had a long way to go and many problems to solve before putting them into practice.

Fortunately, he had a good mindset—unhurried and methodical, taking things one step at a time.

With that, Lloyd cleaned up his experiment table and prepared to head home.

As soon as he returned to the main hall, the manager from before sidled up to him again.

"How was your experience, sir?"

Lloyd nodded, indicating it was quite good.

"If you have a moment," the manager continued, "you might want to take a look at our second floor. That’s our trading hall, where you’ll find many unexpected channels and business opportunities."

Lloyd checked the time. It was still early, so he followed the manager to the second floor for a look.

The place was set up like an early stock exchange, with rows of seats and numerous bulletin boards covered in all sorts of information.

Quite a few people were huddled together, whispering amongst themselves. The hubbub of voices made it much livelier than the first floor.

Among them, he could even spot a few black-robed Priests from the Holy Judgment Court and some scholars from the Saint’s Favor Court.

’This is my first time encountering the civilian side of the mystical and Extraordinary Realm. I didn’t expect the market to be this big.’

"The Sect is certainly great, but it can’t do without the help and nourishment of the civilian market. And our establishment is the largest civilian market in the entire South City District, as well as the one with the deepest roots in all of Radiant City."

The manager explained to Lloyd with considerable pride, then began to seamlessly weave in his sales pitch:

"We command numerous channels and sources of information, holding endless business opportunities and power. If you join us, you’ll receive daily curated intelligence—the fastest, most accurate, and most sensitive information available—to help you seize every future opportunity..."

’This guy... His Attributes might not be as good as my sister’s, but he’s a real talker.’

Lloyd thought to himself, then replied aloud:

"Maybe next time. I’d like to look around by myself for a bit."

"Of course. Please let me know if you need anything at all."

After the manager left, Lloyd wandered around for a while, scanning the information on the bulletin boards.

Requests to buy, sell, trade, rent, and hire—all sorts of miscellaneous notices. There were even marriage and matchmaking posts. It was enough to make Lloyd’s head spin.

Most legal materials could be found there. Lloyd focused on the three items Andrew had provided him, comparing the prices.

There were many chaotic bids and asks, and the quality was inconsistent, so Lloyd could only make a rough estimate.

Andrew had definitely made a profit off him, but he hadn’t ripped him off; the deal was made in good faith. Considering the speed and quality of his supply, he deserved to make that money. Lloyd found it acceptable and planned to do more business with him in the future.

For now, Lloyd had no interest in the rest of the trading hall. He left the club, found a toy store on the street, and had the modified music box gift-wrapped, tied with a purple ribbon.

This was the little surprise he’d promised Weiya.

He also picked up a few exquisite little desk ornaments for his sister, planning to give them to her as a congratulatory gift when her magazine was published.

* * *

The next morning, Lloyd emerged from the ’subway’ tunnel right on time and, unsurprisingly, spotted Weiya.

She was as beautiful as ever, standing tall and straight. The morning sun glinted off her black stockings, giving them an alluring, Chocolate-like sheen.

But today, Weiya seemed to have something on her mind. Her head was bowed as she stared at a box in her hands, but her gaze was distant and unfocused. Lost in her own world, she didn’t even notice Lloyd approaching.

’Come to think of it, the last few times I ran into Weiya, she hadn’t arrived this early. I could still hear her coughing and panting lightly after getting off the ’subway’. I’m not sure when it started, but she’s been showing up very early every day, and I haven’t heard her cough since...’

Lloyd let his own thoughts wander for a moment before walking over and greeting her:

"Good morning~ Weiya."

"Ah?!"

Weiya let out an uncharacteristically cute yelp, jumping in surprise. She quickly hid her hands behind her back, not wanting Lloyd to see what she was holding, and said with a hint of panic:

"G-Good morning~ Lloyd. About that thing you asked me yesterday..."

She kept her head down, her beautiful eyes darting from side to side. Even though she was talking to Lloyd, she didn’t dare meet his gaze.

But Lloyd didn’t let her finish. He raised a finger to his lips in a ’shushing’ gesture, then suddenly produced a wrapped gift box from behind his back and held it out to Weiya.

"Hehe~ This is the little surprise I told you about yesterday."

"Eh? This is..."

Weiya looked at the gift in front of her. She didn’t look happy, she didn’t smile, and she didn’t take it. Instead, her expression was one of hesitation and difficulty.

Lloyd’s heart sank...

’Am I being rejected?’

"Ahaha, sorry... I didn’t mean anything by it, really. It’s just... uh... just a..."

Lloyd explained awkwardly, vigorously scratching his itchy, hot scalp with his free hand. He wished a hole would open up in the ground and swallow him whole.

But Weiya’s reaction was even stronger than Lloyd’s. She quickly snatched the gift box from his hand, then brought her other hand out from behind her back and placed something in his—the very thing she hadn’t wanted him to see just moments before.

It was another wrapped gift box, tied with a large bow made of pink ribbon.

"Thank you... Thank you for the gift. I love it."

Weiya said again in a soft voice, a blush rapidly spreading across her face, making her pretty features look even more exquisitely lovely.

’But she hasn’t even opened it to see what’s inside...’

Lloyd was stunned for a long moment before he came to his senses and replied:

"Ah... Thank you for your gift, too..."

Then he gave an awkward, foolish grin, not knowing what to say next.

Although he prided himself on his vast romantic experience and his many wives, they were all stored on his phone, and he hadn’t been able to bring them with him.

In the end, Weiya recovered more quickly. The cute blush on her face gradually faded, and she switched back to a professional tone to explain:

"That remote communication device you asked about yesterday... I happen to have a set at home that I don’t really use, so I’m giving... lending one to you...

With this, you can establish a long-range link with me. It’ll be convenient for contacting me about urgent matters, and we can also discuss Swordsmanship in our free time without worrying about being overheard or disturbed."

Although she explained it very seriously, she didn’t clarify why she had wrapped such a device like a gift.

Lloyd quickly followed her lead:

"Right... The box I gave you contains the result of my recent research. It’s a material that can replace the sounding bell, suitable for constructing the ’Intense Concentration’ formation. Try it out when you have time, and be sure to give me feedback if you have any problems."

"Okay, thank you for your kindness, Lloyd."

"Thank you for your kindness, too, Weiya."

They seemed to have returned to their usual dynamic, starting to chat about work matters. Neither of them overthought it or asked any more questions.

Only the little kitten peeking out of Lloyd’s pocket kept shaking its round head, looking somewhat exasperated.

After entering Tower Nine, Lloyd first handed the kitten to Weiya as usual, then ran over to the bulletin board to grab keys.

Today, there was one less key for floor -3 than yesterday, with only four hanging there. However, a rare key for floor -4 had appeared. The keys for floor -2 hadn’t all been taken either; two were left.

"Ha~ This is the first time I’ve seen one for floor -4."

Lloyd laughed and, without a second thought, took the keys for floors -3 and -4. Then he looked at the other regular Executors standing nearby who hadn’t taken their keys yet.

"Do you guys want the ones for floor -2?"

"Uh... Please, you go ahead, Lloyd."

Lloyd didn’t stand on ceremony. He took the keys and turned to leave under the admiring gazes of the others, leaving a wave of discussion in his wake:

"That’s ’Lloyd Who Loathes Evil’ for you. I wish I could be as powerful and cool as him."

"I wonder if Lloyd has a girlfriend? I have a young, pretty sister at home..."

"Dream on. Could she be prettier than Judge Weiya? You might as well introduce her to me instead."

Lloyd couldn’t help but laugh when he overheard. ’How did I even get a nickname in the community already?’

’"Lloyd Who Loathes Evil" might not sound very cool, but it’s better than a title like "Lloyd the Lawbreaker," right?’

Mulling this over, he went to floor -2, fought his way down to floor -3, and saved the best for last.

He walked into the cell and saw an indescribable Out of Control lying inside. It was already on its last breath, and the Spiritual Contamination it emitted was very faint.

[Ding~ Madness Value +1]

[Ding~ Madness Value +1]

"You’re a bit too pathetic, aren’t you? Haven’t you been trying at all these years?"

Lloyd quipped, but inwardly he felt something was strange.

According to the books, even the weakest Out of Control had a danger level of 3. They usually had incredibly resilient Life Force and acted with extreme madness, as if they wanted to bring about the Destruction of the entire world.

But the one before him showed no such tendencies. It felt like it wouldn’t last much longer even if he did nothing.

Still, Lloyd wasn’t about to get lazy. After all, the Spiritual Contamination would trace back to whoever dealt the final blow, like a life-activated death Curse.

Lloyd had no intention of letting someone else reap the benefits. He moved closer, activated his inspiration to lock onto the weak node inside its body, and struck.

[Ding~ Madness Value +400]

And with that, the creature made its meager contribution to humanity’s war on Demons.

’So weak? But it really was danger level 4...’

While Lloyd was still puzzling over this, he heard a series of follow-up notifications:

[Several Memory Fragments acquired. Assessing Cognition level...]

[Ding~ Assessment successful. Memory Fragments can be interpreted.]

[Memory Fragments acquired. Available for viewing.]

[Ding~ Erroneous Knowledge Fragment acquired. Converted to Madness Value +300]

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