Chapter 120 : Business Partnership! Recruitment!
Chapter 120: Business Partnership! Recruitment!
All of this was thanks to his powerful senses, as well as the efforts of Fulei and the Dragon-Elephant.
At this moment, Leo sensed the Dragonblood Horse on the other side and instantly entered a state of Sensory Sharing.
His perspective was immediately pulled into the underground palace.
At that moment, the Dragonblood Horse was inside the underground palace, gulping down the strange stew made from tree roots and weeds, living a very leisurely vacation-like life.
One second later, Leo quickly withdrew from the Shared State, forcefully swallowing the sourness that had already surged up to his throat.
“Absolutely cannot activate Shared State during its mealtime.”
Recalling the taste he had just experienced, Leo learned his lesson—it was too disgusting.
After handing in the mission at the hall, Leo left directly.
Just as he was thinking, he heard three familiar voices from behind.
“Leo!”
Hearing the familiar voice, Leo turned around and saw Arthur, Rog, and Fidis.
Leo knew that just the day before yesterday, Arthur had also broken through into the Quasi-Knight Realm and had been officially conferred as a Quasi-Knight.
Clearly, this eldest son of the count had some real capability.
As Leo’s business partner, after mastering the Breathing Technique, Arthur was in high spirits.
Having just run into Rog and Fidis returning from a hunting mission, he proposed treating them to a meal.
“Leo, what a coincidence. I’ve been looking for you these past few days.” Arthur beamed with joy.
After becoming a Quasi-Knight, he had indeed been searching for Leo, wanting to treat him to a meal and share the news.
But unfortunately, Leo had just gone out hunting and had been elusive.
“Congratulations, Arthur.”
“Ah~ it’s just Quasi-Knight.” Arthur spoke modestly, though his grin nearly reached his ears. He quickly urged, “Come on, come on, let’s eat together.”
Eating again.
Arthur seemed particularly fond of hosting meals.
“No, I still have things to take care of.” Leo truly did not have much time.
“Come on, come on.” Arthur directly slung an arm over Leo’s shoulder.
It seemed that after being conferred as a Quasi-Knight, the sense of awe he previously felt toward Leo had disappeared.
After working hard for so long, he had finally reached the same level.
Perhaps Leo’s Breathing Technique progress was slightly faster, but they were now in the same realm.
“Yeah, Leo, I’ve also wanted to get together with you properly.” Rog chimed in.
“I heard you went hunting alone this time. It seems you didn’t get much. Going into the wilderness is tough at first—why not join us next time?” Fidis also suggested.
He felt that Leo was actually a decent person, just a bit solitary.
Faced with their enthusiastic invitations, Leo glanced at Arthur. Since he had been planning to eat anyway, he said, “Then… is there Merfolk Meat?”
Arthur froze for a moment. “Yes, of course. As the young master of the Xilin Family being conferred as a Quasi-Knight, it’s a big occasion. My father rewarded me quite generously.”
Arthur was in high spirits today and prepared to spend lavishly.
The four chatted casually as they headed to the best Church Restaurant in Blackstone City.
Arthur had already instructed servants to prepare a feast. The four of them took their seats.
“Hey, Leo, haven’t seen you much lately—you look like you’ve lost weight. Make sure you eat more later.” Arthur spoke familiarly.
Leo did appear slimmer, but not weaker—his body had become more proportionate.
After Agility caught up with Strength, his physique had clearly become more balanced.
Leo responded casually while observing the dishes before him.
There was indeed Merfolk Meat, along with two other unfamiliar types of Beastkin meat.
Arthur had clearly spared no expense.
Leo waited for the meal to begin, then immediately started stuffing Beastkin meat into his mouth.
“Leo works really hard—working in the dungeon while training. Eat more.” Seeing Leo devour food like a wolf, Fidis maintained a gentlemanly demeanor.
Among the four, Leo had the poorest background. Fidis could understand how difficult it was for him alone in Blackstone City.
Rog then spoke, “By the way, Leo, can we join your business?”
They had just discussed this with Arthur. In fact, Rog had long intended to ask.
If possible, he wanted to maintain a long-term connection with someone as outstanding as Leo.
“Mm.” Leo swallowed a mouthful of Merfolk Meat. “Sure… sure.”
Coincidentally, he had been wanting to find a few workers to help Arthur manage his business.
Right now, he only wanted to focus on gathering information through his intelligence network.
He didn’t want to spend too much time on other money-making activities.
However, financially, he wasn’t exactly wealthy either.
If others joined and expanded his horse business, it would actually be a good thing for him.
“My principle here is simple—equal profit sharing…”
While continuing to eat, Leo began explaining his business rules.
Except for the horse optimization service, which only he could perform due to its higher requirements,
all other ordinary business activities were shared equally.
As for work, everyone would take turns.
Simply put, a communal system—the simplest and most direct.
As Leo explained, Fidis and Rog nodded repeatedly.
They didn’t understand business much anyway.
So most of the discussion was between Leo and Arthur.
As they talked, the conversation gradually drifted to other topics.
Meanwhile, Leo focused on eating.
After going out hunting, his diet had been irregular, and his consumption had increased significantly.
So he took advantage of this feast to properly replenish himself.
“Today is really great—cheers!”
After eating and drinking their fill, they began chatting about other topics.
“Come to think of it, we really get along well.” Rog started the conversation.
“Yeah, yeah, it’s been a long time since I’ve been this happy.” Fidis drank boldly tonight. “Hey, Leo, how about we go hunting together next time?”
Recently, he and Rog had participated in two hunting missions, but they hadn’t enjoyed them.
In the team, they had little say and mostly handled chores like preparing food and tending horses.
The veteran Quasi-Knights in the team, though also from the Noble Faction, were senior and didn’t think highly of them.
“Yeah, yeah, I used to study archery—I’m a renowned archer in my family. Leo, let’s do something big together tomorrow.” Arthur was equally enthusiastic.
“Mm… sure, we’ll see… we’ll see.” Leo responded perfunctorily while continuing to clean up the table.
To be honest, he had no plans for team hunting.
However, he did need people to help with miscellaneous tasks.
After this trip, Leo realized he needed a few people just to transport Beastkin corpses.
But after this hunt, he planned to reorganize his training schedule.
Breathing Technique and Alchemy both needed grinding—he intended to optimize his time.
The gathering had a pleasant atmosphere, but near the end, an unexpected arrival changed everything.
Victor somehow learned that Leo was dining here and suddenly knocked before entering.
“Hey! Sir Leo, you came back without telling me.”
Victor’s sudden appearance stunned Arthur and the others.
After all, Victor was among the top Quasi-Knights and a prominent figure in Blackstone City.
Compared to him, Rog and Fidis were barely above the bottom among Quasi-Knights, not to mention Arthur, who had just been promoted.
“Victor… why are you here?” Arthur felt a bit at a loss.
“Hello.” Victor casually greeted them and walked straight to Leo. “Sir Leo, I’ve organized a small horse gathering. I hope you’ll honor us with your presence.”
Victor had clearly done his homework.
He had heard that Leo had broken through and would soon be formally knighted.
Such rapid progress—it was a repeat of Eve.
No—perhaps even stronger than Eve.
He had to seize the opportunity to win him over.
So he specifically investigated Leo’s interests. Hearing that Leo liked horses, he tailored the event accordingly.
“No, Victor, I really don’t have time. Maybe next time.” Leo, now full and satisfied, only wanted to return and train his Breathing Technique.
He had no interest in any horse gathering.
Meanwhile, Rog whispered to Fidis beside him.
“Why does Victor keep calling Leo ‘Sir’?”