Chapter 631: 95. Big Potpourri_3
Chapter 631: 95. Big Potpourri_3
The two girls shrank back against the wall and whispered,
“We… we would have followed him, but he didn’t take us with him; he just took your belongings and dashed off, leaving us behind…”
“You… you scoundrels! I’ll beat you to death!”
Kexie Ning was so angry she felt like vomiting blood, ready to strike them with her musical instrument, but when she lifted it, she accidentally hit a passerby behind her. Just as she made contact, she felt a wave of panic wash over her; the instrument in her hands was the heavy “Boundary Flute,” which could seriously injure someone if it struck them.
If the person was hurt, did it mean… she would have to pay compensation again?
Kexie Ning’s half-raised instrument froze in mid-air; she didn’t dare turn her head to look at the person behind her. Beads of cold sweat formed on her brow, her eyes frantically rolling in their sockets. Then, suddenly, she dropped to her knees and kowtowed three times to the person she had bumped into.
“Merciful sir, spare my life, it was an accident! If you’re hurt, I have no money to compensate you… sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!”
The other two girls also turned pale with fright; they didn’t have a single coin left on them. If they had to compensate, it would mean giving up everything, so they followed Kexie Ning’s lead and lay prostrate on the ground, apologizing to the gentleman they had bumped into.
“Ah, no worries, it’s not a big deal… The images on your backs, aren’t those unique to a circus? Why have you become street performers now?”
“That’s… a long story.”
Before Kexie Ning, the gentleman spoke in a calm voice, so neutral in gender that it was difficult to distinguish. Kexie Ning couldn’t see his movements, but she guessed he was looking at the paintings they had hung on the wall, the last remnants of the circus that Colin hadn’t stolen.
“It really is fascinating. Members of the Slime Species, dressed in imitation skins and performing in the blizzard – this is indeed rare. I’ve heard rumors that Slimes are beings of great wealth. How did you come to be in such a dire state… And why do you hold the Boundary Flute? Are you going to perform a song for me?”
Embarrassed by the gentleman’s words, Kexie Ning bashfully pursed her lips but sensed his interest in their performance. Such a person was most likely to give them money, so she quickly put on a flattering smile and said,
“I have traveled far and wide; I don’t even need you to tell me where you’re from. I can offer you a song from your homeland… Let me guess, you’re from Schwali, right? I’m quite adept at songs from Schwali. Let me sing for you. The red flowers amidst the mountains, oh, the General who left his town~ I lingered on the day you departed, picking…”
As Kexie Ning’s voice struggled to continue singing, a row of shimmering Northern Realm silver coins clinked into the battered bowl before her. Kexie Ning’s pace slowed until she was completely mesmerized by the glint of the silver coins, swallowing her saliva in barely contained greed.
“Oh my, this is truly generous! Thank you, thank you! You, the gentleman from Schwali…”
Afraid that the gentleman might change his mind, she quickly clutched the bowl filled with silver coins to her chest and cautiously looked up to check his movements. It was then that she noticed how strangely he was dressed.
He wore a heavy, black leather coat and a beak-like mask that made it hard to tell if it was part of his face or something else. He donned a dark bowler hat and casually waved at Kexie Ning before walking away,
“Make good use of these silver coins. I’ve heard that the Slime Species can turn a small investment into a business hundreds of times larger. I’m looking forward to it.”
The figure walked further away and soon disappeared into the crowd. Despite his peculiar appearance, he merged with the sea of people effortlessly, stirring the imagination.
But Kexie Ning didn’t care. She just looked down at the bowl full of silver coins, greedily burying her face behind them and inhaling deeply.
“Yes, that’s our race.”
When she lifted her head again, her once pale face was now infused with healthy color, as if she’d grown thirty years younger. She greedily looked in the other direction of the street, where the carriage studded with high value had gone.