Holding the stone bead with the intricate floral pattern that he had taken from the “Furnace Hook,” Lant ran all the way back to Laine’s house in the Lower District.
Lant panted heavily as he knocked on the door, hoping Laine would come out quickly.
He didn’t have to wait long before Laine opened the door. When Laine saw it was Lant at the doorstep, he furrowed his brow, then immediately noticed something was off—the usual expression was gone.
Lant was out of breath, clearly having just exerted himself, his face anxious and hurried—obviously not normal.
Before Lant could say anything, Laine interrupted him and told him to come inside first. Once Lant was inside, Laine glanced around carefully and, seeing no one following them, shut and locked the door tightly.
As Laine made his way to the living room, Lant grew impatient and rushed forward, blurting everything out.
He recounted everything that had happened at the “Furnace Hook” mansion and finally took out the floral stone bead to show Laine.
Looking at the bead in Lant’s hand and recalling recent intelligence, Laine realized Lant was not lying.
He quickly stood up and returned to his room, taking out all the hidden luggage and hurriedly packing the last few things to bring, while erasing any traces of his presence.
Seeing Laine move so swiftly, Lant was momentarily stunned. Laine noticed and urged him to come over and help pack.
Touched by this, Lant felt a warmth welling up inside him. After hearing what he said, not only did Laine not doubt him, but he even invited him to escape together. This, this was really…
Sorry, Laine. It turns out I’ve been misunderstanding you all this time. You’ve been so good to me. I even thought you were a stingy fat guy and switched to working for “Furnace Hook.” Yet here you are, forgiving me. You really are a good person! Don’t worry! This time I won’t let you down!
Watching Laine’s actions, a surge of gratitude filled Lant’s heart. From now on, he would treat Laine as his brother!
Laine, busy packing nearby, didn’t think much about it. He simply believed that if he left Lant behind, Lant would inevitably be caught. And if Lant were caught, his own whereabouts would likely be exposed.
Better to take Lant with him first, find a safe place to hide, then figure out how to deal with Lant later—that would be safer.
Seeing Lant standing still, staring at him with a strange look, Laine felt a twinge of anger. Here he was, busy packing to escape, and this guy was just standing there doing nothing! Not even lending a hand. Who knows what this guy was thinking every day!
When Lant remained motionless, Laine blurted out, “Are you coming or not? Hurry up and help me pack!”
“Yeah! Ah! Oh!”
Lant snapped back to reality and started helping Laine pack. But since Laine had nearly finished already, Lant didn’t really contribute much—just carrying a few boxes at the end.
“By the way, when did you prepare all this luggage? It’s like you were ready to run away the whole time.”
Lant looked at Laine in confusion, and Laine rolled his eyes without explaining. Because even if he tried to explain, Lant probably wouldn’t understand; and even if he did, he’d likely forget everything in a few days.
Tsk, why did I even hire him as my bodyguard back then? Could it be that hiring him caused all this bad luck? Laine started recalling the time he made Lant his bodyguard.
He wished he hadn’t. Every time he thought about it, it felt like his head was kicked by a donkey—how could he have believed Lant’s nonsense, thinking he was some powerful mercenary?
Since hiring Lant, nothing good had happened. Either bandits or beasts attacked while he was enjoying himself, or a business deal he just closed mysteriously fell through, or he got robbed suddenly.
Laine had never doubted Lant before, but now he was starting to suspect that all his misfortunes were because of hiring Lant.
Seeing Lant’s goofy look, Laine was more convinced his suspicion was right. Meanwhile, Lant urged him anxiously to hurry.
Seeing that, Laine decided to prioritize escaping first, and deal with Lant later once they were safe.
“By the way, where’s that bead of yours? Don’t lose it.”
“Don’t worry, I’m keeping it safe on me. Trust me, I definitely won’t lose it!”
Lant ignored Laine’s reminder and casually pulled out the floral stone bead from his pocket. Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck him.
He had used this magical item to teleport before, so why not use it again now to avoid lugging these exhausting bags?
Feeling proud of his cleverness, Lant didn’t tell Laine about it yet—he planned to surprise him.
Without hesitation, Lant began channeling magic into the stone bead. But after infusing some magic, the bead didn’t react. Sweat broke out on Lant’s forehead as he increased the magic input.
Seeing Lant silent for a while, Laine turned to check what he was up to.
Noticing Laine about to turn, Lant grew more anxious. He frantically poured magic into the bead, hoping to surprise Laine before he noticed.
Suddenly, the stone bead burst with dazzling light, blinding both Lant and the turning Laine.
The light lasted only a moment before fading. Lant slowly opened his eyes.
The moment he opened his eyes, he eagerly looked at Laine, hoping his surprise was a success. But he noticed Laine’s expression was grim as he glanced around. Lant followed his gaze.
Within seconds, Lant was stunned by what he saw. This was not the outskirts of Kite City where he had intended to teleport, but a deep underground cave—an uncharted labyrinth!
It looked like a maze that no one had ever explored before.
Lant stared dumbfounded at the surroundings. When he came to, he noticed Laine’s face was ashen. Then he remembered—it was all because of him.
Lant forced a shaky smile and stammered out an apology, “Uh, well… how should I put this? Do, do you like the surprise I prepared for you?”
“Laine! Where is this place?! Why did we suddenly end up here?! What did you do this time?!”
Laine’s furious roar echoed through the labyrinth, lingering for a long time without fading.