Hitman with a Badass System
chapter-602

Michael followed the maids to the feast hall. The metallic lock rattled against the door when the maids opened the dark wooden doors. He couldn't help but grin when he saw the feast just for him. The hall had several long oak tables filled with food, mainly meat and freshly baked loaves of bread. In this world, most of the grand halls had the same arrangements. Long tables with a space leading to stairs to reach the elevated platforms where the prominent figure dined in behind engraved oak tables set facing the grand hall.

As soon as Michael entered the hall, the chit-chattering silenced a bit while Michael gestured at them to continue. Usually, there would be barrels of ale for everyone to treat themselves, but the ale storage was destroyed in the battle against the Rottgards. Due to that, they only had fruit juice and water. Good thing they didn't have any dwarves among them. Otherwise, the short-beared bastards would have caused a riot just because there was no ale.

The servants and guards in the hall were grateful to eat at all. They almost died and now had the chance to eat. Somehow the near-death experience caused them to appreciate the little things in life, even eating a loaf of bread. The cultivators in Awor didn't give much importance to eating. Instead, they revitalized their bodies with Arch energy which was abundant in the atmosphere, unlike on any other continent. When Michael climbed a couple of wooden stairs leading to the oak tables, Lord Julien and Lady Ingrid welcomed him with a warm grin.

"Lord Julien, Lady Ingrid," Michael and Gaya nodded as Lord Julien looked a little bit uneasy, seeing Michael with Eve. After greeting the lord and the lady, Michael took the seat beside Lord Julien as Eve took the seat between Ingrid and Jennifer. Aside from the core Voldigard family, the three Soul Refininers sat on the far left side of the long table. But, of course, Michael didn't fail to greet them with a friendly smile.

"Mariana," Lady Ingrid clapped once, calling the blonde-haired girl with bunny ears and a bushy fox tail. The girl's silver hair shone under the glistening chandelier and the golden light emanating from the candles.

Seeing the girl coming to him with a jade bottle, Michael paused her.

"I'll take any fruit juice you have,"

"Yes, Master Ghost," the girl meekly spoke before running back to the kitchen through the door at the end of the long table. Meanwhile, Michael picked up a honey-glazed turkey leg, a vegetable salad dressed with white yogurt, and mashed tapioca using the wooden spoons and forks. Self-serving was still a new thing in this world, so when a prominent figure like Michael served himself without waiting for a maid raised a few eyes brows, including Ingrid's. The few eyebrows became many eyebrows when he served Gaya himself.

"So, Miss Jennifer, how's Lord Hendrix doing?" Michael asked Jennifer, who was still in shock at everything that had happened. Although the cure healed her body, the plague did have some effects on the mind.

"The last time I heard, he went to Namlodar," Jennifer replied in a small voice only loud enough for them to hear.

"It's the dwarven kingdom," Gaya whispered into his ear. Unfortunately, Lord Information's book only contained rumors and information about Elon and Ozer. So when it comes to Awor, Michael had no idea about the kingdoms, noble families in the powerplay, or places of interest.

"Dwarven king huh? I wonder what Lord Hendrix's business with the dwarves?" Michael asked while cutting the perfectly cooked flesh of the turkey.

"Maybe something to do with the winter," Lord Julien said to ease the tension between him, Eve, and Ghost.

Now that Michael heard Lord Julius, he remembered currently they are in the autumn and winter was just around the corner. He was too busy killing vampires and traveling to other universes to notice the season change. Despite the arch energy and cultivation, the seasons still had their effects on the world. For instance, farmlands couldn't be cultivated during the winter, and it resulted in a huge dive in restaurant businesses. It was a huge setback to Michael when he thought of opening another Hades branch in Awor.

Surprisingly, with the exception of the Southern continent, the rest shared the same seasonal cycle. Thus, if Awor had winter, Ozer and Elon would too.

"What's the plan for winter, Lord Julien?" Michael asked Lord Julien. Gaya avoided eye contact with Lord Julien because she still felt furious about what Lord Julien tried to ask Michael. From her point of view, after everything they had done, Lord Julien had the audacity to ask Michael to leave Eve after everything they had done.

However, Michael didn't hold a grudge against Lord Julien. In fact, Michael understood Lord Julien and sympathized with him. If Lord Julien bore any ill against him and felt no gratitude, he would have run as soon as the Fusion Stage reaper showed up. Instead of leaving Ghost behind, Lord Julien stepped in to fight with him. Michael couldn't hold any grudge against a man like him.

Seeing the light smile on Ghost's face calmed Lord Julien. A few months ago, Michael wouldn't have dared to challenge a Fusion Stage cultivator. However, at that moment, he sat beside one, and the one who feared Michael was another Fusion Stage cultivator.

"Meeting the allies and cutting off our loses," Lord Julien sighed. Honestly speaking, Lord Julien didn't have a tiny bit of appetite. All he could ever think was Eve and how he would survive in Thera with no Fusion Stage protectors. Lady Ingrid wanted to talk about producing more cures but ultimately chose not to speak a word. After all, the cure solely belonged to Master Ghost, and they had no right to ask him for cures for all the citizens of Yaserius. Their first priority should be survival before taking care of Yaserius. Michael and Gaya may have taken out Rottgard, but there were still two families in Yaserious. Among the two, one was an ally, and the other remained neutral with House Voldigard. But the dynamics were sure to change as soon as the news that Voldigards have no Fusion stage protectors got out.

Everyone at the table had their own thoughts running in their minds. Still, they all managed to put up a smiling face for the sake of the servants and the soldiers. If they showed any weakness, the rest would surely lose morale, and it would only lead them to either deserting House Voldigard to join another or simply leave them. At this point, they couldn't afford to lose more people.

"I have no right to tell you how to run your house, but getting the king's protection won't be a bad idea," Michael stated, chewing the tender flesh of the turkey in his mouth.

"Oh please, Master GHost, you literally saved us. So I grant you all the rights to speak your mind," Lord Julien replied.

Just as Julien was about to continue, the girl who went to the kitchen returned with another glass bottle filled with orange juice. She poured the juice into Michael and Gaya's glass with utmost caution.

"Thank you, that'd be enough," Michael raised his hand, telling her to stop. The girl swallowed the lump in her throat and joined the group of beastmen maids on the corner.

"Eve, you alright?" Lady Ingrid's motherly instincts kicked in as she placed her hand on Eve's shoulder. Eve was not as talkative as Jennifer but seeing Eve hasn't spoken a word since she came to the table was not at all like Eve. Ingrid could see the fright in Eve's eyes as clear as day.

"Nothing. Just feeling a bit tired," Ingrid saw Eve's left eye twitching a bit. It was apparent to Ingrid Eve was lying because every time Eve lied, her left eye would twitch.

"Hmm," Ingrid chose not to question Eve more in a place surrounded by people.

"Master Ghost," To Michael's surprise, Jennifer called Michael, leaning forward to see Michael more clearly. He turned his gaze towards Jennifer,

"The cures, is there any chance you will teach me how to brew it?" Not only Michael but everyone at the table was bewildered by her question. As an alchemist, she simply shouldn't have asked another alchemist to share the recipe with her. Looking at everyone's gaze falling on her, Jennifer hunched her shoulder to make her smaller a bit.

Before answering Jennifer, Michael took a small sip of orange juice and smiled.

"Correct me if I am wrong, but you have an intention to give the cure to everyone in Thera right? For free,"

Jennifer didn't answer Mciahel immediately, but her silence spoke a volume and answered Michael's question.

"I am good but not a saint Miss Jennifer. I did what I did only for Eve," Michael calmly spoke, showing no anger in his voice. If Jennifer had asked Gabriel or any other alchemists to reveal their recipe, they would have thrown her out. However, one couldn't blame Jennifer entirely as she recently met a young man who taught her how to revive dead crops without asking for a single coin. Jennifer insisted the young man take something from her space ring, but he simply refused. The potion recipe the young man gave her would have fetched him millions if he sold it in a market. Every year, the farmers in Thera lost half of the crops or sometimes all the crops to a blight called black mist. Even the dark elves, who were masters of nature couldn't do anything to avoid losing their crops to the black mist.

As the name suggested, the black mist appeared in the form of a dark, gloomy mist, especially above the ripped crops waiting to be harvested. Even if the farmers were considerably richer than the farms on the other continents, they were still farmers who relied on crops. So losing half or full harvest was devastating to them. Jennifer, a disciple of Abraxia, one of the best academics for alchemists, wanted to find a solution to the black mist. In fact, she chose to find a solution to the black mist as her project despite her professors advising her against it.

This was the reason for Jennifer's visit to Nagaland, where she met the young man who miraculously showed her how to get rid of the black mist. Although Jennifer had no ill feelings towards Ghost, that young man was undoubtedly more benevolent and kind than Ghost.