The Discarded Son's Skill Market
Chapter 36: He was discovered

Chapter 36: He was discovered

He walked beside Alice, who had her head down.

He went up to the second floor via the stairs next to her and took a look around.

On the first floor were low-rank missions—for Iron, Bronze, Silver, or Gold-level mercenaries. On the second floor were missions starting at the Gold rank, and that was where Platinum-rank missions were most abundant.

’Someday I’ll come back here to take on missions,’ he thought, before heading back down the stairs.

"Which mission should I take?" he muttered as he reached the bottom. The mercenaries walking up beside him laughed at him when saw his badge and kept climbing.

However, their snickers didn’t stop Alice from jerking her head up.

She immediately saw a figure standing before her. Her eyes lit up, and she raised her hand without thinking.

"Wait, Zaid...!" She swallowed the words that hadn’t yet left her mouth.

"Is something wrong, miss?" Zaid asked cautiously as he turned around and looked her over. "Are you a contractor? Are you interested in my services?"

Alice shivered slightly. "Ah—No, no, I..."

"My services are inexpensive, miss. You might want to consider them." Zaid showed her his guild profile before she could speak. "Even though I just signed up, I’m strong. Just yesterday I completed a mission with flying colors. For a very low fee—only $150."

"I can help you level up for just $500 per level if your Talent is Rank C. And if you want to take me to a Rank F Portal, I think I’m the cheapest option—only $1,000 an hour!"

Alice suddenly felt overwhelmed. She looked at the name of the person who had logged in, and it wasn’t Zaid—it was Gio. However, his voice was identical to Zaid’s!

His demeanor was just like his, too!

It was as if she were seeing and talking to Zaid, in a stranger’s body!

Or maybe it was Zaid?

She looked at him suspiciously. Although his features were well hidden beneath that mask, his voice was the same.

She wanted to refuse again, but at that moment she realized she was still holding onto him.

It suddenly clicked in her mind, and she let go of him immediately.

’Huh? It didn’t affect me?’ She’d expect a headache like always, followed by a strong sense of revulsion.

Maybe even vomiting, because their faces were so close together!

But nothing happened.

She immediately stared at him, her eyes widening. She couldn’t see his eyes, but she knew their gazes had met.

"Yes. I want to hire you," she replied immediately with great determination and grabbed her cell phone. The mission she had posted suddenly led her to a mercenary registered under the name "Gio."

Zaid immediately received a notification that someone wanted to hire him.

It was amazingly fast!

Zaid smiled. "All right, miss. That’s a good decision! But if you’d like, you can lower the price to $500. I won’t have a problem with that."

"No. That’s the price." Alice’s reply sounded blunt and cold.

’She’s angry.’ Zaid could tell by her serious expression. He knew he’d been found out.

Still, he remained professional.

"When...?"

"If you can right now, Sir." she replied.

Zaid swallowed hard. "All right. Right now, then."

--

Wasteland Gate Zone; western region.

There are no rats here. This region used to be part of the great city, but it had to be abandoned. Some structures still stand, though they’ve been ruined by beasts and the corrupt essence. Most of the beasts around here are goblins, low-level undead, birds, and little else.

It’s farther away than the southern area, but it’s still Rank F.

As soon as they reached the vicinity and passed the police checkpoint, Alice stopped, forcing Zaid to do the same.

"Why didn’t you tell me you worked as a mercenary?" she asked, frowning.

Zaid laughed. "Would that change anything?"

She turned around. "I would have hired you right away!"

"Didn’t you?"

"But...!" She fell silent, unable to think of anything to say.

It was true...

"See?" Zaid laughed behind his mask.

"It’s not good to keep secrets," she whispered.

"I think we both have our secrets, don’t we?" He walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder. "I still don’t know why you hate or loathe men. And that’s okay."

She stood still, and the uneasiness or annoyance in her mind subsided.

"That... is different."

Zaid laughed. "Of course. It’s an extreme example."

She sighed.

"I joined the guild on Wednesday. Now that I’m no longer part of the Zachary Family, I have to earn my own living. Prices are going up every day, you know? Even though food is still affordable for now, I’m afraid it’ll soon get so expensive that I won’t be able to buy it. There are more and more beasts out there, after all."

"So you’re not really that weak..."

Zaid shrugged. "I thought the same thing when I saw you fight."

She nodded. In a way, it seemed like a strange, equal exchange. Both of them had secrets they’d rather not reveal, and at the same time, both seemed to be deliberately hiding their power, yet both had caught a glimpse of the other’s secrets and power.

"Although I am surprised," Zaid said, turning to look at her. "Since you’re so strong, why are you looking for mercenaries to help you level up?"

"I..." She lowered her head and remained silent for a few seconds. "I can’t use my power very much," she whispered.

’So that’s what I suspected.’

"I won’t make you talk about your problems anymore. Come on, let’s go hunting. And since you hired me, I hope you don’t try to kill any beasts. Not for now, anyway!" he said firmly.

She looked at him. "Why? Since it’s you, I don’t need to hide my magic that much... Even though I won’t be able to fight the same way, I can still use magic..."

Zaid interrupted her. "No. That won’t be necessary. I’m a mercenary trying to level up in the guild."

She remained silent but nodded. "Well..."

They began to make their way deeper into the ruins of what had once been part of the city.

Before 15 minutes had passed, they ran into a group of goblins who charged straight at them.

Zaid stomped hard on the ground and swung his fists forward.

KYAG! The goblin took a hard blow to the stomach and fell backward... They were weaker than the ones from that portal, but they were all Rank F.

And none of them died from Zaid’s blows; he was very efficient.