My only job is to a.s.sist you, my lord."

"You said earlier that you went into the maze alone," Anfey said. "Were you not scared?"

"I've been hearing adventurous stories for years now. My teacher once said that there is no profit without danger. I am not afraid of it."

"Your teacher?"

"Have you forgotten, my lord? I once trained with Apa."

"Why didn’t you join a mercenary band, then?"

"I do not have combat power, nor can I use magic. No one would take someone like me," Urter said, shaking his head.

"There are people with those things who are still idiots," Anfey said. "Intelligence is much more important than power in my mind. Come on, let’s go. They may think you are trying to kill me."

"Me?" Urter asked, almost amused.

"Where did all your money go?" Anfey said as the two left the room.

"I don't have a family to take care of, but my men do. Their lives are much more difficult than mine."

Anfey nodded, but did not say anything more. He walked out of the inn and towards where Suzanna, Apa, and Black Eleven were standing. He had spent too much time speaking with Urter, and the three of them were all curious about their conversation.

Anfey walked over to his carriage and jumped in. "Suzanna," he called, "come in. Urter, you come in as well."

Urter blinked, then hurried over to the carriage. He held out a hand out of courtesy and wanted to help Suzanna up. Suzanna, however, did not need his help. Urter's hand fell back to his side awkwardly, and he climbed into the carriage after her.

"How many coins do you have right now?" Anfey asked Suzanna.

"How many do you need?"

"A hundred."

Suzanna pulled out her money pouch and began counting the coins. A few minutes later, ten columns of gold coins were laid out on the ground neatly.

"Urter, take these."

Urter’s expression paled. "What do you mean, my lord? It is my job to a.s.sist you. You don't need to…"

"Don’t," Anfey said, interrupting Urter’s protest. "It’s not just for you. You need a dimensional ring. Some things are only safe when you put it in a ring, do you understand?"

"But…"

"You can twist my intention however you want, but you will keep the money," Anfey said. "Go and arrange my meeting with Aroben tonight."

"Yes, my lord," Urter said. "I will get on that."

"Alright," Anfey nodded. "Go. People will grow suspicious at the length of our conversation."

"Yes, my lord," Urter said. He looked at Anfey, then began to collect the coins slowly. If Anfey appeared too proud, Urter would have left immediately. However, Anfey had appeared very sincere. In the end, Urter had to break his own rule.

A hundred gold coins, however, were much heavier than Urter had expected. As he stood, the coins fell out of his pocket and onto the floor.

Suzanna grinned at the sight. Urter tried to pick up the coins quickly while hiding his embarra.s.sment, but the coins were scattered all over the floor.

Technically, this was the first time Urter accepted a bribe, and he had learned his lesson. Anfey tried to hide his smile, and did not say anything. After a few moments, Suzanna stood up, and helped Urter gather all the coins.

"Armin, coming in," Anfey called, suppressing his laughter.

Black Eleven appeared, and frowned when he saw the coins on the floor.

"Take these to Urter’s," Anfey ordered.

Black Eleven nodded. He waved his hand, and gathered all the coins into his dimensional ring.

"You know the convenience of a ring now, Urter?" Anfey asked with a smile.

Urter nodded hurriedly and looked at neither Anfey nor Suzanna.

"Armin, be careful. Don’t let Apa know what’s going on."

"Why?" Black Eleven asked, frowning. He had already told Apa about some of Anfey’s deeds. If there was something wrong with Apa, the warning was clearly too late.

"No," Anfey said, "but still, don’t tell him."

"Alright," Black Eleven said, nodding. "I understand."