Chapter 343 C343. Changes In The City

Having been distracted for only a moment by something he had seen amid the crowd, Tyler failed to stop Nadine on time as she practically almost ran over one of the guards on duty at the main entrance of Winged city.

Tyler wasn't sure if she was simply trying to freak out the guard for kicks or perhaps she had simply expected her to get out of the way for some reason. As though she couldn't fathom why they would have the audacity to stand in their carriageway.

Almost completely forgetting that they were currently in disguise and there shouldn't be a reason for anyone to show them any respect just because they were VIP merchants.

While he hadn't found the time to educate her on these aspects earlier he had made it a point to caution her on their short trip here. However, it didn't seem as though she had completely understood what he had said but at the very least, she had taken his words seriously.

Luckily for them, she had managed to realize her mistake on time and the carriage came to an abrupt halt only inches away from the inspecting guard who then stumbled backward obviously in shock.

At the very least, she didn't lash out at the guard as she tried her best not to cause any trouble for their alternate identities.

Although Tyler felt bad for the guard who had almost been trampled to death. He didn't think he had the luxury of a lengthy apology as he simply got straight to the point while trying not to seem rude or pretentious.

"Pardon me, do you mind letting us pass first, it's a tad urgent."

Of course, he didn't exactly have anything that urgent he needed to do within the city but he didn't have any intentions of waiting in line and wasting the privileges granted to them by their VIP status.

The female guard blinked several times as though she couldn't comprehend the words that had come out of his mouth. However, Tyler quickly realize that she wasn't even staring at them.

Rather, her expression what that of someone who couldn't believe her eyes. As though his words had come out of the six-eyed bull's mouth. 'No, no no no... no one's that dumb, are they?'

While this was in fact a fantasy world where it wouldn't be strange to find an actual talking bull. Such a thing was still incredibly rare, especially in the eyes of the common folks. Then again, perhaps this guard was not as simple as he thought.

"Excuse me, are you alright?"

Still, Tyler found it strange for someone living in the demon continent to be so freaked out by a mere bull even if it could talk. And as though to confirm his thoughts, the captain of the guard came out of his office in a rage, prompting the girl to make quite an embarrassing display.

Tyler found her to be quite amusing but that was all. He then presented his merchant license to the captain and they were immediately allowed into the city.

Their carriage gently galloped into the city and to Tyler's surprise. The city had changed quite a bit since the last time he was here only about a month ago.

For instance, there was a lot more traffic in the streets with luxurious and fancy carriages being pulled by exotic beasts and fancy horses. It was to the point that almost nobody had even recognized them.

While theirs was indeed a magic carriage of high quality, it was very plain in design in comparison to the other more fancy designs of the other ones that passed them by along the way.

Tyler felt a bit underwhelmed by the lack of a reaction in comparison to what had happened in the main gate but this was actually a relief. He couldn't help but feel like he had inspired this change for some reason.

However, the one most affected by this new reality was Nadine who was seated right next to him, her face completely pale. It seems she had expected the same reaction she had gotten on their first visit which was quite a shock for her.

Even though she was still attracting the gazes of all those who looked at her. The only problem was it was no longer on a grander scale as their carriage no longer drew everyone's attention at first glance which apparently barthered her a lot.

There were still those that recognized them just as the Hunters at the entrance, Tyler even got himself some fan girls which was a surprise.

While the scornful gaze he got from the men jealous of him being next to Nadine was annoying. He truly appreciated the lack of attention which allowed him to feel more comfortable as Lix than as Ty.

If for some reason the character Lix was becoming popular, it would just end up becoming a nuisance.

Luckily, there were only a handful of these ladies who may or may not be psychos.

As Tyler observed the subtle changes in the city, they quickly arrived at the merchant guild on central avenue. Unlike last time, it was still early in the evening so the place was quite busy with merchants and Hunters alike.

Although for some reason, Tyler couldn't sense the energy of the strongest Hunters in the city. He hadn't particularly done any research on them but had simply felt their presence the last time he was in the city.

There were always at least two of them at a given time yet now there were none. He usually limited his perception range to around him and left Uriel in charge of the rest as that much information would constantly distract him.

However, Tyler decided to actively expand his range to span across the entire city in hopes of locating a single high-rank Hunter yet nothing.

'That's weird. Are they all out on missions?'

Tyler expected the city to assign only the strongest Hunters on the mission to the Farbelt pass based on the existence of a supposed Green eyed devil but it's been more than 3 weeks since then.

He had already visited the Farbelt pass and eliminated the city's knights while capturing their miners but that was all. His goal was to make the mission a complete failure so the city would seek out his help but he had no intentions of eliminating the Hunters as well.

For one, he hadn't expected the city to send every single high-ranked Hunter for that quest, and even then, the monster he summoned to replace Zelda as the green-eyed devil shouldn't be capable of eliminating that many Hunter who specializes in slaying stronger monsters than them.

The best case scenario at the time was the creature cutting the Hunters' numbers in half before being eliminated then the survivors would require his service as a merchant given that he had also taken care of the merchants alongside the city's knights.

Thus outcome didn't provide the best rewards but it was the easiest to manage and would also help him increase his rank in the magicians guild so he could access their libraries and research halls.

Worst case scenario his summoned monster eliminates 2/3 of the Hunters causing them to seek his help as a magician which provided the most gain to his magician's status as the prospect of eliminating a devil was something that wouldn't be taken lightly.

However, not only was there not a Devil in the cavern, even the creature he summoned to act like a Devil would've already disappeared after only a week in the physical plane, causing that mission to have already ended long ago.

Hence why he was expecting to sense the presence of a high-ranked Hunter in the city as he hadn't thought the city would send all their High rankers to a single mission and he also wanted to confirm the state of his plans.

Tyler didn't consider himself a genius which was why he always tried to think of as many possible outcomes when making plans and decisions so as to prevent the possibility of screwing up as much as possible.

While he could always rely on Uriel if things ever gets out of hand he didn't want to be solely dependent on her for everything amd it didn't seem as though she wanted that for him as well.

However, Tyler had to admit that his processing speed and calculating prowess has improved since he gained the A I so there was a part of him that expected the city to send all their Hunters but in order to proceed with his plans, he still needed to gather some more information on the matter.

Naturally, as his mind followed this logical train of thought, he began to consider the various reasons why there were no high-ranked Hunters in the city besides the Farbelt Pass possibility.

There was a chance they had already been mobilized by the Zorak family against the Darknar region and a slim chance it was just a freaky coincidence that had nothing to do with him. Still, the former seemed more likely given the information he had now.

'If that's the case then they're moving faster than expected. I'll have to have Liz keep an eye out.'

As Tyler's thoughts wonder about, the carriage had come to a stop in front of the merchant guild, where a worker there came to view their license.

As the guild was busy, they would normally have to wait their turn to be attended to but upon inspection of their VIP license, the guild employee quickly ushered them through the back entrance.

Once again, they were taken to one of the VIP meeting rooms on the guild's second-highest floor. An assortment of desserts, snacks, and drinks was prepared for them and Nadine couldn't help but stuff her face again.

'For someone so tiny, she sure eats a lot. Then again these are just sweets.'

Tyler thought such as he silently waited for the Merchant guild leader after his goods were inspected and appraised. However, in less than 10 minutes, the doors to the VIP room were swung open.

Shifting his attention to the door, he was surprised that the one who had entered the room was not the Guild leader but his representative.

A slender female figure, wearing a skin-tight black and white striped business suit with quite a short skirt of a similar design, which was complemented by long black stockings that covered the entirety of her long legs and thighs.

She had a fair and rich skin tone, her glistening black pupils complimenting her shoulder-length black curly hair. She had narrow eyes that were sharp but not piercing.

They were the eyes of a professional, a high-class business lady, one that Tyler could clearly remember seeing in certain magazines back on earth.

Upon her abrupt entrance to the room, his mind quickly flashed back to the first time he met this lady and he remembered she was the Vice guild leader of the Merchant Guild, Xelen Cornal.

"Welcome back Mr. Lix, my apologies if our employees caused you any discomfort."

She spoke in a courteous and business-like tone as she approached the sofa facing the pair of familiar faces and sat down. Unlike the last time they had met her, she hadn't come in alone this time.

A young man clad in a purplish black robe walked in only a step behind her and took a seat next to her after offering them only a polite bow.

He hadn't bothered to introduce himself and it didn't seem like Xelen was planning on doing so either. If anything, her eyes felt as though they were pleading for them not to inquire any further into this strange young demon that had just barged into their private meeting.

Tyler— or rather, Lix shifted his gaze from Xelen to the strange man as he observed him for a moment. His attention then seamlessly shifted back to Xelen as though dismissing the presence of the man.

"There's no need for apologies. Everything went as fine as I would hope. Now then, let's get straight to business."

Noticing how Lix hadn't bothered inquiring about the young man beside her. Xelen felt relieved as she accepted Lix's request and brought out a tally of the items that had been inspected in his carriage.