Lord of Mysterious Wizard

The little beggar in front of Tang Qi was scruffy and filthy, wearing a tattered tracksuit, with half of the left pant leg missing, and a dirty face that was very ordinary-looking and covered in freckles, except for a pair of bright, alert eyes that suggested he was a shrewd young boy.

The two were about the same age, yet the beggar tried his best to shrink his body into the corner of the wall, as if afraid of coming into contact with Tang Qi.

Just now, most of the vagrants greedily watched the hamburger and hot dog in his hand, but this boy recoiled and avoided him, his eyes not showing the unfamiliarity towards Tang Qi that one would expect, as if he knew who Tang Qi was.

Upon hearing the question, he hesitated and glanced at Tang Qi before grinning, revealing his gap-toothed smile, and said somewhat sheepishly, “I’ve been arrested for stealing bread before, and I saw you when you were doing your induction, with a very pretty big sister.”

This answer surprised Tang Qi, who casually asked, “Then why didn’t you run when you saw me? Aren’t you afraid I’ll find an excuse to arrest you again?”

Of course, Tang Qi’s words were meant to intimidate the little beggar. Although he had the right to arrest him, he definitely wouldn’t abuse it like that; it was just that some nasty cops would occasionally take their bad moods out on these vagrants and beggars.

Who knew that upon hearing this, the little beggar immediately looked up, his eyes flickering with surprise and expectation, “Really? As long as you don’t let someone beat me up, and don’t lock me in a gang’s cage, I’m willing to be arrested. That way, I could get a good night’s sleep today and have a full meal.”

If it were the original Tang Qi, he might not understand the boy’s thinking.

But Tang Qi seemed to sense something and glanced at the boy’s left leg which was missing the pant leg, the calf muscle was clearly atrophied, a disabled boy. This could explain why he didn’t seek work to support himself; neither factories nor shops would hire a disabled child.

A limping child is not nimble at work, and if an accident happens, they would be held responsible. In the big cities of the Federation, he might have found some work in welfare institutions.

Unfortunately, this is Messer City, a city that is substantial, but also cold and dark.

His destiny, if lucky, might be to survive into adulthood with the aid of some kind-hearted people and the leftovers on the streets, and then somehow beg his way to the big city, where there might be more hope. If unlucky, he might one day encounter bullies on the streets or nasty cops, get beaten up, die in the harsh winter, and then the next morning be thrown into the stinking, cold Corpse Collection Vehicle, to be incinerated alongside other corpses.

Although he was young, he seemed to have faintly seen these two possible futures and thus would grab any opportunity that might come his way with all his might.

For instance, at this moment, he was ravenous but suppressed the impulse to look at those tempting, fragrantly steaming burgers, trying his best to show his sincere side in front of Tang Qi, the “Big Shot.”

Whatever the Big Shot wanted to do, it could be a good thing for him, right? After all, what more did he have to lose?

The wisdom of those at the bottom!

Tang Qi, with his insight, naturally saw through the little beggar’s inner thoughts and silently admired him.

Then, Tang Qi asked, “What’s your name?”

“McGraw!”@@novelbin@@

“Sir, my name is McGraw,” McGraw responded quickly after a slight hesitation.

“Come with me!”

Without saying much more, Tang Qi confirmed his target, then stood up and walked directly toward the alley exit.

Behind him, McGraw climbed up as quickly as he could and followed, limping along.

Stepping outside, Tang Qi brought McGraw to a secluded spot, handed him the hamburger and hot dog he was holding, then got straight to the point: “Two choices, eat the food and then go back, as if I did a good deed today.”

“Or, you can help me with something, something a bit dangerous, but you’ll get fair compensation after it’s successfully done.”

…

As expected, the little beggar named McGraw eventually chose the latter.

Then he received a slip of paper from Tang Qi, with an address written on it. McGraw’s task was simple: to go to that address, eavesdrop on the conversations of a few targets in a secretive manner, or gather some kind of information.

And to report back to Tang Qi in the evening.

That address belonged to a member of the Samra family, to be precise, two members.

But it was not Abu who is currently leading the family, nor the couple Balagon and Georgina, but the Harria Sisters, the pair of twins.

These chubby sisters were unemployed, but they were now learning pottery in an art studio within Newton District.

According to Old Morgan’s journal, the sisters aimed to become artists.

Their actions were supported by the family, particularly by Old Morgan himself who had paid a substantial amount for this, even though the sisters had already come of age and should be self-sustaining.

Perhaps due to the lack of heirs, Old Morgan had become extremely indulgent towards the second generation of the family – Abu and the Harria sisters, almost complying with every request. The wealth he acquired from serving the Tang Family for twenty years was all spent in support of the family.

From the journal, Tang Qi could detect Old Morgan’s obsession with the family.

Unfortunately, the journal that was used to record the family’s memories had now become one of Tang Qi’s weapons.

The reason why McGraw was not sent to eavesdrop on Abu or the couple Balagon was because they were all practitioners of Black Witchcraft, especially Abu, who exuded a sense of danger to Tang Qi even just from a photograph. As clever as McGraw was, a single mistake could be fatal.

Most importantly, it could implicate Tang Qi as well.

The Harria Sisters, on the other hand, posed no such threat. The twin sisters had no talent for witchcraft, and aside from food and “art,” they had no other interests. Plus, being separated from all the other family members during the day made them ideal eavesdropping subjects.

Of course, when Tang Qi set the task for McGraw, he also warned him that if he spotted Abu, Balagon, or Georgina, there was no need to eavesdrop; he should just leave immediately.

As for why Tang Qi didn’t go himself, firstly, using “Fog Body” was inconvenient during the daytime, and at night the entire Samra family would gather together. If he were discovered, Tang Qi would be forced into an early confrontation. Although Tang Qi was already prepared for this, he always felt that the time wasn’t right yet.

If McGraw could bring back key information, that would be great.

Without any gains, it didn’t really matter – this was just a casual move. Before the unknown “decisive battle” arrives, making a few additional casual moves is of no harm to Tang Qi, the most he would lose was a bit of money and a bag of hamburgers and hot dogs.

If this casual move could bring some information, then it would be a big win.

Sometimes, a piece of information can change many things…

“Perhaps there will be some surprises.”

Tang Qi watched as McGraw’s figure receded into the distance and muttered to himself, then turned and headed towards Messer Police Station.