The Joy of Revenge

Chapter 41: A Warning

The man offered a kind smile. "Sir, why are you at Sunset Valley? Are you being hunted by your enemies?"

In that situation, Chandler would not have normally asked a stranger something so sensitive, but he was a bit anxious, so he did not hold back on his questions.

Fane frowned, a hint of unhappiness flashed on his face. He nodded to Chandler. "There are no enemies after me. I just injured myself while training."

Fane was not lying. The moment he said that, Fane clutched the staff in his hand and prepared to distance himself from the carriage.

He had seen the level of the man in the carriage. At just this age, he was already at the late stage of the innate level. He should be a disciple of a clan. Even though he did not know if the man was friend or foe, Fane was not planning on making any friends.

Looking at Fane about to leave, Chandler hurriedly said, "Please, wait. You're already injured. Inside Sunset Valley, there's a good chance you'll die."

Fane raised an eyebrow, suddenly realizing where he was. After being sent by that old man so far away, he had no idea where he had been transported to.

Based on what that person said, Sunset Valley was a dangerous place to be. If he walked away alone, he might actually end up dying.

He let out a sigh. It seemed like he would be forced to make a friend.

He turned around to look at Chandler earnestly. "Thank you for telling me that. In truth, I was transported from far away. I entered a secret realm a while ago and accidentally fell into a wormhole. After that, I was transported here. I was clueless about my whereabouts before."

Fane's explanation was partially honest, but it was not the full story. He admitted that he had been transported over before everything around him was unknown.

If he said anything, it would have been easy to reveal any lies, so he decided to tell a partial truth.

When he heard Fane's explanation, Chandler's eyes widened as he looked at Fane strangely.

He was stunned for a moment before he continued, "So you mean you're not from around here? You were sent here by a long-range transporter?"

Fane nodded. "I had entered a hidden realm to explore with some fellow disciples and accidentally ended up here. Where is this place?"

Chandler nodded, not looking like he completely believed Fane. Nonetheless, he still explained, "This is the southern part of Middle Province. It's part of Rosefinch Pavilion's territory."

Rosefinch Pavilion? Fane was stumped. He had never heard of that name before. Nonetheless, he truly was in Middle Province.

The old man had told Fane that the key was in Wild Gorge Pass, and Wild Gorge Pass was in Middle Province. Since that old man wanted to send him off, he had naturally been sent to Middle Province.

However, Fane had never heard of Rosefinch Pavilion before nor did he know how close Rosefinch Pavilion was to Wild Gorge Pass.

Chandler very sharply caught the confusion in Fane's eyes. He immediately understood that the young man before him had probably never heard of Rosefinch Pavilion before.

The curiosity in his heart stirred. "You don't know Rosefinch Pavilion?"

Fane stopped. He wanted to say he knew Rosefinch Pavilion, but he knew far too little about Middle Province. If he said he did, it would be easily seen through, and would be meaningless.

Thus, Fane nodded. "This is my first time in Middle Province."

“Yep. Just some things to make it look less…” Cristos paused to think of the right word. “Dingy,” I said. We all laughed.

“I have to agree the pub needs fixing. But you’re keeping the hardwood floors, right?” Jack asked.

Cristos nodded. “I’ll be having the wood refinished. You know… patch, repair and sand, then Noah’s men will apply fresh stain and lacquer. When it’s done, my floor is going to shine like it’s brand new. I’m also having the walls repainted and the front bar, under bar, and back bar replaced. I’m guessing everything will be done in a month or so.”

“The pub will be closed every weekend for a month?!” Jack didn’t sound too happy.

“Well, maybe longer when I have the floors done. I need everything to set and dry before any of us can step on the wood,” Cristos explained. “I’ll probably need the same amount of time for the bar.”

“I guess we just have to drink at home then,” Jack said, smiling. “So, I’ll see you tonight, Virtue?”

“How can I say no to the both of you,” I answered, smiling back. “I’ll see you tonight, sheriff. Right now, Chip and I have to head to town hall.”

Jack’s brow furrowed. “What for?”

“For our building permits, silly,” Cristos replied, flapping his hand in the air. “Virtue needs hers right away. She wants her boutique operational before prom. That’s still a thing, right? I mean, prom?” Cristos looked meaningfully at Jack, hoping to get a reaction.

“Yeah, it’s still a thing,” Jack murmured, his eyes glazing over. “You’re right… The spring formal is coming up.” He blinked his eyes rapidly and shook his head as if he was shaking away a bad thought or a bad memory in his head.

My hands instantly balled into fists. Unlike this bastard standing in front of me, I could never shake away the memory of that horrible night. Cristos, who had noticed my cheeks had gone red, coughed and opened the door of the passenger side of his car. “Virtue, get in. Jack, we’ll just see you later tonight.”

Cristos waved at Jack and sashayed his way to the driver’s side. I smiled at Jack before entering the car. When I was seated, Jack gave me a small wave and closed the door for me.Exclusive © content by N(ô)ve/l/Drama.Org.

“You okay, Virtue?” Cristos asked as he drove us out of the parking lot.

I gave him a bright smile. “No pain, no gain.”

At town hall, Dan told us to head on up to see Abigail which meant I would have to face Liam. What a way to ruin my day…

Cristos knocked tentatively. After we heard a female voice say ‘come in’, he opened the door. Abigail was seated at her desk, wearing a salmon-colored pantsuit and a big smile.

“Good morning, Abigail! We just saw Dan downstairs and he told us we could pick up our building permits from you,” Cristos said in a hushed tone while practically tiptoeing across the room to Abigail’s desk. He pointed at Liam’s office. “Is Liam here?”

“No, but he’ll be here later in the day,” Abigail answered while shuffling through the documents on her desk.

I entered the room, feeling lucky I was able to dodge seeing Liam, and closed the door behind me.

“Here are your building permits as promised. It would’ve been done when Lisa was here earlier, but I had to wait for the floor plans and costs. Pete just sent them a while ago.” She handed us our documents. “Well, you guys are all set. If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask me.”

“Thank you so much, Abigail,” I said while placing my permit inside my tote bag. “I hope when construction is finished, you can drop by.”

“Of course I will, Virtue,” she replied, grinning at me. “So where are the both of you off to?”

“Maybe go and have brunch,” Cristos answered. “I’m hungry. Since Liam isn’t here, why don’t you join us?”

“I’d love to, but I have to finish all of this before the day ends,” she refused politely while placing a hand over a pile of papers on her desk. “Tomorrow is a Saturday and I was planning to drive to Bismarck for some antiques. New stuff will be coming in today, so I’m excited I might find a new teacup to add to my collection.”

“We should do that, Chip,” I suggested. “Noah told me Bismarck has great vintage finds.”

“Alright. We can do that after brunch,” Cristos agreed. “Since you have so much work to do, we won’t take any more of your time, Abigail. Thanks again.”

Unexpectedly, Abigail stood up from my desk and grabbed my arm. “Wait, Virtue,” she said, her voice faint and subdued. “I know this will sound crazy, but I overheard Liam tell Noah to put up CCTV cameras in your store.”

I stared into her eyes, my brow furrowing while my eyes slightly narrowed, trying to figure out why her voice sounded so familiar. It’s like I’ve been hearing it over and over in my head. I needed a second to think. If only I could remember…

She suddenly let go of her arm and laughed nervously. “I-I’m terribly sorry. You know what? Just forget I ever said anything.”

“It does sound… weird, but thanks for the warning,” I murmured. I took her hands in mine. “Thank you, Abigail.” I squeezed her hands before letting go.

After blowing Abigail a kiss, Cristos rushed forward to open the door so we could leave. When the door swung open, I gasped. Standing in the doorway, leaning forward with his right ear towards us, was Liam. He was obviously eavesdropping, the prick!

“Oh, why are you standing in the doorway of your own office, Liam?”