Fly-by-Night Diner 6

It turns out that the middleman industry does not take breaks in the middle of the night. Soon, the heavily wrapped courier appeared at her shop entrance again.

He looked at the mountain-like meat creature, then at the two dead entities on the ground, and finally turned to Su Man, waiting for her to speak.

"These were here to cause trouble," Su Man said, pointing to the two corpses. "They are dead. Can you still take them?"

The middleman nodded and replied in a standard, professional tone: "Dead ones are discounted at 50 percent."

Half-price was still money; that was acceptable. The man opened his mouth, swallowed the two bodies, and provided the appraisal shortly after.

"Four hundred, five hundred."

Su Man knew that the older brother, Dalin, was originally worth eight hundred. She was surprised that the younger brother, Xiaolin, was worth more—at half-price, he must have been worth a thousand. She voiced her confusion, asking what the criteria for the middleman’s pricing were.

The courier said, "It depends on utility value. That skinny creature might not have been very powerful, but he had a bit of cunning. Some customers enjoy the taste of a little cunning."

Su Man’s brow twitched. Taste? Was it the kind of "taste" she thought it was? She was wise enough not to ask further.

Regaining her composure, she pointed to the creature that had remained motionless since Dalin and Xiaolin died. "What about him? I don’t even know what he is."

As she spoke, the courier opened his mouth to an exaggerated angle and swallowed the giant creature. After a brief pause, he gave his verdict: "An intruder from the outer zone. Classified as an artisan-type utility entity. Easily driven."

The courier looked at her. "He is not on our list, but our company can offer 5,000 horror coins."

Five thousand horror coins—if she sold him, she would have completed half of her mission. But what caught Su Man’s interest more was his description. "What does 'artisan-type utility entity' mean?"

Having finally encountered someone who knew so much, she felt like a parched sponge, eager to absorb knowledge she had previously lacked.

The courier didn't hesitate to explain: "Just as the name implies, he was an artisan during his life, and his abilities were enhanced after death..."

He paused, gesturing toward Su Man’s damaged shop. "This artisan creature can repair your shop. His abilities are quite miraculous."

He could even repair the shop? Seeing her interest, the courier continued, "Not just the shop. As I said, his abilities are miraculous. Any cutlery, tables, or chairs you need, he can craft them for you without costing a single penny."

Listening to his description, Su Man already imagined what it would be like to possess such an artisan.

"You said earlier that this creature is easy to drive..."

Neither Su Man nor Sun Li were natives of this place; they had no idea that to the locals, the artisan creature was a terrifying existence. But now, hearing the description, she was tempted. Su Man even thought that if she had such an artisan, once she bought the shop, she would essentially have free labor.

"Yes, the easily driven type," the courier explained patiently. "Most entities don't know how to drive them, and if you anger them, the consequences are severe—as you can see, they are quite large."

"But for this type of artisan, the method is actually very simple. As long as you give him work to do and a place to stay, he will be very obedient. He is the perfect laborer."

The courier added, "Ordinary people don't understand this. They only know simple methods, like using horror coins or food." He pointed to the now-motionless artisan creature he had regurgitated. "This artisan was likely hired by them using horror coins. It was merely an employment relationship. When the employer dies, the relationship ends, and they simply wait here quietly for the next employer to discover and hire them."

Su Man took the cue: "So, if no employer takes him, he might just wait in front of my door until the end of time?"

"That is correct," the courier said. "You can choose to sell him to us, or keep him yourself. An artisan is a very convenient staff member for a shop."

"If I choose to keep him, will there be any trouble?"

Su Man was truly tempted. By the courier's account, this artisan was a rare find, worth 5,000 horror coins. More importantly, her shop had been trashed, and she desperately needed such a talent.

The courier made a timely recommendation: "You can choose other services from our company. We will handle all potential troubles this artisan might bring in a one-stop package. Unless you voluntarily choose to terminate the employment, this artisan can work for you until the horror realm collapses."

Su Man weighed the options in her mind and made a decision. "What about the price?"

"Fair and honest: two thousand horror coins."

That was not cheap. Su Man even suspected he knew she had stumbled upon a windfall of two thousand coins that day. After deducting the 900 coins from Dalin and Xiaolin, her total revenue of less than two thousand for the day seemed insufficient. If she wanted to buy the artisan, she would have to pay out of her own pocket without touching the shop's revenue. But if she spent her own money and something changed in the territory later, causing her to lose him, wouldn't she be at a loss?

Countless thoughts flashed through Su Man's mind as she rapidly analyzed the pros and cons. Seeming to sense her hesitation, the courier added thoughtfully, "If you add another 500 horror coins, we can turn this artisan into your private servant."

Hearing this, Su Man no longer hesitated. "Do it for me."

Watching the courier handle the business with such efficiency, Su Man sighed inwardly—he was indeed from a major corporation; he certainly knew how to do business. As for poaching him, she had only considered it for a fleeting moment before dismissing the thought. She knew her own limits; the courier was clearly a professionally trained expert. Apart from not having the money, her small temple currently wasn't big enough to house such a "great Buddha."

The courier quickly produced an identity card. It was quite different from the cards held by players like Su Man, but it was identical to those of Youyou and the others. With this card, the artisan was now a local entity. He then took out an unknown device and scanned the giant creature; it instantly shrunk to the size of a normal human. Su Man caught a glimpse of a flash of light inside the device—it was filled with arrays.

After finishing, the courier explained, "Now, he is your servant. Because this type of artisan is a bit dull in intelligence, the command to change his size is with you. You may command him as you wish."

"We look forward to your next visit."

The cost of this package was paid from Su Man’s personal account. Including the windfall from Dalin and Xiaolin, her current revenue stood at [2,580/10,000]. She was one step closer to her mission.

After taking in the artisan, her resolve to complete the mission grew even stronger. Otherwise, the artisan would have no place to put his skills to use. Every penny she spent had to fulfill its value.