There's No Love In the Deathzone (BL) novel Chapter 358

Chapter 358: Chapter 350. Touch of Memory (3)

"What an honor,"

Calix received the hand of the man in front of him, who he hadn’t seen in years already. They knew each other in college instead of an esper academy, despite them both being an esper. The man had a youthful smile that never changed since their old days, but aside from that, his appearance was plain and forgettable.

And it was something he had always been carefully crafted.

"Haha, what are you talking about?" he chuckled in response as they shook hands. "I’m just a middle-aged man squandering my son’s money."

"I know," the man smirked while glancing at Radia, who was standing behind his father with a casual smile. It was rare to see this father and son pair together even in high society events, so it was rather fascinating to him. "You enjoy it so much that you rarely go home anymore, so of course it is an honor having you coming here in one of those rare moments."

"You know me really well," Calix chuckled at the deliberate attempt to make him know that this man kept a tab on him all the time. _{fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓}

The man rolled his eyes and turned around, telling them to follow him into the well-kept inner yard in the middle of the building. Along the way, Radia observed how the staff and other members of the House bowed their heads deeply when the man passed, despite the way he dressed like one of them.

Obviously, this man wasn’t ’one of them’.

Yuria Apsoro was the ’patriarch’, but also wasn’t. The patriarch that the public knew was his cousin, but it was this man who had decision-making authority in the clan and of course, all information the clan worked for all went through his hand. There were only a handful of people who knew about this fact, and Calix was one of them.

And that was why he accompanied his son to go here. Otherwise, Radia would have to go through the hassle of the fake patriarch. Not a desired path, when they were already pressed for time.

They arrived in a pavilion above a fish pond, and as they climbed the wooden steps, Yuria let out a sigh. "I’m a bit disappointed, though..." the man glanced back and narrowed his green-flecked hazel eyes. "You should have already left this place three days ago, but you came back, and the first thing you do is visit me," he paused for a few seconds before continuing dryly. "It’ll be nicer if you’re here to see me, you know, rather than my family’s business."

Radia tilted his head slightly; he didn’t know much about his father’s old friend because most of Calix’s time had been spent with Laurel. He thought that Yuria was just an old acquaintance, but it was clear now that they were much closer than that.

"Don’t sulk," Calix replied with a calm smile as he took off his shoes. "I’ll play with you after this."

"Don’t go back on your words," Yuria pointed his fingers to the other man.

Radia had to hold himself back from raising his brows. He understood now why his father advised him to seek Apsoro’s help without hesitation despite the uncertainty of the people involved. So he decided to just sit back and follow his father today.

Taking a seat behind the table in the middle of the pavilion. "So, in what do you require my service?" again, he glanced toward Radia. "Something about the Deathzone?"

"Maybe," Radia replied simply with a subtle smile.

Yuria leaned his back on the lazy chair, crossing his arms as he looked at Radia curiously. "I have to say, however, that we can’t go to the Deathzone without a proper contract attached to reclamation rights," he said, which was in line with the rule set by the government. "So if you want to know the condition there now, we need that contract."

"Oh, don’t worry about that," Radia shook his head and smiled at the staff that served him tea. "We don’t really need it."

"Hmm?" Yuria tilted his head slightly, eyes narrowed inquisitively at the quick dismissal. "Well, of course--you already had a map from last year’s expedition," he nodded and tapped his chin. He didn’t want to lose a chance if it was to be presented to him, however. "But things change fast in just a few months, you know."

"We never said it has something about the reclamation project," Calix said.

Yuria, who was about to lift his teacup, paused and narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"We just want to borrow your memory trace."

Radia’s summon couldn’t read something without eyes, so seeing where the boxes had been would be impossible. Yuria’s ability, meanwhile, allowed him to trace the mana attached to items, and read what the mana ’see’ instead. It was an ability that had been passed down from generation to generation for those who would become the patriarch; a rare inherited skill that didn’t need to be obtained through the Tower’s trial.

Eyes still narrowed skeptically, Yuria’s whole visage turned from a lighthearted friend to a business partner. "Alright," with a dry tone, he opened his palm. "Which item do I have to see?"

Radia took out the boxes one by one from his storage rings, still with the materials inside. He lined them up on the tea tray and shoved it lightly to the middle of the table.

"...I’m about to say that I charged per item, but I remember you’re filthy rich," Yuria pursed his lips, looking at all five boxes which meant he had to work five times.

Calix replied with a playful wink, while Radia took out a piece of paper and put it beside the tray. "We narrowed it down to these sites. You just need to pinpoint the location."

Yuria took the paper and scanned it, curling his lips slightly. "I like it when my client does the legwork first," he said, before adding with a sharp gaze. "But it won’t affect the rate."