High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 991: Chapter 53: The Troublesome Fatty

”Is there still a barbecue stall in the Forest Goods Market?”

Having just dropped a chicken bone, Xin Fat Man, who was looking out the window in boredom, suddenly sniffed and asked his companions with interest, ”Could it be wild game from the forest being barbecued? How come I didn’t see it just now... Are you guys full, do you want to go check it out together?”

Zheng Qing looked expressionlessly at the small pile of clean chicken bones in front of the fat man, resisting the urge to make a snide remark.

But he still followed Xin Fat Man’s gaze out the window.

Suddenly, a trail of blue smoke had risen from the previously calm and peaceful Forest Goods Market. The smoke, blue mixed with grey, formed a pillar as if a towering bamboo, piercing straight into the gray-white sky above the market.

Zheng Qing furrowed his brow.

Despite the fat man’s claim that it was smoke from a barbecue stand, he felt something was not quite right.

”No, that’s not smoke from a barbecue stand.” Xiao Xiao’s response was much more certain than Zheng Qing’s. He also looked out the window, his tone very calm, ”That is a smoke column that accompanies a fire.”

As if to illustrate the doctor’s answer, several violent explosions suddenly came from the tranquil Forest Goods Market, rattling the glass windows of the restaurant.

Looking at the sky over the market again, from a distance, flickers of flame were beginning to overshadow the color of sunlight, staining the colors of the sky.

In the faint distance, there also seemed to be a few beastly roars.

Zheng Qing inhaled a breath of cold air, braced his hands on the table, and stood up abruptly.

On a normal day, such an action would certainly draw everyone’s attention. But now, compared to the other patrons in the restaurant, the young cost student’s movement was very mild and very quiet.

After the explosions, the few girls sitting by the window began to scream, holding their heads — the witch with the thin voice and sharp chin was slightly more composed, tossing out an amulet that enveloped all of them.

The couple diagonally behind were a bit dumbfounded, the young warlock still hugging the witch as if they had just finished whispering sweet nothings, looking outside with a dazed and slightly irritated expression. This impressed Zheng Qing.

And the fat man at the table diagonally in front of Zheng Qing and the others—the one enjoying the service of the Toothpick Elves—was not so lucky; he was the only customer in the restaurant who was affected and bled.

To be exact, it was the blood of the Toothpick Sprites.

When the explosion burst forth suddenly, the fat customer’s jaw quivered, and he clenched his mouth shut. Then his throat moved as if swallowing saliva. When he opened his mouth again in panic, aside from a pale green bloodstain left on his teeth, those hardworking little sprites had already disappeared without a trace.

Zheng Qing felt his stomach churning inside him.

”They’re not like the sprites you keep as pets. To put it another way, it’s like the difference between humans and monkeys.” Xiao Xiao, perceiving the change in Zheng Qing’s complexion, reassured him softly, ”Think about it differently, those little creatures are grown from the earth, not unlike green dates or wild apricots... In fact, according to the Wizard’s Encyclopedia, their blood and flesh have a similar sweet fragrance, which is to prevent incidents like this from happening.”

The doctor’s explanation made Zheng Qing feel slightly better.

But only slightly.

When he saw those Toothpick Sprites, under the command of the fat customer, tremblingly crawl back into his wide mouth, he still couldn’t suppress the feeling of nausea and turned his face away forcefully, trying to forget the scene.

It wasn’t that his compassion had overflowed to the extent of crossing species boundaries—for example, seeing someone mistreat cats or dogs would always trigger a certain level of empathy in people. Like the slaughter industry, slaughtering for work is one thing, but torturing for pleasure is deviant. He felt he could never understand why some people enjoy dishes like ”Three Squeaks.”

But enough digression.

After several previous encounters with Zheng Qing, when the Trident Sword or similar responsible agencies arrived belatedly, today their response was exceptionally quick — or rather, it wasn’t them, it was him.

”Beta Town Security Bureau!”

”Beta Town Security Bureau! Everyone, keep your hands on the table and don’t pull out your law books!”

”I am Robert Lee, captain of the patrol team for North Beita Town... Everybody stay calm! Please remain seated, keep quiet, and wait for further instructions!”

After several explosions had sounded, the patron who just entered and ordered a portion of crucible frog, and who the proprietress called ’Old Li,’ shouted loudly, quelling the sudden noise within the eatery.

At the same time, he took out an enforcement badge from inside his robe and raised it high for everyone around to see.

The silver-white badge of the Beta Town Security Bureau glinted in the sunlight.

A light green Tranquility halo also flashed briefly along with the display of the badge, calming down the originally frantic customers in the restaurant. Only the aftershocks of the explosion lingered stubbornly among the window ledges, leaving a faint buzzing.

Once the customers had calmed down, they uneasily looked out the window at the ominous red cloud above the Forest Goods Market and fell into a unanimous silence.

As everyone knew, a group of emissaries from the Duoni People had just entered the Forest Goods Market.

And now, giant explosions were emanating from inside the market.

Anybody would have ominous thoughts rise within them. After the commotion, a wave of whispers swept through the eatery. Each customer quietly speculated about what exactly had happened inside the Forest Goods Market.

”Captain Li, should I also put away my law book?” The eatery owner patted the slightly greasy book under her hand and asked with a smile.

The captain of the patrol team turned around and gave a wry smile. ”Don’t stir up trouble!

The proprietress rolled her eyes.

”It looks like your meal is going to be delayed again,” she said, as she tucked her own law book away in a drawer below the counter, then pouted, ”But you don’t have to worry, a frog that’s been peeled and thrown into the pot can’t jump away.”

”Ah,” complained Robert Lee, annoyed, as he put away his enforcement badge, ”Damn Duoni People, neither earlier nor later... Seal my frog in the crucible and I’ll pick it up after I’m done.”

”No problem.” The beads of the abacus under the proprietress’s hand clicked and clacked. ”Three Silver Corners, on account or cash?”

”The usual, put it on my tab,” Robert Lee waved his hand and then, filled with worry, glanced again in the direction of the Forest Goods Market. After much hesitation, he made up his mind and looked toward the patrons in the eatery, ”Are there any registered hunters here? No level restriction, any hunter on the roster will do.”

The eatery fell into silence.

Wherever his gaze landed, whether it was the witch by the window, the couple, or the Fat Wizard picking his teeth with the help of a Toothpick Elf, all shook their heads.

This was not surprising given that registered hunters were considered among the elite in the Wizard World, most of whom were either striving in the New World or training in the Hunting Ground; it was rare for anyone to have nothing better to do than eat in a small eatery by the roadside in North District.

The disappointment hadn’t fully left the patrol captain’s face when he spotted an arm raised high.

”Does a prospective registered hunter count?” Xin Fat Man swung his arm vigorously in mid-air, his face flush with the excited red glow of scooping a big scoop of news: ”Our hunting team won first place in the last freshman contest at school!”