"The matter is over... huh?" Bilt looked somewhat pleasantly surprised at Gehrman Sparrow, his smile stiffening after noticing Alice, who followed in behind and closed the door.
Alice raised her head in confusion to look at Bilt. After hesitating a moment, she asked Klein, "Should I go out?"
A drop of cold sweat slid down from Bilt's forehead, soaking into his eyelashes. He blinked reflexively, and the sweat got into his eyes, bringing an indescribable discomfort, but he didn't dare raise his hand to wipe it. Half-squinting one eye, he said:
"No, no need, your arrival is just right.
"Looks like things ended smoothly?"
Alice looked toward Klein.
Klein nodded:
"Admiral Amelius has returned.
"What about the remaining payment?"
Bilt's smile became a bit lighter. He personally went to the safe, took out 500 pounds worth of gold coins and a cerulean cuff button, and secretly wiped at his eyes.
Alice thought for a moment but still didn't expose him. Staring at that cuff button, she focused her thoughts—her spirituality merged with the spirit world, and the cuff button's function was fully revealed without any concealment.
Alice rubbed her chin, turned her head, and asked, "Are you going to 'go to sea'?"
This sentence was asked in Chinese. Bilt didn't understand it—even if he had, he wouldn't grasp the deeper meaning inside.
Deeply steeped in internet culture, Klein realized that this "go to sea" had a hidden meaning. He glanced at the tactfully silent Bilt, then turned to Alice and said:
"I already offered my body, mind, and soul to you long ago, Lady of Fate."
This line was also in Chinese, so Bilt continued to cooperate by keeping silent, as if he didn't exist at all. After staring at Klein in silence for a full ten seconds, Alice shifted her gaze to his waist.
And so, this war without gunfire ended with Klein voluntarily admitting defeat.
Klein turned his head expressionlessly to Bilt, took the remaining payment and cuff button, and asked, "What does it do?"
Bilt calmly explained:
"This is a magical item made from the fishman swim bladder you provided.
"It can generate illusionary scales hidden beneath the skin, making you hard to grab like a fish, and helping you endure some damage.
"Besides that, it allows you to dive at least 15 meters without protection, and move freely underwater for 10 minutes.
"Its negative effect isn't big—it just makes you tire more easily in hot or dry places..."
"Dried grilled fish!" Alice's eyes lit up.
This... Bilt subconsciously looked at Gehrman Sparrow. It was obvious this phrase was used to describe this mad adventurer.
Klein turned toward Alice expressionlessly, showing a calm smile, then said in a gentle tone:
"Get out."
Receiving the "get out" command for the third time, Alice still hesitated and glanced at the floor, then obediently walked to the door and exited, closing the door behind her.
Bilt stared in astonishment at this scene. After Alice closed the door, he looked at Gehrman Sparrow with extreme reverence in his eyes. He had just opened his mouth to speak when Klein reminded him:
"She can see and hear."
Bilt swallowed the admiration that had risen to his lips, and instead brought up another topic:
"It doesn't have a name yet. You can give it one."
After two seconds of silence, Klein glanced at the door and replied:
"Salted dried fish."
"...Good name, very fitting," Bilt responded with a dry laugh, also subconsciously glancing at the door.
After a pause, he continued:
"That 'Artisan' said he could solidify the summoning ritual for a spirit world creature onto spiritually active material, lasting up to one and a half years, but you'll need to provide detailed data.
"Hehe, as agreed, I'll cover the cost. You don't need to worry."
Klein thought for a moment, then turned to ask in the direction of the door, "Do you have any suggestions about the appearance?"
Alice, who had been eavesdropping, silently opened the door and slipped back in. Then she tentatively gave Klein a suggestion:
"Poké Ball?
"That way when you need it, you can throw it out and the messenger appears. Very fitting..."
"Shut up." Klein mercilessly rejected the proposal.
Alice obediently covered her mouth, then lowered her hand and gave another suggestion:
"Then you could also try Ultraman's transformation device..."
This time, Klein didn't wait for her to finish before snapping through gritted teeth: "Shut up!"
Even though he didn't understand a few of the proper nouns, Bilt still deduced from Gehrman Sparrow's reaction that this probably wasn't a reliable suggestion, so he tactically remained silent.
Under Klein's threatening gaze, Alice again reached up to cover her mouth, and at the same time stepped back half a step to show sincerity.
Klein withdrew his gaze, and as if nothing had happened, said to Bilt: "Make it into a harmonica."
"So you like musical instruments!" Alice suddenly realized, "How about trying a squeaky chicken..."
"Get out!" Klein turned his head and shot her a single word.
Alice silently covered her mouth and stepped back a few more steps.
And so, Bilt understood—the harmonica was the final result of their "negotiation." He took out pen and paper and had Gehrman Sparrow write down the messenger summoning ritual.
After taking the note, Bilt glanced at it and said:
"A messenger? That's quite rare. Extraordinary beings outside the Death pathway find it hard to get a suitable messenger.
"Hmm, if during production a messenger is accidentally summoned, you need to give her a gold coin... What if you don't?
"Heh, spirit world creatures always have oddities. I've seen ones particularly fond of music, and even ones lingering near feces."
"Spirit world creatures have lots of strange hobbies..." Alice muttered, "Not giving... if you don't give it, uh..."
She recalled the angel carrying four heads and tactfully said: "If you don't give it, He might come back with five heads..."
"...He?" Even though he didn't understand the second half of the sentence, Bilt still questioned Alice's choice of pronoun.
Alice blinked and replied:
"That's right, it's 'He'～"
One angel as bodyguard, another as messenger... Bilt took a deep breath, didn't dare look at Gehrman Sparrow, and forced a smile:
"Thank you for informing me."
"You're welcome." Alice waved her hand generously.
Klein reached out and tugged her once. After she wisely quieted down, he finally said: "The third item production, let's talk about it later."
Bilt nodded, then glanced at the two of them, somewhat curiously asking:
"Mister Gehrman, how did you conceal the secretary Luoran, Governor Austin, and Miss Cynthia—all people Admiral Amelius specifically mentioned?"
Especially with her in tow... He sneakily glanced at Alice.