Chapter 252: Deposit? What Deposit?

"I know you're anxious, but don't be just yet." The man who had broken into Constantine's house, Ma Ma Zhaodi, continued: "Just this morning, I personally watched a fat man who had just eaten half a restaurant starve to death until he was skin and bones, and his body was surrounded by many flies."

Constantine, who had originally reached out to kick him out, froze. He extracted several key pieces of information from Ma Ma Zhaodi's words.

First, the situation on Lester's body had begun to spread to the streets.

Second, this couldn't be some kind of infectious disease; any normal person could figure it out with their toes. A person who "ate until they starved to death" and a "fat man who turned into skin and bones in minutes" absolutely did not fit science; this was a supernatural event.

Third, this person was a witness to the event, and he was smart enough to know to find a professional on the supernatural side to solve the problem.

Fourth: this matter involved Gluttony, and it involved flies, which gave him even worse thoughts in his heart.

"Alright." Constantine took a deep drag of his cigarette: "No matter where you heard about me, buddy, but since this hasn't spread to you yet, I really don't advise you to get involved. My advice is, go home now, lie in bed and sleep well, and forget everything you saw today."

"Really?" Ma Ma Zhaodi retorted: "Although I'm not an insider, things like mythological knowledge aren't hard to find. I looked up relevant data. Baal, the head of the seventy-two pillars of demons in Canaanite mythology, happens to be the second-in-command of Satan, the Lord of Hell in the Judeo-Christian mythological system, Beelzebub, the King of Flies and Plagues, and corresponds to Gluttony among the Seven Deadly Sins."

Constantine's brow furrowed even deeper. He was a veteran wild mage; although a wild mage, the occult books he had read were diverse and all-encompassing. After Ma Ma Zhaodi revealed the intelligence, the first thing that came to his mind was exactly this Hellish Prime Minister, King of Plagues, and Original Sin of the Seven Deadly Sins.

But that was impossible.

"Kid." He smiled at Ma Ma Zhaodi: "You might have a bit of street smarts and have read some superficial occult books, but you know nothing about Beelzebub, do you? You don't know how terrifying his power is, nor how high his authority is in Hell—if this one had come to the human world, you wouldn't have been able to walk out of the restaurant alive, and I wouldn't have received not a single bit of news."

"Can you imagine an elephant trying to squeeze quietly through a two-meter-high door into a room? What about a Tyrannosaurus Rex? What about a Godzilla? The human world is that room; even if a demon of Beelzebub's stature only projected a portion of his power in, it would be enough to shake the entire human realm."

Here, Constantine spoke of projecting power because there were still some things he hadn't said: The Supreme Being above did not like angels or demons using divine power to overturn mountains and seas, stirring up wind and rain in the human world. In the rules he set, for angels or demons to squeeze into the human world, they must weaken their own power and appear in human form.

If Beelzebub wanted to use his true form to come to the human world for a stroll, he would have to give up a significant portion of his power, which was absolutely unacceptable to him. Most importantly, he simply had no need to do so; a few, or even hundreds, of human souls were not worth such a massive mobilization of power for him.

Hearing Constantine's answer, Ma Ma Zhaodi asked again: "But if it's not Beelzebub, then who could it be?"

That was actually a good question.

Constantine instinctively turned his head to look at Lester on the side. During the time the two had been talking, this old friend had already dried his body and changed clothes. Although his bath might not have been clean enough, at this moment, clarifying the ins and outs of the matter was the most important thing.

"In any case," Ma Ma Zhaodi replied: "You can treat this matter as a commission. You help me investigate the ins and outs of this event, and I will give you twenty thousand US dollars—how does that sound?"

"Deal."

The moment Ma Ma Zhaodi's words left his mouth, Constantine immediately changed his attitude and agreed to this commission without any scruples.

"We have an agreement beforehand." He pressed the cigarette butt in his hand into the ashtray and lit another one for himself: "Although I am Constantine, Master of Black Magic, things like evil spirits are always unsafe. You must pay a deposit first."

"How about ten thousand US dollars?" Ma Ma Zhaodi shrugged: "Give me an account, and I'll transfer it to you directly."

At this moment, he was secretly delighted. If it were before, reaching an agreement with this scum mage would have required a lot of effort, but at this moment, the feeling of being able to solve problems by spending money was simply too convenient.

I always thought Bruce Wayne was already very happy, he thought to himself. I was wrong; I cannot even imagine the happiness of Bruce Wayne.

After Ma Ma Zhaodi finished transferring the money, Constantine spoke again.

"There is one more thing. I cannot fully guarantee your personal safety, so once you get involved in this matter, life and death are up to fate. If you want to back out, there is still a chance now."

"What about the deposit?"

"What deposit?"

"... byd Constantine—I know that one too. Is there anything else?"

"Nothing else, buddy—welcome to London, welcome to the crazy supernatural world."

Constantine smiled and took a deep drag of his cigarette. Even without Ma Ma Zhaodi's commission, he had originally planned to investigate Lester's matter thoroughly; he just didn't expect to be able to make a big profit on the side.

I am so lucky.

Ma Ma Zhaodi also showed a smile on his face. For him, the most important thing was Asset Points; US dollars were one of the means to acquire Asset Points. And if this were in Gotham, a quote of twenty thousand US dollars would not be enough to hire any super-criminal to ally with him—the name of Calamity Star was already thunderous there.

I am so lucky.

Just as the two, each with their own hidden agendas, smiled at each other, the door suddenly made a sound.

Knock knock knock!

"Wait a moment, my friend has probably arrived."

Constantine, with a cigarette in his mouth, told Ma Ma Zhaodi one thing, then walked out and opened the room door. A middle-aged man wearing a jacket with a solid face walked in from outside. His attire was quite ordinary and wouldn't stand out much in a crowd; few people could imagine that this unremarkable middle-aged driver was actually one of the oldest friends who had lived the longest by Constantine's side.

"Friend, how have you been recently?" Constantine hugged him: "Did you bring the powder?"

"I brought it." The middle-aged man replied gloomily: "Although I don't like doing this."

Constantine looked at Lester on the sofa, who was in a daze, holding his head and muttering to himself, then took a deep drag of his cigarette.

"Old friend, when did you get so many taboos? Let him get his fill, so we can ask questions."

(End of Chapter)