Chapter 7

Charlie hissed in pain. His anger dissipated, leaving behind only fear and reverence.

"Scram," Benedict commanded coldly as he released the fork.

"You embarrassing idiot! You're dismissed!" Gavin reprimanded Charlie, clearly displeased.

Charlie grabbed the wound on his arm and nodded. He turned to leave, still sweating buckets from the pain and fear.

After Charlie left, Gavin smiled apologetically at Benedict and said, "Pardon me for not keeping my subordinates in check. Young man, not only are you well-versed in geomancy, but you're also an expert in martial arts."

Benedict shook his head. "That's nothing much. Is there anything else?"

It was a clear hint telling Gavin not to bother him unless there was something important.

Gavin bade farewell without any hesitation. "Nothing else. I shan't bother you two anymore. Please enjoy the meal."

After leaving with Kenny and the rest in tow, Gavin stood at a corner not far away and pondered his options. Then, he pulled out a golden card from his pocket and handed it to Kenny.

"Go, give this card to that young man just now."

There was a realistic dragon on the card, lending it an expensive and elegant flair.

Kenny was dumbfounded. "Monarch, this is a royal member card. Are you sure you want to give it to that young man?"

"I've seen my fair share of experts. I can sense that this young man is hiding outstanding talent and abilities. I want to be friends with him before he displays the full extent of what he is truly capable of!" Gavin urged Kenny, "Go on! Don't ask any more stupid questions."

"Yes, sir! I'm on it." Kenny grabbed the card and hurried over to Benedict.

Benedict said with a frown, "Why are you back again?"

"Well, Monarch instructed me to give you this royal member card in hopes of making friends with you. From today onward, all the meals you enjoy in Riverside Piazza will be free of charge for life. You also have the right to enjoy the royal supreme set meal."

Kenny held the precious card carefully in both hands as he presented it to Benedict.

"Goodness, the royal member card?!" Victoria gasped in shock, wide-eyed with disbelief.

This card was something that even she and her father didn't dare to dream of!

The fact that the monarch was willing to give Benedict this card showed that he genuinely wanted to befriend Benedict. He truly took Benedict as an important figure.

Benedict, who knew a thing or two about the royal member card himself, sat stunned. He paused for a moment before shaking his head.

"I didn't do anything to deserve this. Please take it back."

Just then, Gavin walked to Benedict's table and said with a bright smile, "Young man, please don't feel burdened to accept the card. I consider myself a rather important figure in Southshore. Being a friend of mine is certainly not unworthy of you."

Benedict sighed, unable to reject Gavin's eagerness to be friends.

"It would be ungracious of me to turn down your kind offer. In that case, I'll accept the card. If the expert you hired can't solve your kitchen's geomancy problem, I'll come by and take a look for you."

"That would be great!" Gavin said with a chuckle, seizing the chance to raise a toast to Benedict and chat with him.

Benedict didn't want to tell Gavin his real name with Victoria still around, so he continued addressing himself as Tristan Drake. Gavin addressed him as Tristan, given that he was the older of the two. Meanwhile, Benedict addressed him as Mr. Lyons.

Victoria was completely awestruck at how Benedict and the monarch became such good friends in a matter of minutes.

Indeed, Mr. Drake was a bigshot even Mr. Webber looked up to!

'Even someone like the monarch was willing to see him as an equal and was so eager to give him the royal member card. Not only is Mr. Drake medically skilled, he even knows a thing or two about geomancy. The Marshalls must definitely maintain a good relationship with him!' she thought.

A while later, another elderly man walked into Riverside Piazza with a smartly dressed middle-aged man.

"Monarch, Master Jacobson is here," the middle-aged man reported respectfully as he brought the other elderly man in.

Gavin turned to greet the elderly man with a smile. "Master Jacobson, thank you for coming all the way here. Was the journey here smooth?"

"You're too kind, Monarch. I'm very fit and well-trained. I won't be exhausted if you asked me to hike up mountains and traverse valleys to get here, not to mention take a plane ride," the elderly man said with a smile and a wave of his hand.

He wore a black robe with dragon embroidery. His long hair was tied up neatly, and he sported a goatee. He looked rather haughty, and spoke with a pretentious tone laced with conceit.

"Master Jacobson, you truly are extraordinary. If it were me, I'd be completely spent from the journey," Gavin praised heartily.

"Monarch, you must be joking. You're used to a life of comfort and luxury. How could you possibly compare yourself to someone like me, who's used to the hardships of arduous journeys and traveling?"

Master Jacobson changed the subject with a wave of his hand.

"I have something else important to attend to after solving your kitchen's problem. I have to rush somewhere else to help another wealthy businessman check the layout of his house. Time is of the essence. Let's head to the kitchen right away."

Gavin nodded, then turned to ask Benedict, "Tristan, why don't you come with me and Master Jacobson?"

"No problem," Benedict said with a nod. He stood up and said to Victoria, "Stay here, I'll be back in a jiffy."

Master Jacobson didn't know who Benedict was, and glanced at Benedict before retracting his gaze.

They left the dining hall and headed to the kitchen.

Gavin had wanted to stand in the middle with Master Jacobson and Benedict flanking him on both sides. However, Benedict took the initiative to lag behind by a few steps so Gavin could be by Master Jacobson's side, while he remained with Kenny and the rest at the back.

Master Jacobson smirked haughtily, thinking to himself that a young man like Benedict wasn't fit to walk side-by-side with him and the monarch.

Riverside Piazza's kitchen was huge, on par with those found in five-star hotels. However, it looked rather empty and quiet at the moment as most of the kitchen crew had fallen sick and were absent.

The moment the entourage arrived in the kitchen, they saw a chef holding his neck and yelping in pain as he worked.

The kitchen crew had been complaining of pain in the neck, as though someone was chopping away at it with knives and axes. However, doctors never found the reason behind the pain even after they visited the hospital. Some of the crew felt so much pain, they had to take a leave of absence from work. Others bore with the pain and continued reporting to work.

"Yet another chef with pain in the neck," Kenny sighed.

Gavin turned to Master Jacobson and asked, "Master, can you tell where the problem lies?"

"Let me take a closer look."

Master Jacobson looked around the kitchen and approached the chef to ask about the pain in the neck. He also examined the chef's facial features and complexion.

He then said confidently to Gavin, "From the looks of it, these people have offended the kitchen deity. This is their punishment. It's not a major issue, and I have just the solution for it."

Gavin glanced in Benedict's direction. Seeing no change in Benedict's expression, he said, "Please go ahead, Master Jacobson. You'll be rewarded handsomely if the problem is solved."

Master Jacobson chuckled gleefully, then pulled out a couple of amulets and a sword. He chanted something to himself before flinging the amulets in the air. He opened his mouth and exhaled hard, causing the amulets to burst into flames.

After that, he raised the sword high and waved it around. By the time the amulets touched the ground, they had all turned into ashes.

"Alright! I've appeased the kitchen deity's anger. The problem is solved. In a few days, their necks won't be in pain anymore."

"The problem's solved just like that?" Gavin asked doubtfully.

He turned to look at Benedict.

Benedict shook his head. "This has nothing to do with the kitchen deity. He just suppressed the malevolent spirits here temporarily. The neck pain plaguing your kitchen crew will go away in a few days, but the root cause remains unresolved. The malevolent spirits will return sooner or later."

"What do you know, young man?" Master Jacobson berated Benedict.

Benedict gave Master Jacobson a half-smile and didn't bother explaining himself. Instead, he lifted a hand and grabbed at the air before flinging it in Master Jacobson's way.

The next moment, Master Jacobson grabbed his neck and yelped in pain.

"You scoundrel! What did you do? It hurts so badly!"

"I'm just letting you have a taste of the neck pain they've suffered. This is a result of your incompetence and lack of skill, after all," Benedict said calmly, putting his hands behind his back.