That was precisely Chloe's long lost money pouch.
She widened her eyes slightly: "Did you steal it?"
The man shook his head: "Of course not, I snatched it back from a habitual thief."
He gently placed the money pouch in Chloe's palm, saying:
"Here, I'm returning it to you."
"Perhaps you'd like to come with me and see the rogue who stole your money pouch?"
That was a decent proposal.
Chloe was also curious to see what kind of master thief could have sneakily stolen her money pouch right from under her nose.
And so they didn't hesitate for too long, quickly nodding in agreement.
The man in the black cloak curled his lips into a smile, politely bowing slightly towards them:
"Follow me, children."
After speaking, he turned and led the way.
Chloe hesitated for a moment, but soon gritted her teeth and followed.
Whatever, if there really was any danger, one swing of her sword would finish them off.
Clearly, her other companions thought the same.
They went forward, turning this way and that, until they came across another secret door.
Chloe and the others watched as the man pulled a wall sconce, and immediately the wall began to rotate open.
She raised an eyebrow, muttering:
"Was this casino built by a rat reincarnated? So many holes."
Daniel added from behind: "Or by the ultimate mighty rat."
The man who had just entered the secret passage: "..."
It seemed there was an undeniable generation gap between him and these kids.
The man pretended not to have heard their conversation, continuing forward as naturally as possible.
Upon entering the secret passage, it felt isolated from the glittering world outside.
The lighting here was quite dim, with lamps hanging high up on the walls, their faint glow only visible if one looked carefully.
Chloe silently criticized in her heart - who designed this wretched place? It's utterly impractical everywhere.
If this design was in Vampire Manor, the designer would probably get flayed by Xavier, at the very least.
Before they knew it, they reached the end of the secret passage, and after turning left, a flickering flame appeared ahead.
Emitting a bright, glaring orange hue.
The man stopped, turning slightly:
"This is the place."
His head turned precisely towards Chloe as he nodded:
"Little one, please observe carefully."
Chloe was indeed observing carefully, but not at anything else - rather, at the man's hood.
How strange, the hood hadn't spoken, yet it was covering him so thoroughly, yet this man could still accurately identify her?
The man's smile froze, and only after a moment did he calmly remind:
"Little one, look ahead."
"Oh, right."
Chloe snapped out of her daze, turning her head to look straight ahead.
She saw a massive bonfire with a giant crucifix erected over it, upon which a man was nailed.
This man had his head bowed, face obscured, with long hair hanging down towards the fire, nearly burnt away, though one could vaguely make out that it had originally been red.
Chloe decided to call him Red Hair, to distinguish him from the man before them.
"You mean this Red Hair stole my money pouch?"
Chloe asked.
The man was momentarily surprised by her casual nickname, but then nodded: "Yes."
He stepped forward, standing by the bonfire, and used an iron tong propped beside the crucifix to lift Red Hair's head.
His face was covered in scars, seemingly from being whipped, complementing his singed, disheveled hair to make him look utterly wretched.
Chloe's brow furrowed slightly: "You tortured him?"
The man shrugged, quipping: "Well, thieves aren't good people after all."
Then he tilted his head:
"Don't tell me you've developed a morbid curiosity about this scoundrel? Oh, there's absolutely no need for that."
"Because once you find out, you'll realize this man is nothing but a worthless, thoroughly wicked thief beyond redemption!"
Chloe: "..."
She couldn't say anything for the moment.
But behind her, Daniel caught onto something, glaring at the man:
"Are you trying to mislead us?"
"What gives you the right to randomly point at someone and say he stole our money pouch, and expect us to believe you?"
Daniel bared his teeth at him:
"You've been deliberately slandering him this whole time, do you really think we're that stupid in your eyes?"
As the words fell, Chloe coughed twice.
Whether they were stupid or not was unclear, but Daniel did seem to have some association with that word.
The man sighed:
"Such hurtful words."
He slowly tossed the iron tong aside, speaking softly:
"Yet I tortured this man mercilessly the moment I discovered his thievery."
"After all, such folk are nothing but a blight upon the casino and Barren Planet."
Hearing this, everyone unconsciously recalled the random child thieves outside the casino.
Qin Huaibei could no longer hold back, muttering: "Does this man even know what he's saying, spouting such nonsense?"
The man may or may not have heard this remark.
He paid it no heed, instead gazing earnestly at Chloe:
"My dear, I've helped you recover such a vast sum, won't you properly thank me?"
Chloe looked at her money pouch, casually taking out a few gold coins and offering them to him:
"Perhaps you need these as a token of gratitude?"
The man glanced at the gold coins, smiling: "My dear, I'm not one for material things. Rather than such vulgar wealth, I'd prefer something else entirely."
Chloe: "..."
She simply tossed her money pouch to Qin Huaibei, asking:
"Then what do you want?"
The man politely replied:
"Perhaps I could have your contact information?"
Chloe paused.
She looked up leisurely at the man before her.
Her gaze traveled inch by inch over his body and clothing, as if appraising, yet also evaluating.
"You want my contact information?"
The man nodded eagerly: "Yes."
Daniel called out from behind:
"Who do you think you are, daring to ask for her contact info?"
"You're not some weirdo with a fetish, are you?"
The man immediately retreated a few steps, heartbroken:
"You actually have such malicious thoughts in suspecting me, it truly saddens me!"
His eyes, hidden beneath his cloak, turned toward Chloe:
"Little one, you don't think that way about me, do you? I was so kind as to help you find your money pouch, how could I be that kind of... strange person?"
Chloe looked at him, unconvinced, and finally said:
"But you do seem quite like that type of deviant in many ways."
