Chapter 299: Chapter 300

Jake was a natural-born poker face as he never showed signs of happiness or grief on the surface. As time passed, he developed a gloomy aura around him.

“A grave robber pretending to be a ghost, this is creative…” Casper sized him up and said, “How much can you get for a month working here?”

“Four thousand a month, and meals provided,” Jake replied. He then looked at Casper and said, “It seems like you are not doing as good as me.”

The latter was rendered speechless.

During the Antique Fair, Jake only noticed Casper was close with Victoria and had good skills. Other than that, he could not recall much. So he did not realize that Casper was wealthy as he assumed he was just a staff in Victoria’s Chamber.

Casper coughed and said, “Have you eaten? Let me buy you a meal.”

He brought Jake to a stall selling burritos on Horington food street. They sat down, and Casper placed his order. “One burrito, please, and I want everything in it.”

Jake was flustered. “Are you buying me food?”

Seeing his response, Casper was a bit intrigued and asked, “After digging graves with your dad, shouldn’t the rewards be more than enough to support you a lifetime? Are you really this poor?”

Jake shook his head and responded, “Since I have decided to quit the field, I should not be spending that money.”

Casper did not know what rules he was referring to, but from Jake’s staring at the burrito, though his expression did not show, it was obvious to Casper that he was starving.

Casper then offered, “Come work for me, and I’ll offer you two hundred thousand a month.”

Jake turned and looked at Casper, keeping mum. The latter could not guess what was in his mind and assumed his offer was insufficient, so he continued, “Just say how much you want. It’s up to you, and there’s no need to feel shy around me.”

Jake was actually wondering if Casper could afford the money, but he wanted to finish the meal before continuing on this topic. So he said, “Let me think about it.”

After hearing the man’s words, Casper glanced at him. This guy even knows how to negotiate. Fine! I sure will satisfy whatever amount he asks!

The other day when Jake went up against Gunther, they were equally good. And Jake destroyed a rifle with just a bamboo skewer. Casper was very impressed with him, and he even stood up for Jake.

Jake looked at the burrito being served, and he gobbled it up. He asked while eating, “This thing is called a burrito, but why does it look like a wrap?”

Casper replied, “You don’t know, do you? The burrito is served hot, so you can think of this as the warm version of a wrap.”

Jake hummed in acknowledgment. He stared at Casper’s hand holding the phone and asked, “Do you have money to pay?”

Casper raised his eyebrow and said, “You think I can’t afford this?” He then used his phone to scan the stall owner’s code and casually paid the owner two thousand.

The stall owner was shocked and looked over. “Mister, I think you have accidentally inserted a few extra zeroes?”

Casper responded, “This is payment in advance for my friend to have his meals here in the future. So there is no need to bill him.”

The stall owner glanced at Jake and said, “Your friend here is easy to remember. I won’t collect money from a good-looking guy with white hair next time when he comes to eat.”

Casper simply waved his hand and said, “What do you think? Are you still worried about me not able to afford things?”

Jake raised his chin slightly and said, “Are you from Victoria’s Chamber? I won’t continue being a grave robber. If you intend to recruit me for grave robbery, you can forget about it.”

Casper shook his head, “No, I don’t work for Victoria, and I’m not from the Lanes as well. I went to the Antique Fair because they invited me, and I want to recruit you because of the skills you possess. I want to make use of your skills for myself. My intention is not to ask you to do things like grave robbery.”

Casper thought that it was better to be honest since he wanted Jake to work for him.

Jake thought for a while and said, “I remember you. You were the one who stood up for me that day. I owe you once, and I’ll return your favor by working for you.”

Jake rose from his seat and knelt on one knee. He made a gesture of loyalty toward Casper and said, “From now onward, Jake Hunter from the Hunter family will be at your command.”

Casper was thrilled, and he quickly helped Jake up.

Beside them, the burrito stall owner glanced at them. What’s so exciting about someone buying him a meal that he even got to his knee?

Casper went straight to the haunted house and looked for the haunted house’s owner. With Jake resigning from his current job, this whole street now belonged to him. Asking for someone was just a piece of cake.

Casper turned toward Jake and asked, “Do you have a place to stay?”

The latter nodded. “Yes, I still live with my father, but we have discussed and agreed previously. Once I get my pay this month and can afford to live on my own, my father is going to chase me out…”

Casper was surprised and said, “Your father is strange. Why would he want to chase you out?”

Jake paused for a bit and said, “This is the rule. Since I want to quit, I need to be clear-cut.” Jake’s expression still did not show a trace of emotions. He lifted his five fingers and said, “And on the day I have completely quitted grave robbery, I will need to cut off my index finger and middle finger from my right hand, abolish my skills, as a guarantee I will not return to this.”

Casper lost his cool and exclaimed, “No way! This is definitely not acceptable!”

He looked at Jake’s hand, which was slender like a woman’s. Each finger of his was just fair and beautiful, and they hold skills accumulated through more than ten years of practice. Casper felt his heart sink at the thought of Jake cutting off his two fingers.

If he loses all his skills, what is the point of him working for me?

Casper held Jake’s hand in a protective way, just like a mother hen, as if he was afraid that Jake would lose two of his fingers all of a sudden.

“You can’t succumb to that. Where is your father now? I want to talk to him.”

Casper was furious. He wanted to meet Darian immediately and see what kind of father would want to cut off the fingers of his own son.

Jake explained, “This is the rule. It can’t be changed. Mr. Simpson, I was born to a family that runs a grave robbery business, and this should be my duty for my whole life. But my family has experienced a drastic change, and my father wanted us to quit the grave robbery starting from my generation. This is for the sake of the future generations of the Hunter family. I will need to pay the price for this.”

Casper asked, “Would you still go back to grave robbery even if your fingers are not cut off?”

“No… But…”

“There is no need to ponder on this. You have agreed to work for me, so you are now on my team, and I will not tolerate any harm to your body.”

Casper waved down a taxi, and he grabbed Jake as they got into the vehicle.

Casper asked, “So, where is your house?”

Jake was silent for a while and eventually said, “Beside the cemetery on the outskirts of Horington…”

The taxi driver turned and looked at them. He shot the duo a weird gaze. “Mister, let’s not joke around.

It’s already midnight, so why are we going to a place like that?”

Casper searched his pocket and happened to have some cash with him, about ten thousand. He placed the money in the taxi driver’s hand and said, “Can we go now?”

The taxi driver’s eyes shone after he confirmed the cash was real. He became energetic and responded, “Yes, sir! I will drive you to wherever you want to go, even to Hell, let alone the cemetery!”

The taxi then sped toward the outskirts of Horington.