One-Eyed Monster

Freedom, unrestrained...

Igor and Kadi could hardly associate Bayes Avenue with these two words. After all, it was lifeless here, without the slightest breath of freedom.

Igor and Kadi cast puzzled looks at Coban Kangen, clearly expecting a reasonable explanation from him.

”When you have a recommendation, you can pass through here unimpeded...” Coban Kangen was obviously taken aback by their gaze, unsure of how to respond to satisfy these two guys.

”Even with a recommendation, I still don’t see where the unrestrained, where the freedom is...” Igor scratched his head, speaking truthfully.

Kadi was not so polite: ”They’ve fenced themselves in and won’t let people in, just a self-talking braggart, where’s the freedom and unrestrained?”

The insights of these two youths were indeed unique, leaving Coban Kangen fumbling for words and unable to keep up, utterly clueless on how to answer these questions.

”At least give us a vivid example to show this place is free and unrestrained; otherwise, we really can’t believe it,” Igor gave Coban Kangen a hint.

Giving examples is usually the best method, yet Coban Kangen had left Xinbal years ago, and he had already talked about things that happened to him long ago; he couldn’t think of any other examples at the moment.

This feeling was most uncomfortable, knowing full well that what he said was right, yet the surroundings were against him, not showing the scenario he described...

Coban Kangen was generally a calm person, but at this moment, he couldn’t stay calm. He felt enveloped in chaos, uncomfortable all over, especially with that one-eyed guy whose gazing looked like it could drown a person, exuding a strong sense of oppression. At this moment, without some unexpected interruption, it was hard to resolve his current predicament...

Coban Kangen, for the first time, hoped for something unexpected to happen to him, even a sudden stomach ache would do...

Perhaps heaven heard Coban Kangen’s request, and with a creak, the carriage stopped.

This process was sudden, an unexpected incident indeed.

Coban Kangen was extremely grateful to the coachman, never expecting the coachman to be the one to bail him out in the end!

The sudden stop of the carriage made Coban Kangen alert, his demeanor naturally affecting Igor and Kadi as well.

They all poked their heads out of the window to see what exactly was happening.

Knock, knock, knock, someone was knocking on the carriage door... Could it be someone questioning their identity? In Coban Kangen’s perspective, it was reasonable to expect such an incident, yet to show that this was unforeseen, he assumed a cautious posture.

In fact, Coban Kangen, with the identity of the Kangen Family member, could pass through Bayes Avenue unrestricted, mainly because of Igor and Kadi...

The carriage door opened, revealing only the coachman before them.

This came as a bit of a surprise. Why didn’t the people questioning them come?

”Ladies and gentlemen, I can only take you this far. This face of mine can pass unimpeded between numbers one to twenty-eight, only because I don’t have the recommendation,”

The coachman’s words confirmed some of Coban Kangen’s earlier speculations. The reason this coachman wasn’t questioned was because of his familiar face.

Of course, the coachman’s words sounded like gibberish to Igor and Kadi, clueless about Xinbal and Bayes Avenue, completely unclear about what the coachman was talking about.

Kadi was about to question what the coachman meant by not taking them to their destination and then leaving, but Igor and Coban Kangen stopped him.

After all, the coachman showed goodwill, without a trace of malice.

Coban Kangen looked at the coachman: ”So we need to go on our own from here; what about the one and a half gold coins...”

”Ah, forget about that, no one wants the Kangen Family’s gold coins. I just said that casually. After all, at the station, with so many people and so much gossip, I couldn’t directly call you Lord Kangen, but it’s different at Bayes Avenue, where I can say anything. Hahaha,” the coachman laughed heartily.

”Well, thank you then.” Coban Kangen was quite astonished by this, as he hadn’t expected anyone could recognize him as a member of the Kangen Family.

”No need to thank me; I’m just getting familiar for eventual recommendation efforts!” said the coachman, then rode his carriage away, clip-clopping into the distance.

The street left Coban Kangen with a bewildered look and Kadi and Igor standing blankly in place.

”Why does he want the recommendation so badly?” Igor tilted his head, keen to understand what this all meant.

”Well...” Coban Kangen hesitated, fearing his answer would remind Igor and Kadi of those earlier questions about freedom and unrestrained. He really didn’t have an answer at the moment.

Actually, this coachman was a fine example. His desire for the recommendation was precisely to move freely in Bayes Avenue, where he could say anything... but Coban Kangen knew that even if he provided this example now, Igor and Kadi wouldn’t buy it.

So, at this moment, he could only resort to playing dumb.

But playing dumb wasn’t too effective on Igor and Kadi, because these two were like nails, persistently questioning one thing over and over.

”Go on, spill it!”

”What happens when you get the recommendation?”

”Does Xinbal have something like an access permit?”

Igor and Kadi fired questions at Coban Kangen like cannonballs. Their curiosity grew boundlessly, unwilling to stop without an explanation...

Coban Kangen was getting dizzy; this was probably the toughest question he had ever faced, yet he could not avoid it. If he tried to, new problems would surely keep coming at him.

By now, Coban Kangen realized that dealing with Igor and Kadi required facing things head-on; nothing could escape him that he was supposed to answer.

All those random questions were indeed Igor and Kadi’s weapons, enough to give someone a headache.

Luckily, these guys were not enemies; if they were opponents, their relentless badgering would be quite a handful.

Coban Kangen took a deep breath and had to brace himself.

Currently, with his jumbled thoughts, he couldn’t come up with other examples and had to use the coachman’s case.

”You heard the coachman earlier, right? In Bayes Avenue, you can say whatever you want, which is a manifestation of freedom. He was striving for the recommendation for this freedom; with it, he could move through Bayes Avenue freely and even visit the palace if he wanted!”