Chapter 697.2: Port Gallon
Not far outside the mansion walls, residents from the surrounding streets came out to watch the commotion with curiosity.
“Well, this is a sight.”
“Who on earth did Lord Nihark offend?”
“I don’t know which god those iron men are blessed by, they’re terrifyingly strong. Even General Abhinan was no match for them!”
“Could they be the Wislanders?!”
“Impossible. The Army are our old friends, how could they attack us?”
“Then maybe people from Silvermoon Bay?”
“Even less likely! All of Silvermoon Bay combined doesn’t have many people. Don’t be fooled by how well-dressed they are, they’re just dogs living off His Majesty’s favor.”
“True. They still need to trade with us. They wouldn’t dare offend us.”
“... Could it be the New Alliance? Those lunatics from a month ago seemed to be from the New Alliance too.”
The survivors whispered among themselves, nudging one another and urging someone to go take a look. In the end, they pushed out a ragged, skinny, short Ratfolk youth.
Just then, several men wearing exoskeletons with rifles slung across their chest pushed open the iron gate of the back courtyard and walked out. The survivors crowding along the muddy road scattered instantly, darting into nearby alleys. Only the skinny, short youth remained standing in the middle of the road.
Deciding to show some friendliness before showing off, Coincidence unlocked his helmet visor, crouched halfway down, and beckoned with a grin. “Come here.”
The youth stared at him nervously, but still gathered his courage and stepped forward.
Coincidence looked at him. “What’s your name?”
“... Axin.”
“Good. Axin, which is your house?”
The youth glanced back and pointed to a building with a red cloth curtain hanging over the door, then looked again at the man in the exoskeleton.
Coincidence smiled and continued, “How much do you think a house like yours is worth?”
“One two-headed cow, or two pigs...” Seeming to understand the intent in his eyes, the youth added quickly, “But you can’t buy it, sir. My grandfather, my parents, my four brothers, and my three sisters all live there. If you buy it, we’ll have nowhere to live.”
No Family froze when he heard that and instinctively raised his binoculars to take a look. No matter how he looked, it was just a little 20-odd square meter house, even if it had two floors.
Good lord.
How did that many people fit into that hole?!
Looking at the poor kid in front of him, Coincidence felt conflicted. This task clearly wasn’t as fun as he had imagined. After all, that was someone’s home, even if they were NPCs.
After thinking for a moment, he squatted down, met the youth’s eyes, and spoke. “Listen. Your lord angered us, so we’re standing here now. Maybe my superior will give you a different explanation, but I won’t lie to you and say we came here for peace. I’ll be honest, we’re here to beat people up. Be it the Grey Wolf Army or Grey Dog Army, it doesn’t matter. We’ll beat them until they’re begging for mercy and compensation before we leave.”
“I don’t want to tear down your home either, but this place is about to become a battlefield. Whether you like it or not, this whole area will soon be ruins. Right now you have two choices, take some money from us and go live somewhere else, or wait for the XilandeEmpire’s army to requisition your house and be buried there with them.”
Axin was silent for a moment. Knowing resistance was pointless, he spoke plainly. “How much are you willing to pay?”
Coincidence did a quick mental calculation. The task required clearing at least 500 households. The more he cleared out, the better
There were at most a little over 1,000 houses nearby. With a budget of 100,000,000, they could clear out a huge area.
“100,000 Xilande Coins.”
Hearing such a sum, the youth’s breathing quickened. He swallowed and asked, “How many houses do you plan to buy... all of them? Will everyone get the same amount?”
Coincidence chuckled. “That’s right. We’re not playing games here, I expect you to spread the word once the deal’s done. Miss the chance and it’s gone.”
“That won’t work,” Axin said immediately.
“Won’t work?” Coincidence froze, looking at him oddly.
Was this kid trying to extort more money because he thought Coincidence was easygoing?
Reading the suspicion in his eyes, the youth swallowed nervously and explained at rapid speed. “100,000 Xilande coins can buy 10 fat pigs! If you hand out that much all at once, they won’t agree. Everyone will want a higher price, and people who don’t even live here will mix in. Some will even take the money twice.”
Amused, Coincidence smiled. “We’re not here to do business. You don’t seriously think our guns are just for show, do you?”
“Then just kill them, that’s the fastest way,” Axin said without hesitation, calmly meeting Coincidence’s shocked gaze. “If you don’t want to dirty your hands, let me do it for you. I’ll do it for 90,000 per house. I’ll not only drive the people out, I’ll tear down those houses. Those mud walls that can serve as cover for soldiers of the Empire... I’ll make them lie on broken bricks while you use them as target practice!”
Half Wasted couldn’t help but ask, “Aren’t they your own people?”
Axin looked at him in silence, then glanced out of the corner of his eye at the many watching eyes peering from the shadows. “I’m Ratfolk. They’re Foxfolk, Wolffolk, Pigfolk, Catfolk... They are of many other races. No one cares whether I live or die, and I don’t care about them either. But you care about me. I can sell my life to you. Killing people or burning things, whatever you find inconvenient, I’ll do it all.”
The four players exchanged glances. Three of them were filled with shock. Only one showed delight. Coincidence beamed, reached out to ruffle the youth’s hair, and patted the back of his head. “Not bad, kid. You’ve got your head screwed on straight. 90,000 per building, just like you said. Get the job done for us. But remember, don’t make a big mess, especially no killing or arson. We’re civilized people.”
A flash of joy crossed Axin’s face. He took a deep breath to steady himself and continued, “I can do it. Give me three days. Of course... if there are stubborn ones who refuse to move no matter what, you’ll have to help me teach them a lesson.”
Coincidence said, “That’s a bit tricky. We have our rules, we can’t fire on unarmed people. At most, we can help you scare them.”
Axin extended his hand. “Then give me a gun! I have to protect myself and my family!”
Coincidence glanced at No Family beside him. The latter immediately understood, grinned, and took a pistol they had swiped from the governor’s guards, handing it to the young man. “... Before you pull the trigger, remember to chamber a round and take off the safety. And don’t point that thing at us, the previous owner died that way.”
The instant the young man took the gun in both hands, a spark of excitement lit up in his eyes. Even his gaze seemed to change.
It wasn’t just him.
The people hiding in the alleys watching him reacted the same way. Their curious expressions gradually turned into fear, real fear.
They didn’t know what the Ratfolk kid had talked about with those soldiers. All they saw was him taking a gun from their hands...
What did that mean?
Did the people who had beaten the governor senseless just become the kid’s backing?
The survivors swallowed nervously. Some regretted that they hadn’t been the one to step forward earlier. Others simply stared at the gun in fear, regretting that they had ever bullied him or his family in the past.
Half Wasted felt something was off, but then remembered they were in the wasteland, not a civilized world, and ultimately said nothing.
Carefully tucking the gun away, Axin looked earnestly at the man crouched in front of him. “How should I address you?”
Before Coincidence could answer, No Family reached out and patted his shoulder, smiling as he spoke. “He’s Coin. I’m Family. The two behind us are Heaven and Wasted. If you need anything, just come find the two of us.”
Coincidence, who was still thinking up a cooler nickname for himself, rolled his eyes at the grinning guy.
Too lazy to argue about the nickname, he looked at the kid and said, “We’ll be around here for a while. If we’re not around, ask someone else, they’ll help you find us.”
