"So, tell me, what did our dear father say?"
The mature woman sat cross-legged on her sofa, the tinkling of her teaspoon filling in the silence between them. The calming scent of hot English tea wafted throughout the room as she spoke.
"That is right, sister. Father told me to find you and seek your help,"
As the woman poured in the hot water for his tea, she was silent for a while, as if deliberating on what to say. Under her beautiful facade, it was all but a certainty that this snake-like woman was thinking of ways to exploit him.
"Here is your cup… Do enjoy."
A minute of silence passed between them as Viktor took a sip of the hot, bitter tea. Then, Sheila stared at him and asked.
"So… what kind of area are you interested in?"
Viktor knew what she meant, but he figured that acting stupid would be better for the time being. Thus, he decided to ask.
"What do you mean, sister? What area?"
She narrowed her eyes, her sharp glare felt like it was stabbing daggers throughout his body. Despite her restrained fury, she explained, not a trace of anger in her voice. The calm she radiated screamed condescension as if she was consoling a child beneath her.
"Food supplies area would mean you take part in the farming project. Energy is related to the distribution and building of nuclear power plants throughout the area, Housings mean clearing up spaces to build the plants in… or perhaps you are interested in the defense of our city? For that, you could ask your brother, not me. I have no interest in such barbaric things."
Viktor made a show of rubbing the back of his head and asked, "Hahaha, sister, are you joking? I have no experience in those kinds of things."
Sheila, yet again, showed no emotions. She refilled her tea, took another sip, and said. Her words were accompanied by intense glare.
"Well, little brother, let me enlighten you. Do you expect to receive help without actually doing tasks in return? Perhaps, that may have been easy before the apocalypse, but now… There is no such thing as free lunch, in case you need a reminder?"
Viktor certainly understood what she meant, but right now he only wanted to do exactly that - getting as many benefits as he could get away with without taking on any responsibility. However, it seems his sister was determined to make everything difficult.
"Don't get me wrong, sister, I do want to help. But look at me, what can I do? You know as well as I do that I will only bring trouble wherever you put me."
His reply was apparently effective enough to stun her into silence. For a moment, her facade of calm breaks.
"Well, don't you at least have anything you want to do? Don't tell me you want to party forever!" She narrowed her eyes. Although they lived separately from each other, she remembers what he was infamous for before the apocalypse.
Hearing the question, Viktor smiled in excitement. His time to shine has arrived.
"No, sister. Really, hear me out, that actually is a good idea!"
Viktor's reaction caught her off guard, and she was about to downright stand up and leave. However, Viktor told her that in a post-apocalyptic time like this, fun is a very rare commodity and a very important thing, and it is bound to be something even the other side was neglecting.
"Seriously sis, when was the last time you had fun?"
Viktor proceeded to enthusiastically explain about his idea of creating a great club that would help people to forget about the stresses of the apocalypse.
"It would be like a theme park. A fun place would help bring more people to the city, I'm sure."
She was skeptical, however, the last part of his explanation seems to be able to attract her interest.
"What is it, sister? Tell me. Remember I am here to help."
She was hesitant, as she knew her facade had been blown. Viktor had struck one of her most important problems. Then, she explained that more and more citizens have started to migrate to Eastern Russia's Red Faction territory in search of safety.
In the early days of the apocalypse, fewer mouths to feed would be better. However, for after or during the middle of the apocalypse, that would mean less people to work, less people to maintain the food supplies, and less people to maintain energy and security.
Seeing her sister's reaction, it was really the time to close the deal.
Viktor decided to make some things about getting a city on the border. If he could create a better environment in the city, he could prevent more citizens to leave or even entice more to come..
"The city of Pern, in the far north and close to the territory of the Red Faction. That will be where I will start my first club. What do you think, sister?"
The city of Pern wasn't just a border city, it was also a city close to the wilderness and the northern part of Russia. As a result, adventurers often come en-masse to rest or to prepare.
Among all the survivors in this world, the adventurers were definitely the face of the new money in this world..
To Viktor's surprise, his sister accepted the plan.
"Alright, now you will help the mayor of Pern city make the place more friendly to visitors. I will hear reports from the mayor about your progress. Now, tell me, what kind of help do you need?"
Viktor grinned, and basked in his victory. "I need spirit stones and artifacts."
Unfortunately, his sister said, "No, we have a lack of those. You should ask to get that from Garron. I am only in charge of the more general products."
He proceeded to ask about the thing he had been thinking of.
"What about gold? how many do you have?"
"Gold? …" Sheila Romanov muttered, "What do you even want gold for?!"
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