Chapter 354.2: Darkness Within The Great Walls

"The remaining 10% will cause irreversible damage to body tissues... In those bastards' words, that's still a kind of Awakening, but it’s more like a mutation. But not all mutations are good."

Ample Time's throat twitched. Suddenly, he understood why the girl before him was so averse to the topic.

Apparently, her arm and left eye were taken by the Dragon's Blood...

The New Alliance also had serum that induced Awakening, but its success rate remained a mystery. It required a certain inherent potential and was hard to measure.

Such a serum had no effect on players; it was an item designed to enhance NPC levels in the game's setting.

Ample Time understood that players and NPCs operated on completely different power systems. Hence, their paths to evolution were entirely different.

However...

Though the New Alliance’s serum had a low Awakening probability, he hadn't heard of anyone suffering side effects.

One could even take a couple of extra doses.

"I seem to have touched upon a sensitive topic."

"It's okay. I know you're not interested in Dragon's Blood, after all, someone as wealthy as you wouldn't need it." Dori chuckled self-deprecatingly, tapping her left arm with her right index finger.

"Both my left eye and this arm were fitted by the Arms Industry. The bank in Boulder Town generously provided me with a loan, and I have to repay them 50 chips every month until I'm 40. And this piece of junk isn't as useful as imagined; it often malfunctions, shuts down if the payment's late. Sometimes, I even wonder... Maybe I should've died back then."

Ample Time fell silent for a while. “Sorry for reminding you of something sad."

He wanted to sympathize with the girl before him, but... How should he put it?

Having disabilities, massive debt, and to be an orphan... It all seemed a bit much.

"No need to pity me," the girl self-mockingly curled her lips, lightly tapping his glass with her index finger. "If you really feel sorry, join me for a drink."

...

Back in the slums.

Old White and 2 players followed the woman into Blake's house.

The environment inside wasn't luxurious, but it was better than the shanties in the slums.

The shoe cabinet by the entrance was filled with empty bottles, and a paper box lay on the floor revealing spent bullet casings inside.

"I'm Mary. And you?"

"Old White." As he spoke, Old White gestured to the perception type player Peepo to check the second floor.

Doggo, on the other hand, went to the adjacent utility room. Based on the same someone's tip, he found a locked safe inside a moldy ammunition box, containing an unfinished deposit.

"Old... White? That's a rare name," the woman remarked in surprise but didn't dwell on it further.

She lit a candle and placed it on an aluminum tray, adding a dim light to the dark room.

Unlike inside the giant wall, the slums lacked electricity. Those who were in better conditions used candles or oil lamps for lighting, and most people went to sleep as soon as it got dark.

After all, there were no guards and the nearby gangs just disliked stirring up trouble on their own doorstep. They wouldn’t be bored enough to cross-check the names of every corpse.

This was a truly lawless territory; the people living here were like wild grass, growing with every spring breeze.

Compared to the unfortunate souls who froze, starved, or got lost scavenging in the wastelands every year, the numbers dying from murder or accidents were simply not worth mentioning.

After sitting on the couch, Mary seemed hesitant to start speaking, observing Old White sitting opposite her.

Without wasting time, Old White activated the translation function on his VM, put on his earphones, and began speaking. "Your friend took on a job he shouldn't have."

"Is he still alive?"

"He's alive, but the latter half of his life will likely be spent in prison."

"Prison?" The woman's eyes showed a hint of confusion but didn't linger on that question.

It was evident she didn't care much about Blake's ultimate fate.

He occasionally brought some money, but never spent it on her.

If the source of support was gone, she needed to make plans for tomorrow as soon as possible.

Such a situation wasn't uncommon in the slums. Not everyone had the courage to face hell. Relying on the powerful was also an option.

"Ask whatever you want to know." She crossed one leg over the other at the knee, leaning slightly against the worn-out sofa, looking at Old White across from her.

Old White didn't beat around the bush. He placed the chip with the denomination of 100 beside the candle. "Before leaving, did he say anything to you?"

Mary held the chip between 2 fingers. She thought for a moment before muttering, "He said we were going to make a fortune, that a generous client had already given him a hefty advance. He also mentioned he had deposited the money in the bank and after the commission, he would take me to live inside the giant wall."

When she spoke these words, there was no glimmer of hope in her eyes. After all, she had heard similar phrases so often that they had become wearisome.

That guy couldn't save money and couldn't handle life inside the city.

But the man in front of her showed her a chance for a better life.

"Did he mention who the client was?"

"A man called Byte, an old acquaintance of his, who lives in an apartment on Boulder Town’s 71th Street. The rent there is expensive, about 2,000 chips per month." While saying this, Mary's eyes showed a trace of envy.

"Have you met Byte before?"

"Of course. Unlike the rude Blake, he's a polite man, not only refined in demeanor but also bright-eyed. It's said that he does business for some big shots in the city. If that guy could learn from him, we wouldn't have to live in this stinking ditch."

Mary complained, and Old White silently noted down this clue.

It seemed that Blake hadn't told the whole truth.

His meeting with this man called Byte wasn't a casual encounter, and it wasn't at the Pirate's Bay Tavern either.

Moreover, Old White sent a message to Ample Time in the city to check out the apartment on 71th street.

But surprisingly, that guy didn't reply to him immediately even though he was still online...

Old White's expression became somewhat odd.

After waiting for a while, he assumed Ample Time might be preoccupied, so he messaged another teammate.

The response came quickly this time.

Kidney Warrior: Understood! I'll check it out right away!

Old White: First, confirm the target's location and avoid alerting anyone.

Kidney Warrior: Roger that!

Hopefully, he truly understood what to do.

Retracting his index finger from the screen, Old White looked at the woman sitting across from the candle. "... Do you know what Byte deals in?"

"He seemed to have mentioned it before..." Mary placed her index finger on her chin, pondering for a moment, "Was it arms? He said southern farm owners needed heavy machine guns to deal with the tough mutant humans; large-caliber weapons sell well there."

Old White was surprised.

An arms dealer attacked them?

That was the least likely scenario.

"... Is it the Boulder Town Arms Industry?"

Peepo, coming down from the second floor, overheard what Old White said.

Seeing the translation on the VM, he exchanged glances with Doggo who just emerged from the adjacent door.

"This is huge... But it's illogical though," Doggo muttered, puzzled. "I heard the New Alliance and Boulder Town negotiated; didn't they compromise on arms trading?"

Peepo subtly nodded. "... I heard that too."

New Alliance's weapons would no longer enter Boulder Town's market, and Dawn City wouldn’t prohibit weapons from Boulder Town.

As an exchange, Boulder Town would open its markets in other areas and mutually grant tariff benefits with Dawn City.

Everyone had a reason to hold a grudge against them, except Boulder Town's arms dealers.

He couldn't help but wish Ample Time was with them. That guy was full of convoluted thoughts and could analyze a pile of twisted theories.

"... Who's this big shot? Boulder Town Arms Industry?" Old White didn't interrupt, staring at the woman before him.

Mary looked puzzled. "I don't know... Maybe?"

As time ticked away, unbeknownst to them, the candle had burned halfway.

According to the information listed on the VM, Old White continued asking many more questions, and the sky outside turned completely dark.

"... I've got the basic information, thank you for your cooperation." Old White reached out and tapped on the VM, extinguishing the screen's faint light.

"Is it over already?" Mary's expression was slightly disappointed.

Old White nodded. "

Mhm

, if needed, I'll contact you again."

Not willing to give up just yet, she didn't rise to see him off, instead casting her gaze outside the window. "It’s dark outside, and after seven, entering the city will incur double the city entrance tax... If you don't mind, you can stay here for the night and head back when it's daylight."

That voice seemed to carry a certain implication or perhaps an invitation.

Old White was briefly startled.

Was this game... Truly meant for all ages?

His intuition told him that choosing yes or no at this point wouldn't affect the game's storyline, much like a choice he made in

The Witcher 3

.

However... Would there be a black screen skip here?