Chapter 69

"You're here? I thought you'd forgotten."

Seeing Shirou rushing over, Jie yawned.

He was just saying it, but after several interactions, Zi knew that Shirou was quite trustworthy; once he made a promise, he rarely went back on his word.

"Sorry, I was so busy I forgot the time."

Shirou apologized awkwardly. He had indeed been training very seriously and had even lost track of time.

When he came to his senses, he realized that he had been running for two hours. Even the other people at Penguin Logistics were exhausted and were waiting for him to finish.

They were originally going to go back together, but Shirou sent them back to their dorm to rest.

"It's alright, I've kept your copy safe."

He lifted the cooler onto the table and let Shirou look at the seafood inside.

As soon as you open it, a cool breeze wafts out, indicating that it's preserved with a large amount of ice.

"That's all, thanks."

Shirou looked at the fish, or rather, the Phosphor Beast, in the cooler and, finding nothing wrong, let Je take care of them.

He likes to buy seafood here because of its good reputation and because Jie will help him process it. Although he can do it himself, it takes too much time, and Jie is better at butchering seafood.

Given the same amount of time, Shirou couldn't guarantee he would handle things better than Ziya.

The two men's behavior just now looked exactly like they were trading something dangerous, and the vendors next door almost called the police.

If I hadn't known that Jie only looked a bit fierce, I might have actually called the Knights of the Round Table.

While the creature was being dismembered, Shirou went to the stall next door to buy other things he needed.

Although some vendors had already packed up and left due to time constraints, several of the stalls that Shirou frequented were still open, though the variety of dishes was limited.

However, it wasn't a big problem for Shirou, as they were all dishes he could cook.

"Hmm... I wonder if they'll eat these."

Shirou squatted down in front of the vendor, looking at the remaining vegetables and pondering.

Although he can cook, it doesn't mean others can accept it. Take bitter melon for example, none of the four people from Penguin Logistics seem to like the taste of bitter melon.

Therefore, Shirou tries to avoid vegetables with a particularly distinctive flavor when selecting them.

Shirou knew it wasn't a problem with his cooking technique; it was just that the others simply didn't like that type of ingredient.

However, bitter melon is just a special case; basically, as long as the other vegetables are served, someone will definitely eat them.

"Oh, I'm sorry..."

Just as Shirou was lost in thought, he suddenly felt a bump. He quickly straightened up and apologized to the Shirou, but then realized something was wrong.

His coat is the wrong weight.

Shirou touched it briefly and discovered that his wallet, which he had placed in his pocket, was gone.

Because he had just gone to exercise, Shirou hadn't brought his backpack with him. In addition, he was a little tired and deep in thought about what groceries to buy, which is why he was able to steal from him.

"Sorry, I'll be back later."

Shirou spoke briefly with the vegetable vendor and Jie, then strode off to catch up.

Although the other person was carrying Kabuto and walking very fast, he still noticed that the other person had a grappling hook attached to them. With this obvious accessory and his eyesight, catching up with the other person would be an easy task.

Besides Lungmen Dollars, the wallet also contained two certificates that the Emperor had issued to him. The Lungmen Dollars didn't matter, but he had to get the two certificates back.

Shirou didn't want to bother his boss anymore.

"Hmm... is that Little Ansuo?"

Jie asked the vegetable vendor next to him, since they were old acquaintances, since they were just neighbors.

"It was definitely her. I didn't notice her because she was wearing a hood, otherwise I would have pointed it out. I only noticed her hook just now."

The vegetable vendor was having a headache because he had lost a sale due to the Ansuo.

Next time we meet, I'll have to give them a good scolding.

"Really..."

Shirou didn't hear the conversation between the man and the vegetable vendor; he was now completely focused on chasing after them, and with his excellent eyesight, Shirou was gradually closing the distance between them.

The other person seemed to have noticed that Shirou was chasing her, and with her agile body and grappling hook, she seemed to be planning to leap onto the low rooftop and shake Shirou off.

"Trace on─"

Seeing that the opponent's grappling hook had caught on the roof, Shirou understood the opponent's plan, so he directly Projection a short sword and threw it over.

Of course, he didn't throw it at the other person; he simply cut their rope.

"My grappling hook!"

The Hooded Figure watched as the rope holding his grappling hook was severed by a small knife, and his composure vanished instantly.

That's her livelihood!

It was clearly reinforced, so how could it have broken like this!

Without the help of the grappling hook, the Hooded Figure, or rather the Ansuo, was immediately caught by Shirou.

"Stealing is wrong, you know. Please give it back to me."

He grabbed the Shirou person's shoulder and said.

Upon getting closer, Shirou realized that the other person seemed to be... a child?

After all, the other party is quite short. Not to mention comparing with him, he's even shorter than everyone at Penguin Logistics.

He's about 150 centimeters tall, probably no more than 155 centimeters.

"Gulp... Here you go."

Ansuo, still wearing his hood, handed Shirou's wallet to the other person.

Shirou took the wallet, glanced at it briefly, and confirmed that everything inside was still there, especially the two most important documents.

"Don't do it again next time. Take it to eat and then find a job."

Considering that the other party seemed to be a child, Shirou did not intend to hand him over to the Knights of the Round Table.

He was currently in the Lower City District, or rather, the Slums. He had heard a few people from Penguin Logistics talk about the environment here; it was a gray area of Lungmen, where most of the infected and poor people gathered.

It's a place where gangs gather, and there are also many people who choose to steal in order to survive.

The child in front of him was probably doing this because he was hungry, so Shirou drew a few Lungmen Dollars to give him some money so he could find a job.

Shirou's idea was wonderful, but the other party's idea was different.

"Hmph! Are you trying to pretend to be kind and get me to take your money so you can do that to me? I'm not that stupid!"

Although he was very tempted by the money that Shirou offered, Ansuo did not accept it.

Who knows if this guy has ulterior motives?

Men are all bad; if she weren't infected, she might have been taken advantage of long ago.

Once she takes the money, she loses control, so she's very careful about this!

After all, someone had been abducted like this just a few days ago, so she was also a little scared.

"... You're overthinking it."

Shirou was quite impressed by the other person's imagination.

But there's nothing we can do about it; this is a place full of deceit and treachery. And judging from what the other person said, they are probably a woman, so it's normal for them to be so wary.

Since the other party wouldn't accept it, Shirou wouldn't force it. After Shirou let go, the other party darted away like a rabbit.

"They run really fast."

Seeing that the other party had run far away, Shirou had no intention of chasing after them.

Looking around at the crowd watching the spectacle, Shirou sighed.

This was his first time in the Lower City District; before, he had only ever been to the market.

Some things can only be truly felt after you see them with your own eyes.

Dilapidated houses, a dirty and messy environment, adults and children with black mineral deposits on their bodies.

According to Shirou's understanding of Oripathy, this environment would only exacerbate the Oripathy for those infected.

But often there's nothing that can be done about it, since treating Oripathy is very expensive, and once you get Oripathy, you have to spend a lot of money on Oripathy until you die.

Therefore, once someone becomes infected, even a moderately well-off family can be dragged down.

"Let's go back and find Zi first."

Shirou shook his head, banishing all thoughts from his mind. This wasn't the first time he'd considered the issue of the infected.

Although the Slums don't look very nice, they are much better than Ursus.

At least here you don't have to worry about the cold wind and snow or that someone might come knocking on your door to kill you at any time.

Besides, his current situation makes it difficult for him to help the infected, which is why he chose to read books related to Oripathy.

He needs to understand what Oripathy is before he can help those infected.

Shirou walked and thought, and soon returned to Zi's seafood stall.

"You got it back?"

Seeing Shirou return, Zi asked.

"Um."

Shirou took out his wallet and paid the money.

"Wow, that's impressive. He actually managed to win over Little Ansuo."

Seeing that Shirou had retrieved his wallet, Zi showed a surprised expression.

It should be noted that Ansuo's skills are quite good, especially in the Slums she knows best, yet she was still caught by Shirou.

As expected of someone Hoshiguma specifically instructed him to observe closely, he certainly has a knack for it.

"Is it someone I know?"

Judging from Jie's tone, Shirou guessed that the other person probably knew that pickpocket... or rather, Little Ansuo?

"What a strange name," Shirou thought to himself.

"Little Ansuo is a regular at the Knights of the Round Table, and she often makes her moves in this area. Sorry, I didn't notice her just now."

Jie gave a brief introduction to Ansuo and apologized to Shirou.

Even though everyone knew this person existed, they still managed to get away with it.

If Shirou hadn't caught up with the other person, he probably wouldn't have gotten the money back from the wallet, but he could have gotten the rest back.

"It's alright, it was my carelessness. I'll just be more careful next time."

Shirou had no intention of blaming Jie, after all, it was his own carelessness that gave the other party an opportunity to take advantage.

He has made up his mind that he will bring his own backpack when he comes here in the future, so as to avoid this situation from happening again as much as possible.

"She probably won't make a move on you again, since you have the skills to win her over, but it's still better to be careful."

Jie reminded Shirou that things hadn't been peaceful here lately, with people frequently causing trouble.

Moreover, Shirou was chased by thugs for most of the street last time, and this time he encountered pickpockets. It can only be said that Shirou's luck is really not good.

Can you tell me more about it?

Seeing that Zi seemed to know a lot about that Little Ansuo, Shirou asked a few more questions out of curiosity.

"You've taken a liking to her? That's not good for Officer Swire!"

Jie showed a worried expression and reminded Shirou that he remembered Shirou had come with Swire once, so their relationship must have been quite good.

His current interest in the Ansuo is causing him some concern.

After all, Shirou is a very good customer! He always buys in large quantities!

It would be terrible if the person died.

Why mention Swire?