Clearing the Imperial Capital Sewers

Anke's expression was firm, and he still shook his head.

"It wasn't me."

"Fine, I hope it wasn't you either. If I can't find anything after a month, they'll probably just write this off as an accident."

"Suit yourself." Anke wasn't grateful.

"Don't get too comfortable. I won't be leaving after a month; I'll stay here until the New Year is over. Those piglets should continue begging as usual, and the money they owe for offerings can't be short. You handle it yourself."

"Got it." Anke walked into the house, no longer paying attention to the people outside.

Before he officially took over, the people outside were either sent by the higher-ups or were people left behind by the previous boss.

He couldn't establish his own underlings in a short period.

But once he sat in that position, people would naturally flock to him. These people had little loyalty and wouldn't guard a grave for a dead man.

In the following time, the gang investigators focused their investigation on the beggars. The situation within the gang's compound had already been investigated, and there weren't many clues unless they found a hypnotist to try.

One day, Mel Carlo and others were assigned to clear the sewers. Because someone had paid, the gang also accepted the money and was willing to resolve the issue.

In most cases, sewer blockages were due to excessive debris, with many small pieces of trash accumulating together.

Mel Carlo was clearly somewhat resistant to the sewers. These European-style sewers had paths on both sides for people to walk, with the sewage channel in the middle.

But in such an environment, just stepping inside, one could smell the stench.

"It stinks so bad." Mel Carlo felt unbearable. It was much smellier than the ground level.

At least the air circulation rate was higher on the ground. Generally, apart from the streets in residential areas, the streets in commercial areas were relatively clean.

A group of children, armed with tools, began to inspect the blocked sections of the sewer.

"Mel, stop complaining! Hurry up and get to work. I don't want to stay in this hellhole. What if I get bitten by a rat? I might get sick."

"Mhm." Mel Carlo slowly followed behind.

Rats were Level 1 mobs in the game, perfect for new players to grind levels. But the problem was the risk of being poisoned if bitten. Moreover, this wasn't a game world, and there was a risk of contracting other diseases.

The rats in the sewer were as big as kittens, and they could often be seen leaping in the darkness.

"I really feel uncomfortable all over." Mel Carlo was very worried about his surroundings. In such an environment, it was not impossible to contract some strange germs.

The only way was to finish the work quickly and get out. If he didn't, he would easily get beaten. Now that the gang's upper management had sent people to investigate this matter, he should be even more low-key.

The fat kid was pulling a cart alone, used for transporting the clogged garbage. Others held forks and clamps, and some held torches for illumination. Everyone hoped to finish this matter quickly.

Suddenly, a rat's scream was heard. A beggar, holding a fork, had stabbed a fat rat. The rat's limbs and tail were still struggling wildly, but it couldn't escape anymore.

"We have meat for dinner." The beggar took down the rat from the fork after killing it.

The other children quickly gathered around. For them, rat meat could also fill their stomachs, especially such a fat rat.

If it were field mice, Mel Carlo might have had the courage to eat them. But these dirty rats living in the sewers were simply hard to swallow, and he wasn't afraid of getting sick from eating them.

The day's work was quickly coming to an end. They walked out of the sewer, dumped the last cart of garbage, and then began to burn it.

This was their first time outside the city. The desolation outside the city and the prosperity within the city were like two different worlds. Outside the city, there were only scattered villages.

The garbage was piled up and burned. The children also started jumping into the river to wash themselves, with gang guards watching them from the side.

The gang guards naturally wouldn't join the work. They only needed to watch these children work diligently and prevent these piglets from running away.

Mel Carlo also began to clean himself. It was autumn, and the river water had started to get a bit cold, but it was better than not being able to wash. After washing his whole body, he would wash his clothes and dry them by the bonfire.

They would definitely return the next day; they could only stay here overnight for now.

Looking at the dark forest, Mel Carlo had a bold idea. Now seemed like a good opportunity to escape. All he had to do was disappear into the night.

But before he could act, a gang guard shouted loudly, "A piglet is escaping! Chase after him! Leave some people to watch the rest of the children!"

A beggar stood there blankly, looking at the dark forest. It seemed that he wasn't the only one who had the idea of escaping just now.

"Do what you're supposed to do! If you try to run and get caught, you'll die!" the gang guard yelled at the remaining children.

Mel Carlo sat by the bonfire. Under the heat of the flames, his clothes weren't drying too slowly, but he needed to adjust the side facing the fire, otherwise, the clothes would easily get scorched.

The children who caught the rats had already removed the heads and tails. The internal organs were completely cleaned. After skinning the rats, they were placed directly by the bonfire to roast.

They borrowed some salt from the guards and sprinkled it carefully on the rats. Mel Carlo held half a piece of dark bread, struggling to swallow it.

Quite a few children were roasting rats. Ever since the first child speared a rat with a fork, other children followed suit. Mel Carlo also tried it once, but he didn't seem to feel anything special.

He couldn't see specific numbers on his status panel, so he wasn't sure if killing them had given him experience points.

"Mel, aren't you eating?" Lily brought a roasted rat leg to Mel Carlo.

"I'm not that hungry. You guys eat." Mel Carlo felt his stomach churning. It wasn't that the rat tasted unacceptable, but rather that he couldn't get past his own mental block.

It was the same as eating swill. If he didn't know, it would be fine, but knowing it, it would definitely be hard to swallow.

The children present clearly didn't have this psychological burden and were all eating happily. The rat meat was roasted until it was dry and tough.

Not long after, the child who had escaped earlier was caught and brought back, followed by a brutal beating. The child's screams continued in the darkness.

Mel Carlo clenched his fists. He couldn't do anything right now. This child was like himself; he had also had the idea of escaping just now. If the person who had escaped had been him, he would be the one receiving the beating now.

He could only curse these beasts in his heart.

After a long time, the child seemed to have stopped moving. All the children's hearts sank.

The voice of the gang guard came again:

"Alright, go to sleep. Don't think about escaping. We'll return to the city tomorrow."