So something this big happened, and you came first thing in the morning to gossip with a bookstore owner?
Seeing Yuan Shan had also gone native and was lounging around with such carefree abandon, Fu Qian could only shake his head.
"So what's the news?"
In any case, a message that the dignified chief of the Night Watchers had personally come to share ought to be at least somewhat interesting.
As he brewed the tea, Fu Qian obligingly asked.
"We just received word. Last night, several Siren officials in different locations were assassinated. Not a single attempt failed."
Yuan Shan didn't keep him in suspense. She got straight to the point.
"Oh... An Jing?"
Fu Qian lived up to his reputation as an enthusiastic citizen, immediately making the connection.
"Almost certainly. After An Jing Shizhi was assassinated, nothing came of it for a long time. We discussed the risk of things getting out of hand, but their methods have turned out to be even more extreme than we imagined."
Unsurprised by the strategist's perceptiveness, Yuan Shan sighed.
"At this scale, Siren can't possibly let it go unanswered. And I doubt An Jing will stop here, either. Things are likely to get lively across the board."
"Agreed."
Fu Qian nodded, but his thoughts were on the exchange he'd remotely observed last night—
A member of the Greedy Worm named Ji Yin had struck some kind of deal with Yasui Company. That was probably connected to all this excitement.
Considering Ji Yin had still been weighing the decision at the time, they probably weren't part of this first wave of action.
Whether it led to further assassinations or an all-out conflict, the massive machine that was An Jing was clearly springing into action.
"So in this situation, the Night Watchers aren't