Robbery

After arriving in Douluo Continent, he had barely scraped by at the orphanage. Its budget simply couldn't afford to let him indulge his appetite.

Now, he no longer had to worry about money. He could let loose. Lin Ye stopped in front of a food stall. "Boss, one grilled sausage, please."

He glanced at the two girls beside him, then added, "Make that three."

The vendor was skilled and quick.

Before long, each of the three had a grilled sausage in hand.

Lin Ye took a bite, then smiled with satisfaction. He polished off the whole sausage in just a few bites.

Seeing that the two girls hadn't touched theirs, he said, "You should try them too. They're delicious."

At that, Ice Empress cautiously took a bite. Her eyes lit up, and she polished hers off in just a few bites as well.

Ice Empress licked her lips, still unsatisfied. She turned to the vendor and said, "Give me another one. No, make it ten."

The vendor grinned from ear to ear. He was happy not only to make a sale, but also to have his cooking appreciated.

Lin Ye smiled, thinking that she really was a country bumpkin who'd never seen the world.

Seeing Ice Empress's reaction, Snow Empress cautiously tried one too. The ice-cold beauty looked as if she'd discovered a whole new world. Her lovely eyes shone, and for the first time, a smile appeared on her cool, beautiful face.

While they waited, Ice Empress spotted the candied hawthorns at a nearby stall. They were big and red, each plump fruit looking delicious. She trotted over and ordered ten skewers.

"Miss, here are the candied hawthorns you asked for."

Ice Empress took them and turned to walk back without a second thought, completely unaware that anything was amiss.

"Miss, you haven't paid yet!"

The vendor hurried to call after her, assuming the young girl had forgotten.

Ice Empress turned around and asked in confusion, "Pay? I have to pay?"

The question nearly made the vendor's brain short-circuit. Wasn't paying for things just common sense? What kind of question was that? And how could she ask it so matter-of-factly?

Before he could answer, Ice Empress asked, "And what is money, anyway?"

At that, the vendor's expression turned strange. What the heck? She didn't even know what money was. Was she making fun of him?

It wasn't just the vendor. Even passersby shot the three of them strange looks when they heard her question.

"Uh... I'm just a small-time vendor, miss. Please don't tease me. That'll be twenty Copper Soul Coins."

Ice Empress was at a loss. She genuinely didn't know what money or Copper Soul Coins were.

"Boss, she's just joking. Don't mind her. Here, take the money." Lin Ye came over with ten grilled sausages in hand and kindly paid the bill for the penniless Ice Empress.

Lin Ye paid with a Gold Soul Coin, and the vendor's expression immediately softened.

Once they'd walked a little farther away, Ice Empress quietly asked, "So money is those bits of scrap metal? You have to pay people to eat their food?"

Lin Ye rolled his eyes, thoroughly exasperated. "Of course. Why would people let you eat their food for free?"

For some reason, Ice Empress's behavior reminded him of Xiao Longnu in The Return of the Condor Heroes. There was a scene where she went to buy steamed buns while living in the Ancient Tomb Sect.

Xiao Longnu had spent her whole life in the tomb, cut off from the outside world. It made sense that she wouldn't know about the currency used in society.

The same was true of Ice Empress. It wasn't strange at all, considering she'd always lived in the Extreme North Land and knew nothing about human society.

And it wasn't just Ice Empress. Look at Xiao Wu. She hadn't even bothered to do her homework before coming to the human world. When she arrived at Notting Academy, she didn't know she had to pay for meals either. It was ridiculous.

Ice Empress still didn't understand what humans did with those bits of scrap metal, but that didn't matter. She could trade them for tasty food.

A thought that shouldn't have crossed the mind of a Soul Beast appeared in Ice Empress's mind: she needed to make money.

Lin Ye was very rich. In fact, he was practically rolling in it.

But Ice Empress didn't want to ask Lin Ye for money. She looked around, and her gaze finally settled on a potbellied middle-aged man.

The fat man wore fine clothes and a thick gold chain around his neck. He looked like a man of great wealth, and surely he had money to spare.

You'll do. Ice Empress picked her target and, with a quick flash, blocked the fat man's path. "Human, hand over your money!"

The fat man stared at her in shock. Had he run into a robber? And why did the little girl speak so strangely? She called herself "this emperor" and called him a human?

What did that mean? Was she not human? Was she insulting him or herself?

Lin Ye's mouth twitched. As expected of a Soul Beast—she went straight to robbery without a second thought.

Ice Empress, Ice Empress, was robbing people for a few Gold Soul Coins really worth lowering yourself like that?

"Sorry, my older sister is just joking..." Lin Ye hurried over to explain.

The man didn't press the matter. He gave the three of them a look like they were crazy, then hurried away as if avoiding a plague.

"Hey, why'd you stop me?" Ice Empress was annoyed. She hadn't gotten any Little Money.

Lin Ye looked helpless. "Come on, Ice Empress. You're the overlord of your territory. Do you really need to rob people for a few coins? Have you no shame?"

Ice Empress planted her hands on her hips and argued back, "I took it by my own ability. How is that shameful?"

Lin Ye: "..."

Fine, fine. Her life as a Soul Beast had held back Ice Empress's education. Lin Ye decided he'd find a chance to teach her a thing or two about how society worked.

Seeing Ice Empress's indignant little pout, Lin Ye laughed to himself. "All right, all right. If you need money, just ask me. There's no need to rob anyone."

"You said it." Ice Empress's eyes lit up. She figured she'd found someone she could really milk.

Lin Ye didn't think much of it. Ice Empress had no idea how much a Gold Soul Coin could buy.

With his current assets, if all he did was eat, drink, and have fun, he'd never run out of money. Not in a million years.

With Lin Ye as her meal ticket, Ice Empress ate to her heart's content. She wanted to try the food at every stall.

Even after strolling around for more than half an hour, Ice Empress showed no sign of stopping. She seemed determined to try every delicacy in the city.

Snow Empress ate a little too, though not nearly as much as Ice Empress.

As dusk fell, Lin Ye had no choice but to call a halt. "That's enough for now. There's plenty of delicious food in the human world. You'll have more chances to eat later. There's no need to try it all today."

Looking at Ice Empress's flat stomach, Lin Ye couldn't help marveling. She'd just eaten at least ten people's worth of food, yet her stomach hadn't changed at all. Clearly, you couldn't judge Ice Empress by the standards of ordinary people.

The three of them then found an inn and checked in. Martial Soul Awakening was still a full year away, so Lin Ye had plenty of time. There was no need to rush.

In his room, Lin Ye lay on the soft bed and couldn't help reflecting on how things had changed. Just yesterday, he'd been lost in life, anxious about the future.

But today, he could already look forward to a wonderful life ahead. Happiness had arrived completely out of the blue.