Newbie Gift Pack

"Brother Liao, while those two are gone, hurry up and tell us how you trained our Sister Lin into that state—and when you started!"

"Exactly! I never dreamed that Sister Lin, whose temper was even worse than ours, would ever wear a skirt! And her face is so pale—her makeup is incredible. She looks like a completely different person!"

"You might not believe this, Brother Liao, but Sister Lin used to take us clubbing and happily critique the dancers onstage with us. Hahaha, I still remember that day—Brian rushed right into the place and dragged her out. We could hear him cursing her from a mile away!"

The people from Haisha Bar were unusually enthusiastic toward Liao Ji. They chattered over one another, trying to explain to the young man just how shocked they were by Irin's current appearance. (-_-) (-_-)

With nothing else to do, Liao Ji took the opportunity to learn a little more about the girl from the people around him.

So.

Yeah.

Leading the way to the brothel.

Sure, that sounded like Irin.

Fortunately, some of the people at Haisha had enough sense to start coughing and giving the others who were talking nonstop meaningful looks. Their expressions seemed to say, "It's obvious Sister Lin's become Brother Liao's girl. If you tell him embarrassing stories about her right to his face, aren't you ruining her image?"

Only then did the others catch on. Right! This was about Sister Lin's future happiness. They couldn't act like bad friends! So they laughed awkwardly and hurriedly changed the subject.

"Come to think of it, Brother Liao, when those Church cops wanted to test you back then, we were scared shitless. To be honest, we really thought you were Corrupted. But you were the one who insisted on taking the test, and you really showed everyone!"

"So if you're not Corrupted, how'd you do it? How could you punch a monster like that and send it flying?"

"Right, and Sister Lin, too! I admit she was pretty strong before, but not strong enough to take down a whole squad from the Mechanical Alliance by herself. That's just ridiculous!"

"I heard the big shots and rich people over at the Mechanical Alliance often have some kind of advanced gadget installed in their bodies. What's it called again? 'Cyberware,' I think. Brother Liao, you're incredibly strong, but you're not Corrupted, so you've gotta have some super expensive cyberware inside you!"

"Really? Is that true, Brother Liao? Could you pull out your big treasure and let us have a look? Please! Just one glance—we wanna broaden our horizons!"

Just as Liao Ji was getting a headache from dealing with the people from Haisha, who'd instantly gotten all worked up over the topic of cyberware, the private room door opened. Brian and Irin had returned.

Liao Ji naturally looked toward the girl at once. But strangely, the moment their eyes met, Irin hurriedly looked away, as if she were a little afraid to meet his gaze.

After that, she went straight over to mingle with the other people from Haisha Bar, completely ignoring him.

Liao Ji couldn't help wondering what was wrong with Irin. Had that older man said something bad about him, telling her to stay away? That didn't seem likely. He felt he'd already done well enough in front of Irin's friends and brothers.

Just then,

the sofa beside him sank as the bearded man sat down.

"Want one?" Brian pulled a pack of cigarettes from his coat.

Liao Ji shook his head. Brian didn't mind. He lit a cigarette for himself, took a deep drag, then watched the people from Haisha, who were now gathered around Irin on the other side of the room, chatting away just as enthusiastically as they'd been with Liao Ji earlier. He turned to the young man beside him and said:

"Thank you."

"Xiao Wu just got married a few months ago. I heard his wife's already pregnant. If you hadn't helped him this time by getting the Corrupt Calamity pollution in his body detected and having the Church cleanse and treat him, I really don't know what would've happened to him."

Liao Ji shook his head. "There's no need to thank me. The credit goes to the Church."

"Hmph. The Church? Maybe the Church in your big cities is a little more diligent. But if the Church here in Black Cave actually tested every survivor after every contamination incident, then Irin's mother wouldn't still be lying in a clinic, waiting for surgery."

Brian scoffed, and only then did Liao Ji realize that the roots of Irin's mother's illness had been planted when her father went berserk.

That might also explain why Irin had become Corrupted relatively smoothly and reached three stars. Perhaps Irin and her mother had both been contaminated by a great deal of Corrupt Calamity back then.

"Enough. I won't waste time on small talk. I came over to give these to you."

Brian blew a smoke ring, then stubbed out the cigarette, which still had most of its length left. Then, under the dim light of the private room, he took two things that he'd obviously prepared in advance from his coat pocket and pushed them toward Liao Ji.

Liao Ji looked over. They were—

A car key.

And a credit card with a red-and-black pattern?

"I know you're from somewhere else, and you look like you come from a decent family. But traveling through the wilderness—especially from a remote place like the Black Cave Settlement to a big city—takes at least a week. I think you'll need a more suitable vehicle."

As he spoke, Brian pointed at the car key.

"This old friend's been with me for over ten years. It's old, sure, but I've taken good care of it, and I've kept modifying it. As far as a vehicle's performance in the wilderness goes, it's one of the best in all of Black Cave. And now..."

"It's yours."

The owner of Haisha said it casually, but Liao Ji could still see the traces of attachment that flickered in the depths of his eyes.

A car really was essential if Liao Ji wanted to leave the Black Cave Settlement. He'd planned to steal one from the gang, but he hadn't expected Brian to surprise him with one.

"Did Irin tell you we were leaving? But why give it to me?"

"Hah, did I need that brat to tell me? Ever since Nolan—since Irin's mother got sick, that girl's barely come to Haisha. Even when she does, she just goes through the back door to Nolan's clinic. So as soon as she brought you here, I knew what she was up to."

"If I'm guessing right, you told Irin you could cure her mother, didn't you? Surgery at a little clinic in Black Cave can only treat the symptoms, not the cause. If she really wants her mother cured, she has to go to a big city and find the Church. That's the only reason I can think of why Irin would agree to leave with you. So... am I right?"

Brian stared into the young man's eyes. Liao Ji... well, there were a few details he'd gotten wrong, but as far as the outcome went, the owner of Haisha had more or less guessed correctly.

When Liao Ji nodded, the weight in Brian's heart finally lifted. He visibly relaxed, lit another cigarette, and smiled.

"As for that card, it's the money I'd set aside for Nolan's surgery. A little over fifty thousand Ash Coins. I couldn't just watch that brat risk her life running around to raise the money all by herself. I'd only just managed to save it up, but it looks like we won't need it now. Still..."

"I know you might not think much of this little bit of money, but once I've decided to give something away, I don't take it back. So think of it as my way of thanking you. Thank you for helping that poor mother and daughter."

Brian had been fooled by Liao Ji's appearance, too.

He wasn't some rich young master.

Both the modified car and the fifty thousand-plus Ash Coins were tremendous resources for Liao Ji, who was currently flat broke.

So Liao Ji didn't bother pretending to be modest. He didn't even try to refuse. After thanking Brian, he accepted everything.

Brian, on the other hand, burst out laughing.

"Hahaha, good! I like people who are as straightforward as you! Honestly, if I were ten or fifteen years younger, I'd drag you out for an all-night drinking session. I'd shamelessly beg you to become sworn brothers with me. What a shame—time waits for no one. I'm old now."

"I think I understand now why so many people are willing to risk everything to become Corrupted."

A hint of disappointment glimmered in Brian's slightly cloudy eyes. The wrinkles of age were visible on his face, and even sitting there, he still had the outline of a burly physique. But looking more closely, one could see that many of his muscles had started to sag.

That was the limitation ordinary people faced. No matter how impressive and powerful they'd been in their youth, time would eventually smooth away their edges.

At some point, Brian had finished his cigarette. He slapped his thighs and stood up from the sofa.

"I don't need to tell you much about the card. You know it's a savings card from the Black Gold Bank in Demon City. That's the nice thing about a neutral bank in an independent city—you can withdraw cash anywhere. Oh, right, I almost forgot. Ask Irin where I parked the car. And finally, to answer your original question..."

"I wanted to give all this to Irin myself, but do you think that brat would've accepted it?"

"Irin's lucky to have someone like you in her life," Liao Ji said sincerely.

"Pfft, give me a break. I'm not capable of giving her a better life. But I think you are, kid."

"Irin's usually impulsive, foul-mouthed, and not too bright. She's especially good at saying the opposite of what she means. She's not very feminine, doesn't trust people easily, and gets stubborn about the smallest things. Once she's made up her mind, she's as stubborn as a mule. I—damn it! Why the hell does that brat have nothing but flaws?!"

It was obvious that Brian had meant to use a "although...but" construction. Instead, as he went on, the older man had gotten so frustrated with her that he ended up grumbling.

"Cough, cough... Anyway, no matter what, she's a good girl. And once she's let you into her heart, she'd die for you. I'm absolutely sure of that."

"Besides, I take back what I said about her not being feminine. This might be a little inappropriate, but Irin looks even prettier now than her mother did when she was young. Kid, you have no idea—back in the day, Nolan was one of the most beautiful women in all of Black Cave. I don't know how many people thought of her as the woman of their dreams. Cough, cough, cough!"

Brian cut himself off in time, before revealing anything more. Liao Ji tried to explain helplessly, "I think you might've gotten the wrong idea. Irin and I really are just ordinary friends."

Brian gave a dismissive chuckle, turned, and walked away, leaving Liao Ji with just one sentence and a back that seemed to carry years of regret.

"Irin's old man said the same damn thing to me back then. And I was stupid enough to believe him!"

Liao Ji: "..."

After saying what he wanted to say and giving Liao Ji the gifts, Brian headed over to Irin and started shooing everyone away.

"Hey, brat, that's enough! It's the men's turn now. Don't you have something to do? If you do, then get going!"

Quite a few people from Haisha were reluctant to let Irin go. But after Brian glared at them, they saw Liao Ji following behind him and seemed to understand. They stopped trying to keep her there and even joined Brian in urging her to leave.

The girl took one last look around at everyone from Haisha, the scavengers who'd been with her through the hardest times of her life, and her good uncle Brian. At the thought that she might never see them again, the tip of Irin's nose tingled. But from the look Brian gave her, she understood that leaving like this was the best possible ending.

Irin left the bar, and Liao Ji was already waiting for her at the entrance.

"I thought you'd say goodbye to them one by one."

"N-no, there's no need. Since Brian didn't tell everyone, I think it's better to leave it at that."

"Oh, right. That older man gave me a car key and this card. He said they were our newbie gift pack."

"Oh."

"He said you know where he parked his car."

"It's at 31 Beirang Street, in the alley by the first corner. You'll see it as soon as you turn in."

"Should we go pick up the car first, or your mother?"

"Let's hear what you think."

"Then should we go to a brothel and pick up some girls?"

"Sure. Let's."

It was already around eight or nine at night. The alley behind the bar naturally had no streetlights, and all the light came from the moon overhead.

Liao Ji suddenly stopped walking. The girl behind him, who'd been following with her head lowered and her eyes fixed on her toes, was startled and nearly crashed into him.

"W-what are you doing?" Irin looked at the young man staring straight at her. Her eyes darted around, full of nerves and panic, and her hands twisted together helplessly.

Seeing the girl like this, Liao Ji hesitated for a moment, then said:

"When we were in the private room, besides giving me the car key and money, that older man also told me... told me that you like me."

Time seemed to freeze for three or four seconds.

Then—

"I'll fucking kill you, Brian! You son of a bitch! How dare you make up this fucking bullshit about me!"

Beneath the bright moonlight, the air was filled with equally colorful curses.

Liao Ji, standing across from the girl, nodded in satisfaction.

Yeah.

No wonder she'd been acting so awkward. He'd known something was off.

Now this felt right!