Old Vance's Choice

Old Vance stared at the sea before him, his face slightly pale.

He suddenly regretted it. How had he let himself get carried away and moved his whole family to Blood Port?

The last time he had been injured at a Faithguard Army construction site, he had been taken to Blood Port for treatment.

It seemed that everything had changed after that.

At first, stories of it spread through the city, and people listened with skepticism.

It was not that they did not want to believe it; the accounts were simply too bizarre.

The endless steel forest of Blood Port, the rumbling square buildings, the ceaseless streams of people, and the boundless city—none of it was within the city residents' imagination.

But Old Vance had not gone alone. There had been far too many fellow workers with him, and all of them swore that it was true, leaving the city's residents uncertain.

Yet whether Blood Port truly existed or not, Old Vance's injuries could not be faked.

The savage wounds on his body, the clean and tidy bandages, and the rosy complexion he had gained after days of freeloading meals—those were what truly moved the residents.

Working for the Expeditionary Force meant that, at the very least, injuries would be treated. That alone was enough to tempt many people.

What truly changed people's minds, however, was the settlement at the end of the month.

The Expeditionary Force construction sites offered both daily and monthly payment. Everyone had chosen daily payment without exception; who knew how long the job would last?

But Old Vance had been injured and could not work, so naturally he had not gone to collect wages. Nor did he think he would receive any. Getting free meals was already more than enough for him.

But just because