Employee or Holy Son?

"No time."

Liu Zheng refused decisively.

What kind of respectable god could a cult that relied on smuggling for wealth possibly put their Trust in?

Or rather, where in the universe was there any respectable god?

Though he was not a materialist, he had no favorable impression of these people who kept making empty promises to their followers of Trust.

"Sir."

Garcia was about to continue persuading him when Cow-Horse stopped him.

"Hey, are you doing business or not? If not, get the hell out of here."

They spoke viciously.

"Once the transaction is complete, I hope to speak with you in detail, sir."

Garcia gave Liu Zheng a deep look, then stepped aside.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

Cow-Horse spat a thick glob of phlegm onto the ground.

It was clear that they genuinely loathed these iron-masked people.

No wonder White-Feather Chicken had asked Cow-Horse to vent their anger for them.

Liu Zheng shook out the manifest and looked over its contents.

"One live female mermaid, body intact, with no obvious internal or external injuries."

"Identity: mermaid priestess and royal bloodline. Her purity remains intact."

A priestess and royal bloodline too. She had quite the background.

He nodded to indicate that he had finished reading.

"Open it."

Garcia gave the order.

Two iron-masked men took out crowbars and pried open the wooden crate. A massive block of ice appeared before Liu Zheng.

The ice looked exceptionally pure. The light of the setting sun shone upon it, reflecting iridescent hues like a polished diamond.

At the center of the ice block, a little mermaid was curled up.

She had long gray-blue hair like seaweed, and skin as pale and delicate as ivory.

Tears slid from her tightly shut eyes, her long eyelashes already soaked through.

It was not hard to imagine the terror she had endured.

For some reason, Liu Zheng felt that her features somewhat resembled Natasha, whom he had buried.

"You people really dared to do this. The Merfolk are going to protest at City Hall again."

Cow-Horse said.

"So many races are protesting already. One more likely will not matter to City Hall."

Garcia said calmly.

"Besides, she was meant to be enjoyed by those councilors anyway, wasn't she?"

"I said nothing. I know nothing."

Cow-Horse immediately distanced themself from the matter.

"Why put on such a clumsy performance when you know perfectly well that no one can hear our conversation?"

Garcia sighed.

As his words fell, black circles emerged from the air one after another, enveloping them.

Looking outward through the circles, every scene had been warped into disconnected fragments.

Before the system notification could appear, Liu Zheng immediately looked away.

So that was why smuggling openly on the street was not too wild after all.

"Heh, you really think such petty tricks can block City Hall's eyes and ears?"

"You are nothing more than a rundown little cult. City Hall simply cannot be bothered with you. If they truly wanted to act, every one of your crimes would play on the scales of justice on repeat."

Cow-Horse said disdainfully.

"Only our Lord may judge our sins. Moreover, what we do is precisely what City Hall needs. All we seek is usefulness."

Garcia said calmly.

"You are still as annoying as ever. Salmon, inspect the goods properly. See what trick they are pulling this time."

Cow-Horse shouted.

"I can't inspect it through the ice, meow."

Calico Cat spread their paws.

"This is Mermaid's Tears, her self-protection mechanism. Once it is removed, she will immediately kill herself."

"If you wish to remove Mermaid's Tears, Restaurant must accept the goods first."

Garcia said.

"Damn it, so this was what you were waiting for?"

Cow-Horse's bovine eyes widened.

"Then I'm not taking it. Sell it or don't, I don't give a damn."

"That is acceptable."

Garcia actually nodded.

"The Black Market has also sought this item, though their offer is somewhat lower. But if you refuse it, I can only sell it to them."

As he spoke, he was about to order his followers to pack the goods back up.

"You can't let them leave, meow. This was ordered by an important figure from the council. If we can't serve it, the head chef will be in trouble, meow."

Calico Cat tugged on Liu Zheng's pant leg.

"Wait."

He nodded and spoke to stop them.

Garcia signaled for them to pause, then looked at him with a profound gaze.

"I don't Trust that the Black Market's people do not inspect their goods either. You definitely have a solution."

Liu Zheng said.

"Of course we have a method, but why should we tell you? Besides, you never had any sincerity to begin with. Cow-Horse's words and actions have been provoking us at every turn. There is no need to continue this business."

Garcia admitted it outright.

"That is because you cheated us first."

"This sort of business is settled with payment and goods. If you failed to find any problems during inspection, you can only blame your own poor judgment."

Garcia said without even raising his eyelids.

"Hey, you bastard."

Cow-Horse lowered their head, ready to charge with their horn.

After two days of recuperation, their broken horn had grown back almost completely.

The single horn actually made them look even more imposing.

"Boss, wait a moment. Let me talk to him."

Liu Zheng stopped them.

"What is there to discuss with this idiot? Just kill him and be done with it."

Cow-Horse cursed, but their feet stopped moving.

"Your current shipping method is unacceptable. It prevents us from inspecting the goods. Even if you do not care about Restaurant's business alone, do you not care about your business Trust?"

"You said the Black Market wants to buy it. We have some connections in the Black Market too."

"Oink from the Slaughterhouse is a fellow townsman of ours, and we often play cards with the demon from the Casino. If I ask them to spread word of this, how many people will still dare do business with you?"

He stared at Garcia as he spoke.

Beneath the iron mask, Garcia seemed to frown.

He knew Cow-Horse was acquainted with Oink, but he had not known they were also connected to the demon.

The Slaughterhouse and the Casino were the Black Market's two major powers. If they caused trouble, the cult's business would indeed be affected.

"I can remove Mermaid's Tears, but you must agree to one condition."

After thinking for a moment, he spoke.

"What condition?"

"You must listen to my Lord's Gospel."

Garcia looked at Liu Zheng.

"Why are you so determined to preach to me?"

Liu Zheng asked helplessly.

"You have listened to the Gospel of an evil god. If you convert to my Lord, my Lord will surely be pleased."

Garcia replied.

"But I won't be pleased."

He shook his head.

One evil god's Gospel had already turned him into this. What would happen if another one came along?

It would be fine if one god won, but if they ended up deadlocked, he figured he would not even be able to become a tentacle monster.

"If you convert to my Lord, you will no longer need to work. You need only sing my Lord's name to the stars. Three meals a day, food, clothing, housing, transportation, and personal safety will all be guaranteed."

"At Restaurant, you are nothing but a consumable. Especially after your essence transforms, you will become prime ingredients. At that point, Restaurant will surely do everything it can to make you err and fall into livestock."

"If you do not Trust me, ask Cow-Horse."

Garcia urged earnestly.

"He's right. That is exactly what Restaurant is like."

Cow-Horse admitted without hesitation.

"Kid, now it is your choice."

"Will you keep being a corporate slave at Restaurant, or become a holy son in this shitty cult?"