Unfortunately, An Kai saw straight through Reed and the others' intentions...
"You old geezer, have you gone senile? What are you keeping them around for?"
"Can't bear to kill them? Want me to slaughter them for you?"
The moment An Kai spoke, Reed and his three companions bowed their heads even lower...
This bloodthirsty bastard! Reed was terrified. He had never doubted that An Kai would raise his blade against him...
"Hey! Kid, stop messing with them. Tell me, what good stuff did you bring this time?"
"You left in such a hurry last time. Your sister Wang mentioned you several times!"
Hanks walked up to Reed and his three companions, smiling at An Kai, who stood on the battered carriage.
At the same time, he was puzzled.
As soon as An Kai appeared, Hanks had secretly examined him with a detector.
An Kai was at tier one, stage one.
Why, then, did Hanks sense that An Kai's strength far exceeded what someone at that level should possess? And why was it so much more substantial than at their last meeting?
Hanks couldn't figure out where the problem lay. If there was nothing wrong with An Kai's strength, then only one thing could be at fault...
Tomorrow, he would visit the shop that had sold him the defective detector and twist off that fat, big-eared owner's head!
How dare someone use a scam like that on him, Hanks?!
Seeing Hanks approach, An Kai stopped hiding his intentions. He put away his iron sword and jumped off the carriage.
He said bluntly, "I need magic stones."
"Your carriage is too beat-up. One Lower-grade Magic Stone at most, and that's only because we're friends!"
"Not enough!"
"Not enough?"
"Not enough!" An Kai nodded emphatically, a vicious gleam flashing through his eyes.
Hanks understood what An Kai meant. After a moment's thought, he pulled An Kai behind the carriage, hiding them both from view.
"Hunting or fishing?"
Only then did Hanks voice his question, using the slang of the Nameless Town's residents.
Fishing was the method Reed and his companions used. Out in the desert, it tested the character of those passing through.
Those who resisted temptation could leave safely. Those who couldn't...
Countless travelers died in the desert every year.
Hunting, meanwhile, was even simpler and more brutal.
In plain terms, it meant "robbery!"
This was also how most residents of the Nameless Town chose to acquire resources.
The method was extremely risky. One careless move could turn a hunter into prey.
An Kai had only used it once, and that time he had run into someone who preyed on other criminals.
An Kai might have been reckless, but even after a year here, he had never let himself become like the others.
Deep down, he still held to his own principles.
The prey he chose were also thoroughly wicked people.
In truth, out in this desert...
If ten people were dragged out and hanged, probably only one would be wrongly executed.
And that one would only be innocent because they had just arrived and hadn't had time to join in the wrongdoing...
The desert bordered several countries, yet none were willing-or rather, able-to govern it.
As a result, this desert had become a truly lawless region.
Here, kindness was both the most worthless and the most precious thing.
Only deceit and cold-bloodedness offered a way to survive.
When An Kai first arrived, he struggled to adjust too. After his inherent kindness landed him in three life-or-death crises... he finally understood how to survive here!
At Hanks's question, the corners of An Kai's mouth twitched, as though he had recalled his past experiences.
Without Chaos City, An Kai might have had to choose between hunting and fishing.
Now that Chaos City was here, An Kai wanted to try a faster way to make money...
The Bounty Tower!
"The Bounty Tower?!" After hearing An Kai's intentions, Hanks was rather surprised.
In his eyes, An Kai was a lawless scoundrel, yet he actually wanted to follow the rules.
That came as quite a surprise.
Given Hanks's impression of An Kai, shouldn't this fellow have proposed robbing the Bounty Tower?
As it happened, An Kai had considered that, but he had immediately discarded the idea because he wasn't strong enough.
He was reckless, not stupid.
"Kid, work at the Bounty Tower isn't easy. Those four might have pulled it off without much trouble, but the people who've failed could fill all of Chaos City!"
Hanks tried to dissuade him one last time.
But when he saw An Kai's expression, he knew his words probably hadn't even gone in one ear!
Never mind out the other...
"Fine. I promised I'd help you. If you want to accept jobs from the Bounty Tower, do you have a membership card?"
"Reed and his companions stumbled into it by chance. They don't count. You might not see a case like theirs even once in a hundred years."
"Besides, the bounty rewards for members are several times what people without a membership card receive!"
Like an elderly father, Hanks carefully explained all the things the young An Kai needed to watch out for.
Unfortunately, although he said quite a lot, once his words reached An Kai's ears...
An Kai noticed only one point: without a membership card, the rewards would be drastically reduced!
"Can Bounty Tower membership cards be transferred?"
Seemingly guessing what An Kai had in mind, Hanks replied stiffly, "...You can't coerce anyone..."
"Got it!"
Shing!
An Kai drew his iron sword and walked up to Reed and his three companions, who still had their heads lowered, with a smile on his face.
He pressed the iron sword against Reed's neck, where a faint line of blood began to appear...
"Are you willing to transfer your Bounty Tower membership card to me?"
With the iron sword pressed against his neck, Reed broke into a cold sweat and hastily answered, "I'm willing! I'm willing!"
Having received his answer, An Kai didn't rush to withdraw the sword. Instead, he asked gently, "Did I coerce you?"
"No! No! I'm doing this willingly!"
Reed hurried to answer An Kai's question, terrified that a slow response would earn him a sword through the neck...
Hearing the answer he wanted, An Kai put away his iron sword and turned to Hanks with a smile. "See? Problem solved, isn't it?"
"Willingly... willingly... sigh!" Hanks felt rather helpless. An Kai's approach really was typical of the Nameless Town...
"It is voluntary!" An Kai replied softly, like a friendly older boy from next door.
Beside him, Reed nodded so hard his head bobbed like a rattle drum. "Willingly! Willingly! Sir, I'm doing all of this willingly!"
[Skill points +1] [Freezing Spell proficiency +1] [Freezing Spell Lv1 "9/10"]
The carriage was sold. Hanks had originally intended to offer a friendly price of two Lower-grade Magic Stones, but he suddenly changed his mind, saying he and An Kai weren't friends.
One Lower-grade Magic Stone was little more than a drop in the bucket for An Kai now.
Still, even a mosquito's leg had some meat on it!
Once the transaction was complete, Hanks led An Kai and Reed, who had willingly agreed to transfer his Bounty Tower membership card, into Chaos City.
Their goal on this trip was to take on a Bounty Tower job!
Before you continue