I Want to Be a Leech Too

For a moment, even the driver could not help wondering whether... he was actually the one with a problem.

Though his reasoning was different, Yu Sheng had ultimately given the answer the driver wanted to hear.

"Then what did you come here for?"

"With your abilities, you shouldn't need my protection."

The driver sounded rather helpless as he asked.

Yu Sheng shook his head. "Why hide outside on your guard when you can lie comfortably in bed?"

With that, Yu Sheng lay down.

But soon, Yu Sheng abruptly stood up and looked at the surveillance operators. "Can you give me a copy of this footage later?"

Monitor A and Monitor B froze, then nodded instinctively.

"As an apprentice."

"During the assessment, without knowing the answers, if I mistakenly believed we were truly in danger and saved my teammates, I should still qualify for a bonus."

"Article sixteen of the Campus New Deal."

"Right!"

"Thirty thousand per person!"

For a moment, Yu Sheng's eyes shone especially brightly in the dim room.

"Twelve people, three hundred and sixty thousand."

"If I'm injured, there'll be an additional relief payment."

"Twenty thousand..."

As he spoke, Yu Sheng abruptly rose, pushed open the door, and left.

The driver clearly had not quite processed Yu Sheng's baffling actions. He froze for two seconds before shouting after him, "That's cheating!"

"Blatantly extorting public funds from the Ink Pavilion!"

"You've got some nerve!"

"Is that fair to the other students?"

"Selfish bastard!"

"I will report this truthfully to the Ink Pavilion, crack down firmly on misconduct like yours, and purge leeches like you."

The driver's expression was utterly solemn as he said this.

Exceptionally earnest.

It even felt as though a current of righteousness was lingering in the room.

Watching the driver, Monitor A and Monitor B could not help showing respect in their eyes. No wonder... he had earned a commendation.

A pillar of the Human Race!

Truly deserving of the title!

"I'll give you half."

Yu Sheng had already disappeared into the darkness, leaving only those words echoing in the room.

The previously solemn driver suddenly broke into a smile. "You got it. Pleasure doing business. I'll handle things here!"

With that, the driver casually closed the door.

Under Monitor A and Monitor B's stunned gazes, he looked at them with an unfriendly, even somewhat dangerous expression and said mildly, "As outstanding clerks, you should know how to report this to your superiors once you return to the Ink Pavilion."

He worked his fists, making his knuckles crack crisply.

He was like a vicious wolf eyeing a pair of little rabbits.

"Didn't... didn't you say you were going to crack down on this misconduct and purge the leeches?"

Monitor A swallowed and spoke cautiously.

"Heh..."

"I want to be a leech too. Got a problem with that?"

The driver asked with a vicious grin.

Watching the driver's increasingly hostile expression, Monitor A and Monitor B nodded frantically.

Satisfied, the driver patted them both on the shoulders before lying back down on the bed, no longer interested in watching the surveillance feed.

Since Yu Sheng had gone back, there was no need to keep watching.

"May I ask one more question?"

Monitor A was still somewhat conflicted. Though he was only a lowly logistics clerk at the Ink Pavilion, he still had a strong sense of righteousness. Even at the risk of a beating, he stubbornly asked his question.

"You did earn a commendation, after all."

"Even if it's only the lowest-ranked Cloud Pattern, it still means you've contributed to the Human Race."

"But what happened today infringes on the Ink Pavilion's property."

"It harms the Human Race's interests."

"You..."

Monitor A was utterly bewildered.

This completely defied the understanding he had held all these years.

Weren't heroes supposed to be righteous through and through?

The driver scoffed. "In your eyes, how should someone with a commendation act?"

"Fight the enemy bravely, charge ahead without hesitation, and disregard his own interests?"

"Without money, what am I supposed to cultivate with?"

"If I don't cultivate, how do I level up?"

"If I don't level up, how am I supposed to kill demons?"

"What happens when my weapon breaks?"

"If my car gets wrecked, do I buy another or not?"

"I can't exactly pick you two up and take you out to chop up demons, can I?"

"A human greataxe?"

"I swing you around, and you bite the demons?"

Shifting into a more comfortable position, the driver lit another cigarette. Amid the wisps of smoke, his gaze grew unfocused. "Sometimes, it really isn't that I look down on you clerical workers in the rear."

"You take some things far too much for granted."

"What was that term again? Let me think..."

"Oh, right!"

"Idealism."

Flicking off the ash, the driver continued, "You always think the world ought to be just the way you believe it is."

"That heroes should fight to the death and never retreat."

"I'm telling you, those are idiots. Complete fucking idiots. If your death can buy time for the plans in the rear, then it's a worthy death!"

"But if it can't, then fucking run. The faster, the better. Save yourself from becoming a pile of shit inside a demon beast's stomach, where no one can even tell which pile is you after it shits you out."

There was a hint of mockery in the driver's tone. He seemed to recall something, and a trace of sorrow flashed through his eyes. Even his voice grew quieter.

"The Human Race has too few resources. Nowhere near enough."

"The resources that can improve our strength all come from demon beasts, but are demon beasts that easy to kill?"

"Everyone wants to grow stronger and be a hero. So what do we do when there aren't enough resources?"

"Fight. Put our lives on the line."

"Do you know how many people have died in the wilderness for a single Demon Crystal?"

"Like you said, this is embezzlement."

"But if I get stronger and go to Demon-Suppressing Pass, I can kill more demons and save more people."

"I'm not going to die peacefully anyway, so why not enjoy an exciting life?"

"If they can't even beat you in competing for resources, will they be more useful than you once they get to Demon-Suppressing Pass?"

"Some rules are tacitly accepted by the Ink Pavilion."

As he finished his cigarette, the driver's desire to talk gradually faded. He casually tossed the cigarette butt onto the floor and left them with one last remark. "Heroes aren't as clean as you think, but they aren't as rotten as you think either."

Closing his eyes and humming a little tune, the driver looked perfectly at ease.

He had even begun calculating what resources he would buy to improve his strength once that hundred-thousand-plus windfall arrived.

He had heard that a fresh shipment of tiger demon blood had recently arrived in the provincial capital. It could strengthen the body.

Level-four Demon Crystals were good stuff too.

Perhaps they could improve his strength a little further.

But...

He couldn't afford them.

How about exchanging contact details with this kid?

With that brain of his, I get the feeling he could make a fortune. If I work with him while he's still weak and doesn't have powerful backing, maybe I can get a good share of the spoils!

Otherwise, once he gets stronger, he definitely won't bother with me.

One look, and you can tell he's the type to make a fortune quietly.

For a moment, the driver's mind began whirring. He was even considering how to tactfully ask for Yu Sheng's contact number.