"All of you stay here, I have business outside!"
"Where are you going? Aren't you drinking the soup?"
Putato dropped his backpack on the sofa and prepared to head out. Looking back at the pot of aromatic meat broth, he felt conflicted.
He definitely couldn't eat it, but heaven knows if Yixin was watching from the shadows. If he threw it out, she might pull some other twisted stunt.
"Freeze the soup in the chest. Don't touch it; I'll deal with it when I get back."
Ignoring Mo calling after him, Putato dashed toward the factory.
He had worked too damn hard to build his position in Stray Dogs; he couldn't let some superior's superior annihilate them for no reason!
The factory was piled high with spoils of war, but the atmosphere was eerie. Stray Dogs members watched Putato with tension and curiosity as he arrived.
Pushing open the office door, Putato found Gyeong-mi and the other two Executives all present.
"Boss Gyeong-mi, what's the deal? Why did The Thumb suddenly issue a notice?"
Gyeong-mi was in a foul mood, leaning his elbows on the workbench with his head down. He didn't even have the energy to curse.
He tapped his golden rings. After a moment, he signaled Zulu to close the door.
"In short, the Southern Branch believes that because Stray Dogs was raided by Molar Office and lost over half its men, our strength has declined too much to function as subordinates."
"But we just wiped out Axe Gang! Doesn't that prove our capability?"
"Hmph, it should. However, the Southern Branch is questioning our ability to follow orders. Apparently, the higher-ups said to give Axe Gang 'a lesson,' which they think shouldn't have meant killing every last one of them."
"They feel we can't comprehend orders."
Putato was speechless. One of the Five Fingers was actually this rigid? You're a Syndicate, not a government office with a fixed quota. He felt he needed to reconsider his career path.
If he joined the internal ranks of The Thumb, his talents wouldn't be utilized; instead, he'd be subjected to the purges of moronic superiors.
Even the usually calm Zulu couldn't sit still.
"Just because of that, the Southern Branch wants to sweep us?! What kind of bullshit Five Fingers is this? No different from any other Syndicate!"
"This time is just a warning. Having The Thumb's protection comes at a price—I shouldn't have to be the one to teach you that."
"Then Boss Gyeong-mi, what do you want us to do?"
Gyeong-mi glanced at Putato, finally stood up, clenched his fist, and swung backward, snapping the executive chair in half.
"New orders from the Southern Thumb. We need to take a deposit and specific requirements to place an order with The Carnival. This time, there's no goddamn room for failure, you understand?"
"Otherwise, those idiots will truly slaughter both you and me, regardless of how much we've done for them."
"Also, the Myn Church has been expanding like crazy lately and is about to reach our territory. The higher-ups' stance is that kicking them out is enough."
Hearing this, Putato quickly followed up, not expecting to hear about the Myn Church here.
"Is there anything special about this cult?"
"Just another bunch of lunatics. They've deluded a lot of fools into 'liberating their true selves.' Isn't there a mental asylum nearby? The director there spent his entire fortune supporting the church, leaving the asylum completely unmanaged."
"On my way here, I ran into some dumb woman who claimed I was her son. I accidentally used too much force and crushed her head. What a streak of bad luck!"
To ease the tense atmosphere, Dino chimed in.
"Their missionaries are quite shrewd; they target people with money. I reckon that orphanage nearby won't last long before it ends up like that too."
"Luckily, that place is sponsored by L Corp, so it's not under our jurisdiction. If they ever dare to take the money that belongs to us, we'll burn their cathedral to the ground."
So that's it. Putato finally understood why there were so many mental patients roaming the streets lately; the cages were gone.
He thought of the little girl he had given the bow tie to; she might end up on the streets because of the Myn Church's brainwashing and fund-raising.
Are they even goddamn human?!
"Doesn't L Corp care? No one should like a cult like this."
"Wings of the World aren't suckers. Besides, even though the entire City uses L Corp's Enkephalin, their top brass keeps a very low profile. I haven't heard of them making any big moves."
"Hmph, it's enough that the people in the Nest glance over here once in a while. Don't actually expect them to care."
Gyeong-mi impatiently slapped the table.
"Stop with the goddamn chatter. Zulu, stay here and keep an eye on those runts. Putato and Dino, get ready to go with me to The Carnival."
"I've never dealt with those tailors before. They'll probably be a pain to handle, though the synthetic fibers they produce are bestsellers."
Walking out of the office, Putato suddenly heard his communicator ringing in his pocket. He took it out and saw the caller was Mo.
Had Yixin appeared again?!
Putato immediately stepped outside the factory to answer the call.
"Uh, Putato, there's a minivan outside the building that seems to be watching us. Is it some new subordinate you recruited?"
"Don't do anything. Wait for me to get back."
The sudden appearance of the minivan immediately reminded Putato of the Death Squad. Could it be another surprise attack?
But when Putato rushed back and saw the dented, battered minivan, he was disappointed. This clearly didn't match the elite aura of the Death Squad; the windshield even had two spreading cracks.
The left and right windows were covered with yellow tape, making it impossible to see inside. Through the front windshield, Putato could vaguely see four or five people sitting within.
They were dressed in various styles of ordinary shirts and jackets.
BOOM!
Activating the Hematic Pump, Putato punched the front hood, caving it in and instantly triggering the car's alarm.
"Everyone, get the hell out!"
Immediately, a head popped out from one of the side windows, cursing loudly.
"Kid, you're looking for death, aren't you?"
"None of your business here. Leave the money and get lost!"
The window, which hadn't finished closing, was jammed by the Honesuki. Putato sneered as he forcibly forced the window back down.
"Cut off his hand!"
The man in the driver's seat was the clear leader. He snatched a machete from the dashboard and swung it violently toward Putato's wrist.
CLANG!
The blade slammed into the car window instead. The leader let out a frustrated roar.
"Everyone out! Kill this suicidal trash!"
"You dare provoke the Carige Gang? You must be tired of living!"
BANG!
The doors flew open. Five hulking men, bristling with weapons, leaped from the vehicle.
But the man closest to Putato barely stood up before his vision blurred. A piercing agony erupted in his abdomen.
Putato coldly twisted the handle of the Honesuki, forcing the man to clutch his gut and drop to his knees.
"Don't tell me you don't recognize me?"
"Who the hell are you?! You dare stab my brother!"
"I'm going to carve the eyelids off your face!"
Putato was speechless. He had intended to resolve this peacefully, but these thugs insisted on choosing the "stimulating" option.
In The City, if you don't showcase your lethal talents, every stray cat and dog will pester you to death.
PUFF!
The surrounding neon lights flickered off the spraying blood and the glinting blade.
The one-sided slaughter was over before the three iron-men could even join the fray. Looking at the men wailing in the dirt, Putato finally felt the true weight of his own strength.
Avoiding the blood pooling on the pavement, Putato sheathed his Honesuki and began the interrogation.
"You're with the Carige Gang? Why are you loitering out here?"
Putato remembered this Syndicate. Back in Backstreet 23, they were the ones who hung human heads from the streetlights. They were a notorious human-trafficking ring.
Putato grabbed the leader by his black hair and yanked his head back. The stinging scalp and the cold steel at his throat turned the man's bravado into desperate pleading.
"Wait, stop! We're just here for intelligence!"
"Intelligence? Who sent you!"
Putato grabbed the man's head and slammed it into the car window. SMASH! A crimson smear instantly covered the glass.
When dealing with Syndicate scum, you break them first. Otherwise, they never stop playing tricks.
"No one! We were just doing a routine sweep for high-quality 'talent.' We heard the Axe Gang leader's sister was here, so we wanted to try our luck."
"Someone with skin that smooth and features that pretty... she'd sell for a fortune in the shops of Backstreet 23 or a puppet theater!"
"Besides, plenty of people have a grudge against the Axe Gang. They'd pay a premium just to see her suffer!"
Damn it.
Another tedious, filthy reason. These traffickers were the absolute rot of The City.
"Big brother, we have money. Just let one of us go back and get the cash."
"Yeah, we guarantee there won't be a next time! All the good stock in the Syndicate territories has been snatched up lately, so we were just roaming."
"Look at this car—it's handled dozens of deals. We promise the ransom will be huge. Think of it as a supplement to your protection fee."
The leader bowed his head, gritting his teeth against the pain of his wound. When he looked up, his face was a mask of servility. He saw that Putato hadn't struck a fatal blow yet, which meant everything was still up for negotiation.
Talk my ass.
Putato had zero sympathy for these murderous bastards. No amount of money could buy back the lives they had liquidated.
"Who told you Katae was here?"
"A naked man! We were sent to watch the Axe Gang mobilization, planning to snatch someone on the way back for extra cash."
"We saw he was healthy and had no modification marks, so we bagged him."
"We started 'chatting,' and he told us he was hiding on a rooftop and watched the entire fight between the Stray Dogs and the Axe Gang. He knew exactly where Katae was. That's why we came to bother you."
Suddenly, Putato looked down at the leather jacket and trousers he was wearing. He quickly asked for a description of the man.
It was that neurotic lunatic in the leather jacket. Putato's anger flared white-hot.
That maniac should have been put down long ago.
"He said his name is Patsy, and he was naked to 'liberate his true self'."
"Bullshit." That idiot's clothes were the ones Putato had stripped off specifically to build his Fixer identity, Vanda.
Mo, watching the interrogation from the shadows, grew irritated once he realized Katae was the source of the heat.
"Putato, that nuisance needs to go. You aren't seriously playing house with him, are you? Didn't you kill his brother?"
"You can't just wait around for the day he poisons your sandwich. Besides, his supplies cost money."
"I gave him my word. Besides, he's never killed anyone. He's reliable for now."
"Give me a break! If I told you I'd never killed anyone, would you believe me?"
"No."
"Then why believe him? This guy hasn't paid a single cent for room and board. He just crouches in his room eating for free every day."
Putato turned to Mo and answered with cold solemnity.
"Don't ask me a second time. Because when I make a promise, I keep it."
"If I can't even fulfill a commitment of this level, how can I ever become the Pinnacle of The City?"
"God, you're a psycho."
The circular icon turned from yellow to white, and the screen displayed a giant 'X'. Mo crossed her arms and retreated, too lazy to waste more words on Putato.
Cold-faced, Putato sensed the wind whistling behind him. He nimbly bent his waist to dodge, then instantly slit the throat of the leader who had tried to ambush him.
"He's dead! Run!"
"Don't kill me!"
Putato felt a faint numbness on his spleen where a fine tire-tread Tattoo was being etched. At the same time, his speed increased once more.
If I fight soldiers from The Thumb, will I get a bullet Tattoo?
This Tattoo talent really had a gacha flavor to it.
"Mo, help me clear out these bodies."
"How can someone change their face the moment they need help?"
"Because you're reliable."
"Hmph."
Feeling his strength reach a new level, Putato immediately wanted to contact the Molar Office. He had to hurry with the investigation of the Myn Church.
Facing the numerous followers of the Myn Church alone might be beyond his strength. Even dealing with their new missionary outposts would be difficult. After all, they were cultists.
In mid-to-low-tier conflicts, numbers still mattered.
However, as Putato pulled out his communicator, he unexpectedly found a message from Lesti.
[Lesti: Lend me money.]
Putato immediately arranged for a transfer, then asked suspiciously.
[Putato: You?]
[Lesti: I want cash. Why are you transferring money? I don't even know the payment password.]
What's the situation?
[Putato: Are you joking? Or does joining a Wing of the World require a security deposit now?]
[Lesti: You're crazy. I said I want cash. Come to Twisted Street and give it to me.]
??
What exactly happened?
Putato immediately started the minivan, drove over the corpses of the Carige Gang underlings, and sped out of the alley, trailing a thinning streak of blood.
The mountain of doubts made Putato drive recklessly, causing countless drivers behind him to honk and roar in fury.
...
In front of the Commercial District.
Putato stopped the car several hundred meters away from the Zwei Association security post. This was the adjacent Twisted Street.
Although separated only by a road, the Zwei Fixers in the security post ignored the brawls and robberies occurring right next door—a true monetary blind spot.
[Lesti: Still can't find me? I'm the freest person on this street. Can't you tell?]
"Patsy?"
Putato leaned out of the car window and shouted uncertainly at the naked man fiddling with a communicator.
"It's you! Thank you for helping me further liberate my true self. Previously, I still habitually wore clothes, but now I feel completely light and free."
"Why is Lesti's communicator in your hands?"
"I picked this up in the minivan. I just wanted to borrow some money to buy food."
"Eating is a true instinct, untainted by a single impurity. It is the simplest and most profound expression of the 'True Self'."
Damn it, damn it, damn it!
Am I playing some chain quest? Why is Lesti's whereabouts stuck in a loop? Putato kicked the car door open and directly grabbed Patsy by the neck.
"Where is Lesti?!"
"Cough... cough... how would I know?"
Putato stared into Patsy's eyes. There was only a sense of indifference in them. Even as he faced suffocation, he merely frowned.
Carige Gang!
It must be those head-chopping bastards!
However, Putato carefully took Lesti's communicator back first. He casually bought a sandwich for Patsy. Without his random messages, Putato wouldn't even have discovered that Lesti had been kidnapped.
The communicator was mostly filled with messages about exam discussions, followed by some loan and work-related content.
While checking the memos, Putato finally discovered that Lesti had specifically borrowed money today to come to the commercial district to buy a cake, and she had even changed her outfit.
It must have been because of this that she was targeted by the Carige Gang, who had recently started operating in this area.
"Hahaha, good, good, good!"
Stowing the communicator, Putato turned to see Patsy clapping his hands in delight at the alley entrance. He walked over suspiciously.
In the dark alleyway, two famished trash elders were fighting like madmen over a single sandwich.
Even though their combat power was low due to disease, hunger, or physical defects, they still had hard teeth that could tear through a person's jugular.
Yellowed, rotten teeth bit down until their mouths were full of blood, and then they impatiently grabbed the sandwich and shoved it down whole.
They didn't look like they were eating with their mouths. It looked like they were swallowing with their esophagi.
"Fuck you!"
Putato sent Patsy flying onto the pavement with a single kick. The teeth flying out of Patsy's mouth rattled on the road like dice.
Pushing aside the trash elder whose throat was being bitten, Putato pulled out the pneumatic syringe and gave him two rapid injections. Only then did the man catch his breath.
He didn't dare delay. He quickly bought two paper bags of sandwiches and placed them in a nearby trash can.
By the time he finished this and walked out of the alley, that damn psycho had vanished.
"Next time I see him, I'm breaking his legs!"
"Now, to the Carige Gang to rescue Lesti!"