As they walked into the settlement, the group felt numerous gazes fall upon them. It wasn't just because of their attire, which stood out among the refugees, but also because the bloodstains on their clothes were far too conspicuous. A thick, metallic scent of blood inevitably wafted from them the moment they entered.
Seeing a group of people who looked like they had just crawled out of a pile of corpses, the eyes of the refugees flickered with wariness and suspicion. Before long, several young men blocked their path.
The youth leading them gripped an iron rod. He wore loose, saggy overalls paired with a tattered denim jacket likely scavenged from a trash heap. Standing before them with an unfriendly expression, he pointed the iron rod at Chen San, who was at the front.
"What are you here for?" he asked.
He didn't look very old—the age where someone in the city would have just left an orphanage to struggle in society—but his face was already covered in thick grime, his lips were cracked and bleeding, and he had a long scar on his arm. His eyes held a ruthlessness that didn't belong to his age.
Chen San's expression shifted slightly as he tried to keep his voice calm. "I'm with the Dawn Agency. I know Old Liu; I'm here to see him about something."
"Agency?"
Hearing those words, the youths grew even more defensive, surrounding the group. The youth in the lead spoke with a heavier tone:
"Who's Old Liu? Never heard of him. And as for some bullshit agency—I've changed my mind. Hmph, there's no way I'm letting you guys leave now."
"Don't get cocky with me, kid," Lin Xing barked in a low voice.
"Boys, get—"
A cry of pain interrupted him. The blonde girl, who had been inconspicuous in the crowd moments ago, appeared behind the youth. She grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back, her seemingly slender frame exploding with incredible strength.
Xu Xiaoyou's strength wasn't massive, but it was more than enough to handle these ordinary people. Simply by holding him, she forced him to his knees, rendering him unable to move. With the slightest application of pressure, the youth's bones began to creak and pop as if they were about to shatter.
Xu Xiaoyou's face remained calm. Looking down at the pale youth whose forehead was dripping with cold sweat, she sent him sprawling to the ground with a simple kick and sneered. "You're still wet behind the ears, yet you're trying to act like a big shot."
After suffering at the girl's hands, the youth sprawled on the ground realized the gap between them and this group. He grunted a few times and tried to lead his companions away, but the girl's voice came from behind them again:
"I didn't say you could leave."
Their eyes trembled. Turning back, they saw the coldness in the girl's eyes as she leveled a black metal barrel at them, its surface glinting with a hard, cold light. "Stay right there."
The youths' hearts tightened, and they stood there trembling. The leader gritted his teeth, crouching down with his hands over his head in frustration. Seeing the strange looks from the other refugees in the settlement, Chen San stepped forward. "Hey, we're here for a commission. Don't take it too far!"
Xu Xiaoyou understood he was taking the opportunity to play the good cop to her bad cop. She played along. "A bunch of blind fools—don't they deserve a lesson?"
"If they don't learn, they'll only die more pathetically later."
As she spoke, Xu Xiaoyou moved to aim the gun at the youth's leg. Just then, a weary, elderly shout echoed from a distance.
The two of them turned to see an old man running toward them, panting for breath. The fabric of his clothes was clearly different from the surrounding refugees—not exactly fine, but obviously marking him as someone of higher status in the settlement.
"Village chief." The youth scrambled toward the old man, but before he could speak, the old man's palm came down hard on his head. He cursed while hitting him, finally adding a kick of disappointment.
"Who do you think you're messing with? They're from the Dawn Agency!"
Clearly, the old man was highly respected here. As soon as he appeared, the wary and scrutinizing gazes lessened significantly, and the surrounding refugees went back to their own business.
The youth clutched his backside and, after a harsh glare from the old man, scurried away.
Before long, the old man reached Chen San's side, his tone apologetic. "It's my fault for not controlling these boys. I've caused you trouble."
"They're just kids who haven't grown up yet. They only arrived here recently. Half a month ago, their village was destroyed by an agency. Those bandits didn't even spare their families..."
Though the old man didn't look at her while saying this, Xu Xiaoyou heard the underlying meaning. She shrugged and gave a gentle smile to Tang Xin, whose eyes held a hint of worry, but said nothing more.
"An agency?" Chen San frowned slightly.
"It definitely has something to do with those vile scions of the families. This time of year is exactly when those guys go on their winter hunt. They specifically hire some low-grade, obscure agencies to escort them out of the city," Lin Sheng suddenly spoke up.
The younger refugees nearby heard this, and sorrow flowed through their eyes. For them, suffering had been a constant companion since the moment they were born into this world.
Aside from the threats of predators on the snowfields, natural disasters, hunger, and disease, their lives were worth less than weeds in the eyes of the big shots in the cities. On a whim, those people might order the plundering or even the slaughter of their settlements—men, women, young, and old, leaving no one alive.
And such things had happened more than once. Looking at each other—all driven here by different tragedies—the refugees smiled bitterly, masking their sorrow.
Sensing the heavy atmosphere, the old man waved his hand to disperse the crowd. He then nodded slightly toward Chen San.
"Just in time, dinner's ready at home. Let's find another place to talk."
"Alright," Chen San agreed.
After a few brief pleasantries, the group followed the old man deeper into the settlement. The settlement wasn't large, about the size of a small village, roughly equivalent to two city blocks.
Xu Xiaoyou's attention was now entirely on the old man. He gave her an indescribable sense of oddity. His face was wrinkled, and his expression was kind and benevolent; he looked exactly like a perfectly normal, respected elder.
Or rather, since arriving here, this entire settlement had given her this sense of oddity. From the women washing clothes at the entrance to the refugees watching them from the houses, and the children running in the streets.
Everything seemed a bit too normal. It was like watching a large-scale stage play, where everyone's demeanor, actions, expressions, and activities were "perfectly calibrated" to be shown to them.
At that moment, Tang Xin lightly tapped her shoulder. She noticed the girl's slightly curved eyes. Tang Xin said, "Yuzu, you seemed like a bit of a stranger just now."
As she was about to say something, Tang Xin's fingertip touched her lips, quietly pointing toward a certain spot. "Shh, look over there."
Following Tang Xin's direction, she saw the figure of a small, thin girl. Half of the girl's body was hidden behind a wooden pillar, her face covered in dust. Her dark eyes were quietly observing them.
"That little one has been watching us since we entered the settlement," Tang Xin whispered.
Upon realizing the two were looking at her, the girl quickly ran off and disappeared into the shadows.
Rate on N.U.
