Chapter 15
Chapter 15
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Reluctant Partners
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Welcome.”
A now-familiar voice greeted Jin.
“Hey, Poh.”
Jin gave a casual greeting and walked straight to the table, settling into one of those backless stools they called stools.
“Kalifa contacted me.”
“You mean the commission.”
“Yeah.”
“Could you wait just a moment? The boss is tied up with something else right now.”
“Take your time. I've got plenty.”
Jin said that as he rested his elbows on the bar table.
His gaze swept over the shelves packed with liquor bottles.
The flashy labels and premium-looking bottles on display behind the clear glass made quite the impression.
“...You’ve got a ton of booze here.”
“This is a pub, after all.”
“Isn’t it just a front?”
Jin asked innocently.
He actually thought that.
“Quite a few people think that. It’s something the boss takes personally. She might not seem like it, but she’s serious about running the place.”
“Ah, sorry. Didn’t mean to offend.”
“No offense taken. It’s true most linker offices have a front and a back. Just know Anecdote isn’t one of them.”
As Jin nodded along, Poh approached and set down a plate and glass.
“Cookies and milk? Nice, thanks.”
Jin, who’d skipped breakfast anyway, demolished the snack right there.
He polished off the plate in seconds and chased it with milk. Couldn’t be more perfect.
Except one thing: salty and sweet.
The perfect sweet-salty balance. Filling up on cookies made him crave spicy kimchi stew. Guess he was Korean through and through.
Jin felt his roots once more.
“Speaking of, that’s a new piece of gear you’ve got.”
“Oh. You noticed?”
Jin perked up at Poh’s words.
People always want to show off a good buy. He’d been waiting for someone to notice.
He immediately drew the pistol from his waist and slammed it on the table with a thud!
Lowering his voice, he began.
“Gravis 707. A monster at 32cm long and 10kg. Made by Lu... whatever.”
“Luger & Dolman?”
“Yeah, that. Legendary disaster from Luger & Dolman.”
Why a disaster? It was originally designed for beastmen, and then...
The tale should’ve flowed smoothly, but it was cut short by the sharp click of heels.
Kalifa approached without a care.
Her rich red hair swayed as always, carrying her signature bittersweet scent as she greeted them.
“Hey, Jin. Wait long?”
“Come a bit later next time. Things were just getting good.”
“...?”
An unexpected reply?
Kalifa’s gaze flicked to Poh for explanation. The bartender just gave a faint smile. Jin smacked his lips and holstered the Gravis.
Anyway, to business.
“So, what’s the job?”
“What? Just the two of you? Not even telling me?”
Kalifa feigned hurt, but she didn’t seem serious as she slid a binder across the table to Jin.
“Take a look.”
Jin did. Kalifa watched his eyes dart across the pages silently until he turned the first sheet with a rustle. Then she spoke slowly.
“Area 49, aka Mute Town. Like Downtown, it’s a shithole in the 40s, but things are way worse here. A gang war that dragged on for over five years just ended.”
“War’s over, isn’t that good?”
“Not when public authorities didn’t end it. One side won the fight for control. A new warlord faction wiped out all rivals.”
Jin was just reading the section she mentioned.
“That’s The Beast?”
“Right.”
As Kalifa confirmed, Jin scanned the densely packed report.
Jin tilted his head as he read on.
“You want me to take on the whole lot? Too big. Even future solo king here thinks this is nuts.”
No wonder she called them warlords.
Their resources, gear, scale—all far beyond a mere gang.
Steel Hands running a single club felt cute by comparison.
Thankfully, Kalifa was firm.
“You alone against all of TB? Of course not. No linker would assign that to a rookie on their second gig. Not Anecdote, anyway. Right, Poh?”
“Of course,” came the reply. She smiled faintly and turned back to Jin.
“Read further, and you’ll see. This isn’t all-out war with TB. Just destroy one of their logistics warehouses.”
Jin’s expression turned odd.
Destroy a warehouse?
That meant...
“Residual forces opposing TB, huh.”
“Yes, exactly.”
Confirming with her nod, Jin praised himself inwardly.
Nice deduction. I’m sharp.
Of course, anyone skimming the summary could guess that. Flip a few pages, and photos, captions—detailed info galore.
Anecdote’s neat package, and here he was, thrilled at his “guess” without reading it all.
But Kalifa didn’t sigh. Plenty of solos preferred verbal briefs over walls of text.
The type who got dizzy past three lines.
Her explanation assumed Jin was one too.
“As you guessed, Mute Town has a resistance. TB’s victory smells like a dictatorship brewing, so they banded together against it. They planned this job.”
“Oh ho.”
Jin’s eyes lit up.
“Resistance” dredged up homeland knowledge.
Korea’s Provisional Government, Righteous Warriors. French Resistance.
Starcraft’s Raynor Commandos...
Are these revolutionaries?
As Jin pondered heroes fighting tyrants, Kalifa spoke.
“Resistance pay’s 30 million credits. They’ll provide explosives for the warehouse. So, what do you say? Taking it?”
“...?”
Deep in thought, Jin looked up.
“Did I hear right? How much?”
“30 million credits.”
Lightning struck Jin’s mind.
His split psyche chorused in three parts.
“Thirty!”
“Mil!”
“Lion!”
What an absurd number.
Ten hundred thousand ten thousand hundred thousand million.
Times three?
How many hot dogs is that? How many meters in a line?
Cosmic terror!
Jin shuddered.
Not normal to onlookers.
“...Something wrong?”
Ignoring Kalifa’s concerned gaze, Jin clung to sanity and recalled a proverb.
No such thing as a free lunch.
Everything has a price. Here, 30 million credits was the lunch.
Easy money doesn’t exist.
The shaking reward screamed danger beyond the first job.
Stay calm, approach carefully...
Screw that.
30 million.
And he couldn’t refuse anyway—quest.
A neat window popped up like it heard.
Jin’s brow twitched at the loathsome thing.
He wanted to punch it but held back.
A gentleman’s revenge is never too late, even after ten years.
Use what you can. Take what’s offered.
I’m not submitting to the system.
Rational choice. So scram.
“Alright. I’m in.”
Jin accepted. The window slid away.
Kalifa nodded, satisfied.
“Knew you’d say that.”
She glanced at the wall clock, muttering.
“That makes two... odd pairing.”
“What?”
“There’s another solo for this job with you. Should be here soon.”
“Huh?”
Jin tilted his head.
Another person?
“Surprised? It’s all in the report. Change your mind? You can back out.”
“Nah, fine.”
Not lip service—Jin felt relieved.
Yeah, soloing a 30 mil job? That’d be weirder.
Wonder who.
Hopefully a pretty lady. Ahem.
Mission, partner, woman, beauty.
As Jin pictured a Bond girl...
Ding-a-ling—
Anecdote’s door opened.
Jin, Kalifa, Poh. All eyes turned.
“Right on time. We were just talking about you.”
“Welcome.”
The two who knew, versus Jin mid-fantasy.
His face froze like he’d eaten shit. Hers too.
“What the hell. Why’s that punk here?”
The goblin mask’s brows furrowed.
Fenrir would rather go solo than team with Jin, he declared.
A rookie who hadn’t cleared the sieves—what was there to trust? That was the excuse, but his glares and tone said personal grudge outweighed it.
So Jin got pissed too.
“What, wanna hand it to this rookie trash?”
“What? You little...!”
Fenrir gripped his sword hilt.
Jin seized the Gravis in turn.
Kalifa slammed the table.
“Enough. Can we act professional?”
Tsk.
Jin clicked his tongue but released his grip. Kalifa gave a small thankful smile, then turned to fuming Fenrir.
“Fenrir. You agreed beforehand. A confident solo doesn’t care who the partner is.”
“Not including rank amateurs like...!”
“Fenrir.”
She cut in calmly, adding,
“Ease up on bashing Jin. For your sake too.”
Fenrir’s extended growl retracted. Jin flinched watching.
What? When’d he change?
Fenrir withdrew his hand from the hilt and sighed deeply.
“Sorry... got heated.”
“Good. Let’s act like vets.”
Kalifa softened the tension, picking up the binder.
“Shall we review the op plan carefully?”
Thus, Jin inwardly sighed at his werewolf Bond girl.
What a headache.