Chapter. 10 Lead and Silver Coins (16)
****
Clang!
The cargo compartment of one of the three trucks opened, and vegetables with a long shelf life, such as potatoes, carrots, onions, and broccoli, poured out.
There was no need for a special display. All you have to do is leave the truck’s cargo area wide open in an open space, and neatly place vegetables in an empty green gun box.
We lost the trailer on the way, so the amount was reduced by almost half, but since our action goal was already quite far away from the business, there was nothing to regret.
With this level of fresh food, the break-even point is vague, but it is enough to attract people.
“Self-loving brothers of Dom! We call ourselves Long Distance Caravan BDSM from the Area 47 Dome! Big-margin! Small-Dream!”
Crack, clap, clap!
“Joe on the contrary! on the other way!”
“hmm? Oh my gosh! B Big-Dream! Small-margin! Top selling big dreams at affordable prices! Come and see what BDSM Caravan has to offer! It’s in the eastern vacant lot! Big-Dream! Small-margin!”
Every time Ian’s booming voice from the Hummer echoed through the city’s alleys, people hiding inside their houses began to come out one by one.
Doing business in the middle of a group suspected of being enemies? Some may ask why money was so tight, but this was part of an operation that was the result of extremely logical and rational thinking.
I don’t know how much the enemy knows about us, but I know for sure that thanks to Dana, we have more information than they expect.
The important thing is to hide it well without being discovered.
Since they are antagonizing the Area 38 dome, they lock themselves in a room, take out a gun, set up booby traps, and the moment they do that, it’s no different from advertising, saying, ‘We found out about your dirty secret.’ Like a businessman who worked hard in peace but unfortunately lost his target to a fanatic. I’m acting like I’m going to make a lot of money because this has already happened.
“Um… are those really all for sale?”
As I was watching Ian’s Hummer chattering away from afar, a man who looked quite sturdy among the people who were just observing the surroundings mustered up the courage to approach me.
A commercial smile bloomed on the professor’s lips.
“Oh, of course! It’s all first-class food grown in Dome’s state-of-the-art cultivation facility, not in a bleak wasteland! They were harvested less than two weeks ago so they are very fresh! But… how long have you been looking into it?”
“Well… I don’t have a lot of shillings and I have a little bit of alloy collected…”
The man was momentarily looking around at the people around him and handed him a bag full of alloy as if he were dealing drugs.
Neither an external survivor nor a resident of the dome proposes a scrap trade, not even shillings. It is probably an illegal slush fund prepared by tearing down the structure inside the dome.
‘Fortunately, this enemy seems to have quite a few holes to dig into.’
The professor’s smile grew deeper as he observed the man’s behavior, which was far from a normal Dom’s physiology.
When I opened my pocket and checked the bundle of alloy with melted and scorched marks, I could see that the expensive alloy and miscellaneous iron were mixed in a random manner, clearly indicating that this person was not making a living from this business.
“Hmm… I can’t give you that much at this rate…”
“I don’t need a lot of yam. Because it’s not something to eat-”
“What if it’s not something to eat…?”
“Hmph! Oh no! “I’m having dinner tonight!”
Thump!
‘I’m caught!’
For a dome, the atmosphere is lifeless and gloomy. Even though food is being sold, citizens only pay attention. A man who hands out illegal slush funds with a solemn look on his face as if he were going to battle. Don’t you just feel it? These people are very afraid of something, and the very act of buying food now is connected to that fear. Whether it was food control or a ban on trade with outsiders, anything was good. What’s important is that we now have a place to bully our ‘guests’.
“If it’s not something to eat, it probably isn’t for ornamental purposes. There’s dirt under your fingernails? “Is this something to be used as seeds?”
“Ah no! no!”
“Hehehe. Was this an interesting guest? I understand that Dome’s regulations prohibit the cultivation of illegal crops outside of confirmed farmland. “The taxes aren’t that much, but you’re trying to evade taxes… You have a big liver, right?”
“Ahh no that’s right!”
A man caught in the crosshairs due to a momentary slip of the tongue. He was very frightened and tried to run away, but the left arm that held his shoulder was like an iron tower and did not budge. Only then did the man notice that the left arm of this scary merchant’s suit and the gloves at the end looked strange.
“What are you… that arm…!”
“Well, I’m a businessman. I’m a businessman. Benefit-Dream Small-Margin! Just like you have a side job as a scavenger, I also have a side job. By the way, it looks like you are a farmer. How did you not leave behind even a single seed? They say that even if a farmer starves to death, he still sleeps with his seeds. “Are you hungry and did you finish eating?”
“Such nonsense! “That’s…”
The man was about to say something but was embarrassed and clamped his mouth shut like a clam. Bex, who was adjusting the number of carrots next to him, did not miss the opportunity and gently pushed in a green wooden box that had been wrapped separately.
A wooden box half filled with fresh food and half with MREs obtained from the station.
I deliberately opened the packaging of the combat rations and opened the retort packaging of the beans and stewed meat inside. A greasy smell spread out, and the man’s eyes were all focused on it. The moment a man reaches out his hand without realizing it.
Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss-ing
of the wooden box moved away from in front of him as though he were giving medicine. I could see greed rising in his expression as he clutched his stomach. Hunger, I know that well.
“What is the reason you showed me this?”
As his tone suddenly became completely polite, the professor gently wrapped his arms around his shoulders.
“This is why… do you know that? Merchants tend to be superstitious. If you have made a big profit, give 10% of the profit. If there is mold in the ledger, money will leak out. or.”
Sigh!
“If you send your first customer away empty-handed, you will be in trouble…”
There was a cargo compartment wide open on one side and a space hidden from the outside behind a large pile of items. It is not a building that originally existed here, but a secret room created so there is no need to worry about wiretapping devices or anything like that.
“It’s no big deal. We’ve just come here so we don’t know much about product prices or trends. As a merchant, it’s embarrassing, but you can’t make a deal without knowing the price. “If you know anything about the recent food situation in the District 38 dome, tax quotas, or other trivial trends, I’d like you to let me know.”
An unwrapped combat ration was handed to the man, who was swallowing his saliva.
“Very little help. “At that rate, this whole box full of food is yours.”
Srrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
of Bex unloaded all the goods and lowered the open cargo compartment door again at the right time, and a pitch-black darkness that no one could see fell between the two.
Crackling. Nod, nod. Crack.
Kuul-keuk.
“…Actually, the dome has become a lot strange lately…”
In that deep, anonymous space, the man finally began to speak. It started with the sound of a heavy wooden box being pushed towards him.
****
“Eavesdropping device~”
“Check-”
“Double check-”
“Camera~”
“Check-”
“Double check-”
“Sniping point~”
“Check-”
“Oh, sorry. “Ian said he was going to set up the booby trap himself, but I couldn’t confirm that.”
“good. I don’t know anything else, but it’s better for him to handle bombs. “Then I can finally get some rest.”
Grass – sot.
The business continued until around sunset in the afternoon, and the group, which achieved some success, was able to rest only after visiting the caravan accommodation recommended by most of the guests and completing a security check for about 30 minutes.
This is the top room of the 6th floor accommodation with a panoramic view of the Radio Tower, a famous feature of District 38. The hostel owner complained about the fact that a rich caravan with three cars had only one large room, but it was much better to listen to the owner’s complaints than to be scattered for no reason and be destroyed individually.
The professor encouraged the group, who were clearly tired, as they looked around at the radio tower that was built on the site of an older generation broadcasting station.
“Everyone worked hard all day, guarding, doing business, and gathering information. Especially Ezel. “You must have suffered a lot, but you did a good job.”
“…What is the hardship? Even if the three of us combined, we couldn’t even investigate half of the four. Where did you learn that kind of negotiation and interrogation? Isn’t this a skill you’ve tried once or twice?”
“Let’s see.” I stole it every time our overland supply unit came, so I was twenty-one, twenty-two…”
“What?”
“Oh no. nothing. “I just learned it in the military.”
Palak.
I ignored Ezel’s suspicious gaze and focused on the file that summarized the details of my investigation.
=========
1. Taxes did not increase, but they did. It has been a while since taxes were collected separately in the execution of administrative inspections.
2. There was a large religious gathering. Of course, it was a rally centered around Happy Blind church members, and strangely, it took a long time to be suppressed. <-The witness said that not only did the suppression take a long time, but the dispatch itself was delayed.
3. It has been a while since I was unable to use GG or the community due to communication difficulties. There was no way to know the news from outside, but suddenly outsiders dressed as refugees came rushing in, making people quite scared. Now that I think about it, there was an incident where all the technicians who were tinkering with circuits were called to the radio tower. I know that quite a few people did not return.
4. Many of the ‘low class’ people in the farm district have disappeared. I heard that the area was filled with the refugees who came this time, but even that was probably full, so my son, who was working as a guard for a while to prevent refugees, was out at the guard post without even returning home. Even when he came back occasionally, he would just leave without saying a word. -It was an impression too detailed to be dismissed as a mother’s concern for her son. Do you feel burdened by the massacre? Forced mobilization? boot?
5. There was a large-scale power outage. According to the administration’s announcement, it was the work of Happy Blind, and the people in the eastern district and adjacent areas were contaminated with radiation as power was completely cut off without emergency shields, and the radiation decontamination team thoroughly inspected everything from household furniture to spoons. <- He said he felt like he was looking for something.
==========
These are the five most important pieces of information obtained from civilians.
Considering the day’s hard work, I could see a few roots that were quite large.
“I don’t think there are just one or two problems…”
It wasn’t like one rotten tangerine spoiled the entire basket. Some are covered in white mold, while others are covered in black mold and oozing fluid. It is rotting in a variety of colors.
Quang!
“I’m here.”
“OK. “I had a hard time… what is that?”
I turned my head to see a rough voice breaking me out of my thoughts, and saw Ian entering the room carrying two people with swollen faces.
“This is a sniper waiting at the sniping point. And this is a strange guy who was twitching his butt trying to assassinate the sniper. There were only two sniper points, so I looked around at both, and there was an electronic alarm trap installed on one side, and they were on the other side. “I brought them both in because they were suspicious.”
Ian placed the two motionless people on the ground and secretly sent a hand signal.
[Unconscious/disguised]
‘It’s suspicious that he’s just an assassin, but he was even caught pretending to faint…’
At Ian’s sign, I glanced down at the assassins lying on the floor.
The two figures were thrown carelessly on the floor. They are very well-trained agents who show no signs of harm even though they are hostile to each other and are thrown into positions that make breathing difficult.
[Confirmation]
It certainly looks like we are now the hot potato of District 38.
A sniper who took up his position as soon as we settled in, and another assassin who arrived at the sniping point a step later and tried to take him out.
Area 38 is strangely tense. The situation cannot be viewed as one group where the three departments collect taxes separately.
‘Now is the time when the election is over. What if an irreparable conflict arose between the three departments in the process? What if they go beyond a simple feud and even bring in external forces like Raptor Happy Blind and go on a rampage to eliminate each other?’
Thinking about the situation in District 38, which became a three-way war, it was not difficult to recall the goals of these friends.
BDSM, which just arrived in this area today, is neutral. It is also a very important neutrality that has close ties to Area 47, so I don’t mean to just kill it off and get rid of it. Perhaps the target is not us, but some other important person who will arrive here. Either protect that person or…
‘Eliminate elements of other groups before they proceed with negotiations with us.’
Knock knock-
“….He is not a noble person.”
As if to answer my thoughts, there was a knock on the door where my companions were. Bex put his gun to the door and opened it slightly, revealing a neatly dressed man through the thin crack in the door. Vex’s grim voice greeted him.
“Identity and purpose.”
“….this. There is a fierce gatekeeper. “Could you please make way?”
“Identity and purpose.”
Speech is more slurred and slurred than usual. Vex had a good understanding of his own physical characteristics. A small, frail body and an old, sallow face. If you mess up your pronunciation, people who see you for the first time will likely look like someone who does chores. After I announced from the truck that the entire area was an operation area, Bex spoke less and only did menial tasks such as carrying vegetables and luggage. Perhaps because of this, the man outside the door noticed that Bex’s gun, hidden behind the door, was exactly at the height of his head. He approached me with a very commercial smile, not even knowing that it was posted on .
“There is no need to be cautious. “I came here because I have something to say to you on behalf of the opinion of the administration that is in charge of the actual governance of District 38.”
After hearing what he said, I asked him, ‘Why don’t you give it a try?’ Vex sending a hand signal with a similar meaning. I nodded and
slowly.
Vex’s thumb moved toward the firing pin of the revolver in her hand.
Crunch –
flinch!
The assassin reacts very slightly but clearly with the sound of the ball being pulled.
It was visible to the professor who was observing carefully. Unlike the other assassin who was motionless, the other assassin suddenly gained strength in his neck muscles. As someone who was aware of the internal situation, I was wondering whether I should tell this to our allies who did not even know that a gun was pointed at their head, or whether I should continue pretending to be unconscious, when I heard the sound of a gun being pulled, and I became nervous without realizing it.
‘This guy is from the administration. ‘I got a useful card before it even started?’
The professor sent a hand signal equivalent to [disarming the situation] with his hand, opened the door, and welcomed the incoming spokesperson with open arms.
“Oh my gosh, people who have a lot of construction work are directly stepping into the lodgings of mere merchants! “If you had called us, we would have gone to the administration building ourselves!”
“Ha ha ha ha ha. No…! Huh! no. You can’t just casually tell a precious guest from afar to come and go. But after that, people…”
“Hmm? Oh this? It’s no big deal. I’m wearing new friends I made a few minutes ago. Take a seat! “I said I was here to talk, so I should at least offer you a cup of tea.”
The spokesperson acted as if he was visiting an old friend, but then froze for a moment. You’ll probably burn your ass. You might be wondering why he is being held here like a piece of cake.
I led the spokesperson to the table with a flurry of hands, then dragged the executive assassin over and violently sat him down next to me.
Squeak-
squeak!
Boom! Buwaaaaah!
Wow!
While Ezel, who was very enthusiastic and said, ‘I will cut out the rotten part of the dome’, was pouring the spokesperson’s tea, Bex and Ian were tearing up the white blanket on the bed with gloomy faces to make a rope.
Anyone can see that something seems very wrong.
By the time the freshly made white ropes had secured the assassin’s limbs to the chair and the sound of the knife being sharpened could be heard in the gagged man’s ears, the assassin’s breathing had become so heavy that one could hear it.
spokesman? I wanted to somehow appear calm, so I picked up the teacup, but I dropped my hand and spilled it all, which made me feel sorry for myself.
The spokesperson was shocked when I wiped the table with the bundle of blankets left over from tying up the assassin.
“Oh my. You’re spilling all your precious tea. These calorie-free luxury goods are expensive because they are produced in small quantities. “You’re shivering quite a bit… are you cold?”
“Hey hey hey it’s a bit cold. Ha ha ha – ugh! “Hmm…”
As I bent over the table and wiped away the spilled tea, I could see his body shaking more and more as I got closer. Well, that’s it. The atmosphere is very ripe.
“Bex.”
Sigh!
At my call, Vex plunged a black-edged dagger into the desk.
“Oh, don’t misunderstand. We are very tired. Isn’t time money for merchants? I heard you had something to say. “I’ll just listen and process it along with other things.”
Ian placed the assassin’s limp hand on the table while I nodded and relaxed in my chair. The assassin and the spokesperson’s breathing became even heavier.
“If I knew you were so busy with this, I would have come next time… I’ll just head back for today-” “
Oh well. You don’t have to. This is nothing more than simple labor. It’s a bit like using a carrot with a core, so it will be over in no time. Or…”
Tat tat. Takkakak.
“Do you have anything to do with this person?”
“Such incredibly unfair words! “I don’t know such an agent!”
“That kind of ‘agent’…. agent…. yo-one….”
“Huh-uh-eup ugh! “Ugh!”
The spokesperson is now almost at a point where he doesn’t know whether he’s holding his breath or crying. Still, compared to the assassin who was holding back, he was a bit lower level.
‘Well, this is the only way to use a messenger when there are two hostile forces in close range. All you have to do is convey the word, but you can’t throw precious elites under threat of assassination.’
Looking at him, whose mind must have turned completely white by now, I quietly threw a cord.
“then. Let’s hear what we’re here to talk about. Oh, this is a side note. This big guy here has the personality of being fascinated whenever he hears an interesting story. If the spokesperson is eloquent, this person may forget what he is supposed to do and get lost in the conversation. Ha ha ha ha ha! “You should just say what you have to say as clearly as possible and leave?”
He slowly traced the assassin’s fingers spread out on the table with his fingernails and looked intently into the spokesperson’s eyes. Although he didn’t say anything specifically, he said, ‘You know what I mean, right?’ The same meaningful gaze fell mercilessly on the spokesperson’s shaking pupils.
conversation? I’m sorry, but if you wanted to talk, you should have been in the right class. He just said he was a ‘spokesperson’ without any self-introduction or title. This is a complete abandonment. Since they sent us these idiots, we have no choice but to show a corresponding attitude.
“Let me see… I said you came from the administration. I guess the dome isn’t being managed well these days?”
“That…”
The professor smiled in satisfaction as he began his ‘interrogation’ of the spokesperson in a soft voice.
I was hoping that if only these guys came, I would be able to find the dark side easier than I thought.
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