Pulling at the black cloth covering most of his face, the little guy seemed nervously swallowed, looked around to make sure there were only the three of us nearby, and then nervously whispered, "Um, because, because, I don't want you to make deals with those guys who are active in the shadows of this city?"
I raised an eyebrow, signaling him to continue.
He nodded slightly: "You're probably from outside the Frozen Snow City, right? Then you probably don't know much about the situation here. Although there are indeed many gangs, groups, and organizations operating in the shadows in the city, most of them are actually controlled by the big players in the inner city."
This is all information we already know.
I glanced at Miyuki, who hadn't reacted at all, and suddenly felt glad that I had kept the fact that Miyuki was a local a secret from me. This way, I could easily confirm whether what she said was a lie, or how much of it was.
But the little guy hadn't finished speaking: "However, even so, when you want to form those organizations, you must eventually go through the church's application, certification and review. Otherwise, it will be regarded as unfair malicious competition and behavior that damages the overall atmosphere of the city. This will be used as blackmail to force them to pay enough money or re-certify."
I instantly understood what he meant: "You mean to say that all those organizations, big and small, that have managed to survive in the city's shadows all have secret connections with the church itself? What if we go and make some kind of deal with them? The news could easily reach the church's ears in a short time, which could be detrimental to our plans?"
"...That's it."
The little guy nodded vigorously in agreement.
Just then, the shop owner, who had finally finished his fuss, came running over to check if we had confirmed our order. However, we had been so engrossed in chatting that we had completely forgotten about it, so we could only quickly glance at the handwritten menu, scribble down a few names, and call it a day.
I ordered a simple grilled pork chop, but after my repeated persuasion, the little guy still chose a curry rice. Only Shenxue was more direct, boldly swiping the menu at the owner and saying, "I'll take all of these, just bring them to me." This really shocked the owner, who hurriedly ran into the kitchen.
No, sis, these are all carnivorous! Even if your finger swipe looked really cool, and the endpoint was still a quarter of the way from the bottom of the first column, that's still a lot! Can you really eat them all?!
Miyuki shrugged: "Part of it is to take back and share with Leticia."
Uh, okay, that's a part I overlooked.
I was so focused on the urgent things that needed to be done that I forgot about Leticia, who had just been rescued from the dark underground prison and was just an ordinary person. No matter how strong and calm she appeared on the surface, and how well she had been fed and cared for in the past, there must still be a lot of unease accumulating in her heart, waiting to be soothed or released.
I'm not good at comforting people, but the resulting oversight is not something I can easily excuse with this excuse.
While waiting for his meal, the little guy whispered a brief account of his background and identity to lend credibility to his earlier statement.
I don't care about such tedious plots, whether the characters come from the city's dark side or are intelligence and assassination squads secretly trained by the powerful families of the inner city. They're mostly just shallow, familiar tragic stories. Anyway, once this matter is over, it will no longer concern me much.
Miyuki, on the other hand, listened attentively with a serious expression, nodding occasionally to show her agreement or raising questions. She was clearly comparing the information with what she had, preparing for future actions.
Finally, as if remembering something, he told us that if we needed it, he could introduce us to the person in charge of his current job, who was the boy's father, or the head of another family, so as to improve the internal coordination that might arise in our plan.
"Are you speaking your own opinion, that of your superior at work, or the family head who is grooming you?"
I couldn't help but raise my questions because this is a very important point.
If this is just the little guy's idea, it will be meaningless to our subsequent actions; it will be a negligible, almost non-existent opportunity. If the person who brought it up is his superior, then we might get a lot of help from a clandestine organization, but it will still be almost nothing. But what if the person who asked him to convey this matter is the patriarch of a family in the inner city...
Although I cannot rule out the possibility that the other party was testing me, or that I was stabbed halfway through, the hidden meaning it represented still made my heart tremble slightly.
This is almost tantamount to subtly telling us that the other party is aware of what we are doing and what we will do, and has shown support and investment.
He might not choose to stand directly on our side under the current circumstances, but in favorable circumstances, he would resolutely reveal his true colors and expose his long-prepared ambitions to the church that has been suppressing them and occupying a high position.
This is indeed a considerable temptation.
The little guy's crisp reply resonated through the air, echoing in our ears: "It is the Master's."
What followed was a brief and silent mealtime. The food that had piled up on the two tables was quickly devoured. The little guy, who had only ordered curry rice, was given a small piece of meat by us. He seemed to be savoring the taste, chewing it carefully before slowly swallowing. His face, now slightly oily, remained flushed. I don't know if he found it delicious or if he felt embarrassed about being fed.
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