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After an intense discussion, Mo Wendao and Xu Linna finally reached an agreement and settled on a compromise.
The introduction and photos on Ping’an Three Lives’ official website were far too serious and rigid. To make Director Xia Nuoya seem more approachable to people in the Lower City, Xu Linna decided to use Xia Nuoya as the basis for an entire set of promotional images. The next two days passed in an extremely busy blur of work.
Mo Wendao gradually discovered that this seemed to be exactly where Xu Linna’s interests lay. She created 3,271 character designs, personally adjusting details as minor as the angle of the eyebrows and the curve of the mouth.
When Xu Linna finally presented the finished chibi Xia Nuoya to him, even Mo Wendao found himself affected by its approachable appearance.
A smiling wink paired with a raised thumb. Anyone who saw it would immediately feel a sense of warmth.
Besides that, there were online promotional posters featuring Xia Nuoya, trademark registration for a personal virtual idol, and cute pixel-art versions of her.
Ё n̂ũ ṁâ
Even the Lower City’s hottest rock stars did not receive this level of promotion.
Looking at the entire range of images derived from only a few work photos, Mo Wendao’s opinion of Xu Linna changed drastically. As expected of Senior Sister. There was much he still needed to learn from her in the field of promotion.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
Friday arrived before they knew it.
Before he left, Xu Linna reminded him, “Don’t forget the chibi phone stickers.”
These chibi phone stickers had been made with the department’s dedicated printer. Mo Wendao did not understand much about such things, but Xu Linna explained that they did not require any additional funding request from Finance. He had even stuck one to the back of his own phone. Every morning when he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Senior Sister smiling and giving him a thumbs-up, as though encouraging him to continue climbing toward the pinnacle of the demonic path.
Mo Wendao had prepared the relief food several days in advance. It was all made from synthetic ingredients, carefully selected by him, Siwan, and Lila. They had lived in the Lower City long enough to know which brands offered the best value, which were cheap and tasty, which were filling, and which were easy to store.
Wеb̄ n о v̄еľ Е nu m ӑ
Mo Wendao organized the supplies and loaded them onto his handcart. Besides the large quantity of ready-to-eat packaged food, he also returned to his old trade and brought out the synthetic meatballs left unsold at home. Adding some freshly cooked food while distributing relief supplies would make the market atmosphere livelier.
To Mo Wendao’s surprise, the market was much busier than he had expected today. He had assumed that after the trouble caused by the Throat-Slitters, the neighborhood residents would no longer dare come. Yet before he had even entered, he could already see Siwan and Lila bustling among the crowd.
Lila had tied her hair into a neat single ponytail and was happily trotting along behind Siwan.
When they saw Mo Wendao arrive as promised, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
“Old Mo, you really came!”
Siwan and Lila excitedly hurried over and helped push the handcart to Mo Wendao’s old stall. They sorted the packaged synthetic food into categories. Siwan worked efficiently and had even brought plenty of disposable food bags of his own.
W e.b̆nȯ v е ľ E nü m̀ а̌
“Brother Mo, thanks for the desserts you gave me before. They were super delicious! I’ll help you fry the meatballs!”
Lila gave Mo Wendao a sweet smile, then winked at him slyly like a little cat. “Can I eat a few meatballs?”
“Today, you can eat as many as you want.”
As Mo Wendao spoke, he bent down and set up the character standee Xu Linna had prepared, placing it in the most prominent position in front of the handcart. Lila stared at the standee for a long time before saying enviously, “She’s such a pretty big sister. Who is she?”
“Director Xia Nuoya. She’s the one treating you to meatballs.”
“Really?”
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
Lila blurted out in surprise. Corporate employees did not normally have a good reputation around here, but the next instant, she solemnly pressed her palms together and bowed toward the standee. “Thank you, Sister Xia Nuoya!”
“Damn, Old Mo, you’re really giving this stuff away?”
More and more people gathered around. Their suspicious gazes shifted back and forth between Mo Wendao and Xia Nuoya’s standee. The person asking was an elderly man in a knitted cap who usually sold handmade goods at the market. He confirmed, “No membership sign-up, no prepaid card, and no voting required?”
Everyone waited eagerly for Mo Wendao’s answer.
Siwan burst out laughing and stuffed a bag of packaged synthetic food into the old man’s arms, along with a chibi Xia Nuoya phone sticker. “Nothing at all. Here, all of this is yours!”
“Holy shit!”
Е.nù ḿ å .іd
Even with the bulging bag clutched in his arms, the old man still found it hard to believe. His nose reddened with excitement. “Fuck! You have no idea. Last time I went to collect relief food, those bastards tricked us into topping up cards and buying memberships, and after all that, they only gave each of us one loaf of bread!”
The old man kept looking back every few steps. “I’m really taking this, okay?”
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
“Don’t rush, there are fried meatballs too!”
Lila also called out, “You can get five fried meatballs as well!”
The old man’s eyes went wide. He set the food bag down by his feet, moved closer to Xia Nuoya’s standee, and asked, “This young lady is the one treating us to food?”
Mo Wendao said, “This is Director Xia Nuoya. Not long ago, she learned about the situation in the Lower City and immediately established a dedicated relief department within the company!”
W.e_bnǒṽë l Еǹ uṁ ӓ
“How can that be? How can that be!”
The old man muttered, “She’s giving away this much stuff. She won’t go bankrupt, will she?”
This young lady was a kindhearted person, something rare even in the Lower City. He could not bear the thought of a good person going bankrupt and ending up homeless on the streets.
“Don’t worry. She won’t.”
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
The aroma of fried meatballs soon spread throughout the market. A long line formed in front of the handcart, and before long, even some people who had originally been watching from the sidelines came over.
The market district was rarely as lively as it was today. People gathered together, happily eating fried meatballs while discussing which brands of synthetic food offered the best value.
Е nū m̌ a .і d̈
Then a screech of brakes sharp enough to set one’s teeth on edge shattered the cheerful atmosphere of the market. As someone at the end of the line cried out in alarm, the orderly queue was immediately scattered by the uninvited newcomers. Leading them was a man with red paint smeared across his face and a bizarre mohawk, striding toward the handcart.
He wore a leather suspender outfit with his arms exposed despite the freezing weather. He was not particularly muscular, and his skin was covered in skull-themed tattoos.
He carried a compact submachine gun in one hand, racking it as he walked.
“Fuck, it’s Crow!”
Siwan cursed under his breath and hurriedly told Lila, “Crouch down first. Hide behind the cart.”
After saying that, he took a deep breath, shook his head, slapped both cheeks, gathered his courage, and stood beside Mo Wendao.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
The first thing the man called Crow did upon reaching the handcart was kick Xia Nuoya’s standee to the ground. He pointed his submachine gun toward the sky and fired several shots. The civilians who had been starting to stir immediately lowered their heads in terror, no longer daring to look over.
“Corporate dog, you think this is your territory, setting up shop here?”
Crow looked Mo Wendao over and said, “Funny. I don’t remember seeing you yesterday when we collected protection fees. Did any of you see him?”
He turned to confirm with the flamboyantly dressed lackeys behind him.
“No. This kid wasn’t here yesterday.”
“Then this is serious.”
W̄еb̂ṅ о̊ v ė ĺ Eṅ u m а
Crow grinned viciously and looked toward one of his large, muscular subordinates. “I hate people who don’t follow the rules. Remind me, what did I do to the last guy who broke them?”
The subordinate immediately revealed a bloodthirsty smile. “You tied him to a stake, slit his throat with a knife, and waited until all his blood drained out.”
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
“Sir... this is clearly a misunderstanding.” Mo Wendao explained, “We’re not setting up a stall here. We’re distributing relief food to the neighborhood residents. You know, winter is almost here. Everyone needs to stock up on food for the cold season.”
“Bang!”
Another burst of gunfire rang out, frightening many people into screaming.
Crow licked his lips, handed the empty gun to one of his lackeys, and drew a dagger from his waist. “You heard him. He just said my cybernetic eye is malfunctioning and accused me of framing him.”
W е bnо́ ṽе̌ l̈ Е̊n̆ um̂ а
“Sorry! We’ll pay. We’ll pay right now!”
Seeing that things were going badly, Siwan hurriedly spoke up.
“This isn’t about money.” Crow shoved Siwan aside. The cold edge of his dagger pressed against Mo Wendao’s face as his crimson cybernetic eye stared fixedly at him. “Your friend damaged my reputation. Now someone has to pay the price.”
Mo Wendao’s spiritual sense detected a hovercar approaching. Understanding dawned in his heart, but he continued trying to reason with Crow. “There’s no need for this. We’re all people from the Lower City. Everyone’s just trying to make a living.”
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Holy shit, Old Mo has gone insane!
Hearing this, the neighborhood residents felt their hearts leap into their throats.
Е n̄ u m а
In the past, whenever gang members came to the market looking for trouble, Old Mo would never have dared stand out.
“I get it now. You corporate dog put up some standee and thought no one here would dare touch you.” Crow suddenly understood. “But you’ve got it completely wrong. This is the street. This is Blood Hands territory. I’m about to prove that to you.”
“Listen carefully, corporate dog. When I cut open your throat, when I pull your tongue out through the wound, you’ll understand that you’re no different from any of them. Now...”
“Bang!”
Another gunshot rang out, far sharper than the submachine gun.
Crow’s voice stopped abruptly. When he came back to his senses, he discovered that at some point he had ended up sitting on the ground. A severed arm rolled beside the handcart while his neural system continuously flooded him with error warnings.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
The roar of engines drew closer. An armored hovercar hung overhead like a dark cloud pressing down on everyone.
A rope landed beside Crow’s feet, and Enforcers wearing Tactical Unit combat uniforms descended from above. Their faces were concealed beneath hoods, making their expressions impossible to discern.
“You...”
Before Crow could finish speaking, a rifle stock smashed heavily into the bridge of his nose. All of his lackeys were also dropped by stun guns in an instant.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye.
The Enforcers said little. They cleared an open space in the middle of the market and signaled toward the hovercar, which slowly descended and came to a stop in the center of the market.
Ë ṅũ mа
Only after Crow and every one of his lackeys had been escorted into the hovercar did the people of the market finally come back to their senses.
What exactly had they just witnessed?
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
A corporation distributing relief food in the market, and Enforcers arresting gang members.
Fuck!
This world had gone mad!
(End of Chapter)
Ẅe.b̆n ӧv̈ е̊ l̃ Е̂ ñum̊â_
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