"Form an orderly line!"
"No pushing, no cutting, and of course—"
"Don't even think about running."
The cave in the wilderness.
Chen Yu sat at the main entrance of the camp, facing a long queue of orc mercenaries. They were lining up here not to receive free rice from the neighborhood committee, nor for free eggs from the supermarket.
They—
Were paying to buy their freedom!
Not long ago, their savings had been plundered by bandits. Thawed from being frozen into ice sculptures, they had barely woken up when they encountered another group of bandits.
The most outrageous part was that this group of bandits was even more terrifying than the previous ones.
At least the previous bandits only wanted money.
Now, the bandits in front of them wouldn't even leave them their clothes.
They would have resisted.
The problem was, their strength was already greatly diminished after just waking up from being frozen. The Golden-tier swordsman was still tied to a torture device and had not yet woken up.
Most importantly,
Didn't they see those cannons at the entrance of the camp?
Their barrels were glowing red.
This clearly indicated that the charging process was complete.
If these cannons were fired, they would truly experience what it meant to be caught between ice and fire.
Even taking a step back, the orc mercenary group had a large number of people. If they charged forward en masse, it wasn't impossible to win.
But the problem was—
No one could be sure if others shared the same thought.
Some people might simply want to pay to save their lives. Even if someone wanted to resist, a small group's resistance wouldn't make much of a ripple.
In the end, they might lose their resources and their lives.
Cannonballs have no eyes.
Money is an external possession, but life is paramount.
"Next."
After a naked orc mercenary ran away, covered in dust, Kuka, standing beside Chen Yu, raised his skeletal staff and shouted.
The orc mercenaries waiting outside rushed in.
Having already witnessed the fate of those before him, this orc mercenary didn't need Chen Yu to speak. He automatically took off his clothes and respectfully handed over his survival watch with both hands.
Chen Yu was quite pleased with such a conscientious mercenary.
"You, good."
Chen Yu, holding the watch, raised an eyebrow slightly and glanced at the discarded underwear on the ground.
"You can take this pair of underwear back. It's a reward for your cooperation."
"Thank you, King!"
The orc mercenary clasped his hands and put on the underwear.
Although he still looked pitiful, at least compared to the other orc mercenaries, he was considered relatively decent.
During this time, Chen Yu had already covered the watch.
[Cave Reminder: Lumber +471, Iron Ore +145, Copper Ore +17, Gold Ore +31, Silver Ore +14, Water Condenser Blueprint +1]
Another Water Condenser blueprint.
Chen Yu didn't pay much attention to the other resources. Blueprints for self-producing resource items like the Water Condenser were always welcome.
It's just that—
These mercenaries were too poor.
"King, can I go now?" the orc mercenary whispered instinctively. Chen Yu raised an eyebrow and glanced at him, scrutinizing him for a moment. "Have you handed everything over?"
"Yes, King. Look, I'm completely bare."
Chen Yu looked sideways. Kuka shook his head, indicating that this orc mercenary was not a mage.
Not a mage.
Therefore, he wouldn't possess spatial control and hide valuable items in his personal space.
The orc mercenary was also stripped completely.
Chen Yu couldn't find any place where he could have hidden anything.
Unless—
They had swallowed their spatial bracelets and rings?
If that were the case, Chen Yu would rather let them keep those items than disembowel them for a little money.
"What kind of work are you mercenaries doing?"
Chen Yu, holding the now-absorbed unclaimed survival watch, spun it on his finger a couple of times before throwing it into a wooden bucket, his brow furrowed.
"You're too poor. Not a single coin?"
"Sir, this... being a mercenary is a tough job," a Minotaur mercenary nearby explained with a chuckle. "Besides, we are mercenaries from small outer city-states of the empire. We only do errands, gather herbs, or hunt wild beasts. We can't compare to those who hunt monsters in the central regions."
"Exactly! We can't even afford to eat!" the Minotaur chimed in.
"Yes, King. The commissions and rewards barely cover our expenses," a Centaur muttered. "We might not save even half a gold coin in a year. If we get injured during a mission due to bad luck, our lives become even more difficult."
"But you still shouldn't have absolutely nothing," Chen Yu frowned.
"Uh..."
At this moment, the orc mercenary wearing only underwear raised his hand.
"King, regarding this matter, I believe I have some standing. May I speak?"
"You haven't left yet?" Chen Yu frowned, looking at the orc mercenary. "Alright, tell me then, how can you have nothing?"
"Before you arrived, we were robbed once already."
"Huh?"
Robbed once?
Chen Yu stared at the orc mercenary in astonishment.
"Who robbed you?"
"Actually, I'm not quite sure," the orc mercenary scratched his head. "I arrived later. Someone in the mercenary讨伐 (tǎofá -讨伐 - quell/suppress/punish) group posted location coordinates, saying they found the mission target. I... Oh..."
Mid-sentence, the orc mercenary suddenly froze, staring at Chen Yu for a long time.
"What are you looking at? I'm your target!" Seeing his gaze, Chen Yu knew what he was thinking. He said sternly, "You guys wanted to chop me, so I stripped you naked. No complaints, right?"
"No complaints!"
"Fine, since you think it's okay, continue."
"Ah... alright, it's like this." The orc mercenary cleared his throat. "I saw the location coordinates, so I rushed towards the designated point. As soon as I entered this cave, I heard a sentence..."
"What sentence?"
"Golden-tier, is that all?!"
"Ah?"
"That's the sentence," the orc mercenary blinked. "Afterward, before I could react, I heard people shouting that a Golden-tier big shot had turned into an ice popsicle, and then they were yelling for everyone to hand over their money. In a daze, I gave my money, and in the end, I was also frozen into an ice popsicle."
"..."
Chen Yu listened, completely bewildered.
Someone had intercepted him!
Damn it, he had used himself as bait, risked his life to set a trap for these mercenaries to deliver supplies, but he was robbed by a surprise attacker.
"You gave all your money to him?"
"Ah, you probably did!" The orc mercenary shrugged. "In any case, I handed over all my money and didn't keep anything. Others probably did too. Who would risk their lives?"
The orc mercenary spoke casually.
Judging by his tone, he didn't seem to be deeply distressed by the loss of wealth and resources.
"You're quite optimistic, acting as if nothing happened after being robbed," Chen Yu murmured. The orc mercenary grinned and said, "Hey, being a mercenary means taking risks. We usually rob others, so being robbed is normal. Just like this time, we came to challenge you, King. If we weren't strong enough and were countered by you, it's our own fault."
"Not bad."
Chen Yu liked the orc mercenary's attitude.
"What race are you?"
"Answering the King, I'm a mixed-blood, with half rabbit blood and half human blood," the orc mercenary smiled. "So, my orc features aren't that strong."
"No wonder."
This orc mercenary's orc features were indeed subtle, and his speech wasn't as barbaric as other orc mercenaries.
"King, if you're short on money, I do have an idea," the orc mercenary suddenly whispered.
"Oh?"
Chen Yu smiled with interest upon hearing this.
"Tell me about it."
--
Author's note:
Good evening, have you eaten?