Chapter 3: Half Penny (3)

The reason gangs were rampant in Sector 11-A was relatively simple. Redstream, the organization that had previously controlled the sector, had been crushed by the Federal Government. They had likely become a nuisance.

There was one commandment in the underworld, big or small, regarding the Federal Government:

Don’t stand out.

Or more accurately, don’t get cocky.

The exceptions were megacorps, whose very existence rivaled the government, and massive organizations. Conversely, very small, insignificant gangs were also exceptions.

Even with commandments, there were classifications, because the Federal Government was essentially full of hypocrites.

On social media, they humorously posted about their great achievements in maintaining public order, but in reality, it was nothing more than a merchant’s exaggerated advertisement. To them, politics was an extension of business. They distinguished between profit and loss, meticulously drawing boundaries, and then farmed both sides.

Insignificant criminals, for example, were like gum stuck to the street in the eyes of the Federal Government.

Not worth bothering with, yet not something they wanted to actively clean up either.

Redstream, the insignificant criminal organization that had brazenly kidnapped high-ranking officials, traded their bio-components, and demanded ransoms. The reason low-level gangs quietly took root in Sector 11-A, after its owner had their head completely blown off, was precisely this.

‘They all seem pretty much the same.’

Lee Do flicked away his cigarette after killing some time and emerged from the alleyway. A blue skyscraper. He fumbled his way through the streets, glittering with various other lights, searching for a particular establishment.

It was on the first floor of a high-rise building, the boisterous noise of which assaulted his ears as he approached.

“Ah—how is this possible?”

“Do you know how hard I worked for that money?!”

“It’s a scam! This is a scam! That guy’s a hacker!”

The lights of gambling never went out, and the fireflies, even more so.

A casino.

The faces of low-level gang members of unknown origin could be seen here and there under the flashing lights.

Lee Do slipped past the guards amidst the coming and going crowd, entered casually, and took a seat.

“I’d like to place a bet.”

He was at a dealer’s table. Though they faced each other in reality, the game was played in cyberspace. In other words, holograms. Once seated, you could log in as a guest or a member and link your account to bet credits.

Being a Revenant, Lee Do simply flicked a few analog credit coins onto the table.

“Analog credits, 1,000 credits bet.”

Casinos were particularly friendly and accommodating in this regard.

“Ah… I busted.”

A groan came from beside him.

“Same…”

And from the other side:

“Me too.”

And soon after, his own groan followed.

“Unbelievable.”

Ten, three, nine. Bust.

“Friendly,” my ass.

Clicking his tongue, Lee Do stood up.

He got a drink from a vending machine, leaned against a wall, watched the flashing slot machines, and observed the games between customers.

He ultimately ended up at a Baccarat table.

A secluded mini-Baccarat table with two players already seated. Lee Do sat in the corner, crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, and observed the other player. He bet on the Banker, but unfortunately, the Player won.

Clicking his tongue, Lee Do decided to bet on the next round.

He bet on the Player, and it was a Tie.

“Tsk.”

He heard the man next to him click his tongue.

He bet on the Player again, and it was another Tie.

“Huh, damn.”

The same sound from the man next to him. The probability of a Tie was about one in ten. Since it had happened twice in a row, the odds were now one in a hundred.

Tapping the holographic board with his coins, Lee Do suddenly spoke to the man beside him.

“It’s a Tie this time.”

“…What?”

“A Tie.”

“What the hell are you talking about? Do you think this is a playground?”

It was a middle-aged man with reddish skin.

Lee Do bet on the Tie, and sure enough, it was a Tie.

One in a thousand.

“Told you.”

The man narrowed his eyes and stared at Lee Do.

“…What the—”

“Player this time.”

This time, it was indeed the Player. The man, who had ignored Lee Do and bet on the Banker, narrowed his eyes even further.

“Banker this time.”

The man, out of curiosity, decided to follow Lee Do’s prediction.

Blue cards floated in the air and slowly flipped over. Mini-Baccarat, for the record, didn’t have a dealer.

And it was the Player.

“Oh. Wrong.”

Having lost 5,000 credits along with the man, Lee Do shrugged at the man’s sharp glare.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“I’m a swordsman.”

“What?”

Tapping the holographic board with a coin, Lee Do took out a cigarette and lit it. Then, he opened his phone under the holographic table and double-checked the photo.

It was him.

The Scavenger he was supposed to pick up.

Exhaling smoke, Lee Do turned his head and cautiously asked,

“You’re a Scavenger, aren’t you?”

“…You know me?”

“Yes.”

“Who are you with?”

“A wanderer.”

“…A wanderer? What the hell is this guy talking about?”

Lee Do tapped the ash into the ashtray. Even a dealerless gambling table had an ashtray readily available.

Lee Do muttered,

“Actually, I have a request for you.”

“…What?”

“A request. A request.”

The man frowned and scanned Lee Do’s appearance. Then he chuckled.

“Why are you laughing?”

“You crazy bastard. Honestly, who are you? Putting on that fake act—little punk—you’re asking for it.”

“It’s true. A request.”

“I’ve never seen your face around here, stranger. You play games like that, you’ll end up with a hole in your head. I could let you go now…”

Lee Do narrowed his eyes and looked at the man. His increasingly harsh tone suggested a degree of apprehension.

Opening a holographic window, Lee Do ordered a drink and received it from the server. Until then, the man had been watching him with a grim expression.

“Actually, I haven’t been in this business for very long, just a few weeks.”

Taking a sip of his drink, he continued,

“I spent a year living like a bum, rolling around on the ground with no home or money, and then I started stealing IDs, which led to requests.”

“Cut the bullshit. I told you to stop the act.”

“Hey, even then-I’ve never actually sucked a d*ck.”

“You are such a liar.”

“Actually, I’ve never been shot in the head either. Well, I have been shot in the gut plenty of times, but anyway, listen to my story…”

The man suddenly touched Lee Do’s hand, grabbed his wrist, and pressed it against his own thigh.

It wasn’t a proposal. He felt a metallic click. A pistol. From the feel of it, it was a Krait Venom .45, an old model from the Krait series commonly used in the area.

The man looked Lee Do straight in the eye.

“I told you to stop.”

Lee Do smiled pleasantly.

“Mister, you really are the type to kill someone. So, I’ll say this nicely, stop it.”

So, Lee Do smiled back.

Cigarette smoke curled upwards from the corners of his mouth.

“Anyway, living like this, I started to feel less and less human.”

“…I told you to stop.”

“So I thought, ah, instead of living like this, I’ll just become Great Daehyup. Think of it as my 21st playthrough. That’s why I’ve been catching bad guys for a year now.”

“Kid.”

“More than anything, stealing IDs turned out to be profitable. Mostly gang members. That got me money, a burner phone, a place to stay. Isn’t that great?”

“Stop.”

“But sometimes, it gets ironic. I wonder if this is survival. Even so, I can’t quit cigarettes and alcohol. I wonder if chivalry is the same chivalry I knew…”

While the man remained silent, Lee Do added, “I just want to live like a human being.”

The corners of the man’s mouth turned completely downwards. He no longer showed any patience and remained silent. So, Lee Do took a drink.

He took a drag of his cigarette, lifted his glass, and poured it over the man’s head.

The coldness made the man flinch.

“Kill me.”

Lee Do said.

“Kill me, you Green Forest.”

Lee Do exhaled smoke into the man’s face, a hazy silence descending.

The man took a deep breath and exhaled, remaining still. That was all. An insignificant worm. Lee Do could hear the surrounding commotion as people began to notice them.

He had attracted attention.

“Excuse me, sir, what seems to be the problem…?”

“Ah, it’s nothing.”

Lee Do stood up and waved his hand dismissively at the approaching guard. Then, he grabbed the still-motionless man by the hair and dragged him to the wall… not the holographic board, that was expensive.

Thud!

He slammed the man’s head against the wall.

“…Ah, aagh!”

It was instantaneous. The guards started shouting and rushing towards them.

“St-stop him! Stop him!”

“Hey, I said it’s nothing.”

That was to the guard right in front of him. Lee Do dodged the guard’s attempted tackle and slammed the man’s head against the wall again.

Bang!

The commotion intensified. Now fists were flying, and someone even started pulling out a gun.

“That bastard! Hey, get the others! Get them!”

Lee Do deflected a punch from a guard with his other hand, twisting his body. The guard, thrown off balance, fell, taking another guard, who had lunged to grab Lee Do, down with him. Another punch came flying from somewhere else. He deflected it with his other hand, twisting the guard’s wrist slightly and pushing his arm aside. He lightly tapped the guard’s center of balance with his foot, and the guard promptly fell.

“Tsk.”

Unless it was a larger gambling den, these guards, who weren’t even third-rate martial artists, were no match for him.

Thud!

The sound rang out again.

Then, Bang!

“…Stop!”

The thud was the sound of a head hitting the wall, and the bang was the sound of a gunshot.

The sound of gunfire was incredibly loud up close, especially to the constitution of the martial artist Great Daehyup. Lee Do looked towards where the shot had been fired. True to their nature as casino guards, it was a blank.

“You idiot, how dare you cause trouble here!”

Several guards were aiming their guns at him.

So, Lee Do had no choice but to raise his hands in surrender.

Just one hand. With his other hand, one last thud.

“Agh, aagh! Agh!”

And then he ran.

“C-catch him! Catch him…!”

No one could chase him. It was all thanks to Great Daehyup’s exceptional light-foot skill.