＜ Episode 4 ＞
The 60th zone is wide.
If you just want to walk around, it won’t be finished in a day or two.
Of course, there’s a high chance that you’ll get hurt or get kidnapped and sold before you’ve even looked around the area, but that’s the case anyway.
So, even if they lived in the same district, they usually stayed within the area they lived in, and John was no different.
The work of a fixer sometimes has to go quite far, but John focused on work in the area where he lived, and that was the case with most fixers, so most of the people living in Luna were like that. .
A place where you can’t see the future, and you have no choice but to live with dead eyes in a given place without hope.
That’s the life of a slum.
‘…so I have to get out.’
Walking down the street at a pace that was neither fast nor slow, John continued his thoughts.
I remember the first time I opened my eyes.
The feeling of bewilderment and astonishment, anger at the incredible reality, and despair brought about by all sorts of negative emotions tightening the whole body.
However, his trained body and mind put survival first, and even though every hour was extremely dangerous, he managed to settle in.
If time passes like this, it will not be impossible to live as a member of a complete slum.
‘I can’t do that.’
But can that be called life?
People living in slums from birth say that they live with a philosophical view of their situation, but John had no intention of doing so.
Survival is not just about breathing and living.
I know a better life than this.
Isn’t survival in the true sense of the word that we have to move forward for a better life?
That’s why John decided to get out of Area 60 after much thought and was preparing step by step.
Yesterday was like that too.
It was a kind of work that John normally would not take on, but since he had set a goal, he had no choice but to overdo it.
‘Thanks to this, I was able to obtain information and strength.’
Gaining confidence, John decided to hasten the plan.
***
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Most of the shops in the slums look like fortresses covered with thick iron plates.
Thin walls or clumsy cement cannot stop the robbers who have been strengthened to the level of cyborg by replacing the body with implants, and if such robbers enter, it is not only things that will be taken away.
In particular, if you handle sensitive items, your defense power will go up even more, and in that respect, the store in front of John’s eyes was equipped with a firmer defense than any other store around him.
thud! thud!
There was a loud sound from knocking on the iron door, which was covered with thick rivets and reinforced metal, but passers-by just glanced at it and did not pay much attention.
Because the only sounds that people in the slums have to watch out for are gunshots, screams, and the sound of something breaking.
Above all, the people around them who knew the identity of the store were well aware that the visitors to the store were all formidable people.
Even if it is a full-body human without a single implant.
Chunk!
The small side door at the level of John’s face went down, and soon a large muzzle came out of nowhere.
Although he was surprised by the large-caliber barrel that seemed to blow away even the most reinforced parts, John opened his mouth without changing the color of his face.
“me. zone.”
Chunk!
The door was pushed back with a heavy sound, and another steel door appeared.
As if he was used to it, John took a step forward, and the door that had been opened closed, and John seemed to be trapped in a coffin made of steel.
Chunk!
But that was only for a moment, as soon as the inner door opened, a nervous voice penetrated John’s ears.
“Your complexion doesn’t change. He seems like a boring guy.”
“Because I can’t work if I’m surprised at all of these things.”
“Tsk!”
Gilbert clenched his tongue at the nonchalant reply and spoke in a brusque tone.
“Come in.”
“Excuse me.”
I saw all kinds of weapons crammed into a rather large store, and Gilbert, a grumpy old man.
“I heard the story. Did you come to supply it?”
“Compassion and honor.”
Looking at Gilbert, a fence and weapon dealer who could fit in his fingers throughout Area 63, John took out the broken EMP generator from his chest.
John handed Gilbert a circular device that could fit in the palm of his hand and opened his mouth.
“Performance was fine, but it was disposable. I can’t use it until three times.”
“… I can’t give you a refund.”
Seeing Gilbert roll his eyes with a heartbroken expression, John smiled.
“I don’t even want it.”
Anyway, the item did its job well, and it was worth it, as it had saved John’s life once.
“But I can’t buy the next one at that price.”
“I can’t do that.”
Gilbert licked his lips at the firm words.
From Gilbert’s point of view, who has a stock of consumables, John is a pretty good customer.
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Most of the customers using Gilbert’s shop were getting implants, and they didn’t look for consumables other than basic firearms.
Gilbert, who had gone through the war, did not blindly believe in implants and stocked up on various consumables, but since they did not sell, it was as if he had a bad inventory.
It was John who resolved the situation.
John, who did not have implants, was highly dependent on weapons and tools, and naturally became a regular of Gilbert.
It wasn’t bad from John’s point of view, because Gilbert belonged to an honest merchant in the slum, and his trust in goods was quite high.
In addition, it was also a fence, so it was easy to dispose of various things that came into hand while working, and the relationship that started like that was already approaching two years.
‘It was strangely skillful from the first time I saw it.’
John, who came to the store with the introduction of a broker, was bizarrely proficient in various weapons, and quickly established himself as a fixer, but now he has become a fairly reputable fixer.
“First, three EMP devices.”
“OK.”
I’ve made a claim, but it’s a story that John’s reordering is quite useful.
John’s voice pierced the ears of Gilbert, who was determined to increase the inventory of EMP devices.
“A box of 12-gauge slug rounds. I’ll take care of the 9mm bullets too.”
Gilbert rummaged under the table, picking things up.
“30 meters of dopokseon, 20 kilometers of C4.”
Gilbert’s movements stopped at the unexpected object.
“10 frag grenades and 10 flash grenades.”
“…Are you going to commit terrorism?”
Gilbert’s voice grew serious, knowing of John’s ability to make improvised explosive devices out of ordinary grocery store items.
“I know there is also LAW, but that too.”
Gilbert’s face hardened.
“Let’s take this too.”
thud.
Gilbert’s face hardened severely at the sight of John placing the 20mm anti-material sniper rifle that was showing off his presence on one side of the cradle on the table.
No matter how lawless a slum is, there was a minimum line.
The tacit line that only anti-personnel weapons are permitted.
It is said that they are public security officers in the 60th district who don’t blink even if a murder happens right next to them and make a nonchalant expression even when a building collapses.
The only thing they tolerate is armed forces of a level that cannot threaten the public security, and if they see an armed force that exceeds that level, they will not hesitate to shoot them on the spot.
And all John asked of Gilbert now was to make him speechless even if the police put a bullet in John’s head.
Seeing Gilbert’s expression like that, John smiled.
“Because we may not be able to supply supplies for a while.”
And Gilbert was able to infer his thoughts from John’s words.
“Are you trying to go up?”
“exactly.”
Gilbert was speechless at John’s strong will.
***
Chunk!
John left the store behind Gilbert, who had a serious expression on his face, and his steps were unstoppable.
He spent more than half of the money he had saved so far at Gilbert’s shop and bought a lot of equipment, but nothing was in John’s hands.
‘It’s comfortable.’
John felt reassured when he checked the weapons, ammunition, and consumables stored in a space located in a corner of his image, which was completely invisible to the eyes of others.
A gift given by the witch to John, who chooses his ability and turns away.
– If you send it like this, the balance will be out of balance.
What was given to John along with the meaningless words was a space bag named Inventory.
I suddenly felt unreasonable when I said that it was a basic skill that players have, but that was only for a moment.
John gladly accepted the gift and realized its usefulness.
‘The space is bigger than I thought. It will increase flexibility.’
Although he gained strength, John, who had no intention of changing his existing style, was more than happy.
It was clear that more equipment and firepower would dramatically increase John’s fighting ability.
Heading to the hideout, John packed all his belongings into his inventory and headed to a bar that served as an agency.
kid.
John, who was still trying to push through the stiff door and head to the bartender, stopped, probably because of a premonition close to instinct.
Nothing has changed from when I visited in the morning.
The heat was still the same, the men who filled the room were holding their drinking glasses with vicious eyes, and there were still bloodstains left on one side of the floor.
The bartender, with his impressive scars and bald head, was still frowning, and his glances at John were still the same, just like the brokerage office he’d been tired of seeing for the past hour.
‘···Right.’
However, John did not ignore his premonition and was able to find that he had changed.
‘…it’s too explicit.’
a look.
From the time John started to make his name known, hostile eyes were formed towards him, which increased as time went on, but never as much as at this moment.
Some of them were blatantly watching John, to the point that I thought maybe that’s how John looked at his target when he went to work.
But John wasn’t the morning guy either.
His body, which had been stiff with tension for a moment, moved naturally and headed toward the bartender.
Feeling the eyes on him that would have normally felt natural, John was convinced that his hunch was correct.
Something had happened, and it was clear that it wasn’t good for John.
In fact, he could feel some of them moving, so John said he was good at moving quickly and sat across from the bartender.
“Have you come?”
“yes.”
John’s expression did not change even when he saw the bartender twitching his lips as if he was trying to say something, but in the end he didn’t say anything.
If things go as planned, you will never see the bartender’s face again.
“Give me a letter of introduction.”
At that moment, the complexion of the bartender and everyone gathered in the bar changed.
＜ Episode 4 ＞ End