Chapter 197

A true strong person? After hearing Burned Man’s words, the middle-aged man naturally recalled the Aquarius Director from this morning, and then nodded in acknowledgment:

“There indeed is one, but he’s already gone. I reckon he won’t be back for a while, and he definitely won’t join us.”

“Tch…”

Upon hearing this unexciting response, Burned Man couldn’t help but click his tongue in disappointment and turned around to leave, only to be called back by the middle-aged man.

“Tyger, how’s the situation at the Rouser Arcade?”

“Huh? What about it?”

“Of course, how’s the fire doing!”

Looking at Burned Man with an attitude that was rather dismissive and somewhat indifferent, the middle-aged man frowned slightly, his expression serious as he questioned sternly:

“Didn’t I tell you to start fires at the Rouser Arcade to pressure those in the Rich District into giving the Secret Investigation Bureau grief, so we could lure the secret police over there on patrol? How did it go?”

“Oh, that? Done, done!”

Burned Man replied somewhat irritably:

“I went out at night and burned some garbage stations and traffic posts. I also kept an eye on some big merchants and nobles’ houses, burning their gardens and carriage sheds. I even sneaked into a few small noble homes without guards and set them ablaze. That should be enough.”

“Not ‘should be,’ it must be!”

Looking at this increasingly uncontrollable subordinate lately, the middle-aged man frowned and said:

“After Barton’s death, there are no more of our people in the higher-ups of the Secret Investigation Bureau. Now we have no way of knowing the secret police’s movements, so we must be extra cautious and lure as many secret police away as possible before acting! The way you’re doing this…”

“I get it, I get it, I’ll go do it again!”

After responding irritably, Burned Man, who failed to find “Tiger,” didn’t bother dealing with the middle-aged man who reeked of weakness and left in great disappointment.

The middle-aged man sighed, then looked toward the northwest of the valley, gazing at the towering “7”-shaped steel-frame giant tower piercing the clouds, shaking his head slightly, and suppressing the anger in his eyes.

Forget it, it’s unnecessary.

After three consecutive failures, we’re currently short on manpower, and now isn’t the time to argue with such a reckless guy. After all, if this mission fails again, the time left for me and the Kingdom will be running out…

…

“Woof! Woof woof!”

(“Ow! It hurts!”) “Woof woof woof!”

(“@#￥% dog swear words”)

“Woof? Woof woof woof? Woof woof woof!”

(“What are you doing? Why did you suddenly pull so much fur off my butt? It hurts!”)

Leon could only give it an apologetic look from the bottom of his heart as the young puppy kept barking pitifully at him, appearing everywhere on the lamp poles, puddles on the ground, and the glass of roadside shops.

Sorry, sorry.

Mainly because I don’t know what’s wrong with his wristwatch, worried that giving him my hair might reveal something, or have tracking or control abilities.

And since the Mirror World is a reflection and can avoid these things, plus not having access to someone else’s hair in a hurry, I had no choice but to pull the fur off your butt that matched the color.

(You’d better keep your word…) Of course! Definitely! “Xiaoba Jin…”

After waiting for a long time without hearing Leon speak, not knowing that he was apologizing to the dog for pulling its butt fur, the chubby uncle sighed and consoled kindly: “Don’t be too disappointed, not having those magical powers is fine.

Back when old Ba Jin didn’t have any special abilities either, but didn’t he still risk getting shot by over 300 nail guns to carry me out of the trench filled with dead bodies?

So don’t worry! Even without those magical powers, as long as we’re brave enough and lucky enough, we can still accomplish a lot!”

So… you’re taking care of “me” because old Ba Jin saved your life? Hearing the chubby uncle’s words, Leon’s eyes flashed with understanding.

After glancing at the two quite horrifying scars under his collar on his neck, Leon thought for a moment and wanted to gather more information, then softly asked:

“Uncle Owen… tell me about the past!”

?! You used to hate listening to these kinds of stories. Why now…

Hearing this unprecedented request, the chubby uncle was startled, surprisedly looking back at him, feeling like something about this kid seemed different.

But after seeing the rather disheartened expression of “Xiaoba Jin” and remembering the scene where hope instantly plummeted to extreme disappointment, he couldn’t help but sigh, putting aside that strange feeling in his heart.

That’s right, although he has talent, just missing out on that little bit led him to miss another kind of life. It would be strange if this kid didn’t change at all…

“Well then, I’ll tell you!”

Smiling kindly at Leon, recalling the days when he and old Ba Jin fought for the country, the chubby uncle’s heart couldn’t help but stir, wanting to recount all those days.

Not only to console the disheartened Xiaoba Jin, but also to make this child who has always hated old Ba Jin understand that his father wasn’t completely hopeless; that drunkard was once a tough good man before he drowned himself in alcohol! But…

Looking at Xiaoba Jin’s thin body and the bruises left by sticks on his arms, the chubby uncle fell silent again, his kind round eyes revealing a deep sense of confusion.

What does our glorious past mean to this child?

With the loss of the main labor force in the family and the military department’s long-overdue allowance, Xiaoba Jin’s mother had no choice but to cut expenses and work hard day and night, eventually collapsing physically and suffering from liver disease for a year before passing away in agony.

Old Ba Jin, due to injuries sustained during the war, developed severe health issues. Without alcohol to numb the pain, he couldn’t sleep, spending all his money watching his wife die, then breaking down completely, becoming the person who now beats his son and even steals Xiaoba Jin’s money to buy alcohol.

Remembering how happy the Ba Jin family was before the war began—when Xiaoba Jin still had a reliable father and a gentle mother—the chubby uncle realized that his and old Ba Jin’s proud past meant nothing but the beginning of falling from heaven into hell for this unfortunate child…

“…”

After understanding why Xiaoba Jin detests hearing about the past so much, the chubby uncle’s back unconsciously bent a little, his expression quickly sinking.

“Actually… it’s just some… past things. The past is past, hmm…

It’s not that I’m unwilling to tell you, but it doesn’t matter if you don’t listen. Let’s hurry up and get your money back instead. If old Ba Jin gets released early, it’ll be troublesome.”

“Uncle Owen, still tell me.”

“If you insist on listening…”

Muttering vaguely twice, the chubby uncle, whose voice was somewhat suppressed, quickened his pace, walking forward while saying warmly:

“Come over to my place for dinner tonight, and I’ll tell you then, okay?”

(End of Chapter)