Chapter 7: Ke Town

Every week, the Red Iron Wasteland held a feast. Garbage trucks from the cities, loaded with scrap metal, came in from every direction. New scrap meant new income, and a fresh week of work began.

The quiet wasteland erupted into noise. The shriek of scraping metal was nothing unusual here. Anything that looked valuable was a rare prize, and arguments over it rang across the plain.

The truck engines, the shouting, the clang of metal—it all sounded like a bell heralding the start of the week.

Wuxue’s eyes flew open. Sunlight fell right across her face. On instinct, she raised a hand to shield her eyes. Once her vision adjusted, she looked around the room and spotted an old clock that read 08:24.

“You’re awake?” It was Luo Shisan. Wuxue hadn’t even realized she was crouched in a corner.

“Mm.”

Wuxue nodded and pulled on the jacket beside the bed. She walked over to Shisan to see what she was doing. Up close, she saw that Shisan had reverted to her old look: her face was covered in white powder, and she wore a suit so black it shone.

“Why are you dressed like that again?” Wuxue murmured.

“Because the scrap’s here.” Shisan pointed outside. Wuxue looked over and saw a small mountain of things piled on the handcart. At last she understood why Shisan had such a strong grip. Several children were unloading the trucks nearby.

“What are you doing, then?” Wuxue asked as she retrieved the backpack she’d left on the table. She checked to make sure none of her syringes or equipment were missing.

“Collecting money.”

Shisan smiled, perfectly sincere. “It’s not often I get to go into the city.”

“Oh.”

It was none of Wuxue’s business, so she gave a brief answer. “When are we leaving?”

Shisan got to her feet. Not a trace of hesitation crossed her face—only a clear longing for money.

“Right now.”

The trip was about sixty-seven miles and would take roughly eighteen hours. The nearest town outside the Red Iron Wasteland was Kania Pisco, better known as Ke Town. Wuxue and Torre had planned to deliver their cargo to the client there. The deal was set for noon tomorrow. As long as Shisan didn’t slow her down, Wuxue figured she could reach Ke Town by early morning.

Wuxue was still working out the timing when a deep puttering roar filled her ears. She turned around. Shisan was sitting on a huge yellow tractor, grinning at her.

“Hop on! We’re going to town!”

The tractor stood nearly as tall as a two-story building. It rumbled and belched black smoke. Wuxue took a deep breath and climbed aboard, steeling herself.

The tractor was loud and obnoxious, and the diesel fumes were revolting. Wuxue’s mind was already full of other things, so she tried to ignore it all. Then a strong, lilting tune began to play on the tractor.

This time, Shisan was singing a different song: “The king sent me out to patrol the mountain~”

The sun rose and sank. The moon climbed above the horizon. Wuxue drifted off amid the jolts, then woke again. Shisan didn’t sing any more of her strange songs. The long drive was exhausting. Wuxue had no idea how long they’d been on the road, but at last they reached their destination.

Ke Town was nearly deserted now. The only place still open was the town’s sole bar; all the shops had closed, and the bank was no exception.

Wuxue left Shisan to park the hulking tractor and went straight to the bar. What better place to find out what was going on?

It was a typical small-town bar, and the only place for nightlife. Every corner of the modest room was crowded. Some people were gathered around a dice game; a few young men were bothering the girls by the dance floor. In the middle of it, a holographic stripper swayed seductively and tossed away her last piece of clothing.

Wuxue gave the room a professional once-over. At least two of the people here were fellow bounty hunters. One sat at the bar drinking alone. The gear-shaped emblem on his collar marked him as a member of some hunter organization. The other, a bearded man, was giving Wuxue a lecherous once-over.

“Skok. Long time no see.”

Wuxue picked up a soda from the bar and walked right over to him.

“My dear Su, I’ve been doing just fine.” Skok reached for her shoulder. Wuxue slapped his hand away, but he kept smiling. “You’re the one who’s not doing so well, aren’t you? Being ostracized can’t feel good.”

Wuxue’s expression darkened. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

Skok kept leering at her, his gold teeth flashing as he grinned. “Then did you come over just to say hello?”

Skok was an old fox. His presence here was strange enough. His rates weren’t cheap, and there didn’t seem to be anything worth his coming out here in person. Unless he was after Wuxue. But if someone had paid a high price for her head, there’d be more than two bounty hunters here. It probably had nothing to do with her.

“Have you seen a man carrying a Black Box?”

Wuxue didn’t want to get tangled up with the old fox, so she tossed him two amoxicillin capsules.

A bounty hunter’s world ran on equivalent exchange. Information came at a price.

“You mean that rookie?” Skok tucked the medicine into his pack. “What’d he do to you?”

“You don’t need to know.” Wuxue was losing patience. “Where is he?”

“Don’t be so serious, Su.” Skok stroked his greasy beard. “He’s staying at the inn by the entrance to town. It’s a real dump.”

Wuxue had what she needed and wanted nothing more to do with the old fox. She turned and headed for the door, but she hadn’t gone far when Skok called after her.

“Su, I’ve got a job. Interested? I’ll split off half a pound of Doghead—gold—with you.”

If this had been the old Wuxue, she wouldn’t even have turned around. But finding work wasn’t as easy for her now, and half a pound of gold was no small sum.

Wuxue turned back. Everyone had to bow to hunger eventually.

“Tell me about it. I’ll think it over.”

She folded her arms and tried to look indifferent. The old fox knew that turning around meant she was interested.

“Find me seven or eight pretty girls. Innocent ones, the sort who’d be willing to travel all the way to Ironhammer Castle.”

Skok flashed his gold teeth. His smile made Wuxue’s stomach turn.

The moment Wuxue heard that, her brows knitted together. Bounty hunters might take any job for money, but everyone had their limits. Skok was testing hers.

“Human trafficking?”

“Don’t make it sound so ugly.” Skok laughed. “I’m just solving a labor shortage.”

Wuxue’s expression darkened further, and Skok continued. “Su, you killed your client. Your reputation in the business is in tatters. If I weren’t already busy with another job, I wouldn’t have passed this one on to you. Do you really still have the luxury of being picky?”

“Sorry. I pick and choose my jobs.”

Wuxue spat on the floor. “I won’t take it.”

Skok burst out laughing. As Wuxue headed for the exit, he called after her, “You won’t take it today, but sooner or later you will! And when you can’t make ends meet, I can always take you to Ironhammer Castle myself…” He laughed again.

His laughter pricked at Wuxue like a needle. Becoming a bounty hunter had been Qiongna’s greatest hope for her. She couldn’t let Qiongna down. But now she had a far more troublesome enemy to deal with.

The man who’d hurt her, Torre, had been married to Qiongna for ten years.

Wuxue left the bar and spotted Shisan crouching across the street. Her eyes shone in the darkness like a leopard’s. The moment Wuxue appeared, Shisan bolted over to her.

“I thought you’d run off!” Shisan blurted out. “But I had no money, and I didn’t dare go in there to look for you. We’re in town now… so… when are you paying me?”

Wuxue was already in a foul mood. She didn’t look at Shisan, just walked straight toward the inn at the edge of town.

“Tomorrow,” she said.

“Tomorrow?!” Shisan’s eyes went wide, especially against the white paste covering her face. “I haven’t eaten, and I need somewhere to sleep tonight! I don’t have any money. I don’t care—you have to cover my food and lodging!”

“Should I look after you in your old age and see you to your grave, too?” Wuxue didn’t feel like talking to Shisan. She really was obsessed with money. If she’d become a bounty hunter, she’d have turned out just like Skok, taking any job no matter how filthy.

“Let’s not go that far. I only want the two hundred thousand Orb you owe me. If you don’t pay me, I’ll have to follow you around.”

Shisan said it with complete conviction. As far as she was concerned, Su Wuxue owed her money.

“If I’m going to kill someone, are you still following me?” Wuxue asked, exasperated.

“Even if you kill someone, I’ll follow you!”

Shisan didn’t budge.

When you’re down on your luck, you can’t catch a break. And when you run into someone shameless enough not to care if she lives or dies, there isn’t much you can do.

“Suit yourself!” Wuxue said, and kept walking toward the edge of town.

The clouds covered the moon, and Ke Town grew even darker. In truth, this town with no one to keep an eye on it wasn’t much different from the brightly lit city in the distance. Crime lurked in every patch of darkness.

Bounty hunters weren’t necessarily evil, but they were always the face of it.

Wuxue’s shadow vanished into the dark as she climbed the wooden steps of the inn. The safety on her gun was off, and she was ready to shoot the moment an enemy appeared. Torre’s room light was still on. Wuxue crept to the door like a cat and leaned in, ready to hear what her prey was doing in his final moments.

“The water’s cooled down a little. Here, take your medicine.”

Torre’s voice had turned gentle.

“Qiongna.”