Lisa's face instantly turned ashen:
"Then... what should we do? Can you save him?"
"Save him?"
The Quack sneered,
"What am I supposed to save him with? I'm just a medicine peddler, do you take me for a true divine doctor? Running into you people, I'm really unlucky; I've lost everything down to my underwear! I'm not playing with you anymore, go wherever you want, get out of here!"
With that, Charlie stomped back into his room, slamming the door shut.
Lisa's body trembled slightly, her expression somewhat despairing.
She looked at Manba, took a deep breath, got off the wheelchair, and painstakingly moved him onto it. Due to the exertion, a trickle of blood seeped from her injured waist.
But she didn't ask for anything more, simply pushed Manba silently and left the pharmacy.
Inside the room, the Quack watched the two figures depart through a small window, feeling very uncomfortable. He took out a coin from his pocket.
"Don't blame me, it's hard for everyone."
"It's all just for survival...."
"I don't have much luck left to save you..."
"Ding—"
Reflected in the window glass, the Quack flipped the coin; it spun and landed in his palm... heads up.
On the other side, Li Andy, pinching his chin, witnessed everything in the mirror at home, seeing the street girl, the butcher, and the Quack go their separate ways.
"Is the Quack's special ability to save people with his own luck?"
Li Andy still had many questions.
"Among coin holders, you don't have to die to give it to someone else... But did the luck value really boost the other person?"
"And were the associated functional characteristics transferred to the other person?"
He still hadn't figured out whether the Lucky Coin inherently possessed characteristics similar to a profession, or if it was endowed with characteristics based on the owner's identity.
"Brother, we're ready."
At this moment, his sister's voice interrupted his thoughts.
Youxi and Sophia were now fully equipped, both dressed in sharp, dark-toned trench coats, paired with slender, high-top boots, walking gracefully towards him.
The two had a cold demeanor, yet didn't appear ostentatious, with a hint of mystery beneath their surface; they finally resembled legendary investigators from the late stages of a game.
It was just that... their faces still seemed tender, with a rosy, fair complexion, looking as if they had just been moisturized.
Li Andy couldn't help but curve his lips, feeling a strange sense of satisfaction.
No matter how cold their outer shells were at this moment, only he knew how warm and soft they were inside.
"Let's go!"
Sophia put on her detective deerstalker hat and said coolly.
The three arrived at the edge of Black Alley.
They found many Security Bureau personnel, stationed at various key points, not for rescue, but more to prevent refugees from entering the city from the other side.
Li Andy led his sisters down a small path, and after avoiding several disturbances, arrived at Old Du Lin's shop.
The old dwarf hadn't changed much; he glanced at the three, sniffed, and mocked:
"Heh, you're eating quite well, kid. Aren't you afraid of a sore waist?"
"I'm young and strong."
Li Andy led his sisters to sit in front of the counter.
Old Du Lin didn't waste words, handed over the reward for the previous commission, and also included another new commission:
"Crazy Rat's side has increased your reward by fifty percent.
"And the new commission is that Zacro wants you to tell him the identities and professions of the other Lucky Coin holders.
"The reward is substantial; it's up to you whether to accept it or not."
Li Andy took the commission report.
Sophia, meanwhile, took the money bag, and she and Youxi meticulously checked the reward, feeling that every penny had to be accounted for.
Li Andy pondered for a few seconds and asked:
"Who exactly is this Zacro?"
Old Du Lin handed over a bounty notice:
"This person comes from the Twelfth District; he was once the underworld boss there, known as the 'Iron-Leg Wolf King.' He demanded that immigrants also have land rights and incited several riots. Later, the administration of the Twelfth District, in conjunction with another gang, launched a crackdown on him. But unexpectedly, he survived and fled to our Ninth District."
Li Andy frowned:
"A land rights fighter?"
Old Du Lin nodded and continued:
"As you know, it's no longer the Great Expansion era, and unclaimed land is limited. The Twelfth District's administration leans towards the 'Royalists' and couldn't possibly agree. Even the fully 'Independent' Sixth and Seventh Districts would consider it carefully. But that madman, in order to force the administration to compromise, once even hijacked a train, resulting in many deaths."
"So what's his purpose in coming here?" Li Andy asked.
"Who knows..."
Old Du Lin shrugged,
"He's an ambitious person, and now with a luck bonus, he definitely won't be quiet recently."
"What's the reaction from other parties then?" Li Andy asked again.
This time, Old Du Lin didn't charge him for information and simply said with a smile:
"In the city, I estimate martial law will begin very soon. In the circle, however, very few people know about this."
Li Andy frowned:
"So you want me to continue taking it?"
"Yes, why not earn money when there's money to be made?"
Old Du Lin chuckled,
"I and this building are neutral; what Zacro proposed is just an investigation commission. Your information, apart from me, no one else knows. Finally, I also really want to know, who the hell brought 'Misfortune' and 'Chaos' to Black Alley."
Li Andy thought for a moment, then nodded:
"Alright, I can tell him."
The identities of the several coin holders could be revealed, including their possible characteristic abilities.
But some of the details, he would slightly distort.
He would try his best to keep everyone's coins self-contained.
Now, that guy who likes to toy with other people's fates should appear, right?
.......
On the other side of Black Alley, Lisa, pushing Manba home, suddenly encountered a person shrouded in a black robe.
The person held a cracked crystal ball in their hand, seemingly having waited for them for a long time again.
Lisa looked nervous, holding a small knife, shielding the unconscious Manba.
"Don't be nervous, child."
The black-robed figure spoke,
"Lucky ones chosen by fate will always have lives full of twists and turns."
Lisa's pupils contracted, and she suddenly thought of something:
"Those Lucky Coins... did you make them?!"
The black-robed figure nodded:
"Yes, but the coin is just an image; it actually doesn't have the blessing of luck. The turning of fate lies within yourselves."
Lisa felt somewhat dazed, but a glimmer of hope ignited within her, grabbing onto that straw, she pleaded:
"You're so powerful, you must be able to save him! Please! You... I'll do anything you ask!"
The black-robed figure sighed:
"I cannot directly help you. But I can tell you that luck and misfortune are interdependent."
Lisa's face turned pale, and she suddenly thought of the Raincoat Man:
"You... you want me to harm people?!"
The black-robed figure didn't reply, simply retreated silently into the alley.
By the time Lisa rushed over, he had vanished without a trace.
Lisa looked at the knife in her hand, trembling slightly, lost in thought.
......
On the other side.
The black-robed figure removed his hood, revealing Reirfu's face.
Reirfu lifted his foot and found he had stepped in a pile of excrement.
Immediately after, a blob of bird droppings landed squarely on his head.
"......."
The unlucky Reirfu let out a long sigh.
Direct intervention would inevitably result in some karmic backlash of misfortune.
The last time he did this was when he told the hunter the rules.
For that, he was unlucky for several days.
This was the price of an observer intervening.
But, is correction... truly correction?
Could his correction also be a kind of inevitability?
"Teacher, if fate is a fixed number, can destiny truly be predicted and influenced?"
"Do variables outside of destiny truly exist?"
Reirfu looked up at the gloomy sky, and couldn't help but ponder, feeling lost again after more than ten years.
"Plop—"
A fresh blob of bird droppings landed squarely on his brow.
