Chapter 7: Wolf’s Bane
"Huff...huff" Lin Shen inhaled and exhaled as he jogged through the neighborhood.
He took in the fresh air as much as possible. In this day and age, it was a miracle that such pure air was still around. He didn't want to squander any of it.
Lin Shen lived in City H, a fairly rich city mostly due to its inhabitants such as the Yu Conglomerate. His apartment was actually located in HuangCheng, a pretty normal neighborhood surrounded by the middle class, but he liked to jog through Jiang street as it was a relatively quiet community, owing to the fact that it was populated by the rich and wealthy.
He jogged through the neighborhood where it was quiet. Everywhere he looked, he saw houses of the grand scale of mansions and castles alike, all either guarded by security personal or equipment. For that reason, this area was peaceful with no crimes occurring.
'Doesn't mean there aren't any people around.'
Lin Shen decided to take a rest. He drank from the water bottle in his hand to cool off his thirst.
He usually wasn't the type of person to go on morning jogs, but here he was, actually outside and jogging all because of an app that promised him a reward like a creepy old uncle.
And he was the kid!
Lin Shen inwardly sulked.
He could still remember awakening to the sounds of a new quest from the app.
[Quest - Go jog outside, it's healthy.]
Reward(s): Secret
'If I don't complete this quest, wouldn't I never unlock the new category?'
He smiled wryly at his plight.
'Huh, who are those people?'
He noticed a group of men coming out of a house from across the street. The men seemed to be handling a secret mission. One of the men, a brawny bald-headed man, threw the bag in his hand into the backseat of a black van. There was a visible shaking of the van to prove that the bag was quite heavy.
Lin Shen watched as the van drove off. He didn't intend on being a busybody.
From what he observed, those men were probably smuggling some heavy object or something in huge quantities. Whatever it was, it was none of his business, plus he wasn't ready to die yet.
'What, think I'm a coward? So what! I'm not blind enough to ignore the guns attached to their belt.'
Nevertheless, the real reason was that he recognized those men. To be exact, he recognized the brawny bald-headed man.
Jin Da, the big boss of Wolf's Bane, a notorious organization renowned throughout City H, from the criminal underworld to the conventional world. The man himself had a huge bounty placed on him by the police, in spite of that he had never been caught yet.
He was a slippery criminal despite his looks.
Wolf's Bane was an organization as infamous as the Yu Conglomerate was famous.
They were composed of numerous men consisting of thugs from the bottom to trained elites such as mercenaries and assassins at the top. The thugs guarded their bases and did menial tasks such as smuggling drugs and selling them. The elite mercenaries and assassins at the top of the chain undertook tasks from the wealthy people of various backgrounds, usually to get rid of a competitor.
'Such an organization has survived in H City for five years already and has yet to be caught.'
It was obvious Jin Da and his men weren't people he could mess with. Lin Shen decided to just ignore this encounter. He had a quest that was more important than a big boss, a quest with a secret reward. Secret or otherwise known as 'Unknown' rewards were oftentimes dependent on the one undertaking the quest and how far they've gotten.
Just as Lin Shen was about to carry on with his jog, a WeChat message came through his phone. He took a look at it.
[Son, I've realized we're running low on food supply. Since you're already outside, why don't you take the time to go buy a few cartons of egg.] - Lin Bo
[Ok.] - Lin Shen
Lin Shen replied and reluctantly moved his body towards the north of Jiang Street, where the marketplace was located.
He was reluctant to go there because there were so many people, but as his father said; he was already outside. The marketplace was relatively cheaper than the malls and the convenience stores located nearby, plus unlike the malls and convenience stores, you could batter down the price as much as your ability allowed in the marketplace.
He made sure to check his wallet before he jogged there to the marketplace.
"Fresh turnips, just pulled from the ground a few hours ago. Half a dozen for just 400 yuan."
"Egg rolls, come and get your egg rolls."
"Mullets mullets mullets; recently shipped by Huafu Commerce's trading vessel."
Lin Shen had just stepped into the area when he was engulfed by the bustling livelihood of the market.
He headed straight for a certain egg merchant he always went to.
"Ah, Brother Lin! I see you're here which probably means you want some eggs?" A plump fatty stood up from his attending stall and greeted Lin Shen.
Lin Shen arrived before a pretty big stall equipped with rows upon rows of eggs, each held in a carton.
"Yes, I'm shopping for groceries. I need a few cartons of egg, preferably three."
He placed down a few stacks of ten-unit RMB notes onto the counter.
The fatty took out four cartons of egg from his shelf and took the money.
"This-"
"It's my gift to you, Brother Lin, to thank you for being my friend and supporting me. Without you, I would probably be all skin and bones, waiting for death to knock on my soul. If you really think of me, Qiu Wei, as your brother, then you will accept my gift."
Qiu Wei patted Lin Shen's shoulder as he declared.
'Qiu Wei really hasn't changed, despite all that had happened in the past.'
What gratitude? Fatty had long repaid him, he didn't owe him anything anymore. Qiu Wei was a really good friend to him.
Lin Shen clenched his fists. 'I know you, Fatty. I know you still aren't over her yet, so one day, I promise you I will avenge her.'
"Thank you."
Lin Shen waved goodbye and departed from the marketplace, in his hands two plastic bags containing two cartons of egg each. He couldn't jog back since he didn't want to accidentally break the eggs, so he could only walk back.
'There goes my allowance, sigh.'
Lin Shen's father, Lin Bo, had a good office job with enough pay each month to pay the bills, buy supplies, and still have enough to give allowance money to Lin Shen.
However, Lin Shen wasn't a very needy kid and hardly used the allowance money, eventually saving up quite a fair amount.
Therefore, although he was saddened by the decrease, it wasn't that important in his mental factor.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
At this moment his phone rang. He paused to answer the call.
[Hello?]
[Ah son, how'd it go? Have you bought the eggs yet?]
It was Father Lin calling.
[Yeah I bought it just a few minutes ago. I'm heading home right now.]
[Alright, I won't bother you. Be careful on your way.]
The call ended and Lin Shen put away his phone. The day was still a little bright outside, just approaching the afternoon.
Lin Shen arrived at the entrance, now exit, of the marketplace.
Tip. Tap.
"Huff…"
Lin Shen could hear rapid steps and heavy breathing approaching fast from behind. He hurriedly turned around and saw-
"Sir, please help hide me!" A girl breathed heavily as if out of breath, her clothes ruffled and out of place. He could see a few bruises on her delicate face. Lin Shen could see her hair was a unique dark shade of blue and observed her eyes that were shaky and pleading.
"Please sir! I need to hide! I don't want to be caught again." The girl begged. She looked like she was about to break into tears.
Lin Shen felt overwhelmed. He didn't know what to do. From her words, he could tell that it would be very troublesome afterwards if he were to help her now. However, here was a girl who looked so pitiful and ready to burst into tears. She would probably have no future if she were to be caught again, from whomever she was escaping.
"Who are you escaping from?" He decided to ask.
The blue haired girl paused. She was hesitant to speak, but she had to. "Wolf's Bane." She observed his reactions to her words, and just as she thought, he looked more hesitant.
'Wolf's Bane?... their activity is usually limited...why would they kidnap this girl…' he had the notion that things weren't as simple as this.
"Come with me." Lin Shen grabbed the girl and walked towards the wall of a nearby building where the surroundings were a little dark.
"We can hide here. Stand up against the wall and I'll cover you. We'll pretend to be a couple."
The blue haired girl complied. She put her back against the wall and Lin Shen stood in front of her, covering her. He could feel her breathing rough since their proximity was less than an inch.
"Find her before she escapes, dammit!" He could hear the angry commands of a man, possibly the captor.
Footsteps rang as the sounds of men searching resounded. A few minutes later the noises became few and he confirmed that they were gone.
He turned back to her and said, "Alright, they've left. You shou-"
"Muah…" The blue haired girl pulled him in and connected his lips with hers for a sudden kiss.
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(I had to delete the chapter and re upload it since there were some problems with the editing feature of Webnovel.)
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