Above the Blood Moon

Just as he was organizing his thoughts, footsteps came from the direction of the stairs, and Art came down from the second floor.

He changed into a dark gray tactical uniform, and with an unopened bottle of beer in his hand, he used his thumb to pry open the bottle cap as he went downstairs.

"You forgot one," Art said, a gentle yet unsettling smile on his face. "Poor bastard."

Margaret rolled her eyes and didn't reply.

Art walked to the bar, leaned against the counter, and scanned everyone's faces. His expression was calm, but his eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses flashed with a sharp light.

"Is the door locked?" he asked.

"It's locked," Daikiri replied.

"Okay." Art nodded, tilted his head back and took a big gulp of beer, then let out a long sigh. "I'm officially announcing that I'm on duty."

He placed the bottle on the bar counter, the metal base striking the wooden surface with a dull thud.

"This is a big job."

As he spoke, Art walked to the door, checked the lock, and then drew all the curtains.

The thick fabric blocked out the red light of the blood moon outside the window, as well as the endless noise of the ruins town at night. He also activated a device to prevent sound wave detection.

The interior of the tavern has been completely transformed into a closed space.

Margaret finally sat up straight, rubbed her face, and her previously empty eyes regained their alertness.

"What kind of work? Let me tell you, I was still lying in bed when you called me over with an emergency call. If it's some trivial matter like stealing a hard drive from some place, I'm leaving right now."

At laughed.

"Don't rush."

He said he took a small projection device out of his pocket and pressed a button.

A pale blue holographic screen unfolded above the bar, displaying a string of numbers that initially appeared as gibberish before quickly stabilizing.

5000 Star Alliance Coins.

An eerie silence fell over the tavern. Daikiri's mouth gaped open in an "O" shape, Margaret stared at the string of numbers with her pupils slightly contracting, and even Big Yellow, who had been expressionless until now, flickered its optical sensor.

Only the priest remained seated quietly, as if the string of numbers were merely irrelevant background information.

Daikiri murmured, his voice filled with disbelief.

"Five thousand Star Alliance coins?"

"Five thousand Star Alliance coins," At repeated, his tone flat.

"Twenty percent prepayment, 1,000 Star Alliance Coins have already been received, the remaining 4,000 will be settled after the matter is completed."

Margaret took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

"Who is the target?"

Art tapped the projection screen, and the numbers disappeared, replaced by a holographic photo of a man around fifty years old, with his hair neatly combed and a gentle yet aloof smile typical of those who have long held positions of power.

He was wearing a well-tailored dark gray suit with an elegant silver badge pinned to his lapel.

"Floyd Kearns," Art said, "founder and CEO of Antey Culture."

Margaret's reaction was more intense than Jockley had anticipated; she jumped off the high stool so violently that she nearly knocked it over.

"I won't do it!" Her voice suddenly rose, sounding particularly jarring in the enclosed space.

"Let whoever wants to do it do it! Art Herman, not a single one of your jobs is legitimate! The time before last it was stealing a mine owner's hard drive, the time after that it was a shootout with a gang, and this time you're going to kill a company boss? Are you crazy or am I?!"

Jockley looked a little bewildered. He turned to look at Big Yellow, whose panel immediately displayed a series of information streams, and then sent the packaged data packets to Jockley via a neural network.

Floyd Kearns, 52, is the de facto controller of Ante Culture Company, whose business covers GG agency, media operations, public opinion management, etc. At its peak, the company had more than 200 employees and was a leader among local medium-sized enterprises.

Note: Freud is one of the most active responders to the Joint Notice on Total Human Employment Needs of Modified Humans. In the past two weeks, he has laid off more than half of the company’s employees and introduced the Olympus Ring’s Brain-7 Human Brain Management System to take full control of the company’s daily operations.

They possess substantial financial resources and complex social relationships. In the modified human camp, wealth is often equivalent to force and influence.

After quickly scanning through the information, Jockley had a general idea of ​​what was going on; this was definitely not a target to be trifled with.

Art's voice remained calm, even carrying a hint of soothing.

"Calm down, Margaret. I know Floyd is a tough guy, but the price the employer is offering is definitely worth the risk, isn't it?"

"Who is the employer?" Margaret asked coldly, arms crossed.

Att was silent for two seconds, then he spoke.

"A bigwig at Yadea Technology, I don't know his specific name, and he's unlikely to reveal it."

Jockley's pupils suddenly contracted.

"Why don't they do it themselves?" Margaret pressed, her tone full of doubt.

"Yadi are like local tyrants in Forgotten City. They have their own armed forces and countless resources. Getting rid of Freud shouldn't be too difficult for them, so why spend money to hire outsiders?"

"I don't know," Art admitted frankly. "The employer didn't reveal the reason, and I won't ask, but I'm guessing based on my experience."

He paused, then adjusted his glasses.

"Floyd may have gotten in Yadea's way in some area, and Yadea didn't want to get their hands dirty or leave any evidence, so they needed some black gloves. Unfortunately, I have some credibility in District 11, so they came to me."

Margaret gave a cold laugh.

"Your credibility? Is your credibility defined by accepting such suicidal remarks?"

"Five thousand Star Alliance coins, Margaret."

Art's voice was soft, yet it carried an undeniable weight.

"The money I've given you is enough to buy a big villa in Mirror Lake District, and enough for you to leave Forgotten City and start over. Don't you want that?"

Margaret fell silent, biting her lip, her eyes darting back and forth between the numbers on the projection screen and Art's face; the struggle was almost palpable.

"Furthermore, I have no intention of launching a direct attack. In a head-on confrontation, any number of us would die."

"So what do you want to do, Art?" Daikiri couldn't help but interject.

Ate turned off the projector, walked behind the bar, and took out a small metal coin from the drawer. The coin gleamed dimly under the light and had a face value of 0.1 Covenant Coins.

"A magic trick, or rather, a scam."

As Art spoke, he placed the coin in his palm.

"The core principle is actually very simple: let's distract the audience so that we can complete the actual operation."

He tossed the coin gently into the air; the metal tumbled in the air, tracing a brief arc before falling towards Big Yellow, who extended his mechanical hand and caught it steadily.

"When I tossed the coin just now, was your attention on my hand or on the Pilot?"

Jockley thought back for a moment, and his gaze did indeed unconsciously follow the trajectory of the coin, eventually landing on Big Yellow's palm.

"This is where it all begins," Art said. "An illusion."

He walked up to Big Yellow, took the coin from its palm, and showed it to everyone.

The coin's value changed from 0.1 Covenant Coins to 0.2 Covenant Coins.

"A large charity gala will be held in the Forgotten City Central Business District in two days."

Art put the coin back in his pocket and leaned back against the bar.

"Flord, as a fairly well-known local entrepreneur, will definitely attend."

His gaze swept across everyone's face.

"We need someone to sneak into the venue, get close to Floyd, and then we need to create an opportunity to isolate him from the crowd."

That person also needs a partner, someone reliable enough for both the team and that person, and most importantly, someone who can keep our secrets and completely trust that person.

"He throws out a proposition that is attractive enough to Floyd, but doesn't push it forward until Floyd takes the bait himself. Once Floyd is out of the sight of his bodyguards and out of the public eye, the rest is easy."

Margaret frowned.

"Who do you want to use as bait?"

All eyes turned to Jockley and Big Yellow standing beside him.

Jockley felt his lips twitch.

Indeed, if we're talking about inseparable companions, he and Da Huang are definitely the best combination.

But isn't it obvious that you're Qiao's sister, Xiao Qiao? What do you mean by him being inseparable from Da Huang? That means he's someone who's going to be sent out to seduce Floyd.

If he were to be hunted down by a security company with a bounty on his head, he'd probably have to go back to the wilderness with Big Yellow and become scavengers again.

Just as Jokeri was about to ask Art if there were any other solutions, Art flexed his wrist.

"If you agree, you and Ironclad will each get a larger share of this operation."

Even if there are a few more, we can't just push him and Da Huang out.

Jockley was still a little uneasy. He tilted his head and looked at At, his eyes filled with distrust and wariness.

"You and Iron Pilot will each receive 2000 Star Alliance Coins. I'll cover the initial expenses for the mission."

Jockley smiled.

"How could that be? These are all our own tasks, so Tie Yu and I will definitely do our duty without hesitation."

Big Yellow turned around and started talking to Jockley through a neural network.

"(╬☉д⊙), you think you can just agree after I fuck you? You're spineless."

"I'll replace your entire body with new clothes, and I'll pack whatever you want for you."

"I think we are perfectly capable of handling this task. (≖＿≖)✧"

"Jockley, Ironclad," At looked at them, his tone becoming serious.

"To be serious, you are indeed the core of this mission. I need you to infiltrate the venue, get close to Freud, and make him interested in you, or rather, in what you can offer."

"What is it?" Jockley asked.

"An opportunity, an opportunity for someone like Freud to take another step forward, even to cross class boundaries and truly enter the Olympus Circle, for example, by coming into contact with an upper-class person from the Olympus Circle, which is you, Jockley."

"We'll pack it for you then, don't worry about that."

He paused, then continued.

"Since everyone is interested, I'll assign tasks to the others."

Margaret will be responsible for paralyzing the target's nervous system and hacking skills if necessary, cutting off his communication with the outside world. The priest and I will be responsible for the backup and violent elimination, while Daikiri will drive and be in charge of the escape route.

Art clapped his hands, the crisp applause ringing out loudly in the silence.

"That's the plan. It's very risky, but you've seen the rewards."

His gaze swept over everyone again.

"A life-changing opportunity is right in front of you, to take it or not?"

Margaret bit her nails, her eyes filled with struggle. Daikiri rubbed his hands, clearly blinded by the figure of five thousand Star Alliance coins. The priest remained silent, as if none of this concerned him.

Jockley's gaze fell on At's face, then slowly shifted away, looking out the window.

Although the curtains were drawn, he could almost see through the heavy fabric the crazy and desperate world outside, shrouded in the blood moon.

Yadea Technology Company, whatever they want to do, this is his chance to get closer to the truth, closer to that blue tissue fluid, closer to the way home.

Moreover, the 5,000 Star Alliance Coins did indeed tempt him.

"I'll do it."

Rhubarb's optical sensors turned toward him, and a short character flashed on the panel.

[+1]

At laughed.

"Very good." Art said, raising the bottle in his hand.

"Then, ladies and gentlemen, the moment to change your lives has arrived."