Bear School Astartes

Lann was quite familiar with such gang structures, like the Beggar Gang.

He had learned about it when watching martial arts dramas as a child.

In the governance ability of a feudal society, beggars would inevitably appear, and linking these people together formed a massive network.

To the common people, beggars seemed like a group of useless scrap of society.

But people, as long as they’re used right, can produce high value.

Even if they’re beggars.

However, it seems that in this Magic Middle Ages, no one has this kind of awareness yet.

Or perhaps in places where the urban population isn’t sufficient, the soil for this kind of organizational structure hasn’t yet been formed.

After all, like the capital Wenger Castle of Yaden, the resident population was only six thousand, and this was already the capital of one of the four major Northern countries.

Without enough people, there’s not enough trade, not enough entanglement, information becomes less valuable, and organizing beggars to gather information isn’t as profitable.

In fact, if the urban population isn’t sufficient, there might not even be enough beggars.

This is what is called ’lack of urbanization.’

Perhaps only Novigrad on the Northern Continent has developed to a point where someone realized the potential of this method in such a sized city.

This new, newly discovered information pathway and profit method, for the sake of maintaining its originality and leading edge, made it only natural for gangs to silence people.

Earlier, when Lann pressed the gang leader’s head, asking him about Dudu, the man didn’t dare to hesitate at all, even when his mouth was pressed crooked and couldn’t speak clearly, he still groaned in compliance with his throat.

But when Lann brought up their cooperation with the beggars, he hesitated.

”No, no, sir! We... ah!!!”

Lann’s face under the hood remained very calm, but he slightly tightened his grip and added pressure against the wall.

The gang leader immediately felt an overwhelming fear under the pressure... As if he heard the slow cracking sound of his skull deforming.

It was then that he realized: future matters could wait, but for now, he needed to stay alive to have a future.

”Yes! Yes sir! That’s exactly it! You saw through it all at once! Absolutely right!”

After his psychological defenses collapsed, he seemed afraid his head would collapse with them, hurriedly spilling everything.

He was even a bit afraid that he hadn’t spoken fast enough or said enough.

He not only admitted to this new organizational structure but also revealed information about his gang, and even his stuttering was cured.

”We’re the Mud Gang, making a living in Novigrad’s commoners’ district, the boss is Sketch! This method was set up by one of the boss’s subordinates! He wanted to hide it, but a beggar ratted him out to the boss, and so it became well-known!”

”Please let me go, sir! Good sir! This is all I know! Really! If you want to make a name with this method, it absolutely won’t be a problem!”

He guessed wrong, Lann didn’t care about this idea or the profits it could bring.

”Mud Gang... You guys believe Dudu owes you money, so you should have investigated him, right?”

”...Yes?”

The gang leader couldn’t understand why someone would care about a half-elf on the run from debts in front of this information, his tone was even a bit uncertain because of it.

”Was there any result from the investigation?”

”Should be... there? Ah! No! Definitely is! Our boss definitely has it!”

Realizing something was wrong with the pressure on his head just in time, the gang leader’s ability to read expressions reached its peak at that moment.

He suppressed his terrified screams while rapidly speaking.

This skill saved him once again in the underworld.

Lann’s hand slowly released from the side of his skull, and the whole person who had been pressed against the wall slid down, exhausted, gasping for breath after surviving a disaster.

Next to him, a dull ”thud” made the gang leader next to the wall shiver.

Lann’s tall figure was already standing beside those gangsters who had just regained some awareness on the ground, his boot under his cloak lifting up, then stomping down like a piling machine!

Straightforwardly, one gangster’s neck was crushed at an angle.

He didn’t bleed much, as if Lann was demonstrating to the gang leader how to keep the place clean with that method.

The gang leader, as always, had eyes and lowered his head tremblingly, showing he learned.

Once this group became completely powerless to resist, Lann followed the tracks he had seen, taking another trip to Dudu’s house upstairs.

He finally only found there was a missing book in the bookcase on the second floor.

The dwarf Dudu transformed into had only taken this item and then left.

Clues were hard to find, especially for a Shapeshifter.

Fortunately, he had just caught another ’clue.’

-----------------

Considering leaving a good impression for his future professional manager, Lann dragged all the bodies in the room out to the alley outside.

Whether the beggars along the street would notice, the Demon Hunter didn’t care.

Anyway, this matter would end soon, and they wouldn’t react in time.

The gang leader now walked ahead leading the way, bringing Lann and Triss through twists and turns into an unfamiliar environment within the cracks of buildings.

This was Novigrad’s slums, although there were no physical barriers or clear demarcation lines from other regions, Lann was new, and Triss only bought a villa here for vacationing and relaxing.

Neither of them had been to this place.

As soon as he came in, Lann felt that the name ”Mud Gang” was indeed fitting.

Unlike the main roads in Novigrad, which were all paved with stone bricks.

The bricks on this road were so damaged that their traces were no longer visible, the soil was exposed again, and mixed with the residential drainage, it turned into a muddy mixture.

Some residents had laid wooden boards over the mud and puddles for easier passage, but even those boards were soaked and trampled into the mud.

Most houses were crooked, with their additional upper floors looking like unsteady stacks of blocks, seemingly about to collapse.

The red tile roofs had faded to orange, and the wall paintings on the walls were yellowed and peeling.

The wooden staircases and handrails were cracked and worn from years of neglect.

Among those coming and going, there weren’t many young, healthy people. Instead, it was mostly middle-aged and elderly people in tattered clothes, sighing with stooped backs.

The gang trying to eke out a living in this place had no standing in Novigrad, because they surely couldn’t make much profit.

The name ”Mud Gang” was definitely appropriate.

The gang leader walked ahead with uncertain footing, and Lann and Triss followed behind.

The slippery, sinking feeling under their boots was disgusting, but the Demon Hunter was already used to it.

It was not much different from the conditions in the wilderness villages.

After twisting and turning several times, then again, in this area full of ramshackle buildings, the narrow roads between the houses got even more complicated and intricate.

Without the local gang leader leading the way, Lann reckoned it would be very difficult to notice this area.

Upon entering this area, it was evident the leader was a ’celebrity’ here.

Along the way, he nodded or raised his hand, greeting many people.

”Hey, Marsh. How much did you make today?”

”Uh, haha.”

However, the acquaintances who greeted him found it odd; today, his smile seemed a bit forced.

Seeing the big guy and the woman behind him, people mostly just took a few extra glances and moved on.

Everyone knew Marsh was someone the gang leader trusted, and recently, for some reason, things had been going more smoothly for him, and his fame was growing larger too.

The big guy and the woman behind him—who knew what was going on? Maybe it had something to do with the gang leader?

Triss now had her hair in a braid; without using magic, people would only think she was a stunning beauty.

After passing through an archway between two streets, a group seemed to be heading in the same direction, led by a bald man who started moving closer after glancing their way.

”Hello, Marsh.”

The bald man spoke first.

His face didn’t look good, coupled with the baldness, seemed rather stern, wearing a suitable action leather jacket, jodhpurs, and carrying a small bag, dagger, and such.

”And to you, Francis Bealan.”

Marsh responded dryly.

But the bald man still looked at Marsh somewhat surprised, as if he didn’t expect him to actually respond, catching him a bit off guard.

”Uh... oh.”

He blinked, but quickly adjusted, returning to the main topic.

”Marsh, Boss Sketch wants you to collect the debt from that Half-Elf, but the two behind you don’t seem like they’re cronies of that Half-Elf, nor unfortunate souls tied up in this... randomly threatening people isn’t wise.”

”Boss Sketch only recognizes money; I’m doing this for your sake. Don’t bring worthless people to the boss, he’ll get angry.”

Lann noticed the man named Francis Bealan, casting discreet glances while speaking.

That made him find it interesting.

Because this man, seemingly another Mud Gang leader like Marsh, seemed to think Lann and his companion were unfortunate victims Marsh coerced here to settle his affairs.

Now trying to get Lann and Triss out of this mess.

Even among crime syndicates, there’s a trace of sympathy... was this some dark underworld play?

If not for vaguely sensing the other party’s emotions, Lann would almost think he misread the man’s look.

But Marsh himself... he was actually the one who wanted most to quickly get the two behind him ’out.’

Unfortunately, he couldn’t.

His skull still felt a bit dented.

”Mind your own business, Francis. You should focus on yourself for now.”

Marsh said rigidly.

Francis Bealan’s situation in the gang seemed less than optimistic.

Although he seemed to want to remove the innocents, he ultimately had to prioritize his own safety.

So in the end, he just gave the two behind Marsh a glance filled with subtle sympathy and said no more, returning to lead his own group.

Once he was far enough away, Marsh timidly, without daring to turn his head, spoke softly to Lann beside him.

The voice was as faint as a breath, but Marsh already knew the being next to him, whether man or something else, would hear it clearly.

”He was the first to think of using beggars, sir.”

”But after I found out he was up to something, Boss Sketch learned about it from a beggar for just two crowns.”