In the early morning, Leo felt a tickle on his face. He swatted at it a few times and, shifting his body, tried to go back to sleep.
"Hee hee."
But the sound of silvery laughter by his ear made Leo's eyes snap open.
Looking to his side, he saw Jinx propped up on one hand, her chin resting in her palm. With her other hand, she was brushing a lock of her blue hair across his face, aiming specifically for his nose.
Seeing this, Leo reached out and brushed her hair away. His sleepiness was completely gone. He looked at her and said softly, "When did we get to be on such good terms?"
Jinx pulled her hair back and said casually, "Haven't we always been this close? You even gave me candy when we were little."
"That happened?" Leo honestly couldn't recall. He sat up, rubbing his face.
With his incredible ability to adapt, he had managed to accept transmigration, his 'golden finger' ability, and being targeted by Thresh all in a single day. So, waking up in the same bed as the psychotic young heiress of the criminal underworld… didn't seem so strange anymore, did it?
After all… when it came to being crazy, to being dangerous, could Jinx possibly be more dangerous than Thresh?
Of course not...
Jinx, however, said with some seriousness, "It did. I remember it very clearly."
"Also, Leo, you should get up. I'm hungry," Jinx continued.
"So?"
"So, go buy me food. I don't have any money," Jinx said.
"I don't have much money either," Leo replied.
The money Malsen had left him was only enough for a few days' worth of meals for one person. Now, with Jinx in the picture, it would be gone in less than two days.
"Fine, then I'll go 'get' some money? Don't worry, I know the fastest way to get it." Jinx pulled out her gun, twirling it around her finger by the trigger. Leo was genuinely afraid it would go off.
And thinking about Jinx's methods for "getting" money, Leo sighed.
Whether it was Jinx or Vi, Zaunites generally had only three ways of making money. The first was to work honestly for the Pilties, earning a bit of hard-earned cash. The second was to team up and go to a Piltie's house to steal something to sell. And the last method was the most primitive, most violent one.
Clearly, Jinx's method was the third.
"I get it. I'll go get food. You wait for me here." Leo stood up, grabbing his jacket from the side and putting it on.
Jinx, on the other hand, sprawled out on the bed again. At his words, she kicked her legs up, supporting her slender waist with her hands on the bed in a gesture that seemed to say she'd heard him.
Leo didn't say any more and turned to leave, pushing the door open.
On the way to the eatery, Leo saw quite a few gangsters along the road. Looking at them, and then thinking of Jinx lying on his bed, he felt a sense of helplessness.
If Silco ever found out that Jinx was sleeping in his bed, what kind of end would he meet?
Hmm...
The best-case scenario would probably be getting shot dead. The worst-case scenario would be Silco sending his men to use him as shark bait?
Leo had no doubt about it.
Although he had found Silco charismatic and quite liked him when watching Arcane, now that he was actually in Zaun and had the memories of this place, Leo knew what Silco had brought to the undercity.
Under his violent rule, the lower class of Zaun both feared and hated Silco. There wasn't a shred of gratitude.
No matter how you spun it, even if a future Zaun achieved independence under Silco's leadership, how could the suffering of the people of Zaun right now be alleviated?
To only look at the result and not the process often means losing sight of many things.
Because of this, Leo sometimes really thought that if only Silco and Vander could have merged into one. In that case... Zaun would surely become a better place. Silco's iron fist combined with Vander's guiding principles would truly unite Zaun, unlike its current state...
Revolution requires blood and pain, but those paying the price… were not them.
"Hey, have some mercy, sir, I haven't eaten in three days."
"Sir, want some Shimmer? It's the latest model... I guarantee, this stuff has no side effects!"
"No! Please don't take my child!"
The sounds of suffering entered Leo's ears, but he paid them no mind. He arrived at the eatery, pushed open the door, and went inside to order two meals.
One serving of boiled Krug legs, and one serving of bread mixed with gravel and impurities.
Carrying the food, Leo returned home.
"Whoa! Are those Krug legs?"
As soon as he entered, Jinx was in front of him, leaning in. Her small nose twitched as she sniffed the aroma wafting from the container. She looked up, her bright blue eyes filled with a trace of excitement, and exclaimed, "I haven't eaten this in forever! How did you know I liked it?"
"Silco never lets me eat this stuff, says it's not clean. He usually cooks for me himself, but his cooking is really not that great." Jinx snatched the container, and with a deft movement of two fingers, she plucked out a piece of leg meat, tossed it above her head, opened her mouth, and let it drop in. She then began to chew it noisily.
Leo: "..."
"As long as you like it. There's also some bread here." Leo handed her the bread.
"I'm not eating that, it's gross," Jinx said with a disgusted look.
The bread she ate came from the upper city—soft, delicious, and sweet. She wouldn't touch this hard, dry bread.
Leo didn't mind. He tore off a piece of the bread, stuffed it into his mouth, and began to chew.
With splinters of wood and grains of sand, Leo swallowed the bread. He then looked at Jinx and asked, "How long are you planning to stay here?"
"Are you trying to kick me out?" Jinx tilted her head to look at Leo, her expression perfectly calm.
But her hand, which had been reaching for food, stopped, and she turned her body to face him.
"Never mind. Stay as long as you want," Leo said, rubbing his jaw which was sore from chewing the tough bread.
"Alright!" Jinx brightened up. She reached for the Krugs again, took out a leg, and held it in front of Leo.
"Eat," she told him.
Just as Leo was about to take it, Jinx pulled her hand back. Then she held it out in front of him again, looking at him. "Eat."
Leo paused for a moment, then opened his mouth. Jinx reached out and "stabbed" the food into his mouth.
The Krug meat was soft and greasy, with an indescribably fishy taste and a strange texture. As Leo closed his mouth, he brushed against Jinx's fingers.
"It's pretty good," Leo said after swallowing with some difficulty.
Jinx beamed with a wide smile.
Leo, for his part, went back to chewing his dry bread.
...
Late at night, in the heart of Zaun's black lanes, this area looked much more prosperous than the outer edges. A crowd gathered in the most central location. Wealthy merchants in top hats, gang members covered in tattoos—people stood before a massive statue, their mouths open to drink the purple liquid spraying from it.
At the very center was a tavern. The strange sign above the door was covered in graffiti, making it look like a large, bright eye. The people of Zaun all called it the Fugen Tavern.
Ignoring the flashing neon lights, the throbbing music, and the patrons smoking Shimmer and getting high on the first floor, a woman with a mechanical arm and a resolute face walked straight up to the restricted second floor of the Fugen Tavern.
She knocked on the door to the second floor. A moment later, a deep voice sounded.
"Enter."
Pushing the door open, she saw that the second floor of the Fugen Tavern was covered in all sorts of strange graffiti. On the desk, books, cups, and all manner of things were adorned with cute blue and pink drawings.
In an old chair, a man sat quietly with his back to her. He wore a fitted vest over a red shirt, his hair combed meticulously. He was holding a mirror and drawing something on his face.
Looking closely, one would see that he was applying makeup, covering one half of his face. That half of his face was covered in various scars, but with the movements of his hand, the scars were gradually concealed. He raised his hand, angling the mirror towards the woman behind him. A crimson eye glanced at her reflection. He put the mirror down and reached out across the desk, his hand finding a lighter on which two smiling eyes had been drawn.
He placed a cigar in his mouth and lit it.
The man swiveled his chair around, his hands clasped over his stomach. He looked impeccably elegant.
"You're back?"
Silco said.