“Of course.”
A middle-aged man pushed the thin young man aside and looked at Renn.
“Sorry about that. My subordinate doesn’t know the rules. But this garbage heap does indeed belong to the Jackal Gang.”
“According to our rules, you have to hand over half of whatever resources you collect.”
Renn looked at Machi.
Machi shook her head.
“There’s no such rule. Resources from the garbage heaps have always belonged to whoever finds them first.”
The middle-aged man smiled.
“Rules are made by people, aren’t they? The Jackal Gang has the strength to enforce this rule, so we can make it the rule here. You’re free to ignore it, but you’ll have to bear the consequences.”
A young man happened to pass by, having just come down from the garbage heap with a decent haul.
He was clearly unwilling, but he still handed half of what he had gathered over to the Jackal Gang.
Renn turned back to the middle-aged man.
“So what you’re saying is that strength determines the rules?”
“That’s right.”
Renn nodded.
“Then send one person out and have them fight me. If you win, I’ll hand over half of our supplies. If you lose, we leave with everything.”
The middle-aged man studied Renn carefully.
“You’re serious?”
“Yes. I don’t want a fight, and I’m sure you don’t want to lose too many people either. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be taking only half—you’d be taking even more. So this is the best solution for both sides.”
The middle-aged man narrowed his eyes.
“If you lose, handing over only half won’t be enough.”
“How much do you want?”
“Without rules, there can be no order. We’ve already established the rules here, and you’re the one trying to break them. That means there has to be a price.”
“If you lose, you hand over eighty percent of your haul.”
“Fine.”
The middle-aged man gestured toward one of the young men beside him.
The young man stepped forward.
He glanced casually at Renn.
“I suggest you surrender now. I’m not an ordinary person.”
“That’s fine. Neither am I.”
Renn set down the bags in his hands.
“Activate—Gunner.”
The next instant, a handgun materialized in Renn’s hand.
The young man’s expression shifted slightly. You are reading on g.com, the official source.
“I didn’t expect you to be a Nen user too. But judging from your ability, you’re an Emitter, aren’t you?”
“Against an Enhancer like me, you’re guaranteed to lose.”
“You won’t know until we try.”
The middle-aged man looked at Renn.
“You really won’t surrender?”
“Of course not. I don’t think I’m going to lose.”
The middle-aged man turned toward the young man.
The young man nodded.
“Begin.”
He kicked off the ground and charged straight at Renn.
“Gyo!”
Renn carefully observed the young man.
Then disappointment flashed through his eyes.
The young man really was a Nen user.
Aura covered his entire body.
But that was all.
He couldn’t even use Gyo during combat.
“Rising Shot!”
A bullet struck the ground beneath the young man’s feet.
Instantly, his body was launched into the air, completely throwing him off balance.
Renn raised his gun.
“Bang!”
The young man was blasted backward.
Some of the Jackal Gang members immediately rushed over to him.
The others glared furiously at Renn, drawing their weapons and preparing to fight at any moment.
The middle-aged man stared at Renn, anger and wariness mixed in his eyes.
“I won. We can leave now, right?”
The middle-aged man said nothing.
The young man pushed himself up from the ground, clutching his chest tightly.
“Let him go.”
“Yes.”
Only then did the members of the Jackal Gang step aside and open a path.
“May I ask your name?”
Renn turned around and frowned.
“I’m Rockdo of the Jackal Gang.”
“Renn.”
Leaving only his name behind, Renn picked up the two bags and walked away.
Machi followed closely behind him.
“Lord Rockdo, are you all right?”
The middle-aged man asked with concern.
Rockdo was the younger brother of the Jackal Gang’s leader and one of only two Nen users in the entire gang.
Because he was an Enhancer, he was particularly skilled in combat.
The Jackal Gang owed its current position entirely to those two brothers.
“I’m fine. It just hurts a little.”
Rockdo’s eyes gleamed.
“I never expected someone this strong to be living nearby. How did I never hear about him before?”
“Next time, I definitely won’t lose that quickly.”
The middle-aged man looked at Rockdo and shook his head.
In terms of strength, Rockdo was certainly formidable.
But his personality was far too straightforward.
He was well suited to being an enforcer, but expecting him to handle things independently in a place like this was basically impossible.
Fortunately, Rockdo wasn’t the leader of the Jackal Gang.
That position belonged to his older brother, Lors.
After returning to the wooden hut, Renn and Machi set down the supplies they had brought back.
“Machi, let’s move somewhere better.”
“Okay.”
Machi nodded.
Their haul this time had far exceeded her expectations.
And after thinking it over carefully, she had to admit that moving to a better house really did offer more advantages than disadvantages.
“There’s a residential district nearby controlled by the Shark Gang. We can rent a house there.”
“I’ve heard the Shark Gang is relatively good about following its own rules.”
Renn nodded.
“Then we’ll head there tomorrow. For today, let’s sort through these supplies first.”
Machi hesitated.
“Renn, can you teach me Nen?”
“I can’t offer you anything in return right now, but I can owe you and pay you back later.”
“Of course.”
Renn smiled.
“It benefits me too if you learn Nen.”