March 7th and Dan Heng blocked the other directions, surrounding Sampo.
March 7th interrogated:
"Spit it out—why did you bring us down to the lower district?"
Seeing he couldn't escape, Sampo immediately flashed an ingratiating smile:
"Big Sis March, you knew the situation back then—there were so many Silvermane Guards around. I was just helping you all escape!"
"That good big bro gave me an opening—how could I not seize it?!"
Back then, Bronya had told Zeig to go back and report. He'd left so decisively; it was clearly deliberate, intentionally letting Sampo lead them to safety.
If Sampo couldn't even grasp an opportunity like that, he might as well quit the game.
March 7th didn't buy it: "Really? Then why knock us out too?"
Sampo hurriedly explained:
"No, no, I had no choice in that situation! There are plenty of seasoned veterans among the Silvermane Guards. If I'd openly warned you, we'd have been exposed the moment we moved, and the Guards would've been ready for us!"
"Besides, no matter how bad the lower district is, at least there are no Guards down here, right? And thanks to Wildfire's efforts over the years, living conditions are actually better than the upper district. Sure, it's poor, but there's life and warmth here, isn't there?"
Dan Heng frowned:
"Then why did you send that silver-haired Guard down here with us? You must have another motive."
March 7th nodded vigorously. "Yeah, yeah, yeah! I heard that the only thing still running between the upper and lower districts is the Geomarrow and supply conveyor. How exactly did you get us down here?"
The two's questions were so sharp that Sampo didn't know how to respond.
He could only laugh awkwardly:
"Big bro, big sis, I really had no choice! We've all escaped the Guards' pursuit now—isn't that good enough? Can we please stop digging into the details?!"
Dan Heng pressed again:
"Then why did you tell me that only by winning the Fight Club championship could I get clues about the Stellaron?"
Sampo quickly explained:
"I didn't say anything wrong! I figured once you won the championship, you'd have fame, right? With fame, you could get in touch with the leader of Wildfire down here. If you want reliable info about the Stellaron in the lower district, Wildfire's the only way to go."
While the three were talking,
Zeig remained sitting on the ground, leisurely munching on peanuts.
He seemed completely uninterested in interrogating Sampo.
"Can't you two learn from my good big bro?" Sampo suddenly pointed at Zeig on the ground. "Look how much trust big bro has in your boy Sampo—he hasn't asked a single thing!"
"?" Zeig glanced up once.
Then lowered his head again, silently continuing to eat peanuts:
"They can handle the interrogation. I'm in charge of the execution."
"…"
"You don't love me anymore." Sampo choked out.
Zeig finished the peanuts, pulled out a handful of melon seeds from his pocket, sprawled out on the ground, and while cracking them said:
"Whether we fight in that Fight Club or not doesn't matter—bunch of muscleheads in there. March and I already met Wildfire's leader once, but unfortunately the guy ran off before we could talk much."
Sampo chuckled twice and praised: "As expected of big bro—already made contact with Wildfire's leader. Impressive!"
March 7th was speechless:
"So what do we do now? We've found Dan Heng. Where to next?"
Zeig suddenly looked up and asked:
"Speaking of which, how are you here? Weren't you with Bronya? Where'd she go?"
"Oh, her." March 7th recalled, "We were chatting, and then a crowd started pointing at her clothes, then pointing at the Guards, then pointing at the Supreme Guardian and going on and on. She didn't want to stay there anymore, so she said she wanted to walk alone and clear her head."
Zeig nodded.
Given Bronya's status, being gossiped about in the lower district was normal. She'd need some time to calm down.
Sampo suggested:
"Hey, since we're all here, let's go find Wildfire's leader again. Old Sampo knows where their base is—let's have a proper talk this time."
Dan Heng thought for a moment and nodded:
"Very well. Let's go."
…
After a while,
Sampo led the three around Rivet Town for a long time, but they didn't spot a single Wildfire member.
Standing under the dim yellow light, he scratched his head in confusion:
"Huh? How come there's no one around? This isn't right."
March 7th was instantly exasperated:
"Are you reliable or not?"
Sampo turned back with an awkward laugh:
"Uh… haha, maybe something unexpected happened. Let's check a few other places."
They searched several more spots, and Sampo grew increasingly bewildered.
Because there was no one at any of them.
"How can this be? Where did everyone go? This isn't right."
Just then, the sound of an argument came from farther away.
"Did the Supreme Guardian pay you off or what? Why are you defending her like that?"
"No point talking to her—just look at those clothes, she's clearly the Supreme Guardian's dog. Didn't expect one to run down here."
"Hmph, pretty face, but it doesn't change the fact that the Supreme Guardian is a tyrant!"
Over there, Bronya's expression was extremely dark; her whole body trembled with anger.
She clenched her fists, knuckles cracking.
Her gaze coldly fixed on the group in front of her.
She retorted:
"I will not allow you to insult the Supreme Guardian. She has always acted with Belobog's best interests in mind."
"Heh, you say so, so it must be true?"
The homeless vagrants surrounding her all laughed in unison.
"Little girl, unless you're an idiot, you should know perfectly well—after all the Guards were pulled out of the lower district, our lives only got worse!"
Bronya indignantly declared:
"Withdrawing the Guards from the lower district was a helpless decision. If the upper district had also fallen, there would be no hope for the lower district at all."
One of the vagrants sneered, "That's just abandoning us, isn't it?"
"My leg was bitten off by a Fragmentum creature. No food, no water—I crawled on the ground. Do you know how long I crawled?"
"To avoid those monsters, I crawled for two full days—two days without rest—before finally escaping the town that had turned into Fragmentum! If I hadn't luckily run into a doctor carrying a lance, I'd be dead!"
"Withdrawing armed forces from the lower district—wasn't that betrayal? Did you all calculate that Wildfire would appear? No—you didn't think about anything. You simply didn't care whether we lived or died!"
The sudden torrent of abuse poured down on Bronya.
While cursing, the vagrants even picked up makeshift weapons, ready to attack.
"Hey, hey, hey—looks like a fight's about to break out over there! We've gotta hurry and help that Guard girl!" Sampo said anxiously.
March 7th crossed her arms:
"Those guys in the cotton hats aren't exactly wrong. That Guard girl was trying to catch us earlier, remember."
Sampo clasped his hands together and begged March 7th: "Big sis, she absolutely cannot come to harm here! If she gets beaten up, the Supreme Guardian will dig three feet into the ground to kill me! The people in the lower district will get dragged into it too!"
"Do you know who she is? She's the Supreme Guardian's daughter—adopted, sure, but closer than blood!"
"If the people down here lay a hand on her, there'll be no chance of reconciliation between the upper and lower districts ever again. That daughter-obsessed Supreme Guardian could do anything in a rage!"
Sampo still wanted to persuade Zeig, but to his surprise, Zeig had already vanished.
"Huh? Where's big bro?"
In the distance, a bandit wearing a black balaclava suddenly appeared beside Bronya.
He grinned widely and said excitedly:
"Good! Your Excellency, I understand the mission, no hand over your valuables!"
Bronya: "…"