At the Iron Tavern, the moment Caius stepped in, he saw Iron Kong John playing cards with a group of mercenaries.

  John was clearly someone Raymond trusted deeply. He was a regular at the tavern, essentially one of the people keeping an eye on the place.

  Seeing Caius, John gave a friendly nod. “Brother, care to join us for a few rounds?”

  “No thanks, I’ve got my own game to play.” Caius shook his head.

  John blinked. “?”

  “Is Raymond around? I’m here to deliver the goods.” Caius asked.

  Not many people dared to call Raymond by name, but Caius was now one of the few who could. John wasn’t surprised—he knew their boss had taken quite a liking to this newcomer. So, he simply gestured upward with his chin. “Upstairs.”

  “Got it.” Caius nodded and headed to the second floor, straight toward the familiar private room. Clearly, Raymond spent most of his time there.

  Why did Raymond need people like John watching the place if he was around? Well, the boss couldn’t handle every little thing personally—that’d make him a tool, not a boss.

  He knocked, just in case Raymond was doing something... indecent. That sort of interruption would be awkward, even among acquaintances.

  Thankfully, Raymond wasn’t.

  “Come in.”

  Caius pushed the door open, Kiki trailing behind him.

  Raymond looked mildly surprised to see him, then said, “You’re early?”

  “Mhm.” Caius nodded.

  “All done?” Raymond asked.

  “Mhm.” Another nod. Caius then gave a wave, and in the blink of an eye, the spacious floor of the room was filled with crates.

  Seeing the goods, Raymond broke into a smile. He knew he hadn’t misjudged Caius.

  These days, mercenaries with Caius’ level of efficiency were rare.

  He was a real gem.

  Raymond scanned the crates briefly. Once he was sure everything checked out, he waved someone over to bring the payment—forty thousand gold, exactly as promised.

  Plus two small cards.

  “A permanent access pass?” Caius raised an eyebrow.

  “We’re going to be working together often. With this, it’ll be easier for you to get into the inner city.” Raymond smiled.

  “Haha, much appreciated!” Caius accepted them with a grin. “Oh right, can I deliver these personally to the Wargs Gang?”

  “Why? Interested in the cargo?” Raymond saw right through him and chuckled.

  “Of course. No man can say no to a Magitech Cannon. I figured I’d butter up someone from the Wargs Gang and see if I could get my hands on a couple.”

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  Raymond laughed. “Sure. John’s in charge of delivery—go with him. As for getting your share, that’s on you.”

  “No problem!” Caius nodded, packed up the goods, and turned to leave.

  “Hold on.” Raymond called him back.

  “Got more work?” Caius asked hopefully.

  “There is, but no rush. I just wanted to ask about that lighter...”

  Caius grinned. “I’ll bring it tomorrow.”

  “Deal!”

  It was obvious—Raymond was genuinely eyeing that lighter.

  Caius then left with Kiki, joining John and the others for the delivery.

  “Brother,” John couldn’t help asking as they made their way, “how’d you take care of those guys? One of them’s a pretty solid mage—I got my ass handed to me by him once. You dealt with him?”

  Caius nodded. “Halfway.”

  John blinked. “What do you mean, he got away?”

  “No, half of him’s gone. I couldn’t be bothered to clean up.”

  John and the others: “…”

  The way Caius said it so casually made the group of mercenaries gulp in unison. Their impression of his strength climbed another notch.

  He had taken out over thirty enemies, including two Platinum-level fighters—one of them a Platinum-level mage.

  With that kind of power, John was certain that, despite Caius looking smaller than him, he couldn’t win in a fight against this guy.

  Soon, they reached the Wargs Gang’s base camp.

  The Wargs Gang was one of the three major factions in the inner city, much larger than the four major outer-city gangs, with over three hundred members—though many were scattered outside.

  One of those outer-city gangs, the Stray Dogs, was a sub-branch of the Wargs.

  Their base sat in an industrial zone, apparently overseeing part of Ocean City’s shipyard operations.

  “Brother, let your Wolf Queen know—we’ve brought her shipment!” John handled the communication with the Wargs Gang. They clearly knew each other well, so things moved swiftly.

  Before long, a woman emerged from the shipyard, followed by a small procession of subordinates.

  Caius was a bit disappointed when he saw her.

  Yes, it was a woman. Yes, she was attractive. But sadly, no longer young.

  Well—she was still quite pretty, but the signs of age were there, despite the good upkeep. Not even makeup could fully hide the passage of time.

  Of course, Caius didn’t dare underestimate her.

  For a woman to rise to the top of a gang this size, she had to be even more ruthless than most men.

  “Where’s the cargo?” she asked coldly, arms crossed, the moment she approached John and his crew.

  A tough older lady.

  John looked to Caius, who stepped forward and waved his hand, unloading the crates.

  The Wolf Queen tilted her head slightly. Several Wargs stepped forward to inspect the cargo.

  Once it was confirmed intact and complete, she relaxed visibly, and the icy expression softened.

  “Thank you. This shipment is very important to us,” she said to John.

  After all, there were dozens of Magitech Cannons inside—worth hundreds of thousands of gold.

  But John simply waved it off and pointed to Caius. “You should thank him instead. He reclaimed the cargo—clean job, not a single survivor.”

  Hearing “not a single survivor,” the Wolf Queen raised her brows in surprise and finally gave Caius a proper look. “New face. Haven’t heard of you before.”

  “You probably have by now. I’m Caius,” he said with a toothy grin.

  “You’re the one who wiped out the Serpent Gang?” Her surprise deepened.

  “Mhm.” Caius nodded again.

  “Hahaha! That was one hell of a job. I’ve been itching to stomp those Serpent bastards for ages!” The Wolf Queen suddenly burst out laughing, clearly pleased.

  “You have a grudge with them?”

  “Not directly. But their parent gang—the Nash Gang—we’ve got beef. When I heard someone took out the Serpent Gang, I looked into you,” she said, eyeing Caius with the same mix of admiration and scrutiny Raymond once had.

  “And what did you find out?” Caius was curious—he wanted to know what kind of reputation he had in Ocean City.

  “That you’re an arrogant bastard.”

  “Hahaha! Then your intel’s spot-on!” Caius roared with laughter.

  “I’m Rog. The boys respectfully call me the Wolf Queen,” she said, extending a hand.

  “Caius. A competent mercenary—I think you’ll find that out yourselves soon enough.” He smiled as he clasped her hand in a brief but firm shake. That was introduction enough.

  “Maybe sooner than you think. I’ve got a private job and need someone capable. Interested?” Rog smiled slightly.

  Caius’ eyes lit up. “Absolutely.”

  “Come inside then. This isn’t the place to talk business.” With that, Rog turned and walked toward the depths of the shipyard—a woman of action.

  Caius liked dealing with people like that.

  “You guys head back. I’ve got some business to discuss,” he said to John and the others.

  They nodded and took their leave, while Caius followed Rog deeper into the shipyard.