It's a common theme in movies, isn't it? The criminals claim territory and collect a protection fee. It was just like an additional tax, but instead of the government, it would stop criminals. Well, that's the bad neighborhood in general, a small, unofficial governments that exist under the bigger ones. The basic food pyramid structure, where the higher ones take from the lower echelon.
And the street kids are no exception to this whole thing, and since they are even lower than homeless people, becoming big enough to take taxes from them doesn't demand much. Just having the ability to fulfil the basic needs of survival, such as food, shelter, water, and other resources.
And do you know the best thing about the government? They can be dethroned; the smaller it is easier it is to do so. Just like what he is doing right now, the kids frantically run out of the alleyway. The teenager wanted to do the same, but he couldn't do it; icy cold hands wrapped around him, holding him in his place.
He was frightened; he too wanted to scream and run like the street kids that he was exploiting just now, but here he is now. Powerlessly held down by a monster in front of another monster.
"Hello there, do you come here often?" John said while examining the contents of his bag. There were some clothes, some cash, and a few other things he wasn't really interested in. But what caught his eye were the clothes; they weren't some brand clothes or of great quality. At most, they were decent quality, but the important thing was that they were clean. They were dry, so he just didn't visit a washing center to wash them; he had a place to dry them, in other words shelter to be in.
"P-please, spare me." The teenager muttered, shaking uncontrollably; he could feel it, the hands pressing down. They were soft, but the texture was wrong; it didn't feel like skin. Even when he saw the creature, even when the kids ran away, he held a small hope that this creature pinning him down wasn't what he thought it was. Perhaps it is the so-called Semblance or someone in a suit, but this chilling touch wasn't human at all. There was no way it belonged to a human.
"Hmm, not the answer I asked for," John said. Shadow followed his will; it tightened its grip and twisted it. There was a sound of snapping. He wanted to scream from the pain, yet Shadow's hand covered his mouth, and the scream never came. It died down in his throat. "So, let's try this again. Do you come here often?"
The teen's pupils are still shaking, yet he also looks a lot calmer, no longer struggling; he nods his head. Shadow let his mouth go; John let out a satisfied smile. "Now then, do you exploit those kids often?"
"N-not those kids specifically." The teen looked at the door. "That door is connected to the bakery. They often throw away edibles, so homeless kids gather here a lot. There are always different kids; some reappear, but most of them don't come here often."
"Is this your primary source of income?" The teen hesitated before shaking his head. "No, it's more of my side hustle and stress relief. The main course is the medicine business, our crew does."
"Hmm, I see, tell me more about this medicine business you guys do." John already has an idea what their main income source is from the word 'medicine' alone. But a vague idea is not enough; he needs to know everything about their operation. "Tell me everything you know about your crew, how it works, and who is backing you guys up."
The teen gulped in fear. He looked hesitant, as if unwilling to betray his crew, but that act didn't last long when he saw Shadow's hand getting closer in the corner of his eyes. Soon, he sang every little detail he could remember to John like a songbird.
"There are six of us, including me. Big Joy is the leader; he mostly takes care of important stuff, such as the apartment, our safety, deals, etc. Khun is our primary source of medicine; it's mostly thanks to him that the medicine business can operate. He has some kind of rare condition that allows Big Joy, as his guard collects a large amount of medicine. Mike and Lul are there for delivery and sales. Gyl is our only female member. She is responsible for advertising our product to potential customers. I am mostly responsible for errands, preparing the medicines for delivery, keeping a check on our income, and stock."
"What about the backers? Any notable connections?"
"Nothing! I swear, the crew doesn't have any backers as far as I am aware. Maybe Big Joy has roped in a few guys from high ground, but other than that, the closest thing to backer we have is the local gangs we pay tributes to don't mess us up." The teen who said everything he knew looked at John nervously. He really regrets ever coming to this alley today. Is it his karma coming back to bite him? "This is really everything I know! Please let me go."
"I see." Shadow releases the teen and slowly gets away from him. The teen looked around, stunned, before slowly forcing himself to get up he bowed deeply to John. Thanking him for sparing him, he was about to bolt away, but stopped by John's words. "Where do you think you are going? How would I find your hideout without a guide?"
"I am sure you won't mind guiding me. Hmm, I never asked your name. How rude of me." The teenager wanted to run, he really did, but he couldn't because before he realized Shadow had long come beside him, encircling him to remind him of what had just happened a few seconds ago. With an ugly forced smile, he nodded his head and accepted John's request.
"O-of course, I won't mind. My name is Vert, by the way." John smiled silently while stretching his hand for a handshake, which the teen, known as Vert, had no other choice but to accept. At that moment only thing Vert could do was let out a few drops of frightened tears.
'I am so fucked.' he thought.
***
Currently, they are in the elevator of the building where Vert's apartment is located. Vert looked nervous, both from the thought that he would now face his crew and the fact that John was close behind him. The kid was creepy; if it was simply his look that was uncanny, perhaps he would have been able to overcome his fear, but that wasn't the case with John.
He couldn't help but glance at his shadow; he knew that hidden just under John's feet was a monster. Perhaps it was grimm, he does remember he had heard about ghostly grimms from a drunken huntsman. 'W-was it called Nightmare? No... I think it was something like Chill.'
"So this is a scroll, huh? Interesting." John was currently checking on his scroll; this world is equivalent to a phone. It would be a lie if John says he wasn't fascinated by the advancement of the phone in this world. Compared to his world's stagnating development, this one was truly a marvel of technological advancement.
From outside, it looked like a glass panel with two grippers attached, yet it was actually a solid hologram. This made it possible to collapse into a simple stick with the touch of a button. But the real miracle is how they have managed to make the internal parts small yet still as capable as any modern phone from his home world. It could also double as a computer, allowing it to read flash disks; he was sure RED could turn into one.
'Well, enough playing around.' He collapses the scroll into a stick and throws it back to Vert, who luckily caught it barely before it hit the floor. He almost glared at John, but quickly quivered away in fright. John didn't pay much attention to him and started talking. "So you remember what we talked about, right?"
Vert nodded timidly. "I would introduce you to the crew, recommending you as a new member. Allowing you to meet Big Joy behind the closed door so you could take him under your control without being disturbed by anyone, right?"
"Pretty much so." John nodded. According to Vert, this guy called Big Joy doesn't leave his room usually if it's something important. So, to lure him out there would need to be a big event, such as a possible recruit. As the leader, he would wanna interview the candidate alone, that's when he would strike.
Soon, the elevator arrives at the intended floor, with a ding, the elevator slides open, revealing two teenagers with a backpack. They were dressed in sleeveless shirts, looked buff with few scars; they should be Mike and Lul.
"Huh? Vert? Where have you been?" The blond one asked, then he noticed John. "Who the hell is that brat?"
Vert was nervous, he quickly shielded John from blondie's view with a nervous smile and said: "H-hey Mike, you are going for another late night delivery?"
"Oh yeah, you know how those party animals are." He said while looking at his backpack. "But really, who is that kid?"
"His name is John, and he is a new recruit I am planning to recommend," Vert said in a shaky tone. Hearing this, both Mike and Lul's eyes widen in disbelief.
"You for real? What makes you think the boy has any chance of convincing John to let him join? You know how it went with other attempts at recruitment." Lul said, he looked almost worried, not for John but for Vert.
"Believe me, if there is anything I am sure of in my life, then it's that once Big Joy meets him, he would beg from him." Whatever would happen during the interview, Vert was sure that in the end Big Joy would kneel in front of John and spare him his life. He knew Big Joy was pretty big against them, but that's because he is a fully grown man, and they are mostly teens, but even adults would shiver when they face the creatures of grimm.
Mike looked at him with hesitation before making a way for them. "Whatever, just get out of the elevator. We need to go now."
Vert nodded and stepped forward, closely followed by John. As Mike and Lul entered the elevator, they couldn't help but glance at John. They felt like something was wrong with this kid, but couldn't tell exactly what was wrong. So they just decided to ignore it, since it probably won't be their problem to deal with.
Vert soon led John into the apartment. John was greeted by two figures. One was a young girl with a can in her hand, while the other was a sickly-looking kid with a cigarette in his hand. He didn't really need to guess. Vert, who saw the messy state of the apartment, started arguing with them. John stayed on the sidelines observing silently with a smile on his face.
"Sigh, forget it, I will deal with you two later. Gyl, go call Big Joy, we've got an important thing to discuss." Vert said, scratching his head. The girl tilted her head in confusion and annoyance. "Why should I? Do it yourself if it's that important."
"Can't you do it as I say?" Vert said with a frown, he really didn't want to talk to Big Joy; among them, only Gyl gets special treatment from him. Probably because she is the only girl in the crew.
"Is it somehow connected with him?" Khul pointed at John, and Vert nodded his head in confirmation. Causing Gyl to look at John, too. She squinted her eyes few seconds before shrugging and chucking down the contents in the can.
"That's our new recruit." Gyl almost choked in her drink, and Knul both looked at Vert in bewilderment.
"Oh my Oum, Khun, I think Vert is high on meds or something." Both of them looked at Vert with a gaze given to a crazy person. Vert's eyes twitched, but he held himself back.
"Gyl... can you just call Big Joy?" Vert even sounded defeated. This time Gyl didn't argue, instead put the can of beer away and headed to the door with a golden crown sticker and started banging it.
"Yo Big J! Vert is high on meds, I think he has been stealing from our stash! Dude, come out quickly!" Without hesitation, Vert kicks one of the cans towards Gyl, who dodges it surprisingly easily. "C'mon, Big J! Vert is going crazy here."
Soon, the door handle starts shaking, and with a click sound, it opens from the inside. A man in his late twenties comes out. "Shut it, Gyl! Shut up! I am not deaf." He had dirty blond hair styled in a mullet and beard; he looked like some '90s rock star. He looked at Vert, who shrank back in fear. "What is this Gyl talking about, you stealing from the stash, you little shit? You stealing from me when I have given you a place to stay?"
He was tall, roughly 6"2 in height, easily towering over both John and Vert. Looking at this situation, Vert knew he had to do something. "I haven't stolen anything, I promise. The reason I let Gyl call you is that I have a recruit."
Hearing those words, Big Joe looked stunned, as if he couldn't quite process what he just heard. "Hey, Khun, go check the stash. He might be really high on meds." Still, Big Joe pushed Vert away from his way, coming in front of John. He measured him for a few seconds he shook his head. "Yeah, I don't think he is suitable."
"Sir, you sure you don't wanna check again?" John said with a smile, and BJ turned around with a frown. He was about to scream, but a hundred Lien bills extended to him by John shut him up. With a fake cough, he snatches the money after checking if it is real or not, then his look towards John softened a bit.
"Fine, I'll give you five minutes. For the next five minutes, we will be in my room, isolated from the world until that door opens. You have five minutes to convince me to let you join me."
"Don't worry, sir, five minutes are more than enough," John said as he followed Big Joy into his room. Gyl looked at Vert curiously and asked: "You really sure about this? That the boy will manage to do it, convince Big Joe, I mean."
"Believe me, you would be like me if you knew half of the shit he could pull off."
While they were talking in Big Joe's room, he was kneeling, and a dark figure behind him forced him to his knees while covering his mouth. He wanted to struggle, yet he felt weak, as if all his strength had left him; not only that, his mind felt clouded and tired. In front of him, the boy he was supposed to interview stood.
"Really, 100 Lien, that's all it took?" He came in front of him, smiling. There was a reason why he was smiling so much right now.
[OP: 1200.]
Just by integrating Vert, he has earned 1100 points, which is more than ten times what he earned by destroying the ATM. During the action time, he was a little distracted, so he didn't notice his OP was rising so much.
"If it's all that takes to earn that many OP, then what am I going to do now to make Big Joe earn his small fortune of OP?" He held Big Joe from his head my both hands and smiled. "You know, strength drain can be used for more than simple torture, you know. When Shadow drains strength, he also drains willpower, leaving your mind broken and foggy also which might just right condition to brainwash you."
Even with his strength drained, he tried to resist Shadow but to no avail. John simply smiled and said: "Viva La Revolution."