Having gained experience from completing his first order, Abel now understood how to use the system going forward.
He needed to earn as many positive reviews as possible.
To do that, the quality of traded items would be crucial… and quantity might matter as well.
And then there was time.
In other words, the biggest challenge in securing high ratings was completing orders efficiently while maintaining quality. That meant he had to be ready at all times, prepared with high-quality or sufficient quantities of items—no matter what type of request appeared.
That wasn't something one person could handle alone.
He would eventually need manpower, influence, money, and even authority.
With a single command, he could mobilize resources instantly, then use the system to strengthen himself and acquire advantages no one else possessed. Once achieved, it would form a perfect, unbreakable cycle.
Of course, that was the ideal situation.
But even now, penniless and lying among corpses, Abel set it as his goal.
At that moment, a seed of ambition quietly took root within him.
He quickly pulled out the pair of stamina-enhancing shoes from his system inventory and slipped them on. He needed to arm himself with every tool he had.
Classic white-and-red high-top sneakers, just the right size.
Each shoe had a hidden dial on the side with three adjustable power levels. By stimulating foot acupuncture points through a mix of electricity and magnetism, they boosted muscular strength.
Each use consumed battery power, but there was no need to worry about a charger. A small surface panel absorbed and converted solar energy—six hours of sunlight for a full charge. Very practical.
Abel exhaled in relief, then immediately lay back down, pretending to be another corpse.
Just then, more soldiers arrived, dragging additional bodies.
"What rotten luck, getting assigned this job."
"Quit whining. This should be the last load. Drop the corpses, then go wash up. We'll get a drink tonight."
Hearing them talk, an idea flashed through Abel's mind.
He forced himself to remain calm. If they noticed he was alive, they'd kill him on the spot.
Fortunately, the soldiers didn't intend to linger. After dumping the bodies without so much as a glance in his direction, they hurried away.
Abel quietly breathed out.
"No… I can't stay here. I need to leave immediately."
Based on what those soldiers had said earlier, he knew danger was close.
If that really was the final delivery of corpses, it meant someone would soon come to burn everything to ash.
If he didn't escape before then…
But trouble always came in pairs. Just as Abel was calculating his window of time, two soldiers came back, speaking nearby.
"Hurry up, grab the stuff and let's go."
"What's there to be scared of? Everyone else already left—they won't notice."
"It just gives me the creeps being here! Hey—damn it, didn't you say you stashed it in a corpse?"
"This is definitely the spot. I even marked it. Must be under here somewhere. Help me dig."
"You're a real lunatic, hiding valuables inside a body."
"Hah! We bust our backs for a little profit, and those bastards in command snatch everything with a word and toss us scraps? No way. If I get those jewels and sell them, I'll buy a little island and live rich forever."
"Hahaha! You said it! Let's do this!"
Driven by greed and desperation, the two soldiers rummaged through the corpses, eyes glittering as they searched for hidden jewels.
"That's weird. It should be right here. Why isn't it?"
"You sure this is the place?"
"Impossible to be wrong. Whatever—let's widen the search…"
Abel remained motionless, heart pounding as footsteps drew closer.
If they found him, he had no chance.
He wasn't willing to gamble. He immediately pulled the "I'm Just a Passerby" coin from his inventory and activated it.
The coin shattered, disappearing.
The effect took hold instantly, dramatically reducing Abel's presence.
One soldier walked right up to him, searching the surrounding bodies. Yet strangely, each time his eyes passed over Abel, he simply ignored him, never touching him.
Without the item, Abel would've already been discovered. No matter how still he lay, his heartbeat and body heat would betray him.
He silently thanked the system.
But not everyone nearby shared his luck.
A soldier searching farther away suddenly yelled, catching his partner's attention.
"Found it!! Huh? What the—?!"
"Come here! There's a kid alive!"
"Quick, grab him!"
At the shout, Abel's first instinct was that he'd been exposed.
But when he carefully opened his eyes, he saw the two soldiers had cornered a small boy in a black-and-white spotted hat.
"That kid is… Law? Trafalgar Law?"
Abel recognized him instantly.
In this world, they had attended the same church. Abel had even been treated for lead poisoning by Law's father.
In other words, they were… childhood friends.
That realization made Abel hesitate.
If he continued pretending to be dead, he would likely stay hidden and survive.
But he would gain nothing else.
And he would be betting everything on those two soldiers quickly finding what they came for and leaving before the "passerby" effect ran out.
However, intervening meant risk. If he tried to save Law, he'd be exposing himself… though he was fairly confident he could escape afterward.
He wasn't a saint. He didn't feel the urge to save every person he met.
Right now, he was calculating the cost of saving someone—and what he might gain in return.