Chapter 56

Soon enough, the middle-aged guy came back with a stunning young woman and a bunch of attendants in tow.

I noticed the attendants were all armed with rifles, decked out in uniforms, and treating the young woman with a lot of respect. I thought, 'This girl must be a big deal in Wasteland City.'

The young woman glanced at us, and walked up to me. "I'm Catherine Jones, the mayor of Wasteland City. Welcome," she said, extending her hand for a shake.

I was floored. The mayor of Wasteland City was this young, beautiful girl? She was just as impressive as Margaret.

Maybe I stared at Catherine too long because she started avoiding my gaze. Meanwhile, Margaret was off to the side, snorting coldly.

"Alexander, who’s this lovely lady?" Catherine asked the middle-aged guy.

"Uh..." Alexander was clearly nervous and had no clue who Margaret was.

"I'm Margaret Gates," Margaret said, keeping it short.

Catherine's eyes went wide with disbelief. "Are you the legendary figure from the wildness?"

"Yeah, a few years back, I liked to wander around and step in when I saw something wrong," Margaret replied casually.

"It's an honor to meet a legend. Please, come this way, Ms. Gates," Catherine said, leading Margaret away.

I was stunned. 'What the heck? I'm the mayor of Tortoise City, and she's ignoring me?' I had no choice but to follow them.

Just then, Alexander caught up and whispered to Catherine, "Ms. Jones, that guy is the mayor of Tortoise City. Are we ignoring him?"

"No, he's not. At best, he's a bodyguard," Catherine shook her head.

Alexander looked confused. "How do you know?"

"Because that guy is a creep. He kept staring at my chest. No way someone like that is a mayor. He has no manners. Besides, I've never heard of Tortoise City in the Wildness. Even if it exists, do you think a mayor would risk coming to an unknown city? Ms. Gates is the real leader or someone important. We should respect her," Catherine said firmly.

Even though they were whispering, I heard everything loud and clear. My hearing was super sharp, like 505 times better than normal. I was speechless. Sure, I glanced at Catherine a few times because she was attractive, especially her chest. But come on, saying a mayor wouldn't visit an unknown city? I had been to plenty of dangerous places, and Wasteland City didn't seem that risky.

I slapped my forehead and saw Margaret giving me a look of the slightest mockery. She was smiling, but it seemed like she was asking if she should keep up the act.

Soon, Catherine and Margaret started chatting, and I was just there, listening in.

"Are you saying there's a city on the back of a tortoise? That's incredible. I can't wait to visit Tortoise City," Catherine said.

Margaret, ever the picture of elegance, replied, "Tortoise City welcomes you anytime."

"That's awesome! Have you eaten yet? I'd love to host you separately on behalf of Wasteland City and talk about trade," Catherine said, getting all chummy with Margaret, almost holding hands.

"I'd be honored," Margaret nodded.

After a bit, my guards and I were set up in a house. Catherine didn't treat us badly; she sent over water and jerky, which counted as lunch. Meanwhile, Margaret was invited to Catherine's place for a feast and didn't come back for ages.

One of the Tortoise City guards handed me a piece of meat and asked cautiously, "Mr. Steele, should we head back to Tortoise City?"

"Why?" I asked, confused.

The guard's face turned fierce, gritting his teeth, "Let's go back and launch an attack on Wasteland City to make these people who look down on you pay!"

'What a loyal guy.' I patted the guard's head, feeling relieved. The guard shuddered, looking at me weirdly, like he felt violated. "What's up?" I asked.

"Nothing, you can keep patting me. I just feel so happy," the guard said.

"Get lost!" I took the meat from him, kicked him away, and started eating, waiting for Margaret to return.

After a long time, Margaret came back, looking tipsy.

"My dear Margaret, your husband is still hungry," I said, looking at her with mock resentment.

"When we make the trade, remember to get me a few bottles of wine. The wine in Wasteland City is really good," Margaret said, reeking of alcohol. I waved my hand to get rid of the smell.

"Margaret, did you just drink and not talk about anything else?" I asked, curious.

"We talked a lot! Catherine and I both dislike men. Catherine especially hates that old guy named Benjamin. She told me Benjamin planned to attack Tortoise City, and she strongly opposed it, which stopped the conflict," Margaret said.

"Really?" I listened with my arms crossed.

Suddenly, Margaret hugged me, smiling, "I saw Catherine change into a dress. She looks super sexy, with a hot figure. Should we attack Wasteland City tonight and take this female mayor?"

But something felt off. I looked into Margaret's eyes. They were clear, not like someone who was drunk. 'Is she testing me?' Maybe she was jealous because I had been staring at Catherine earlier.

"Margaret, what are you talking about? I was just checking for any energy fluctuations on her. She's nothing compared to you. Are you kidding me? Why would I to give up the trade for this woman and try to take her away?" I retorted.

Margaret seemed to like my response. "I also think you have good taste. Catherine seems very eager to work with us. She really wants to meet the mayor of Tortoise City, so she agreed to visit Tortoise City tomorrow. My mayor, do you want to give Catherine a surprise then?" Margaret suggested.

"She wants to see me? Well, I must give her an unforgettable surprise," I said, stroking my chin.

Although Margaret didn't find out much else, my gut told me Catherine was a bit too enthusiastic. She must have some hidden agenda. I would listen to her thoughts tomorrow.

The trading of goods kicked off. Since the first batch was just essential items, only a few guards stayed behind to watch the warehouse. Everyone else headed back to Tortoise City, but Margaret stayed as our envoy.

When Grace heard the mayor of Wasteland City was coming to visit, she freaked out. "What should I use to entertain them?" she asked me, all panicky.

"Just whip up some of the usual stuff we eat," I said, not too concerned.

"No way! This is about the dignity of Tortoise City. We can't just serve a simple meal. I need to find Lucy; we have to prepare a feast!" Grace exclaimed.

Seeing Grace get busy, I knew the banquet was in good hands.

I then went to Emma to check on the black market situation in Tortoise City. Emma told me the first batch of goods had been sold, and now the whole city was hunting down thieves who stole supplies from the inner city. "Do you want to go back to the inner city for a bit?" I asked Emma, patting her head.

"No need. You have no idea how furious Michael is. But don't worry, his wife bought most of the stolen goods. If he returns the items from his own home, she'll tear the house down," Emma said.

I rubbed my temples, thinking, 'Stealing my own stuff and selling it in my own city, is this right or wrong?' 

"Alright, as long as you're safe. With the recent increase in external trade, the black market in Tortoise City might have fewer goods. Anyway, you decide which goods need to be sold at lower prices and go ahead with it," I instructed.

"Okay," Emma nodded.

Night fell. Inside Wasteland City, in an abandoned pipeline, Ellie was panting heavily, leaning against the side. "Why can't we shake that monster off? It always finds us so easily," Ellie said.

Selena wasn't doing much better. They had just survived another 'life-and-death chase' and almost got killed by that monster. If it weren't for the traps they set up, they might be dead by now. "I wonder if that monster has some tracking ability. Otherwise, how could we not shake it off?" Selena pondered. They had spent the whole day playing 'hide and seek' in the underground pipeline, which was frustrating. Luckily, the pipeline was long, at least a few miles, built around the dam.

Selena thought back to their encounters over the past two days. They had tried everything, set up many bait traps to confuse the monster, but they couldn't rest for half a day before it found them again. Then they had to escape into the pipeline, not knowing what was happening outside. "We need to figure out a way to deal with that monster's tracking ability," Selena sighed.

"Darn it, if this keeps up, I'll have to cut my hair again," Ellie said, looking distressed. Her pink hair was perfect bait, and it was almost cut short.

Seeing Ellie upset, Selena carefully took out a super firefly. It was a gift from Mr. Steele before she left. The yellow light suddenly lit up the dark pipeline.

"So beautiful!" Ellie quietly watched the firefly. "Selena, I envy you for having such a treasure. With this, we don't need to burn wood for lighting at night. At least it will reduce the risk of exposure," Ellie said.

"Sweet Ellie, you'll have one too, believe me," Selena said, hugging Ellie. They leaned against the pipeline together, looking towards the ground. Once they got rid of the tracker, Selena could take Ellie to Tortoise City. By now, Tortoise City should have arrived, and she would see Mr. Steele again!

Selena didn't want to drag Ryan into this mess. The force behind that monster was Bright City, and they were too powerful. Bright City definitely had more than just the four high-level monsters that came after them. There could be dozens or even hundreds. Selena thought of the rows of people in nutrient tanks in the lab, and it made her skin crawl. If the monster found out that the defectors were hiding in Tortoise City, Bright City would definitely destroy it. So, even if Mr. Steele was in Wasteland City, Selena was determined not to reveal herself to him.

Ellie pouted. "Selena, you said Jessica would come with that mysterious Mr. Steele. Are they coming or not? It's already the second night, where are the people you mentioned?" Ellie asked.

"Be patient, just a few more days. As long as we shake off that damn monster, I'll take you to our secret base. There's endless ham and canned food!" Selena comforted her.

"But we are clearly no match for that monster. I think we should find Jessica. She must have a way to kill it," Ellie said, tiredly leaning on Selena. Selena could tell that Ellie was exhausted and might not be able to run anymore.

"Jessica can't kill it either. That's a level 5 Esper monster. We can't kill it with just the three of us. Tricks are useless against strength," Selena explained.

"Alright, we can't kill it. Fine," Ellie said, holding her head, looking defeated. "That monster's defense is just too strong. I've tried my best, but I can't break through it." Ellie blamed herself, then her eyes filled with anger, "If we had the right 'Enchanted item', we could definitely kill that monster."

'Enchanted item?' Selena touched the small crossbow in her cloak, shaking her head helplessly. The small crossbow was an 'Enchanted item', but the arrows were not. When ordinary arrows hit that monster, it was like tickling it. Unfortunately, she had only stolen the small crossbow from the lab. If she had taken the arrows as well, it would have been better.

"Gosh, I haven't marked the area. If Jessica comes here, without a warning mark, she could easily encounter that monster!" Ellie suddenly realized and stood up.

"Right, I almost forgot that the monster will also hunt down Jessica," Selena's expression changed. If they couldn't shake off the monster in a few days and couldn't reunite with Mr. Steele, then Mr. Steele would definitely come looking for them himself. And Jessica would definitely not miss the bustling Wasteland City; she would show up sooner or later. By that time, the monster would definitely sense Jessica, and it would hunt her down! And Mr. Steele would be in trouble too!

"We need to find Jessica quickly!" Selena said urgently, running towards the end of the pipeline. Selena felt guilty for bringing trouble to Mr. Steele again. Although she believed that Mr. Steele could handle the trouble. 'I'm sorry, Mr. Steele!'