After saying goodbye to One-Denny-Boo, Pei made a quick detour to the market to buy the groceries needed for Zhong Yan and Belle's lunch.
Side note: No one saw the incident where it injured someone. That particular spot just happened to be a blind spot for surveillance, and none of the passersby had taken notice. As a result, no Security officers came looking for it.
This was very good news for Pei, though it still felt a twinge of regret about not being able to accompany One-Denny-Boo to Lumina Square to visit its injured friend.
But Bangboos were made to serve humans. No matter what personal thoughts it had, Pei knew its priority was to complete Zhong Yan's order.
By the time it got back, nearly an hour had passed.
During that time, Zhong Yan and Belle had passed the time playing games on their phones. When they saw Pei return, Zhong Yan immediately put his phone down and stood up from the couch.
"Pei, what took you so long?"
The distance from here to the market wasn't that far, and this wasn't the first time Zhong Yan had sent Pei shopping—he knew how long it normally took. This trip had definitely taken longer than usual.
It was... concerning.
Still, Zhong Yan wasn't accusing it—he was just worried. After all, Pei was a Bangboo originally from Nin- Village. If any Shinobu operatives happened to pass by and recognize it, they might try to reclaim it.
"Eh-ne... (I ran into a Luckyboo on the way)," Pei replied honestly, not trying to hide what had happened. It then recounted the entire story about One-Denny-Boo.
As it spoke, Zhong Yan realized something—there had been a Luckyboo like that in the game as well. Its so-called "friend" was actually an injured kitten.
The battery One-Denny-Bu saved 100 Denny to buy wasn't even capable of healing the kitten. In the game, it was the protagonist who eventually took the kitten to the vet and got it treated.
Come to think of it, Zhong Yan had always felt sorry for that Bangboo. If he had the chance, he'd visit Lumina Square and check on both the kitten and One-Denny-Boo.
"Nice work, Pei." Zhong Yan reached out and patted its head, genuinely praising his little companion.
Belle, still lying on the couch, sat up the moment she heard the story. "Whoa, Pei is so kind. That Luckyboo sounded really pitiful—I'd love to help it if I get the chance."
Hearing their praise, Pei immediately brightened. Its once somber expression turned joyful, and it skipped happily into the kitchen with the groceries.
"Eh-ne eh-ne! (I'm going to make lunch now—it's going to be super delicious!)"
Truly a Bangboo with the mind of a child. Its thoughts and behavior mirrored that of a young kid.
Maybe that's why Bangboos were often targeted by criminals for illegal modification and trafficking.
New Eridu's authorities couldn't do much about it—or more accurately, they didn't even bother trying.
Bangboos had originally been created by a Void Hunter. Their intended purpose was to assist people in Hollow expeditions. Since they were mechanical and lacked flesh and blood, most of the time they were treated like disposable tools.
Even though New Eridu had implemented laws to regulate this, it didn't change the Bangboos' low status in society.
Zhong Yan never harbored any malice toward these little creatures—but that didn't mean he could change anything either.
People's ingrained views about Bangboos weren't something one man could alter.
"Oh right, Zhong Yan—the public trial for Perlman is coming up. I heard one of the jury members will be a high-ranking Peacekeeper." Belle suddenly recalled a news story she saw that morning and spoke up excitedly.
Perlman was the head of the Vision Corporation Metro Renovation Project. After Vision Corporation fell, he was arrested by the Security officers as one of the key culprits. He was currently being held and would soon face a public trial, where his crimes and punishment would be revealed to the citizens.
That whole scenario existed in the game as well. In fact, it served as the trigger for a cascade of new plotlines.
But with Zhong Yan's involvement, the original storyline had already shifted.
The original jurors from the Cunning Hares had now been replaced by Zhao Anmen, who had played a key role in cracking the case. Him being on the jury made sense.
However, this change in jury lineup might not prevent the upcoming airship attack.
In other words, Zhao Anmen could very well die en-route to the trial.
That thought gave Zhong Yan pause. Should he intervene and help Zhao Anmen?
He still owed Nin-Village a favor—one he hadn't yet repaid.
Zhao Anmen, being their leader, had once saved him. Helping him now could serve as payback for what the village had done for him. A win-win situation.
But most of the time, Zhao Anmen operated under the title of Security Commander.
He had already helped Zhong Yan more than once. In a way, he could be considered a friend of the Uchiha—of Zhong Yan himself.
One thing was certain—Zhao Anmen was not a bad person. If his life really was in danger, Zhong Yan wouldn't mind stepping in to save him, purely as a friend.
"Zhong Yan?"
Suddenly, Belle's voice snapped him back to reality.
"Uh... Perlman, right? The little old man from Vision Corporation. Yeah, guess you could say he had it coming," Zhong Yan mumbled awkwardly as he scratched his head.
Belle narrowed her eyes, clearly displeased. Even an idiot could tell he was just brushing her off.
"Oh! And I heard the city council election's been delayed too. They said New Eridu's been too unstable lately to host something that big. What do you think about that?" she added.
The council election—now that was a big deal. Every high-ranking official in New Eridu had been eagerly waiting for the day they could stand on that stage and be crowned mayor.
To be honest, the election should've been postponed way back during the Red Fang Gang incident. But some folks were too eager to rise, so the process kept getting pushed forward regardless.
Now, with so many terror attacks piled up, the entire city was on edge. People were even starting to wonder if a terrorist might strike during the election.
Eventually, the authorities had no choice but to announce the delay. Those who were supposed to take the stage were probably fuming at their subordinates as they spoke.
Because when people feel powerless, they look for someone to blame.
In simpler terms—
Rage born of incompetence.