Soldier 11 was a little surprised by how quickly Sam Li agreed.
Before coming to him, she had already approached four or five other agent firms. Every one of them was timid as a mouse—once they found out she was from the Defense Force, they didn't even dare hear the details before flatly refusing.
But this one, from Hare's House...
He didn't even blink after hearing the request and agreed without hesitation.
Looks like the rumors on the forums were true—Hare's House really is full of lunatics. They take any job without asking questions.
Soldier 11 didn't care how crazy Sam Li was.
All she cared about was whether they could fool the rebels.
Suddenly remembering something, she asked seriously, "Calm Knight, how many employees do you have at Hare's House?"
"Five," Sam Li replied.
Soldier 11 nodded in satisfaction. "Perfect. Five of you, plus me—that makes six. Just enough to form a small Defense Force squad."
"Even better," Sam Li agreed with a nod.
Technically, Sam Li's job at Hare's House was client outreach—finding all kinds of people looking to hire them.
The actual commissions were usually handled by Nicole, Anby, Billy, and Nekomata.
Sam Li didn't have to tag along.
But ever since he took down the Butcher of Dead End and racked up tens of thousands of points, he'd been fascinated by powerful Ethereals—especially the notorious ones.
Take down a few more, and he might reach the 200,000 points needed.
Then he could trade them for a Statue of the Seven and set it up in the Hollows. Maybe it would clear the entire Hollow in an instant—or even lure a Traveler into this world.
He couldn't wait to try it.
After settling the plan, Soldier 11 checked the time and said seriously, "I'll go notify the agent playing Phaethon. We meet at the edge of the C97 Hollow in an hour."
"Got it," Sam Li replied without hesitation.
...
Just as Sam Li accepted the commission and was carrying a birdcage back to Hare's House...
Inside the house...
Nicole, Anby, Billy, and Nekomata were staring blankly at the TV.
Before Nekomata showed up, it was three of them.
After Nekomata came in, it became four.
"Nicole, Anby, Billy—what's for dinner tonight? Still got any mackerel?"
"There was half left, but Nicole just finished it."
"What?! When did you eat it? You didn't even save me a bite, meow..."
"Just hold out for five more days. The Canvas Lane case goes to trial then. Win that and we'll get a big payout from the commission..."
"Five more days? Nicole Boss, how are we supposed to hold on? My girls are already starting to rust..."
"Please, Sam Li, land us a commission already... we're counting on you."
The four of them sat shoulder to shoulder on the couch, waiting for good news from Sam Li.
Suddenly...
Ding-ling-ling—Nicole's phone buzzed with a message.
Nekomata quickly handed it over. "Nicole, your phone's ringing."
Nicole glanced at the screen—and her expression instantly darkened.
Pure despair.
"What happened? Debt collector again?" Nekomata craned his neck to peek.
"No," Nicole shook her head. "The last few creditors are all acquaintances—they wouldn't chase us like this..."
"Then who sent it?"
"Who else? The Public Security Bureau. The other day when we roughed up that reporter from Vision Corporation, they slapped us with a 50,000 Dennies fine! This is ridiculous—we saved so many people and got no reward, but just one punch and we're fined this much?"
"..."
Nicole knew: you could owe money to anyone—except the Public Security Bureau.
Otherwise, they'd have you behind bars the very next day.
She wanted to pay the fine as soon as possible, but right now Hare's House couldn't even afford food—there was no way they had the spare cash.
Hopefully, the Public Security Bureau would show some mercy.
If they could just hold off until the Canvas Lane case went to court...
As Nicole sighed helplessly, the door suddenly creaked open.
Sam Li walked in with a birdcage.
Billy leapt up from the couch and rushed over.
"Whoa! Sam Li, you're back early! Did you land a big commission? How much did they pay?"
"Back off, Billy—let him sit down first."
"So? Did you get a commission today?"
"That's weird. After what happened in Canvas Lane, our rep should've gone up. We should be getting more jobs, not fewer."
Nicole couldn't figure it out.
Everyone gathered around.
Sam Li sat on the couch, set the birdcage down, and started explaining. "Yeah, we got a commission—from the Defense Force."
Hearing that, Billy recoiled. "The military?"
Nicole shoved him aside. "Quiet. Let Sam Li finish."
Sam Li continued, "They want us to pose as military traitors, make contact with the rebels, and locate one of their bases..."
When he finished, Anby fell silent, sitting stiffly in her chair, deep in thought.
Billy grabbed his head and groaned. "Pose as rebels? Sam Li, look at this face—do I look like a traitor? I could pull off Star Knight, sure, but not a turncoat!"
Nekomata was just as shocked. "Us? Pretend to be traitors? You know cats never betray their masters."
Whether they looked the part didn't matter.
Dealing with the military was risky—worse than the Public Security Bureau.
If something went wrong mid-operation and they got exposed, it could jeopardize everything. Who could afford that kind of failure?
Nicole frowned. "The military... and it's the Obol Squad, no less. They're notorious. Not to be messed with. Sam Li, how much was the deposit?"
Hare's House was already on its last legs.
But if the pay was good...
Maybe they could consider it.
Sam Li said calmly, "I had her transfer it to your account. The bank should notify you any second now."
As soon as he said it—
Nicole's phone chimed.
Just as expected—it was a bank alert.
She glanced at the screen, and her face rapidly shifted from hesitation, to confusion, to pure excitement.
"Nice one, Sam Li. You didn't let me down."
"What is it, Nicole Boss?"
"Let me see, meow... One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand—150,000 Dennies! We're rich, meow!"
"What are you all waiting for? Anby, Billy, Nekomata—let's show the Defense Force and those rebels what real acting looks like!"