This Text Adventure Game is definitely poisonous
Chapter 1372 - 601: Making Money, No Shame

Chapter 1372: Chapter 601: Making Money, No Shame

Mu You temporarily gave up on the idea of looking back and decided to see what the Crow Man intended to do first.

[You look at the Crow Man with confusion, indicating that you do not understand its intentions.]

["You must be the newcomer, right? I’ve seen all the bandits around this mountain, but it’s my first time seeing you," the Crow Man asked again.]

[You nod, indicating that you just arrived yesterday.]

["Then which mountain did you belong to before? Who is your master? Haven’t they taught you the rules of being a bandit?" the Crow Man asked with a frown.]

[You shake your head, signifying you have no master or mountain and have always been a wanderer.]

["No master? Really?!" The Crow Man looked at you in disbelief. It saw that you have a good technique in thievery with a high success rate, far surpassing most bandits, and yet you are self-taught...]

[The Crow Man looked at you with surprise, stroking its chin, seemingly stirred by some novel thoughts.]

["But even if you are new, you can’t just mess around. Once you’re in our territory, you have to follow our rules, understand?" the Crow Man suddenly adopted an instructive tone.]

["What rules?" you ask.]

["Ever been a bandit before?" the Crow Man questioned.]

[You shake your head, honestly replying that you have not.]

["Come with me." The Crow Man looked around cautiously, crowded with prying eyes, waved at you, and then led you to a deserted corner outside the village.]

[The Crow Man gestured for you to come closer and whispered in your ear, cajolingly: "A new bandit should first report to the local Crow Tribe Clan Leader. Only after getting permission can you thieve here."]

[You looked at it with some incredulity: "Even a thief has to follow rules?"]

["Of course! And you must strictly adhere to the principle ’do not steal from the locals’."]

[You looked at it even more strangely, as you seemed to have seen many cases of locals being robbed on the village notice board before.]

["Those are either mistakes or intentionally put out there for outsiders to see, so they don’t think we are colluding with the Crows," the Crow Man explained: "Also, after a successful heist, the Crow Man’s share must be returned in full, while the money from outsiders, you get a thirty percent cut."]

["Why only thirty percent?" you ask.]

["Seventy percent goes to them! And that’s still dependent on the local Clan Leader’s mood!" the Crow Man said.]

"..."

[You looked at him speechless, indicating that in your line of work as a bandit, you bear the risk, but the lion’s share goes to someone else, and you even have to watch their faces... Isn’t this a suffocating way to be a bandit?]

["What’s there to be suffocated about?" The Crow Man looked at you, puzzled, and comforted you by patting your shoulder: "I understand. We’re just earning a scanty wage, and it’s a little embarrassing to be exploited, but there’s no helping it. That’s just the market for our line of work. Making money isn’t disgraceful!"]

[You express that you can’t understand. Clearly, the Human Race and the Crows are on the same side, and the local Crows can’t do anything to you, so why not stand tall and earn your money honorably?]

["Brother, are you suggesting..." The bandit seemed to not fully grasp your point.]

["I mean, those outsiders are so stingy, how much can they have on them? It’s clear the Crows are the real fat sheep with money locally. Why not hit a big score? If all bandits unite, we can take down the Crows in one fell swoop for a fat haul," you tempt him.]

["Won’t earn much!" After hearing your idea, the bandit waved his hands repeatedly in denial: "The Crows treasure their wealth as their lives. If you do that, you’ll cause the Crows to fight us to the death and end up with small gains. Also, we’ll be ostracized by all the Crow Tribes. Banditry is a long-term profession, how can we earn money if we fight to the end!"]

[The bandit tried hard to correct your misguided view of thievery, and after thinking for a moment, he suddenly said: "Forget it, just come with me..."]

["Where to?" you ask.]

["To meet our Boss."]

"There’s a Boss?" Mu You was surprised, thinking that these thieves were all self-employed, self-reliant, and it turns out to be an organized group...

[The bandit seemed ready to take you to the bandit’s lair. Will you follow?]

"Yes."

[... You followed the Crow Man out of the village, across several chain suspension bridges, and finally arrived at the 13th mountain peak.]

[You stopped in front of an ordinary Crow Tribe residential house on the mountaintop. Following the bandit inside the house, the bandit moved a wooden cabinet in the corner, revealing an entrance to a cellar underneath, and that was when you discovered there was a whole different world underground.]

[You jumped down the hole with the Crow Man, traversed down a dark corridor, and at the end, an ancient stone gate appeared.]

[Two chatting Crows standing at the door stopped you as you approached, frowned at you, then turned to the guiding bandit: "Who is this? How can you bring an outsider here!"]

["A new bandit. I’m going to speak with the Boss!" said the bandit, then turned to you and instructed: "Stay here, don’t wander off!"]

[After saying that, the bandit pushed the door and entered, the two Crows did not stop him, but they still watched you vigilantly as if ready to apprehend you at your next move.]

[... A few moments later, an unfamiliar Crow Man stuck his head out, glanced at you, and said, "You’re the new one, right? Our Boss agreed to meet you. Follow me!"]

[The two guards let you pass and you entered the gate, coming to a dimly lit and spacious hall.]