Gu Ning picked up the two pistols she had her eye on.
Seeing her do this, Barto asked, "Where did you get that much money?"
If it had been any other Mixed Breed, he wouldn't have asked. As long as they paid, he couldn't be bothered to care where their money came from. But this little Mixed Breed in front of him always made him want to pay a little more attention.
Gu Ning didn't write a reply. Her knowledge of the Beastman script was limited, and she didn't want to reveal too much to Barto either.
Barto was wary of her, and she was just as wary of him, even though Barto was the Mixed Breed she trusted most, aside from Cook.
Atavistic Mixed Breeds had a peculiar trait. Because their intelligence hadn't degraded much, most chose to become merchants. Some cities wouldn't even drive them out, leaving a place for them where they could live and work like normal Beastmen.
But the regression affected their personalities to some degree. Most of them were cunning and skilled at scheming.
Especially in a remote region like Zone 19, atavistic Mixed Breeds were even more concerned with profit.
Barto was one of the more conscientious atavistic Mixed Breeds on this street, but when Gu Ning first started selling him scrap parts, he had lowballed her too.
She had seen him bandage Cook's wounds and knew he wasn't a malicious fox. As for his minor merchant schemes, she was willing to turn a blind eye.
Dwarf hybrids weren't low on intelligence, but she couldn't afford to act too smart, or she'd blow her cover.
The cheapest gun Barto had just offered her wasn't overpriced, but it wasn't a bargain either. A few days ago, she had seen the same model from other sellers. The cheap ones went for a little over two thousand, and even the rip-offs trying to scam her didn't exceed four thousand.
Still, Gu Ning chose to buy from Barto. The price he quoted was more or less within her expectations.
"You'd better not be stealing or robbing," Barto said. "Mixed Breeds who do that stuff all get registered. Even if you go to other zones later, they'll find out and expel you. Unless you want to spend your whole life in hiding."
Gu Ning was a little surprised to hear his admonishing tone.
Barto still didn't quite believe she had that much money. Three thousand was the absolute limit he could imagine her having in savings.
He knew she worked at a nearby construction site. Based on her and Cook's wages, that was the most they could have.
'Thirty thousand? She must have robbed a Beastman.'
"If you can't afford to eat, come to me." Barto pulled the two pistols back toward himself and pushed the three-thousand-coin pistol toward her. "Use this one for now. When I get the tickets for you and Cook, I'll give you another gun."
Gu Ning snatched the guns back, then grabbed his hand and pointed at the terminal on it, signaling for him to open it. She wanted to pay with her terminal.
Under her gaze, Barto, as if possessed, opened his terminal's payment interface.
Gu Ning scanned his terminal. A "BEEP!" confirmed the successful payment, and Barto froze, staring at her like he'd seen a ghost.
'Thirty thousand, online?!'
Barto thought of something, then opened the shopping list she had given him earlier and looked at it again.
One of the items on it clearly stated she needed his help exchanging for cash.
"What... did you do?"
Seeing the fox's expression, Gu Ning smiled from behind her bib.
She made a gesture for filming a video.
Barto understood immediately. It was money from tips on a video she'd filmed.
"What kind of video?" Barto asked. "Did you get into a fight with another Beastman?"
He'd seen plenty of videos of Beastmen fighting Mixed Breeds on PawPress. Those kinds of videos got high tips.
But they were usually filmed by normal Beastmen; Dwarf hybrids didn't have the wits for it.
Usually, the Beastman filming the fight would just give the Mixed Breed a small fee for their trouble.
Thirty thousand... you'd have to fight dozens of matches to earn that much.
Unless you got lucky and met a generous tipper, or went to the Underground Arena to be a punching bag.
Cook had gotten injured before because he fought too fiercely in the Underground Arena and his opponent retaliated afterward.
Gu Ning neither nodded nor shook her head, tacitly confirming it.
Barto reached out to pull at her bib. "Are you trying to get yourself killed for money? Are you hurt?"
Her shopping list included a lot of medicine.
Gu Ning pushed his hand away and stepped back, shaking her head.
"Really?" Barto looked her up and down. She was bundled up so tightly he couldn't see a thing.
From the first day he met her, she had always dressed like this. He had never seen her face, only a pair of dark eyes through her slightly grimy goggles.
Once he was sure she wasn't hurt, Barto muttered, "Forget it. As long as you're not injured, it's fine. That guy Cook isn't better yet, is he? If you get hurt too, he can't take care of you, and then it'll just be more trouble for me."
Gu Ning smiled at his words. 'This little fox has a cold face but a warm heart,' she thought. 'That's another reason I can trust him.'
Barto didn't ask any more questions and started gathering the items on Gu Ning's shopping list one by one.
Knowing she had to stay in Zone 19 for at least another month, Gu Ning added a few more things to the list.
She was buying too much to carry at once. She only took the two pistols, the medicine, and a few small, miscellaneous items to put in her backpack. Barto would deliver the rest.
"I'll deliver these later," Barto said, looking at the furniture on the list. He still had to get some of the items from other people.
Gu Ning nodded and paid him some more money online.
She paid him extra, asking him to exchange it for cash for her.
She could use online payments with Barto, but not with others. Almost no Mixed Breeds used terminals for payment. One shouldn't flaunt their wealth; if she used her terminal to pay, she'd easily be targeted by ill-intentioned Beastmen.
Since she couldn't leave Zone 19 for another month, she only asked Barto to exchange five thousand Beast Coins. Three thousand would be for next month's rent, and the rest was for daily expenses.
After buying the two guns and getting the cash, the thirty-five thousand she had was all used up. Barto gave her a good deal, lumping the other items in with the thirty-thousand-coin price for the guns.
After all this was done, Gu Ning arranged a delivery time with Barto and left his shop. She then went to buy some food, and by the time she was finished, the sky had already started to darken.
Winter came early in Zone 19. Though it wasn't too cold yet, the season was already late autumn.
She'd heard that before winter set in, the Mutant Species in Zone 19 would start hunting frequently. The winters in the No Man's Land were harsh, so to store enough energy before the cold arrived, the Mutant Species would enter the nearest Beastman territories to find prey.
This was also why the military chose this time to hunt the Mutant Species.
Winter in Zone 19 was exceptionally hard to endure. All Beastmen made thorough preparations before the season arrived.
Gu Ning also needed to prepare for the coming month.
Not long after Gu Ning left Barto's shop, a figure slipped inside.
Barto was organizing and taking stock of the items Gu Ning had ordered.
"Closed for the day. Come back tomorrow for whatever you need," Barto said without looking up.
His stall was outside; usually, only regular customers wanting more... discreet items would come directly into his shop.
"Closing up so early?"
Hearing the unfamiliar voice, alarm bells went off in Barto's head. He looked up at the newcomer.
"What do you want?" Barto asked, his eyes quickly sizing up the Beastman as he cut straight to the point.
Wanai's gaze swept across the dimly lit shop. "You got... that stuff?"
Barto sneered. "I don't know what you're talking about. Spit it out."
Wanai stared at him. "Female stuff. You got any?"