Chapter 74
The sun rose over the Wasteland.
Sunlight pierced through the curtainless windows of the Salami Motel, gently invading the room.
It danced across Max’s face, waking him from his sleep.
“…”
Waking up, Max was the first to sit up.
Fortunately, Leader was sleeping facing the opposite wall. Flora already had her eyes open.
Rubbing his eyes, Max asked, just in case.
“Couldn’t sleep because it was uncomfortable?”
“…No. I was sleeping and just woke up too.”
Flora slowly sat up, her voice lacking energy.
When Max handed her some water to drink, she pouted her lips before taking it. Now it was time to wake the sleeping dragon.
“Ellen. Wake up.”
“Mmm, just five more minutes…”
He tried again to wake Ellen, who was clinging to the wall as if trying to dig into it.
“If you keep sleeping, I’m leaving you behind.”
“Godfather. I think it’s actually fine to leave her behind.”
At Flora’s serious remark, Ellen squirmed, stretched like a cat, and sat up with a slouch.
“Ughhh…”
Sleep still lingered in Ellen’s eyes.
Max handed Ellen a bottle of water as well, then stood up.
“We can’t shower this morning. We have a long way to go, so let’s just wash our faces and head out.”
“Yeah. Got it.”
“Max~ what about breakfast?”
“We’ll take care of it when we get to the Nomad Village. Most of the Wasteland nomads are more interested in doing business with outsiders than in herding.”
He knew this thanks to compiling the materials and information Domingo had given him beforehand.
He also knew that they would start by overcharging outsiders to rip them off big time.
Returning the room key without delay, Max stocked up on extra water from the vending machine and drove off without hesitation.
Flora had been in a strangely bad mood since morning, but after being seated in the passenger seat and chatted with, she returned to her usual self to some extent.
And so they arrived at the Nomad Village.
It was a small village mostly made up of tent houses. As they drove into the village, hostile gazes poured over them.
“Max. It doesn’t exactly feel like a welcoming atmosphere, does it?”
“Can’t be helped. It’s that kind of place. Just in case, neither of you wander off on your own.”
“Yeah. I’ll stay right next to you, Max.”
The nomads of the Wasteland liked money, but they didn’t welcome new faces. Max just needed to get breakfast and fill their empty jerry cans with fuel; that would be enough.
[Do they want to make money off outsiders but act hostile and unwelcoming out of experience? Or is being snappy with customers just the default, like in the Lower District?]
Harboring this quiet question, Max stepped out at a shabby gas station equipped with Fuel Storage.
Groups of nomads kept their distance, observing Max’s party.
“Mister, you sell fuel, right?”
Glancing at Max’s party and checking the pickup truck, the man immediately set a price.
“30,000 credits per liter.”
“You’re ripping us off too much just because we’re outsiders.”
“I can’t give it for any less.”
“Even considering the unique nature of the Wasteland, that price makes no sense. Let’s compromise a bit.”
“If you don’t like the price, you can get lost. Simple as that.”
Fuel in Haze’s Lower District was roughly 2,000 credits per liter. Even that was burdensome and expensive for the Lower-class citizens, so most used a Mini Electric Car or a bike.
In the Upper District, where classic vehicles were considered a symbol of wealth, premium fuel was available and the average cost of living was high, making fuel more expensive than in the Lower District, but it still didn’t cost 30,000 credits per liter.
“What? Is 30,000 credits per liter expensive?”
“Are you an idiot? It’s incredibly expensive.”
“Why are you being so prickly today, Girl? You don’t even drive, so how do you know?”
“…Gas prices are on the news every day. How could I not know.”
Ellen and Flora quietly exchanged words while watching Max’s actions.
Max let out a long Breath and thought.
[If we don’t get fuel here, there’s a high chance we’ll break down on the way to the next location. They must be acting boldly because they know we absolutely need it.]
Max first gave a warning to the two behind him.
If they used Electric Shock and fire here, the village might disappear.
“Neither of you does anything here. I’ll Handle it.”
“Hah! Trying to show off your strength or something?”
Seeing Max give a warning, the man signaled to the residents as if he had caught an opportunity.
The residents who had formed groups began to stir.
“Mister, don’t do anything pointless. I still intend to negotiate through conversation.”
“You were just acting all tough in front of the women. Are you regretting your bluff now?”
At the low-level provocation, Flora and Ellen’s eyes flashed with murderous intent, but Max stopped them.
They absolutely had to get fuel here.
If the two of them blew up the Fuel Storage with their powers, it would be a real problem.
Two men, called over by the residents, approached the gas station.
One was a physical Fighter with an Old-fashioned Prosthetic Arm equipped with a Pneumatic Cylinder, and the other was a mage insisting on a pure physical body.
At the end of the prosthetic arm, a Chain Weapon similar to a chainsaw was attached.
“Are these outsiders causing a commotion?”
“Leave the women and the car and go. Then we’ll let you live.”
They seemed to have done this many times, seizing the opportunity and astutely pursuing their own gain.
Max let out a chuckle out of a sense of pity that didn’t even reach the level of annoyance.
“They call themselves nomads, but these bastards seem worse than outlaws.”
nomads constantly clashed with outlaws to a sickening degree. Because of that, they kept warriors in charge of military force.
Even if a Nomad Warrior wasn’t a 4th-tier or 5th-tier like a Junk Town Ruler, there were usually 2nd-tier level warriors in the village.
A 2nd-tier Warrior served as the center, leading and guiding those with a talent for combat, and in larger Nomad villages, there were occasionally warriors who had reached the 3rd-tier.
And the village Max’s party was in had two 2nd-tiers.
Max welcomed the merciless flow of magic power.
“Oh, a Psychokinetic?”
“…!”
The mage who had been using Psychokinesis to target Max’s neck collapsed to the ground, blood pouring from his nose and mouth due to the backlash.
The Warrior next to him couldn’t move at all.
His prosthetic arm was fixed in midair, and it felt like his shoulder would be ripped off if he forced his feet to move.
Max’s gaze turned to the Gas Station Owner.
He was frozen with his mouth wide open. Max understood. There probably hadn’t been any high-tier guys among those who drove a car like that and tried to haggle over fuel prices with words.
“You did this knowing the risks, right? There’s no way you didn’t assume you could be counterattacked. Right?”
“…”
Max extended his Psychokinesis and lined up the jerry cans from the truck bed at the gas station.
“Fill them. I’ll give you 10 credits per liter.”
“Th-that’s…”
“You don’t want to? This is what happens if you hesitate.”
For the first time in a while, Max manifested his 1st-tier Psychokinesis.
[Death Roll]
CRACK!
The neck of the guy who had been showing off his prosthetic arm and demanding the women twisted with a brutal sound.
Because his prosthetic arm was caught in midair, he couldn’t even fall over despite being dead. It was bizarre.
“Kyaaaah!!!”
Ignoring the nomads scattering with screams, Max notified the Gas Station Owner.
“1 credit per liter.”
“I’ll fill them…!”
The Owner grabbed the Fuel Nozzle, trembling. Max snatched the fuel gun right out of his hands and sprayed the fuel onto the ground.
He didn’t really know the difference, but he frowned anyway. He pressured him based purely on suspicion.
“30,000 per liter for this garbage fuel?”
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Th-the fuel was already like this when I bought it from the city, and I never mixed anything into it or -”
“Enough. Hurry up and fill them before I kill the mage too.”
The Owner moved immediately. If all the 2nd-tiers disappeared, the village would become prey for the outlaws.
It would be a crisis starting today.
[Once I leave, this man will have to take Responsibility.]
Max didn’t need to go out of his way to punish him. The village wouldn’t leave the Gas Station Owner, who was the cause of this, alone.
Even though they had all colluded to line their pockets and satisfy their greed, this man alone would be the one pointed at.
It was a predictable picture he had seen to the point of being sick of it.
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Vroooom!
The truck sped out of the Nomad Village.
The fuel gauge on the dashboard was full, and the truck bed was heavy, giving them peace of mind.
“Max. Be careful when you eat. This is really hard…”
“Is this a brick instead of bread? Why is it so hard?”
Max’s party had also acquired breakfast in the Nomad Village.
They filled their stomachs with things they took from an empty bakery whose Owner had fled, leaving an appropriate amount of credits behind.
Max took a bite of the bread while driving.
It was definitely hard. It was to the point where he wondered if hitting a normal Person in the head with it would kill that Person.
“Maybe it’s a bread with a specific way to eat it, like dipping it in milk.”
Max drove on, keeping up the small talk to quickly evaporate the unpleasantness they had experienced in the Nomad Village.
And so, in the afternoon, they properly solved their meal situation at a restaurant similar to Chili Oasis.
They drove and drove diligently.
When night fell, there were no lodgings nearby, so they just reclined their seats and slept in the car. Sleeping in the car was definitely more uncomfortable than sleeping in a room.
And the next day, after continuous travel, Max’s party finally faced it.
The Junk Town, Oil Sink.
Compared to the Nomad Village, it had a majesty such that it could be called a castle.
Max kept his distance and hid the car in the shade of a rock.
Warming up lightly, he made Flora and Ellen realize the gravity of the situation.
“Let’s finish this quickly and go home.”
“Max. Let’s go back without getting hurt.”
“If you get hurt, I’ll bite you!”
“The same goes for you two. I’m not the only one fighting.”
Max led the two of them and headed toward the Junk Town where the Valve Family was located.