Two days later.
"Boom!"
A muffled sound echoed from the door, followed by Ergou's furious yell.
"Ifrit! Why did you kick the ball again? I told you not to step on it!"
"Oh co on, what's the big deal? I'll have Yo-Yo buy them a new one, okay?"
Amidst the noise outside, Snowsant lazily turned over on the sofa, buried her head into the corner cushions, and drifted back to sleep.
Yoren sat behind the boss's desk, looking completely deflated.
"Nancy, how much money do we have left?"
Nancy, holding a steaming cup of herbal tea, took a slow sip.
"11,654. And that's the fourth ti you've asked . Oh, and if Ifrit kicks another ball, make that 11,651."
"Oh."
Nancy sat across from Yoren.
"Boss, you said this was going to be an investnt company. But judging by how things are going, shouldn't we... do sothing? At this rate, we'll run ourselves into the ground."
Yoren fell into thought. She was right. Before he could get to those earth-shaking plans of his, they needed to survive first.
Sure, they'd paid rent for a year upfront, and he could still sneak als at his second uncle's place, but day-to-day expenses weren't going anywhere. He still had to wait for the right ti to put his plan with the Fredo Chamber of Comrce into motion—and there was no guarantee it would work, or how long it would take.
Not to ntion, once that plan began, he might need to disappear for a while. During that ti, he needed Snowsant and the others to at least stay afloat. They didn't need to make a fortune. Just enough not to starve.
Then ca the voice at the door.
"Who told you you could open shop here? Boss, co out."
Five or six intimidating n stord in, the room suddenly thick with tension.
Nancy stood, frowning. "Who are you? We haven't even started doing business yet."
The man in front, bald with a single horn on his head and a bandaged arm in a sling, grinned wickedly.
"You may not be doing business, but I am. Since you're setting up shop here, I ca to... discuss cooperation."
Nancy narrowed her eyes. "What kind of cooperation?"
"Simple. You pay 2,000 yuan a month in business fees. We'll keep the area safe. Very simple. Don't pay, and things might get... ugly. I hear this neighborhood has lots of break-ins."
Nancy's voice turned cold. "That's protection money. That's illegal."
The bald man laughed.
"Illegal? Around here, I am the law. So, are you staying open or not?"
"Boss!" Nancy turned and shouted, "Soone's here to collect protection money!"
"Click."
The door locked with a heavy sound. At so point, ACE had returned and silently bolted the door, blocking the only exit.
The bald man blinked, confused. "Why'd you lock the door?"
ACE stood unmoving by the entrance. "It's fine. Our boss is here. Go on. Continue."
The bald man turned, eyes landing on Yoren behind the desk.
He blanched.
"You—"
Yoren stood and walked over, a scowl on his face.
"Seriously? You again? What was it—Cat? Dog?"
"Ah Guang," the man said weakly. "My na's Ah Guang."
Right—Ah Guang, the sa thug who tried to muscle in on his uncle's property not long ago. Yoren had broken his arm that day. Since then, he hadn't dared show his face in Area A. Yet sohow, fate had thrown them together again in Area B.
After so awkward apologies, ACE unlocked the door.
It wasn't a big deal. No real grudge. These people just did what they had to do to survive. Of course, now that Ah Guang had crossed Yoren, he'd be skipping a few als.
Once things cald down, Ah Guang spoke, clearly trying to stay respectful.
"Brother Yoren, didn't expect you to open a store so soon. Pretty amazing."
Yoren flopped down on the sofa.
"It's nothing. Just broke and trying to survive."
Ah Guang peeked around.
"Mind if I ask... what exactly does your store do? I honestly can't tell."
"It's still under planning. Got any ideas?"
"Well... I'm not smart or anything. I just fight. But I figure—people gotta eat, right? If you really don't know what to do, open a restaurant. People always eat. You can't lose with food."
Yoren shook his head.
"No way. This place cost 88,000 to rent. That's too expensive for a restaurant. Plus, there's already one across the street."
"So what? You could do sothing different—hot pot, barbecue, anything. Doesn't have to be the sa."
"I'm telling you, I'm not opening a restaurant. I'll figure sothing else out."
"Alright, alright. Whatever you do, I'll bring my brothers to support you when you open."
"Leave your number, just in case."
"Of course. Just call, I'll co running."
Yoren didn't trust guys like this completely—but sotis, they were the ones you had to rely on. Even if you were the strong dragon, you couldn't ignore the local snakes. Better to keep things friendly.
—
That afternoon, Yoren gathered everyone at HQ.
"Alright, co on. eting ti. Everyone gather 'round."
Snowsant sat down next to him. "What eting are we having?"
Yoren cleared his throat.
"Two things on the agenda. First—we need a na."
No matter how small or big, a company needs a na. Sothing loud. Sothing powerful. Sothing like Enterprise Logistics. Black Steel International. Glasgow Gang. Nas with presence.
Ifrit blew a bubble with her gum and shrugged. "What are we calling it then?"
Yoren pulled out a pen and paper.
"Everyone write down one na. I'll pick the best."
One minute later—
"Done? Hand them over."
He laid the four sheets on the table:
Snowsant: [Happy Windmill]
ACE: [Second Generation of Death]
Nancy: [Beautiful Life]
Ifrit: [Burn Those Nasty Bugs]
Yoren's expression darkened.
"What is this? Ifrit, that's not a na, that's a sentence."
"Eh. Call it whatever. Doesn't matter."
Even ACE and Nancy couldn't stop chuckling—only Snowsant remained convinced her choice was perfect.
Yoren sighed. All were rejected.
Everyone looked at him expectantly.
He thought for a long ti. In his old world, he had the nickna Huo Yu Yoren, but "Yoren" couldn't be used. "Huo Yu" alone was too one-sided. What if soone called "Water Feather" showed up and put him out?
Red feather, blue feather, green feather—none worked. But if you brought all colors together, they blended into one: black.
Black Feather.
When Yoren wrote it down, the room fell silent.
ACE nodded. "Doesn't sound as tough as Black Steel, but it's more ambitious. I like it."
Nancy smiled. "Black Feather. Easy to say. I hope it helps us fly high."
Ifrit threw her feet on the table. "Sure, whatever. I don't get it anyway."
Only Snowsant whispered sadly, "I still like Happy Windmill..."
But it was decided. The na of their organization would be Black Feather.
Yoren believed that soday, this na would echo through all of South Victoria—then to the North, and beyond.
—
Next up: figuring out what the hell to do.
They needed a project. Cheap, easy to run, safe, local—and idiot-proof. Even Ifrit should be able to handle it.
Everyone brainstord.
Then Ifrit raised her hand.
"Yes?"
"Let's open a barbecue place!"
Yoren frowned. "No way. A barbecue restaurant's not easy. You need inventory, prep, organization—"
"ACE can handle inventory."
"You still need staff."
"Snowsant can be the waiter."
"Soone needs to handle the money."
"Nancy can do that."
"And who's grilling? That's the hardest part."
Ifrit grinned. "Let's have a long-lost BBQ party!"
—
Three days later.
A fresh sign hung above their door:
Black Feather BBQ Restaurant
As Ah Guang passed by and glanced up, he scratched his head.
"Didn't Brother Yoren say he wasn't opening a restaurant...?"
anwhile, in the shadows, the countdown reached its 24th day. Yoren's carefully tid plan was finally ready to begin.
Overnight, his once-ssy black hair was shaved clean.
At the Fredo Chamber of Comrce, in front of a mirror, Yoren smiled.
His bald reflection told him everything he needed to know:
It's ti.
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