Bain listened attentively.
The silver-haired man referred to himself as Ryu.
From his tale, he used to be an ordinary worker, that is until his newly wedded wife betrayed him. And the finishing blow that broke him was when she married another, bringing her lover and her greedy family into the house.
Yes… Her lover was with his good friend.
Ultimately, the woman managed to secure all his savings and all he had ever worked for.
They say revenge was a painful dish served best when cold. But in his case, he decided to turn up the heat on his betrayers.
He drugged them, tied them together in the basement, waited for them to wake, and gave them a piece of his mind before setting up a gimmick designed to blow the house up 10 minutes later.
Sadly, because the buildings on his street were built too close to each other, his revenge act led to the burning of 2 neighboring homes.
It resulted in the death of a neighbor's newly born children and the death of another neighbor's son playing in a room close to his explosive wall.
Long story short, he killed innocent people in his revenge ploy.
His total death count of 11 wasn't enough to get him sent here. But one of those neighbors had a sister-in-law, who in turn knew a powerful person who ensured he came to the Mainland.
All in all, he survived this long, keeping his head down on this turbulent Mainland.
As for why he didn't leave after his prison sentence was completed, it was because he felt there was no place for him in the outside world.
He was an orphan who also had no child of his own. His wife betrayed him right after their marriage. He had no money in the outside world, and the couple who lost their child in the fire still would hunt him down if he did.
So to him, the devil environment he was now familiar with was better than the seemingly peaceful outside world.
Thus, he began living as a farmer, trying to avoid the Mainland's chaos.
.
Ryu dished out porridge from the pot and placed it in 2 separate wooden bowls. "Here."
"Thank you," Bain replied, reaching for the bowl. "My name is Bain, by the way."
"Bain... Good name." Ryu complimented, taking the first bite, followed by seconds.
Working all day on the farm under the sun must be tiring. Bain thought, appreciating the porridge's mouth-watery taste.
Maybe it was because he hadn't eaten for more than a day and a half, the food tasted heavenly in his mouth.
~Gobble. Gobble. Gobble.
Bain ate like a barbarian, even forgetting to chew.
"Water."
Bain smiled with a mouthful. "Thank you."
"Mmmm… I don't need your thanks." Ryu replied, pouring some water for himself too. "Pass my pills."
Bain tilted his body, seeing the pill bottle behind him.
[Flux Pills.]
He knew about these.
They were good for tiredness, cramps, and many other stress factors not worth mentioning in today's world.
After barely 2 minutes of taking the pill, one would return to their original strength, with no aching muscles or back pains.
The pill worked with their already mutated human genes perfectly well.
But even without this pill, their mutated genes would repair their cells at an alarming rate!
In today's world, unless one's heart or vital parts were directly injured or blown into smithereens, the human body would fix itself up.
Take his case, for example.
Yesterday, he not only swam continuously but also ran for his life and experienced hell.
However, after proper sleep, all his aches had vanished, leaving no back pains or other discomforts. And in another 2 or 3 days, his foot sprain should have rapidly healed back on its own.
Their bodies were all self-healing provided the injury wasn't fatal. That's why diseases like cancer that plagued mankind ages ago were nothing but a single sneeze.
One's body would fix the issue. Everyone knew this common logic. Their problem was how fast the recovery was.
Medicine sold in stores were those that quickly simulate and repair muscle fatigue at a snap of a finger which was extensively used in the military when out on missions for too long.
Gulp. Gulp. Gulp.~
Ryu took his pills, chunking more water down his throat.
It was only mid-day. So maybe Ryu wanted to revive his body to its strongest state before heading out to the fields again.
Bain, on the other hand, was still infected by the gossip about the various powers on the Mainland. "Ryu, the entire place controlled by the 4 monarchs?"
"No." He calmly replied, reaching for his glasses.
"The 4 Monarchs are the pique power holders here. However, there are probably hundreds, if not thousands of gangs that exist; some with only 80 members, others with 300, and some with a measly 15."
So many?
"People die every day, and recruits dropped off on the Mainland take their place. It's a never-ending cycle… Foreigners, natives to your empire, you name it… This place is a massive gathering ground for all." Ryu continued, looking at his watch.
With his glasses on his face, the silvered-haired Ryu resembled a nobleman.
"Bain… Don't let anyone fool you. 98% of criminals here are guilty of what they were charged with, with some who committed crimes still unknown to the outside world. You've been to the streets, yes?"
"Right!"
"Then tell me... What did you see?"
"Madness..." Bain blurted, recalling all the craziness he witnessed.
Ryu chuckled at his words.
"You're not observant enough. Sadly, we have no more time to talk," he remarked, staring at his watch again. "Kid, it was fun while it lasted."
Bain's eyes widened at the sight of the Ryu, whose lips had now curled upwards in a disturbing manner.
What else could he not understand?
His body was trembling with some unknown fire that was about to cause his intestines to erupt.
'The food, The water..."
He let his guard down.
But this didn't make any sense. Ryu also took in these things, so why was he still okay?
Bain's dizzy eyes settled on the table, and he had the answer at heart.
Those aren't Flux Pills!
…