Chapter 716.2: "WE GOTCHU!"

Inside the lobby of an inn not far from the Men’s Dream Tavern. Watching a short skirt sway past beside the table, a heavily drunk sailor sniffed hard and looked at the companion sitting across from him with a look of confusion.

“The girls here... they’re all from the Poro Province?”

“They used to be. Heard they’re Moonfolk and came from the mainland across the Baiyue Strait.”

His companion was obviously another horny bastard, and the kind who had been pent up at sea for months.

Ever since entering the inn, his eyes hadn’t moved away from the girls carrying trays around the room.

The tight black skirts perfectly accentuated their graceful figures, while the black stockings served as the finishing touch. It didn’t only conceal imperfections on their legs, but made those long slender legs appear even more alluring.

“To be fair, those blue moles really do have impeccable taste when it comes to aesthetics. No wonder even the penny-pinching misers from Ideal City and the bookworms from the Academy are obsessed with Dawn City’s designs.”

Even wastelanders like them, people who normally couldn’t care less about the Prosperity Era, would occasionally find themselves nostalgically dreaming about that bygone age.

“So they’re actually from the Poro Province... I thought they came from Silvermoon Bay.”

“That’s normal. Whether it’s the Sunset Province or Brahma Province, their people all originally fled from the Great Desert two hundred years ago.”

“Huh? That’s honestly the first time I’ve heard that.” The sailor muttered while scratching the back of his smooth bald head.

He had been to the Poro Province before, including the famous Port Gallon, yet the girls here felt completely different from the girls over there.

Whether it was their complexion, or their spirit.

The companion sitting across from him let out a drunken burp and slurred, “Hic... Honestly, it’s my first time hearing it too. But if those shelter residents said so, it’s probably true. After all, nobody understands what happened 200 years ago better than they do.”

The night gradually deepened.

Groups of sailors carried unfinished bottles of liquor as they staggered noisily toward the docks, their rowdy shouting audible even from ships hundreds of meters away.

Although they could technically spend the night in the inn’s second floor like their boss, their boss certainly wasn’t going to pay for their rooms.

To save that money, and drink a few more bottles at the next port, they would rather return to the ship and sleep hugging moldy pillows for the night.

However, while everyone else was heading toward the docks, one particularly eye-catching group moved against the flow of people, coming ashore from the harbor instead.

“Woah! French Fry Harbor has changed so much!”

“Seriously... compared to the last time we docked here, it’s like an entirely different place.”

A girl and a bear stacked on top of each other craned their necks toward the settlement, two pairs of eyes sparkling with excitement.

The surrounding sailors didn’t react much to the strange combination of one human and one bear. Even the fact that the bear could talk didn’t seem particularly surprising to them. After all, their administrator could tame Deathclaws standing at the top of the food chain. Compared to that, taming a polar bear didn’t seem all that shocking.

The group walked ashore and searched for a while before finally locating the Men’s Dream Tavern hidden between a row of bars.

After greeting the young lady cleaning up outside, Tail flipped off Roshan’s shoulders and trotted toward the counter with rapid little footsteps.

Seeing the familiar group, Her Drunken Recluse’s face immediately showed surprise.

“Ah Tail? Roshan?”

“Oh... OOOOH! Good evening!” Roshan waved her paw with a goofy grin, too embarrassed to admit that she had rushed over after seeing a forum post specifically to witness Her Drunken Recluse cross-dressing in person.

Tail, however, was far bolder. She walked right up close and stared for quite a while until Her Drunken Recluse’s face turned red from embarrassment. Only then did she stroke her chin in satisfaction and declare, “Not bad, not bad... honestly good enough that people could charge extra for it.”

Sesame Paste, whose cat ears twitched atop her head, also smiled warmly and encouraged him. “It really suits you, y’know.”

“Ahahaha... haha...” Her Drunken Recluse laughed awkwardly, twirling a strand of fake hair near his temple with one finger. Although he had finally tried something he’d never dared attempt in real life under the instigation of a bunch of bastards, he still wasn’t quite used to being praised for it.

“Congratulations, congratulations.” Sisi, who walked into the tavern behind the pair and the bear, patted him on the shoulder. “Being honest about your hobbies is a good thing. There’s nothing wrong with it. No need to care about other people’s opinions.”

After a brief pause, the corner of her mouth curled upward mischievously. “By the way, would you perhaps need...”

Before she could finish speaking, Her Drunken Recluse immediately broke out into a cold sweat. “N-no need!”

At that moment, the Moonfolk girls busy working in the tavern kitchen also noticed Tail’s group and hurried over, putting down whatever they were doing.

Although they had left their homeland for some time now, many still worried about the people back there, especially those whose family members remained behind.

A crowd quickly gathered around the group, eyes full of hope, many of them still dressed in maid outfits they hadn’t had time to change out of.

“Um... excuse me, how is Port Gallon now?”

“I heard you even captured Rowell Camp? Is that true?!”

“Did you find any news about the people who escaped the harbor with us back then?”

“My husband... is he still alive?”

Tail didn’t even have time to scream about how amazing the view was before the barrage of questions hit her like machine-gun fire and completely overwhelmed her.

“Giao... There are way too many questions! I can’t answer them all!”

Seeing her troubled expression, the crowd finally quieted down, though the anticipation and nervousness in their eyes remained unchanged.

Tail glanced at Sisi beside her, cleared her throat and forced herself into sounding as reliable as she could. “Ahem! First of all, the slaves at Rowell Camp have all been freed! And not just Rowell Camp either! All the slaves throughout Port Gallon have been liberated!”

Almost everyone immediately revealed expressions of joy. Two girls who appeared to be sisters even burst into tears and hugged each other tightly.

Apparently, they had family members imprisoned in that camp. After all, most of the prisoners there had been Moonfolk.

Tail paused briefly before she continued, “... Now, the Empire’s army has already retreated beyond the ceasefire line. The Burning Corps is helping local survivors establish a new government and rebuild a fairer and more harmonious order. The survivors there are cooperating enthusiastically too. Construction sites are popping up everywhere.”

“In short, the changes there are huge! Roro and Sesame Paste were completely stunned the first time they saw it. They even thought Sisi had read the map wrong! From what I’ve seen, the future development there might honestly end up rivaling French Fry Harbor itself. I already checked things out for you all first, so once the situation stabilizes, you can always go back and see it yourselves.”

Hearing that their homeland was gradually getting better, hope filled everyone’s eyes. Yet after hearing the final sentence, hesitation still appeared clearly on many faces.

Perhaps the trauma from those terrible days had left wounds too deep in their hearts, or perhaps it was the sensitivity toward identity common among outsiders.

Even though they worked desperately hard trying to repay the people in French Fry Harbor, the kindness and generosity they had received was like something straight out of a fairy tale. It still made many of them feel as though they were trapped inside a dying dream.

Maybe once they woke up, they would still be packed inside those cramped, damp ships, and the wasteland would still remain the same wasteland... Perhaps even the ship that carried them away from the Poro Province had simply been a dream gifted by the gods.

They feared that if they returned, they would never be allowed back.

Even more, they feared that the people who had rescued them from hell might one day send them back there.

Sensing something from those eyes filled with inferiority and forced composure, Tail quietly added another sentence. “... Of course, of course, I’m not saying that if you go back, you can’t return here or anything. This place is already your new home. Nobody’s going to chase you away.”

One Moonfolk girl suddenly stepped forward and embraced her, closing her eyes as she whispered sincerely beside her ear, “Thank you.”

“N-no problem. Though saying this now feels kinda weird... honestly you don’t really need to thank me specifically. If you absolutely want to thank someone, thank everyone else. I’m mostly just here tagging along.” Tail’s face reddened involuntarily as she awkwardly scratched the back of her head, a rare sight indeed.

The girl released her shoulders and stepped lightly backward, gently shaking her head with a soft smile. “... Thank you for caring about how we feel.” After speaking, she paused and looked toward the moonlight hanging outside the tavern window, as though gazing upon a reflection of her homeland in a silver mirror. “The people there are finally able to live normal lives too... just knowing they’re doing well is enough for me.”

At that moment, the pleasant sound of wind chimes rang from the tavern entrance, interrupting the homesick atmosphere inside.

A burly man wearing an exoskeleton walked in, his cybernetic limbs scraping against the doorway with metallic clanking sounds.

Upon seeing the newcomer, Tail immediately greeted him happily. “Woah! Brother Midnight, wat a coincidence. You guys still haven’t logged off yet?”

Midnight Pubg smiled honestly and replied, “I just logged on. Heard you all had already arrived, but couldn’t find you on the forums, so I guessed you were still in-game. Sure enough, you were here.”

Pulling her gaze away from the girl who had suddenly hugged Tail earlier, Sisi curiously looked at the monster. “Is something up?”

Midnight Pubg replied shyly, “We were hoping to rent your ship. Tomorrow we’re planning to head to Ring Island if that’s convenient for you guys.”

The moment she heard they were heading to Ring Island, Tail instantly guessed the reason and exclaimed in excitement, “Woah! No problem! Wait... does that mean the water supply’s finally going online?”

Midnight Pubg nodded with a grin. “Yep! Finally!”

The two-month construction project had ended. Just the day before, they completed testing the pressure valves and every system component, confirming there were no major issues. Once the undersea freshwater pipeline officially began operating, the New Alliance’s influence over Ring Island would completely overshadow the Torch Church.

Facts had proven that when it came to uniting normal people, builders of order had a far easier time than destroyers of order. Sooner or later, every survivor settlement in the southern seas would become shaped by the New Alliance.

After some time, he spoke again. “It’s not just freshwater. After seeing our construction speed, they’re also planning to invest in a new ocean current power station and an undersea transmission cable. They’ll provide the necessary technical support too. Ample Time said we might as well use the opportunity to issue a friendly joint statement, so we’re planning to bring some equipment over and parade around the island a bit. The other side already agreed.”

Sisi nodded thoughtfully. “Looks like constantly burning coal is still pretty tough on them.”

“Besides those lunatics from the Torch Church, who wouldn’t want a better life? And... recently, the islands have been pretty unhappy with the Federation authorities over whether to end their wartime status. They probably want an ally too.” Midnight Pubg grinned suddenly. “We originally planned to fly there by airship, but after thinking about it, going by ship seemed friendlier.”

Lowering the arms crossed over her chest, Sisi smiled and nodded. “No problem. We gotchu!”

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