They don't want me to try anymore.

It feels like stepping into a game cutscene.

Of course, not everything is as wonderful as it seems.

As the group passed through a square, they witnessed three people being hanged.

Beside the gallows, a priest was praying, and a man in uniform carrying a one-handed sword was reading aloud the deceased's crimes to the crowd, including murdering a tax collector, stealing a nobleman's property, and so on...

Zoe tilted her head and muttered to herself, "So that's how it is. They were three notorious bandits."

"not necessarily."

Richard corrected his sister, looking at the ragged, sorrowful people in the crowd, and said, "Generally speaking, hanging is a form of entertainment for citizens. If it were a notorious bandit, these people should be laughing and jeering."

"That makes sense, it's so strange..."

"If you find it strange, why don't you investigate? Since we're going to study abroad, we should get to know this country better."

Recalling his sister's astonished expression at the capital's splendor, Richard wanted to dispel the girl's illusions. He instructed the clerk and the carriage to wait nearby while he led Zoe and Katyusha into the alleys surrounding the square.

Following a woman who had been watching, they arrived at a small bakery.

Unlike the central avenue and plaza, this area looks quite dilapidated.

This bakery, however, was spotless inside and out, clearly showing the owner's dedication.

After the woman entered the shop, she cried to the man who appeared to be her husband, "Oh God, I saw it with my own eyes, Mark and the others are dead, boohoo... Without them, how are we going to survive the winter when the Emperor raises taxes again at the end of the year..."

The brother, sister, and maid eavesdropped outside for a while and finally understood what was going on.

Those who were hanged were not indiscriminate killers; on the contrary, they punished unscrupulous wealthy merchants and nobles, helped the neighborhood resist bullies, and distributed the money they obtained to the poor in the vicinity.

In folk tales, this is a hero who robs the rich to help the poor.

However, the rulers disguised this execution of a hero by hanging as a sacred and transformative ritual to awaken the world, which explains why the onlookers remained silent...

As the woman cried, she noticed that the man was still silently packing up the bread on the table.

She pouted and complained, "How can you be so cold-hearted?"

"Because there are things more important than crying."

The man picked up the wrapped bread and said, "Mark has an eight-year-old brother who must be starving."

The woman then became frightened: "The patrolmen are still searching for accomplices; what you're doing is too dangerous!"

“Blessed are the righteous who persevere in righteousness, for they will see God.” The man quoted a saying he had heard in church and said, “We are grateful and can’t worry about such things.”

"Why did you have to step in now..."

The woman continued to curse and swear, but the man remained silent.

Finally, the woman sighed helplessly and softened her tone, saying, "Let me go."

"Ah I……"

The woman interrupted the man, snatched the package, and said, "You're clumsy at everything except making bread. I'm better than you. If we get caught, I'm a woman, so I'll get a lighter beating..."

"boom!"

The sudden noise interrupted the tender conversation.

Richard turned his head and saw three thugs kicking open the wooden door of the bakery.

"What are you crying about? They're just a few criminals. What's there to regret about them dying?"

The leader swaggered in, glanced at the couple inside, and sneered, "Instead of crying, hurry up and hand over the 'protection tax.' We brothers are waiting to buy some wine!"

"You, you robbers! You're the ones who should be executed! If Mark were still here..."

"They're gone! By the way, they gave you a lot of money, right? Well, you'll have to pay double the 'protection tax'! Otherwise, hehe."

As he spoke, the man swept his arm across, knocking a row of breads displayed in the window onto the ground.

Amidst the clanging and banging, the woman from the bakery cried out again.

Just as the thugs were about to do something even more outrageous, Richard walked to the door.

He picked up the fallen bread, took a bite, and said:

"It tastes good, it's such a waste to waste it."

"What's it to you?"

The gang leader glanced up and scanned Richard.

At first, he was somewhat skeptical when he saw Richard's clothes, which, though not extravagant, were quite decent. But when he realized that Richard's accent wasn't from Idaril, and he might not even be from the Empire...

He smiled with genuine, natural contempt.

"You stinking outsider, coming all the way to Beijing to beg for food?"

Chapter Nine: What's it like to have an exam right at the start of the semester?

Faced with the gang leader's provocation, Richard simply smiled and raised his hand.

Close the door, release Katyusha!

The girl, who could no longer contain herself, dashed out like an arrow released from a bow.

The other person was staring at Katyusha and Zoe with lustful thoughts when a blur flashed before their eyes, and they lost their balance. Before they could even scream, they fell to the ground with a thud.

As Richard's part-time bodyguard, Katyusha is naturally a professional as well, specifically a shield guard under the warrior category.

This profession places a strong emphasis on strength.

The girl was only at the high-level Iron rank, but she had already won the arm-wrestling competition twice in a row at the Connaught Tavern and earned the privilege of drinking a hundred free beers... although Richard had used them all up.

In short, this beautiful girl can easily throw a person with one hand and uproot a willow tree.

On the street, the gang leader was stunned for a while, and subconsciously tried to get up.

The maid closed in instantly, raised her black leather shoe, which had been specially fitted with iron plates, and stepped on the other person's thigh bone.

"You are not allowed to insult His Highness!"

"what!"

Judging from the screams, a bone must have broken.

At that moment, the two thugs who had just stepped out of the shop to help saw this scene and both shuddered.

The taller man suddenly glared and shouted, "I... I'm not with him! I'm here to buy bread!"

As he spoke, he immediately bent down to pick up the bread from the ground.

As it turned out, the other person, being shorter, managed to pick up the bread first and exclaimed, "This bread is delicious! Boss, I'll pay you right now!"

The tall guy got angry and shouted, "Why are you taking mine!"

"Whoever is fastest gets it!"

Okay, it's rolled up.

Unfortunately, no matter how they rolled themselves up, the other girl wasn't going to give them a chance.

Zoe had been holding her breath for a long time.

Seeing that Katyusha had made the first move, she didn't hold back and threw punches at her two underlings.

Compared to the maids whose duties were the same, the young lady was somewhat reserved.

But even if she restrains herself, she's still only at the bronze level.

With two thuds, two more pupae with nostrils that seemed to spout fountains appeared on the ground.

Finally, Richard came out and cleaned up the mess.

First, he cast a powerful memory erasure spell on each of the thugs—a spell commonly used by mages, a mental shock.

While this technique cannot precisely erase a specific segment of the victim's memory, it can at least make their brain buzz. Combined with a broken leg, this is enough to ensure that the gang leader cannot fight for at least half a year.

The profession of being unemployed is an ancient one, a classic red ocean with fierce competition. A job gap of more than half a year is enough to spell the fate of being laid off.

He then went inside the shop and took out five silver coins minted by the empire, roughly equivalent to 1,500 yuan in his previous life, enough to make up for the couple's loss.

"Thank you, sir!"

"Sir, you..."

"Don't call me sir, I'm just a Kamen Rider passing by."

"Oh, so you're a knight..."

"Oh no, no, never mind, never mind."

Richard's attempt to use the meme failed, and his sensitive identity prevented him from getting bogged down in the matter. After a brief response, he led the two girls out of the alley.

On the way, Zoe couldn't help but smile: "I feel like I've done something very meaningful."

"Acting bravely for a just cause is certainly a good thing."

Richard patted the girl's head and explained further:

"But we must also see that while the Empire has a huge population, bustling streets, and towering, spectacular buildings, its foundation is no different from our hometown... It is by no means as invincible as we imagine."

Zoe didn't quite understand what Richard meant, and forgot to stop the wicked pig's feet that were messing up her hair. She just nodded and said, "Hmm... Richard is right!"