Sir! Don't close the net!

After saying that, Li Yili turned around and left the dim, non-existent space through the exit. He walked forward along the slowly ascending broken path. He didn't know if it was because he had adapted to the darkness underground, but when he looked up, he felt that the starlight was a bit dazzling. He subconsciously raised his hand to shield his eyes, and the edges of his fingers, which cast shadows, shimmered with a faint golden light.

"what……"

Li Yili smiled, put her hands behind her back, and followed the crowded people through the narrow and noisy Diagon Alley into the main street of Triple Circle, strolling along the street.

On the gray streets, you can see many homeless people squatting by the manhole covers, drawing and painting. The residents of San Die Quan walking on the road deliberately avoid the homeless people. But this behavior is no longer just contempt and disgust, but also a bit of avoidance. The homeless people seem to be more than just San Die Quan's garbage that can be kicked away if you are unhappy. They are a more troublesome existence.

Li Yili raised an eyebrow, thought for a moment about what Puss had said about the White Horse Knight, and immediately understood. As the saying goes, the nail that sticks out gets hammered down. One unlucky guy had already been shot dead, and the White Horse Knight's intentions were too obvious. The residents of the Triassic Circle were more or less worried that they would be next.

There's only one knight in shining armor, but what if other homeless people go and complain?

Li Yili quickly arrived at one of the few bookstores in the San Die Quan area. She patted her pockets and was about to enter when she heard a chaotic shouting behind her. Li Yili turned around and saw several homeless men smashing open the shop window with sticks and frantically stuffing things into their pockets. The shop owner was a middle-aged woman who looked somewhat old.

She was crying and shouting for help as she tried to stop the homeless man.

Passersby stopped to watch, but none of them approached.

Chapter Thirty-Six: The Second Bird

"It worked! It worked! It actually happened!"

The homeless man, wearing a tattered hat, repeatedly contracted his pupils as he vigorously shoved the ornaments from the cabinet into his mouth. The stares and silent actions of those around him gave him a sudden, profound sense of enlightenment, and a powerful confidence surged through his body like a potent drug.

His hands stopped trembling and became incredibly strong; he could feel his back straightening.

He even began to think that there was no need to rush at all; he could take his time choosing and then leave gracefully. This idea was gradually becoming a reality.

"Hey--"

A hand patted the shoulder of the homeless man wearing a tattered hat. The homeless man, wearing the hat, subconsciously turned around with an impatient look on his face. He was at the peak of his life, and his strong self-confidence made him fearless of anyone.

"what!"

"Nothing—"

The homeless man wearing a hat felt a tremendous force on his shoulder, and he was pulled and staggered. Before he could see the face of the person who pulled him, a fist violently entered his field of vision.

"boom--"

The homeless man wearing the hat was sent flying backward toward the street, the trinkets in his pockets scattering like a rainbow.

Li Yili shook her right hand, turned around and looked at the other homeless people who were still picking at the jewelry. She tilted her head and grinned like a crescent moon. The homeless person wearing a hat behind her landed heavily on the ground and lay motionless.

"What...what do you want to do—"

His strong confidence was shattered in an instant. The homeless man, who was picking at the jewelry, immediately bent over and avoided looking at Li Yili.

"what……"

Li Yili let out a long breath, her gaze shifting downwards to the [equipment] dropped on the homeless man.

Almost all of them are valuable ornaments.

"If you guys were to try and steal the food, I think it would be a bit difficult. Well, I'm really lucky today."

Li Yili shrugged and charged straight ahead under the terrified gazes of several homeless men.

"You, you don't come any closer!"

Li Yili rushed to the nearest homeless man, spun around and elbowed him. Just as the homeless man bent over in pain, she grabbed him by the back of his collar and slammed him heavily onto another homeless man who was trying to run away. Seeing that things were not going well, the other homeless men immediately yelled and grabbed the chairs next to them and rushed straight towards Li Yili.

"You're quite strong."

Li Yili swayed and punched through the crashing chair, striking the homeless man squarely in the face. Blood spurted from his nose, and the homeless man collapsed to the ground with a thud.

Li Yili reached out and pulled the chair down, casually tossing it next to the homeless man who was twitching from time to time. She looked at the middle-aged woman who was standing there in a daze, thought for a moment, and then spread her hands, saying, "You'd better put all these things away quickly."

The middle-aged woman then realized what had happened, nodded nervously, and while keeping a close eye on the passersby who had stopped, she bent down and quickly picked up the scattered ornaments.

Li Yili glanced at the passersby around her, crossed her arms, and scrutinized them.

Some were pointing and gloating at the homeless man lying on the ground, while others were wary of him, and some kept glancing at the ornaments on the ground as if they were considering them.

The middle-aged woman quickly gathered up all the scattered jewelry. Some passersby shook their heads with regret and turned to leave, while others remained where they were. They also showed regret, but they were more concerned about what would happen next.

It had only been half a day since the White Horse Knight appeared, and his intention to exploit the homeless was all too obvious. So now all the residents of the Triple Circle were keeping their distance from the homeless as much as possible, lest they become the second bird to be shot.

Shooting down the first bird is meant to intimidate and warn, but if it's just about intimidation and warning, there's no need to escalate things too much to avoid a backlash. So the White Knight simply had the man apologize and that was it.

But the second bird wasn't so lucky. To prevent a third or fourth bird from flying out, the White Horse Knight would definitely kill the second bird without mercy.

They dared not defy the wasteland's royal family, even if it was just an empty shell. They were still millennials whom the Triassic Circle could not reach. But that did not mean they were willing to let those homeless people ride roughshod over them, especially what was happening in front of them now.

The White Horse Knight appeared less than half a day ago, and now homeless people are smashing up shops in the street?!

So, should we just break into their house and kick them out?

The residents of San Die Quan felt a surge of anger when they thought about the confident and arrogant expressions the homeless people had just displayed.

Li Yili noticed the change in the passersby's emotions. Perhaps if he raised his arm here, many of the angry passersby would join in shouting to drive all the homeless people out of San Die Quan.

But this is boring.

Li Yili bent down, tied the homeless men who had fallen to the ground together, clapped her hands, turned around and went back to the bookstore, picked out a few books, paid for them and left.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"What did you say?! Someone beat up a homeless man in the street?!"

Nemo slammed his hand heavily on the table, his handsome face contorted with rage.

"To be precise, it was a homeless man robbing a jewelry store on the street, and one person beat up all the homeless men," the butler added, frowning.

“There’s no need to report such trivial matters. The important thing is that someone has already attacked a homeless person in just half a day. This shows they don’t respect me!” Nemo emphasized loudly.

“Lord Nemo, this is the normal situation,” the butler added somewhat helplessly. “Besides… in just half a day, homeless people have taken advantage of your influence to rob a jewelry store. I don’t think this is a good thing. If they had robbed a grain store, you could have raised your arms and used the opportunity to criticize the Cult of Steam and Steel for mismanagement.”

"But they weren't forced by life to rob food, they were robbing money. The royal family cannot become an accomplice of robbers."

Nemo clicked his tongue in frustration, crossed his arms, paced back and forth, thought for a moment, raised an eyebrow, and waved his hand, "Then let's put it another way: because of the poor management of the Church of Steam and Steel, the conflict between the homeless and the residents of the Triassic Circle has escalated to the point of being irreconcilable."

“Those homeless people, tsk—they actually took advantage of me, they really deserve to be whipped.”

“I think this is a good idea,” the butler said, his brow unfurrowing as he nodded. “But Lord Nemo, you can’t handle this yourself. Just leave it to that homeless woman named Carly. She’s eager to try.”

"Okay, I'll leave it to you!"

Nemo nodded, turned to face the banner representing the Wilson Parr family hanging on the wall, and clenched his fist.

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Friendship That Is No Longer Cheap

To show his sincerity, Nemo arranged for Carly and her friends to stay at his temporary mansion. Of course, this was only the impression given to outsiders; in reality, even temporary accommodations were absolutely luxurious for the Millennium aristocracy.

It was impossible to share a room with the homeless people of the Triple Circle, so Carly and her friends were kindly led to a corner by the servants.

But Sherry and her friends did not express their dissatisfaction. They were already very lucky that Nemo had not killed them all. He even gave them a place to live, even if it was just a wooden cabin in a corner, which was a million times better than the sewers.

"There's even a bed!" The young man with freckles and a mushroom haircut touched the bed with a look of surprise.

“Lorne, have some dignity. This is only a little bit better than the bed we have in the sewer pipes… with an extra mattress,” Sherry said loudly, slapping her forehead. “You look like a pervert who’s never seen a woman before.”

Lorne chuckled and got up, stopping touching her.

Shirley sighed deeply and turned to look at Carly, who was gazing intently out the window at the distant mansion. After hesitating for a moment, she asked, "Carly, what exactly did you see that night?"

She and Carly hadn't known each other for seven or eight years, less than a year, but they were both young. Young people, as long as they share the same interests, don't need to make sacrifices for each other or share joys and sorrows. After spending some time together, they develop a friendship that they feel will last forever.

This is undoubtedly a cheap friendship, but they are homeless people, a group that is cheap to begin with.

But now she feels that Carly is a stranger, a frighteningly unfamiliar one. This sense of unfamiliarity is an alarm bell that their cheap friendship is about to deteriorate. Their cheap friendship is about to be tested, and their lives will change because of this topic, this friendship built on an interest.

When they realize this possibility, they will suddenly react.

It turns out our friendship really is so cheap.

Shirley had faced many similar choices, so she understood that her friendship with Carly had reached this stage.

So Shirley wanted to try to win him back.

After a brief silence, Carly turned to look at Sherry, her hands hanging at her sides, her voice incredibly hoarse.

"I have seen the truth of this world."

"the truth?"

“We are nothing but the lowest of beings. Every aspect of our lives is adjusted by those above us so that they can please those above us,” Carly clenched her fists.

Sherry opened her mouth, her face full of astonishment, and just as she raised her hand, the wooden door was pushed open. Nemo's butler stood in the doorway, his hands behind his back, not intending to cross the door frame. He coldly glanced at Carly and the others, his gaze lingering on the bed that Lorne had messed up for a moment before he slightly raised his chin.

"Just now, a few homeless people robbed a jewelry store."

Lorne shifted to the side, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

The butler was talking about other people's business, but he felt as if he was being looked down upon.

“One of them took down all the homeless people, and Lord Nemo was very angry.”

Sherry swallowed hard, raised her hand weakly, and asked, "Excuse me, what is Lord Nemo angry about?"

It was because the homeless community didn't give Nemo any face. Nemo had just stood up for these homeless people when several of them tried to rob him. And yet, some people still didn't give Nemo any face. Nemo had just finished protecting the homeless people when he beat several of them to the ground.

"That's the question you should be considering."

The butler glanced indifferently at Carly and the others, then turned and waved his hand dismissively.

"Lord Nemo's patience is limited. You'd better do something before Count Wilson Parr arrives at the Triassic Circle."

After saying that, the butler left without looking back.

The cramped wooden cabin fell into a deathly silence after the butler's final, meaningful advice.

After holding back for a while, Lorne spoke first, carefully bending down to straighten the bed sheets that he had messed up, and looked at the others with an embarrassed smile.

"Maybe... we should run. The water is too deep; we can't hold on."

“It’s no use. As long as we’re still in the Triple Circle… as long as we’re alive, we have no choice but to run away,” Carly glanced at Lorne, roughly pushed him aside, and plopped down on the bedsheets that Lorne had straightened, her fingers interlaced in front of her. “If we don’t want to disappear without a trace, we have to do something.”

Another homeless man named Sitch, standing next to Lorne, couldn't help but mutter, "But Carly, you've been doing things that will make you disappear ever since you left."

Carly sighed in disappointment, "Sitch, would you rather be in a filthy sewer than in a soft bed?"

“This…” Sitch glanced at the bed under Carly’s buttocks, the throbbing pain in his back constantly reminding him that the sewer was not a place for people to sleep.

Sitch hesitated for a moment and then weakly complained, "If I could, I would definitely like to sleep in the bed, but we can't sleep in this bed... That count's nephew looks dangerous."

“Compared to the dangers we are facing, this is called hope for change,” Carly emphasized. “Or would you rather be like wild dogs, painting manhole covers with sticks? We didn’t come to the wasteland to do that, did we?”

Sitch and Lorne blushed, feeling humiliated but unsure how to respond.