Chapter2:FILTH

「The train has entered the security zone. Safety scans will begin shortly.」

The white train slowly entered the security zone.

Outside the window, soldiers were fully armed, and several drones meticulously scanned the train.

Armored vehicles equipped with formidable firepower and "Pelican" power armor stood quietly by. Soldiers clad in exoskeletons symbolically circled the train a few times, and after the drones completed their comprehensive scan, they waved the train forward.

Nanshan clenched her fists tightly, her heart nearly pounding out of her chest.

As soon as the drone scan began, her mind raced with countless thoughts. What if Das Kapital was discovered? Would she be arrested? Sentenced? Would the last remaining copy of this book disappear from the world?

Thankfully… the Territorial Defense soldiers only went through the motions when checking vehicles used by the wealthy.

"Stop the train."

The train, which had just started moving, was forced to stop again.

The relief that had just settled in her chest rose back up to her throat.

The bear-man butler instinctively adjusted his collar.

The train door opened, and what entered first was not a person, but a stun baton.

The bear-man butler's hands, clasped behind his back, began to tremble uncontrollably. Nanshan sat up straight, her face pale.

"Guard all entrances and exits of the train."

"Yes, sir!"

Two exoskeleton soldiers armed with rifles stood guard on either side of the train.

The leader removed his helmet and casually tossed it onto the table in front of Nanshan. He sat down arrogantly across from her, crossing his legs and smiling menacingly.

Nanshan kept her head down, saying nothing.

As if taunting her, the man repeatedly tapped the edge of the table with the stun baton, each tap grating on her fraying nerves.

"Try to understand," the man said with a smirk.

"Recently, the 'Storm' rebels have been very active. They've been giving incendiary speeches in several D-level cities, launching terrorist attacks in many C-level cities, and even infiltrating various official levels in several B-level cities."

"There are rumors that these rebels plan to infiltrate A-level cities next, which has the big shots in the families on edge. So, we've had to pay special attention to all vehicles entering and leaving the city."

"Especially 'beastmen'—they're our primary focus."

As he spoke, his sinister gaze fell on the bear-man butler.

"….You know I 'paid' for him, right?"

Nanshan mustered her courage and coldly addressed the man before her.

"Hiss—" The man curled his lips in mock hesitation.

"Now that you mention it, I suppose that's true."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the man violently brought the stun baton down on the bear-man butler's head!

The bear-man butler let out a blood-curdling scream, his massive body collapsing to the floor with a crash!

The man showed no mercy, his stun baton sparking furiously as he struck the bear-man butler again and again! Each strike was accompanied by the crackle of electricity and the bear-man's agonized cries.

The acrid smell of burnt fur filled the train car as the man, seemingly fueled by some deep-seated hatred, beat the bear-man into a bloody, mutilated mess!

Nanshan gripped the armrest tightly, her whole body trembling. Even though she refused to look at the bear-man, her eyes were already red with unshed tears.

It seemed that the man finally had his fill of violence. He stood up and raised his arms in triumph. "Woohoo—what a rush!!!" He then delivered a brutal kick to the nearly lifeless bear-man butler.

"Anything you can buy with money is worthless."

The man leaned close to Nanshan's face, greedily inhaling the scent of her hair.

"How much did you pay for him? I'll compensate you double… Just don't let this escalate to places it shouldn't."

Before Nanshan could react, Das Kapital had somehow already appeared in the man's hand. He sneered, lighting a match. The moment the flame touched the yellowed pages, the book turned to ash.

Nanshan stared at him, her gaze filled with a mix of fear and indescribable hatred.

"Move out!"

The man and his soldiers exited the train. As the train slowly started up again, Nanshan hurried to help the bear-man butler. "Uncle Zhao… I'm sorry, I…"

"It's my own fault." The bear-man butler struggled to sit up, pushing his cracked glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"It has nothing to do with you… This is my own problem…"

Hailaer District, Underground Shooting Range.

"Ta-da~"

Zhen Cheng cheerfully opened a case for Beihai.

"The 'Black Cloud' smart pistol, you deserve the best~"

Beihai picked up the gun, pulling back the slide repeatedly with a satisfying click-clack.

Zhen Cheng leaned against the table, enthusiastically explaining, "'Tsunami' holographic tri-view sight, Remington's automatic ballistic correction assist, paired with TTI's compensator—smooth as silk~"

Beihai raised the gun, aiming at the moving targets 50 meters away in the shooting range, and squeezed the trigger. Each bullet hit the targets precisely in the heart and between the eyes.

"The Black Cloud smart pistol has three firing modes: semi-automatic, three-round burst, and full-auto, compatible with various types of ammunition. Customize it however you like~"

"You managed to save me some good stuff after all," Beihai said as she holstered the pistol in her belt. "I guess you didn't pocket all of the money."

"Would I ever cheat you? We've been 'old partners' for how many years now~"

Zhen Cheng's fluffy tail teasingly curled around Beihai's wolf tail.

"Ugh~ Who's 'old partners' with you?" Beihai feigned disgust, flicking her wolf tail to swat away the fox tail.

Zhen Cheng's fox ears drooped.

"Really…?"

Beihai asked her, "Who's my team this time?"

"I found two teammates for you from Hailaer District. Trustworthy, from the same area. Follow me."

Knock, knock, knock.

The private room door was pushed open, and a cat-eared woman, covered in tattoos from head to toe and wearing a black tank top, opened the door. Behind her, in the faint pink light, four sleeping girls could be seen.

The cat-eared woman looked half-awake, her feline eyes half-closed. Seeing Zhen Cheng, she yawned and said, "Didn't we agree that I'd pay off the rent when I got the next job—"

"I'm here to give you that job."

Zhen Cheng smiled as she held the door open, preventing the cat-eared woman from closing it.

"Tomorrow night, outskirts of A05 City. Intercept a convoy. Details are in the attachment—complete the job, and your rent for this month is waived."

The cat-eared woman adjusted her headset, barely thinking before responding, "Just give me a shout when it's time to leave."

With that, she slammed the door shut.

Beihai stood with her arms crossed, her brows slightly furrowed. "What kind of teammate did you find for me? Can she be relied on?"

"Whether she's reliable depends on how good the woman she slept with the night before was," Zhen Cheng replied.

"Yu Ming is the best sniper among the mercenaries I know. Three years ago, she took out a target on a high-speed train from over four kilometers away—one shot, one kill, fully verified."

Beihai shrugged. "And she hasn't achieved anything like that in the three years since. I'd say it was just luck."

"Well~ this time, she's not being asked to shoot a target on a train. Come on, let's meet your next teammate."

In the server room behind the shop, a person was simultaneously operating three computers, with a neural interface device connected to their head.

"Let me introduce you." Zhen Cheng turned the office chair around, and only then did Beihai see that the person sitting in the chair was a young fox-girl.

"This is Suluo, the best hacker in C18 City."

The fox-girl removed the neural interface, shyly forcing a smile. "H-hello, I'm Suluo…"

Zhen Cheng looked at Suluo with a warm smile. "Suluo, I've got a job for you. Complete it, and your salary doubles, plus I'll cover your rent for the next five months. How's that sound?"

Suluo looked nervously at Beihai. "I-is it dangerous?"

"It's not dangerous at all." Zhen Cheng affectionately patted her on the head. "Details are in the attachment. All you need to do is hack into the convoy's system and cut off their communications."

Beihai rubbed her wolf ears. "This job won't be easy…"

An A-grade city is on a different level.

As soon as Nanshan stepped off the train, the Nans' private hovercar was already waiting for her.

"Miss."

Uncle Zhao bowed deeply to Nanshan.

"I'll be taking a ground vehicle back."

Nanshan's expression was still tinged with guilt.

She was about to say something, but Uncle Zhao interrupted her: "Miss, I know. You've always been a kind and good-hearted person, unlike anyone else in this world. So I understand your sadness more than anyone, and I want you to know that you shouldn't feel bad for someone as unworthy as me, a beastman."

"My greatest wish is for you to live well, and that's enough."

Nanshan took a deep breath. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't ignore the scars on Uncle Zhao's face.

The kinder and more gentle his smile, the stronger the guilt gnawing at her heart.

Why… why was I born into a class that has to oppress you…

Why… was I born in an era where hurting and discriminating against others is considered politically correct…

In the end, she didn't say anything to Uncle Zhao and buried herself in the hovercar. It wasn't until the hovercar started to take off that she dared to look out and only relaxed when she saw that Uncle Zhao had boarded a ground vehicle.

The luxurious interior of the hovercar felt overwhelming to Nanshan.

A can of ice-cold cola was handed to her.

She grabbed the cola and gulped it down, soothing her parched, burning throat.

The hovercar soared over the towering skyscrapers, landing on the helipad in the back garden of a mountaintop villa.

Nanshan's heart pounded as she stood at the door of her home, hesitant to place her hand on the fingerprint lock.

…What will happen if they find out I read a "forbidden book"?

…How will they deal with me?

…Will they kick me out of the family?

But isn't that what I want… So what am I afraid of?

Nanshan's mind was still blank.

But the door opened on its own.

It was the family maid who had opened it.

"Come in."

A stern and cold female voice called from inside.

Just those two words made Nanshan feel like she had fallen into an icy pit, her mind filled with just two words—"It's over."

With no other choice, she braced herself and entered the mansion.

Her mother sat at the head of the dining table, her expression severe and cold.

Her father sat upright, head bowed, saying nothing.

Her brother, unconcerned, continued to play his game, engrossed in VR goggles and headphones.

Her sister was applying makeup, admiring her reflection in a brand new vanity mirror.

Her younger sister sat at the corner of the table, diligently working on her homework, not even acknowledging her return, let alone greeting her.

"Sit here."

Nanshan couldn't refuse. She obediently sat beside her sister, closest to her mother.

"Teacher Sima called me. She said your performance at the B17 city social ball was very poor. While the sons and daughters of other families were already securing initial connections for their families, you avoided every opportunity for interaction."

"When the ball started, everyone found a dance partner—except you. Not only that, Teacher Sima said you even hit the daughter of the Schmidt family. I'm worried that Teacher Sima, being older, might have gotten the story wrong. So tell me—what happened?"

Her sister grinned mischievously. "Those sweet young lads, if it were me, I would've had them all wrapped around my finger!"

"Shut up." Their mother's cold glare silenced her sister, forcing her to play deaf.

This gave Nanshan time to respond.

"…They looked down on me." Nanshan hung her head.

"They looked down on the Nans… The Schmidt girl too… She said… 'The Nans have the blood of beasts in their veins.'"

"The Nans all have the blood of beasts in their veins!"

In the social circles of the elite schools, everyone knew Nanshan had an interest in certain very "subversive" ideas, and everyone knew she was the only one among their proud aristocracy who sympathized with beastmen.

So, when Miss Schmidt insulted her, Nanshan didn't hesitate to slap her.

This, of course, earned her the scorn of the teachers and educators present, as well as the disdain of the other aristocratic youths.

*"The Nans all have the blood of beasts in their veins."*

Maybe Miss Schmidt was just one of those people who speak without thinking. Her intention was to insult Nanshan's sympathy for beastmen, but it could also be interpreted as an insult to the Nans themselves.

So, the slap was well-deserved.

"Good hit." Her mother's tone was still cold. Her words didn't mean the reprimand of Nanshan was over.

"Why did you avoid interacting?"

"I..." Nanshan racked her brain.

"I..."

She thought and thought...

But how could she say it? Was she really going to tell her nearly tyrannical mother that she was disgusted with her own class, disgusted with everything it stood for, to the point where she didn't even want to engage with those capitalist parasites?

"Nanshan just got home, let's eat first."

Her father finally spoke, breaking the awkward silence.

"You represent the Nans. Your every move reflects on this family." Her mother's gaze was like a steel blade, aimed straight at Nanshan's heart.

"The Nans don't need someone who's useless as their face. If you can't prove your worth, then you'll ultimately be discarded."

Nanshan could only nod in agreement.

"Your performance was poor. So, you're grounded for two days."

Nanshan felt like she had been granted a reprieve, quickly getting up and rushing upstairs.

"One more thing."

A chill ran down Nanshan's spine.

Her mother didn't look at her, continuing to read the day's news.

"A new batch of unmarked beastmen will soon be arriving in A05 City. Once your grounding is over, go pick out a new butler."

It was as if a bomb went off in her mind, making her bones tremble.

"...What do you mean, Mother?"

She didn't want to ask. She didn't even dare to guess.

"Your cousin discovered that your butler was a rebellious element who had hidden forbidden books, so he arranged for someone to take care of him."

Nanshan didn't know how she got back to her room.

She buried her head under the blanket, biting down hard, silently screaming in anguish.

Uncle Zhao would never come back.