Chapter 66: Target Appears

Although it was only a little after five o'clock, the anticipated dusk hour was completely absent here. Before five o'clock, the sky had already darkened completely, with heavy particle clouds blocking out the remaining sunlight in the upper atmosphere, accelerating the city into night. Various neon lights had already been lit up, making the originally gloomy city look even more vibrant than during the day. Combined with the human and doll traffic on the roads, there was a distinct cyberpunk vibe.

This scene was the first time Renault had seen such a sight in all his years as a traveler. However, he had no time to pay attention to these flashy things. Getting back what he had bought was his top priority.

Perhaps it was just bad luck. Who could have imagined that a inconspicuous little lackey killed at a doll trafficker camp hundreds of kilometers away would turn out to be the delivery person for the black market stronghold, driving a car that wasn't even his?

The location of the black market stronghold was similar to what Renault had expected, right in the civilian area adjacent to the factory district. The security situation there was extremely worrying. The city guards hardly ever ventured there, and the contrast between the civilian area and the bustling street he had just passed through was stark.

The lighting was dim, the streets were winding and complex, and various debris littered the roads, making Renault feel as if he was not driving in a city, but rather participating in an off-road race in the wilderness.

While there were high-rise buildings in the civilian area, they were mostly unlit, and if they were, the lights were very dim, likely just a few small LEDs. Normal electric lights were almost nonexistent, and there were hardly any pedestrians on the streets. However, occasional sounds from the buildings on both sides indicated that the area was not uninhabited.

Similar to when Renault went to find the person who set up the EMP interference device, the residents of the civilian area were very resistant to someone like him driving around after dark.

No one dared to peek out, and the sporadic pedestrians on the streets immediately hid themselves carefully out of Renault's line of sight.

The black market stronghold was in a dilapidated building near the city wall gate. The building, originally meant to be a ventilated structure, had been secondarily renovated with simple materials like iron and wood boards. Several lower floors had been tightly enclosed, leaving only a few large and small gates for entry and exit.

When Renault parked the truck at the gate of this dilapidated building, there were still several burly men in work clothes inside, wearing simple headlamps as they leisurely rode bicycles out of the building.

These people seemed unfazed by the sudden stop of the truck at the gate. They just glanced at it casually and walked past Renault as if nothing had happened, without any intention of questioning his identity.

However, inside the dilapidated building, a few figures ran back after seeing the truck, probably recognizing the vehicle and going to find its owner, the person who had previously contacted Renault via communicator.

This dilapidated building was probably intended to be used as an above-ground parking lot, with plenty of space underground. Above ground, however, it still looked deserted, with three floors or more remaining as empty shells.

It was obvious where the black market stronghold would be. Except for being underground, there wouldn't be anywhere else to hide shady deals.

Entering the dilapidated building, Renault headed straight for the elevator shaft on the right. The elevator shaft, which had not yet been completed, had no doors on any floor. The elevator inside was not a regular car-style elevator but a makeshift one converted from a construction lift. Looking down, Renault could see a worker in work clothes running down from the lift platform.

Without a second thought, Renault jumped down into the elevator shaft!

"Damn it!"

A few workers who were playing cards nearby, upon seeing Renault jump down the elevator shaft, were immediately startled, shaking their cigarettes and giving their unsuspecting colleagues a scare.

"What are you shouting for? What's going on? Did the elevator collapse?" One worker didn't see Renault's presence, as his position just happened to be blocked by a large pile of goods placed in the central area.

In addition to the panic-stricken workers upstairs, the worker who had just run down from the lift platform was also startled by the loud noise behind him. His legs went weak and he almost fell to the ground. But when he turned his head to look back, a tall figure in a coat, with red lights shining in his eyes, scared him so much that he sat down on the ground.

"Yikes! Help! Help!"

As Renault waved away the dust, stepping forward toward him, the dumbfounded worker scrambled to his feet and ran back.

"What's all this shouting about? What's going on? Did the elevator collapse?" The worker's screams had just sounded when a rough voice came from the door of a distant room.

As soon as Renault heard this voice, his eyes lit up. It was the guy who had talked to him before. It seemed there was no need to bother asking around for people.

Although Renault's eyes lit up only figuratively, to the workers who ran out of various rooms at the sound, it was not just a mere figure of speech! It was as if the eyes were glowing with blood, a sign that the killer god was about to go on a killing spree!

"Run! Run quickly! Get out of here!" At a time like this, who had the leisure to consider whether it was reasonable for human eyes to emit red light? It was better to leave this guy, who clearly wasn't a good person, as soon as possible!

"Damn it! Don't panic! You idiots! Take people over there to check!?" The person speaking hadn't seen Renault, as his position was just visible to Renault, but as he took two steps forward, his vision was immediately blocked by a large pile of goods in the central area.

In addition, a large number of panicked workers were rushing toward the emergency exit, paying no attention to Renault.

There were no barriers between the emergency exit and the vehicle passage, so although there were many workers, they quickly ran out of this floor.

Most of those who stayed behind were core members of the black market stronghold, like the burly men in work clothes holding various weapons.

"Who goes there? Stop!" The burly man who had been called an idiot now looked anything but foolish. He raised the gun in his hand and immediately assumed a standard gun posture upon seeing Renault.

However, Renault had no intention of listening to him. There was no way he would stop just because of a threat from the other party... Furthermore...

This threat was utterly meaningless.

Bang!

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Poll at Patréon. Lasts until May and June.