Chapter 862: Chapter 430: Blood-nosed Rat Jerry_2

Lifted his foot and fiercely kicked the store door!

"Bang!"

Ring-ring-ring—

The tightly closed wooden door was violently kicked open, and the loud noise from the boot colliding with the door surface mixed with the sharp ringing of the bell exploded suddenly in the air.

"Where’s everyone!? For me..."

The words were just halfway out, and for some unknown reason, it was as if a cold wind blew from behind in the middle of the night, and Jerry shivered inexplicably. The prepared lines in his mind froze in his throat before he could spit them out.

Even his body, which had kicked the door and entered, wobbled a couple of times, nearly falling.

"Cough, cough..."

He coughed deliberately, as if to cover his embarrassment.

Jerry leaned against the door frame, his peripheral vision instinctively glanced at the two lackeys who were half a step behind on either side. Seeing they had no particular reaction, he was slightly relieved.

Then, he turned his attention to the grocery store in front of him.

There were three people in total.

Two stood behind the counter, one old and one young. Their facial features looked somewhat similar, presumably the owner of the grocery store and his junior.

And the one standing outside the counter...

"Wow, someone actually came to this godforsaken place to buy stuff—hey! Kid over there, you’d better hurry up and..."

The voice pretending to be fierce grew softer, stumbling and stammering towards the end.

You could see Jerry’s pupils slightly shake, revealing the intense fluctuation in his emotions, causing the muscles on his face to tremble as well, giving a stiff and dumbfounded impression.

Not good!

Orphaned from a young age, Jerry, despite a rough journey, was able to grow up alone in a place like Suo Yu Bay. Say nothing else, his perceptiveness surpassed that of most ordinary residents.

The black-haired young man standing outside the counter in front of him was likely an adventurer, and the intense aura he exuded... he had only seen it a few times in the tavern.

Even some adventurers he normally considered big shots, who could crush him with ease, would fall silent and dare not speak in the presence of someone who exuded that same intense aura.

This black-haired youth... was probably an experienced adventurer, potentially already having obtained a professional level.

Moreover, what alarmed the belated Jerry was the man’s appearance.

An exceptionally young face, black hair, dual swords, arm shield, and leg armor...

Inadvertently, he resembled the central figure of an incident he’d heard about in the tavern a while back.

"Could it really be such a coincidence..."

"..."

Xia Nan frowned slightly, his dark eyes calmly and coldly watching the three men who had suddenly barged through the door.

With his keen perception ability, he had already detected their ill intent through their hurried and heavy footsteps before they kicked the door open.

He secretly prepared himself to respond.

Initially, he thought it might be an adventurer seeking vengeance, but it seemed that these aggressive men were just a few petty thugs?

Whether it was the leader, with his slightly crooked nose and small stature, or the two men with fierce faces and flamboyant tattoos on their arms behind him, from the perspective of life force intensity, they were merely ordinary people, not the professionals Xia Nan imagined.

"The three of you should be from the Corner Shark Gang, right?" The grocery store owner, Paddy, reacted quickly.

Although startled by Jerry’s kick at the door, he instantly recovered, squeezing a flattering smile onto his face and hurriedly moving out from behind the counter. He also quickly took out a pre-prepared money bag from underneath the counter.

"I’ve had the protection fee ready for you all for a while now, just waiting for you to come and collect it!"

Having been around Suo Yu Bay for years, starting with almost nothing, he managed to build this small store through his own hard work.

Paddy had a wealth of experience dealing with all sorts of people in town, and knew exactly which powers his "Salmon Roe" grocery store fell under, having long prepared corresponding measures.

Actually, in a situation like this, if it were any other merchant, they might seize the opportunity of Xia Nan’s presence to borrow his adventurer status to gain some benefits.

In fact, considering his good impression of Colin and Paddy, Xia Nan wouldn’t mind the two borrowing his name for some profit.

But Paddy didn’t do that.

Maybe to maintain a relationship with this young yet powerful adventurer and seek long-term benefits; or possibly, due to his personality, feeling that Xia Nan had helped them enough and that further exploiting his identity was unethical.

At the moment, the middle-aged man didn’t even look at Xia Nan, afraid of dragging him into this mess.

He quickly stepped forward to hand the money bag to the people at the door.

Such decisive and straightforward action made "Blood-nosed Rat" Jerry instinctively reach out his right hand, wanting to accept the money bag.

But in just the next moment.

The palm that was facing up, with fingers spread apart... suddenly clenched!

With a twist of the wrist, it turned from "receiving" to "pushing."

The hand was vertical, palm facing Paddy.

With a gentle force, the money bag that had almost landed in his palm was pushed back into Paddy’s arms.

"Hey, sir! You’ve misunderstood us!"

Retracting his gaze from the two longswords behind Xia Nan, Jerry’s expression suddenly became serious, and his tone even carried a hint of good-natured reproach.

"Our Corner Shark Gang is not like the other gangs in the Saltwater District that randomly collect so-called ’protection money’!"

"Since your store is within our territory, ensuring your stable operation is what we should do."

Jerry’s tone was sincere, yet his shifty eyes frequently darted towards Xia Nan standing nearby, afraid of any sudden movement from him.

"Today, I’m just here to see how things are going, asking if there’s any difficulty you need assistance with."

Saying this, as if suddenly recalling something, he broke into an awkward smile.

"I’m sorry, I tripped when opening the door just now, causing a ruckus."

"If there’s any damage, I’ll definitely compensate at full value!"

Jerry patted his chest in assurance.

The two tall men behind him, seeing their boss’s performance, were momentarily taken aback.

Their faces remained fierce from when they entered, but their eyes were confused and blank, standing stiffly in place, unsure of what to do.

With extensive experience, Paddy certainly saw the reason behind their behavior.

Of course, it was impossible to foolishly point it out then and there, so he smoothly followed their lead, taking back the money bag while offering a few silver coins to the three in front of him.

Given enough leeway, the four at the door behaved like neighbors visiting during a festival, exchanging pleasantries with smiles.

In just a few minutes, it seemed as if they’d become good friends, taking their leave amidst invitations to stay.

However, it was evident that, at the moment Jerry and the other two left the store and turned the corner into the alley, their pace suddenly quickened.

Standing at the door, watching their backs until they vanished at the alley’s end, Paddy’s previous enthusiastic smile faded swiftly.

Turning his head, an apologetic look appeared on his face.

"I really apologize, Mr. Xia Nan, I wasn’t acting like that because you were present, so..."

Xia Nan waved his hand, indicating there was no need to mind.

He had experienced a similar situation once in Neum, so he was somewhat accustomed to it.

He simply didn’t expect that these gangly thugs, who first appeared casual and arrogant, actually had such astute observation skills, leaving no need for him to intervene, surpassing even some foolish adventurers.

But...

Unconsciously, he recalled their actions and expressions when they stormed in, especially that small-statured leader.

The state he was in gave off the impression of adventurers who had just completed a task and returned to town, a sense of excitement mingled with a distinct need for release.

It was somewhat strange.