Kingdom of Corrosion
Chapter 495 - 251 Glimmer of Night_2

Chapter 495: Chapter 251 Glimmer of Night_2

Maya suggested, "Let’s use the rubber duck to swim across the water to the dock." The giant rubber duck was now under the western wall of the base, discarded there like trash after its last use.

Maya gathered up the blueprints, "I’ll bring some extra materials to look over tonight. Our recent activities are centered around this warehouse district."

Lin Wu said with regret, "Too bad I didn’t invest in intelligence, so I can’t help you. But I know Dashuang did."

Maya gave Lin Wu a speechless look. Her speechlessness was like a pressure cooker; when it accumulated to a certain point, she would explode and give someone a beating. Then the cycle would continue: accumulate and explode, over and over again.

Lin Wu chuckled and went off to his assigned office to scavenge for materials. He never expected anyone to rely on him for reviewing materials.

Lugging back materials in large and small packages, Maya organized the information and marked up the blueprints accordingly. This warehouse for office supplies, that one recently got a shipment of fruit, and so on.

Dinner was Italian dumplings, and everyone was full of praise. It was essential to do so, otherwise, what if Cotton threw in the towel? During dinner, Lin Wu sniffed Peanut’s shoulder and detected no particular odor, supposing he probably didn’t smell either. His clothes were dirty, of course—they’d gotten that way from running around with bags of cement.

The three girls could go for a swim in the river and wash their clothes at the same time. The boys could also go swimming, but they would pass on washing clothes together. Lin Wu’s idea was to sprinkle laundry powder on himself and swim a lap—that should get his clothes clean. Then he’d use his 37-degree body heat to dry the clothes directly, and everything would be okay.

Peanut had another idea; he thought they should ask Shana for some basic clothing. Wash once a week, soak the clothes in a bucket with laundry powder, tread on them a bit, and leave them overnight. Rinse the powder off in the river the next day. But since they only had one set of spare clothes, they had to accept Lin Wu’s suggestion.

After dinner as the sun had set, everyone thanked the cook, Cotton, and Dashuang took the initiative to wash the dishes. Lin Wu and Peanut were about to head out to the river when Maya called down from the second floor, "Cozy Cabin needs help."

After joining Maya’s team, Lin Wu saw the mission information: Rescue Cozy Cabin.

The incident began when Cabin A and Cabin B encountered a wolf while outside, killing a wolf pup. The mother wolf fled in panic. Cabin C, upon hearing the news, believed that the wolf pack would mount a vengeful attack on Cozy Cabin that night. With only the three of them, they were powerless to resist, so they sought help from Doomsday Fortress.

The mission didn’t specify the size of the wolf pack or the time frame, so Maya decided to have Dashuang stay on guard while everyone else accompanied her to Cozy Cabin.

Maya took the driver’s seat of the light pickup truck and, after starting the engine, said to Lin Wu, "We’re low on fuel; go get a can of gas."

Lin Wu peeked at the gauge, "It’s enough."

Maya, annoyed, retorted, "You’re not the driver; can you even see it?" Lin Wu reluctantly got out of the truck and jogged to fetch a can of gas, topping off the vehicle. After the car was refueled, Maya explained, "Tonight is a night of faint light; it would be a big hassle if we broke down halfway."

Lin Wu replied, "If Dawn wants you to break down, you’ll break down even if you have enough fuel."

Peanut disagreed, "There’s no updated car." If they had updated the car and something went wrong, there weren’t many people who knew how to repair them.

Lin Wu said, "Tomorrow we go to Shadow and haul back some motorcycles." Those things are fuel-efficient.

"Warehouse 200 has motorcycles, but their condition is unclear." Most vehicles and motorcycles were scrap and beyond repair. Maya commented, "I’m more worried about the size of the wolf pack."

Lin Wu replied, "I have an idea about that."

...

When they arrived at Cozy Cabin, the sky was completely dark. Torches, which were not the ordinary kind but high-grade ones that could burn all night long, were stuck on the surrounding pillars. However, their light was weak, and they were expensive to make. Inside the cabin, the first-floor living room and two bedrooms, as well as the two bedrooms on the second floor, all had candles lit.

A minute later, a pickup truck stopped at the roadside. Little Knife, Snow Egg, Shana, and Horse Soul joined the mission as reinforcements.

Dawn: Lin someone, you’re freaking cheating.

Indeed, that was Lin Wu’s thought. A wise man does not stand under a dangerous wall, so why not use reinforcements when available? Was it fair for four people to fight eight wolves? After all, eight wolves had 24 more legs than the four people.

Having not seen each other for a day, Little Knife felt especially close to everyone. However, Maya was serious, Cotton unapproachable, Peanut too greasy; only Lin Wu was approachable, so Little Knife pulled out a handful of candy from her pocket: "I brought these for you."

"Little Knife, you’re the best." Lin Wu took them and handed one to Cotton beside him, who silently took it. The rest Lin Wu pocketed.

Shana and the vigilant Maya got caught up on the situation, while others talked with Peanut or chatted with Lin Wu. Several NPCs acted out a part, hiding on the second floor, shivering. Because of Hardcore Mode, many things had changed, and there was much to talk about. Deep in their discussion, a wolf howl sounded, and the wolf pack appeared.

Accompanied by the alpha’s roar, 20 wolves launched an attack on Cozy Cabin. Under the first barrage of Crossbow Arrows, 5 wolves lay dead in pools of blood. But the remaining 15 wolves, undeterred, kept running, their eyes blood-red and fiercely aggressive. The second volley of Crossbow Arrows struck, and another 6 companions fell. But they didn’t look at the corpses of their fellows, pressing on regardless, for the enemy was right before their eyes.

Greeting them were machetes and sticks, and the brave wolf pack was annihilated within 30 seconds. Their deaths were not in vain; soon, their bodies elicited screams from the enemy: "XXX, you’re dead, Dawn."

Dawn said they could skin the wolves and take the meat. But Dawn didn’t mention what kind of skin could be used. After skinning, it was found that pelts with holes yielded only damaged fur, good only for being processed into scraps in the crafting area. There wasn’t much meat either, only half a kilo from each wolf.

The only consolation was that the alpha had been killed by Lin Wu, which had a wound only on its head, and provided a single piece of intact fur. Lin Wu had barely touched the fur when Shana snatched it away: "I can finally make a real pair of shoes."

Lin Wu showed his dissatisfaction: "Hey."

Shana turned back: "Do you need it?"

"No."

"Ha." Shana walked away with a smile, considering it a success to leave Lin Wu speechless.

wolves, 7 kilograms of meat. Initially, everyone helped with the butchering, then they realized something was amiss, recalling the rule about player proximity and corpse persistence, leaving Lin Wu to do all the work. Lin Wu had no choice but to kneel before each wolf as the system required, watching the progress bar fill up as if paying deep respects to each dead wolf.

Upon completing the task, the relationship between Doomsday Fortress and Cozy Cabin rose to 60 points, and Maya accessed the executable command: Hire a housekeeper.

The housekeeper would reside in Doomsday Fortress for a week after receiving a week’s salary before returning to Cozy Cabin. If needed, they could be rehired from Cozy Cabin. The housekeeper NPC didn’t need to eat or sleep, and would hide in a corner if zombies approached; if she died, the relationship between the two bases would deteriorate.

The housekeeper’s responsibilities included three tasks: cleaning the base, laundry, and cooking. The hired NPC would dutifully act as an obedient nanny, fulfilling any request made to her. The three tasks corresponded to three different NPCs, each with their expertise. An NPC good at cooking would make delicious meals, otherwise, the food would be mediocre. If the base didn’t have a kitchen, she needed to be provided with cooking tools and wood.

Employing an NPC skilled at laundry meant clothes would come out clean and properly ironed. Washing tools such as a washboard, detergent, and disinfectant were required. The absence of these tools would reduce her efficiency and outcome.

Employing an NPC good at cleaning meant the entire base would be spotless, effectively preventing the breeding of insects and pests.

The hiring fee was quite expensive. Currently, at a friendly relationship, the opposite party charged 100%, with no discounts applied, demanding 20 kilograms of edible meat per week.

To hire or not to hire? Lin Wu believed it was essential to hire. At present, Doomsday Fortress had another 15 kilograms of meat, and with the freshly gathered 7 kilograms, they could afford the housekeeper for a week. Next week, during their spare time, they could go fishing or hunting.

Maya’s heart bled – do you have any idea what 20 kilograms of meat represents? No, they knew, but they wanted to hire regardless. Maya sighed, "I’ll go and get the meat. Cotton, come with me."

Shana led the departure: "We’re going back to check for NPC missions."

Two vehicles left, leaving Lin Wu and Peanut behind. As the taillights faded into the distance, the world plunged into darkness. The pair glanced at the light levels; the vicinity of the torch had a brightness of 15, so safety was not a concern. Doomsday Fortress, too, was busy, discussing in the channel which NPC to hire.

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