The world has turned into Hell's Game, why should I stay human?
Chapter 41: Helping in the Kitchen

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: Helping in the Kitchen

"How do you always manage to end up looking like this, kid?"

Staring at the thinner Liu Zheng, Niu Ma said, exasperated.

"It’s obviously because I’m not strong enough. Do you think I enjoy this?"

Liu Zheng was speechless at his speechlessness.

The well-fed don’t know the plight of the starving, him being an ordinary person and still alive was a miracle itself.

"I think you quite enjoy the chaos. Huh?"

Niu Ma looked at his chest.

"You actually got a Medal of Honor?"

"Yeah, I participated in some rooftop bungee jumping challenge without a rope."

Liu Zheng replied.

"Hmm, that does suit you. If you could collect all five medals, you wouldn’t end up in such a mess after deliveries."

Niu Ma nodded.

"What happens if I collect all five?"

He seized the opportunity to ask.

The item description in the system was vague.

"They wouldn’t turn you away anymore. Those security guards wouldn’t stop you either. But it’s only applicable to medium and low-end communities, not to high-end communities like Premium Mansions."

Niu Ma shook his head and wagged his tail as he spoke.

Liu Zheng nodded; it was more or less what he had expected.

"So, how many medals have you collected?"

He asked.

"Not a single one."

"Why?"

Liu Zheng was somewhat surprised.

With Niu Ma’s strength, even if not facing a professional matchup like him, he should have been able to force his way through.

"I’m not afraid of being turned away. If a security guard dares to stop me, I just throw a punch. I don’t mess with high-end communities, so the medal is useless to me."

Niu Ma said proudly.

So, for him, this thing was nothing but a redundancy.

"Tsk."

Liu Zheng curled his lips.

"Plus, this thing isn’t all good. Wearing it, those who order might ask you for favors. If you’re lucky, you can refuse; if not, it can be more troublesome than being turned away."

Niu Ma continued.

"I’ve actually experienced that."

He recounted the incident of walking the miniperson’s dog.

"Hahaha!"

Niu Ma burst into a thunderous laughter.

"Even that tree has its days, hahaha!"

It laughed so hard its head almost fell off.

"But you really have guts, kid. That dog is famously ferocious in the city, and you dared to walk it."

"Walking it is death, not walking it is also death. So I walked it."

Liu Zheng shrugged.

"I really don’t get you. By the way, what did you trade that box of Mao Tai and that tree for?"

Niu Ma asked curiously.

"I traded for this."

He pulled out the sick leave note.

"Dai Legao said the Fire Mage, brother of the Wolf Knight, would be roaming around the city. I plan to use these three days of sick leave to try and find him."

Liu Zheng revealed his plan.

"Fire Mage..."

Niu Ma looked apprehensive.

"I haven’t dealt with him, but I’ve heard from Black Claw that his strength might be even above Oynk’s."

"That doesn’t really matter. After all, every person is stronger than me."

He shrugged.

"You do have a good sense of self-awareness. However, I wouldn’t recommend looking for him, and I wouldn’t even recommend using that sick leave note."

Niu Ma said.

"Why?"

"Do you remember the second rule of the delivery person’s code?"

"Don’t leave the break room unless you have an order."

Liu Zheng quickly responded.

He remembered those life-threatening rules very well.

"Right. Now think about it the other way around, what happens when you don’t need to take orders?"

He thought for a few seconds, and his face changed slightly.

"Does that mean I can’t get into the break room?"

"No."

Niu Ma shook his head.

"It means you can’t enter the Bloody Restaurant at all. And, you also lose your status as restaurant staff during the sick leave."

Liu Zheng’s expression changed dramatically.

"You’ve realized it, huh? Without the protection of the restaurant and nowhere to settle, you might try your luck during the day, but come night, you’re certainly dead."

Niu Ma said coldly.

He clenched the sick leave note.

He had thought it was one-fifth of a holiday voucher, but it turned out to be an invitation to meet the King of Hell.

"Isn’t there a way to avoid this?"

Liu Zheng asked unwillingly.

"There are ways."

"First, you cannot enter the restaurant as an employee, but you can as a customer."

"Second, you cannot stay in the rest room, but you can stay in a hotel."

Niu Ma said.

"Which of these two solutions is better?"

He asked.

"Each has its pros and cons. The restaurant is absolutely safe but very expensive. Your little bit of money would probably be gone in one day."

"Hotels are cheaper, and you could stay for ten days or even half a month. But it’s mixed inside, only a little safer than sleeping on the streets," Niu Ma continued.

Liu Zheng fell into thought.

Firstly, the restaurant option was definitely out of the question.

After the incident with the watering truck, he had realized that money still had great use in this world.

Now that they were blacklisted, he probably wouldn’t have a chance to make a large sum of money for a long time.

Secondly, the hotel option wasn’t much better.

New NPCs like French Plane Tree and Niu Ma were full of tricks, and the advanced NPCs in hotels would be even more ruthlessly vicious.

Without the benefits of Legendary Armor and the identity of a restaurant employee, rashly venturing in would be like a lamb walking into a tiger’s den.

"It’s best you make a decision soon. I’m going on vacation in a few days, and by then you won’t even be able to ask for leave," Niu Ma said.

With only one delivery person, Si Xue certainly wouldn’t approve Liu Zheng’s leave.

And Niu Ma wouldn’t postpone his holiday plans for him either.

As he was pondering, Niu Ma’s phone suddenly rang.

He glanced at the number, and his expression instantly became serious.

"Boss, what are your orders?" Niu Ma asked respectfully.

"Okay, okay, how many people?"

"Okay, okay, I will explain the rules to the newcomers," Niu Ma kept responding affirmatively.

After a few words, he hung up the phone.

"I don’t know if you’re lucky or not," Niu Ma sighed.

"What happened?"

"The batch from Mao Tai all had problems, several kitchen staff ended up in the hospital. The boss asked us two to help in the kitchen," Niu Ma explained.

"So we’ll help, what’s the big deal?"

Liu Zheng said nonchalantly.

He had been delivering for so long, what difference would helping in the kitchen make?

Besides, he would be going with Niu Ma.

"Heh, have you forgotten the sounds you heard when you first arrived?" Niu Ma scoffed.

His brow furrowed, and he heard that woman’s scream in his ears again.

"You couldn’t even stand hearing it, how will you tolerate seeing the real person?"

"I’m telling you, I could protect you when you caused trouble in the casino. But if you break the rules in the kitchen, I’ll be the first to finish you off," Niu Ma said pointedly, staring at him.

His expression reverted to the fierce and twisted look from when he first kicked Liu Zheng, as if their past few days of friendly collaboration were merely a hallucination.

"Boss, don’t you know me by now? I’m the kind of person who values his life the most," Liu Zheng said with a chuckle after a moment of silence.

"Hmm, you’d better be. Let’s go," Niu Ma stood up.

Liu Zheng followed Niu Ma out of the rest room, walked past the three-way intersection, and finally arrived in front of that blue curtain.

"I’m warning you one more time, no matter what you see, act like you didn’t see anything. You’re here to work, not to play the hero."

"Even if you want to die, die far away. Don’t drag me down," Niu Ma turned and said.

"I got it," Liu Zheng smiled.

Niu Ma stared at him intensely for a few moments before finally turning away.

The curtain was lifted, and a man and a Niu Ma stepped into the profound darkness.