Max Stats in the Apocalypse

After they went down from the mountain, the Golden Rookies reserved some space to occupy as a temporary base for their mission. It was some inn in a neighborhood called Purple Neighborhood.

When they initially heard the name of the neighborhood, they weren't able to suppress their reaction. Even they had already read it, the laughable state of the name wasn't still getting away from their minds.

It was just that the names of places in District Wish were half-assed as if they were named for a kid to remember.

"How about we start gathering information about the current happenings in the city?" Baron suggested when they finally entered their room.

Mayquelle and Ian just took a pause and looked at him with a stunned expression. It was as if they couldn't believe that he still had the energy to move around when he endlessly drove them to the District Wish.

"Don't you want to take a rest? We will handle the information." Mayquelle suggested.

"Yeah, you can take it slowly, Baron. You already said that we are here for a vacation, so act like you are on a vacation. This will be easy." Ian added to Mayquelle's idea.

Mayquelle nodded as well then looked at Baron who was dispirited by it. But later on, he had a beaming smile.

"You may be right. I will be sleeping now." Baron said, then threw himself on the bed. And just as he said, he immediately fell asleep.

"I am still confused about how he can fall asleep so quickly," Mayquelle uttered.

"Same."

***

Mayquelle and Ian decided to go back downstairs and relax for the remainder of their time. They weren't worried about anything, after all. Simple steps; they should just gather information, but it can wait. 

The mission didn't give them time-restriction which was in favor of them. Probably, their superiors thought of them as enforcers, not their own helper to task anything they feel to give.

"This place is like an under-classed city in District Overdrive. Purple Neighborhood was it? It just looked like a small village from above." Mayquelle commented openly that made Ian hush her.

"Don't talk like that. We won't be able to get information if they see us with hatred. And also, don't be unprofessional. Who's an investigator that would walk and spread their credentials as if it was nothing."

Mayquelle just nodded jokingly, with a smirk on her face, and then unwillingly answered. "Okay... I will comply with it."

Mayquelle grumbled, then when they arrived at the ground floor, which is also the dining room of the inn, they went to a table and sat down.

"Let's just be honest. District Wish should just comply with us. Why would they even go their ways into aggression to prove that they can stand on their own as an independent district?"

Ian let out a sigh as he heard another rant from Mayquelle. And without any other option, he jumped into the conversation to slowly kill the topic.

"You don't live as a person who wasn't blessed with power. Of course, isn't it normal to hold onto your position no matter how powerless you are?" Ian argued.

Mayquelle took a moment of silence, then retorted, "They could just be thankful to us that we were saving their asses. Even with how less threatening their district is, could they at least give our district some peace of mind?"

She took a brief pause, then continued. "I mean, they are just livestock for monsters. So we went and saved their asses and gave them a safe place to stay, yet they still wanted to remove that fact that they couldn't be independent. They are out of their minds."

Ian looked at Mayquelle and sincerely replied, "As I said, you are not the one who is experiencing such threats in their lives. Imagine being powerless and surrounded by Awakens and monsters or beasts, do you think you won't fight for your own?"

Even with how Ian wanted to make it obvious to Mayquelle that she should not view things like that, Mayquelle gave another slanted perspective.

"Ah... I forgot... Human nature. They still have pride, even with how unable they are to fight for it."

In this instance, Ian was frustrated that he had no other choice but to reform Mayquelle's views. It is not just about being powerless or being non-Awaken, it is about being human.

"Humans are humans and what defines them is their intellect and compassion for each other. Even how... let's say, useless they are in protecting the country, at least, they were helping us in some cases. They work for us as workers. Isn't that enough in exchange for the safety our district had promised to them?"

Even knowing how direct Ian was, Mayquelle was unconcerned about her own opinions.

"Blah blah... I don't care anymore. Let's order some food." Mayquelle cut the topic off and called for a staff member. "Come here, we have an order."

A staff member nearby complied with Mayquelle's call and immediately came to assist them. And as the staff member gave the menu, Mayquelle's eyes squinted.

"Hmm... what kind of food is this?" She mumbled, but the staff member heard it. That eventually made his face sour. Even still, he didn't make it obvious and remained professional.

"Who cares... Just get me this and this."

The staff member nodded and listed down Mayquelle's order and then looked at Ian. Ian just asked for the same order, and later on, the staff member walked away from them.

"What's wrong with you, Mayquelle? Can't you really act professional? We are here for a mission. Remember that." Ian scolded her.

Mayquelle rolled her eyes and argued, "What could possibly go wrong in this district? Trust me, this will be easy."

A few minutes later, their order arrived. And as Mayquelle cast her eyes around the dining room, she saw an average person just eating their food.

Mayquelle stood up and faced Ian with a smug face. "Look at this. You will learn that this district is measly compared to our district."

Ian just groaned and watched as Mayquelle approached the average person. But as he was also curious about what Mayquelle could possibly say, he stood up from his seat and went to her side.

"Hey, can I ask?" Mayquelle called the average person. And as he shifted his attention to Mayquelle, she prepared her question.

"I am actually a new citizen of Line City and am just starting to learn what is happening around me. Do you know anything unusual that is happening in the city?"

The person took a pause and looked at Mayquelle as he got confused about what could possibly be Mayquelle's intention. Apparently, she was saying that she was new to the city, but a migrant would ask about what the common things were, not the opposite.

But disregarding that, this person just answered her honestly. 

"Well, only one gang held the whole city. Within just a week, this gang seized all of the gangs in the city, each neighborhood." 

When this person's answer reached their ears, Ian was immediately piqued by this as he moved his body near to the person to ask.

"What do you mean about it?"

The person just looked at him with an uncertain expression and awkwardly answered. "Well, this gang is the strongest gang that came from the Blue Neighborhood, and all of them were Awakens."

Ian was silent for a moment, then he looked at Mayquelle with wide eyes.

Mayquelle just smirked and added a question. "Do you know who the leader of this gang is? And may I ask the name of this gang?"

The person just complied with their questions and answered them willingly.

"The name of the gang is "Demonyo Clan," but no one knows who their boss is."

Ian pulled Mayquelle away from the person and whispered. "We already had our clue. The Blue Neighborhood is where these Awakens are. We just need to know what their potential is. Without proper training, they won't be compared to the C-Rankers in the District Overdrive."

"See...? You are even agreeing with me. Their academy for future hunters just sucks. So, how about we proceed?"

"The side missions had already been erased. We don't have to eradicate the gangs, but only have one gang to erase. Let's patch things up. This is an easy "bring home" for us." Mayquelle added.

But then, Ian shook his head.

"No... We will continue gathering information. We will look more closely at their public image and then we will observe them."

The trio looked like smart investigators. But the truth is that they weren't even that great, to begin with. They were just so good at fighting that even with the low-talent profiling they have, they still closed their cases.

And apparently, they only did a great job in District Overdrive because of their informants and connections. Without it, they wouldn't have anything. 

Thinking about their achievements made them overconfident in their skills.