"It's the other way around. They wouldn't care about losing something so small. And they'd get a reason to hit us back. We have nothing to gain and a lot to lose."
("They would be very happy about this. The amount of money they make here is nothing compared to the rest. An incident would give them the perfect justification to get revenge somewhere else.")
Her reasoning made sense, from her point of view. However, everything in this world was negotiable. We reached the point in the conversation I expected.
"I see. So, you mean you would do it if there was something in it for you, right?"
"What?"
The two girls frowned.
"Let's make a deal. I'll give you something that'll help you greatly. In exchange, you'll help those girls and their families. What do you think?"
"What do you mean? What can you give us that we can't get by ourselves?"
("It's not like we've only been fighting them for a few days. Do you think we're only watching as the situation gets worse for us? It's just they're so many times more numerous than us. What can a kid like you even do?")
"I don't know yet but I'll find it. Will you do it if I find something good enough?"
"I don't know what sort of fantasies you're having in that head of yours. Whatever. Sure, I'll convince my father if you help us big time. Not that I'm expecting you to."
("It's not like he can do anything but if he does and it truly helps us, we'll get something almost for free. We'll only get overrun by them at this rate anyway. We're at the point that even such a ridiculous offer is worth considering.")
"Great. We have a deal. Speaking of which, tell me where those Cattivo guys are located in town."
"Are you crazy? Why do you want to mess with them so badly? Do you want to die?"
"I won't die. What? Are you worried about me? Well, thanks."
"I'm not worried but it's not like I want you to rush to your death for no reason either. You can choose to ignore the situation like everyone else."
I gave them my "best" smile.
"Never."
("Huh, he's completely stupid but he was a bit cool.")
("I'm starting to like this moron a bit. Let's hope nothing happens to him.")
Following the tall girl's thoughts, I asked them again for what I needed. In the end, she reluctantly told me about the different locations owned by the Cattivo gang. They owned many places, some near the harbor, some close to the industrial area, and some even right in the town center. It was crazy to think gangsters were doing their dirty business right in the middle of town. Where was the world even going?
"Thanks for the information."
"Don't do anything dangerous, okay? It's not worth it to get hurt for this."
I couldn't help squinting my eyes at her.
"It's not worth it, you say?"
She panicked slightly.
("Darn. I messed up. I didn't mean it like this.")
"I-I misspoke. Sorry."
"Yeah. I'll get going now. Enjoy your lunch."
("Ugh. Why did I have to say something like this? I'm so stupid!")
("Hahaha. I thought she was doing too well but she obviously had to make a mistake at the end. Just like usual. Even more ammunition for me. Hmm, that guy has a nice piece of ass. What did the butt say to the penis? You've got some balls to hang around here! Hehe.")
I almost turned back to look at her one last time. It seemed this girl really liked bad dirty jokes. Since I wanted to make them my allies, any sort of information was good to have about them, even if it was the most unexpected. I carefully remembered her taste for later use.
The discussion had turned out almost as I expected. I knew there would be a reason why they hadn't done anything about the situation so my goal from the start was to get them to promise some help.
'Now then, time to think about what I can do. She wasn't wrong when she said I was a powerless kid. I know that better than anyone else. It's just that this powerless kid is also a mind reader. That changes everything. With my range, I can get access to information that would be impossible for others to come across. I'll just have to hang around the places she gave me and see if I can learn anything interesting.'
But first, I had to grab some lunch and finish school for the day. There was no need to skip school and get into unnecessary trouble. Students hanging out in the streets during school time were far too noticeable.
The rest of school time was uneventful. I was still listening to Sapik's stories from time to time and I thought I would need to bust a nut after this. Somehow, her stories were pretty arousing for me too. She might have a talent for this.
After school, I started my big plan. I first headed to the locations the gang owned in the city center. I either passed by them as a pedestrian or stayed close for a few minutes faking to play on my phone. As I did this, a lot of information came in. Amani, the daughter of the gang leader, didn't lie to me. Those gangsters were doing all kinds of crap right in the middle of town.
Most often, they had legal businesses on the front with access to a special area, either deeper in the building or on an underground floor. Perhaps because this was still in the city center, the worst of their activities weren't there. These places only gave access to gambling areas or rooms with prostitutes. One of them also was selling some light drugs. I could see and "hear" all sorts of clients entering those places as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
I guessed this was what happened when you had the police on your side. There were so many dirty thoughts around that I couldn't help getting angry repeatedly. And these were just the milder parts of their businesses.
Eventually, I learned a lot of things about them but there was nothing important, at least not enough to make for a good deal with the Giusta gang.
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