?"No!"
?Sushi jerked back, blinking in bewilderment. "Huh? What did you say?"
?"I said NO! Has deafness struck your ears?" the old man shouted with a sudden, misplaced sense of dignity. "This deed is my family's sole inheritance! Agreeing to give you half the land would be a betrayal of my ancestors' blood!"
?Sushi raised an eyebrow. In a voice that was calm yet as sharp as a blade, he retorted, "Interesting logic... but isn't losing the entire land due to your stubbornness the ultimate betrayal of those very ancestors?"
?The words caught in the old man's throat. Seizing the moment of hesitation, Sushi continued with a sly glint in his eyes: "I'll change my offer. I will take it upon myself to protect this land, and the deed shall remain yours alone. My only simple condition is 'Absolute Freedom of Action' regarding everything I do here. I will build, I will demolish, I will invest... and you shall not interfere with my decisions."
?Sushi held his breath, expecting a long-drawn battle of persuasion, but the old man suddenly burst into laughter. "Only that?! I accept with pleasure! As long as the paper is in my pocket, do as you wish! Hahaha!"
?Sushi: "..."
?
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
?However, this "economic honeymoon" did not last long. The next morning, it wasn't the morning sun that woke Sushi, but sharp, piercing screams that sliced through the walls of the dilapidated hut.
?Sushi opened one eye, a boiling sense of resentment rising in his chest. ?Did these people not pay the fee for disturbing me? Sleeping in the open is free, but waking me up should come with a tax!?
?Outside, three teenagers with the faces of "Level 1 Thugs" were surrounding the trembling old man. It was clear they were "cheap tools" sent by someone to push the old man toward the brink of madness—and eventual eviction.
?Sushi stepped out of the hut, his expression cold. The leader looked at him with a sneer. "Oh! Look at that, the old man found himself a begging partner! Is this your bodyguard?"
?The teenagers laughed, but Sushi was already analyzing the situation. ?Sent by the Guild? Perhaps. Will I waste my energy on a fair fight? Impossible. Fairness is too expensive.?
?Suddenly, Sushi's face twisted into a mask of feigned terror. He pointed frantically behind the boy, screaming, "Watch out! A two-horned snake behind you!"
?The boy's heart skipped a beat. He instinctively ducked and spun around in panic. At that exact moment, as his "sensitive targets" were left wide open... Sushi's leg launched like a projectile!
?"CRACK!"
?The boy collapsed, letting out a muffled sound that resembled a death rattle, clutching a pain that would change the pitch of his voice forever.
?"Brother!" the second boy cried out, charging toward Sushi.
?Coldly, Sushi pulled out a gold coin that shimmered under the sun and tossed it directly into the boy's path. The laws of physics say "Gravity attracts objects," but Sushi's laws say: "Gold attracts fools."
?The boy's eyes veered toward the glitter, his feet stumbled, and he fell into a "face-plant" position right beneath Sushi's boot. With a casual flick, Sushi kicked a cloud of dirt into the crying boy's eyes. He then picked up his coin with mock dignity. "What a careless boy. You almost stained my money with your cheap tears."
?The third boy, who was rather chubby, exploded in rage. "How dare you!"
?"Oh, calm down," Sushi said, dropping the coin near him. "Take this and forget what happened."
?The chubby boy lunged for the coin like a puppy chasing a bone. Before he could grab it, Sushi stomped the ground hard, sending a wave of dust that completely blinded the boy. While he was flailing, Sushi snatched the coin back from between his limp fingers with a victorious smirk.
?Sushi turned toward the leader lying on the ground. "How much longer do you plan on acting? Get up."
?The "neutered" boy scrambled up in terror, hauled his staggering friends, and bolted. They screamed as they retreated: "We won't forget this! What is your name, you bastard?!"
?Sushi adjusted his collar with pride and declared in a confident voice:
?"Remember the name well... I am the Egg-Cracker!"