Rebirth: Divine Machine-Making Master - Chapter 19
Chapter 19: 200 Bullets
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The mechanical arm moved towards the youth’s throat.
The youth was so scared that his body was shaking.
“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you. Did you wet your pants?”
Elrond said with a smile. The mechanical arm was less than half an inch away from the youth’s throat.
He could feel the cold presence of the mechanical arm.
“Do you know what you’ve done wrong?”
The young man smiled bitterly and said, “Next time, I will bring a small cannon along.”
He hit the youth’s head and said, “Still thinking of harming others.
“Actually, I’m in the same trade as you.”
Elrond said as he untied the bundle from the youth’s body.
The water and food were of great use to Elrond. He did not lack medicine now, but his supplies were running low.
“Hey Boss, since we are in the same trade, please let me go. I will be your henchman from now on,” the youth immediately said with an ingratiating smile.
Elrond could not be bothered to continue with the nonsense and directly knocked the youth unconscious.
He did not kill him.
After taking the youth’s supplies, he headed directly towards the distant nomads.
Although they were called nomads, they were not the same race who rode on horseback.
To put it in a good way, they were vagrants. Otherwise, they were also known as fugitives.
This was a mixed group of good and bad people. Some had committed crimes in the bigger cities and were banished, so they had no choice but to wander outside.
They lived like this for the past hundred years.
They did not have a fixed residence, and the modified buses were their homes.
Although the space was small, they had everything they needed to survive.
Elrond walked into the tribe. The children were curious, the women’s eyes lit up, and the men continued to sharpen their knives. They continued to work, with cold hostility on their faces.
He walked up to a convenience store-like bus.
There were many supplies inside.
A fat man was sharpening his knife at the door. When he saw Elrond walking over, his eyes flashed with an ice-cold glint.
“Heyo, a guest? You must be a tourist?”
He rubbed his rough hands and came to Elrond enthusiastically, as though he was receiving a good friend.
Elrond said without batting an eyelid, “Boss, I want to buy some supplies.”
A wretched smile appeared on Fatty’s face. He asked, “Sir, I wonder if you know about our rules here?”
“Rules? Tell me about them?”
Elrond drank a mouthful of water with sand in it.
The water here was all like this.
“The rules here are—”
Fatty stared at Elrond’s bulging backpack and said, “The rules here are we don’t accept cash, and we only do barter trade. You know, the world isn’t very peaceful, so things like money might become waste paper one day.”
Elrond nodded and said, “I have plenty of commodities here.”
“But I’m not sure if you have sufficient supplies. I want dried meat and water. It will be awesome if you have daily necessities as well. I also need some clothes. Do you have all these items?”
Fatty opened the door of the bus and walked in. Shortly after, he brought out many supplies and placed them on the table in front of Elrond. “Sir, as long as you have enough supplies, all these are yours.”
Elrond reached into his backpack, took out four to five bullets, and slammed them on the table.
“How many bullets?” Elrond pointed to the supplies on the table and said, “How many bullets for these?”
Fatty rolled his eyes and said, “It’s not much. Sir, since this is your first time here, I’ll give you a discount, 200 bullets.”
Elrond did not say a word.
This fatty was asking for a sky-high price.
In such a dangerous society, bullets were an extremely scarce supply.
The workmanship of bullets was much higher than guns.
Without professional techniques and under normal circumstances, it was impossible to counterfeit.
Moreover, the requirement for metal was extremely high.
If something went wrong with the manufacturing process, the guns would occasionally end up exploding.
It seemed like he had a lot of supplies. But if it was used daily, Elrond would need to replenish his supply within five days.
Therefore, he simply stood up and left without saying a word.
Fatty put down the bottle of mineral water and went after him. He held on to Elrond’s arm.
“Why are you holding on to me?” Elrond frowned and asked.
“Boss, do you want to exchange or not?”
“You’re asking for a sky-high price. I’ll be a fool if I exchange.
“But if you can make it cheaper, I will consider.”
There was no other way. This tactic was taking a step back to advance.
It was really difficult to meet people in such an open area.
This was equivalent to a no man’s land.
If this fatty gave way, he would bear with it if it was expensive.
“Alright, I’ll give you some leeway. Let’s talk.”
Elrond was a little surprised. Why did this fatty suddenly become so easy-going?
They could actually negotiate on this?
The two of them returned to their seats.
Fatty treated Elrond like a VIP and poured him a glass of water.
Elrond did not hesitate and drank it in one gulp.
Fatty stretched out four fingers.
Elrond frowned and asked, “140 bullets, in exchange for these commodities?”
“No—, it’s 240 bullets.”
Elrond was so angry that he almost spat on him. This fatty raised the price.
How was this called lowering the price? This was clearly raising the price.
He looked at the fatty for three seconds, and the other party had a smug look on his face.
Elrond knew that if he did not go on a killing spree today, he would be doomed.
A buyer would never be able to outsmart a seller.
Elrond took out 240 bullets and slammed them on the table.
Fatty said unhurriedly, “Let me count them.”
He counted the bullets one by one, not anxious at all.
Elrond winced.
After a few minutes, Fatty finally finished counting and swept them into his pocket.
“You only gave me 230 bullets, and there are still 10 pieces left to complete this transaction. It’s not good to be so dishonest.”
Elrond stood up abruptly and panted heavily.
His hands were shaking as he reached into his pocket and touched his gun.
He wanted to take it out and settle everything.
But he calmed down and thought things through. It was only 10 bullets and it was better to keep the peace.
It was not good to cause trouble here.
He took out 10 bullets and said, “Is this enough?”
That fatty grabbed the bullets and said, “You’re not a decent person. Aren’t you still missing five bullets?”
Elrond’s mouth twitched. His gaze gradually turned cold as he said, “Alright then, I won’t exchange anymore. Return my 250 bullets to me.”
The fatty’s manner instantly became exaggerated as he said, “What? 250 bullets? Sir, are you crazy? Just now, you only gave me 140 bullets?”
Bang!
“This is extortion,” Elrond said as he slammed the table.
The next moment, the fatty pulled out his gun and pressed it against Elrond’s temple. “I extort, I create a din, and I have always done this to everyone, regardless if they were a child or an adult. Either you give me another 20 bullets, or I’ll return you 100 bullets. Then you can take your things and leave. Make your choice.
“Otherwise, I will show you that the gun in my hand is not to be trifled with.”
