Chapter 113 - 111: Dividing the Spoils

Chapter 113: Chapter 111: Dividing the Spoils

"WHOOSH—!"

The cave blocked out the raging storm, but it couldn’t stop the muffled sound of the rain and the whining howl of the wind.

Bai Ya’s linen shirt wasn’t completely dry yet, still clinging tightly to her thin back and waist.

Her arms, wrapped around her legs, were stiff from the force of her grip. A speck of charcoal dust had settled on her fair feet, and you could faintly see the pale blue veins snaking beneath the skin.

The bonfire danced within its stone ring, casting a warm glow on her face but failing to dispel the dampness in her eyes.

Clearly, Bai Ya had given an answer completely opposite to Furen’s.

And this had taken Lu Wei a bit by surprise.

’So... she’s been corrupted?’

’Excellent!’

’Everyone knows corruption makes you ten times stronger!’

’So, after Mirana, I’ve gained another powerful subordinate!’

After a moment of shock, Lu Wei was overjoyed and immediately praised her:

"Good! It seems you’ve truly learned your lesson from this experience! You’ve finally seen the light!"

"But there’s one thing I need to correct you on."

"You just said it seems like there are more bad people in the world, but in reality, it doesn’t matter whether there are more good people or bad people."

"Because as long as we’re also bad—ahem, smart enough, then we’ll never be at a disadvantage!"

"And as long as we aren’t at a disadvantage, we’ll get stronger quickly!"

"Once we become strong, you’ll find that there are suddenly more good people around you, and all the bad people have disappeared!"

"This is what I call: The worse you are, the better others will be to you; the better you are, the worse others will be to you!"

Having decisively summarized his "core philosophy," Lu Wei felt his words were simply brimming with philosophical depth.

It was just a shame that Bai Ya and Furen couldn’t understand it at all.

The worse, the better? The better, the worse?

What on earth was their captain rambling on about?

Staring at him blankly, both of them looked completely lost.

Mirana, on the other hand, showed a flash of surprise in her eyes.

Because she could understand what Lu Wei meant.

Just as a Professional would be respected wherever they went, a slave would be ignored everywhere.

When facing the strong, people would always unconsciously show their goodwill.

But when facing the weak, it was already a blessing if they weren’t mocked, ridiculed, or kicked while they were down.

Even if the Kingdom’s most notorious pirate captain appeared in town, everyone would greet him with a smile and offer delicious food with both hands, not daring to show the slightest neglect.

And the next moment, these same people might toss a rock into a blind beggar’s bowl on the street, then roar with laughter at the beggar’s words of gratitude.

So perhaps Lu Wei was right.

There were very few completely "good people" or completely "bad people" in the world.

Their good and evil were merely different sides they showed depending on who they were facing.

At the very least, if those two bandits had run into a team of Professionals today, they would have just been two "poor, desperate dockworkers."

"..."

Watching Lu Wei, Mirana’s lips moved as if she wanted to say something.

But after a moment’s hesitation, she silently averted her gaze and swallowed her words.

Recalling his previous words, "I could have tolerated the darkness if I had never seen the sun..." For a moment, she suddenly felt that Lu Wei was like a philosopher with profound thoughts, capable of seeing the true nature of things.

’Hmm...’

’Though maybe I’m overthinking it, it’s not entirely wrong.’

Leaving aside whether Lu Wei’s thoughts were profound or not, he could indeed "see the true nature of things."

’Very good. Regardless, Bai Ya has successfully been corrupted.’

’I’ll deal with Furen later.’

’Right now, the most important thing is distributing the loot.’

’So, what kind of distribution method would look fair, but actually let me make out like a bandit?’

His gaze shifted from Bai Ya to the black Leather Armor on the ground, and Lu Wei fell into deep thought.

...

...

"I’ve just sorted this haul of loot."

"This pile of Equipment and Weapons on the right, we’ll find a place to hide it first and come back for it on our way back."

"As for the rest of the food, supplies, and consumables, we’ll take what’s useful and hide the rest for now too."

"As for the money, it’s a little over 3 gold coins in total. We’ll split it now to avoid any confusion later."

A few minutes later, the "debriefing and reflection meeting" came to a smooth conclusion. Next up, of course, was dividing the spoils.

Of course, since Lu Wei had killed all the bandits himself, except for the one Bai Ya had picked off, no one would have objected even if he’d proposed to take all the loot for himself.

However, Lu Wei felt it was still necessary to put on a show of fairness.

After all, if it weren’t for Furen and Bai Ya, he wouldn’t have had such a windfall.

Even Mirana, who had stayed out of the fight, wasn’t completely useless. At the very least, she had guarded their packs in the cave.

So...

"Regarding the distribution ratio for the loot, we’ve never discussed it before. Now’s the time to settle it."

His gaze swept over Furen and Bai Ya as Lu Wei said in a serious tone, "I think it’s simple. We’ll just split it evenly among us."

"Although I’m the captain and also responsible for standing guard, making decisions, performing Reconnaissance, and so on, since we’re comrades, this extra effort is only natural."

"Besides, we’re a team. We can’t use individual contributions as the basis for distribution."

"The capable do more work without expecting anything in return. That’s perfectly normal..."

Sitting up straight, Lu Wei rambled on and on. On the surface, nothing seemed wrong with what he was saying.

But judging from his overly elaborate explanations and his slowing speech, it seemed he was waiting for the right moment.