Chapter 610 - 606: Three Male Aunties?

Name a number?

Ethan Sterling couldn’t help but laugh as he read the three words. He could practically picture his sister’s casual, languid expression as she’d sent the reply.

’That’s my sister for you!’

He just didn’t have a rough budget estimate yet, so he replied, "I’ll talk to you about it when I get home."

When he got downstairs, he was surprised to see Jameson Stone right by the elevators.

"Ethan?"

Jameson Stone froze when he saw Ethan Sterling. "Why are you down here? Done with practice?"

Ethan Sterling let out a soft laugh and shook his head, retorting, "What are you doing waiting here?"

With a nervous expression, Jameson Stone pulled Ethan Sterling around the corner from the elevators and pointed toward the building’s main entrance. "Golden Blade and his guys are outside. Are they waiting for you?"

Golden Blade and his crew were standing on the stone steps outside, smoking and chatting.

Ethan Sterling nodded. "Yeah. You hiding from them? What’s there to be afraid of?"

Jameson Stone had been with him back when Golden Blade helped him out of that jam in front of No. 2 High, so he should have known they weren’t actually bad guys.

"I’m not scared, exactly, it’s just... I don’t really know them," Jameson Stone said, then asked cautiously, "Ethan, why are they waiting for you?"

"I told them to wait. We’re going to grab a bite together."

As he spoke, Ethan Sterling was already walking outside. Jameson Stone swallowed whatever he was about to say and hurried to catch up.

"Ethan, you all done?"

As Golden Blade and his crew saw Ethan Sterling approach, they naturally noticed Jameson Stone behind him. They remembered the kid; he’d been there both times they’d run into Ethan—at the pool hall and in front of No. 2 High.

’He must be a good friend of Ethan’s.’

So Golden Blade met Jameson Stone’s eyes with a slight nod—a silent greeting.

Jameson Stone felt a little awkward, but he still gave a small nod in return.

Since this was a spontaneous meeting and it was already late afternoon, Ethan Sterling didn’t make a big fuss. He simply found a noodle shop that was still open on that same bustling street they’d just been on.

Golden Blade and his crew weren’t picky. In fact, they seemed more comfortable in a place like this, and they all promptly ordered the noodles they wanted.

"Jameson, are you eating?" Ethan Sterling asked Jameson Stone.

Jameson Stone shook his head. "I already ate lunch."

So, Ethan Sterling ordered extra meat for all of Golden Blade’s crew’s noodles and added two cold side dishes. He only stopped after Golden Blade repeatedly insisted that it was more than enough.

"What happened to your flyers?" Ethan Sterling asked, noticing their hands were empty.

Golden Blade quickly explained, "They’re in Caelum’s bag. We’re not done yet. We’re going to go back out when the streets get busier around five or six. We don’t get paid unless we hand them all out."

Jameson Stone’s expression turned curious when he heard they were handing out flyers.

Ethan Sterling didn’t say anything right away, instead just telling them to eat first.

Those two grilled sausages from lunch obviously hadn’t been enough. The moment the noodles arrived, the three of them started scarfing them down. The sight was so alarming that Ethan Sterling ordered them some drinks while reminding them to eat more slowly.

Golden Blade finished first. He wiped his mouth with a napkin and gave Ethan Sterling an embarrassed smile. "Man, I was starving. Thanks, Ethan. We’re mooching off you again."

"Don’t worry about it. You full? I can order another bowl if you’re not."

"More than enough! I’m stuffed!"

A moment later, Caelum and Monkey also put down their chopsticks. Only then did Ethan Sterling hesitantly ask, "How much can you make in a day handing out flyers?"

Golden Blade’s expression turned a little awkward. To them, this kind of work was embarrassing—otherwise, they wouldn’t have come all this way to do it.

Caelum chimed in, "Well, it’s enough for food and smokes for the day."

"Weren’t you guys at Kai’s pool hall?" Jameson Stone asked instinctively. "Did Kai stop looking out for you?"

’That pool hall was full of young drifters just like them, and Golden Blade was practically a leader there. How could they be struggling just to eat?’

"Kai has done more than enough for us," Golden Blade explained. "He split whatever the pool hall made with all of us brothers. But business has been getting worse and worse, and we can’t just keep leeching off him."

They weren’t his official underlings to begin with. They were just drifting around with nowhere else to go and ended up gathering at Kai’s pool hall.

Kai took pity on them, so he let them do odd jobs around the pool hall to earn a little spending money.

If the pool hall ever went under, their group would just scatter.

"This isn’t a long-term solution," Ethan Sterling said with a sigh as he looked at them. "Do you have any other plans?"

At his words, the crew exchanged a look. Golden Blade was the first to shake his head. "What kind of plans can we make? We don’t have diplomas, and we don’t have skills. This is all we can do."

His tone was one of complete resignation.

Caelum and Monkey remained silent. The three of them were always together; they clearly felt the same way.

"As it happens, I need to hire some people. You three should come work for me," Ethan Sterling said suddenly, his expression turning serious.

He hadn’t said, "Let me help you," but rather, "You three should come work for me." The phrasing made all the difference.

"Work for you?" Golden Blade instantly perked up, his expression hardening. "Is someone bullying you again? Who? Tell me, and I’ll make damn sure they regret it!"

Ethan Sterling blinked, then laughed in exasperation. "What does that have to do with anything? No one’s bullying me. I need your help with something serious."

"What kind of thing?" Golden Blade asked, confused.

Ethan Sterling didn’t hide anything and explained directly, "I’m putting together an e-sports team for the school, and I’m renting a base in Solara Tower. I want the three of you to handle logistics for my team."

"Huh?"

Everyone was stunned. Even Jameson Stone’s eyes went wide as he stared at Ethan Sterling. ’Logistics? Like, three male housekeepers?’

Ethan Sterling continued with a calm expression. "I can’t promise anything else, but I can guarantee a fixed monthly salary and bonuses, just like a real job. The three of you can’t keep going on like this. Since you’ve already been forced to hand out flyers, you might as well come to my place and get your lives back on track."

First, get yourselves a proper job.

It doesn’t matter what the work is.

Just do it.

"Ethan, you don’t have to do this for us," Golden Blade said, his voice thick with emotion.

But Ethan Sterling corrected him, "I’m not doing this for you. Or rather, not *just* for you. I really do need people. And the logistics work for a team is messy and involves a lot of different tasks. To put it bluntly, it’s a service job. The prerequisite is that you have to be willing. I don’t think there’s any shame in earning money with your own two hands."

"Blade," Caelum couldn’t help but speak up, looking at Golden Blade. "Ethan’s put it like that... why don’t we give it a shot? At the very least, it’s better than handing out flyers, right?"

Monkey said nothing, just staring at Golden Blade with pleading eyes.

Seeing the looks in his brothers’ eyes, Golden Blade took a deep breath and finally nodded. "Alright. We’ll do it!"