At that table were four people, three men and one woman. Although they all wore hats and masks, because they were drinking, they had taken off their masks. They were all young people.
Among them, the woman took a sip of alcohol, probably not liking this strange taste, her slightly intellectual-looking face twitched unnaturally, then she pushed up her black-rimmed glasses and said, "The sub-branch people are really radical, and their ability to act is also unexpectedly strong. We had just received news that they were going to blow up Mako Reactor No. 1 and hadn't even had time to respond, and they had already brought the reactor down."
"Nayo, watch your wording. Barret has already been expelled from the main branch." The one speaking was a young man with long golden hair. Unlike the woman with glasses named Nayo, he seemed to enjoy drinking, after boldly taking a large gulp, he continued, "But that guy really does what he says. If he weren't so radical, he'd definitely be a reliable backbone of the main branch."
"No matter what, he dealt a blow to Shinra's rule. That's something worth celebrating. Come, a toast, Billy, to victory." The man sitting beside him, also with short golden hair, raised his glass.
"Let's all join." The woman named Nayo also raised her glass, then nudged the youngest companion beside her with her elbow. "Polk, you too."
The boy named Polk nodded and clinked glasses with them.
After drinking the alcohol in his cup, Billy casually wiped his mouth, then turned his head and shouted toward the bar, "Four more beers, please."
"Alright, please wait a moment." Tifa responded. While pouring the beer, she said to the curious Aiden, "See them? They're people from Avalanche's main branch. But Barret doesn't get along with them. He never gives them a good face when they meet."
"Then why are they drinking here?" Aerith asked Aiden's unspoken question.
"Although Barret was expelled, it doesn't affect us much. It's not like we're enemies." Tifa smiled, then carried the drinks over with a tray.
"Your drinks!" Tifa placed the beers in front of them.
"Thanks!" Billy nodded to Tifa. After she left, he turned to the short-haired blond man beside him and said, "Speaking of which, Zhijie, when are the people from Wutai arriving? Have you contacted them?"
The man named Zhijie was the middleman responsible for contact between the Wutai provisional government and Avalanche main branch.
When Billy mentioned it, he frowned and said, "I contacted them, but that was yesterday during the day. I only know they're in a village near Midgar. But you know, after Barret made such a big scene, Shinra's investigation on us got even tighter. From last night until now, I haven't dared to turn on my communicator, afraid Shinra's intel department would listen in. So now I can't reach them."
"That's troublesome." Billy sighed. "They know nothing about Midgar. Someone must receive them."
"We need to send someone to pick them up." Nayo, holding her beer, frowned at the liquid inside. "Who among us is free?"
"Actually, we all have free time. But in this situation, who can safely get out?" Zhijie gave a bitter smile. "Because of Barret, Shinra pinned this whole thing on us. I even heard someone asking around about Avalanche this morning, seems like people from Sector 6's Corneo gang. They're Shinra's dogs raised in the slums."
"That makes it difficult..." Billy sighed again.
With his sigh, everyone fell into thought.
At this moment, the youngest, Polk, suddenly said, "If we can't go, maybe we can ask outsiders to help pick them up?"
"Use your brain, Polk. This is an internal Avalanche matter, we can't let outsiders know." Nayo lightly knocked his head.
Polk, covering his head, said, "It's just picking someone up. We don't need to tell them the person's identity."
"But…" Nayo wanted to say more, but Zhijie, sitting across from her, said, "I think that method is feasible. After all, it's just picking someone up."
"I think it works too." Billy nodded.
"Then… alright." Nayo could only agree, but she immediately asked, "Then where do we find someone?"
"That's easy. There are lots of people in Midgar making a living as mercenaries. When I arrived, I heard about someone in the Rubble Street who calls himself the 'All-Purpose Helper', though I don't know where he is now. So we can find someone in the bar. Seems like there's someone already here." Billy was Avalanche's intelligence collector. He had noticed the sign hanging on the bar's door when he entered.
"How do we find him? There's no contact info on the sign." Nayo asked. Actually, she had noticed the sign too.
"Simple. Ask the bar owner, Miss Tifa." Billy grinned. "The sign's on her bar door. She must know."
Saying this, he picked up his beer and walked toward the bar, and happened to sit beside Aiden.
"Miss Tifa, can I ask you something?" Billy had just sat down and called out, while also glancing at Aerith, who was chatting with Aiden. He'd been to this bar many times, but this was the first time seeing her.
"Ask away." Tifa nodded.
"Excuse me, where is that mercenary who calls himself the 'Midgar City Hunter'? I want to hire him for something." Billy said, "Of course, if he's unavailable, then forget it."
"Don't worry. He's available." Tifa said, then looked at Aiden. "See? Business is here."
"Him?" Billy was stunned and turned his head toward Aiden. "You're the Midgar City Hunter?"
"That's me." Aiden raised his glass and saluted him.
"Does the guest need my help?" he continued.
Billy sized up Aiden. Although he looked rather ordinary, the nickname sounded cool, so he said, "I want to ask you to pick up two people."
"Where?" Aiden was also surprised. 'Pick up people? That sounds like going out of town.'
"A village outside Midgar." Billy confirmed. "That shouldn't be too hard, right?"
Of course Aiden shook his head. But before he could answer, Aerith said, "Out of town? No way."
"Huh?" Billy looked at Aerith, confused. "Why not?"
"No reason. I just feel it's dangerous outside." Aerith glared at Aiden. "You're not allowed to go."
"This…" Aiden was a little dumbfounded.
"Looks like this so-called 'Midgar City Hunter' is just an empty title." Billy shook his head, left a remark, and prepared to leave. He planned to go find the All-Purpose Helper.
"I'll take the job." Aiden suddenly pressed a hand on his shoulder, then said to Aerith, "You don't want your man to be spoken of like that, right?"
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