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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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Redwood.
When people name the worst slums in Neon City, they never leave out that name.
Of course, there were other slums that had a similar feel, like the Sin Sector in Chinatown, or the buraku in Little Shinjuku.
But since it was a place called the home of the ‘orcs,’ I thought that the image was probably even worse.
But in the end, still, it was an area inside the city’s fence.
To me, who had rolled around with Catherine in the garbage dump, where laws and rules could not be found, during my childhood, it didn’t feel particularly scary.
“Everyone lives there too, you know!”
As if he could read minds, the ‘orc taxi driver,’ who had seen right through my thoughts, spoke up at a good time.
The way of speaking, replaced by the translation module, sounded quite unique.
At the taxi driver’s words, I turned my gaze from the window and looked toward the driver’s seat.
Quite a few unique decorations were placed in various spots. No clear nationality was visible, so it seemed to just contain the taste of the orc taxi driver.
“I suppose so.”
“Haha, that’s right.”
The taxi driver responded to my answer.
He was a very affable orc.
Normally, I would have of course hailed an unmanned taxi, but today, I had no choice.
Because just as I was about to call a taxi by setting the operator to unmanned, the following phrase was displayed in the taxi call module.
【The said area, [Redwood], is an area where insurance services according to the city laws do not apply. The call for an [Unmanned Taxi (4~6 seater)] is not possible.】
In the end, because of that, we had no choice.
We called a taxi driven by an orc driver and entrusted him with the driving.
What on earth is the state of this neighborhood, for insurance services not to apply.
For a moment, the hooded men shouting ‘ssi-bongbanggeo’ and ‘ssyang-neomegeo’ flashed through my mind.
…….
I guess it’s possible.
As a result of my briefly checking the Neon City message board before getting on the taxi, the public opinion on net space was that it was treated similarly to other ‘hoods.’
Always induce the opponent’s carelessness.
Stay away from things other than green.
Always move unpredictably.
Things like that were the main content.
I wonder what it’s really like.
I felt the rough vibration of the road with my whole body, half in anticipation, half in worry, with a very small amount of thought for Smith.
“I can definitely see why people come for tourism. It’s the first time I’ve seen a tree actually planted in the ground.”
Catherine said, admiring the view outside the window. Just by her appearance, she was no different from a tourist.
In fact, that reaction was also understandable.
Even in the city, there were occasionally trees planted along the streets, but the truth was that they were machines with air-purifying functions, streetlights, so it was worth looking at with wonder.
The orc driver who heard Catherine’s comment looked at us, who were sitting in the back seat, through the rearview mirror.
“But, are you customers also going to Redwood for tourism?”
Hmm. I couldn’t answer easily.
It was an awkward atmosphere to say that we were going to find someone who had gone missing.
As I couldn’t answer easily, the orc driver, who had nodded to himself, changed the subject of the conversation and continued to speak.
“Hmm, for tourism. Actually, I was born in Redwood too, so thanks to being born and raised there, I know roughly what the atmosphere is like there now.”
A strange-shaped tusk ornament hanging from the rearview mirror swayed back and forth with the vibration.
“Around this time of year, the gang turf wars get intense. It’s a really noisy time, so honestly, I recommend not going in for tourism….”
That was not something a taxi driver who had received credits to take us there should say.
As if he knew that fact himself, his voice grew smaller toward the end.
A brief silence followed.
“Yep, we’re here.”
The taxi stopped near the corner of the road.
“Actually, we’ve been in the Redwood area for a while now, but the place where people really live is from this point on.”
The irregular landscape of the area I had seen through the documentary a while ago stretched out.
Old and low buildings.
Rather than being inside the city of cyberpunk, the atmosphere was like being in the slums of LA.
“This is the home of the orcs, Redwood.”
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The orc who received the payment gave an innocent smile.
“Hehe, thanks.”
Perhaps because he had been living in the city, that answer was quite natural.
Of course, each time he did, his sharp tusks asserted their presence outside his mouth, so his face looked similar to the smile of a heinous robber.
At least it was a relief that he didn’t suddenly change his attitude and say.
‘Since you’ve come this far, I’ll have to charge extra. Customer. You don’t have any? Are you kidding me now—.’
Something like that. For reference, the part where he suddenly spoke in standard language was a detail based on a vivid personal experience.
In any case, thankfully, it didn’t seem like the taxi driver in front of me was going to change his profession to a robber.
Choosing a driver (orc) with an above-average socialization score was the right answer.
Since it was a lower-level area, the road maintenance was not good. We each got out of the taxi and stretched widely.
We loosened our stiff bodies with stretching.
“Huh?”
Catherine pointed to the inside of Redwood.
“Someone’s coming over there?”
At Catherine’s words, Eve’s head moved toward the inside of the area.
“Entity name ‘orc,’ entity count is 3.”
“No, I can tell that much just by looking.”
“The average height of the 3 is 201cm, which is higher than the average height of orcs surveyed in Neon City. A peculiar feature is that they are each wearing a scarf.”
“…I don’t need to know their height.”
I listened to Catherine and Eve’s silly conversation.
As they said, three orcs were swaggering toward us from inside.
The pants, worn so low that their underwear was visible, particularly stole my gaze. I never dreamed that I would see the sagging fashion that rappers in my past life often did here as well.
Heavy—, no. It’s a fashion that goes against the times.
At least the sunglasses worn by the orc in the very center seemed to be smart lenses, but I couldn’t understand why his attire was like that.
“I told you, they’d be human.”
“Coming for tourism at this time of year, they must be crazy to want a hole in their stomach.”
The orcs slowly approached us. As they got closer to us, Catherine’s fists also gradually tensed up.
With Catherine, who could easily smash a punch machine, by my side, I had nothing to fear either.
But before anything could happen, the taxi driver, who saw the approaching orcs, got out of the driver’s seat faster.
The taxi driver stood in front of his fellow orcs and shouted.
“Hey, hey! Brothers! Stop for a moment!”
“Huh?”
The orcs, who had stopped for a moment, glared sharply at the taxi driver, who was of the same race.
But regardless, the taxi driver still opened his mouth with a smiling face and spoke in a friendly manner.
“Vigilante activities are good and all, but you don’t have to do that to my customers.”
At the taxi driver’s smooth words, the three orcs frowned at the same time.
Anyone would have thought they were close friends. But seeing the orcs’ nervous reaction, it was clear that they were seeing each other for the first time.
“…Who are you to be calling us brothers? You city orc bastard—.”
Just as a curse was about to erupt, the taxi driver introduced himself and said,
“Aren’t you the ones under Big Mama at the crossroads? Seeing as you’re all wearing scarves, it must be getting cold already.”
At those words, the orcs’ reaction softened.
“…How do you know Big Mama?”
“I’m from Redwood too. That’s why I called you brothers, isn’t it. It’s rare for someone from Redwood not to have eaten Big Mama’s slop.”
It seemed there was really something between people from Redwood, as the atmosphere changed in an instant.
“What, you were from our neighborhood? And here I thought, since you were driving a city taxi, that you weren’t.”
“What won’t a man do to make a living.”
They exchanged a brief conversation as if asking about each other’s recent well-being.
“Yeah, the atmosphere is pretty grim these days, so if you’re with a group, take good care of them.”
“Don’t worry and go on in.”
Before long, without any problems, the orcs turned back the way they had come.
“Whew, that was a close call.”
The taxi driver, who let out a short sigh, spoke.
“It seems the atmosphere has been very grim lately. Still, the basic atmosphere is not to touch tourists, but to see something like this right from the entrance.”
I expressed my gratitude to the orc, who was very rare in the city (with no criminal record).
“Thank you for looking out for us.”
“Don’t mention it, there can be good orcs too.”
Even a little self-deprecating joke.
Finally, the taxi driver looked at me and gave his final piece of advice.
“And I recommend you take off your mask while you’re here, if you can. Since a lot of criminals hide out here, there are a lot of orcs who don’t like people who wear masks.”
I nodded my head. Of course, that didn’t mean I immediately took off my mask.
Right near here was the factory district, Cloud Park. The air quality was so bad that a person with a weak body like me could collapse in less than 30 minutes.
More than that, another thought came to mind first.
“Then I’ll be on my way. Whether it’s tourism or something else, I hope you do well and return safely.”
I caught him as he was about to get back into the taxi after finishing his farewell.
“Just a moment, sir.”
When you have to make a request like this, it’s helpful to use the title ‘sir.’
“…What is it?”
As if it were an unfamiliar title, the taxi driver with an awkward expression looked at me.
“From what I heard you say, it seems you’re from Redwood. By any chance, could I ask for another service?”
“……?”
He frowned at my words.
It looked as if he were angry, but in fact, it was a misunderstanding that could arise because orcs originally have a rough appearance.
He was probably just curious.
“Actually, we came here to find someone. Since it’s our first time here, we thought it would be better if we had someone to help us.”
The taxi driver, who understood what I was trying to ask, frowned a little more.
The taxi driver said in a firm voice.
“I refuse. No matter what, I’m not so desperate for credits as to take on a guide jo—.”
A while ago, I had sent an additional fee to the account I had paid to.
“This is as much as I can give…, but if you don’t want to, I can’t help it.”
“—But, if you customers insist, then for today, I will take on the role of a guide.”
It was too many credits to refuse.
An amount made possible because I was overflowing with the credits I had received as compensation from the chairman of Ko-ozaka, Pete Mac.
The taxi driver, who had changed his tune, beat his chest and shouted as if to say, ‘trust me.’
“My name is ‘Thomas,’ you can just call me Tom.”
And just like that, we got ourselves a one-day guide.
“The name of the person you’re looking for is ‘Smith,’ you say?!”
“Yes, by any chance, do you know him?”
“The orc Smiths I know are just over 20. I just said it for the sake of it.”
“……”
I continued with a secondary explanation.
“First of all, he’s an orc.”
“Of course he would be.”
“…He’s a man about 2m tall.”
“Most of the male orcs here are 2m.”
“……He’s bald, for one.”
“The Smiths I know are all bald too.”
“He works at a place called No Answer….”
“Where’s that? A corporation? Then is that person a taxi driver too, by any chance?”
“……”
It probably would have been faster to just use Eve’s help and track Smith’s vital signs….
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