Deviant composed a message in the chat box and clicked send:

[Mr. Gu Demiao Ning, are you thinking of settling in Zone 5? A friendly reminder that Zone 5 is currently experiencing severe conflict among the wolf packs. Its danger level has skyrocketed, so we don’t recommend you go.]

[You might not be very familiar with the Upper Districts. Settling there isn’t just about understanding the cost of living. If you didn’t grow up in Zone 5 and want to move there now, you’ll need a relatively clean personal record and excellent work skills. Otherwise, you won’t be able to reside in the Upper Districts for long. If you consider cooperating with us, we will help you secure a residence permit for the Second District, arrange for the best housing there, and provide you with protection.]

After sending these two messages, Deviant sent Gu Demiao Ning several photos of the Second District’s cityscape.

The photos captured the most prosperous side of the Second District: skyscrapers, a vibrant nightlife, clean and tidy streets, and orderly traffic.

It was exactly like the developed cities Gu Ning had seen in the human world, but the scale of the Beastman architecture was much larger. Even just in the photos, the magnificent silver-white buildings were breathtaking.

Deviant sent a few more pictures.

Gu Ning opened them. They were interior shots of a house.

Living room, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom... Every room was spacious and bright. The design was simple yet exuded a subtle, exquisite luxury. The decor had a modern style and looked very classy.

’If this were in my world, a place like this would cost tens of millions, at least.’

Deviant: [This is a house in the center of the Second District. If you don’t like this style, I have a few other properties on hand.]

Gu Ning looked at the pictures of the Second District, her expression hesitant.

She had spent the whole afternoon reading private messages. In her mind, Zone 5 had transformed from a fairytale forest city into a dangerous jungle teeming with wild beasts.

Deviant continued to send messages:

[Of course, this is all just a show of my sincerity. If you consider working with us, we can sign a contract and pay you an additional licensing fee.]

It was impossible for Gu Ning not to be tempted. Who wouldn’t be swayed by an offer like that?

She had previously learned from Barto about the conditions for buying property in other districts. Now, after learning more from the Beastmens’ private messages and from Deviant, she realized that settling in an Upper District required even more troublesome procedures.

Perhaps she could rely on her status as a female to settle in an Upper District, but what about Cook?

For him, it wasn’t even a question of being able to settle down; just getting into an Upper District might be a huge problem.

She had seen in a private message that Zone 5 was aggressively expelling Mixed Breeds. Most Mixed Breeds could only live on the outskirts of the city, far from residential areas, or out in the wilderness.

’If Zone 5 is like this, the other Upper Districts are probably about the same.’

Gu Ning looked at the pictures Deviant kept sending. After a moment of thought, she replied:

[I’ll think about it.]

When Deviant saw that Gu Demiao Ning had finally replied, he was so happy he shot up from the sofa. "We’ve got a chance!" he said to Idelos.

Idelos looked up from his book. "What conditions did he propose?"

Deviant: "Not yet... Wait."

Seeing the new message from Gu Demiao Ning, Deviant said with some surprise, "He says he’ll only consider cooperating if we get him three residence permits."

Idelos had an ’I knew it’ expression on his face. In a cool voice, he said, "I’m guessing he has at least one Mixed Breed brother."

Deviant glanced at him and sat back down on the sofa. "How did you guess?"

Idelos: "A wolf wants to move to an Upper District as winter approaches, and he’s asking for three residence permits. Besides carrying dead weight, I can’t think of any other reason."

Deviant stroked his chin thoughtfully. "True. If he wanted to join a stronger wolf pack, there would be no need to ask me for residence permits, especially not three of them."

Wolves are one of the races that values their pack the most. They’re either lone wolves or they run with a pack.

An alpha wolf leading a pack often acts as a patriarch. If an alpha Wolf Beastman takes his pack to live in another district, as long as the alpha completes the procedures, the rest of the pack doesn’t need to go through much paperwork—just a genetic test.

But the alpha has to be responsible for his pack.

However, this system of checks made it easy for various gangs to form, so the Beast Alliance strengthened inspections and management specifically for wolf packs years ago.

The result was that wolf packs didn’t form strong gang-like factions in the other Upper Districts, but instead came to occupy almost an entire Upper District for themselves—namely, Zone 5.

For a race that’s so tightly-knit, neither collective management nor one-on-one management is effective.

Although the Beast Alliance intended to disperse the wolf packs by assigning newborn Beastmen to other districts, wolves have an incredibly strong sense of territory and are one of the races most prone to claiming land and fighting. They also have a status hierarchy within their packs, making it difficult for an integrated wolf to leave on their own. Many of those who do leave their packs are lone wolves only because they were kicked out for one reason or another.

Online, everyone says they hate the Dog Clan the most, but in reality, the Wolf Clan is the most disliked.

The Beast Alliance’s attempt to change the pack mentality and reduce their excessive territorial disputes by placing newborn members of the Wolf Clan in different districts has, to this day, been unsuccessful.

No matter the district, wolf packs will eventually try to seize the best territory. Even if the fighting is just between packs, it can easily cause chaos.

Unable to solve this problem, the Beast Alliance simply accepted Zone 5 as wolf territory. After their genes are tested, all newborn Wolf Beastmen are unceremoniously dumped into Zone 5 to let them fight it out.

Then, they tightened the residency procedures for the Wolf Clan in other districts. Any other wolf wanting to settle elsewhere must prove they are a lone wolf, or have been cast out of a pack as a failure.

As a result, the conflicts between wolf packs in Zone 5 became even more intense.

You either win, or you admit you’re a loser.

[No problem. You can contact me anytime once you’ve made up your mind.]

Deviant readily agreed to Gu Ning’s condition and sent her his personal terminal contact code.

Gu Ning saved Deviant’s contact code to her contact list.

She told Deviant she would think about it, not only because she genuinely needed to consider it, but also because she wasn’t currently in a position to accept his offer.

Her counter-offer was a way of leaving herself an escape route. What she wanted wasn’t his house, but the residence permits and protection.

Those two things were what she and Cook needed most.

Perhaps Barto needed them too.

She wasn’t sure what would happen if her identity as a female was exposed to the public, nor did she know if Barto would leave with her. But if he ever wanted to leave Zone 19, she could give him a hand. It would be a way of repaying the kindness he’d shown her and Cook during their time in Zone 19.

After saving Deviant’s contact info, Gu Ning boldly sent him another message:

[Your word isn’t good enough. Get Idelos to give me his guarantee.]

She didn’t know Deviant well, but she was familiar with Idelos. Idelos was a famous actor. She had seen many of his movies and TV shows. He had even condemned the officials in her comment section before, making him a public figure with considerable influence.

’To avoid being scammed, I need an intermediary.’

"Looks like I’ll really have to thank you for this one."

Deviant held the terminal out to Idelos, a playful look on his face.