Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Caught by That Manager

Barto grabbed Gu Ning by the collar and shook her. "Did you see the seal on the contract? That’s the Beast Alliance’s seal! The! Beast! Alliance! You Dwarf hybrids are hopeless! We give you an opportunity, and you still mess it up! Cook’s missed hours can be made up, you idiot! Why did you have to cover for him?!"

Gu Ning was at her wit’s end, too. How was she supposed to know!

Different species, different languages, different everything! Cook was just like a little puppy; he never told her anything!

"Woof!" Cook bit down on Barto’s hand.

Gu Ning quickly pulled Cook away.

Barto was so angry he tried to hit Cook, who in turn tried to bite him back.

Gu Ning stood between them, getting dizzy as they circled around her.

Just then, Cook’s terminal started ringing.

All three of them froze.

It was the first time Gu Ning had ever seen anyone call Cook. He had only ever received a couple of work messages from the construction site. Otherwise, his terminal was always silent, and he rarely even opened it himself.

’It seems that aside from me, Cook isn’t interested in much else. His whole world revolves around me.’

’Who could it be, this early in the morning?’

Gu Ning focused her eyes on the screen and saw the caller’s profile picture.

Black hair, black eyes, sharp and handsome features, a cold expression.

It was Alex.

Gu Ning: "..."

Seeing the incoming call, Cook grew excited for some reason. Before Gu Ning could stop him, he answered it.

"Are you at the construction site yet?"

A somewhat crisp, cool voice came from the terminal.

Knowing the Mixed Breed on the other end couldn’t speak, Alex continued, "If you can’t make it before eight, come straight to me to clock in."

Cook heard the unfamiliar voice and looked confused.

He let out a puppy-like whimper and said into the terminal, "Per...?"

The person on the other end of the call paused. "What?"

Gu Ning snapped back to her senses and quickly covered Cook’s mouth.

"I’m Alex, the site manager you worked with yesterday." Alex seemed to realize the little Mixed Breed had mistaken him for someone else and patiently repeated what he had just said.

"If you understand, make a sound."

Gu Ning pinched her throat and let out a muffled cough.

Hearing the response, Alex said, "I’ll wait for you at the North Gate."

With that, he hung up.

The room fell silent for a few moments.

"Why would the site manager call Cook... call *you*?!" Barto demanded of Gu Ning.

Gu Ning crouched down, clutching her head. She wanted to tear at her hair but could only feel her cold, hard safety helmet.

Cook crouched in front of her, tilting his head to look up into her face, and then nudged her with his head.

The nudge sent Gu Ning sitting flat on the ground. She heaved a long sigh and simply flopped onto her back.

’Let the world burn.’

A puppy-like head and a fox head peered down at her.

"Get up." Barto gave her helmet a THWACK. "Explain what’s going on at the construction site. I’ll see if I can fix it."

「Five minutes later...」

After reading what Gu Ning had written, Barto put the paper down. "This is it?"

Gu Ning nodded. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

She hadn’t told Barto much, just briefly mentioned being assigned to the outer wall and then being recruited by Alex as his assistant.

"I know this manager," Barto said.

Gu Ning’s eyes widened in surprise.

Barto: "He came to Zone 19 about two months ago. He’s the one who brought in the idea of drafting contracts for Mixed Breeds. The four major construction sites were very much against it."

With this contract, sealed by the Beast Alliance, they couldn’t openly exploit the Mixed Breeds anymore.

Before, Mixed Breeds just got one meal a day. Now, they had to be paid wages.

Similar contracts and management systems for Mixed Breeds had been implemented in other zones long ago, and they had been working well.

The original intention was to help them integrate into Beastman society and prevent them from causing chaos by providing suitable work, using credit scores to regulate their behavior, and rewarding them with better treatment.

It would also allow Beastmen to accept and trust them, showing them more tolerance.

Emotional stability would greatly reduce the overall mutation rate among Mixed Breeds.

However, in such a short time, it was impossible for Zone 19 to stably implement this management plan for Mixed Breeds.

Zone 19 was also the most difficult zone to manage. Every year, new management plans were tried, but they either achieved nothing or just made things more chaotic.

But now that this contract was in effect and someone was enforcing it, the various clauses in it were not just for show.

If a Mixed Breed caused trouble, the various levels of management, who were constrained by the contract, would be implicated and would only take their anger out on the Mixed Breeds.

The clause in the contract forbidding substitute workers was actually aimed at regular Beastmen. Many Beastmen have Mixed Breed relatives, and some would help them clock in and cover their shifts to get them higher credit scores.

This kind of behavior did nothing to help regulate the Mixed Breeds and also went against the original intentions of the Beast Alliance.

So, the Beast Alliance amended the regulations to address this, increasing the penalties.

If substitute work was discovered, everyone would be punished, from the bottom to the top.

Other zones were very strict about inspections, but almost no one in Zone 19 cared. With winter setting in, everyone was busy dealing with Mutant Species and couldn’t even keep up with repairing the defensive fortifications. Who cared who showed up, as long as someone came and did the work?

That was why Gu Ning was able to easily disguise herself as Cook and sneak in.

But if the higher-ups decided to investigate, Gu Ning and Cook would be in for a world of hurt.

Barto had always thought Gu Ning was working on her own; he never imagined she was covering for Cook.

Since most Beastman work uniforms were the same, he hadn’t paid any mind. He’d even thought Gu Ning and Cook had met while working together.

He didn’t know what to say.

’This person seems so smart. How could they make such a stupid mistake?’

’No wonder he always keeps his face covered; he must be terrified of being found out. He doesn’t even show his face at home.’

Barto grew curious about Gu Ning’s origins again.

"Which zone were you in before?" he asked directly.

Gu Ning just shook her head, not saying a word.

"Forget it." Barto seemed to think of something and didn’t press the matter.

"From now on, you stay with me. You’re not allowed to go anywhere." Barto poked Cook in the chest. "If you don’t listen, you’ll get Gu Ning into fatal trouble. Understand?"

"If they find out about the substitute work, you’ll get a black mark on your personal record. Even if you leave Zone 19, you’ll only be able to live in the outer districts, which are no different from here."

Although a bad record could be cleared, it would take time and be a hassle.

It was impossible to let Cook go to the construction site now. He had regressed too much and could easily get into an accident. The only option was for Gu Ning to maintain the current situation.

Cook nodded vigorously.

When it came to Gu Ning, he understood the gravity of the situation.

"Don’t be too nervous. It’s not that big of a deal." Barto patted Gu Ning’s shoulder, trying to get her to relax. "The main problem is that the manager has caught on to you. You’re right under his nose now, so it’s too late for me to do anything."

From what he knew, this manager was no fool.

"If you really get found out, worst-case scenario, we just run for it and quit. We’ll only lose some credit points."

’Only...’

Gu Ning gave a bitter smile. If she were really discovered, it would be about more than just credit points.

’I’d really have to run.’

’The main problem is that winter is coming. I’ve already seen the Mutant Species outside the walls. Where would I even run? To become food for the Mutant Species?’

’I should just keep my head down and finish this job quickly.’

Barto took Cook’s terminal off and handed it to Gu Ning. "From now on, you are Cook."