Cellinia Texas—better known by players as simply Texas.

As a member of Penguin Logistics, she’s active in Lungmen City. Due to her cold and indifferent attitude toward players, she’s earned the nickname the silent ice beauty. Players often receive Penguin Logistics-related quests from her. As the game progressed and more players joined, she gradually rose through the ranks, eventually becoming a part of Penguin Logistics’ management. While her team conducted business, she also oversaw player operations and represented the group in negotiations with Rhodes Island. She became one of the most popular NPCs in the entire game.

Do you really like her? Or are you just lusting after her?

It’s no secret—there’s been no shortage of forum threads thirsting after Texas in pantyhose. Some users even post daily about how pantyhose with sneakers must have a strong, fragrant smell. Seriously, these people are dancing with their XPs.

At this point in the timeline, the Texas family hasn’t yet been wiped out, and Cellinina is indeed training with Lappland—something that lines up perfectly with the background lore players have uncovered.

The fall of House Texas wouldn’t come until 1092, and it was only after that disaster that Cellinina made up her mind to leave Columbia.

That’s still far in the future.

Felix knows the backstories of many iconic NPCs, but this isn’t your typical heroic Japanese RPG, and he isn’t some chosen one out to save the world. He doesn’t have the time—or the desire—to get involved in every NPC’s story. Still, now that he’s met Cellinina, who knows? Maybe they’ll become friends.

It had been drizzling in Florence for the past couple of days. The gloomy weather made Felix long for the sunlit beaches of Laterano.

[Explore new blueprints for hand cannons. Spend 100,000 LMD and 10,000 experience points. Confirm/Deny?]

Confirm.

[Congratulations! You’ve obtained the semi-automatic pistol: Sky Rift]

Tsk, trash.

[Congratulations! You’ve obtained the single-shot pistol: V-2]

Still trash.

Oh my god, Merlin’s beard! Old man, do you see this? My luck is absolutely rotten! If Luck were some old rat with white fur and a long white beard, I’d kick him square in the ass with my boots!

Come on, seriously—can I just get something decent for once? I mean, bless me already!

[Congratulations! You’ve obtained the revolver: Dawn]

Hell yeah!

Felix slapped his thigh in delight. Among all pistol types, revolvers were rare and dealt extremely high damage. Of course, they also came with high equipment requirements—very few players could even use them. They held only a few bullets, but each shot was lethal. Land a hit on a vital point, and it was a guaranteed kill.

And honestly—how cool is it to say, “It’s high noon.” while drawing a revolver?

The revolver is a top-tier weapon only usable in the 2.0 era. Even if 1.0 players somehow managed to obtain one, they wouldn’t be able to equip it due to insufficient stats or missing revolver-related skills. Dawn was the best of them all. Back in the day, many players even picked up a secondary technician class just to meet the revolver requirements. Everyone hated the “pistol guy,” but deep down, everyone wanted to be the pistol guy.

Players who could afford the Dawn revolver were all wealthy—people with deep pockets and deeper ambitions.

Letting out a quiet sigh of relief, Felix quickly returned to his usual cool and silent demeanor. Today was the day of his appointment with the Saluzzo family to inspect the goods.

When he returned to the hotel, he discovered that the Saluzzo family’s men had already had a “cordial” exchange with the hotel owner. Thanks to that, the food Felix now enjoyed was the most authentic and delicious Siracusa had to offer.

When Felix casually asked the owner whether the Saluzzo family had given him a hard time, the man simply shook his head and smiled faintly.

“The Saluzzo family is dangerous, sure—but we depend on them for safety. Don’t worry, Messenger. Your meals are covered by the Saluzzo family. They didn’t cause me any trouble.”

Felix was mildly surprised by how much importance the Saluzzo family seemed to place on him.

He couldn’t help but wonder what those brothers would do if he told them about the pineapple pizza he’d eaten on the street his first day in town—marketed as a “beach-style” dish.

They’d probably drag the vendor out and shoot him on the spot.

Putting trivial matters aside, the hotel owner even lent Felix the basement as a temporary workshop. Felix accepted the offer without hesitation. He already had some inventory, and after a few busy days, he finally managed to prepare the goods for the Saluzzo family to inspect.

The pistol he planned to showcase was still the Black Hawk. It was an entry-level sidearm designed for beginners. While its damage output wasn’t impressive, its high stability and low recoil made it ideal for new users. Its internal market price in Laterano was 30,000 coins, but in the outside world, it had skyrocketed to 90,000.

Even so, demand was scarce.

After all, not many Sankta were as thoughtful toward the people as Felix.

As for whether this kind of trade violated Laterano’s civil laws… it didn’t. So Felix had no reason to worry about some Executor knocking on his door one day.

The time and energy required for crafting and manufacturing professions often discouraged most players. Choosing a subclass—be it gunsmith or knight—was like choosing between EVE Online and a standard MMORPG like Fei Fei Mountain: Mouth Sword III. One demanded relentless exploration, the other could be grasped with a few casual hours.

What’s a one-click macro? Doesn’t exist. Just grind it out, hard and fast!

Before long, the hotel owner knocked at the basement door.

“Mr. Messenger, your distinguished guests have arrived.”

Felix acknowledged with a nod and stepped out.

Today, the Saluzzo family only sent five representatives. Leading them, of course, was the patriarch himself—Alberto Saluzzo. The four who followed him were influential figures within the family.

As soon as Alberto spotted Felix, he walked forward with a polished smile and embraced him in the traditional Siracusa-style hug. Felix returned the gesture, his own expression warm and sunny.

This old fox, Felix mused silently, his eyes calm behind his gentle smile. He nodded politely to the four accompanying members.

And just at the edge of his peripheral vision—he caught sight of silver and dark blue Lupo ears twitching in the bushes.

How did those two young ladies sneak in here?

Felix pretended not to notice and continued walking toward the basement, chatting and laughing with Alberto along the way.

But the moment Alberto stepped into the basement, the smile on his face faltered. His expression froze with visible shock. He had never seen so many pistols arranged in one place, each one gleaming with a cold, metallic light. They were like masterless assassins—silent, deadly, and waiting patiently in their rightful places.

Although Alberto typically fought using cold weapons, he had some experience with firearms. But the crude pistols he’d used in the past couldn’t begin to compare with the exquisite steel weapons now lined up on the shelves before him—they were simply from two entirely different worlds.

The four Saluzzo family members trailing behind him were even more clueless. They looked completely lost, and one of them was even chuckling to himself in awkward awe.

With practiced ease, Felix picked up a pistol and quickly disassembled it into its component parts. Just as swiftly, he reassembled it while explaining:

“Black Hawk semi-automatic pistol. Ergonomic design and a beautiful grip. The flared magazine well allows for quicker and easier reloads.”

“Each magazine holds fifteen rounds. Effective range: forty-five meters.”

“Of course, I also provide ammunition. Considering future supply issues, I recommend avoiding certain poorly manufactured rounds that circulate on the black market. These can impact shooting performance. Ideally, source your rounds individually, or buy directly from Blacksteel International.”

His steady flow of technical information left the Saluzzo family members speechless. They’d handled firearms before, but black market vendors had never explained things in such detail. The four of them turned hopeful eyes to the head of the family, silently pleading for a later debrief.

“I see. Excellent… really excellent.”

Alberto nodded in genuine admiration. He accepted the pistol from Felix, pressed the safety bolt with practiced fingers, chambered a round, and took aim at a scarecrow left behind in the basement by the hotel owner.

Felix gestured politely in invitation, and Alberto nodded in return. Holding the gun in one hand, he channeled a bit of Originium power and pulled the trigger—aiming straight for the scarecrow’s head.

Bang!

When the smoke cleared, the family members rushed over to inspect the damage. The bullet had torn effortlessly through the scarecrow’s head, punching a deep hole into the concrete wall behind it.

Alberto’s hands were trembling with excitement—not from weakness, but from exhilaration. With weapons of this caliber, how could the other stubborn families in Florence Mobile City possibly compete with the Saluzzo family?

“The market price is ninety thousand,” Felix said calmly. “I can supply you with twenty units. In the spirit of friendship with the Saluzzo family, I’ll offer a wholesale price—eighty thousand Nine LMD per unit.”

Twenty handguns wasn’t a particularly large quantity.

Over the past few days, Felix had gained a better understanding of the internal power struggles within Florence. As one of the twelve great families, the Saluzzo family naturally had many rivals. Each of the remaining families longed to take their place. As a result, overt and covert battles for dominance broke out constantly across the city.

With twenty handguns, the Saluzzo family’s combat strength had reached a new level—enough to rally the families that stood in opposition to them. Let’s unite!

But even with an alliance in place, twenty handguns weren’t enough to change the status quo. After all, twenty pistols couldn’t stand against thousands of mafia thugs wielding iron clubs.

Moreover, using a gun—and hitting a target—required extensive training.

This development seemed to have strengthened the Saluzzo family, and in truth… it had.

The Saluzzo family gained firearms—a win.

Felix earned a large sum of LMD—a win.

The civilians living under the jurisdiction of Florence’s Saluzzo family could now enjoy greater safety—a win.

The rival families, forced to unite against a common threat, finally began to cooperate—a win.

As for the Saluzzo family becoming the target of widespread scrutiny, they either hadn’t realized it yet, or they had—and simply didn’t care. Were they at a loss? Not at all.

Four wins, zero losses.

“Eighty thousand LMD per unit. I think that price still has room for negotiation,” Alberto said with a practiced smile. He wanted the pistols, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t bargain.

“We haven’t even discussed the cost of ammunition yet,” Felix replied with a smile of his own. “And the eighty thousand is already a wholesale price—the current market rate.”

Still smiling, Alberto continued, “I truly admire Mr. Pioneer’s sincere desire to protect civilians. I hope you’ll give us the opportunity to support that vision. You see, the Saluzzo family is a large household, and maintaining daily operations incurs heavy expenses.”

He began with self-pity, then quickly moved to his offer: “My ideal price would be eighty-five thousand LMD per pistol. I hope you understand.”

Felix simply smiled in silence. Letting Alberto profit by 4,000 LMD per unit meant a total loss of 80,000 LMD across twenty guns. That amount—if rounded—was enough to purchase an entire exploration blueprint. He wasn’t about to play the fool.

“Eighty-eight thousand LMD. That’s the best I can offer,” Felix said at last. “I genuinely hope to support the Saluzzo family. After all, you were the first family I met upon arriving in Siracusa. You left a very good first impression.”

Alberto snorted internally. It seemed this Sankta wasn’t as easily manipulated as he had initially thought. The label of naïve was quickly erased from his mind. At the very least, when it came to money, this Sankta was a shrewd little merchant.

But Alberto didn’t dislike merchants like this. In fact, he respected them even more.

If Felix had remained simply sunny and noble, Alberto would have praised him as a saint—offering him admiration and hollow compliments.

But now, Felix had stepped down from his lofty pedestal and planted his feet in the mud, right alongside Alberto.

Now, Felix felt like someone who belonged to the same world as him.

A saint without desire or ambition was terrifying—distant and unapproachable. Only those who felt emotions, who bore desires and flaws, could truly be reached.

Alberto smiled and extended his hand. This time, the smile felt more sincere.

“It’s an honor to make this deal with you, Mr. Pioneer .”

“The LMD have been transferred to your account, Mr. Pioneer,” he added, glancing at the family member operating a terminal behind him. The man looked up and nodded, confirming the successful transfer.

A system window popped up in front of Felix:

[1,760,000 LMD have been credited to your account]

“It’s my honor to reach an agreement with the Saluzzo family.”

The four Saluzzo family members each carried a weapon case in their arms, their expressions showing clear determination—they would protect these with their lives.

After seeing off the wealthy client, Felix watched as the Saluzzo family’s car disappeared into the distance.

Now that 1.76 million LMD had landed in his account, he planned to allocate half to purchasing material blueprints and use the other half to continue gambling on blueprint draws.

With the business in Florence Mobile City completed, it was time to gradually fade from the Saluzzo family’s radar.

He had just returned to the basement and begun working when he heard the boss’s anxious voice from outside the door.

“Guests, this basement has been rented to a distinguished client. I’m afraid it’s not convenient for you to enter right now…”

Bang!

The basement door was suddenly kicked open. A silver-haired wolf girl strode in boldly, with a blue-haired wolf girl silently following behind. The two glanced around the studio with open curiosity.

“Isn’t this the eldest daughter of the Saluzzo family… and her friend?”

Felix stepped forward with a smile, giving the boss a knowing look. At the mention of the “Saluzzo family,” the boss instinctively turned around and left without a word.

Lappland’s wolf ears twitched, a few leaves drifting from her hair.

“Heh~ So the person doing business with Dad turned out to be the handsome Sankta boy?”

“Whoa~ Are all of these firearms?” Lappland’s tail swayed from side to side, her excitement plain as day, as if she were seeing the world for the first time.

“Lappland…” Cellinia held her back gently. “Try not to be so rude.”

The blue wolf girl blinked at Felix, then offered a polite bow.

“Sir, we sincerely apologize for the intrusion.”

Felix chuckled.

“You don’t want Patriarch Alberto to know you’re here… am I right?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep