If it weren't for a certain Bronya who always showed up in the story with her eyes closed and mouth open, Shiraha wouldn't have come to Siberia to suffer.
Among the main trio, Kiana and Mei might have some mystical fate-based buffs, but Bronya's skill in computer hacking was purely earned.
Not through fate, not through Stigmas, pure talent.
Elysia's starry eyes curved, as if she wasn't surprised by this reason at all.
Her voice lifted slightly: "Let me hear it, what excuse has Little Shiraha come up with this time?"
Shiraha leaned against the window, watching the snowy plains race by outside: "Siberia isn't exactly peaceful. I've heard there are a lot of minors here working as assassins, using their youthful looks to gain trust, then killing their targets."
He paused: "But I think that's become a lot rarer recently…"
"There's just one thing I don't quite understand. If World Serpent wants to recruit orphans, why not start here?"
Compared to World Serpent, Siberia might not be better, but World Serpent definitely had money, and enough food to go around.
The Silver Wolf of the Urals was still out here struggling to make a living.
Elysia tilted her head in mock confusion, pressing a fingertip to her lips: "I thought Little Shiraha was going to try to convince Ryoma Raiden to help out here."
Shiraha pressed his cheek against the cold window glass.
Then he pulled away and shook his head: "That's beyond what I can do."
"But World Serpent really does need these orphans."
Shiraha rarely asked others to do things for him, even reasonable requests. He'd usually bring Mei or Kiana along.
Not out of any mindset or sense of belonging, but simply for stability. When it came to matters involving others, Shiraha preferred to play it safe.
If it was just him and Elysia, he might be more willing to take risks, after all, his own resources were the most comfortable to use.
Elysia didn't respond right away. The word "need" made her a little uneasy, but she wasn't some naive little girl. She finally spoke: "How will you contact Grey Serpent? You've got Rin with you for the sake of playing it safe."
Shiraha shook his head and didn't answer.
Once they reached Siberia, there'd be plenty of opportunities. He wouldn't behave himself there, if there was no opportunity, he'd create one.
Just then, Siegfried stepped out of the compartment: "Kid why are you sitting out here alone?"
He was feeling a bit stuffy inside too. Compared to Kiana and Mei, Shiraha at least had more in common with him.
Shiraha blinked: "But I'm never alone."
Siegfried smiled and didn't pursue it.
He leaned against the corridor wall, shifted his stance, and let his gaze rest on Shiraha for a moment before asking: "Kid, do you want to be a hero?"
Shiraha was taken aback
hero?
He liked doing good things, but he didn't really like the word "hero." Doing good came from the heart, being labeled a hero made him feel pressured.
But,
Shiraha looked out the window, at the heroes of Siberia, at Siegfried…
His smile was bright: "Yes, I want to be a great hero who saves the world."
Only a kid could say something like that without being doubted, whether it was about being a hero or a world-ending villain.
Siegfried's lips twitched upward, but he quickly suppressed it: "Kid, do you think life in the Far East can make you a hero?"
He paused, then added teasingly: "Or are you hoping to get hit by a truck and summoned to a reincarnation space by a goddess?"
Shiraha: ?
"What are you talking about?"
Siegfried looked surprised: "You haven't read light novels? You know, the ones in the Far East where 80% of the protagonists are overly realistic, depressed, indecisive, never growing up, always avoiding major problems?"
He gestured.
Didn't kids these days read that kind of stuff?
Oh wait, you're a normie. Do normies even read light novels and manga?
Shiraha was quiet for a long time. Isekai trash novels were no joke, but…
"Maybe you should try watching anime, Uncle. The ones that get adapted are usually high-quality, they get a lot less criticism."
Maybe it was a regional difference. The first time Shiraha had encountered Far Eastern light novels, he'd been shocked, they seemed to love depicting oppressive, twisted, redemption-seeking romance.
Shiraha's normie gaze made Siegfried, who was a bit chuunibyou himself, feel slightly awkward, but that awkwardness didn't matter.
"Back to the point, kid, do you want to get stronger?"
No hesitation: "Yes."
Siegfried pressed: "Do you want to know how I became the world's strongest when I was with Schicksal?"
Shiraha blinked, then thought about it, Siegfried calling himself the strongest wasn't entirely wrong. He nodded, his smile clean: "Yes!"
Siegfried's smile was now impossible to hide: "Anti-Entropy's education is way too soft. Telekinesis, superpowers, whatever, there's only one fastest way to get stronger."
He looked Shiraha in the eye.
"Fighting."
"Shiraha, do you really want to save the world and become a great hero?"
It was a little awkward saying this in a train corridor, but since it was about teaching a kid, passersby would just glance over, then turn back and eavesdrop quietly.
They couldn't exactly listen in openly.
Shiraha paused again. His Nee-chan beside him was quietly giggling. He bit his lower lip, his expression firm: "I do!"
He was still young, if Siegfried wasn't embarrassed, why should he be?
"Then when we get to Siberia, I'll show you what life there is really like and help you hone your abilities."
A 10-year-old didn't need to be pushed that hard, but with great power came great responsibility. Siegfried genuinely felt this kid shouldn't be spending all his time playing house with Mei and Kiana.
Shiraha nodded again, his smile filled with anticipation.
Cross-border train journeys varied in length depending on distance, going straight to the capital could take ten days, but Shiraha and the others were only heading to Siberia, which was much closer.
As soon as they stepped off the train, a chill hit them. But this was Siberia, Shiraha had already bundled up in warm clothes, and Mei and Kiana were wrapped just as tightly.
Mei was seeing this kind of snowy landscape for the first time, it was a little novel.
"So beautiful."
Her voice was partly carried away by the wind, but what remained still held genuine wonder.
Kiana, who'd been so lively before, had shifted back into reliable mode. She held a map in her hands: "According to the distance, we should head here first, there's a kind old man there, a retired veteran, I've heard."
There were a lot of retired veterans in Siberia. The situation here was rough, corruption was rampant, and soldiers relying on standard wages could barely get by. Getting married, buying a house, improving their quality of life, all impossible.
Selling weapons and the like was completely normal here. From top to bottom, the phenomenon was severe.
Kiana didn't know about any of that. She just kept tracing the map with her pale little fingers, her not-always-sharp little head quickly recalling all sorts of details from her days of wandering.
"This is the station route, we should loop around this way, over to the Siberian Plateau, then circle back to the far east. That way we won't have to backtrack."
That was the most convenient route based on the station information, Kiana figured.
There weren't actually that many people they needed to visit, after all, in this vast land of Siberia, not many could afford to help strangers. Everyone here lived hard lives.
Siegfried took the map: "Let's head here first."
He pointed to a route that went in the exact opposite direction Kiana had just suggested.
In his memory, that area was the Siberian black market, a place where many assassins picked up jobs.
Kiana's route might have been more efficient, but Siegfried wanted to see what had changed in these lands over the years.
They didn't have much luggage, after all, they were traveling with the Raiden kids, so expenses came from the company account… from Ryoma's card.
Kiana was thinking it over, she remembered this place too. A kind uncle had taken pity on her and given her a gun, telling her: "Only by your own hands can you find happiness."
Mei lifted her chin, unconcerned with perfection: "Then let's go here first, no need to chase the optimal route."
Shiraha was lost in thought and didn't respond. But from the kangaroo pouch pocket on his front, the kind with openings on both sides, Rin poked her little head out. It was a bit cold here, and this was her first time seeing Siberia too.
Just then, Siegfried glanced at Shiraha and raised an eyebrow. Shiraha understood immediately, straightened up, and his gaze filled with determination.
The journey wasn't far, after buying a used car, it was only two or three hours. Their destination looked like a veteran's home.
The wooden cabin wasn't large, and a faded flag hung by the door, unidentifiable in age. Shiraha was curious, but unfortunately, it wasn't Maxim's place.
On second thought, if Siegfried had once received kindness from Maxim, Bronya would definitely have recognized Kiana.
"Back to your old line of work, Little Shiraha, don't forget to keep a low profile. Don't let any subconscious habits give you away."
Elysia had long since quietly changed into winter clothes using her Origin power. Last time she'd been here, she'd worn bare-legged summer attire, but now she'd adapted to local customs with something that looked much warmer.
Not that it mattered much, his Nee-chan was still cold. Clothes didn't affect her body temperature.
"I will, Nee-chan."
Shiraha replied softly. Unlike Mei, who was sneaking around making snowballs, he crouched down and touched the ground.
The once-cracked permafrost, when dug into, still showed signs of life.
Elysia's cheeks flushed slightly: "I didn't think that far ahead, how was I supposed to tell which areas needed improvement and which didn't?"
Shiraha didn't respond. He gazed out at the surroundings.
"In the Previous Era, Nee-chan, did you ever think of doing this?"
Too powerful. This was the real mechanism, the potential embodied by Origin, full of promise.
Elysia crouched beside him, hugging her knees: "Little Shiraha wasn't famous in the Previous Era either."
Everyone had their own struggles, no one in the Previous Era could point fingers.
Shiraha let out a dry laugh, just as a not-quite-round snowball passed through Elysia and hit him squarely on the back of the head.
Mei stood there, already holding another handful of snow, a smug smile on her face.
Shiraha had noticed, but didn't dodge. He turned and clutched his head.
Snowball fights didn't need a starting signal.
By the time Siegfried came out after drinking and chatting inside, leaving behind some help, the once-clean used car was covered in snow marks.
Mei's cheeks were flushed, with snow in her hair, same for Shiraha, same for Kiana, and even the little fox with snow on her head. Siegfried couldn't help but laugh at the sight.
"Time to go."
"Next stop?"
Siegfried shook his head, the liquor hadn't clouded his judgment: "No, we're going to check out the black market."
During their chat, he'd naturally gotten the lay of the land. Siberia as a whole was thriving and improving, but this underground market still existed.
True, farming could now sustain people, but the need for tools, grain, seeds, and old grudges kept the assassin trade alive in these lands.
Shiraha shook his head vigorously, Rin's little head bobbing along.
"The black market? Will there be rare treasures and legendary weapons that only we can discover and use?"
Of course not.
Siegfried grew a little more serious: "It's just contracts, drinks, and fast food."
"Fast food" included food and other things, but there was no need to explain that to kids.
The black market wasn't far, less than an hour's drive. It looked far livelier here, almost out of place for Siberia.
Shiraha looked around curiously, quickly gathering information.
"Aren't you worried about bringing three kids with you?"
"You three can look around boldly." Siegfried paused, then added: "Unless they pull out an RPG…"
Widespread explosive damage like that might still affect the kids.
Perhaps their group stood out too much, Shiraha could feel many eyes on them from the moment they got out of the car.
Siegfried remained completely unconcerned.
Shiraha patted Rin's head. From her expression, it seemed they'd been marked as fat sheep.
Elysia mused: "If someone kidnapped all four of you, how much ransom should they ask for?"
But soon the joking mood faded, because Siegfried led them into a hall that wasn't too shabby but had fallen strangely silent.
At the top of the hall, among the posted bounties, was a very familiar group photo.
Siegfried, Shiraha, Mei, Kiana.
Alive, five times the reward. Even the deposit alone would be substantial.
It didn't seem like they'd been marked as sheep, it seemed like someone wanted them to run into trouble, or draw blood.
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