He opened his eyes and saw Jax's hand in front of him.
"Pierre told me to invite you to dinner," Jax said.
"Hmm," Amir said drowsily. This was a small storage room that Pierre had cleared out and converted into Amir's bedroom. He had been living there since he was six.
He put on his work vest and overalls, then stepped out of the small house. Outside was the massive warehouse. Sain, similarly dressed, revealed his muscular blue arms, wiped the sweat from his antennae, and came over to pat Amir on the shoulder.
"Not bad. At least you've gained some muscle over the past two years," said Sain with a smile. "Go outside. Pierre has prepared some food. You've been sleeping for so long; you should eat more."
"Thanks, Sain." Amir rubbed his messy hair and noticed that BD-4 was busy working on Sain's workbench.
He turned around and walked outside.
There was a table with prepared fruit, beast milk, and grilled meat by the workbench in the hall.
"The sleepyhead is finally up." Pierre was working on a small appliance.
"Hmm, thanks, Pierre." Amir quickly finished his meal and began repairing the inventory items. By then, it was already the afternoon of the next day. From the time they started working until everything was finished, almost evening had passed, and Jax had gone off to play again.
"Business is still booming," Amir sighed. It had always been this way since he was a child. Pierre and Sain were always the first choice for repairs in this area.
"Haha, everyone takes good care of us," Pierre said with a smile.
"You should take a rest too. Sain has so much energy; he should do more work," Amir joked.
Suddenly, the alloy door opened.
"Hello, Pierre. And Amir, you're here after all. I sent you a message this morning, but you didn't reply. Veronica said you might be sleeping, so I came over myself. I hope I'm not disturbing you." The person who came in was a hunched-over man with a ruddy complexion. Amir knew him very well. He was Senir, the client who had commissioned this task.
"Of course, welcome. What's the matter?" Amir yawned and went up to greet him. He always felt that Senir was shady and subconsciously didn't want to get too involved with him. However, since Senir was already there, Amir decided to see what he wanted first.
"Actually, I heard about your withdrawal from school two days ago, so I gave the task to Veronica." Senir walked into the shop, carrying a box in his right hand.
"Sorry, Pierre. I didn't expect Jax to join in. Luckily, nothing happened." Senir continued.
"It's okay. With Amir around, I feel at ease." Pierre finished packing the items he had repaired that day and headed toward the storeroom. "You two talk. I won't disturb you."
Glancing at the box in Senir's hand, Amir shivered. He was now terrified of boxes and always felt that touching a switch would cause them to explode suddenly.
"So, you plan to use those fireworks to celebrate my return?" Amir grimaced.
"You're the best bounty hunter I know, Amir."
"Stop it, stop it! I'm not a bounty hunter. If I could, I'd stay in the shop all day studying machines." Amir hurriedly added, "Unfortunately, the kids can't sit still. They're always looking for a way to make money and become famous."
"I understand, Amir." Senir gave his signature flattering smile. "It's for the safety of your friends. I've had friends before. One of them gave his life to protect me, and I've always been grateful to him."
"So, what are you here for this time? To fix something?" Amir glanced at the box in his hands.
"There's a job only you can do." Senir placed the box on the workbench.
"Stop it, stop it. I told you, I'm not a bounty hunter. You understand, right?" Amir said hurriedly.
"Right," Senir said with a smile. "But people always change."
With that, he opened the switch on the box, revealing its contents.
"I won't change, Senir, no matter what you offer me." The box slowly opened, and Amir swallowed hard.
"You could hire a bounty hunter with this." Amir glanced at the squid head in front of him and said, "I'm not doing anything that could get me killed."
"Hehe, it's no big deal. You know, Frenis died yesterday, so..." Senir smiled and hunched over even more.
Amir interrupted him. "What? Frenis is dead? Who could have done such a thing?" As soon as he finished speaking, Amir realized the answer: "The Empire..."
"Heh, you're right. The Empire raided his hideout and took everything. They left only this spaceship behind, and I managed to keep it." Senir laughed. "This ship was custom-made at great expense. Its performance speaks for itself. Help me with this, and the ship is yours."
Inside the box was a data board with the ship's design and component specifications, as well as the "remote control" for opening the doors.
"You 'left it behind in advance,' Senir. Should I congratulate you in advance on becoming the boss here?" Amir asked tentatively.
"No need for that. Let's take a look at the mission details."
Senir's squid-like face smiled as if covered in ugly flowers.
"No, no need to say more. Find someone else. I have things to do." Amir was about to send him away. Senir was clearly not an ordinary client. He was somehow involved in Frenis's death, the Empire, and this explosion. Why did he send Senir into this mess?
Amir didn't want to get involved with him before he knew more. Stepping into the vortex without knowing anything was like going to his death. Besides, Senir had offered a custom-made spaceship as a reward. What kind of task could be worth such a reward?
"I've always believed in your abilities. What happened at the Chaos Bar was proof of that. I knew you would find the real thing. BD, huh? BD-4, right? That robot wasn't supposed to be in the bar, but he was stubborn and insisted on going."
"Are you threatening me?" Amir instantly became alert. He knew about BD. Could it be...?
Suddenly, Amir remembered something and asked, "Are you part of the rebel army?"
"Rebel army? Don't jump to conclusions, former Imperial soldier." Senir emphasized the word "former." "I just happened to take an interest in this man and his machine."
"So you just let that man go to his death with a bomb?" Amir sat back down on the stool, crossed his arms, and examined the man in front of him again. Was he cowardly, timid, or sycophantic? Hmph. He was good at pretending.
"His death was indeed the best outcome, wasn't it?" Senir still smiled, but the humility had vanished. Amir saw a pair of confident, even arrogant, eyes.
"It seems I have no choice but to listen to the commission." Amir raised his hand and closed the box Senir had brought.
Senir's smile grew uglier.