That was it. Mac was the spitting image of his father. It all made sense now. Hokkaido did die, he saw it with his own eyes. All of that shit Hokkaido pulled in the forest was for his son? How could a twisted maniac like that even be someone's father?

"Are you alright?" asked Mac.

Colt nodded.

The entire reason he stood up against that bastard Hokkaido was to stop him from stealing the blue apples, and now his son needed them to survive? What a sick twist of fate.

"Do you see it now, Colt?" Mac stood up, "There's no way you can help me. My father's gone, so we can't do anything to stay safe out here."

There were no number of scenarios that could be crafted that'd make Colt change his opinions on Hokkaido; However, he wanted to help Mac. Not as his son, but as his own human being. Trying to hold him accountable for the sins of his father would've left him no better than the thugs trying to exploit him now.

"Mac," Colt cleared his mind. "Tell me more about your situation. I've made up my mind on helping you, and I'm not taking no for an answer, so don't even try to talk me out of it."

Mac crossed his arms and chuckled, "Your eyes. You just reminded me of my father. I guess speaking on it won't hurt. We should find some privacy though; I'll show you around Poor Man's Land while we talk."

Venturing out of the bar and through a complex network of alleyways, the vibrant city faded into a grim wasteland. Hordes of trash covered the rough streets, with people lounging around wherever they fit. The buildings, or remains of buildings, took a step down from the abandoned city out North. The fact that people were forced to live here made Colt sick.

"I know it looks bad, but it's life for everyone here." said Mac. "The entire place is owned by the Junkyarders."

"So, it's like their turf?"

"Even worse. They control food distribution here, along with all other resources. They stay stationed in a mansion in the back of the city, where they control the lives of everyone here."

"Why are they such jackasses?"

"Gang beef in a nutshell." muttered Mac, "My father once held authority over this city, but the Junkyarders came in and kicked up a rivalry with him. Outnumbered, he was forced to surrender, forfeiting control over to them. He had to scramble to provide for them if he wanted to live."

"Let me guess: He stumbled into the forest and found the blue apples?"

"Yes. And every month, he had to deliver a certain amount of juice to the Junkyarders, and with that, they'll feed the citizens good food, and let him live. As you can imagine, now that my father is dead, there's no way for the Junkyarders to get their juice. So, the citizens have to suffer."

"So, the blame falls onto you as Hokkaido's son?"

Mac came to a stop and gazed up into the foggy sky, "Don't feel bad for me though. My father was a bad man. With no enforcement from the core guardian of this sector, monopolies like this are allowed to exist. People are sometimes forced into this wicked way of living for survival. I'm willing to carry the weight of my father's sins."

The venture out into the Serpent's Forest was far from over, but of course it wasn't. This wasn't some video game, where each "quest" was its own story. Every action held consequences, chaining along with the flow of the universe. He wanted to save the villagers in the forest, so he stopped Hokkaido. With Hokkaido gone, the citizens in Poor Man's Land have to suffer now. If he wants to help them, the villagers in the forest would be put back in jeopardy, rendering everything that had happened before pointless.

Killing the Junkyarders' leader would do nothing but leave everyone without his support. With him gone, someone else would step up a restart the cycle.

Shit...What am I supposed to do?

Fending off the splitting headache setting in from the situation, he reached into his pocket. "M-Mac, can you bring me to the Junkyarders' mansion?"

"Colt, helping me is one thing, but heading straight to them is suicide!"

"Mac," he shot him a reassuring smile, "I already made up my mind on helping you. I'm fixing this."

"Fine. Just don't blame me for what happens."

With Mac leading, Colt arrived at the mansion, which looked identical to Hokkaido's mansion from the forest.

"What's the leader's name?" asked Colt.

"B-Bael."

"Thanks." Colt tossed him the gun he stole from Jackal, "Keep that, just in case."

Leaving Mac no chance of a protest, he stepped inside.

The hallways were exactly like Hokkaido's mansion as well, only missing the hordes of guards. Making his way to the third floor, the golden door of death stood at the end. The scent of Hokkaido's explosions practically lingered in the air, with Touya's battle cries ringing in his ear. Stumbling into a wall, he fought the nerves locking his knees in place.

Just keep walking...

I've got it all figured out...

I can do this...

Psyching himself up, the last sound that reached his ears upon entering the golden room was a single gunshot.

A man with a faded haircut sat the desk, blowing the smoke from his gun. "Who the hell are you?"

"I don't want to fight you." Colt healed the wound in his head, thanking the stars that the bullet went straight through. "Are you Bael?"

Lighting his thick cigar, Bael furrowed his eyebrows, "What are you?"

"Quit treating this city like trash! Just because Hokkaido's dead doesn't make it right for these people to suffer!"

"Don't butt into adult's business kid." He proceeded to light Colt up with another series of shots, making sure to empty out his clip. "That ought to do it."

As he took a puff of his cigar, Colt held onto the wall, healing his wounds once more. "You're doing more damage to the room than me, you dick. Why are you doing this?" He glared at Bael, "If I'm such a kid, why am I the only one trying to find a reasonable solution to this shit?"

Bael rushed over and punched Colt away, "Your core power is doing this, right?"

Wiping the blood from his nose, Colt ignored the stinging pain and kept himself locked onto his target. "Don't worry about that, I'm not trying to fight you! I'm here to stop all of this stupid shit you're doing!"

He chuckled, "I guess that just means that I have to fight with mines." Bael returned to his seat, taking a hit of his cigar, "You clearly don't understand how things work here. Hokkaido is the one who forfeited like a bitch. The moment he gave up was the moment I gained the right t do whatever I wanted! This place was a shitshow before I got here, I need an assurance of money before I shell out any resources here."

Bael retrieved a small bottle of blue apple juice from behind his desk, "This is the last of that stuff Hokkaido used to bring. I don't know how he made it, but it's amazing. It got me a ton of cash, but he just ups and dies on me?"

Colt drew in a deep breath to stifle his emotions. So much bloodshed spilled over a simple beverage. Once he got back home, he'd make sure to hug Hemiko. "So, these people deserve to suffer because they can't benefit you?"

"Bingo," He chuckled, "I ain't a bad guy, it's just how life works."

"Don't give me that shit! You have an entire mansion built up here! Why did you even show up in the first place? This city has nothing worth stealing!"

"I don't care about the actual city. The fact that I made Hokkaido my bitch uplifts my gang. We also use the buildings to store drugs. My men seem to love it, so why not?"

"You're a piece of trash..."

"Careful, I'll have you killed just like your weak ass boss."

"Boss?"

"Hokkaido. Wasn't he your boss?"

"Hell no! I hated him too!"

Bael erupted into laughter, "Then why in the hell did you even come here? I thought you were trying to stand up for this place since he's dead."

"That's what I'm doing, but I couldn't care less about him either."

"And the plot thickens." Bael kicked back in his seat, taking another puff of his cigar, "So you're just some random kid who somehow knows about this stuff, and you decided to run up here to talk some smack?"

"It's not smack! How can you not see how messed up this is? You're ruining the homes of these people, just to store some drugs and to have bragging rights?"

"Yup. There's nothing wrong with that. If you knew Hokkaido, you'd want the credit for beating him too. That man talked so much shit, but he was a coward at the end of the day."

Once again, the cruel truth of his incompetence was thrusted into his face. No matter how hard he fought, there were just some things he couldn't do in this world.

Even so, he wasn't ready to give in yet.

'When you can't see where to head for the future, look to your past.'

Someone he cared about told it to him, but their name escaped him at the moment.

This was the last resort...

Reaching into his pocket, Colt slammed the bottle of blue apple juice he received from Lamia down on the desk. "I'll pay off the juice for now."

Bael cooed, "Where did you get this?"

His glare intensified as he leaned forward, "Don't worry about that. Just promise me you'll leave Mac and the others alone if I let you have this."

"Oh, I promise." he grinned, "A real boss never goes back on his word, but this won't last forever."

Reluctantly handing over the bottle, Colt stepped back. "You give me a month, and I'll bring an end to all of this."

"That's a big promise there."

Colt stopped as he opened the door, "If I can find a better place for you and your gang to go, will you leave Poor Man's Land?"

"If we can keep our goods, sure."

"Promise me."

Without another word, Colt left the room.

As the door shut behind him, his fist went smashing straight into the wall. White dust cluttered on his knuckles, falling to the floor in a pile of nothing. Even with this impulsive outburst, holding back still left a gaping hole in the wall.

Stepping outside, he let out a breath of relief. "Mac, your days of running from these bastards are over. I just snagged you a free month."

Mac rose from the steps leading into the mansion, grasping his head in awe. "N-No way. That's impossible."

"I'm serious." Resting his hands on his own hips, Colt grinned, "I can't do much in my current state, but I'll figure something out for the long run-Why are you crying?"

"C-Colt. I don't know what to say."

"Don't say anything then. I can already feel your gratitude. Once I save this city, you can thank me, but in the meantime, stay alive."

Wiping his tears, Mac recomposed himself, "What's next?"

"Eh, I have some business coming up, but I'll be back with something big!"

Mac idly stared at him before breaking down into laughter, "I must admit, your answer is quite vague, but when you use such conviction, even I want to believe you."

"That's how I roll!"