Legacy (Part 2)

"I've checked it out."

On the terrace of the King's apartment, Tiny sat on a bench, swaying his body. "Bagg indeed has a small house in New Lune. The house isn't very big; he bought it with the government's compensation after he was injured. When he bought the house, Sinster Street was just an ordinary street, but now it has become the busiest street in the area. There's a company that wants to buy Bagg's house, they've offered three million four hundred thousand, but Bagg has never sold it... He doesn't care about money at all."

"Of course, he didn't even care about his own life," murmured the handsome Hank sitting nearby.

This statement earned scowls from Spilferd and Lee Zonghan, who were further away.

Bagg's legacy brought friends from the Fleet Command System together to brainstorm solutions to Reno's dilemma.

However, it was clear that they didn't have any good ideas.

"Why not talk to that lawyer?" Claire suggested. "He said he could manipulate the price of the house, set it low enough so you wouldn't have to pay as much inheritance tax."

"That's impossible; he's a greedy guy. To make him do that, you'd have to feed him first. Where do we get that much money to feed him?" Tiny shook his head.

"Most importantly, even if he's willing to help, Reno will still have to pay a large sum, and he'll have leverage over him. Trust me, being targeted by that kind of lawyer, you'll end up giving more than you receive." Spilferd said. Despite his rough appearance, he was not foolish.

"Then we'll have to sell the house," Lee Zonghan sighed.

Reno shook his head. "I won't sell it. I wouldn't sell it for three hundred thousand, and I won't sell it for three million."

"But you can't come up with the money to pay the tax,"

"Think of a solution, there's always a way." Nora said. "Maybe we can pool some funds?"

"Forget it, it's a million!" Hank shook his head. "Even if I sold myself, I couldn't come up with anything... not even with my ass."

"Damn it!" Spilferd waved his arm angrily. "We're students of the Fleet Command System, the mechs we use for training are worth millions, a simulation pod costs tens of millions, the future starships we'll command are worth tens to hundreds of billions, the wealth we may destroy in the future may reach trillions or even the wealth of a planet, but now, together, we can't even come up with one million federal credits..."

"That's the life of a soldier," Lee Zonghan shrugged. "No matter how much wealth we can control or destroy, we'll never possess it, we don't even possess ourselves. From the day we exist, soldiers have no connection with wealth, happiness, and such."

"Then why did you become a soldier?" Tiny asked.

Lee Zonghan replied, "I enjoy the feeling of piloting a starship through the stars, exploring unknown worlds... That's the ultimate dream of humanity."

"I thought the ultimate dream of humanity was immortality," the small-bodied Philip Bohl said.

"I thought it was having endless delicious food," the chubby Kafuron replied.

Claire stopped the discussion from going too far off track, "Guys, can we focus on something more practical? Let's pool our resources, maybe we can come up with something. Nora and I have some money, we should be able to lend... thirty thousand."

"Wow, thirty thousand, that's quite a bit." Tiny whistled. "I can only come up with five thousand. Hey, don't look at me like that, it took me two years to save up, I was planning to go on a nice trip with some hot babe this vacation."

Hank raised his hand. "I have six thousand, but I can borrow some more from a few lady friends, maybe we can come up with fifteen thousand... I don't spend money on girls."

"I only have a thousand because I bought the latest spectrum analyzer a few days ago, so I'm broke. Sorry. But Reno doesn't have to pay me back," Philip Bohl said.

"I still have eight thousand; I can cut back on my spending for a while," Kafuron said.

The always shy young Adin said, "I can contribute six thousand."

"I have twenty thousand," Lee Zonghan said.

"Wow." Everyone exclaimed in unison, obviously surprised that he could come up with so much money.

Lee Zonghan replied somewhat embarrassed, "We Asians have a habit of being thrifty and frugal in our genes."

Spilferd snorted, "I can contribute eighty thousand."

Everyone was stunned, looking at the bald guy together.

Tiny jumped up, "Are you kidding me, Parong?"

"Of course not." Spilferd replied proudly. "I earned the money last year from an underground fighting

 match... Saving is always better than spending, buddy."

He turned his head towards Lee Zonghan.

"What's with the smugness." The latter snorted and ignored him.

"But even so, we only have one hundred and sixty-five thousand, less than a fifth." Adin said.

All their good friends were here, but they could only come up with so little.

"Maybe we can ask Grandpa to chip in some more." Claire suggested.

Reno waved his hand, "I don't think Director Marshall can come up with that kind of money, and even if he could, I don't want it. This matter has troubled too many people; I don't want it. Even if you manage to borrow for me, what then? In the end, I still have to repay it, right? If you end up shouldering a large debt or loss because I can't pay it back... then I'd rather sell the house."

Everyone fell silent together.

Claire looked at Reno with concern. "There must be a way to solve the problem."

Since the farewell party, Claire and Reno's relationship had noticeably improved.

As expected, shared adversity was indeed an emotional catalyst that could break down all barriers, and Marshall was like a stepping stone, allowing Reno to catch up with the once-unreachable Claire.

In this situation, Claire no longer concealed her concern and anxiety about Reno's situation.

In contrast, Nora appeared much more silent, and she almost avoided any private interaction with Reno. Only in occasional glimpses could her concern for Reno be seen.

"There will be a way," Reno replied, turning to Spilferd. "Parong is right, money is earned, not borrowed or saved. I can work to earn money."

"You probably don't have that much time," Tiny said. "That damn lawyer has already filed for a restraining order, which lasts for three months. You have to come up with the money within three months, or the house will be auctioned off. And before you come up with the money, you can't even enter the house."

"That damn bastard!" everyone shouted together.

"It's not surprising. If that lawyer wants to make a profit, this is indeed the best way. Claim Reno's inability to pay as a reason to handle the inheritance, then lower the price at auction, and he can find someone to buy the house. It's all settled," Adin said.

"How do you know?" Tiny asked.

Adin replied, "I have a relative who is a lawyer; I understand some of their ways of getting rich."

"I hate lawyers!" everyone shouted together.

"What do we do now?" Claire also became anxious.

Everyone looked at Reno.

After pondering for a while, Reno looked at Spilferd. "Parong, what kind of fighting competition did you participate in?"

"Underground no-holds-barred fighting, C-grade event, appearance fee of eight thousand, victory bonus of twenty thousand, a tie counts as a double loss. I fought in twenty matches, won eight."

"Then you should have two hundred and fifty-six thousand. Where's the other hundred and fifty thousand?" The shy arithmetic genius immediately gave the answer. "Where's the other hundred and fifty thousand?"

"That's medical expenses, idiot." Spilferd looked sympathetically at Adin. "You really think there's no price to pay? I lost three arms, two legs, and even regenerated a second dick there."

Everyone immediately fell silent.

"I admit your fighting skills are good, Reno, but you're not better than me. Underground fighting matches also have time limits, won't allow continuous participation, can't guarantee a high enough win rate, can't enter higher-level matches, and can't even guarantee not getting injured. You absolutely can't earn one million in that place in three months... you can't even earn half." Spilferd shook his head.

"I don't plan on fighting in underground matches. I just think you gave me an idea. Maybe I can participate in some other competitions," Reno said.

"What competitions?"

"Mecha battles," Reno replied. "Mecha competitions have higher prize money and lower disability rates than fighting matches."

"But the death rate is higher," Spilferd replied coldly.

"And Cortman has already banned students from participating in any dangerous competitions, including yours, Parong. Starting this year, you won't be able to participate in underground matches anymore," Claire said.

Spilferd shrugged indifferently; who would like the feeling of missing limbs?

"Then just go in disguise, don't let him know," Reno replied.

"How do you solve the problem of mechas? You don't even have your own mecha," Nora said.

"In fact... I do."