Hemira and the bodies of her subordinates were sunk into the mire near the Swing Forest.
Meanwhile, the gates to the bandit lair remained wide open.
Li Ban was waiting for nearby factions to discover the place and loot it clean, completely destroying any lingering traces he might have left behind in the process.
So, the gates couldn't be closed.
As a bonus: vehicle +1.
The next day, a minor wave of chaos swept through the camp over the disappearance of a Guard Team vice captain.
After noticing Hemira was gone, the camp leader ordered the guard captain to investigate.
As a result, everyone involved in yesterday's events—from the ones who requisitioned the Tricycle and opened the gates to the man who had almost shared a night of passion with Hemira—was thoroughly investigated.
The final conclusion was that Hemira had been stopped by her former lover, Kent. After spending some time alone together, the two had promptly left the camp.
It was as if they had rushed out to find or meet someone.
However, the search parties sent outside found no trace of the duo.
They had simply vanished into the wilderness without a trace.
In the Recycling Station, going missing was basically synonymous with death.
After all, the next time they appeared, they would likely be monsters eager to tear into human flesh.
Despite losing a vice captain, the camp hadn't suffered much of a blow; she had left without taking her personal assets or secretly embezzling public resources.
Given that other camps had experienced camp leaders suddenly abandoning their posts in a fit of despair, the camp leader publicly announced that Hemira and Kent would be given ten days. If they did not return by then, their assets would be confiscated.
This was the standard punishment for those who left without reporting it.
However, the vice captain position would not be held open for Hemira.
On the third day of Hemira's disappearance, Li Ban and his two companions returned from the outside once again.
Their haul over the last two days had been rather modest.
This wasn't out of bad luck, but rather because they had been slacking off.
Learning spells required more than just mental visualization; practical application was essential.
Thinking about it wasn't enough—without applying spiritual rhinoceros in practice, one could never truly master them.
So, every day after snatching up the garbage disposal tasks, they would head to the Building Graveyard to practice their spells.
Hemira's disappearance hadn't affected them in the slightest. In fact, Zhu Yao and Ed, who had no interest in gossip, were still completely unaware that the camp was down two people.
After two peaceful days, Li Ban was stopped by the guard at the gate upon their return to camp.
The middle-aged man, standing ramrod straight with a sharp gaze, gave Li Ban a quick, covert once-over before offering a polite nod. "Greetings, Your Excellency Li Ban. Our captain, Lu Shi, would like to see you."
"Captain Lu Shi?"
Zhu Yao leaned close to Li Ban and whispered a reminder, "The captain of the Guard Team."
"Oh."
The guard's mouth twitched.
This guy had been in the camp for almost ten days and didn't even know who the captain was.
Did he even know who the camp leader was?
While the guard was spacing out, Li Ban gave his answer.
"Sure. I'll go meet this Guard Team captain, then."
"Should I go with you?"
"You and Ed go turn in the quest," Li Ban said.
Mainly because Ed on his own—was truly incapable of turning in a quest.
"I'll come find you both when I get back."
Li Ban followed the older-looking guard into the cave, climbing a rope ladder up to the Second Level.
Despite it being a rope ladder, the guard moved with practiced agility.
He was clearly used to going up and down this way.
Soon, Li Ban found himself in the same corridor of the residential area he had visited a few nights prior.
However, the Guard Team captain lived at the very end of the hall.
Further ahead, a heavy door cut off the rest of the passage.
Li Ban hadn't explored this far that night.
He had been held up by the whole ordeal with Hemira.
Judging by the corridor's layout and the sheer mass of the cliffside, the passage beyond the guard captain's door likely led outside the mountain.
The old guard stepped forward and knocked loudly and rhythmically on the door.
"Enter!"
An equally booming voice rang out from within.
The old guard pushed the door open.
"Captain, I've brought Li Ban."
A stern-faced middle-aged man with graying temples looked up.
Li Ban met his gaze, noting the man's perfectly straight, almost rigidly disciplined posture.
He looked less like a Priest and more like a soldier from some lesser world.
"Please, have a seat," Lu Shi said, gesturing with an open palm to the chair in front of him.
Li Ban walked in.
The door shut behind him.
The old guard hadn't followed him inside, apparently unconcerned for his captain's safety.
Lu Shi got straight to the point. "Forgive me, but as the Guard Team captain, I've had my men observe you for some time now."
"I noticed," Li Ban nodded, showing no signs of displeasure.
If he were in charge of camp security, he too would have vetted any powerful strangers who suddenly joined their ranks.
Even if they had been vouched for by an insider.
"Right. Through our observations, we've determined that you are a powerful warrior. Furthermore, despite being thrust into this place so abruptly, you've maintained a very stable mindset. Because of this, I would like to invite you to serve as the acting vice captain of the camp's Guard Team."
"Acting—vice captain?" Li Ban was slightly surprised.
"Only acting for now. After a three-month probation period, assuming there are no major issues, the position will become permanent."
"That's not what surprised me. I just mean... you're asking me to be vice captain simply because I'm capable and have a good mindset? Aren't you worried I might pose a threat to the camp?"
Lu Shi answered solemnly, "That is precisely why we observed you."
He paused for a moment in thought before adding, "If this were the old world, we might have run background checks, conducted skill assessments, and the like. But in the Recycling Station, things don't need to be so complicated. For an individual, the camp has nothing worth scheming over."
Li Ban found the guard captain's perspective rather interesting.
The camp's reserves of rye, clean water, spare limbs, and tools were all highly valuable in the world of the Recycling Station. Yet, in Lu Shi's eyes, none of it seemed worth the effort of plotting to steal.
But after a moment of thought, he faintly understood the man's reasoning.
These basic supplies were valuable, but they weren't exactly rare.
Moreover, humans and other intelligent lifeforms shared a common enemy: monsters.
So, rather than infighting and depleting each other's strength, it was better for everyone to stick to their own turf and live out their predictable lives.
Then, they could all simply wait for the inevitable mass wipe.
Under such harsh survival conditions, all that cutthroat scheming and fighting to the death lost its meaning.
Even when it came to bandits, as long as they stayed far enough away, the camp had no desire to waste resources proactively exterminating them.
This was, after all, a world without a future.
While camps closer to the Continental Center might still harbor ambitions, these fringe settlements were essentially just like the old Zhu Yao—merely coasting along, waiting to die.
"Actually, your vice captain Hemira approached me as well, but I turned her down," Li Ban said, leaning back in his chair. "And my answer to you is the same."
"May I know the reason?"
"It's simple. I likely won't be staying here for long."
There was no point in hiding it.
Li Ban was currently holding a temporary residence permit for the camp. He was willing to extend it to learn more about this world, but he had no intention of upgrading to a permanent one.
This place was nothing more than a waystation to him.
Even if they made him the stationmaster, it wouldn't mean a thing.
Lu Shi nodded, entirely unfazed by Li Ban's rejection.
"I anticipated as much, which is why I offered you the 'acting' position. Our former vice captain Hemira is missing—and personally, I lean toward assuming she's dead—but the camp is currently lacking high-end combat power. Look at it this way: you can treat the acting vice captain role as a short-term quest, just like the ones you take from the Fat Lady. It's low-risk, high-reward, and perfectly suited for accumulating basic resources."
Li Ban had initially wondered why, if the camp was so desperate for high-end fighters, they didn't just ask Zhu Yao.
But he quickly figured it out.
If Zhu Yao accepted the role, the camp would have to supply her with spiritual rhinoceros to maintain her strength.
But Li Ban didn't need that.
Since they had been observing him, they likely noticed from his combat traces that he could use spiritual rhinoceros himself.
If Li Ban agreed to be the acting vice captain, the position would be his—at least until the spiritual rhinoceros inside his body was completely exhausted.
On the surface, he was "accepting a quest," but in reality, he was being "used."
Just a highly efficient kind of exploitation.
Li Ban could refuse, or he could set terms.
He could trade his spiritual rhinoceros for something he considered more valuable.
Ultimately, it was still a transaction revolving around spiritual rhinoceros.
This time, however, Li Ban didn't outright refuse.
"Since it's an acting position, I assume I won't be bogged down with administrative work? As I'm sure you've noticed, I'm quite busy."
Busy studying, busy collecting waste elements, and busy building a new camp for the future.
And not the kind of camp where people just coasted along waiting to die.
"Of course. The acting vice captain's primary duty is handling matters that ordinary soldiers cannot, but it won't take up much of your time. If you accept, your first assignment will be in ten days. You'll lead a team to a settlement slightly further out for a trade exchange, ensuring our goods aren't seized by bandits. You won't need to participate in any other daily affairs, nor will you have to pull defensive shifts unless the camp faces a severe security threat."
"Alright, I'll take on this short-term role."
Lu Shi offered his first smile since Li Ban walked in.
It was a faint smile, lacking any profound joy, and vanished as quickly as it appeared.
He stood up and extended his left hand.
"Then, welcome to the Cliffside Camp's temporary roster, Vice Captain Li Ban."
A handshake. It was a nostalgic gesture.
Though shaking with the left hand felt a bit strange.
Li Ban mirrored him, extending his own left hand. Their grip was brief before they quickly parted.
That evening, Zhu Yao came looking for Li Ban and was surprised to learn that her companion had somehow become the acting vice captain of the Cliffside Camp.
"Why did you agree to it?" Zhu Yao asked, sitting on a crate across from him. "Aren't you—"
"I'm just a temporary hired thug for the camp," Li Ban said, waving a hand dismissively. "Besides, I want to learn more about how the camps around here are established."
Furthermore, taking on the vice captain title might give him a chance to check out that heavily guarded corridor.
The camp leader and the guard captain probably wouldn't like it, but Li Ban was perfectly willing to temporarily abandon tact to get what he wanted.