Chapter 277: Highway Survival 9

Looking at the eager little dolls, Perry Yates nodded. "Alright, go ahead and give it a try. But don’t be reckless. I can’t sew a doll back together if it gets torn."

The little dolls nodded. "Don’t worry, Master. We’ll be careful."

Perry Yates was still thinking, ’If the little dolls can’t handle it, I’ll jump in to help immediately. After all, that Pigman’s claws look pretty sharp.’

However, what she hadn’t expected was that before she was even ready to help, the fight was already over.

The little dolls landed with a stylish flourish, a breathless Pigman lying on the ground.

’They’re that powerful?’

For a moment, Perry Yates couldn’t tell whether it was Vera Vance’s Talent or her own candy that was more incredible.

’It must be my candy that’s more powerful,’ Perry Yates mused. ’After all, not everyone has four-star candy.’

Seeing this, the other little dolls rushed forward. Holding various tools, they began to process the Pigman’s body. Their practiced movements made them look like seasoned butchers with ten years of experience.

’Jeez, are these dolls good at everything?’

At this sight, Perry Yates couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret.

’If I’d known these dolls were so useful, I would have bought more.’

Although she had successfully copied the other person’s Talent, she couldn’t integrate it herself.

Perry Yates collected all the parts the dolls had processed, then listed the scraps on the trading channel. When setting the price, she hesitated for a moment before deciding to ask for a Pet Egg. She then posted an anonymous bounty.

One pound of any supplies in exchange for one living doll (Doll must pass Identification before the trade can be completed.)

The bounty was so specific, it was all but calling her out by name. Vera Vance would surely guess it was from her the moment she saw it.

In truth, Perry Yates was betting that Vera Vance’s group was still short on supplies.

As for her, she wasn’t lacking any supplies at all.

Not many people noticed the bounty after it was posted, but Perry Yates wasn’t in a hurry.

She called the little dolls into the vehicle, temporarily removed the back seats, and put in a bathtub filled with water.

The little dolls were covered in the Pigman’s blood, and she wanted them to wash up properly. Otherwise, the stains would be difficult to clean once they dried, and they would attract flies.

「The sixteenth day of the game.」

Ever since witnessing the little dolls’ combat prowess, Perry Yates had gone into full-on slacker mode.

She left it to the little dolls to find and open treasure boxes. She also had them deal with the monsters that appeared at night, and then break down the remains.

Her only jobs now were to activate the protective barrier each night, collect the loot from the dolls’ hunts, keep whatever was useful, and trade away the rest.

And the price she paid for all of this was just a few pieces of candy.

The Candy Box only produced a limited number of candies each day, so Perry Yates simply performed Ascension on several more to turn them into four-star Candy Boxes.

She let the little dolls eat to their hearts’ content.

「The seventeenth day of the game.」

While in the midst of her daily slacking, Perry Yates suddenly received a private message. It contained a single, short sentence: "This is Vera Vance."

Seeing this, Perry Yates accepted the friend request. A second later, a message came through.

"I know you’re the one who posted that bounty on the trading channel. I have twenty-six dolls, and you can have all of them, but I need some life-saving medicine."

Perry Yates could sense the desperation in her words.

"Deal. But I need to inspect the dolls first."

Vera Vance clearly hesitated at this but ultimately agreed.

Soon, twenty-six new dolls appeared beside her.

These dolls didn’t have animal appearances; instead, they were designed after the twenty-six letters of the English alphabet.

Compared to the previous ones, the stitching on these dolls was clearly superior. It seemed Vera Vance’s craftsmanship had improved.

The dolls had just opened their eyes, and they looked around at the unfamiliar environment with timid expressions.

Perhaps because Perry Yates hadn’t responded, Vera Vance grew impatient on the other end. "Is everything okay?" she urged. "Can you give me the medicine now?"

"Everything is fine."

As she sent the message, Perry Yates transferred over the bottle of Healing Potion she had gotten from a monster drop earlier.

If Vera Vance hadn’t said she needed a life-saving Healing Potion, Perry would have almost forgotten she even had the thing.

The other end went silent after the potion was sent, but Perry Yates didn’t mind. Her attention was now focused on the new dolls—and on the fact that her vehicle was crowded once again.

Twenty-six new dolls, plus the original twenty-five, made for a total of fifty-one.

’Looks like I need to expand the vehicle’s space again.’

Looking at the crowded interior, she opened the trading channel again, hoping to find someone trading a Vehicle Space Expansion Stone.

And what do you know, Perry Yates actually found one. However, the seller specified that they would only trade it for medicine—and it had to be asthma medication, specifically.

It seemed this person had asthma.

Perry Yates thought about her inventory. She didn’t seem to have any specific asthma medication, but she did have a method for treating it.

She then sent the person a private message.

"Hello. I don’t have asthma medication, but I do have a cure for it. However, a single Vehicle Space Expansion Stone isn’t valuable enough for it."

The reply came back very quickly.

"How can I confirm that what you’re saying is true?"

Seeing this, Perry Yates thought for a moment before replying, "I can give you a third of the medicine. I guarantee you’ll feel its effects immediately."

The other person hesitated for a moment before sending a reply: "Okay."

At that, Perry Yates took out a brown pill that smelled of traditional medicine. In reality, it was a piece of candy that hadn’t been eaten because of its strange taste. As luck would have it, this particular candy targeted ailments like asthma and was guaranteed to work on the spot.

Perry Yates wrapped the candy, crushed it into a powder, and sent about a third of the portion over to the person.

A little while later, she asked, "Did you take it? How do you feel?"

"I feel so much better," the person replied quickly.

In fact, he had never felt this good in his life.

"I want the rest of the medicine. I have three high-quality Vehicle Space Expansion Stones. That should be enough, right?"

Seeing the number he offered, Perry Yates’s eyes widened. The price for Vehicle Space Expansion Stones was being driven to astronomical heights on the trading channel, yet this person had just offered three of them in one go.

’It’s truly a case of feast or famine.’