Chapter 248: Bring that fucker to me.

Under the night sky of the city...

[7100 metres... 3860 metres... remaining.]

[1200 metres...]

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[...549 metres...]

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"So, did you get the goods...?"

A man muttered in a heavy voice, his attention directed towards the group of men standing before him.

"Yes, Boss. We’ve shifted them inside the basement for now. They were a bit feisty, but nothing we couldn’t handle."

The man speaking grinned, and hearing his words, the Boss’s smile widened slightly.

A few of the others chuckled as well.

"You can enjoy them now. Just remember to keep them intact."

All of them once again turned towards the heavy voice, their eyes shifting towards the Boss, who leaned back against the sofa, a cigarette burning between his fingers.

"Boss, what do we do about Glenn...? He’s still bedridden after getting treated."

The Boss’s expression changed slightly.

"That fucker, huh?"

He slowly puffed on his cigarette, his eyes narrowing as he thought for a moment.

"Can’t believe that bastard got beaten up by an unawakened boy," one of the men muttered, and many of them totally agreed.

"Was he stupid, or did he not even try to fight...?"

"Glenn was one of the best, but it seems that was just a ruse..."

A few of them laughed quietly, but the Boss didn’t seem to join in their enthusiasm.

Looking at them, he clicked his tongue before taking another puff from his cigarette.

’No way someone who could hit Glenn would be unawakened. He must have a higher F-Rank... or something.’

Glenn might’ve been careless, but he wasn’t weak enough to be beaten that easily by an ordinary person.

Just as he was thinking this—

Click

The sound of the door opening echoed through the room, and everyone’s attention immediately shifted towards the entrance.

"Boss!"

Another voice suddenly chimed in as another man entered the room, his face looking slightly... nervous...?

The Boss’s brows furrowed.

"What is it?"

The newcomer swallowed.

"Boss! T-There is an intruder outside the warehouse."

Hearing those words, the relaxed atmosphere inside the room immediately disappeared, and everyone frowned.

Some of them exchanged glances, while others murmured quietly to each other.

"Who...?"

The Boss narrowed his eyes.

The man hesitated.

"I don’t know, Boss. I looked at the camera footage, but his face..."

His lips quivered slightly, and he seemed to be struggling to talk before he finally spoke.

"His... his face was covered with a mask."

"Mask...?"

The Boss stared at him.

For some reason, he couldn’t help but find the man’s behaviour strange.

It wasn’t merely nervousness, but... it was as if... he was afraid or something, which made the Boss mildly confused.

"A mask...?" one of the men repeated.

Then, as though remembering something, another man slowly muttered.

"Wasn’t there a masked woman Glenn tried to touch? Only to get almost killed by her companion...?"

The moment he said that, a few of the others immediately burst out laughing.

"Hahaha! No way!"

"Do you think she actually came here?!"

"And if she did, isn’t that good for us?"

"Hahaha! Exactly!"

The Boss, however, didn’t react with the same enthusiasm, and rather... his gaze remained fixed on the nervous man—Ian—who had been there along with Glenn in the morning.

"Oi."

His voice immediately silenced some of the laughter.

"Is it her...?"

Ian’s body stiffened.

He swallowed hard, and for a moment, he seemed unable to answer.

"I-I don’t know..." His voice came out weakly.

"I wasn’t able to see perfectly in the footage, but... it was a similar mask."

A brief silence fell inside the room, and everyone looked at Ian with raised brows, while others sneered at his frightened expression.

"You got scared by two peop—"

"Ahh..."

An unfamiliar voice suddenly interrupted them.

"It seems you’re all already talking about me."

Everyone’s head snapped towards the direction of the voice.

The laughter stopped.

The room became completely silent.

Everyone’s eyes widened as they saw a figure standing in the dim light of the room.

His hands were casually tucked into the pockets of his black formal suit, the dark fabric blending with the shadows surrounding him... while the man’s face... was completely concealed beneath darkness.

A smooth, pitch-black mask covered his features, reflecting none of the weak light inside the room.

And just by standing there... a wild, cold aura slowly spread through the room.

Ian’s face instantly went pale.

"W-who are you?!"

"How did you get in here?!"

The group’s expressions suddenly shifted from amusement to alertness, and they all raised their weapons.

The Boss had already stood up from his sofa, his eyes widening as he stared at the man who had suddenly appeared inside the warehouse.

’How did he get in here?’

There were a few people guarding outside.

Yet... how had this man entered without making a single sound?

"Who are you...?" the Boss asked cautiously.

Lucian slowly tilted his head towards him, the simple movement sending an instinctive chill down his spine.

"You were just talking about me...? How could you forget this so soon?" Lucian muttered, his voice carrying a hint of disapproval.

The Boss’s expression changed, and realisation flashed through his eyes.

"So you’re the man who almost broke Glenn’s neck."

"Hm, hm."

Lucian hummed in agreement without any hesitation.

"Anyways..." he then casually glanced around the room.

"Can you call that man? I didn’t get the time in the morning, so I want to finish my talk with him."

The Boss’s expression twitched, but before he could respond—

"Who do you think you are to order the Boss around, you bastard?!"

A man suddenly charged at Lucian, his knife aimed straight at him.

But the moment he reached him—

Lucian’s hand shot forward.

He easily caught the man’s wrist, and before he could even react, Lucian pulled his arm towards himself while his other arm moved at the same time.

"Aaaahhh!!!"

The man’s scream echoed throughout the warehouse.

His eyes contorted in horror as he looked down at his arm, his hand twisted into an unnatural position.

The knife slipped from his fingers.

Lucian’s expression barely changed, but upon hearing the scream, his lips twisted, causing him to slam his foot into the man’s lower body.

Another gasped cry escaped the man’s throat as the force sent him flying backwards, crashing into the group behind him.

"Don’t shout so loudly," Lucian muttered in irritation.

The group, stunned, was taken aback as their companion was thrown onto them, while a few groaned as the man’s body crashed into theirs.

"Well, good luck next time."

Lucian ignored the chaos between them and turned his attention back towards the Boss.

"Hey..."

His voice suddenly became colder, and an invisible pressure descended upon everyone inside the room.

The men who had been holding their weapons tightly suddenly felt their bodies stiffen.

"Bring that fucker to me."