The man was busy talking on the phone with someone while taking a drag from a freshly lit cigarette. He stood in the corner of the narrow alley behind the club he was visiting. He was completely unaware that Theo had been standing behind the wall, trying to eavesdrop on his conversation.
"Alright, master. I understand. As soon as we're done, we'll leave. Don't worry, we're in disguise, so the police will have a hard time recognizing us," he said to the man.
Theo froze in place upon hearing his words. His body stiffened with a clearly surprised expression. Master? So, he was talking to his master? The master he referred to must be the person who ordered him to kill me, right?
Theo remained silent, listening to their conversation. Unbeknownst to him, the man had been on the phone for quite some time. Theo's mind wandered as he listened to their discussion. The curiosity that pervaded his body made him unaware. He didn't even realize that the man who had been on the phone was now walking towards him, intending to return to the club. However, as he turned, his body accidentally collided with Theo's, causing the phone he was holding to fall to the ground.
Theo startled. He snapped out of his reverie, and his face turned panicked when he saw the man right in front of him. The man stared at him with an expression just as surprised as Theo's. They were both equally shocked to realize each other's presence. In his panic, Theo immediately averted his gaze elsewhere.
"Sorry, I-I truly didn't mean to. I-I just finished throwing out the trash and was planning to enter through the back door," stammered Theo. Fortunately, even in his panic, his mind could still find a reason to avoid arousing suspicion from the man. Theo shifted his attention and accidentally saw the man's phone still lit, revealing the call screen with someone saved as 'master.' From the call screen, Theo realized that the man hadn't finished talking to the person he referred to as master.
Theo squatted down and picked up the man's phone. As he held the device, Theo could hear a man shouting from the other end, trying to confirm if the call was still connected or not.
"Hello? Dante, are you still there?" The man on the other end kept yelling. Theo suddenly froze in place upon hearing the voice of the man called 'master.'
This voice... wasn't it... Theo was truly speechless upon hearing that voice. However, his attention shifted immediately when the man named Dante in front of him roughly snatched the phone from his grasp.
"I'm still here, master!" Dante replied, walking past the still-silent Theo. But just a few steps beyond Theo, Dante abruptly stopped. He fell silent, trying to process what had just happened. Somehow, seeing the man he bumped into reminded him of someone. Dante attempted to recall where he had seen that face before, and it didn't take long for him to realize that Theo was the man he had killed with his own hands not long ago. The same man who had reported him to the police, leading to him and his other accomplices becoming fugitives. Due to that incident, he had to falsely blame his innocent accomplices for a murder they didn't commit.
As soon as the call was unilaterally terminated by his master, Dante swiftly pocketed the phone. He turned around and approached Theo with an uncontrollable anger. Upon reaching him, Dante gripped Theo's shoulder, making him turn. Without warning, he delivered a punch to Theo's face, causing him to crumple to the ground in a single strike.
Thud!
His body crashed to the ground so roughly. Theo was shocked by what he had just experienced. His brain tried to make sense of the situation. However, before Theo could fully grasp what was happening, Dante had already moved in. He grabbed the collar of his shirt and landed a punch on his face, causing blood to trickle from his nose. Theo winced, attempting to shield himself from the assault. But his efforts proved futile, as the man was too strong and his movements too swift.
Thwack! Thwack!
He repeatedly slammed his fists into Theo's face. Then, he roughly threw Theo's body, causing it to collide with one of the nearby trash bins. Theo's breath was erratic. He stared at Dante, who now seemed blindly furious.
What's happening? Why is he suddenly attacking me? Theo truly didn't understand the situation he was in. It was still very difficult for him to comprehend why Dante was suddenly assaulting him like this.
The situation is out of control. The enemy has identified you!>
Panic and fear immediately engulfed him. Theo's body already looked disheveled after just a few attacks. The crisp white shirt that had appeared earlier was now stained with blood spots from the blows inflicted by Dante. Theo tried to endure, and with all his strength, he attempted to follow every instruction from the system he saw. He tried to move from his position by crawling, hoping to escape. However, as soon as Theo moved a bit, Dante promptly yanked his leg, pinning Theo down so he couldn't do anything. Brutally, he attacked Theo again, repeatedly hitting his face until blood gushed even more from his nose.
"You must be wondering why I'm attacking you, huh? I'm doing this because you've trapped me in trouble!" Dante continued to pummel Theo with all his might, to the point where the man could do nothing but try to protect himself with his feeble hands.
"Because of you, I and the others are being chased by the police! Why didn't you just die that night? How could you survive and involve the police in this? I want to warn you about one thing. You messed with the wrong person! And now, it's time for you to pay for your actions." Dante paused his assault on the now helpless Theo, blood continuously oozing out. The man he was pinning down looked utterly powerless to fight back. Dante reached for something behind the jacket he was wearing. Theo, in his thin consciousness, could see a shiny, flat object now in his grasp. Dante directed the object toward Theo's abdomen, and in one thrust, Theo could feel the coldness of the object piercing and deeply injuring his stomach. His breath caught, and his body became even more helpless. The excruciating pain instantly hit him in the stomach, where the switchblade had just stabbed him.
Dante withdrew his knife, causing blood to flow from the wound. After seeing Theo helpless, he got up, wiping the bloodstains from his knife with a handkerchief. "Go to hell! This time, I'm sure you won't survive! No one will be able to help you now, and slowly, you'll die, bleeding out and savoring every wound on your body!"
Dante walked away, leaving Theo sprawled and drenched in blood. His face was severely injured from the brutal assault. Not only that, but blood also gushed profusely from his stomach, recently stabbed with a switchblade. Theo's consciousness was fading, and in his current state, he could vaguely see the system screen appearing before him.
The body is losing too much blood! Consciousness and life are in danger!>
At the same time, just moments after Dante left the scene, one of the waiters working at the same place as him exited through the back door, carrying a trash bag. The waiter was about to leave the club as soon as his work was done. On his way home, he always took the trash bag that needed to be disposed of. As he turned, planning to take his usual route, his body froze upon seeing Theo in such a gruesome state, blood-soaked and helpless.
"Theo!" Panic-stricken, the man immediately ran towards him. Meanwhile, Theo, who initially could still see the system screen before him, suddenly began to lose sight, and shortly after that, he couldn't see anything at all. Theo couldn't perceive anything except darkness. He couldn't even feel his body.
Rossi was in a state of sheer panic. Seeing his coworker in such disarray was truly frightening. He tried to stay calm and think about what he should do. Soon after, Rossi urgently checked Theo's pulse, trying to determine if there was still a chance to save him. "His pulse is still there, but so weak. I need to call for help."
Promptly, Rossi tried to assist Theo in surviving. Seeing the stab wound on his abdomen, he didn't have the courage to leave Theo alone. At that moment, Rossi tried to find a cloth to staunch the bleeding from the wound. In his panic, he even took off his own clothes and used them to control the bleeding. He held his position with one hand while the other hand dialed the emergency number. After contacting the specialized emergency unit, an ambulance arrived at the scene after Rossi waited for a few moments. The medical personnel who arrived promptly loaded Theo into the ambulance for treatment. Then, they transported him to the nearest hospital, with Rossi accompanying them to provide the necessary information.
*
Theo slowly opened his eyes. He fell silent, trying to clear his vision, which appeared blurry. While attempting to gather his consciousness, Theo glanced around, trying to figure out where he was.
According to Basic Guide No. 2, "The Retaliation System aims to transform your life and help you retaliate against their actions in a better way, so that your good goals in life can be achieved." In addition to Goals, the system will automatically detect your movements, and any actions that could potentially 'threaten life,' the system will automatically send a warning signal. However, if you disregard it and end up trapped in the mentioned situation until you are severely injured and almost 'lose your life,' then the system will no longer be able to help you. If you die for the second time, the system will be automatically deleted. So please be careful when taking actions and making decisions!> Theo fell silent as he read the sentences on his system panel. He had just become aware, and all those sentences had instantly appeared to disturb him. Theo, who initially had no recollection of what happened last, suddenly remembered everything after those system panel sentences appeared. "Did you think I wanted to end up in that situation?" Theo mumbled softly. He fell silent again while reading the newly emerged Additional Information. Come to think of it, I was the one at fault. It was clearly stated in the previous quest to avoid meeting or directly interacting with them as the situation could turn dangerous. But I couldn't control myself, so I unconsciously followed the man, putting myself in jeopardy... Theo sighed deeply, thinking it over again. Because of his actions, he not only failed to complete the quest, but could only gather a few coins. "I failed to collect coins, but at least I gained valuable information, even if it almost cost me my life," he muttered softly. Theo's facial expression suddenly changed as memories of the recent incident flashed through his mind. "Even though I only heard his voice briefly, I know and am absolutely certain that the person they referred to as 'master' is him. The man I met on the same day I caught Lizzy cheating on me. I'm absolutely sure that he's the one talking to them. The man who stole Lizzy from me! I remember his voice clearly, even the tone is the same. And now, if I think about it again, everything seems to make sense. On the day I was stabbed by them for the first time, that man mentioned that they hurt me because I touched their 'master.' Until now, I've never had enemies or been involved with anyone. Only that night... I caused a scene by hitting that jerk until Lizzy had to call the special emergency team to rush him to the hospital. Why am I realizing this now? It seems he sent them and tried to kill me." Theo clenched both of his hands tightly. His instincts told him that it was indeed Zach who had sent the Bloodhound Cartel group to kill him. "If it's really him who did it, I won't stay silent! He has ruined my life, and now he's even trying to kill me? I won't let it slide. Not after what he's done to me. Besides trying to kill me, he even robbed me of my money. The savings I painstakingly collected for years. Although I have more money now, I won't allow the money I earned through my hard work to disappear into the hands of the same person who stole my happiness! I will make them pay!" ***