The floor was spotless and the walls were decorated with a few pieces of art, but they weren't of much value. Viktor walked down the long hallway towards the back of the house, where he spotted a metal door made especially for him. It was considerably larger than the other doors in the house, immediately catching his attention.
"Take seven minutes to find this door."
'PRECISELY SIX MINUTES AND FIFTY-SEVEN SECONDS.' Atlas said precisely.
Viktor muttered."Is this where the boss is?"
Pulling his hand holding the stranger's hair, he looked at him trembling with fear.
"Yes... I.… swear..." Crying with his mouth all bruised and bleeding.
"Okay, thanks." He threw him into the pile of men. Some groaned in pain, others were unconscious.
'TWO DOWN IN THE FRONT OF THE HOUSE! TWO DOWN IN THE LIVING ROOM! FOUR DOWN IN THE LIVING ROOM! TWO DOWN IN THE HALLWAY! I CONFIRM TEN DOWN!'
"That was a great warm-up." Stretching his arms.
'YES! USER "YOU RE GREAT", BUT YOU'VE USED ALMOST ALL OF YOUR ENERGY! I RECOMMEND YOU CONSERVE YOUR ENERGY!'
"How insecure Atlas... wait... was that sarcasm you said...?"
'IS THERE A PROBLEM...?'
Viktor sighed and without hesitation, he walked straight to the door and kicked it hard. The door opened with a loud bang, revealing a spacious room that looked like an office. In the center was a large desk and high-quality chairs. Sitting behind the desk was a fat old man, his eyes showing great greed and arrogance.
"Come in." His voice was old and hoarse.
Viktor sighed and entered immediately. Looking around the room, he saw the old man more closely, his appearance stern, and five men at his side, showing that he was in command of the situation. In the corner, the two men he had followed lay injured, clearly beaten by their own boss for failing to capture him.
Viktor looked at the injured men and asked, in a cold tone,
"Do you really need to do this to your own people?"
The leader, showing no remorse, replied coldly.
"I do not care about those who do not fulfill their duties. They are mere disposable pawns."
Viktor was visibly irritated by the answer.
"Even if they are not competent, you should never discard your men like that.
"The room was silent for a moment, but soon the men began to laugh.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA"
"THAT WAS GOOD BOY."
"HAHAHAHAHAH"
The leader, with a cold smile of confidence, watched the newly arrived boy melt into his area.
"That was good, boy. But the reality is much colder, they are just disposable parts that I can use."
Viktor, undeterred, smiled at him. "That applies to you too."
The laughter stopped immediately, and the leader's men turned serious. The leader snapped his fingers, and a man appeared from the ground, rising from the earth. It was an earth elemental. The leader, with a satisfied tone, made a light comment.
"They're expensive, but worth every penny."
He continued to smile at Viktor.
"Kid, that's power over others. Let me introduce you to Groom, a mercenary who only cares about money, the kind I appreciate." Groom smiled coldly.
Groom, laughing, looked at Viktor. "I can't believe one of my jobs is to catch a child. Thanks, kid, for making me earn more money."
Before Groom could react, Viktor drew his energy pistol and shot the elemental in the head. The mercenary fell to the ground, still smiling, but lifeless. Everyone in the room held their breath, in disbelief at what they had just witnessed. An earth elemental, defeated by a child in an instant.
The leader stood up from his chair, shocked. The silence was broken by Viktor, with a sarcastic tone.
"Who would have thought John would give me a loaded pistol? Honestly, I thought it was unloaded. It was worth testing, I'll thank him later."
'I THINK YOU'RE THE ONLY PERSON JOHN DOESN'T WANT TO SEE.'
John's only contact with the resistance is the one who saved him from his near death. In an agreement between the two, John was supposed to take Viktor to a safe place. But due to Viktor's persistence, he wanted some protective equipment to protect himself until he reached the safe place. John gave him two gifts to defend himself. A special vibrating knife called Diana. John's favorite knife that was given to him by accident is an energy pistol. Its function was unknown, but it proved to be quite useful now.
'I just hope this pistol isn't named after a person...'
'KNOWING JONH, THERE'S A 92% PROBABILITY HE GAVE A NAME TO THE GUN YOU HAVE NOW!'
"I don't think he'll miss it.."
'I DOUBT IT USER!'
"..."
The leader, still in shock, finally came out of his trance and looked at Viktor, full of anger.
"What did you do? Do you have any idea how much he was worth? Do you have any idea how much I spent?"
Viktor, curious, looked at him with a carefree tone.
"Was he worth something?"
The leader, now visibly irritated, shouted to his men.
"ATTACK!"
The five men drew their pistols simultaneously. Viktor, with his quick reflexes and experience, instantly appeared beside the nearest henchman. He drew his vibrating knife and, with one precise cut, slashed the man's right wrist, knocking the gun from his hand. In one fluid movement, Viktor closed in, positioning himself behind the wounded henchman's back, using him as a shield as the others prepared to shoot.
"Please... No"
"SHOOT!"
"NO!"
Shots rang out across the room, but Viktor was prepared. With his pistol in his left hand and his Diana knife in his right, stuck in the hostage's back like a shield, he waited a few seconds, patiently walking back to the road he had come from, seeking the best cover while taking cover behind the lifeless body. However, he did not expect the shooters to run out of ammunition in their pistols so quickly.
The sound of gunfire faded, and Viktor did not miss the chance to counterattack while they reloaded their weapons. He began firing accurately, without hesitation. The first two shots hit one of the men next to the leader, who fell instantly, hit in the right eye. The second shot went straight to the head of another, who collapsed lifelessly. The third man was hit with two shots in the chest, falling to his knees before succumbing. The penultimate man was shot in the stomach, screaming in pain as he fell. Viktor realized that his own ammunition was running out.
"Great!!!"
Annoyed, he used his last energy bullets on the last one still standing, but the shooter was smarter and quickly dodged, Viktor had no choice. He threw his gun, distracting him enough to quickly approach. With a quick movement, Viktor slit the man's throat.
"Huh..." falling to the ground, holding his neck as blood gushed.
"Seriously, you guys don't save ammo, do you have any idea how much a loaded energy clip costs?"
An energy pistol was a revolutionary weapon designed to eliminate dangerous beasts and used in warfare. However, they were extremely expensive, especially when it came to ammunition. Each loaded energy clip could cost more than a small fortune, making them affordable only to the most powerful and mid-sized nations, such as the Union.
Another group that had access to these weapons was the Hunters' Guild, which was funded by almost every nation. They were responsible for eliminating beasts that roamed near colonies and cities. There were also other types of energy weapons designed for special purposes, such as against elemental users or other higher purposes, which required a large amount of resources to design and use, which further increased their value.
'I don't think John realized what he gave me...'
'PROBABLY!'
The room was silent, except for the groans of the wounded and some accepting their end, others were no longer responding. Viktor, breathing heavily, looked to where the leader was.
The leader, seeing his men fall one by one, quickly hid under the table, trying to avoid the same fate. Viktor, noticing the movement, approached the table with coldness.
"Do you think you can hide from me?" Viktor glared at the rat hiding under the table, his voice was cold but with enough force to make the fat old man tremble in fear, throwing the table against the wall, breaking it into pieces.
The leader, trembling with fear, quickly responded in a trembling voice.
"Please don't kill me. I can give you whatever you want!"
Viktor, showing no mercy, pulled the leader up, holding him by the collar. He looked straight into the man's eyes, which were pale and sweating cold.
"Do you really think you can buy your life?" Viktor grabbed the leader's collar.
The leader, in a desperate act, pulled a hidden pistol from his sleeve. But Viktor had already foreseen this, grabbing his arm in time, twisting his wrist tightly. The leader screamed in pain, the pistol fell from his hand and slid across the floor as Viktor kicked it away.
"Ahhh! Please stop!" the leader screamed in panic.
Viktor, keeping a firm grip on the leader's wrist, looked at him with contempt.
"Did you really think you could fool me?"
The leader, desperate, began to speak quickly to save his life.
"I can give you information! I can tell you anything you want to know! I can make you rich or I can give you women!! Whatever you want!!"
Viktor approached the leader, his cold, emotionless eyes hiding great anger.
"I need information on anyone who has experience in clandestine genetic enhancement, or who has at least experience in this area."
The leader, sweating coldly, shook his head nervously. "I don't know anyone who... does genetic enhancement."
Viktor got angry and threw the leader to the ground, approaching him. In desperation, the leader began to crawl backwards.
"But I know people who do cybernetic enhancements!" He shouted quickly.
Viktor was not interested and continued approaching. The leader, in panic, remembered a legend and, in fear, began to speak quickly, to gain more time.
"Wait! There is a legend... a saint who helps the poor and needy for free."
Viktor stopped and looked at the leader curiously "Go on."
The leader, still trembling, continued.
"Our chief didn't like this legend about helping the poor, but he was interested in the saint. He sent his trusted men to the farthest part of the district after this legend, but no one returned. Only one came back, covered in plants, suffocating and saying 'my sweet lady'."
Surprised, Viktor asked again. "What did he say?"
"The henchman who survived was saying 'my sweet lady' in front of the leader, and then he was suffocated by the plants that were on his body!" He explained fearfully.
Viktor shook his head in disbelief and sarcasm. "What a horror story."
But the leader insisted. "It's... true! The leader himself gave up on the region."
Atlas chimed in. "HE'S TELLING THE TRUTH, VIKTOR."
Viktor believed Atlas, but felt a sharp pain in his side, in his lower back. He realized he had been injured in the shooting.
The leader noticed the blood and, in fear, spoke quickly. "I have HP vials. They are on my desk."
HP vials contain substances that accelerate cell regeneration, allowing the body to heal from injuries. Possessing high wound healing power, these vials also restore a person's energy and strength, allowing them to continue fighting.
Viktor looked at the destroyed table, noticed the destroyed HP vials on the floor and was silent for a moment. The leader, desperate, tried to improve his situation.
"I have more vials with me, in my coat." He removed the vial and offered it to Viktor.
"I want two!"
The leader, irritated, replied.
"I only have two and they are of average quality. They cost more than you can imagine." But at Viktor's gaze, he trembled in fear, losing all his anger.
Crying "Okay, I have one more of high quality. You can have both. I didn't need them." He removed the two remaining vials and handed them to Viktor.
"Now I want one more."
"But this way I won't be without..." he looked at Viktor who clearly saw anger in his eyes.
"Of course you can have them all!!"
Giving his most valuable vial to Viktor.
Viktor took the vials and, holding the leader's head by the hair, gave him a strong headbutt.
"Stay on the ground!" He ordered.
The leader groaned in pain, feeling his broken nose. Viktor paid no attention to him and approached his attackers who had been beaten by the leader himself.
"I know you're awake."
"....."
"....."
"You can pretend if you want, but you won't survive with those injuries. Take the HP vials."
The leader muttered in shock.
"What a waste."
Viktor glanced over his shoulder at him, and the leader remained silent, lowering his head. The room fell silent until one of the two injured men spoke up in fear.
"Why are you helping us?"
Viktor answered truthfully, "I've been where you are. I know what you're feeling."
One of the men began to cry as he received the HP vial, grateful, as did the other. Viktor watched as they drank the elixir.
Viktor turned to the leader and walked away coldly. "Where is it?"
The leader was confused. "Where is what?"
Drinking the high-quality vial in front of him without understanding anything, he felt his injuries heal and regenerate, his fatigue disappearing, his strength and energy returning.
'WARNING! USER'S RECOVERY IS AT 80% PERCENT! BUT IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT YOU REST.!
Viktor, now irritated, repeated. "Where is your secret room?"
"How did you..."
"WHERE ARE YOU!!"
The leader started crying again, but there were no more tears left. "Okay, okay, young sir." He tried to stand up.
Viktor, impatient, ordered. "Get up quickly!"
The leader stood up quickly. "Yes, sir."
"Now show me!" Viktor demanded.