Sam stood frozen when he heard Antonia declare that the man he had apprehended was a thief.
"Why?" Sam asked, his brow furrowed. "What makes you think he's a thief? Did you grow a pair of X-ray eyes overnight?"
Antonia, his towering partner, simply shrugged. The accusation seemed absurd, especially since Antonia had just grabbed a random passerby.
"Don't tell me you're playing games with me," Sam grumbled. "I just finished saying that catching thieves isn't as easy as it seems, and you're trying to prove me wrong? What evidence do you have to back this up?"
Antonia remained unfazed, his stoic expression unreadable.
Just as Sam was about to continue his rant, a heavily made-up woman emerged from the building the accused man had exited moments earlier.
"You scumbag!" she shouted, fury etched into her features. "I gave you $200, and you still had the audacity to steal $1,200 from me?! You think you can get away with this?"
Her words hung in the air like a thunderclap, silencing the bustling alley. Sam's jaw dropped as the woman stormed toward the scene, her indignation spilling over.
However, as she approached, her gaze landed on Antonia, whose imposing figure loomed over the accused. She froze mid-step, eyes wide with terror. "Wait… are you with him?!" she stammered, assuming Antonia was protecting the thief.
"Please, sir, I didn't mean to offend you," she babbled. "I-I sell milk tea for a living. Let me go this time!"
Antonia didn't even blink. Instead, he turned to Sam with a look that screamed, "Well, what do you think now?"
Sam sighed, realizing he had no choice but to intervene. "Alright, that's enough," he muttered, pulling out his cuffs. "You're both coming with me."
The thief, who'd been identified as Leela, and the woman were utterly dumbfounded. "What? He's a cop?" Leela wailed. "I thought he was some kind of bodyguard!"
Minutes later, a patrol car arrived to haul both individuals to the station. As the situation resolved, a familiar notification rang in Antonia's mind:
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for catching a thief. Reward: Beginner-level Golden Bell Technique and +12 experience points.]
Antonia smirked. Small victories still mattered, and he wasn't one to turn down rewards from the mysterious system he had somehow acquired.
---
For the rest of the evening, Antonia and Sam resumed their patrol of Ding Street. However, Sam's demeanor shifted. He was noticeably quieter, no longer spouting advice or reprimands.
The truth was simple: Sam's ego had taken a hit. In his eyes, thieves were elusive, traffickers were cunning, and criminals were ghosts who slipped through cracks.
Yet, in a single day, Antonia had caught them all—with ease.
Sam's inner turmoil was reflected in his silence. He couldn't figure out how Antonia kept doing it. Luck? Skill? A sixth sense? It was maddening.
Meanwhile, Antonia was unfazed by his mentor's growing unease. He continued patrolling diligently, using his keen observation skills to scan the streets for suspicious activity.
By the end of their shift, Antonia had apprehended six more offenders, ranging from petty thieves to fraudsters and even a fugitive wanted for assault two years prior.
Sam couldn't deny Antonia's knack for catching criminals, no matter how much it irked him.
---
Back at the station, the buzz surrounding Antonia's unprecedented success was palpable.
"Antonia is incredible!" one officer exclaimed. "It's like he's a magnet for criminals!"
"Seriously," another chimed in. "On his first day, he's caught more people than most of us do in a month!"
"Yeah, at this rate, we might need a bigger holding cell," someone joked, earning a round of laughter.
Sam, overhearing the conversation, could only sigh. As Antonia's mentor, he should've been proud, but all he felt was disbelief. How could one man be so effective?
---
The night ended with Antonia walking through the dimly lit corridors of the station, a satisfied smile on his face. The system's rewards were modest, but the thrill of catching wrongdoers kept him motivated.
For Antonia, there was no greater satisfaction than justice served—one criminal at a time.
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