Chapter 81
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: Pursuit and Negotiation
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"Urk...!"
Tung!
Brody's massive frame cleaved through the night sky.
I slowly tracked him with my eyes as he kicked off the ground powerfully and fled, but that huge body was soon swallowed by the darkness.
Fleeing at that speed through this pitch-black night, it wouldn't be easy to keep up.
Brody's arm bore a massive wound, but the sea breeze had washed away the metallic tang of blood.
Yet I had Agility and Internal Energy.
Crunch.
Internal Energy surged into my legs.
Swollen veins and tendons bulged across them, and a strange heat began to radiate through my body.
My breathing steadied, and my senses sharpened.
I listened carefully.
Even if he tried to hide everything in his flight, he couldn't mask the sound of his powerful leaps off the ground.
In the quiet depths of the night by the docks, I waited for that sound to echo.
Tung.
It was faint—quite a distance away—but unmistakable.
And then I moved.
I kicked off, cratering the ground beneath me.
Whoosh!
The sound of slicing wind whipped past my ears.
Even in the darkness, I could vaguely see the surroundings blurring backward.
As if folding space with each step.
With every stride, the scenery and scents around me shifted.
Perhaps sensing my pursuit, the thumping of his footsteps quickened.
But already, a faint thread of light had entered my vision.
The glow from his headlight.
Moments later—
Crack!
A massive sound exploded across the docks, and silence fell.
Only the occasional crash of waves filled the air.
The headlight lay shattered, and Brody was embedded in a tree.
From my kick, he'd splintered the trunk and burrowed halfway in.
Brody clutched his abdomen, gasping raggedly.
He didn't even look at me.
"Kuhuhu..."
He just let out a hollow laugh, staring at the ground.
"All those perils I survived... only to fall here."
A dry chuckle escaped him.
He'd given up fleeing entirely, leaning back against the tree now.
Acknowledging he couldn't run anymore.
I slowly picked up the broken headlight and approached him.
The front glass was shattered, but it still emitted light.
He looked up at me slowly.
"You gonna kill me?"
"Hold still for now."
Standing before Brody, I first called for an ambulance.
Not for him.
For Detective Lee and the captain, who'd been hurt by him.
If negotiations went well, maybe I'd let this guy hitch a ride too.
"Negotiations?"
When I said I wanted to negotiate, Brody looked utterly baffled.
Then he answered flatly.
"No."
Before I could even state terms, I pressed my machete to his throat.
"Fine by me."
Honestly, negotiation was just plan one.
If it failed, I had other ways.
Seeing my indifference, Brody panicked instead.
"W-Wait."
Predictable. How loyal could a villain be to his organization?
Those romantic types were long gone.
As I slowly brought the machete closer to his neck, a thin bead of blood trickled down.
For someone who hated negotiating, Brody was twisting his head side to side to dodge it.
"Changed your mind?"
"..."
His heavy head nodded up and down.
The terms were simple.
I'll let you live. Leave Korea alone. And make sure neither you nor anyone from your group ever comes back.
"Me alone? Not the whole Wolf?"
"Yeah."
This was pre-planned with the captain and Detective Lee.
Ideally, I'd wipe out all of Wolf, not just chase them from Korea—but catching one guy wouldn't end it.
So first, free Korea from this threat.
Step one: Brody leaves, and no more villains come.
Villains rampaging next door in Japan coming here would be a hassle.
"What about Bella and Alex?"
"I can handle those two."
"...Yeah, fair enough."
Of course, my "handling" differed from what Brody imagined.
I'd left Bella and Alex for a reason.
They trusted me deeply now—I'd leverage that.
Play it right, and we could use Wolf to clean out domestic villain groups, even smash various crimes. That was the higher-ups' thinking, as they groveled on calls with the captain.
I agreed.
I wanted to target Bella anyway.
My quests always rewarded big when I stole something.
Bella and Alex's odd dynamic.
And Bella's Fetish.
Smelled like quest bait.
"Alright... deal."
Realizing the terms weren't too bad for him, Brody nodded quickly.
"I'll call a cadre meeting tomorrow. I'll say I'm heading out... for treatment."
"Hmm... hard to trust."
"..."
As I gazed down skeptically, Brody pulled out his phone from his pocket.
Blood from his shoulder had soaked into his clothes, smearing the screen red as he fumbled to dial.
Click.
The other side picked up immediately.
Brody raised his trembling hand with the phone.
[Brody? Calling first... what's up?]
A familiar voice.
Bella.
The other S-rank villain.
"...Ambushed. One attacker. Escaped, but badly hurt."
[What? You ran? Wait, who was it?]
Brody glanced up at me.
I held up one finger to my lips.
Silent pressure to keep it secret.
"...Small guy, older. I'll call a meeting tomorrow and explain."
He hung up.
A meeting would happen tomorrow, as promised.
I looked down at Brody with satisfaction.
"Ambulance is coming. Stop the bleeding till then."
Brody silently tore his shirt with a rip, binding his shoulder tight.
Skilled hands.
The ambulance pierced the darkness after about ten minutes.
Given the location, it wasn't surprising.
Plus, the paramedics had picked up Detective Lee and the captain first, apologizing for the delay.
"How are the two?"
I was more worried about them than Brody.
"No life-threatening issues. Need full checks at the hospital for details."
"Phew, got it."
As long as they were alive, that was a relief.
The rest was up to modern medicine.
I'd done my part.
"The injured one's actually worse off..."
The paramedic eyed Brody—sitting fine, but supposedly graver—curiously.
Hey, self-inflicted.
No sympathy.
Early morning, I headed back to Bella's hotel room.
Felt like I was visiting daily lately.
Mostly my schemes, though.
I knocked and entered right away.
She'd summoned me today, after all.
"You're here. Sit."
Alex and Bella were already on the big sofa, faces grim.
"What's up?"
I asked casually.
Bella replied gravely.
"No idea. Ask Brody for details."
She asked if I knew who Brody was.
I nodded.
"Yeah, checked the USB you sent."
About ten people pored over every word.
I knew him well now.
The door opened, and in walked Brody—shoulder in a bulky brace.
Something strapped to his abdomen too.
"Brody! What happened?"
Brody entered, gave me a lingering look, and smirked.
Then back to his serious face.
"...Got jumped by a hero I've never seen."
Alex and Bella's expressions darkened.
"Bad enough you had to run? S-rank hero?"
"Yeah. All I could do was flee."
Brody answered without hesitation.
Things were tangled now—their faces soured more.
Not just the S-rank, but Brody losing hit harder.
"Brody did..."
As the room fell silent, Brody spoke.
"Not feeling great. Need to head to Japan for a bit."
"Japan? What about ops here?"
"Hand it to you. You three handle it."
"Three..."
Only then did Bella glance at me.
As if slowly recalling Alex's escape and my promotion to cadre.
I felt trust in her eyes.
"Got it. We'll manage here. Focus on recovering."
"...Good luck."
Brody gave a wry smile and left.
Now the real meeting began—Bella turned to us gravely.
"We need to ID Brody's attacker."
Alex nodded; I bowed my head.
Couldn't control my expression at all.