Wesley’s heart nearly stopped and he shot to his feet with his face pale. “T-That’s impossible,” he stammered as his fingers trembled as he clutched the armrest of his chair. “The loan isn’t due for another six months!”
The thug leader sneered, a cruel smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Plans change,” he said, grabbing Wesley by the collar and yanking him forward. “Your deadline doesn’t matter. The Brown Gang wants the money now.”
Upon hearing the name Brown Gang, Wesley gasped sharply. His demeanor shifted in an instant, panic dissolving into desperate flattery. “I—I know! I know! I borrowed the $10 million, but it’s tied up in an investment. I can’t access the funds right now. I just need more time so please just wait!”
The leader’s expression darkened, his grip tightening. “The boss doesn’t care about that,” he growled. “If he says pay up, you pay up — or we start breaking bones.”
Wesley’s legs buckled, and he clung to the thug’s arm and his voice shaking. “Please! Give me three months, no, two months! I’ll get it! I swear!”
The thug leader chuckled darkly and shoved Wesley back onto the couch like he was nothing more than trash. “You think begging helps? I’m not here to negotiate, I'm here to collect.”
Davion who was standing by the fireplace clenched his fist and his eyes were blazing with rage.
He took a step forward, but before he could intervene, Trevor stepped in front of him with a cocky stride, brushing dust off his suit jacket.
“Who do you think you are?” Trevor sneered, tilting his chin upward. “I’m Trevor Johnson, heir to the Johnson family. Do you really want to make enemies with me? Our family is about to form a major partnership with a powerful family from the capital. If you lay a finger on us, it won’t end well for you.”
Margaret who had been terrified at first, but upon hearing Trevor's words, her fear suddenly turned into delight. So the Johnson family was about to ally with a powerful family from the capital? If Beverly married into the Johnson family, wouldn’t that bring immense benefits to their family as well?
Her heart raced with excitement, and she quickly wiped her tears and smoothed down her blouse. She turned to Beverly and her eyes were gleaming with newfound hope.
“Did you hear that, my dear?” Margaret whispered, her voice trembling with eagerness. “If you marry Trevor, our family will be untouchable. We could rise to the top overnight!”
Beverly’s face paled and her stomach twisted at her mother’s words. “Mom, this isn’t the time—” she began.
But Margaret ignored her, already envisioning their future. She lifted her chin, shooting the thugs a sharp glare.
“Did you hear that?” she snapped at the thugs. “If you touch us, the Johnsons and their new allies will crush you! Let go of Wesley now, or you'll regret it.”
The gang leader stared at them for a moment, then released Wesley with a shove. Wesley collapsed onto the couch, gasping for air, and Trevor shot Margaret a victorious smirk.
The gang leader squinted at Trevor, rubbing his chin. “A powerful family from the capital, huh?” he muttered, pretending to consider it. “That sounds scary.”
Trevor smirked, puffing out his chest. “Glad you understand. Now get lost.”
The thug leader nodded and then, without warning, he delivered a vicious slap across Trevor’s face. The impact echoed through the room, and Trevor staggered into the glass coffee table, clutching his cheek in shock.
“Scared? Of you?” the leader sneered, watching Trevor crumble to the ground.
Before Trevor could recover, the leader stomped on his chest, pinning him to the shattered remains of the coffee table. “I don’t care who you are,” the thug spat. “Brown Gang fears no one.”
Trevor wheezed and he hadears spilling from his eyes. “P-Please,” he choked, “I—I was just—”
The thug ignored him. His gaze shifted to Beverly, and his lips curled into a cruel grin.
“Since you can’t repay your debt,” he sneered, pointing a finger at Beverly, “we’ll take her instead. She comes with us, and you get her back when the money’s paid.”
Margaret shrieked and pulled Beverly behind her, eyes wide with terror. “You can’t do that!” she cried. “She’s just a girl!”
The thug leader’s grin widened. “Exactly.”
“No way!” Wesley roared, surging to his feet with unexpected fury. “I know what you animals are planning. You’re not taking my daughter!”
One of the thugs grabbed Beverly’s wrist, yanking her forward. She screamed, struggling against his grip.
“Dad! Help me!” she sobbed, kicking at the thug's legs.
Wesley lunged toward them, only to be punched in the stomach. He collapsed to the floor, coughing violently.
“You’ll get her back,” the leader said, dragging Beverly toward the door. “After she earns what you owe us.”
Despair settled over the room like a heavy fog. Margaret sobbed, clutching Wesley, while Trevor lay curled up, shaking.
Just then, a figure stepped forward.
Before anyone could react, Davion moved like lightning, delivering a brutal kick to the gang leader’s chest. The thug flew across the room, crashing into the wall with a sickening thud. He crumpled to the floor, writhing in agony.
Davion straightened, his gaze as cold as ice. He swept his eyes over the remaining gang members, voice low and sharp as a blade.
“Let her go,” he commanded.
The thug gripping Beverly’s arm froze. His hand trembled as he slowly released her, stepping back in fear. Beverly ran to Margaret, sobbing into her shoulder.
The other gang members hesitated, glancing between their leader and Davion. One of them reached for a knife, but Davion’s eyes snapped to him like a predator locking onto prey.
“Get out of here,” Davion growled, voice laced with lethal intent. “You have five seconds.”
Latest Chapter
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The crack did not close.That was the first thing Wilson noticed, and it was the only thing that mattered.He leaned forward so fast he almost knocked into the console, his eyes locked on the fractured section of the system like if he blinked it would disappear.“…It is still there,” he said, his voice low but sharp with disbelief. “It is not repairing.”Beverly stepped closer beside him, her expression tightening as she followed his gaze.“Show me,” she said.Wilson zoomed in, isolating the distortion within the deeper layer, and for the first time since this thing had become whole, the structure looked imperfect.Not chaotic.Not broken.But strained.Reika let out a quiet breath.“That is new,” she said.Davion’s eyes sharpened.“It is a weakness,” he said.The system pulsed.Harder this time.And the voice came again, but it was not as smooth as before.“You are causing disruption.”Wilson actually smiled.“Yeah,” he said. “That is the goal.”Beverly’s focus didn’t waver.“Keep pr
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No one spoke at first.They all just stared at the screen, at the space that had opened where the “core” used to be, except now it was obvious that it had never really been the core at all. It was just a door. And they had just knocked—and it had answered.Wilson leaned in slowly, like getting closer might somehow make it less terrifying, even though it clearly would not.“…That is deeper code,” he said quietly, his voice tight. “Way deeper than anything we have seen so far.”Beverly stepped beside him, her eyes scanning the new structure.“It looks… cleaner,” she said.Reika frowned.“Cleaner?” she repeated.Beverly nodded.“Yes,” she said. “Less noise. Less redundancy. It is like everything unnecessary has been stripped away.”Davion’s gaze hardened.“More efficient,” he said.Wilson swallowed.“Yeah,” he said. “And I really wish it wasn’t.”The system pulsed once, softer this time, almost like it was breathing.Then the voice came again.“You are observing progression.”Reika rolle
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The room did not feel the same anymore.Before, everything had been chaotic, loud, unpredictable, like they were fighting something wild and unstable. But now, it felt… controlled. Too controlled. Like the system was no longer reacting randomly but watching them, waiting for them to make the next move.And that made it worse.Wilson stared at the highlighted section of the hub, his fingers hovering over his tablet again, but this time he was not rushing. He was careful. Slow. Thinking.“…It should not be showing us this,” he said quietly.Reika glanced at him.“Then why is it?” she asked.Wilson swallowed.“Because it is confident,” he said. “Or because it wants us to do something.”Beverly’s expression tightened.“Either way, it is a trap.”Davion did not look away from the glowing section.“Everything has been a trap,” he said. “That has not stopped us before.”Reika smirked faintly.“Then we walk into this one prepared.”Wilson shook his head.“No, no, no, I need to say this clearl
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No one spoke.The word whole echoed in their minds louder than anything the system had said out loud, and that silence that followed was not relief, and it was not confusion either. It was the kind of silence that came right before something broke.Wilson slowly lowered his hands from the console, his fingers shaking slightly as he stared at the now-stable system.“…That is not good,” he said quietly. “That is really, really not good.”Reika did not move, but her grip on her blade tightened again, her eyes locked on the screens like she was waiting for something to jump out at them.“It stopped fighting,” she said.Beverly nodded slowly.“Yes,” she said. “And that is worse.”Davion stood at the center of the room, his posture still, his expression unreadable, but his mind moving fast.The chaos was gone.The noise was gone.Everything that had made the system unpredictable—Was gone.Now it was controlled.Not by them.By it.The voice spoke again.Calm.Even.Clearer than before.“I
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The moment it accepted—Everything changed.The system did not just respond. It surged.The screens flared so bright that for a second, none of them could see clearly, and the low hum of the facility turned into a deep, vibrating roar that felt like it was coming from inside the walls themselves.Wilson grabbed onto the edge of the console.“Okay, that is way faster than I expected,” he said, his voice tight with panic.Beverly steadied herself beside him.“How fast?” she demanded.Wilson glanced at the data and immediately wished he had not.“Too fast,” he said. “It is collapsing the network toward us all at once.”Reika’s grip on her blade tightened as she looked around the room, her instincts already screaming danger.“It is not just coming,” she said. “It is rushing.”Davion stood still in the center of it all, his eyes locked on the screens.“Good,” he said quietly.Wilson turned to him like he had lost his mind.“Good?” he repeated. “This is not good. This is the part where thin
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The warning did not fade.It stayed on the screen like it meant something more than just words, like it was not just a threat but a promise.“Then you will fail.”No one spoke for a few seconds.Even Wilson, who always had something to say, just stared at the screen like his brain was still trying to catch up.“…I do not like being told I am going to fail,” he said finally, his voice quieter than usual. “It feels very personal.”Reika did not look away from the screen.“It is personal,” she said. “We are standing in its way.”Beverly crossed her arms, her posture tightening.“Then we do not stand still,” she said. “We move first.”Davion’s eyes stayed locked on the glowing words.“It already made its move,” he said.The system pulsed again, almost like it was responding to him.Wilson flinched slightly.“Okay, yeah, that is not comforting,” he said. “Can we please agree that it reacting like that is extremely unsettling?”Reika gave him a quick glance.“You are still here, so keep up.
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