The robbers loaded their guns and fired, punching large holes in the ceiling, while lights flickered amidst the rustling dust.
Akiko scread.
Frightened footsteps echoed from the attic.
Two other robbers rushed into the room, packaged the two children, and then carried them downstairs.
Akiko wanted to fight desperately.
Thud—
A sedative syringe plunged into her arm, leaving her powerless to resist. The kidnapping process was smooth and effortless.
Akiko was carried into a van.
They wore jackets, their skin covered in tattoos, speaking with thick Russian accents, like a team of professional Ghouls.
Two bottles of Molotov cocktails were thrown into the shop.
The curtains burned and curled.
Oil-stained glass and the kitchen were engulfed in orange flas.
There was no going back here.
Akiko lay on her side in the van, the drugs starting to take effect, and could only hear very muffled sounds apart from a ringing in her ears.
She stared blankly like this.
Until the van door closed, a sense of peace surprisingly rose in her heart, even a relief in escaping reality.
Akiko felt a bit tired.
Kidnapping was a reason she could sleep soundly.
She lost track of ti.
Screech—
The old van slowed down and stopped.
Sirens were heard outside the window.
The bandit in the back pointed a shotgun at Akiko’s head, warning the two kids to keep their mouths shut.
The driver and the passenger seat were chatting.
"Hell, this is a checkpoint, the scanner will reveal the guys and hostages like an X-ray..."
"Don’t worry, soone will handle it."
The van slowly started moving.
The checkpoint’s machines did not work, nor did any police co to question them, and the van left Eden City with a green light the whole way.
Akiko was very weak.
She saw the tal archway disappear behind through the window, struggling to prop herself up in the corner, trying to shield the two children.
The vehicle turned into the sand.
Akiko looked out the window silently:
The dawn of Eden City was shrouded in a gray filter, the fog and pallor pressing the sunlight tightly down.
The buildings beca desolate.
The vibrant, colorful neons buried deep within the soul vanished.
Ghoul kidnappings occurred daily in the city.
Death doesn’t give lucky ones advance notice, when it arrives...
She could only consider herself unlucky.
The van drove for a long ti.
The sunlight beca sowhat scorching.
The yellow sand dried her lips and drowsiness, leaving only a fatigued body pushed out of the vehicle.
Akiko and the children were thrown beside a checkpoint.
Here there were so Wanderers, wearing respirators, led by a Russian girl.
Her language was crude.
Talia dealt with the Ghouls in a few words and spat at them as well.
The situation beca sowhat baffling.
Akiko and the children were taken into a tent, with water and food laid out on the table.
"You are at Damascus Camp."
Talia walked into the room, tossing a sheet with three different cities to choose from.
"Shut up and listen to first."
She introduced the different prices and tis.
"The Owl Town gang might cause you trouble, so never return to Eden City in this lifeti. Is there anyone or anything worth missing there?"
Akiko was dumbfounded by the question.
She pursed her lips and shook her head.
"Good."
Talia pulled Akiko’s trembling arm, connecting her data cable to the equipnt in the middle of the tent.
"You’ll get new identities, pick a place you like, and live with what’s left."
"I don’t understand..."
"Can any of the three of you ride a motorcycle?"
Talia interrupted again with a question.
The older brother among the two kids silently raised his hand.
"Alright, kid, that vehicle at the door is yours."
Talia held up a Funds Card.
"These are what your husband deserved, don’t inquire, don’t reveal your identity, never return to Eden City, any questions?"
She gestured with her chin.
Akiko hesitated, before adjusting her breath and solemnly adding.
"Don’t ss with the Owl Town gang."
"Right, you’re very smart."
Talia smiled, tilting her head to indicate outside the tent—where a slightly worn Glaive motorcycle was parked, yet still decent.
[Eden City - Border Checkpoint]
"The Wanderers have taken the people, it’s done."
John said.
Barry, sitting in the passenger seat, laughed twice, scrutinizing the young driver with a haunted expression.
What John asked Barry to do was a bit abstract.
The Owl Town gang holds grudges, making Akiko vulnerable to involvent, so he wanted Barry to help these three disappear.
John thought it was Barry’s duty, after all, Barry had taken a large portion of Sato Kei’s assets.
Barry was highly efficient.
He arranged for two blackmailed Ghouls to kidnap and burn the shop, then used ECPD’s authority to let the border checkpoint pass them through.
The Wanderers were responsible for the smuggling part.
Professional and fitting.
What Barry didn’t expect was:
John actually sent out Sato’s remaining Funds Card, along with a pretty good motorcycle.
"Why go this far, are you into married won?"
"Weren’t you the one who taught to do good deeds?"
"F*ck, don’t joke around."
"I’m serious, Barry, I’ve already gotten what I wanted out of this job, and the remaining part... it’s quite nice to exchange it for emotional value."
John explained with a smile.
Barry’s expression revealed understanding, half-seriously saying.
"Like those wealthy folks donating to charities? Doing good breeds peace of mind, like veterans turned bodyguards relieving ntal pressure?"
"You’re talking nonsense."
"Alright then, the final question, who hired you?"
"Her husband."
"You’re bullshitting, his body must be decayed by now."
"Yeah, only prosthetic fragnts remain, and I happened to pick up the job from a dead man’s mouth, following the spirit’s guidance, got both money and high-end prosthetics."
John said with calm eyes.
Barry pursed his lips, not digging deeper.
He took it as John was joking—being a professional Lone Wolf, protecting client privacy made sense.
[Mission: Fortune and Peril (Completed)]
[Reward: Remuneration (Fujimura Takeshi), Sato Kei’s Inheritance (Consud), Prosthetic - Silencer [Raqi Industry]]
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