The next day, Noah and Asher walked through the older part of Cardio City, their footsteps echoing on the quiet streets. The buildings were worn with age, their faded signs creaking in the faint breeze.
"What do you think the boss called us for?" Asher asked.
"Who knows," Noah said, his tone unreadable.
"Maybe… they're going to celebrate our win against the Arcane Keepers the other day?" Asher said, hopeful. "That would be sick."
Noah didn't answer.
They arrived at the Joker Roulette hideout, a nondescript building with a heavy, weather-beaten door. Asher pushed it open, the hinges groaning in protest.
Inside, the air was thick with tension.
In the corner of the room, Ridley sat hunched over, his fingers digging into his own arms hard enough to leave marks. His lips moved in a silent, relentless chant.
"I'll kill them… I'll kill them… I'll kill them all!"
Asher stiffened. Ridley looked like a man on the edge—his eyes bloodshot, dark circles beneath them like bruises. His usual sharp, playful grin was gone, replaced by something hollow and feverish.
Asher hesitated, throat tightening. "What happened to him?"
"Sit down first," Liam said from across the room. His voice was calm, but there was a weight to it that made Asher's stomach twist.
Milo and Willow sat beside Liam, their expressions grim. Gregory and Owen were nowhere in sight.
Asher glanced at Noah, but his friend's face was unreadable. They took their seats.
"So, what happened?" Asher asked, shifting uncomfortably. The room felt too small, the silence pressing down on them. This wasn't the celebration he'd imagined.
Liam closed his eyes for a long moment. Then he opened them and said, "Last night, Owen was killed."
Silence.
Asher blinked. Once. Twice. His brain refused to process the words.
"Wait… what?" His voice cracked.
"I see," Noah said quietly, his gaze flicking to Ridley. "So that's why he's like that. Who did it? The Arcane Keepers?"
"No. It was a different group," Milo answered, his jaw tight.
"Wait, wait!" Asher's hands clenched into fists. "Are you guys serious? Owen, he—"
"I'll kill both of them!" Ridley suddenly roared, slamming his fist into the wall. "I will!"
"Calm down, Ridley," Liam said, firm but not unkind.
Asher swallowed hard. He'd never seen Ridley like this—unhinged, raw, like a live wire sparking in the rain.
"So Owen really…" He couldn't finish. But the looks on their faces told him everything.
"Last night," Milo began, voice low, "Owen and Ridley were attacked by a two-man team. No warning. No provocation. They targeted us out of nowhere."
"A short guy with shark teeth," Liam added, "and a sturdy man with a tattoo on his neck."
"That damn shark guy!" Ridley snarled, his voice ragged. "I'll make him pay!"
The night before, city street.
Owen lay sprawled on the ground, his hand a mess of blood and torn flesh. Above him, the shark-toothed man grinned with cruel satisfaction, his jagged teeth glinting in the dim streetlight.
On the opposite side, Ridley stood frozen, muscles locked. Behind him, the tattooed man watched, his expression eerily calm.
"Owen! Are you okay?!" Ridley shouted, panic clawing up his throat.
He tried to lunge forward, but his body refused to obey. He couldn't move—not an inch.
"Free me, you damn freak!" he spat at the man behind him.
The tattooed man sighed. "I'm sorry," he said, almost politely, "but you should just sit back and watch. Otherwise, this would become a pointless slaughter."
"Slaughter my ass!" Owen forced himself up, teeth bared. "Just 'cause you got a lucky hit in, you think you've won? Idiot!"
The shark-toothed man chuckled. "I see. Then you don't mind if I take another bite?"
"Come on, brat!" Owen growled. "I'll smash those crappy teeth of yours!"
---
"But no matter how much Owen tried to fight back," Ridley whispered now, his hands shaking, "that guy tore through him like paper. His skin, his muscles—nothing stopped him."
Ridley's voice broke. "And I just stood there. I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything while Owen got shredded to pieces!"
His fists clenched so hard his nails drew blood. "Those two bastards made me watch my friend bleed to death!"
Milo stepped in when Ridley's voice gave out.
"After they killed Owen," Milo said, "they gave us a message. 'Join us, or die.' Then they told us their group's name—Serpent's Slaughter."
Asher's breath hitched. "Wait, I know that name!"
"One of the three biggest criminal groups in the world," Noah confirmed. He smiled faintly. "Looks like we've caught the attention of the big leagues."
"I don't care who they are!" Ridley snarled. "I'll make them pay!"
"That's your personal feeling," Noah said, raising his eyebrows. His eyes shifted toward Liam. "I'm talking about the whole group here. So what's your decision, boss man? What are we doing about this?"
Liam's eyes were dark as night. "They dared to hurt us. We'll hurt them back," he said. "I won't stop until their entire group is gone."
Ridley obviously agreed with this decision. Milo silently nodded his head, showing support for Liam's decision. Willow just sat there, not daring to say anything at the moment.
Noah grinned. "Bold claim," he said. "You know some say they have over a thousand members, right?"
"So what?" Liam said, glaring at Noah with cold determination.
Noah chuckled. "Nothing," he said, shrugging. "If you're serious about this… I'm all in."
Beside him, Asher swallowed hard, then nodded. "Y-yeah. Let's do this."
---