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The Regis Gang was the third most powerful crime syndicate in Vilia Port, with territory primarily concentrated in the residential districts, slums, and part of the docklands.
As the city's third-largest underworld faction, the Regis Gang often acted as a mediator, serving as a "lubricant" between the Akio Gang and the Dars Gang.
Whenever the top two clashed, Regis frequently found itself collateral damage — in the end, the "big brothers" would walk away mostly unscathed, while Regis would be left licking its wounds.
Each time Akio and Dars fought, they would tacitly choose to battle on Regis turf, leaving Regis no chance to profit from the conflict. This is why, more often than not, Regis territory lies sandwiched between the lands of the other two.
Six months ago, Sector B of the slums originally belonged to the Akio Gang. But Horton, one of Akio's senior leaders, felt their territory had grown too large to manage effectively. He decided to abandon certain contested areas outright.
The Akio leadership didn't object — after all, their influence over the slums was so vast that they practically controlled half of it. Losing a small piece was no big deal, and the slums didn't generate nearly as much profit as other districts anyway.
Sector B was one of those territories Horton gave up back then.
Still, it wasn't an easy decision. Sector B occupied a strategic location, bordering the residential, commercial, and red-light districts — a crucial hub connecting all three. People could significantly shorten their travel time between areas by passing through it.
Because of this, Sector B had a high flow of people and a thriving economy. It was packed with bars, casinos, brothels, and shops, making it one of the "juiciest scraps" among the slum territories — a place that gangs considered too valuable to ignore but too troublesome to hold.
Naturally, this made it a constant target for the Dars Gang and other groups. The Akio Gang sub-leader managing the area frequently clashed with rival gangs over protection rackets.
Horton himself had fought numerous battles with rival officers over Sector B's profits, but in the end, the pressure from all sides became too much, and he was forced to relinquish the territory.
Now, Horton was handing Sector B to Aaron — clearly intending to make things difficult for him. Yet, part of him also hoped Aaron might succeed where others failed and reclaim that "juicy scrap" of territory.
After leaving Horton's base, Aaron headed straight for the docks, arriving quickly at the area he had overseen as patrol captain the day before.
By the time he arrived, Victor and the rest of the patrol squad were already waiting at their usual meeting spot.
From the very start, Aaron had never expected Horton to offer him any support. So, after receiving the title of slum sub-leader from Boss Akio yesterday, Aaron immediately approached Reggie to request manpower.
He had prepared himself to bargain — even offer concessions — to secure Reggie's approval. But to his surprise, Reggie had been unusually agreeable last night, agreeing to help without asking for a single condition.
There was one caveat, though: Reggie made it clear that Aaron could only take volunteers with him into the slum territory — no coercion allowed.
Aaron had gone to see Horton early that morning partly to follow protocol by meeting his direct superior and partly to gauge his attitude — maybe even extract some resources. As expected, he got nothing out of it — except for losing a crate of fine liquor.
Aaron wasn't too disappointed, though his dislike for Horton had grown even stronger.
"Victor should've already explained the situation to you," Aaron said bluntly as soon as he saw them. "I won't repeat myself. If you're willing to stick with me, step forward. If not, that's fine too — everyone's free to choose their own path. Don't feel guilty about it. You've got one minute to decide."
The moment he finished, Victor stepped forward first and positioned himself behind Aaron.
Seeing Victor move, several younger members of the Akio Gang quickly followed suit, lining up behind Aaron as well.
Within seconds, nearly half the patrol squad had declared their loyalty to him.
A minute later, only five men remained from the original thirty. All five were older Akio veterans.
"Time's up. Let's go, brothers."
Aaron ended his silent count and didn't spare a single glance at the five who stayed behind. Smiling, he addressed the men who had chosen to follow him into the slums.
With that, he walked through the two neat rows his new crew had formed and led them away.
The five Akio members who remained behind looked conflicted. Eventually, they sighed, their eyes filled with envy as they watched Aaron's group leave.
They all knew that from this day forward, they and Aaron's crew would no longer be comrades. There was no going back.
Aaron had become a sub-leader of the Akio Gang at a young age, and his strength was formidable. As long as he survived, his rise was all but guaranteed. Following him now — even into the dangerous slums — might be risky, but those who endured would surely reap great rewards.
But the five of them were no longer young. They had families now, and the reckless spirit of youth had faded. They couldn't gamble their lives anymore.
Midday, Sector B of the Slums — Regis Gang Headquarters
A Regis Gang member burst into an ornately decorated room, stumbling and falling at the feet of Argus, the man in charge of the stronghold.
Argus was a towering brute, his face covered in menacing tattoos. Even his bald head was inked, making him look downright terrifying.
"What's with the panic?!" Argus snapped, savoring a glass of wine while being attended to by a pair of women. "You barge in here without knocking — don't you know any manners?"
The subordinate, already terrified by Argus's scolding, grew even more frantic. Scrambling to his feet, he said anxiously, "Bad news, Boss Argus! The Akio Gang sent you this!"
He handed over a black envelope.
The sight of it made Argus's face darken. He stopped berating the man, took the envelope, and tore it open, pulling out a red sheet of paper.
Black envelopes were a traditional method gangs used to deliver messages — usually ominous ones. Receiving one almost always meant something bad was coming… often even a death warning.
Seeing that the paper inside was red made Argus's heart sink, but he forced himself to read it.
His expression twisted with rage as he finished, and he roared furiously:
"Aaron! You damn little brat! Do you think I'll be scared just because you killed Clark and Harrett? If you dare come here, I'll crush you myself! I'll show you what it means to overstep your bounds!"
Still, despite his bluster, Argus decided to report Aaron's plan to move into Sector B to his superiors and request reinforcements.
But before he could do that, the door burst open again — another subordinate rushed in, even more panicked than the first.
"Big news, Boss Argus!" he shouted breathlessly. "Willard, the top executive of the Dars Gang, has been killed by Akio's top officer — Reggie!"
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