The room was quiet for a second. Then murmurs broke out among Ivan's men.
"That's the Silver Fang... do you really think this is a good idea?" one of them whispered.
"Don't be stupid. He's not actually going to give us the money," another replied.
"Okay then, do you want to be part of the first twenty to attack? He said he was going to kill the first twenty people."
One of them finally spoke up, stepping out from the crowd.
"You said we just have to attack him, right? We don't actually have to take him down?"
Before Jay could answer, another man rushed forward and stabbed Ivan in the lower back.
He was scrawny, sweat pouring down his face.
"I... I did it," he said, eyes wide like he was just realizing what he'd done.
But the moment didn't last. Ivan remained unfazed, plummeting him into the ground with a single punch.
"You fools! If he says he's going to kill you, what do you think I'm going to do to you?" he growled.
Unbeknownst to Ivan, the man had survived the punch and somehow managed to crawl over to Jay.
"I… did it," he repeated, eyes full of desperate hope.
Jay sighed, bent down, picked up a few stacks of cash, and handed it to him.
"Here. This is your reward," he said calmly, then announced, "That leaves nineteen spots."
Even after witnessing Ivan's power, his men still hesitated—tempted by Jay's offer.
One of them sprinted forward, blade in hand, aiming straight for Ivan.
He didn't get far. Another man smacked him across the face with a bat, knocking him out cold.
"We could just kill him together and split the money!"
"But if we do that, Ivan will take more than half," someone else warned.
"Yeah, that's right… Right now he's only offering the reward to twenty of us."
And just like that, a brawl broke out within Ivan's crew.
Metal slammed into skulls. Knives pierced flesh. Screams and cries of pain filled the air.
Vincent just stood there, stunned.
Jay had shattered the entire crew with one move.
For the first time, Vincent truly saw the influence of money. These men turned on their own, on people they probably once called brothers, just for a chance at reward.
Suddenly, a massive fist flew toward his face. Vincent raised his arm in time, blocking it, but the force still knocked him back a few steps.
[Mild pain extracted +14 points]
It was Ivan. And he was furious.
He followed up with a downward slash from his machete, but Vincent stepped back, dodging it cleanly.
'I can follow his movements' Vincent realized. Ivan was strong, but he wasn't as fast, or as deadly as Gutter.
But it wasn't just Ivan he had to worry about. One of the men suddenly attacked him from behind, locking his arms in place, holding him for Ivan's next strike.
Alen arrived just in time, drop-kicking the attacker away, while Jay blocked Ivan's machete from reaching Vincent's neck.
"You guys handle the rest. Let me take care of this one," Jay said.
"I can take him," Vincent replied.
He was already preparing himself mentally to bring this monster down.
But Jay stood firm. "Don't worry. I want to do this one myself."
At that moment, one of Ivan's men slashed him in the leg.
"See that? I did it! Where's my mo—"
Ivan punched him across the room before he could finish.
"Stupid bastards," he mumbled.
"You're still the same mischievous rat I remember," Ivan chuckled. "But don't get carried away."
He launched into a wide slash, roaring, "You're going to die here!"
Jay remained calm, sidestepping the blow and responding with a rapid series of stabs, each strike precise and brutal. Then he retreated, evading another counterattack from Ivan.
Vincent, still fighting nearby, caught glimpses of the battle. Jay was strong, fast, clean, and surgical with every move.
But Ivan's forces hadn't been completely wiped out. There were still plenty of men left, and most of them had weapons.
One charged at Vincent with a bat. Vincent waited for the swing, dodged, and responded with a flurry of punches.
[Severe Pain Extracted +37 points]
[Moderate pain extracted +30 points]
[Moderate pain extracted +33 points]
[…..]
Two more messages such as this appeared.
[Total pain extracted +127 points]
One or two hits would've done the job, but Vincent wasn't holding back.
'The more punches I land, the more pain I get to extract'
That's what this battlefield had become for him: a harvest ground for pain. As long as the men remained conscious, he could extract as much pain as he pleased.
'Who knows when I'll get another chance like this… actually, scratch that. Fights like these probably happen every week'
He grabbed another man by the face and slammed him into the ground, throwing in a few extra punches for good measure.
[.....]
[Total pain extracted +90points]
Someone struck him in the head with a metal bat. His ears rang as he stumbled for balance.
[Moderate pain extracted +26points]
But he recovered fast, catching the next swing mid-air and punching the attacker square in the face.
Blood trickled down his temple, but he barely felt it. Adrenaline drowned out the pain.
He kicked another opponent into the air and followed up with a finishing blow while they were still down.
After taking down a few more, Vincent noticed the attacks had finally stopped. No one else was coming for him.
Everyone was down.
His body was bruised, nicked with knife wounds, and blood still dripped from his head, but he was holding up fine.
He turned to see Ivan on his knees, several blades and knives protruding from his back. Proof that his own men had done most of the damage.
"I always told you that loyalty goes beyond words… but you never listened," Jay said, almost sounding tired.
"I protected this crew, even from a distance. But you? You were going to burn it all down," Jay shook his head.
"Well, it's not my business anymore. I'll leave the rest to you, Gerald… let's go, guys."
Jay turned and walked out of the building, leading his small team.
The few surviving men scrambled toward the pile of cash he left behind.
"Is it okay to leave the money?" Alen asked.
"Yeah," Jay said. "We don't want them spreading rumors that Yellowsaber doesn't keep its promises. Plus Gerald would probably have to pay it all back,"
Jay was barely scratched. Alen had only a few bruises.
"You both handled yourselves well back there," Jay said. "Especially you, Vincent. Now I see why the boss chose you."
"Yeah, Vinnie," Alen added with a grin. "That was one brutal beating you handed out."
Vincent just continued smiling but it wasn't because of their praises, it was because of the system's message only him could see.
[Total available points: 1097 points]