Vincent watched the numbers increase in the elevator. It was moving at its usual speed, but for Vincent, it felt like it was taking forever.
The numbers stopped at 12, and the doors opened. It looked like a normal office floor, except the place was completely empty.
He walked until he got to a big office door. When he pushed it open, he first noticed the two people before seeing Sarah tied up in the corner.
There was one man standing by the table, and a woman standing behind it.
"Who's this?" Madame Freya asked. "And where are the men that were stationed at the door?"
"I sent them to go turn on the generator. I don't know who this is."
Just then, two men rushed into the office.
"We have an intruder!" one of them screamed—before noticing Vincent standing in the middle of the large office.
They immediately attacked him, but Vincent easily knocked them both out. He then closed the door, locked it, and added a chair behind it as a wedge.
Vincent could see it… up until now, he had fought different people and had also seen different people fight. There was one thing he had come to understand: in the criminal world, there were people considered pros. People like Gutter, Jay, and Don Angel, those kinds of people were undeniably stronger than others.
Then there were the average fighters—people like Kaegan and Alen—before the normal lackeys at the bottom.
This guy with the blonde hair was different from everyone else. He was calm and composed. He wasn't even fazed by everything that had been happening.
It wasn't the kind of demeanor that came with just having strength alone, it was one that came when a person felt like they were truly in control.
James said no words, didn't even change his facial expression, only directly stared at Vincent.
It was like his eyes were daring Vincent to make a move. But seeing Sarah tied up, Vincent rushed over and began untying her.
"Madame, I believe—"
"Yes, I can see," she said.
Sarah had bruises on her face, and her hair was a mess, clear signs that she'd been roughed up.
"Are you okay?" he asked, removing the gag from her mouth.
"Yes. Thank you."
"You must be Vincent Carlo?" Madame Freya asked.
"What do you want from me? And why did you kidnap Sarah?"
"How did you get up here? What happened to Kaegan and his men?" she asked.
"Don't t-tell me Don Angel is here too?" she added, her eyes wide.
"Maybe he is," Vincent said.
"'Maybe he is?' That definitely means he isn't here."
"James, get rid of him."
"Sure thing, Madame," James stepped forward with purpose and confidence, making Vincent feel an unusual presence from him.
'This man… is dangerous'
The only way Vincent could think of was to take him down before he could make any move.
So he sprinted up to James, and James reacted accordingly.
He threw a punch that Vincent found surprisingly easy to dodge, then Vincent found an opening and punched him on the chin.
[Severe pain extracted +57 points]
The handsome blonde bodyguard dropped to the ground immediately.
Vincent was surprised. So was Madame Freya.
"J-James?" she mumbled.
Vincent looked at his hand in surprise. He was starting to doubt himself because he didn't understand what had just happened.
He had definitely gotten stronger—but this guy was also a problem. He was one of the weakest people he had fought up until now.
There was no doubt about it.
'Not like I'm complaining about it… I just wasn't expecting the man at the top to be so weak'
Madame Freya face-palmed, disappointed by the outcome.
"James, after everything I've been paying you?"
Vincent looked at the man sprawled on the floor. How was he so weak and still commanded such a presence, was it just a bluff?
"Well, don't think I'm totally defenseless. I can still protect myself," Madame Freya said, picking up a sheathed sword from the shelf.
"I'll cut you to pieces if you try to come any closer," she warned, pointing the weapon at him.
By now, the men were banging on the door trying to get inside. With the way they were going, Vincent knew he had only a few minutes or even seconds.
He reasoned that the only way out was to take this woman as a hostage. So he rushed at her.
She unsheathed the blade and tried cutting Vincent, but she was too slow. Vincent grabbed her hand and yanked the weapon away before giving her a heavy slap.
[Moderate pain extracted +31 points]
Madame Freya fell to the floor, holding her bruised face.
"I didn't want any trouble. You're the one who kidnapped an innocent person after killing her father," Vincent said angrily.
"My father? W-what do you mean?" Sarah's voice was broken and confused as she processed his words.
Although there was a sharp sting on her bruised face, Freya was unfazed "She isn't so innocent if her father was working for Don Angel… Do you think any of you are innocent? Well, you can kill me if you like—but just know, you're not making it out of here alive."
Sarah held on to Vincent's hand as she broke down. "Vincent, what happened to my father? Please tell me he is okay," she cried.
Vincent looked at her with pity. He wanted to console her, maybe offer an explanation that might help her understand—but this wasn't the place for that.
The lock finally gave in. The door burst open, and men rushed into the office.
There was no time left. He immediately grabbed Freya by the neck.
"Sarah, get behind me!"
He grabbed the sword and held it against her throat.
"Don't come any closer!" he screamed, keeping all the men at a standstill.
Seeing their boss being threatened, the men were unable to move.
"If any one of you moves, I'll slit her throat," he added. "All of you, get back—now."
The men cautiously obeyed, backing out until they had left the office.
"Do you think this can save you?" Freya asked. "I'm not going to stop until I get my revenge."
"Your revenge? You're the one who started all this."
"Is that what you think?... I only tried robbing Don Angel because that mischievous snake stole from me first."
"I was only trying to take back what was rightfully mine."
Vincent thought about her words for a moment, and said out of desperation. "Then why don't I help you with that?"