Stepping silently through the neon-drenched corridors, Haruto checked his tracking slate. The coordinates Newlax had provided earlier matched a sprawling, high-security villa tucked away in the upper sectors—looking more like a heavily fortified modern farmhouse than a criminal hideout.
When he reached the front gates, two armed guards instantly crossed their weapons, barking, "Hold it right there! State your business—"
Haruto didn't even break his stride. He gave them a cold, dismissive look and said flatly, "Don't worry about it," pushing past their stunned guards and walking straight through the entrance before they could react.
Inside the lavishly lit living room, Newlax was sprawled out lazily across a wide leather sofa, a glass of liquor in one hand. As Haruto stepped into the light, Newlax smirked, swirling his drink. "Well, look who made it back. Tell me, friend Echo... did you actually take him out, or are you just here to beg for your life?"
Haruto reached into his jacket, pulled out the sealed vial containing the crimson sample, and tossed it casually onto the low glass table in front of the sofa. "Job's done. Here's the blood sample."
Newlax leaned forward, picking up the vial and squinting at it. He frowned, turning it over in his hand. "Sure, it's blood... but what proof do I have that it actually belongs to the target?"
Haruto's voice remained ice-cold. "I don't lie. By tomorrow morning, her disappearance will be all over the official channels. Now, where is my reward? You promised to make me the District Manager."
Newlax let out a slow, gravelly chuckle, leaning back against the cushions. "Ah, right. Why the hell not?"
He raised a hand and gave a sharp clap. From the shadowy archway at the side of the room, an old, weathered man stepped forward, bowing submissively.
Newlax pointed a finger at the old servant, flashing a sinister grin. "This is my personal slave. He'll handle the paperwork and officially hand over your new district title and resources."
As the old man shuffled forward to approach Haruto, Newlax's expression hardened slightly, his eyes narrowing with a dangerous edge. "Though... I'm trusting you actually finished the job, Echo. Because if I find out you're lying to me, you won't live to see another sunrise."
Haruto didn't flinch. "Don't worry about it. I don't miss."
Newlax took a slow sip of his drink, a wicked grin spreading across his face. "Welcome to the team, then."
At a gesture from Newlax, the old slave stepped forward and motioned for Haruto to follow. Despite his advanced age, the old man moved with astonishing grace and blistering speed—surprisingly faster and more fluid than Haruto anticipated.
He led Haruto down a long, reinforced corridor into a massive subterranean hall buried deep beneath the villa. Rows upon rows of men stood at attention inside the sprawling space—nearly six to seven hundred syndicate members filling the room in dead silence. As Haruto stepped onto the raised dais, he adjusted his tactical mask, taking a deep breath as he surveyed the sea of hardened faces.
The old slave raised a hand, his voice echoing clearly across the vast hall. "Listen up, everyone! This is your new District Manager. From today on, you all answer directly to him—know your place!"
Haruto's eyes scanned the crowd, quickly breaking down the hierarchy standing before him. Right at the front stood five powerful figures who clearly commanded the individual hotspots, followed closely by a tier of street managers, sector captains, and dozens of lower-level gang leaders filling the ranks behind them.
As the realization of his new authority settled in, every single man in the hall slowly bowed their heads in unison.
The old slave turned to Haruto, whispering a final, chilling reminder before stepping back. "You know your role, and your gang answers to your command. Say your piece."
Haruto stepped up to the edge of the platform, looking down at the hundreds of subordinates waiting for his word. He only uttered a single, cold command: "Move."
The old slave gave a low chuckle as he turned to leave, tossing one final warning over his shoulder. "Remember... this is only one percent of what we control in the underbelly. If you ever try to pull any funny business, or step out of line... you'll die screaming." With that, he faded back into the shadows and left the hall.
As the old man departed, the five hotspot leaders stepped forward to pledge their allegiance. To Haruto's mild surprise, one of them was Rocky, who offered a nervous, respectful nod.
The five leaders approached the platform and presented Haruto with an insignia badge engraved with five gleaming stars, signifying his supreme rank as a District Manager.
Examining the structure of the badges handed down through the ranks, Haruto noted the system clearly:
District Managers: 5-Star BadgeHotspot Owners: 4-Star BadgeSector Captains: 3-Star BadgeGang Leaders: 2-Star BadgeRegular Members: 1-Star Badge
One by one, the leaders stepped up, pinning the badges in place and locking in the new hierarchy of power.
One of the five hotspot leaders stepped closer, looking up at the platform respectfully. "District Manager... what is your real name?"
Haruto crossed his arms. "Echo."
The leader hesitated, lowering his voice slightly. "Ah... if I may suggest, sir, you should show your face around here too. Showing your identity helps protect your regular life, keeping you detached from the syndicate's heat."
Haruto brushed it off, adjusting his tactical mask. "No. I like this mask. It stays."
The man quickly shut his mouth and took a step back, bowing his head. Haruto watched the sea of men silently. They weren't bowing out of loyalty or respect—they were bowing entirely out of fear. He let out an internal smirk. Pure luck. That drunk military commander handed me this massive position just for taking out a single Level 8 target. Luck is really on my side today.
He could use this. He could leverage this entire syndicate, accumulate massive resources, and build an overlord-tier power base. But deep down, a cynical voice in his head reminded him: This still isn't enough.
Right as he was turning things over in his mind, Rocky stepped forward from the front line, raising a hand. "Echo-sir?"
Haruto turned his gaze toward him. "Yeah? What is it, Rocky?"
Rocky rubbed the back of his neck nervously, glancing around before speaking. "Well... since you're the new District Manager now... I was just wondering..." He lowered his voice. "What actually happened to the previous District Manager? We haven't even seen him around here for a month."
Before Rocky could push for an answer, another one of the five hotspot managers scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. "Oh, stop being an idiot, Rocky. Who knows? He probably got himself killed or vanished off the grid."
"Oh..." Rocky muttered, quickly backing off.
Haruto narrowed his eyes behind his mask, keeping his voice level and cold. "Does my control over this district run smoothly here?"
The five hotspot managers instantly straightened up, bowing lower. "Of course, sir! Everything is fully under your command." One of them stepped forward, gesturing respectfully toward the back of the massive hall. "Actually, there's something else we need to discuss with you. Come on, let us show you your new private sector."
Haruto raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. "My private sector? Since when do I have one?"
The hotspot manager let out a deferential laugh. "You're the District Manager now, sir. Come see what belongs to you."
Haruto let out a dry, amused breath under his mask. "Action packed room, huh?"
All five hotspot owners stepped up, leading him outside where a sleek, heavy-duty vehicle awaited. It wasn't just any ordinary car—it was a vintage, retro-model cruiser retrofitted with gravity-defying flying thrusters, though it still retained old-school physical pedals and steering for manual override.
Haruto climbed into the back, flanked by the five hotspot owners who piled in right beside her. With a deep roar from the thrusters, the vehicle lifted off the asphalt, soaring smoothly above the neon-lit slums before touching down at a heavily secured, sprawling command hub.
This was the real operational headquarters—the inner sanctum where the district's true power was centralized, far away from the lower-tier gang members. Only high-ranking officers, hotspot owners, and sector captains were permitted here.
As Haruto stepped inside, he found a private war room dominated by a raised platform at the far end. Atop it sat a dark, imposing chair—not quite a grand throne, but rugged, utilitarian, and commanding enough to look the part.
The low-level members stayed outside. Inside the room, only the elite 3-star sector captains and 4-star hotspot owners remained standing at attention.
Haruto walked up the steps, looking down at the assembled commanders before sinking back into the leather seat. Every single man in the room bowed their heads in strict alignment.
Haruto leaned back, resting his arms on the armrests as a cold smirk formed behind his mask. "Oh... nice. This actually fits."
Before taking another step, Haruto held up a hand. "Hold on. Before we go anywhere, there are a few rules we need to set straight right now."
The group froze instantly, turning to face him as the five hotspot managers bowed their heads, waiting for his command.
"Rule number one," Haruto's voice echoed coldly through the hall. "No harming women or children. Anyone who touches them answers directly to me." He paused, looking around at the silent crowd. "Other than that, do whatever you want. Enjoy yourselves."
Outwardly, he played the part of the ruthless syndicate boss, but deep down, his mind was racing with suspicion. Something doesn't add up. Getting this much power just for taking out a single Level 8 officer? It's way too convenient. Newlax must have been completely out of his mind drunk, or there's a hidden trap here.
As he analyzed the syndicate's power structure based on the badge ranks, the hierarchy became glaringly obvious:
Regular Members (1-Star): Around Level 5.Gang Leaders (2-Star): Level 8 to 10.Sector Captains (3-Star): Around Level 15.Hotspot Owners (4-Star): Also hovering around Level 15.
The math is strange, Haruto thought narrowing his eyes. These hotspot owners are Level 15, yet the target I hunted was a disguised Level 18 military officer. Why send a low-level commoner to hunt someone way above the syndicate's normal weight class? What game are they actually playing?
Before he could overanalyze it further, a deep mechanical hum vibrated through the floorboards.
Clank—whirrrr.
A massive section of the back wall slid open with a heavy hiss. Out glided a colossal, high-tech command throne, carved from dark alloy and embedded with pulsing energy cores, bristling with hidden defense turrets and tactical displays. The sheer aura of authority radiating from it was staggering.
Without missing a beat, Haruto strode past the stunned crowd, walked straight up the platform, and sank heavily into the seat of power. As the interface flickered to life around him, casting a cool blue glow across his mask, he placed his hand on the armrest and pulled up the district control scroll.
As the command throne's interface flared to life, a secondary compartment opened, granting Haruto access to his private living quarters within the complex.
Stepping inside, he looked around the spacious room. Compared to the lavish, over-the-top villas of the syndicate bosses, this private apartment felt surprisingly normal—almost like a standard middle-class home back on Earth, though vastly more secure. He knew he couldn't spend too much time here, though; if he lingered around the base too long, someone might start asking questions or figure out his real identity.
An inner thought tugged at him: Until my cover is blown, I need to keep her safe.
Remembering where he had stashed the female officer, Haruto slipped out of the headquarters under the cover of night and headed straight back to Lilith's overgrown lawn.
When he arrived, the old beggar was fast asleep, snoring softly in the weeds. A few feet away, the female officer was quietly working away. Using a sharp shard of glass she had managed to scavenge, she was carefully sawing through the thick ropes binding her wrists.
Clatter!
Haruto stepped on a loose piece of scrap metal, breaking the silence.
The sharp noise startled the old beggar awake. He sat up abruptly, rubbing his eyes and yelling, "Whose funeral is it?! Who died?!" Spotting Haruto standing in the shadows, the beggar blinked in surprise. "Oh... it's just you."
Haruto pulled down his mask, walking straight past the old man toward the officer. He knelt down beside her and reached out to untie the rest of her restraints.
Before he could even touch the ropes, she jerked back, glaring at him with a mix of fear and sheer defiance. "What are you trying to do?! Are you going to assault me? Humiliate me? Is that what scum like you do?!" She started thrashing and struggling against the remaining bonds, glaring at him with pure venom.
Haruto held up his hands, his voice calm and level. "I'm not going to hurt you. Just please, calm down and listen to me for a second. We need to talk."
Slowly, the tension in her shoulders eased. She stopped thrashing, breathing heavily as she glared up at him, though she finally went quiet enough to listen.
Haruto leaned in slightly. "Listen. The entire underground syndicate is hunting for you right now. If you want to ever see your kids again, you need to do exactly what I say. Understand?"
Her eyes widened in horror, a mix of disbelief and sheer terror flashing across her face. "What... what do you mean?"
"I mean you're completely outmatched here," Haruto continued, his tone cold and practical. "If I wanted to, I could kill you right now without breaking a sweat. But I know you have a family. If these animals find you, you'll just become leverage—a walking time bomb to destroy everything you love. I'll kill you myself before I let them touch your family."
She flinched, biting her lip as tears welled up in her eyes.
"Don't worry," Haruto added, his voice softening just a fraction. "I'll give you a safe, comfortable place to stay. You just have to stay hidden and keep quiet. Once I climb high enough to strip Newlax of his power and dismantle this whole rotten district from the top down... you'll be completely free to go home. It won't take long."