Edward began following Maria and the man, trying to eavesdrop on their conversation. By chance, he heard his friend John's name, but he couldn't make out what they were talking about, as he had only caught the name itself.
As he followed them from one street to another, he saw them stop somewhere near a park. He stopped at a spot where he was almost completely exposed, yet neither of them seemed to notice him. From that position, he was able to clearly overhear their conversation.
The man in the suit spoke.
"Maria, Maria... Hahahaha! You're truly pathetic. You're nothing like your mother, except for your appearance. You're a hopeless little girl. I almost feel sorry for you, being nothing more than a bargaining chip. Your mother owed us a great deal of money, yet she simply abandoned you to escape her responsibilities. But don't look at us like that. We're nothing more than debt collectors. Or rather, all we ever wanted was to recover the money owed to us. And because we're kind-hearted, we decided to give you a deadline to earn your freedom and pay off the debt in your miserable mother's place. But look at you now. You haven't even managed to earn half of the agreed amount. How do you expect to buy your freedom like this?"
Maria replied nervously.
"I'm sorry... I'm truly sorry. I'll do my very best. I promise I'll pay the full amount before the deadline."
Edward was astonished by what he had heard. This was the kind of past that could drag a girl's reputation down to rock bottom. What shocked him even more was that his new classmate Maria seemed to have almost no future ahead of her.
But what did it mean to have your freedom taken away?
There was only one thing Edward could be certain of: her future was terribly bleak. He could only imagine the worst-case scenario. Once she was no longer of any use to them, they might even kill her and sell her organs on the black market. That was merely the worst possibility, though. Who knew what those scumbags were actually planning to do with her?
And the most shocking part of all was that everything had happened because of her own mother.
What kind of mother would abandon her daughter in exchange for having her debts paid off?
Without a doubt, she must have been one of the coldest and most heartless women imaginable.
At that moment, the man in the suit spoke again, his words dripping with provocation.
"Maria, my dear, let me tell you something. These are words of wisdom. Although I'd love to give you more time, your deadline is rapidly approaching. Are you absolutely certain you can pay the full amount before the time runs out?"
Maria remained silent. Sweat trickled down her forehead, and there was no doubt that fear had completely taken hold of her.
The man in the suit continued.
"Although we won't be extending your deadline, our superiors, the ones who hired us, have a particular interest in three names: John, Edward, and Arthur. If you can bring them to us without arousing their suspicions, we'll wipe out all the debts your mother has left you with."
Edward was shocked to hear this. He realized that they had become targets. But what surprised him even more was how quickly they had been targeted.
Either way, he had always expected them to become targets sooner or later. It was something he had anticipated. However, he hadn't expected it to happen this soon, especially since they hadn't done anything controversial or suspicious that could pose a threat to his sister's killers.
At that very moment, Edward's phone rang in his pocket. He hadn't put it on silent, and both Maria and the man in black heard it.
The man in black angrily shouted at Maria.
"You filthy little snake! How dare you betray us?! You'll regret this! We warned you that if you told anyone, you'd be going straight to hell!"
Maria trembled and desperately denied having told anyone anything. She felt as though her very soul was being torn apart by sheer terror.
The man in black then quickly shouted in the direction of Edward's hiding spot.
"Whoever you are, hiding over there! If you don't come out within the next three seconds, I'll blow your brains out with the gun in my pocket!"
Edward realized that the man in front of him was carrying a gun. He understood that escaping was impossible, so he decided to come up with a quick plan.
Meanwhile, the man in the suit began counting.
"One...
Two...
Three!"
Edward immediately surrendered and stepped out of his hiding place to avoid having his skull blown apart by a bullet.
The man in the suit pointed his gun at Edward's head and asked him three questions.
"Listen carefully. I'm going to ask you three questions. Answer honestly, or I'll blow your brains out.
First, who are you?
Second, why were you following us?
Third, what exactly are you trying to achieve?"
Maria was utterly shocked when she recognized her classmate, Edward. The man in the suit noticed her reaction.