Looking at Ray's body, the only thing that wasn't damaged or riddled with bullet wounds was Vox itself, clinging to him as if nothing had happened.
Alex felt a surge of anger seeing Ray like that.
Even though he hadn't known him for long, Alex knew Ray wasn't a bad companion.
He always helped when he could, and whenever Alex needed something, Ray would go and do it.
In Alex's eyes, he was a good friend.
But his anger eased slightly when he noticed Ray's wounds were already closing.
Remembering what Vox had done to Ray's body, Alex relaxed a bit—though not his anger toward whoever had done this.
Thinking back to what had happened to Peter, Alex slowly began walking toward Ray.
"Damn it, Alex… sorry I couldn't pull it off. That bastard Jack screwed me over and robbed me. We lost ten thousand… I'm really sorry."
While Ray apologized and tried to explain what had happened, Alex simply kept walking toward him with slow, steady steps until he stopped right in front of him.
"Who did this to you?"
"What?"
Ray was caught off guard.
He had expected something like "It's fine, it happens," or "You messed everything up."
But hearing that instead surprised him, so without thinking much, he answered.
"A contact of mine. Someone who can make anything illegal look legal. His name's Jack. He made my fake identity, and I used to do some jobs for him… but I quit because it got too dangerous."
Ray paused, glancing at Alex, who clearly looked irritated about something, before continuing.
"Today I went back to try doing business again. He welcomed me normally, everything was going fine… until I showed him the money so he could handle what I asked."
"Then he started acting weird, saying I had too much money for someone alone. I told him I had a new client, and he asked for a name."
"I had to make something up, but in the end, he thought I was lying… so he decided to rob me."
"Of course I didn't let it slide. I tried to fight back, but…"
Ray looked down at his own body, realizing that without Vox, he probably would've died from the number of bullet wounds he had.
"He had a lot of people with him. I didn't have a choice but to retreat. I'm not as good as you at controlling cursed energy… so I got beaten."
Hearing everything and seeing Ray's state, Alex couldn't stop thinking about Peter and how being close to him had only ruined his life.
Still, he pushed that thought to the back of his mind.
Without saying anything else, Alex turned and began walking toward the warehouse exit, glancing back at them.
"Both of you. Let's go."
Ray and Tyon looked confused when Alex called them, even thinking about asking what he meant.
Ray even wanted to ask for some rest, but before either of them could say anything, Alex had already left.
Realizing they were being left behind, they quickly ran after him.
As Alex walked in a specific direction, he spoke again.
"Ray, where does this Jack stay?"
The moment Ray heard that, he froze.
He already knew what Alex was planning.
"Wait, Alex… maybe you should think this through before acting like this, don't you think?"
Seeing that his intentions had been figured out, Alex didn't seem to care.
He just glanced at Ray, who was still healing, and answered calmly.
"Ray, I've spent my whole life hiding. I've been beaten, insulted, and everyone around me looked down on me… except my family."
"I'm done staying silent while people around me get hurt. So we're going to this Jack… and we're going to show him what it means to mess with my group."
"I get it, Alex… but he's connected to the kingpin."
Ray tried to calm him down, worried about what he had just said.
But even mentioning the kingpin didn't seem to affect Alex at all.
After thinking for a moment, Ray realized why.
During the time he had spent with Alex, he had come to understand something important.
Alex was strong.
Very strong.
Cursed energy might be new to him, but everything Alex had done made one thing clear.
Alex didn't know how strong he truly was.
It wasn't that he didn't know he was strong—he just didn't know how far that strength went.
Ray had noticed it every time he saw Alex meditating.
His aura felt like staring directly into the eyes of a dragon.
And those occasional slashes Alex sent into the junk around the warehouse during training…
Yes, they destroyed everything.
But Ray could clearly tell—Alex was holding back.
It was like watching a professional boxer sparring with a beginner.
You could always tell when the veteran was holding back.
Ray couldn't explain it logically.
It was just instinct.
But when he looked into Alex's eyes now, the truth hit him.
Alex wasn't asking if they were going to attack.
It was already decided.
That wasn't a request.
It was an order for him to lead the way.
Seeing that certainty in Alex's face, Ray simply stepped forward and took the lead.
Ray walked ahead with Vox, Alex right behind him, and Tyon walking beside Alex like a loyal son.
At this point, Alex's initial anger had already faded.
Now, there was only one thing in his mind.
Excitement.
He didn't know why, but his blood felt like it was boiling at the thought of the fight ahead.
He didn't fully understand it, but he knew one thing.
He wanted a fight.
A good fight.
He had been bored lately.
There was nothing to do in the warehouse except train, and even that barely helped him improve his cursed energy control anymore.
It didn't take long before Ray stopped in an alley near where the fight had happened.
And when they arrived, it wasn't hard to notice.
Just beyond the alley…
There was blood.
And a body lying on the ground.
When they got close enough, it became clear that the body belonged to a thug, judging by the gun in his hand and the gang tattoos covering his skin.
It wasn't hard to tell he was a criminal, but now his face was completely disfigured, clearly from a punch.
Seeing the body in that state, Alex looked at Ray, who showed no emotion at all.
But when Ray noticed Alex's gaze, he became slightly nervous for no apparent reason.
"What? I just didn't control my cursed energy properly and ended up hitting too hard."
"I didn't ask. You were right—if someone is willing to kill, they should also be willing to die."
Ray was a bit surprised by Alex's words, but he couldn't deny the truth carved into them.
So he stayed quiet while Alex followed him again toward Jack's hideout.
Since they had already moved quite a distance, it didn't take even ten minutes before they reached a dark, isolated alley.
There were clear traces of blood deeper inside, and at the end stood a reinforced iron door, illuminated by a harsh light in the otherwise dark place.
"Well, here we are. This is where Jack stays more than 95% of the time."
Hearing that, Alex felt confused about how someone could stay in a place like this almost all day, especially someone supposedly important in the criminal world.
Of course, that assumption was just a guess—Alex didn't actually know if Jack was important, and honestly, he didn't care.
Alex walked toward the imposing iron door, but as he got closer, he realized it was actually smaller than it seemed—just an optical illusion.
"Alex, what are you planning to do from this poi—"
Before Ray could finish, Alex kicked the door with full force, sending it flying inward.
It slammed into a guard standing behind it, knocking him unconscious as the door crushed him to the ground.
The sheer force of the kick was overwhelming.
Alex could clearly sense ten people inside the room, but with everything he had learned so far, he didn't fear any of them.
As Alex stepped inside, everyone immediately reacted, pulling out their weapons and taking positions.
"What the hell is this?!"
"IT'S AN ATTACK! GET IN POSITION!"
Seeing their panic, Alex almost found it amusing.
He never imagined that a group of criminals he once found intimidating would now look like a bunch of scared kittens.
It didn't take long for them to organize themselves.
Alex even considered attacking and ending them all right there, but after thinking about what he would gain, he decided not to.
As the group aimed their weapons at him, Tyon almost lunged forward to massacre them, but Alex held him back.
Ray, on the other hand, was panicking, thinking about how they would deal with everyone here.
He knew Alex was strong, but Jack had powerful mutants working for him, mainly because of his reputation.
Ray had been trying to warn Alex from the start, but every time he spoke, Alex ignored him like he was deaf.
At one point, Ray even considered running away.
But Alex simply didn't care.
After what happened to Peter, he had learned one thing—never leave loose ends.
If something bad could happen in the future, he would eliminate it now.
So if he had to face Jack, it was better to kill him as quickly as possible and avoid any complications.
The place itself was messy, poorly organized, and undeniably dirty—like an old warehouse.
In the center, there was a table with two chairs, one occupied by a large, overweight man sitting comfortably on a big couch, wearing a relaxed expression.
He had a scruffy beard and wore a suit that fit his massive body perfectly.
His completely bald head almost reflected the single light source hanging above him.
"Ah! Look who's back! Old Raymond. How've you been?"
There was clear mockery in his voice as he looked at Ray, who was visibly uncomfortable.
But soon his attention shifted to Alex.
"And what did you bring? Some weird, deformed mutant to save your precious money?"
While the man spoke, Alex didn't listen at all and slowly approached him.
The henchmen wanted to react, but the man stopped them, still maintaining a calm and unconcerned expression.
Once close enough, Alex sat in the chair in front of him, assuming he was the boss—probably Jack.
"Ooh, scary. What are you gonna do, mutant? If you don't know, you're surrounded.
And my best man is right behind me, just waiting to kill you.
So stop wasting my time and say what you want, idiot."
Jack looked at Alex, growing impatient.
This guy had broken into his hideout, destroyed his door, and now acted like he owned the place.
Jack was holding himself back from teaching this mutant a lesson.
Alex, meanwhile, ignored him completely, calmly analyzing everyone around him without a trace of fear.
Ray, still nervous, briefly considered running away and leaving his "boss" behind.
But remembering that without Alex he might have died—and never learned to use cursed energy—he stayed.
After about a minute of silence, Alex placed one leg on the table.
"You know… you robbed me and almost killed one of my men.
I was thinking about how to deal with you, and now I've decided."
Alex raised a finger and pointed at the ceiling, a sinister smile forming on his face.
"I'll give you twenty minutes to return a hundred times what you took from me.
If not… everyone here will turn into a pool of blood and flesh."
Hearing that, Jack froze for a few seconds.
He almost laughed at the absurdity of the situation.
But deep down… something felt wrong.
Jack hadn't climbed to the top because of skill or connections alone.
He had an instinct that told him when he would win or lose.
And right now, without knowing why…
He felt only one thing.
Fear.
He knew that the monstrous mutant in front of him was a real threat.
Not just any threat—someone who truly had the power to kill him.
But before Jack could say anything, the man behind him stepped forward.
A tall, heavily built figure with gray hair and old scars covering his exposed arms.
"What the hell are you talking about, you idiot? Do you even know who we are?"
The man was about 1.89 meters tall.
Even sitting, Alex wasn't smaller than him.
Yet the man showed not a single trace of fear.
He walked up to Alex and placed a hand on his head.
"WE'RE THE FUCKING DRAGON RATS GANG—"
Before he could finish his sentence, his head hit the ground.
His body remained standing for a brief moment before collapsing lifelessly.
Silence filled the room.
Everyone froze.
Alex, now with a serious expression, looked straight at Jack.
And in that moment, Jack understood just how screwed he was.
"So… where's my money?"
____________________________
Hey guys, quick update—my workload is going to get pretty heavy now that I've started college, so the gap between chapters will be a bit longer.
Sorry about that, but it's the best I can do right now.
Hope you enjoyed it!
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Good night.
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