Chapter 14: Punk City And The Human Boy (9)

Jimmy, who had graduated, suddenly appeared.

Sonia tried to greet him out of courtesy, but Amon stopped her.

She could react that way because she was completely unaware of Jimmy's current situation, but Amon wasn't.

He had been hearing about Jimmy's whereabouts through the Orphanage Principal.

‘Why is that druggie here...’

After graduating from the Orphanage, Jimmy had joined a gang.

He hadn't studied, nor had he built any meaningful connections. All he knew how to do was bully people, and he'd always acted like he admired gangs.

It was only natural that he would end up in one.

Joining a gang, shooting guns all day, stealing from people, extorting protection money, and running from the Police.

Then, he'd probably get shot once, be unable to go to the Hospital because he has no insurance, and naturally turn to drugs.

The drugs he started taking to forget the pain would eventually become his leisure activity, and a bottom-feeding gangster, left hand shaking from withdrawal, right hand clutching a pistol, would be complete.

Amon knew well that Jimmy hadn't deviated much from that path.

He didn't feel sorry for him.

Blaming his environment wouldn't work; Amon had changed the atmosphere of the Orphanage, and Jimmy's peers were now living diligently in their own ways.

The excuse of becoming a gangster because of his environment wouldn't fly.

On the contrary, Amon was wary of Jimmy.

The thought process of drug addicts is incomprehensible to ordinary people, so there was no telling when he might suddenly go crazy and try to harm Amon.

And now, that very Jimmy appeared before him.

As if he had no intention of concealing his weapons, a pocket-like area on his left side bulged, and he was accompanied by several other drugged-up low-level gangsters.

It was clear that he didn't come with good intentions.

Sure enough, instead of a greeting or anything of the sort, Jimmy started rambling nonsense.

“Gimme my moneyy. You’re a bad guy. A freakin’ bastard...”

Did he even know what he was saying?

The still-fresh needle marks on his left hand answered that question for him.

Amon quietly hid Sonia behind him, as if protecting her.

That action somehow provoked Jimmy, and he started to lose it.

“Again! Again, you always got the good stuff! Why do you always get the good stuff?! It’s a problem! That old hag, the Principal..! Old but she only cares about men! You must have sold yourself to the Principal! You manwhore!”

Amon's brow furrowed at Jimmy's grammatically incorrect and illogical sentences.

Although it was difficult to understand, he could sense the extremely unpleasant insults within them.

It was not only unpleasant that he was being slandered, but also that the Orphanage Principal was being insulted like that.

Sonia, beside Amon, seemed to have grasped the general context, her gaze turning icy.

But the oblivious Jimmy continued his rant.

“You’re so lucky! Always getting favored! Fuck you!”

Amon didn’t refute him.

Amon was well aware that he was the Principal’s favorite.

The Principal was human, so it was only natural.

Even the Lady Goddess doesn't have universal love for all of humanity.

Someone who could do that would simply be indifferent to all of humanity.

That's what Amon thought.

However, that didn’t mean the other orphans didn't feel a sense of relative deprivation due to the favoritism.

Because of this, Amon, aware of the favoritism he received, always lived a life of giving to the other orphans.

Trickle-down love.

Even if it couldn’t absolve him of all guilt, it was at least a reason not to be insulted by someone like Jimmy, who only caused trouble for others.

However, there was nothing more meaningless in the world than arguing with a drug addict, so Amon decided to ignore Jimmy instead of engaging in a pointless exchange.

But whether it was his pride remaining even after becoming a drug-addled bottom-feeder, or his low self-esteem making him sensitive to trivial matters, Jimmy, seeing Amon's attempt to ignore him, shouted while spitting.

“You think you’re so great! I’m an adult now! I have lots of friends, I make money…. And…and…. I shoot guns too!”

Jimmy pulled out a Pistol and aimed it.

His finger rested on the trigger, causing Amon and Sonia to instinctively dodge.

But he seemed unaware of the implications of his actions, just fiddling with the gun.

Judging that further conversation was dangerous in itself, Amon decided to end this bad relationship here.

He happened to have the real sword he received as a farewell gift from the Swordsmanship Dojo.

But just as he quickly made the sign of the cross and was about to lunge at Jimmy, Sonia stopped him.

“I’ll do it.”

Amon was puzzled by her words.

“Why?”

Then, pointing at Amon, she said,

“I told you I’d protect you. I’ll show you I wasn’t just talking.”

With no time to argue in front of a loaded drug addict, Amon quickly made his decision.

“Don’t get hurt.”

He trusted Sonia.

Sonia smiled pleasantly at Amon’s words, grabbed the sword, and ran towards Jimmy.

***

The fight lasted one minute.

In that short time, Jimmy and his companions were subdued by Sonia.

The group, who had been puffing out their chests and whistling as Sonia approached, were now unable to get up after being hit by the flat of her blade.

The fact that they were dealt with in a minute was partly due to their drug-induced slow reactions, but even if they hadn’t been intoxicated, the result wouldn't have been much different.

After all, for two people who had honed their Swordsmanship for two years, a Pistol without any special Engraving was a weapon they could easily handle.

The gap between Sonia and them was vast enough that she could deflect bullets and knock them unconscious with the flat of her blade.

With the thugs subdued, Sonia left them to the Police.

Logically, it would have been better to confirm the kills to prevent future trouble.

But Sonia was still too young to stab each incapacitated person with a sword.

Therefore, she couldn’t bring herself to finish them off and wanted to hand them over to the Police.

Amon respected Sonia's decision.

‘Reality isn’t a game.’

Killing someone in a game and committing murder in reality are worlds apart.

The weight of guilt in the human brain is significant, and Amon didn’t want Sonia to bear such a burden.

It might be a slightly soft choice in this world, but sometimes such purity was necessary.

So Amon also decided to spare Jimmy and his group.

However, even if he spared them, he had something to say.

“If I see you within one kilometer of the Orphanage, you’re dead. If I see you outside this city, you’re dead too.”

Meaning they should keep quiet and stay within the city.

It might be an excessive declaration, but considering it was the condition for sparing someone who pulled a gun on him, it was quite merciful.

Jimmy knew Amon’s personality well.

Amon was good, but not naive.

He knew that Amon fundamentally pursued good, but didn’t hesitate to enforce the good he believed in.

Having been beaten countless times by Amon’s decisiveness, almost to the point of death, Jimmy knew that Amon would definitely keep his promise.

Therefore, Jimmy couldn't take Amon's chilling warning lightly.

He accepted Amon's warning, promising to keep it in mind, and was handed over to the Police who arrived after receiving the report.

After handing over Jimmy and his group, Amon and Sonia headed back to the Orphanage.

In the place where the two had disappeared, Jimmy and his group were loaded into a police car.

Inside the car, they hung their heads silently in handcuffs.

Silence filled the vehicle.

Inside, Jimmy gritted his teeth.

Remorse?

That wasn't in a drug addict's vocabulary.

His mind was filled with the word revenge.

Of course, to get revenge, he first had to escape the Police and avoid prison, but he had someone he could rely on.

‘That businessman…!’

He thought of the businessman who had given him this Commission.

A neat suit and slicked-back hair.

He felt like he’d seen the face somewhere before, but his drug-addled mind couldn't recall it.

All he could remember was that the businessman had ordered this attack and promised more drugs and a reward of $10,000 in return.

It was a chance to get back at Amon and get Sonia, but he had failed this time.

‘It’s okay. Once I get my hands on the $10,000…’

With that money, he could get better Procedures and be able to take revenge on Amon.

With that thought, as Jimmy laughed alone in the quiet police car,

A familiar voice came from the passenger seat of the police car.

“I’ve confirmed the results of the Commission, Mr. Jimmy. Thanks to you, I was able to identify the Mystical Power wielder.”

Jimmy was startled and looked at the passenger seat.

There, the businessman who had given him the commission was manipulating something on a pad and speaking to him.

Seeing the businessman, Jimmy greeted him with a bright face.

Though Jimmy couldn’t see it from his position, the businessman didn’t hide his displeasure as he returned the greeting.

Jimmy took this as a positive sign.

“Hurry up and give me my reward and the powder... and take these handcuffs off!”

Seeing Jimmy acting as if he believed without a doubt that he would be released,

The businessman didn't hide his contempt.

“This is why it’s such a hassle to use rootless druggies…”

The businessman shook his head and sighed.

As if agreeing with him, the police officer in the driver's seat grumbled.

“That’s why they’re cheap.”

“That’s true.”

Jimmy couldn’t follow their conversation.

He only realized something was wrong when the police cars, which should have been heading to the police station, arrived at the docks.

Soon, Jimmy and his companions were dragged out of their respective police cars.

Now that things had come to this, even Jimmy could grasp his situation.

It was clear enough for even a drug-addled idiot to understand.

Thinking deeper, Jimmy had violated the first rule of the cyberpunk world.

Money doesn’t lie.

The cost of $10,000 each for common drug-addicted gangsters with no insurance or family versus the cost of 12 bullets to their heads.

The two were incomparable.

A rational person should have sensed something was wrong from the moment the offer was made.

But Jimmy overestimated his own worth, and the combined result of his inflated ego, the temptation of the drugs offered as a reward, and his lust for Sonia prevented him from having any suspicions.

“Please spare me…”

Jimmy begged and cried.

But neither the police officer nor the businessman showed any interest in his tears.

Without hesitation, they pulled the triggers, aiming for the heads of Jimmy’s companions.

And the police officers, with their hands free, tossed the limp corpses into the sea with practiced ease.

There was no emotion involved in the efficient division of labor.

It was just their daily routine, their job.

As Jimmy’s companions became water ghosts one by one, Jimmy's turn approached.

Looking at the approaching muzzle, the last thing Jimmy remembered was,

The taste of salty french fries he couldn't remember when he last ate.

***

After disposing of the 12 bodies, the businessman got into his car and, escorted by the Police, headed off somewhere again.

“Yes. Yes. I’ve taken care of it.”

The businessman muttered to the air.

He nodded, speaking respectfully to the unseen presence on the other end of the call.

“I’m certain. There's no way Mystical Power can be hidden during a life-or-death battle.”

The businessman spoke to the air with a confident look.

“Yes. It’s the girl. It’s definitely her.”

The businessman, escorted by numerous police officers, cut through the city night.

The Hickzen Group logo on his car reflected the red neon light.