Chapter 24 Live Or Die?
The parlor was fully sealed. The curtains rose automatically, revealing a creature locked behind the glass–an eight–legged lizard. The thing measured 4 feet 11 inches, its fangs razor sharp and still stained with dark red traces of flesh.
“Wh–what the hell is that thing?” Greg’s legs gave out beneath him, and he fell straight to the floor.
He kept banging on it. “Let me out. Please, let me out. I’ve got parents and kids to feed. I just landed this job. My whole family counts on me to bring food to the table. I can’t die here.”
Sam said, “Greg, since you were so eager to play the hero and warn this pretty lady to leave, why don’t you go all the way and keep her company now?”
He turned to Sharon with a sneer. “I don’t care who you are. Once you step into this special parlor, even a martial artist’s gonna leave in pieces.
“As for regular folks? You’re just monster snacks. Now, if you get on your knees and beg, I might still let you walk out of here.”
Sharon calmly sat on the couch, not the slightest hint of fear on her face. She stared at Sam outside the window. “Was this Mrs. Vance’s order?”
“It’s an order from the top. What do you think?” Sam said.
Sharon thought, ‘So she’s trying to cover it up. Just as I expected.
She hadn’t wanted to use force, but the Vance family kept pushing and pushing. She couldn’t let it slide anymore.
Sharon’s beautiful eyes locked onto the mutated lizard behind the transparent glass. The creature let out a furious roar, its claws scraping the bulletproof surface with a shrill screech, leaving deep gouges in the glass.
She scoffed inwardly, ‘Nothing but a worthless little beast.
She looked down at Greg, who was slumped by the door. “Do you want to live?”
Greg said nothing, as if he had already given up hope.
Sharon questioned, “I’ll ask you again. Do you want to live? Answer me.”
Maybe it was her voice that snapped him out of it. Greg looked like he was on the verge of tears. “Even if I do, what’s the point? There’s no chance.
“These people are monsters. No wonder the security here is always hiring. So this is the dirty secret.”
Successfully unlocked!
He thought, ‘Those people all died in Graceville Manor. The Vance family paid a ton in hush money. Who would dare stir things up after that?”
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Chapter 24 Live Or Die?
Sharon said, “If you want to live, pay me.”
Greg froze, not sure what she meant..
Just then, the glass door let out a mechanical click. The lock disengaged.
“Don’t come near me. Don’t come any closer, you freak. Greg backed away in fear, completely unable to fight back.
Sharon kept her eyes on him, calm as ever, and held out her hand, wanting him to pay.
Greg didn’t know what came over him. He yanked the charm from around his neck and placed it in Sharon’s palm. “My daughter gave me this. There’s a fifty–cent coin inside. It’s not much, but if l-”
“No need. It’s enough.” Sharon slipped the charm into her pocket. She never worked. for free. That fifty cents was the fee.
hat moment, the glass gate fully opened. The creature inside crawled out, its ements slow and lazy. It bared its sharp fangs, a murderous glint in its eyes.
haron stood up and stared at the creature in front of her. “A beast stripped of its fangs is nothing more than a spectacle behind glass.”
She was just a petite girl facing off against a massive predator–anyone could guess the outcome. Greg covered his mouth, thinking, ‘What the hell was I thinking, believing she could save me?’
But when he lowered his head, he saw the shadow on the floor suddenly expand and start crawling out of the ground. He wondered, ‘How is that even possible?‘
At a private hospital, Roxanne was in for a checkup. She’d been so furious lately that her chest had stayed tight for days.
Just after the exam, someone beside her said, “Mrs. Vance, Mr. Wayne Vance is here.”
Before the words even settled, a tall, handsome man appeared in front of her–Wayne Vance. His brows were tightly furrowed, like something serious was going on.
Roxanne asked, “What is it, Wayne? Did something happen?”
Wayne said, “Grandma, did you send people to abduct the Crawfords?”
Roxanne’s expression cooled. “What, did Sharon come to you?”
Wayne replied, “No, but over on the black market, someone put up a bounty of one thousand Hunter Coins and a search token to find the Crawford family. The listed. address is Graceville Manor.”
Roxanne snorted, “It must’ve been Sharon who got the Baxter family to do it. Does she think the Vance family is some kind of joke?”
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Chapter 24Live Or Ther?
Wayne rubbed his temples. “This isn’t a minor issue. If you really did it, Grandma, then hand them over. Otherwise, Graceville Manor could turn into a war zone, and our family’s safety won’t be guaranteed.”
“What, are you serious? That bounty’s really that powerful?” Roxanne’s mood was visibly sour.
Wayne said, “Grandma, do you remember how Karen got the invitation to Oriston Academy?”
Karen had a recommendation letter from the Vance family, but her qualifications. weren’t good. She failed the first evaluation.
Oriston Academy only gives its candidates one shot. If they want a second chance, they have to buy it on the black market, and that was never easy.
Roxanne answered, “I know. Didn’t you spend seven hundred million dollars on it?”
Wayne shook his head. “No. I spent 700 million to buy ten Hunter Coins, then used them to post a task requesting the invitation.
“Someone came to take the job, and we traded for it with something else. Hunter Coins are the real currency on the black market.
“This time, someone used a thousand Hunter Coins. Think about how serious this is. By tonight, a ton of bounty hunters who are also killers will be coming to Graceville Manor. None of them are regular people.”
If anyone from the Vance family got in their way, those bounty hunters wouldn’t hesitate to finish them off. Or they’d just kidnap a Vance family member and trade them for the target.
Roxanne’s face turned grim. “Th–then what now? Hurry and contact the Baxter family. Tell them to cancel the bounty.”
That was why Wayne had rushed over the moment he found out what was going on.. He asked, “Are the Crawfords with you?”
“Yeah. They are locked in the basement. I haven’t even done anything to them.” Roxanne’s chest started to ache again from the anger. She thought, ‘That damn brat Sharon really is a walking disaster. All she ever does is piss me off.”
Wayne said, “Grandma, then I’ll go talk to the Baxter family. You should hurry back and release them. If those bounty hunters show up, there’s no telling what they might do.”
“No need. I was looking for you anyway.” Nicholas appeared at the hospital, holding at black umbrella. His expression was cold. “Are the Crawfords with you?”
Wayne remarked, “We were just about to look for you. Hurry and cancel the bounty on the black market. My grandma just invited them over for a visit, that’s all. There was no harm intended. They’re still perfectly fine.”
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Chapter 24 Live Or Die?
Roxanne let out a cold snort. “Looks like the Baxter family’s getting more arrogant by the day.”
Nicholas raised an eyebrow. “What bounty?”
Wayne explained, “Someone posted a search token and a thousand Hunter Coins to find the Crawford family. They even published our family’s address.”
“A thousand Hunter Coins? Who did it?” Nicholas looked a little surprised. That was a hell of a price to put out.
Wayne frowned. “Wasn’t it you?”
Nicholas replied calmly, “It wasn’t the Baxter family. I haven’t had the chance. I just finished handling an emergency mission nearby and came straight here.”
“Then who put up the bounty? The account’s an alt. There’s no way to trace it.” Wayne rubbed his temples, furious. Most people didn’t even know that app existed, let alone. have a thousand Hunter Coins to put up as a bounty.
Now all the black market killers were heading to Aerions like mad. If they didn’t stop this, the Vance family would be in real trouble.
Just then, the assistant picked up a call from Graceville Manor. His expression changed as he said, “Mrs. Vance, Ms. Vance is at the manor. She’s been taken to the parlor.”
In an instant, every Vance family member’s expression shifted.
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