The hustle and bustle of the city's night was instantly shielded by more than half.

The wall lamp extended infinitely on the walls covered with fluorescent graffiti.

Gino suddenly asked a question.

"What's wrong with you?"

"What?"

John turned his head and found her staring at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Honestly, you seem off. I heard the incident at the Bolago Club was quite severe. Are you seriously injured? Not fully recovered?"

John didn't speak; his smile faded considerably.

Gino seemed to have gotten a definite answer.

"How bad is it?"

She stared into John's eyes and pressed on.

[Mission Objective Updated]

[Conceal Illness. (Optional)]

[Disclose the Truth. (Optional)]

The main mission suddenly showed new progress.

John disliked confiding, disliked the sense of responsibility that came with close relationships, and did not want his death to affect anyone.

The Calormen Truck stopped at a corner public berth.

John gently tapped the steering wheel.

"I have ten days left."

"Oh, my God."

Gino instinctively covered her mouth.

John hadn't figured out how to explain, so he just gave a simple mention.

"The symptoms I told you about have worsened."

"How can this be!?"

Gino crossed over the console, gently hugged John, and returned to her seat with an incredulous expression.

"I can't accept losing two friends in such a short time."

"...Hey, don't be like that."

John inexplicably felt pressure.

Gino frowned and thought for a long time.

"You asked me to contact Serum, is it still helpful?"

"Uh, of course."

A hint of delight flashed in John's heart.

"Any news?"

"Not yet, but I'll think of something, and get back to you later... For now, go home, clean up, and meet Angelica."

Gino gave a suggestion, opened the car door, and left.

John had just started the vehicle when the driver's window was tapped, and Gino circled back to the front.

"Help me give this to Angelica."

She removed a silver earring from the top of her left ear.

Angelica's current identity is very sensitive. If her whereabouts are exposed, it wouldn't be good for either her or Gino, so the farewell gift had to be entrusted to John for delivery.

"See you, don't give up, wait for my news."

Gino earnestly promised John.

"...Heh."

John watched her back, remained silent for a long time, and then shook his head with a smile—friends were a very special kind of interpersonal relationship for him.

[Eden City - Dan Street 013]

The Calormen Truck was finally abandoned in a corner alley, waiting for car thieves who couldn't afford food to visit.

John walked into the familiar apartment lobby.

The intelligent machine with a gold mask raised its head slightly.

It welcomed John home in a formulaic electronic voice, reported the monthly bill and service package, and reminded him of an unopened package in the basement.

The elevator went straight to the corresponding floor.

The apartment's air conditioning automatically turned on, and the transparency of the floor-to-ceiling windows and the light strips were adjusted to the most comfortable atmosphere.

Everything seemed unchanged.

In John's brief and thrilling mercenary career, he hadn't even slept well in the apartment a few times.

The room lacked much sign of life.

The furniture was all marinated in the scent of self-cleaning incense.

John threw his sour-smelling, torn clothes into the trash and used warm water to drown his senses in the shower.

His body ached vaguely all over.

On his arm was a life countdown, the deep green glow spreading in the misty haze.

The kettle on the bar beeped.

John took sedatives and fell asleep in the soothing incense, but naturally woke up two hours later.

There was no obvious sense of exhaustion.

But this wasn't a good sign; it indicated some change in bodily functions under medication stimulation, sounding an alert of impending collapse.

John got up, poured a cup of coffee, and began to get down to business.

Angelica had already been taken by the emergency team.

According to the normal procedure, he needed to check her current hospital through the contract sequence.

But this case was handled by Oulos.

John decided to try another way.

He called Mr. Vito - as a father, he would surely be concerned about Angelica's whereabouts.

The call went to voicemail.

[It's me, John, I can now complete the second half of the commission.]

John finished leaving a message and hung up the phone.

He got up and ordered a high-end shirt from the room service, put on a work jacket with cooling patches, and returned to his familiar mercenary look.

The lights in the workspace lit up.

John maintained the weapons he had brought back.

On the metal countertop was a set of fully automatic robotic arms, custom-ordered through the cabinet at a high cost. It made two full boxes of bullets, covering armor-piercing, incendiary, electro-corrosive, smart universal models, etc...

Every detail in the workspace contained John's yearning for life when he embarked on the path of being a mercenary.

Now it seemed somewhat regrettable.

Fifteen minutes later.

An unfamiliar account sent John an email with coordinates.

He dressed neatly, took his weapons bag, and followed the elevator to the exclusive garage below the apartment building.

[User Reminder: Unchecked Package*1]

Bone Shards mentioned that he would give John a reward.

Dun dun dun dun...

The six spotlights on the ceiling shone down, revealing a newly arrived reflective supercar.

[Vehicle: Eisenberg-Silver Rider 577 [Modified]]

John walked around the familiar yet strange supercar before him.

The stylish designs originally made to pursue retro racing had all been removed, and the body had been replaced with lightweight armor modules.

The black glazed surface looked painted, and a closer inspection would reveal fine scale-like textures, with soft metal used, along with a nearly transparent explosive-proof coating.

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