Chapter 1148: A Good Samaritan
Xu Huo didn't say anything, took a sip of wine, and looked out the window at the children running and playing in the courtyard. One of the faster-running kids accidentally bumped into a man who had just walked out of the private room next door.
The adult was fine, but the child was knocked to the ground. However, he didn't cry. He got up and apologized to the man, "Uncle, I'm sorry, I bumped into you..."
Before he could finish, the man lifted him up with one hand, holding him in front of a face tattooed with a skull. "I hate brats the most. Whose bastard is this?"
A couple walked out. Their clothes and demeanor suggested wealth and status, but they were cautious when facing the man. "The child is young and doesn't understand. Please don't hold it against him."
"Child?" The man let the kid struggle in his grip without moving an inch, his eyes lingering on the child's mother. "A six or seven-year-old isn't that young... Is he your biological son? With your thin waist and flat butt, you don't look like you've given birth."
The child's father stepped in front of his wife, suppressing his anger. "Please put my child down. He's about to suffocate! The owner of this restaurant is also a player. You probably can't cause trouble on his turf!"
The tattoo-faced man chuckled. "The owner is a player, so what? Are you a player too? You want your son back, right? Here, take him!"
With that, he tossed the child forward. The couple rushed to catch him, but the man suddenly grabbed the mother and pulled her into his arms, burying his face in her hair with a deep sniff. "Rich men's women are raised well—soft skin, tender flesh, and so fresh. Doesn't matter if she's had a kid. We brothers aren't picky!"
Right in front of everyone, he was about to drag the woman away!
Just then, the child's father and two friends tried to stop him, but the tattoo-faced man's companions kicked them away. One of them sneered at the woman, "Stick with Brother Zhong, and you'll have a good life!"
Ordinary people were no match for players. Two kicks and they couldn't get up. The restaurant's security was nowhere to be seen, and the other guests either hid in their rooms, too scared to make a sound, or watched indifferently, minding their own business.
"No one's going to step in?" Xu Huo frowned. In a remote area, this kind of thing might not be surprising, but this was a busy restaurant.
"Things like this... aren't exactly rare," Zheng Liang said vaguely.
Bystanders weren't without anger when they saw this, but the threat of players had already surpassed the scope of ordinary people. Regular folks couldn't intervene, and players had to weigh the risks.
Xu Huo set down his wine glass.
At almost the same moment, a female player in a Special Defense Department uniform walked out. She took the cigarette from her mouth with two fingers, flicked off the ash, and pointed at the tattoo-faced man. "Alright, that's enough. If you want to leave here in one piece, let her go."
Behind the female player were five companions. The tattoo-faced man looked wary and had no choice but to release his grip.
Watching the woman throw herself into her husband's arms, sobbing, the tattoo-faced man didn't back down. He glared at the female player with a sinister look. "Special Defense Department, huh? Fine, I'll remember this. Let's go!"
The three players left with obvious resentment, hinting that they would settle the score sooner or later.
The Special Defense Department female player wasn't exactly easygoing either. She signaled to her people, and two companions followed the three men.
The couple came over with their child to thank her. The female player said, "You're welcome. I'll have someone take you to the hospital later."
With that little incident over, the guests returned to their tables.
"Only the Special Defense Department dares to step in," Xu Huo noted the problem.
The Special Defense Department represented the state, so most people wouldn't dare to provoke them. If it had been ordinary players, things might not have ended so well today.
"Actually, there have been similar cases stopped by regular players before," Wen Xuelin said quietly. "They were fine at the time, but those bastards later found out their identities. They killed their entire families first, then set traps to torture and kill the players who stopped them, even filming it and posting it online."
"There were several such cases in the past few months. It's not the thief you fear, but the thief's lingering resentment. Players can't stay in Zone 014 forever. Once they leave, what happens to their families?"
Xu Huo nodded slightly. "So the solution is to eliminate the root."
Wen Xuelin opened her mouth to say more, but Xu Huo had already stood up. "I'll be right back."
The two Special Defense Department players who had gone out had already clashed with the tattoo-faced man and his two companions. Two against three, the Special Defense Department players caught them off guard, killing one and injuring another. The tattoo-faced man, stronger than his companions, managed to escape alone after seriously injuring one of them.
To save his companion, the other Special Defense Department player had to retreat with the injured.
When Xu Huo arrived, only the tattoo-faced man's injured companion was left, hiding in the stairwell of a residential complex.
He dealt with the man and tossed the body by the roadside, then followed the street in the direction the tattoo-faced man had fled.
The tattoo-faced man, who had already successfully escaped, should have been getting farther away. But after circling the same two streets repeatedly, he realized he might have fallen under the effect of some trait or item. He desperately tried to flee into the residential buildings.
However, his plan to take hostages was impossible. Every time he rushed into a building, the same street appeared before his eyes. No matter which direction he ran, he ended up back on that street!
After several attempts, he saw a figure appear at the end of the street.
Logically, a player's vision should have been clear enough to see the person, but at that moment, the approaching figure remained a blur in his eyes, like a shadow.
"You're not from the Special Defense Department!" the tattoo-faced man roared. When he got no response, he immediately reached for his ticket. But no matter how many times he activated it, the ticket wouldn't work!
Clutching the ticket in his hand, he tried to use it while sweating profusely, staring at the figure getting closer. "Go! Why won't you go!"
Xu Huo stopped ten meters away from him.
"Who the hell are you!" The tattoo-faced man tried several items to no avail. He took two steps back, staring at the dark, shadowy, indistinct face ahead. "We have no past grievances or recent grudges. Do you really have to go this far?"
"You really want to know who I am?" Xu Huo spoke slowly. "Then just think of me as a good Samaritan."
Since the dawn of the player era, the label "good person" seemed impossible to attach to any player. The tattoo-faced man instinctively sneered, but at that moment, his expression froze. A torrent of blood sprayed from his throat, and he fell stiffly to his knees.
Xu Huo, who had never personally made a move, collected the spoils and took a phone from his luggage compartment. Just then, a call came in.
After two rings, Xu Huo pressed the answer button. "Hello?"
(The smoking character is part of the persona for the role. This text can be seen as a way to relieve stress. The author does not encourage smoking and does not like smoking. ^_^)
(End of chapter)