A resounding thunder drowned the noise coming from another corner of the street. Eric had disappeared from the street, leaving Alley to figure out how to control her ability. Alley, hearing all that noise, cared less about any of it. She faced a wall, pushing beyond her limits to bring forth whatever fire was satisfactory enough for her nerdy self.
Grown men yelled out in pain again from the shadows, but there was no thunder to drown the sound this time. The empty streets amplified the sickening sound of broken bones more than was necessary. The men, all at the mercy of Eric, cried in pain. Five of them — they had all been suddenly attacked by the little kid they thought they could easily take care of and dispose of at a corner of the street. One moment, he was beside Alley on the other side of the street, another moment — using the Killer Dash skill — he suddenly appeared before them in the dark corners where they hid.
"Alley Queen," Alley heard her name from where the noise reverberated. That was Eric's voice, and it definitely wasn't a cry for help. He sounded like he was having fun. Alley didn't shout a reply, but she listened carefully to what he would say next.
"...what do you think about training on some live targets? I mean, targets that look like some men who stabbed you in that alley?!"
"That's gonna sound fun. Wait a minute, let me just get a hang of this ability. So far, I've only been able to conjure tiny flames..." Alley replied, but was cut off mid-sentence by the sight of a body flying in her direction.
Almost caught off guard, she lifted her hands and hoped that was enough to stop the human missile.
WHOOSH!
Something very bright flew out of her outstretched hands, straight and precisely at the battered man that wasn't going to stop until it hit her. She felt a very warm sensation in her chest at the same time the blinding light forced her to close her eyes. But after a while, she opened her eyes to see... Alas, she'd fulfilled her lifelong fantasy of being an elemental ability wielder, and to her uttermost delight, she'd launched her very first fireball.
But there was no time to celebrate yet, as Eric, from another corner, threw yet another half-dead body right at her.
"What's a better target than some unruly thugs?" Eric called.
A little grunt, then...
Ka-boom!
Alley flung two more fireballs with both her hands at that one target, both hits sending the limp body skidding halfway across the street.
"You've got some crazy aim there, Alley, even with your weak hand," said Eric, still staying hidden. "But are you gonna catch this one? I'm throwing with full force!"
"I can't be caught—"
But Alley was really caught off guard this time. Still facing some difficulties with her fire summoning, she didn't have enough time to target the insanely fast incoming body. But with her speed tripled since she became a mana slave, she was quick enough to duck under the extra-large man Eric threw. She recognized the man as the one who plunged the knife into her stomach after they caught up with her in the dark alley.
The big body sailed until it bashed against the thick walls of a building beside her. Eric had already done some pretty artwork on his face before he was thrown, but that was nothing compared to how messed up his skull appeared after the impact — completely broken, with its contents pouring down on the littered floor.
"Seems you weren't ready for that one," Eric said, finally coming out of the shadows on the other side of the street. He held two other battered men by their collars, dragging them with him while they pleaded with deep but weak groans. "Do you remember that last one especially? You were taking a good look at his bashed skull for a pretty long time."
Alley smiled bitterly, following Eric's movements from the other side. "I do remember him. I can't forget who specifically dug a curved knife slowly into my stomach. The others held me down while he did it."
"Would've been an interesting sight. Tell me, how did you get involved with these thugs? Were you part of them? 'Cause that's always the case when things turn out this way."
"Yes, I was part of them," Alley's voice rang, a little higher-pitched than was necessary. "I mean, I was working for their boss at a brothel..."
"Oh," Eric said simply.
"...don't misunderstand. I'm not one of the service girls. I worked as a receptionist, and most times as the manager. My boss, Rakel — a Tier-3 Earth controller — refused to give me away to the VIPs whenever they asked that I service them. To him, I'm the soul of his business, and I attract a lot of men to the place. Yes, but they never get to lay with me. Strict Rakel wouldn't allow that."
It's true what the system said then. Potential mana slaves do have a former life where they attract a lot of things. In Alley's case, it's attraction from men, and her boss knew how to exploit that ability for his own benefit.
"Rakel sounds like a manipulator to me," Eric commented while struggling to unhook one of the men he was dragging after they got caught by their clothes on a metal pipe. "Let's hear what led to this unfortunate night of yours."
"I'll cut to the chase. Men with top-tier social status visit the brothel to have secret meetings. Whenever these meetings are in session, no staff is allowed to go near the rooms. Rakel always knew about the meetings and what they were going to discuss, but even he wasn't allowed in the rooms. It's mostly these five men... those five stunningly powerful and overwhelming men. Oh, they stink of power.
"A few days ago, during one of those top-secret meetings, my curiosity got the better of me. Nothing really piques my interest except talks about abilities, and I got a slight hint that they were meeting to discuss some lab experiment on special beings... so, I sneaked back after overseeing their comfort... y'know, to eavesdrop.
"I only lasted a few minutes before they noticed that I was spying on them. From the urgency with which the guards were sent out to fetch me, I knew I was gonna die just for trying to listen in on them. So, I fled," she concluded.
"These thugs?" Eric asked. "They belong to whom?"
"They're all Rakel's," Alley responded with a trace of anger.
"Seems your boss is out to get you too. They must've ordered him to shut you up, or else he loses his brothel. His livelihood, I mean."
Eric stopped to kick one of the men who was still strong enough to try and resist being dragged. "But is that the end of the story, Alley? What did you hear them say at the secret meeting?"
Compelled to tell the truth by some inexplicable force just from Eric's words, Alley told the rest of what she initially wanted to hide.
"It's about a secret facility hidden under the disguise of a company that builds innovative machinery and devices. From the little I heard, they've already begun gathering stray kids who are special beings, in their underground cells."
A strange, sharp smile slowly spread across Eric's face, a look that didn't reach his cold eyes. He was silent for a long moment, as if she had just handed him a priceless gift instead of a horrifying secret.
Interesting. That must be the same secret facility those kidnappers sold me to... the same facility I must go back to... the same one I was going to take over...
You don't get to come across a plot twist such as this often.
"In two days' time," Alley continued, "the kids will be unleashed to play at a mini tournament during the CEO's daughter's birthday. There will be no broadcast of the birthday party, no recording devices — just the rich and powerful enjoying their gruesome selves in a closed arena.
"There will be many high-tier families in attendance, and the main event will be watching the special kids perform in the tournament. But..."
"Say it, Alley. What's the grueling part? 'Cause I know there's one. There's always one," Eric goaded her.
"...the tournament... it's not really a tournament for the kids." Her voice broke to a whisper, "It's going to be a massacre."
"What do you mean?" asked Eric.
"The kids... are going to be facing alien beasts... and... and the rich families are going to bet on them."
Eric stopped dead in his tracks, shocked beyond words. Alley watched him, confused by his intense reaction.
Finally he spoke, "you must be wondering why I'm shocked," said "It's about the betting part."
"Huh? Not the part about the children facing beasts?" Alley was momentarily stunned.
"Not that part. When faced with a challenge like that, they learn or they die, and once it's over, they become a master of their own world for overcoming such challenge. What's most unhinging to me is someone sitting back and trying to decide or predict my fate. I hate that with the whole of my shitty self.
"I even hate having spectators when I'm playing video games. No, you don't get to enjoy or scorn me while I do my thing. It makes me want to kill you instantly.
"And by instantly, I mean... do you know the way back to the facility?" His serious countenance suddenly switched to one befitting a kid who had really lost his way and was too shy to ask for it.
Alley sighed deeply but replied thereafter, "No, I don't. I don't even know where the company is. But I know someone who might know where it is located... and that's Rakel, my former boss."
Silly me. I actually know where the facility is. I only need to find my way back to the main road, then I'll be able to get back there. This slum wasn't planned with someone like me in consideration.
My sense of direction is damn faulty.
But if Alley wants us to visit her former boss, I might as well tag along. She must have some scores to settle with Rakel.
Well, if so, it's just the beginning of her training as a mana slave. She can easily deal with Rakel's men herself, and I can help her take care of Rakel.
She said he's a Tier-3 Earth bender... A mere Terra-man in my books.
"Haha..." He let out a short burst of laughter.
It's about time I fill my mana bank. I wonder what the mana from a special being feels like.