Sol walked away with one hundred and eighty billion Dennies, Chekkat's seven "business partners" obtained their exquisite handcrafted art pieces, Jane harvested a whole network of arms dealers, and Anby and her boss's man shared an unforgettable experience.
So, in the end, everyone had a bright future ahead of them.
At that moment, the transaction was complete.
The arms dealers carefully packed their silver rods into their leather cases, grinning from ear to ear.
"Mr. Pantalone, I've already prepared a grand feast in your honor—may I have the privilege of your company?"
Chekkat's face was full of delight as he looked at Sol.
The deal he'd brokered had gone perfectly, and now he could finally breathe easy.
"No problem."
Sol glanced at his phone and readily agreed.
He hadn't eaten breakfast anyway—time to deliver one last critical taste review of the arms dealers' decadent capitalist cuisine.
Though, judging by the time, Qingyi and Zhu Yuan would be arriving any minute now.
So that "last meal of critique" might not happen after all.
Just then—
A sudden burst of gunfire echoed through the ruins, immediately setting Chekkat and the others on high alert.
"Well, looks like my deluxe breakfast is canceled."
Sol shrugged, sounding almost regretful.
A burly, panicked gunman burst in. "Boss! Bad news! The Public Security Bureau is here—tons of them! They've surrounded us and taken out a lot of our men!"
"How is that possible? This gathering was top secret—unless there's a mole, there's no way they could've found us!"
Chekkat and his seven allies froze, their eyes darting suspiciously at one another.
When everything went well, they were brothers. When things went wrong, they trusted no one.
And soon enough, all their gazes landed on Jane.
If the leak came from one of the original eight, the authorities wouldn't have shown up now.
Which meant the only suspects were the last few who arrived with Chekkat.
But the Mr. Pantalone had just sold them super weapons—surely he and his attendants were fine.
"There's only one truth here. Jane—why did you betray me?!"
Chekkat chambered a round and pointed his pistol at her, fury twisting his face.
"Oh?" Jane didn't flinch—she smiled faintly. "I didn't betray you. I've always been with Public Security."
"An undercover agent?! I was going to promote you to my right-hand man—you ungrateful—die!"
Bang!
Chekkat fired.
Clang!
Jane flicked her blade, slicing the bullet cleanly in two.
The spent shell hit the ground with a crisp ding, harmless.
Jane twirled her blade calmly. "Chekkat, you're surrounded. Don't harbor any foolish ideas—surrender now and you'll suffer less."
"Quit bluffing! You think you're tough?"
A few of the arms dealers sneered.
They'd seen plenty of skilled fighters—they themselves were no amateurs. Sure, Jane was dangerous, and with the officers outside, taking her down would be difficult…
But this time, things were different. They had the super weapons from the Mr. Pantalone—weapons with enough destructive power to level a building.
Each of them raised a silver rod menacingly. "We've got the Tycoon's weapons now! You and your cops will die for your arrogance!"
"…"
Jane's face remained impassive—though deep down, she was almost laughing.
Her original target had been Chekkat alone. Only after meeting Sol had her operation grown into this elaborate trap.
At that moment, Chekkat turned to Sol. "Mr. Pantalone! If not for your weapons, we'd all be done for by that damned cop! Please, take cover behind us. You're on our turf—we'll never let harm come to you—"
"See that? He's actually thanking us."
Sol stood beside Jane, unmoving, amusement in his tone.
Even Anby—normally so stoic—couldn't help but let out a small laugh.
Immoral? Maybe. But still hilarious.
"Mr. Pantalone, what's the meaning of this?!"
A bad feeling crept up Chekkat's spine.
"Sorry," Sol sighed, utterly casual. "I'm undercover too."
To be fair, he'd had a good time in the Black Panther organization—fine food, fine drink, no stress.
Now that the gang was about to be wiped out, he almost felt a little sentimental.
Anby straightened up beside him, adding firmly, "Me too. Undercover."
"What!?"
The eight arms dealers froze.
Chekkat looked like he'd just swallowed poison.
He'd been dreaming of using the Tycoon's power to rise to greatness—and now the man he'd been treating like a godfather turned out to be a cop.
And worse—what if those super weapons he'd bought were fake?
Panic spread through the group as they frantically examined their rods.
Everything looked fine… and they remembered the test shot had worked. That thought offered a tiny bit of comfort.
One dealer aimed his rod at Sol. "You bastards at Public Security went all out—using bait like this! I'll admit your plan worked. But because of it, a lot of people are still going to die! Let us go, or we'll trigger these weapons!"
"I think you're the one about to get shocked."
Sol snapped his fingers.
Lightning crackled into existence—thin blue-violet serpents of energy darting through the air and striking all eight of them.
He'd dialed it down to just ten amps—mild by his standards, but considering that 0.1 amps was enough to stop a human heart, it was plenty for "gentle persuasion."
The eight convulsed violently, collapsing into twitching heaps.
After a few moments of spasms, dread crept into their eyes.
He wasn't even holding a super weapon.
Had they just been sold a box of junk?
"Die!"
A few of the hardier ones lunged, stabbing their rods toward Sol.
Nothing happened.
Of course.
"Quiet."
Another pulse of current danced from Sol's fingertips, making them seize up again.
"Thanks for appreciating my craftsmanship," he said cheerfully. "Next time, I'll give you a twenty percent discount."
Foam bubbled from the mouths of the eight arms dealers as they collapsed—whether from the shocks or the sheer rage, no one could tell.
At that moment, the gunfire outside fell silent.
Zhu Yuan and Qingyi cautiously stepped into the room—and found Sol, Anby, and Jane standing over the unconscious arms dealers.
Qingyi couldn't help but break into a grin and recite:
"Infiltrate the lair with cunning scheme, lure snakes from shadow, fulfill the dream. United within, with courage bright, strike down all foes—restore the light."
"Eh?" Anby blinked, genuinely surprised. "That actually rhymed!"
"Ehehe~!"
Qingyi tilted her head and stuck out her tongue playfully.