Ding!
"Congratulations! You've completed the side mission. Reward unlocked: Standard Gravity-Wave Device."
The system's voice was as sweet and intoxicating as ever.
Leon's mood soared—he'd just obtained a weapon worth fifty million… for free. The joy of a windfall was beyond compare.
Behind him, Elena, Hattie, and Dr. Dog turned to look back.
The distant horizon was still covered in dust, towering into the sky.
Even dozens of kilometers away, they could still feel the oppressive weight of despair that explosion carried.
That single blast had wiped the entire place flat.
It wasn't just destruction—it was on the scale of a missile strike.
"You… how the hell did you pull that off?" Dr. Dog asked, utterly shaken.
Leon just smirked. "Secret."
Not a word more.
Dr. Dog opened his mouth to press further, but then shut it again, frustrated. He knew the truth:
Any individual—or any nation—that mastered this kind of weapon would never willingly reveal its principles. The technology was too dangerous. If leaked, it would shift global power.
So he gave up, sighing helplessly at his own lack of knowledge.
They drove smoothly back toward the city.
But just as the highway stretched ahead, a car suddenly cut across their lane.
It was a BMW M8—one of the rarest prototypes, still not even mass-produced.
A four-door coupe, the most expensive BMW of its kind, shaped with sleek lines and a rising waistline that screamed speed and elegance.
At the rear, the sloping fastback profile blended into a quad-exhaust layout, pure aggression on wheels.
And the paintwork—Sarebbe Mountain Green. Under shifting light, the color seemed to morph from deep emerald to stormy gray.
With its 4.4L twin-turbo V8 pushing over 447 kW, the beast could hit 0–100 km/h in just three seconds. A true track monster.
Leon hit the brakes, frowning at the roadblock.
The door of the M8 swung open, and out stepped a woman.
She was stunning.
Perfect curves, razor-sharp features, and an aura of raw confidence that radiated like a goddess.
Her figure was Victoria's Secret Angel level, and her stride carried enough dominance to rival any man.
And she was angry.
She strode straight toward Leon's car and knocked on his window.
Leon rolled it down lazily. "What's this? And who exactly are you?"
The woman crossed her arms.
"My name is Gisele," she said firmly. "Shaw told me you'd call when you arrived. Why haven't you?"
Leon blinked. He hadn't expected her to come find him herself.
Before he could respond, Gisele's voice hardened with frustration.
"Do you have any idea how strong Eteon is? Breaking into his base is next to impossible. With just your little crew, you don't stand a chance!"
Her tone shifted, almost pleading.
"I have contacts inside. They could have smuggled you in…"
Gisele's background made sense. She used to run with the cartel boss Braga, a queenpin of the underground.
She valued loyalty and courage above all else. That's why she'd risen to the role of navigator, a position requiring brains, guts, and trust.
She had connections. She had respect. She had pull.
And because Shaw had asked her, she agreed without hesitation.
She was supposed to meet them within an hour. But when no call came after three, then four hours, she had grown restless. After getting a photo of Leon's car from Shaw, she had driven out herself, determined to block him.
That's how they had ended up here.
Leon sat in the driver's seat, eyes unreadable. A small smile tugged at his lips.
If only Gisele knew… her "inside contacts" were already gone. Not even bodies would be recoverable.
"Sorry, sweetheart," Leon finally said, "but you might never see your friends again."
Her brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"
"I blew up Eteon's base."
"…What?" Gisele froze. "That's impossible. Don't joke with me. Even Braga couldn't touch that place!"
She wasn't exaggerating.
She'd been inside Eteon's fortress before—its defenses were terrifying. Layers of high-tech security, aircraft patrols, automated turrets, even lasers. It was impregnable, a bunker that could stop an army.
Eteon was Detroit's underground king.
The city itself bent around his influence, protected by backroom deals with its elite. His base was untouchable.
Or so she thought.
"You'd need maps, months of planning, coordination with insiders—"
Leon cut her off with a chuckle. "Here. See for yourself."
He handed her his phone.
On the screen was a breaking news broadcast.
Side-by-side images filled the feed.
On the left: the power plant as it once stood—majestic, with two hundred cooling towers spewing white steam.
On the right: a wasteland. Flattened ruins. And in the middle—a massive square crater gouged into the earth.
The footage cut to live shots.
Rescue workers stood at the crater's edge, stunned into silence, hats clutched in their hands.
The devastation was beyond comprehension.
One intact body had been found near the perimeter. The rest… shredded beyond recognition.
"My God…" Gisele gasped, covering her mouth. Her eyes darted nervously, panic flickering across her flawless face.
Shaw had told her this was a job.
But this? These were the kind of people who had wiped out Eteon's headquarters with just five people.
If she hadn't seen the news herself, she would never have believed it.
Shock rippled through her. Awe. Fear. And a spark of something else—interest.
This man was dangerous. But he was also… extraordinary.
Just then—SCREEECH!
Brakes screeched behind them.
A silver McLaren 720S pulled up fast.
Shaw and Hobbs finally arrived.
"How'd it go? Did you get it?" Shaw called out immediately, eyes locked on Hattie. His tension was obvious.
She nodded. "Yeah. Everything went smooth. We got the virus."
No endless detours, no movie-style side missions.
In, retrieve the package, out.
Leon had drawn all the firepower to himself, cutting down every wave of enemies.
By the time they reached Eteon's base, there had only been a hundred men left—no match for him.
Shaw exhaled deeply, relief flooding his face.
"Good. That's good." His heart finally settled.
He turned to Gisele. "Thanks for your help."
But Gisele just huffed. "Help? Don't thank me. They never even called."
Her voice carried a note of wounded pride.
If she'd gone with them, she would have witnessed the destruction firsthand.
Instead, she had only seen the aftermath on a screen.
And that, she thought bitterly, was a damn shame.
~~----------------------
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