Jackson moved down the big hallway, noting Daniel who had knocked down some men as both of them and their other gang members were separately searching for and beating Myung's men.
Their eyes met as Jackson was walking closer to Daniel, just then from nowhere a sharp kick cracked against Jackson's skull from the side, flooring him instantly.
Both men whipped their heads toward the attacker and were caught off guard, a woman in a razor-sharp black suit, hair pinned tight in a bun, glasses glinting coldly under the lights. Her glare was pure fury.
"Was it a kick or a stone??" Jackson grunted, staring up at her then at Daniel.
"You guys are very fond of fair fights without any weapons, right? Then come and do it with me." In determination, she invited them to fight.
While Jackson and Daniel shared a fascinated yet baffled glance between them. She was serious. And she looked pretty damn strong for fighting.
"As you wish, madam!" Daniel lunged first, his flying kick aimed straight for her, but she blocked it mid-air with her own, the impact and her skill and speed sending surprise through them both. While Jackson quickly rose to his feet and as soon as he stood straight, another brutal kick cracked into him, dropping him right back to the floor.
"I wasn't even ready yet!" Jackson complained, looking up at her who continued her brutal onslaught on Daniel, his attacks easily brushed aside by her powerful kicks and hard punches, making them amused.
Jackson stood on his feet again and moved towards her to join Daniel, but found himself struggling too—her skills were top-notch. She was effortlessly evading their kicks and punches simultaneously while countering with her own techniques.
"What is your name? You are very strong, you should join us. Because after today Myung won't be there to give you guys orders." Jackson approached her while still trying to attack her.
"Anica. Remember that name, not because you'll recruit me," she spat, driving a fist into Jackson's face with brutal precision. Blood trickled from his nose as he staggered back. "But because it'll be the last thing you hear before I end both of your lives."
She whirled toward Daniel, but Jackson recovered fast.
"That was rude, woman!" His flying kick eventually managed to crack against her skull. Her glasses clattered to the floor as she barely caught herself from falling completely.
But his one kick didn't stop her from retaliating as she angrily rained down a storm of powerful punches and kicks that kept him and Daniel on the defensive mode instead of attacking.
Now they struggled just to dodge, completely exhausted by her endless assault.
Taking advantage of this, with one last brutal kick and punch, she sent the two men flying, their bodies slamming into the floor hard. They sprawled apart, gasping for breath in exhaustion and staring up at her as she stood in between them, her own knuckles bruised and bloody. The marks from her attacks were clearly visible in their eyes area.
"Time's up," Anica declared, taking out her gun and aiming directly at Daniel. "You guys have lost."
"She's so strong!" Daniel breathed in awe, impressed by her power and fighting skills, his eyes following her every move.
But just as he spoke, something cracked against Anica's head—so fast, so sudden. Blood gushed from her lips as she dropped her gun and slumped to the floor, unconscious.
Both Jackson and Daniel turned up their eyes, looking stunned at the newcomer standing behind the fainted Anica.
"But not stronger than me," The soft female voice filled the air, voice dripping with lazy confidence.
She flicked her intense copper coloured hime cut hair over her shoulder, golden hazel eyes glinting with a mix of amusement and arrogance as she stared at Anica's crumpled form.
Jackson blinked at her—she was wearing blood red coloured cargo wide pants, a simple white top and normal white shoes which gave the look of casual clothes.
"Daisy?!" Daniel echoed, surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"Got word from my team about you guys coming on this mission. Pretty disappointing you didn't include me along, so I invited myself" she drawled, nonchalantly as she moved to help Daniel to his feet, hugging him firmly before turning her attention to Jackson.
"You guys have decorated this place with half alive and half dead bodies all around, this looks more like a graveyard than someone's mansion," she chided softly. "Only the number of people who were required to be killed should have been killed. Why's there so many extra bodies?" She asked them while making Jackson stand on his feet.
Jackson waved a hand dismissively. "Only took out, like, a handful of guys. The rest are just... taking naps."
"Over a hundred unconscious bodies isn't a handful." She said calmly.
Their weird grins made her exhale sharply and shake her head in resignation.
"Why didn't you wear a mask?" Daniel suddenly demanded, voice laced with concern.
"You wore one and still ended up looking like mashed potatoes, it is clear just by your eyes." She uttered, pointed on his face with her golden hazel eyes.
Daniel grinned slyly, moving towards her, slipping his arms around her waist. "So just put some ointment on it, it'll heal."
She blushed softly, meeting his gaze with a shy smile.
"Hey, you two, now don't start here." Jackson interrupted them with an annoyed expression who was standing right in front of them.
While Daisy and Daniel chuckled, seeing Jackson getting annoyed by their romantic moment.
"Well, You must have hacked all the cameras here, that's why I didn't think it necessary to wear a mask." She explained with a mere smile.
Daniel's grip on her waist tightened slightly, his tone dropping into something more serious despite their playful stance. "Yes, but it was still necessary to wear it for extra protection."
"Okay, okay I understand," her fingers smoothing out the crumpled fabric of Daniel's collar absently as she spoke again, "By the way, earlier I didn't believe that Myung, just some simple businessman, would have an army of killers ready to kill anyone for him until today." Her smirk faded briefly. "But now? I'm completely convinced, the Omnipotent Mafia Group has some relation with him and is helping him."
"Of course they are!" Daniel agreed.
Suddenly attracting their attention, Jackson let out a groan of satisfaction as he sat down on the floor comfortably, leaning his back against the wall.
"Today was so much fun, it reminded me of the old days," Jackson echoed, his voice was relaxed and satisfied as he stretched his muscles "Today should be called Nostalgic Fight."
Daisy and Daniel shared a glance, amusement sparking in their eyes as they observed Jackson.
"Hey, you both, come join me for some time and eat snacks with me. Jae will take care of the rest. And by now he must have found Jia and killed Myung." Jackson invited, taking out some pack of snacks from his pocket that he had grabbed earlier from that room where he made one of Myung's men unconscious with just one kick and punch.
Hearing his words, Daisy and Daniel looked at him in disbelief.
"We can't sit here like this, Jackson. We have other things to take care of."
Hearing her words Jackson looked up at her in a lazy disagreement. While she shook her head at the gesture that they can't just sit. But Jackson shook his head in reluctance like a kid, trying to convince them. He just wanted to sit there with them and eat snacks for some time.
Then Daniel and Daisy exchanged their glance before sighing in defeat and sitting on both sides of Jackson, taking the snacks from him.
The atmosphere lightened slightly. "Alright then," Daisy said, opening a pack of snacks. "Let's recreate the moment."
They all chuckled at the moment.
[Profile
Name: Daisy Valente
Age: 30
Occupation: Fashion designer. In the criminal underworld, however, she's a powerful member of the notorious Deadly Fangs mafia group.
Family: Husband (Daniel Valente) and younger brother (Jitoku Jae)
Relationship status: Married.
(Daisy is the most elusive and formidable member of the Deadly Fangs, renowned for her unparalleled strength and cunning.)]
""""""
Jia's hands trembled as they hovered over Myung's lifeless form, her voice raw with fury. "Why did you kill him for nothing?!"
Jae let out a low, sinister chuckle at the accusation. "What did you think would happen?" he murmured, tilting his head mockingly. "That I'd just let my slave belong to someone else?"
Her tear-filled glare burned into his mask, but before she could retort, Jae's hand shot out, fingers crushing the back of her neck as he yanked her forward until their faces were inches apart.
"The moment you entered my life, you always had a desire to leave me and push me away, right? That's why you keep trying to go away every time." The heat of his breath was hot on her face as he spoke. She could feel his words like venom, seeping in through her skin.
"But your fate was trapped in the cage of my fate even before this world was created. If you try to escape this cage, you will find another there, whose owner will be none other than this Venom. Wherever you go, you will always stay in my cage."
His grip was unrelenting as he dragged her towards the exit door, her struggles doing nothing against his strength. No matter how hard she jerked or twisted, his hold didn't falter, not even a fraction.
Finally, irritated by her relentless resistance, he halted sharply and spun around. Without a word, he bent down slightly and hoisted her over his shoulder like a sack of grain. Her legs kicked wildly in the air as she thrashed against him, hands pounding uselessly on his back with all the force she could muster.
But Jae barely flinched, instead, he just tightened his arm around her thighs to keep her in place before exiting the room without missing a step.
"Put me down, you transphobic b@stard!" She shouted, cursing in anger.
His response was instantaneous, a harsh SMACK landed on her upturned backside, drawing a groan from her, making her shocked.
"Call me that again, and you'll regret it." Jae growled, his voice tinged with a dark promise.
"F*ck you d!ckh0le!" Again a groan escaped from her mouth as he smacked on her back harshly for the second time, making her bite his back in anger while he let out an evil chuckle at her antic.
"Careful what you wish for." A sinful smirk plastered on his face.
●◇◇◇◇◇◇●
The luxurious villa felt like a prison to her, a lavish cage that offered no escape. The thick forest outside was an impenetrable barrier, but somewhat familiar to her, the dense foliage and darkness making any attempts at escape almost impossible.
As she wandered through the quiet halls, she eventually came to a stop in front of a massive window. Moonlight spilled into the dark room, casting everything into an eerie, almost mystical light.
As her gaze drifted outside, an odd sense of familiarity washed over her. Something about the distant view felt oddly familiar...
<<<<<<>>>>>>
"What made you think that i would die by falling from there, that you also jumped after me??" The little girl's mocking laughter rippled across the water as she effortlessly floated. The little boy, wide-eyed, stared at her in disbelief.
"How do you know how to swim so skilfully at such a young age?!" he demanded, kicking weakly to keep himself afloat.
She tilted her head with a smirk. "My parents taught me when I was little."
He squinted at her. "...So what, you're like fifty now?" His nose scrunched up skeptically. "You're still little, aren't you?"
"Pfft, dumbo!" She flicked his forehead lightly with her fingertips, grinning. "I mean since I was three, my parents taught me."
His eyes sparkled with exaggerated awe. "You're so talented!"
She flipped her hair dramatically, only for him to burst her bubble immediately. "No need to boast that much," he teased, blowing a raspberry at her pride.
Then, shaking water from his hair like a dog, he grabbed her wrist, "We're totally soaked, let's get out of the river," and started pulling them both toward the riverbank until she yanked free suddenly. He blinked at her with a questionable face, stopping mid-stroke.
"I won't get out 'till you tell me why you keep calling me Fairy instead of my real name!" she declared defiantly.
"You stupid girl! I can tell this even after we get out of here."
She shook her head resolutely. "But I said I want to hear it here," she repeated, folding her arms, her cheeks puffed out determinedly.
"Ugh, you never listen to me!" he huffed dramatically before relenting. "Fine! You're the second person who makes me feel… happy and relaxed just by being around." He shrugged as if it were nothing. "And you….you look like a fairy to me, okay? That's why I call you that. Now can we go?"
His hand shot out to grab her wrist again, but she dodged with a sudden gasp of curiosity.
"Wait! Who's the first person?"
Seeing her curiosity, a mischievous glint flickered in his eyes. "That's a~ secret!"
"C'monnn!" She whined, swaying closer with big puppy-dog eyes. "I won't tell anyone!! Don't you trust meee?"
"Yes I do!"
"So tell me." She persisted.
He smirked, tapping his chin dramatically as if weighing some grand revelation. "Fine, fine, since you're so desperate..." His eyes darted away teasingly before locking back onto hers. "But! One word only and no more questions after. Deal?"
She huffed, but ultimately nodded in surrender.
His lips curled victoriously before softening into something tender—unexpected warmth glinting behind his usual mischief as he murmured,
"...Gale."
The name hung between them like a secret finally shared under sunset light's hush.
"Gale?" She cocked her head, brows furrowed in confusion. "The very strong wind?....Or is it the name of the first person who makes you happy and relaxes you?"
"No more questions." He reminded her.
"Ugh, this is so unfair!" she whined. "I didn't even understand your answer!"
But he just stared back with that infuriatingly blank look, clearly done explaining.
Seeing that he won't reveal clearly, defeated, she huffed and quickly switched topic. "...Fine! Then I guess you don't care why I call you 'Cure,' huh?" She blinked, waiting for his reaction.
His only response was a slow blink of indifference, as if the answer couldn't possibly interest him less.
Getting no response from him, she gave him a grin, undeterred by his feigned indifference. "Alright, fine, I'll tell you then." She leaned closer, her honey-doe eyes softening under the golden light of sunset.
"Every time I'm sad or upset… you somehow fix it." Her voice was tender now, no longer teasing. "You take all my troubles away like magic. Only you can heal what hurts inside me… so that's why—that's why you're 'Cure.'"
For a heartbeat, he just stared at her, before his lips twitched helplessly into a smile. Not cocky or smug this time… just warm. Real.
And then they were both laughing under the fading sunlight, carefree and bright and alive, reflected perfectly in each other's joy like the river around them had become liquid gold itself.
<<<<<<>>>>>>
Jia's breath hitched as she snapped back from her flashback, her fingers quickly tightening on the windowsill. The dense forest outside loomed eerily familiar yet something was off.
"This… this is the same forest," she murmured, eyes scanning the trees in growing disbelief. "But as far as I remember, this villa was never here before." Standing properly, she said to herself in dazed.
"Wait—am I in Japan?!"
The realization punched through her chest.
"Had Jae remembered everything and had recognised me already? That's why he had brought me back to the forest of Japan where we accidentally first met?"
Her mind reeled, scrambling for answers—until a voice slithered through the dark, making her flinch a little.
"So you also remembered everything…and have already recognised me?"
Jia stood frozen, she didn't even turn around to face him. Her body seizing up with terror as Jae's footsteps stalked closer, like a hunter closing in on trembling prey. She held her breath, fingers clenching her dress like the last remaining lifeline. The air felt heavy, suffocating.
Then his hands seized her, strong arms encircling her waist with such suddenness that her knees instantly buckled. His chin settled over her shoulder.
"Have to be commended for your acting skills the way you pretended not to recognise me all this time ... .I really couldn't recognise whether it was your act or the truth."
His voice was a low murmur against her ear, thickly laced with some dark, possessive hunger only he could arouse as his hands tightened, pulling her flush against him, a steel trap. Face nuzzling her neck, he inhaled her scent like some primal animal, making her skin prickle with goosebumps.
"...Tell me, my little slave," he whispered, his lips brushing her earlobe. "When exactly, what day, what time, did you recognize me?"
Not a single word was coming out of her mouth as her voice was stuck in her throat due to his touch.
But his grip turned crushing, the pressure just shy of pain, an unspoken threat coiled in every tensed muscle. "I—don't repeat myself."
The suffocating hold forced a gasp from her lips as at last she opened her mouth to speak.
"When I came to my senses after two days of unconsciousness. I was first trying to find those papers, because of which I became your slave. While searching I stopped in front of a huge room door which was locked from outside, so I went to your room to find the key of that lock—and fortunately I was able to find the key in your room, so I hurriedly went to that room again thinking that those papers would be there—but what I saw in that room was unexpected to me….."
A beat of pause.
"The whole room was filled with big framed photographs, some were hanging on the walls and some were kept on the floor below, among them there were some unknown faces to me and….some recognized ones like Daniel and Jackson, there I saw your childhood photographs where I first recognized you that you are the Cure and after getting you back after so long, i forgot everything, and at that time just wanted to be with you…..But now i realised…"
She suddenly paused, giving a strange long silence to the room.
"Continue," His deep husky commanding voice filled the silence of the room. "What did you realise now?"
She suddenly jerked him, releasing herself from his grip which loosened a little before turning around and maintaining a distance between them. A devilish smirk plastered on his face when her eyes met his.
Daring eye contact with his dark pair of eyes, she started speaking again. "I always wondered why you are named Venom, now I have realised why. Because you're filled with so much poison that can kill anyone, a poison that probably wasn't there before ... .that—that you were my Cure who could heal but now you have become Venom who can only kill."
She paused, tears gathered in her eyes.
"I Love You a lot…..I can't see the person I love torturing me and killing people in front of my eyes. What happened to you, Cure??" Her voice was desperate. "Have you... always been like this? Or—or has something happened?"
Her words hung heavy in the air, thick with raw emotion and for some moment, he stayed quiet, staring at her with an unreadable expression. Tears glimmered like glass shards in her eyes as she waited for... some reaction.
Suddenly in one swift, predatory motion, he slammed her back against the nearest wall, his arms trapping her like steel bars. Her palms flattened against his chest in a feeble attempt to push him away, but it was futile. The heat of his breath mingled with hers as he loomed dangerously close, their faces mere inches apart.
The moment his familiar scent, dark and intoxicating hit her senses, an electric current shot through her veins. His proximity alone was enough to send tremors down her spine.
With one hand gripping her chin possessively, he tilted her face up toward his smirking lips before dragging the pad of his thumb along the delicate curve of her mouth, slow... deliberate... mocking.
"So," he murmured. "Do you really love me? Should I take this as your confession?"
She was silent.
In a swift motion, his fingers clamped around her jaw like a vice, tilting her face up with brutal precision until their lips hovered mere breaths apart.
She didn't dare move, hands fisted in his shirt like crumpled parchment, knuckles white with tension. The sheer nearness of him paralyzed her, heart pounding so violently.
Then came that smirk, dark, twisted as Jae drank in the fear glistening in her tear-brimmed eyes. For one agonizing second, the world narrowed to just his breath mingling with hers…
…Before he wrenched away without warning.
The sudden cold hit like a blade as he stormed out of the room, leaving only the howl of wind through empty darkness behind him. She remained frozen against the wall where he'd pinned her with her mix of tangled and painful emotions. The ghost of his touch lingered on her skin, shivers wracked through from more than just chill now, raw and shuddering as memory replayed those last seconds on loop.
His smirk, the almost-kiss, the cruelty in how easily he walked away.
And all she could do was stand there...
●◇◇◇◇◇◇●
At midnight.
The door slightly opened when he stepped inside the room, holding some papers without making any single sound.
Through a huge one-way mirror glass window, the moonlight was directly pouring on her beautiful face while his dark orbs sparked with amusement at the gorgeous sight of her sleeping figure in front of him.
He dragged a chair, placed it next to the bed and sat on it with his legs spread. His one arm was placed on the armrest while another one was holding papers. Sleeves were folded upwards, his first three buttons of his white shirt were open. His light brown hair was messily covering his forehead through which his eyes were stuck on her figure.
Her brows knitted as she came out of her deep slumber long ago feeling changed the atmosphere of the room. She adjusted on the bed, suddenly feeling restless.
However, feeling someone's presence, she slowly opened her eyes but they widened in double size as a gasp escaped from her mouth when she saw him sitting right in front of her. Her heart skipped when her eyes met his dark pair of eyes. She quickly sat on the bed before dragging herself backward, trying to go away from him as much as possible.
"Why—why are you here?" Her voice trembled, as she scrambled back.
But before she could retreat further, he moved….fast. In one fluid motion, he was on the bed, his grip like steel as he dragged her back beneath him with a force that stole the air from her lungs. A sharp gasp escaped her lips as he pinned her effortlessly against the mattress.
His voice was a dark purr next to her ear, low and mocking. "Did you forget already, my little slave? I'm your master." His fingers tightened around both of her wrists in an unyielding hold above her head while his other hand traced along the curve of her cheek almost tenderly. "I go where I want... when I want."
Frustration and anger flashed in her eyes as she bucked weakly against his hold, fruitlessly thrashing in his grip. "H-Let me go!"
But he just chuckled, a deep, predatory sound that sent a shiver down her spine. His voice was a lethal hiss against her ear. "I don't plan to ever let you go."
Before she could process the weight of those words, he withdrew from the bed, leaving her shivered as the sudden chill hit her skin. He picked up the papers from the chair and moved towards her.
"Sign them." He grabbed her wrist as he forced her upright, thrusting the papers and pen into her hands with chilling precision. Then he leaned back in the chair, legs splayed, arms crossed. Watching. Waiting.
Her fingers trembled as she scanned the document, confusion twisting into shockness when realization struck. A marriage certificate.
Jae's signature already slashed across the page in arrogant ink... and Daniel Valente's name stamped beneath it as witness.
Rage burned through her veins like wildfire. She hurled the papers to the floor with a furious snarl before whirling on him and yelling at him.
"You don't get to decide this alone! How dare you think of marrying me when all you want is to ruin me for no reason? When you don't even love me—"
She was about to stand up, but his hand shot out, iron fingers clamping around her jaw and yanked her back down onto the bed. Her head hit the pillow harshly.
His face hovered inches from hers, breath hot against her lips as he growled low in his throat, "What happened now, huh? Earlier, you were desperate for having s€x with me... but now? The second I mention marriage, suddenly I'm wrong? You love me, don't you? So why resist this?"
Every word dripped with dangerous intent as he stared into those wide honey eyes... daring her to lie.
Her jaw ached in his grip but she refused to look away as she hissed her response, voice trembling with anger. "That doesn't mean, you will force me to do things to which I do not agree."
"You have to be mine completely. To show the world whom you belong to ... .so no one can even think of you without being terrified of my name. Remember that you are my slave who lives in this venom's cage and this is my order which you must have to obey like a good puppet."
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