That gun was his hidden card that was why he was never afraid, even if a grandmaster stood in front of him.

He had bought it through deep connections and it was extremely rare and completely banned across majority of the country.

If not for a trusted friend who told him about a traveling merchant secretly selling it, he would have never even known it existed.

Owning this gun was almost impossible, since it cost him a huge fortune. Yet at this moment, it felt like he had been scammed.

Because in front of that man, the gun truly felt like nothing more than a toy.

He had clearly heard about its piercing power, that the Shattercoil-7 was said to fire rounds that could pass through a Level IV ballistic shield, the kind that could stop even armor-piercing rifle bullets.

The ammunition alone was extremely expensive, so he had never tested it freely.

If he had, he might have realized earlier whether he had been scammed and would have hunted down that merchant without hesitation.

But he never understood the true reason since he was dead, and that it was not that the gun was fake.

It was that the opponent standing before him possessed a defense far greater than any ballistic shield.

In that sense, he had not been scammed at all. He had simply faced something beyond his understanding.

"Fuck it’s now or never," Klade shouted as he pulled out two grenades from his pockets.

Without any fear, he ran straight toward the masked man.

His eyes showed no hesitation, only madness. He already knew death was close and if he was going to die, then he would at least make it look cool.

The masked man watched him charge forward and let out a soft chuckle.

Through the slight movement of Klade’s clothes, he caught a glimpse of what was hidden underneath.

There were explosives strapped all over his body.

"You lot are really stubborn, do you think I am dumb?" the masked man chuckled a little and with the same attacked.

Klade only managed to take three steps before his life was taken.

Everything had happened so fast. From the moment the masked man appeared until now, it had not even been five minutes.

Three minutes would be more accurate, then on the far side Ron slowly peeked his head out and saw the bodies scattered everywhere.

In that instant, it felt as if all the blood inside his body had been drained away.

It was cruel, too cruel, slowly fear began to grip him so tightly that his breathing became unstable. Each breath felt heavy and loud in his ears.

He quickly covered his mouth with his hand, terrified that even the sound of his breathing might alert the masked man.

"You know hide and seek is one of my specialties..."

As his voice echoed in the air, the large rock hiding him suddenly exploded into tiny pieces. It shattered in an instant, pierced by a single small needle.

The thin needle floated right in front of his face and this sight terrified him so much that he fainted on the spot, losing control of his bladder as he collapsed.

"What a pathetic show from a man," he said coldly.

In less than a second, he appeared right in front of Ron, looking down at him with clear disappointment.

The levitating needle slowly aimed its sharp tip at Ron’s chest, but for a moment, it looked like it was about to strike, in the end it stopped.

"Hmm~, I almost forgot. I still need a subject for my experiment," the masked man said softly.

"I can’t believe I nearly wasted something so special." He shook his head in disappointment.

Instead of killing Ron, the single needle was pulled back. Then several more needles appeared in the air.

They moved smoothly and surrounded Ron’s body, as the thin metal pieces slid under him and lifted him up, holding him in place as he floated helplessly.

"For the man you serve ruined one of our businesses, I will make sure you do not have a good ending," he said in a calm and emotionless voice.

Then in the blink of an eye, the masked man vanished from the scene, taking Ron with him.

...

Back at school, Jeff felt lighter than usual. He was carefree, enjoying every moment with his friends and classmates.

He was playing a mobile game with Mark, Lester, and Andre. Their match was intense, and every second mattered.

The seat beside him was empty until someone gently tapped his shoulder.

Jeff glanced up slightly annoyed at first, but then he saw who it was it vanished, because that girl is Arianna.

"Yes...?" he said briefly before lowering his eyes back to his phone.

They were in the middle of a clash, and every move was important, so who cared if it’s Arianna right now.

"Can I sit here," Arianna asked.

"Sure," he replied not looking back at him.

Then he noticed that the enemy team was getting ready to retri the Lord, because its health bar was almost empty.

Jeff’s eyes stayed locked on the screen and then his fingers moved quickly as he prepared to contest it.

While he was focused, Arianna quietly stepped closer. She leaned in beside him, her head almost touching his shoulder as she watched him play.

She did not say a single word and Jeff’s senses noticed how close she was, but he thought she just wanted to watch the game.

So he ignored the distraction and focused fully on the clash and finally, at the perfect moment, he made his move.

[Team Allied has slain the Lord]

Jeff chuckled when he stole the Lord again for the fifth time, hiding perfectly inside the bush. His timing was clean and effortless.

Seeing him act so childish up close, Arianna could not help but giggle softly.

But Mark, Andre, and Lester were no longer focused on the game. Their eyes had shifted from the screen to what was happening beside Jeff.

The mood suddenly changed turning bad, unenjoyable and especially pretty sour.

"Nah, let’s just surrender," Andre said as he pressed the surrender button.

Mark and Lester followed right away when he initiated surrender.

Jeff who was already pushing mid lane with the Lord was shocked when a notification popped up.

Surrender vote: 4No surrender: 1

He froze in disbelief, staring at the screen as the match ended against his will.

[4/1]

"The heck? Why did you surrender?" Jeff said, slamming his phone lightly on the table.

Even though he held back, the sound was still loud enough to catch attention. If he had used real force, even the cement floor might not have handled it.

Or rather his phone would have been smashed to oblivion, but because of his training in the white room his control seems better now.

Andre just scoffed, "We lost focus okay?" he replied casually.

Inside he felt bitterness and resentment since they can do that later but why now?

"We were winning you idiot," Jeff shot back, clearly annoyed.

"And who is that other one who voted to surrender? What kind of noob does that?"

Just then, his phone made a notification sound, cutting through the tense silence.

[Defeat]

The word Defeat flashed across his screen and Jeff stared at it in disbelief.

His match history had been clean, which is full of victories. If that other player had not voted to surrender, it would have been three against two.

"What do you mean winning?" Andre scoffed.

"We’re here losing while you’re taking two wins by yourself."

"What do you mean two wins?" Jeff snapped, then he let out a breath.

"You know what, forget it. I’m not playing anymore."

He locked his phone and finally turned to Arianna, who was still right beside him.

"Oh yeah, why are you here?" he asked.

Arianna was sitting calmly, her elbow resting on the desk with her chin on her palm. She looked at him with a soft smile, clearly amused after watching him act so childish earlier.

"Nothing. I just want to sit here. Why? Is that not allowed?" she asked, slightly tilting her head and acting cute.

Her beauty almost blinded him. For a second, it felt like the sun itself was shining straight into his eyes - though of course, that was just an exaggeration.

"It’s allowed," Jeff replied casually.

He then turned back to Mark, Lester, and Andre. "One more match?"

The three of them glanced at each other. Since he had already said that he will not play anymore but now yet here he was, wanting to go a fireteam again.

"This idiot... just how dense can this guy be?" they cursed inwardly, not because of the game but towards the other game.

Meanwhile, Arianna just stayed beside him still smiling, clearly entertained by everything happening right in front of her.

After some time, they also seemed to understand that this sudden scene was strange and shocking, since it was the first time the class beauty Arianna, took the initiative to sit beside someone.

Especially since it was a guy. After exchanging signals with each other, the three of them decided to excuse themselves to give the two some space.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to buy something," Mark said.

"I’ll follow you. I want to buy something at the canteen," Lester added.

"Me as well. Damn I’m starving," Andre said while massaging his stomach.

Seeing them act strange all of a sudden made him narrow his eyes. Watching the three of them leave, Arianna only smiled slightly, knowing exactly what they were thinking.

She was neither embarrassed nor afraid of being misunderstood. After they left, only the two of them remained.

Jeff felt the air turn silent, and the atmosphere became very awkward.

Especially since he could not leave. If he did, it would only mean that he was avoiding Arianna while she was sitting there alone.

"So ahhh, how are you?" he asked.

"Just fine," she replied, her chin still resting on her palms as she looked up at him.

Jeff was sitting straight in his seat and after hearing her short reply, he began to wonder what to say next.

Because he really had no topic in mind after that.

Seeing how silent and awkward he became made Arianna chuckle inwardly. So she decided to take the lead in the conversation.

Arianna tilted her head and smiled, "Do you always look serious when you play, or is that just the way you have fun?"

Jeff blinked for a moment and let out a small laugh, "Perhaps I just hate losing. Especially when it is done on purpose, grrr~... hose three are going to get it."

He said it with a bit of vengeance, since that kind of trippings was a little over the top.

Arianna leaned closer and said, "Then next time, how about I cheer for you, so you stop getting so mad?" she said with a just a slight smile.

Seeing how close she was, and even catching her scent, which smelled really good, he took a slightly deeper breath than normal.

After hearing her teasing words, his face turned red and he coughed lightly.

"You do not have to do that, it’s is just a game and it’s not that serious."

Seeing that her teasing worked, Arianna laughed softly while covering her lips with one hand.

Even just by laughing, she looked elegant and Jeff knew deep inside that he had no chance with a girl like her.

She was sunny, beautiful, elegant, graceful, and smart.

She also came from a good background, the kind of man who could be with someone like her was probably from a rich and powerful family.

But why was he even thinking like this when he was only sixteen years old? Well technically, he had already lived until eighteen in his previous life, so maybe that was why.

In the end, the atmosphere between them slowly became more natural.

Jeff was no longer as awkward or closed off as before, showing how amazing her communication skill was.

With that, the two of them laughed together, talking freely as if they had known each other for a long time.

...

1st: Special thanks to ’Pat_funding👑’ – the GOAT of the month, for both the rewarding gifts and golden tickets! Much love, brotha!

2nd: Big thanks to ’The_Jonbergdahl👑 for the unwavering support since the very start of my journey and for the golden tickets and gifts!