A vivid line of blood stretched across the sky like a crimson ribbon, reflecting rippling light from the lamps outside the window and filling Vico's dazed vision as he clutched a handgun and curled beneath the bed.
Beneath that long crimson ribbon, above the broad Off-Road Motorcycle, under the shining lights, the man in the bloodstained jacket sheathed his bloody blade. Like a god or demon charging forth from the light, he lowered his head and looked at him.
The motorcycle's front dipped, and the man's body lowered with it as he reached out a hand to him.
At that moment, Vico's mind went completely blank, but he still instinctively raised his hand and reached for the outstretched one.
But his body was curled under the bed, and his arm was not long enough. He was still just short of the hand reaching toward him.
Yet just as he thought his hand would brush past that outstretched palm, the figure reaching for him shifted slightly to the side, lowered himself further, and grabbed his hand.
With a tremendous upward pull, Vico felt as though invisible threads had caught hold of his body and yanked him into the air, dropping him onto the motorcycle's back seat.
Bang--
A dull sound seemed to echo through the air. It was the sound of the butler's head hitting the ground.
But Vico had no time to consider where that sound had come from. Before he could react, a low voice asked from ahead, "Got a gun?"
Vico hurriedly fumbled through his pockets, then suddenly realized he had been holding a small handgun all along. He quickly handed it over.
He Ao took the handgun and gave it a glance.
It was a KKG43 Handgun manufactured by the Ives Space System, one of the best-selling