What Did You Say? I'm Listening

Pain, dizziness, nausea—this was Jeremy's condition after taking a punch from Jino.

The young man lay sprawled on the ground.

His shirt was stained red with blood.

His cheeks were swollen, and his brain felt as though it had been filled with lead. Blood trickled from his nose and mouth. Fighting back the nausea, Jeremy painfully forced open his concussion-reddened eyes. "It's you!"

He stared at the expressionless Jino. With his arms crossed, the other man looked down at Jeremy from above.

"This is impossible!" Jeremy clutched his forehead and glared at Jino.

That punch just now was not something an ordinary person could possibly deliver.

After waking up, Jeremy had examined his own body. The Electrical Power he had awakened had greatly strengthened him; even ordinary bullets might not be able to penetrate his skin.

Yet Jino had knocked out several of his teeth with a single punch.

Eliminate every possibility, and the one remaining was the truth.

The other man had awakened an ability too!

"What? You look surprised." Jino sneered. "Did awakening an ability make you start having ridiculous thoughts like, 'I'm the chosen one'?"

Jino's gaze was mocking. "Unfortunately, reality is that I'm far stronger than you."

Jino's words successfully shattered Jeremy's composure. The man's pale face flushed red, then darkened slightly. He was clearly furious.

"Shut up!" he roared, raising both arms and unleashing the electricity he had been gathering.

Crackle!

The thick currents were like roaring thunder dragons, each as thick as an adult's arm. Carrying violent power, they slammed into Jino.

"Hahaha!" Watching Jino's figure vanish beneath the currents, Jeremy's eyes gleamed with manic delight. "Idiot, do you think I was arguing with you? I was only buying time for myself!"

"This is the gap between us—an absolute crushing difference in intelligence!"

Jeremy's face twisted as he gritted his teeth and roared, "Die! Your brother will be joining you in hell soon enough!"

Jeremy increased his electrical output once more.

Certain that victory was already his, Jeremy became utterly unrestrained.

Just as he was venting his emotions to his heart's content, a voice drifted faintly from within the currents. "Jeremy, you can't start popping champagne at halftime."

"What?" Jeremy froze, and the lightning in his hands gradually faded. "How could you—"

"Why didn't you dodge?!"

As the smoke dispersed, the Blonde Young Man stood where he had been, completely unharmed. The only pity was that his custom-made white shirt had been reduced to tattered scraps.

"Did I need to dodge?" Jino asked flatly.

"You think it was an intelligence gap?" Jino patted out the flames on his shirt and raised an eyebrow. "In reality, your attack posed no threat to me at all."

As he spoke, Jino walked toward Jeremy at an unhurried pace.

He truly had no idea where Jeremy's confidence came from. Perhaps that punch had damaged Jeremy's brain.

"Do you know?" Jino said calmly, as composed as a cat playing with a mouse. "Originally, I planned to spare your life and take you back with me. But now..."

As his words fell, Jino instantly became an afterimage and appeared right in front of Jeremy before he could react.

Slap!

A hand like forged steel mercilessly clamped around Jeremy's throat. Azure eyes devoid of emotion stared into Jeremy's pale face.

"I will never allow anyone to threaten my family."

"So you should just die!"

With that, Jino raised his other fist and swung it down fiercely.

Bang!

His arm tensed, and terrifying force tore through the air, kicking up wave after wave of pressure. The violent punch, carrying a fierce gust, smashed hard into Jeremy's left cheek.

Crack! The fist easily shattered bone.

A crisp sound of breaking bones rang out. Jeremy's gaunt cheek swelled at a visible rate, while several broken teeth mixed with blood fell from his mouth.

Jino's punch worsened Jeremy's concussion. The young man felt as though he could see three Kilos smiling at him.

A buzzing noise filled his ears.

"Urgh..." Jeremy let out a meaningless groan.

Jino's expression did not change as he raised his fist again. Watching it slowly rise, Jeremy trembled inwardly. If another punch came, he would die!

Suppressing his nausea, Jeremy struggled to speak. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Please, spare me."

Under the threat of death, Jeremy, who had been so arrogant and defiant, immediately caved.

"I'm willing to work for you!"

He did not want to die beneath Jino's fist. A fawning smile appeared on Jeremy's face. "Jino, you were right. The strong should humiliate the weak. I'm weak."

"Heh." Seeing Jeremy submit, Jino loosened his left hand slightly, allowing him to catch his breath.

Seeing Jino's ambiguous smile, Jeremy hurriedly pleaded again. "I'm worth more alive than dead!"

"I can control electricity, and I have Super Speed. I'm strong!"

Jino tilted his head and nodded in agreement. "You're right. Alive is better than dead."

Seeing Jino's attitude soften, Jeremy sighed in relief and smiled. "Exactly. Everything before was a misunderstanding. I'm deeply sorry."

"But."

Jino tilted his head and curled his lips slightly. "I don't need you alive."

"Why didn't you apologize when you attacked my brother?"

"Apologizing now is too late."

Jino stared coldly into Jeremy's eyes, which were filled with cowardice.

Jino sneered. "If not for the Luthor Family's support, you would have died long ago, euthanized because you couldn't pay your medical bills."

America's healthcare system was nothing like the cheap and affordable system advertised to the public. On the contrary, in America, only the rich could afford to get sick. The poor could only swallow painkillers to numb themselves.

"So..." Jino drawled, "a dead Jeremy is the best Jeremy."

As his words fell, Jino casually raised his fist.

"What?!" Jeremy's face changed drastically. The joy on his face was instantly replaced by rage and hatred. His features twisted as he roared, "Fuck! You demon, I curse you—"

Jeremy was incomparably furious. The other man had been playing with him! He had intended to kill him from the beginning.

Bang!

Before Jeremy could finish, an iron fist even more terrifying than before slammed into his head.

His hard skull shattered instantly beneath the iron fist, as though it were soft tofu.

Blood splattered across Jino's face, making his expression appear even darker and more terrifying.

White matter mixed with skull fragments scattered across the ground. Only the headless corpse continued to convulse wildly, bearing witness to the unwillingness in its owner's heart before death.

"Sorry, what did you say?" Jino held the headless corpse in one hand while cupping his other hand to his ear.

No one answered. Jino shrugged regretfully. "Remember in your next life not to threaten other people's families so casually. They might not have such a good temper as I do."

Yes, the kind of good temper that blew people's heads apart.