Annihilation

Chapter 25: Annihilation

After hearing that, Vodka asked in confusion, "Big Brother, if you knew they deliberately lured us here, why did we come?"

Gin sneered. "I wanted to see where they were leading us. If they had any accomplices, we could wipe them all out at once. Since they dared to oppose the Organization, I'll pay my respects with their deaths. Come on, drive around that corner and take a look."

"Yes, Big Brother." Vodka started the car and slowly drove toward the corner.

At the corner, Vodka looked ahead. It was pitch-black, and he couldn't see a thing. "Big Brother, it's completely dark over there. I can't see anything, and I don't know where they've gone. What should we do now?"

"Drive in and use the headlights. I want to see what they're up to," Gin ordered.

"Okay, Big Brother." After backing up the car, Vodka shone the headlights ahead. A row of shipping containers stood on the ground; there was nothing else.

Vodka drove forward a short distance. Seeing that the area was surrounded by containers and there was no one in sight, he stopped the car. "Big Brother, what should we do? I can't see that brat anywhere. Could he have already run off?"

"Run off? No. They must be here. Get out. We'll search on foot." Gin gave a cold snort and reached for the car door.

Whoosh! A flying object hurtled toward the front of the car from the right. Seeing it coming, Gin and Vodka hurriedly covered their heads and ducked as low as they could.

With a deafening bang, the object smashed through the windshield. Its tremendous force carried it into the car, where it bounced up, slammed hard into the roof, and finally dropped inside. They took a look. It was a soccer ball.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Two more objects flew toward the car, one after the other.

Thud! Thud! Realizing they were soccer balls, Vodka raised the gun he'd already drawn and fired twice at the incoming balls. After the shots rang out, the balls deflated and fell. Gin, who had been taking cover behind him, quickly opened the car door and fired toward where the balls had come from.

"Vodka, be careful. They aren't bullets, but those soccer balls are powerful enough to knock us unconscious."

"Yes, Big Brother." Before Vodka could do anything else, two more soccer balls shot at them from another direction, one after the other. After shooting them down, he said to Gin, "Big Brother, this can't go on. We don't have many bullets left, and we don't know how many soccer balls they've prepared. If we run out of bullets, we'll be in trouble."

"Hmph. We'll drive out first, then contact the Organization. Once they arrive, we'll wipe them all out. Let's see how they escape." Gin glared furiously ahead, then quickly got into the Porsche.

"Okay, Big Brother." Vodka started the engine and drove away.

They hadn't gone far when a large truck slammed into them from behind. Seeing it coming, Vodka hurriedly shifted gears, floored the accelerator, and sped forward.

Whoosh! They'd barely moved a few steps when another soccer ball flew toward them from ahead. Gin, in the back seat, shot it down, then yelled at Vodka, "Ignore it! Just floor it! I'll shoot down the balls. You focus on driving!"

Vodka didn't respond. He just concentrated on driving. This was the most humiliating operation he'd ever been on. He hadn't even seen the enemy, yet they'd already forced him to flee in every direction. It was unforgivable. He'd put everything he had into driving and show those enemies what he could do.

The large truck behind them kept close on their heels. Gin knew that with shipping containers on both sides and no other way out, if their car got hit, it would be extremely difficult to survive. As they drove, he kept shooting down soccer balls that came from who knew where. They were running low on bullets. If he didn't come up with a solution soon, he and Vodka would die here. They'd truly been sunk by their own overconfidence.

"Big Brother, there's a bend up ahead. That big truck's too long to make it through. We can finally lose the beast behind us." Vodka spotted the bend, and a flicker of excitement crossed his eyes.

Gin glanced at it. For some reason, he felt something was wrong with that place, but in the rush of the moment, he couldn't figure out what. Seeing the truck still in hot pursuit, he had no choice but to shake it off first. Once they lost it, they'd have plenty of chances to get revenge.

They drove around the bend, and nothing happened. Seeing there was no ambush, Gin thought that perhaps he'd been overthinking it. Still, a shadow of unease lingered in his mind.

"Big Brother, the road ahead is blocked. We're trapped." Something blocked the road ahead. Vodka was just about to back up when the large truck behind them blocked the bend, surrounding them. Even he could figure out now that they'd fallen into someone else's trap.

"Looks like we might not make it out of this one, Vodka. I never thought we'd be sunk in a place like this. If those guys find out, they'll laugh themselves to death." Gin gave a bitter smile. He'd been through every kind of situation, yet this time, he hadn't even seen the enemy—or learned how many of them there were—before losing. It was a complete failure.

Hearing this, Vodka said fiercely, "Big Brother, even if we're going to die, we'll take someone down with us. Let's get out and fight them!"

Gin ignored him and instead shouted to the people around them, "I admit defeat this time. I want to know who pushed us into this corner. Was it really just that high school detective?"

In his eyes, that clever little brat might be good at solving cases, but coming up with a scheme like this seemed beyond him.

Lin Maoxian sat in the driver's seat of the large truck and picked up a loudspeaker. "Since you put it that way, I'll let you die knowing the truth. Ask whatever you want. As for that high school detective, he doesn't exist. We just happened to learn that you'd killed him, so we borrowed his identity."

As he spoke, Gin quickly dialed a number on his phone. Then he shouted, "I knew it wasn't that brat. I want to know who you people are and why you're opposing our Organization. You should know that our Organization isn't to be trifled with. Anyone who crosses us won't come to a good end." As he spoke, he also pressed the phone's speaker button.

Lin Maoxian thought for a moment, then continued making things up through the loudspeaker. "Of course I know you're part of a large multinational organization whose members like to wear black. But we're not to be trifled with either. My organization is also a large multinational organization, and we're every bit as powerful as yours. What do I have to fear?"

Gin quietly spoke into the phone. "Vermouth, Vodka and I are going to die here. I'll do my best to get information about their organization. Pass whatever we learn to the Boss, understand?"

There was a pause on the other end before she replied, "Gin, don't worry. We'll avenge you and Vodka. Rest in peace, both of you." She said the words, but there was no hint of sorrow in her voice.

"Good. I'll keep probing them now. Listen carefully." Gin didn't care about the tone of her voice. After saying that, he shouted to the people around him, "If you know how powerful our Organization is, and you're no weaker than us, why oppose us and make an enemy of your own organization for no reason?"

"'APTX4869' is very interested in the drug your organization developed. If you tell us about it, I'll consider letting you go. What do you think? We don't have a grudge against you, after all, and we don't want to offend you too much."

Gin sneered. "APTX4869. If you know about this drug, you should know how valuable it is. We don't even know the details ourselves, but even if we did, we wouldn't reveal them. The Organization deals harshly with traitors. What they do to you is worse than death. Do you really think I'd talk?"

"I didn't think you would. I was just asking. If you can tell us, great. If not, I've got nothing to lose. So why not ask?" As soon as Lin Maoxian heard Gin's answer, he realized that APTX4869 wasn't just a drug for killing people. It must have some even more valuable purpose, so he'd asked in the hope of learning more. But just as he'd expected, people raised by an organization like this wouldn't betray it so easily. He'd only been doing what he could.

"Hmph. Tell me your name. I want to know who's killing me." Realizing he wouldn't get any more answers, Gin wanted to know who had outsmarted him. Once the Organization knew the name, they would avenge him.

Lin Maoxian pulled out his gun and fired at the plastic barrels beside their car. Boom! Boom! Explosions rang out one after another. He'd placed a whole lot of gasoline over there. It would blow the two of them to pieces—and even two hundred people would be blasted into the air.

After the first explosion, he spoke into the loudspeaker. "I won't tell you my name. My life's goal is to become the Adventure King, so my codename is Adventure King. Just know that the Adventure King sent you to hell."

"Adventure King! The Organization won't let you get away with this! I'll be waiting for you down there..." Gin let out an unwilling roar. Before he could do anything else, a massive fireball engulfed him, and his consciousness sank into eternal darkness.