Rain merged into an endless gray curtain, shrouding the entire world in chaotic clamor.
That terrified scream was swallowed by the pounding rain, not even disturbing the two Hounds curled up in their kennel.
That night, the Harrington family mansion was like a forgotten island. The motion sensors, thermal imaging surveillance, and ubiquitous cameras they had once been so proud of had all gone dark under the double assault of lightning and flooding.
Even the ones that stubbornly continued working lasted no more than an hour or two before falling silent as their batteries ran out.
The Harrington family's bodyguards actually lived in a small building nearby, forming two flanking points with the building where the housekeepers, gardeners, and other staff lived, guarding the central main house.
After the first thunderclap rolled overhead, the bodyguards had all gotten up and dressed. Some guarded the entrances and exits of the estate, some patrolled through the rain, while others stood ready for a summons from the main house.
Yet throughout the entire night, neither their radios nor their call bells ever sounded.
"They must all be asleep." The head bodyguard did not grow suspicious in the slightest, merely saying with certainty, "Mr. Harrington's sleep quality is truly enviable."
The wavering beam of a flashlight swept over the balcony windows, but in rain like this, the bodyguards could not even make out what was three meters away. The patrols served only as a deterrent.
Beyond the spacious balcony lay the study of the mansion's owner—Richard Harrington.
Light pierced the rain curtain and swept across the pitch-black window. Viktor glanced up at it and sneered.
"How interesting... These wealthy humans impose all sorts of harsh rules on their own kind, yet in the end, those rules become ropes around their own necks."
If