Afraid of Death?

When the building manager finished notifying this floor and was about to head to the third floor, Meng Zu struck and knocked him unconscious. After putting on a skin mask and taking off the man's coat to wear it, Meng Zu became the spitting image of the apartment manager.

Meng Zu took a deep breath and calmed himself. As a top-tier assassin, Leon's sense of danger was far from weak. If Meng Zu gave off any killing intent, Leon would notice it even through a door. Once he had adjusted his state, he headed toward Leon's room.

Just as he reached the door, it opened. Meng Zu saw Leon wearing a black trench coat and round sunglasses, carrying a suitcase in his left hand and a violin case in his right. Beside him, Matilda also wore round sunglasses. She had on a green bomber jacket over a black lace-up top, hot pants below, a paper bag tucked under her left arm, and a potted plant in her right hand.

The sight of their outfits instantly stirred up Meng Zu's distant memories. Weren't these two the male and female leads from Léon: The Professional? No wonder Leon's file had seemed so familiar when he saw it yesterday.

(PS: The protagonist only awakened his memories of his past life at the age of twenty-four. In that life, he had been an ordinary person. Too much time had passed since he watched those old movies, so he could only remember the general plot and had long forgotten the details. For example, if you didn't go rewatch the old Spider-Man 2 now, could you still remember its detailed plot?)

Seeing the manager return, Leon asked, "Is there anything else?"

Meng Zu snapped back to his senses. Just as he took the opportunity to step forward, Leon suddenly released the violin case in his right hand. A pistol slid from his sleeve into his palm. Meng Zu instantly stepped forward, clamped down on Leon's right hand with his left, and produced a pistol in his own right hand, pressing it against Leon's stomach.

Matilda jumped at the sudden change. Once she recovered, she pretended to be frightened, panic written all over her face. She hurriedly shifted the paper bag in her left arm up to her chest, while her left hand took the chance to slip inside her jacket for the pistol she had hidden earlier.

Naturally, Matilda's little movement could not escape Meng Zu's notice. Matilda heard him say, "Don't make any small moves. Kids shouldn't play with guns, or I'll put a bullet through his stomach."

Hearing that, Matilda immediately understood that Meng Zu had noticed her movement. She could only withdraw her hand from the gun. Leon tried to break free of Meng Zu's left hand, but found it was like an iron clamp. No matter how hard he struggled, Meng Zu's grip did not loosen in the slightest. Leon could only give up. Since the other man had not killed him immediately, he likely had something to ask. Leon needed an opportunity.

Leon looked at Meng Zu and asked, "What do you want?"

Meng Zu took the gun from Leon's right hand and gestured toward the room. "Let's talk inside."

Meng Zu aimed one gun at Leon and the other at Matilda. After the two backed away step by step to make room, Meng Zu advanced two steps and hooked the door shut with his foot. "Put everything you're holding down slowly."

The two followed Meng Zu's instructions and slowly set down what they were carrying. Meng Zu looked at Leon and praised him, "Your reaction was pretty good. You spotted the flaw before I even said anything. As expected of a top-tier assassin."

Although Leon kept up his expressionless persona behind his sunglasses, he could not help rolling his eyes at Meng Zu inwardly. His pants and shoes were completely different from before. Such an obvious flaw was impossible to miss unless someone was blind.

Seeing Leon remain silent, Meng Zu said to both of them, "Put down all the guns you have on you. Don't try anything. I can definitely deal with you before you get a shot off."

Leon was the first to pull out the two guns hidden on him and throw them onto the floor. When his hand had reached for his gun, he had considered drawing it and killing Meng Zu outright. But the moment he moved, he felt the threat of death. That made Leon realize the other man was not joking, so he obediently took out his guns and threw them down.

Seeing Leon do so, Matilda followed suit and threw the pistol hidden on her onto the floor.

Leon could tell that Meng Zu had not come to kill them. He nudged the suitcase at his feet and said, "If you want money, there's money in the case."

After learning who these two were, Meng Zu had already given up on killing Leon. He had quite liked these two after watching Léon: The Professional. Leon's death in the movie had left many people regretful, and Meng Zu planned to make up for the regret he had felt back then. Still, even if he was not going to kill Leon, he could have a little fun with him.

Meng Zu looked at Leon coldly. "Sorry, I'm not here for money. Leon, an Italian top professional assassin. You never deal with outsiders except your handler, a lone wolf. I didn't expect you to have a little girl following you around now. No wonder it was so easy to find you. All right, enough nonsense. I accepted a bounty to kill you."

As he spoke, Meng Zu pressed the muzzle of the gun in his left hand against Leon's forehead. Then he turned to Matilda and said, "Little girl, could you go to the bathroom first? What happens next isn't something a child your age should see."

Matilda pleaded with Meng Zu, "No, don't kill him!"

Meng Zu frowned and pretended to be troubled. "That makes this difficult. Is she your illegitimate daughter?"

Leon removed his sunglasses and looked at Meng Zu. "She isn't my daughter. She has nothing to do with me. Since the bounty is only for my death, I'm willing to give you all my money. Please let her go."

Meng Zu looked at Leon in confusion. "Why not use the money to save your own life? Aren't you afraid of death?"

Leon replied evenly, "If I'm afraid of death, will you not kill me?"

Meng Zu paused before answering, "Of course... not."

"Fine, I accept your offer. Where's your money?"

Leon answered without hesitation, "There's a bank card in the hidden compartment of the suitcase. The password is XXXXXX."

Meng Zu studied Leon curiously. "You're telling me that just like that? Aren't you afraid I'll deceive you?"

Leon looked at Meng Zu with a serious expression. "I'm willing to take a gamble. Besides, you don't seem like someone who breaks his word."

"Good eye. Then goodbye!" Meng Zu said, pulling the trigger.

"No!" Ignoring the gun pointed at her, Matilda shouted and lunged at Meng Zu.

But instead of a bang, the pistol only gave a click. Meng Zu used his right hand to press against Matilda's head, stopping her charge.

Meng Zu removed the gun from Leon's forehead and said to the somewhat bewildered Leon, "I was just messing with you. I wasn't planning to kill you."

Meng Zu put away his gun. Looking at Matilda clinging tightly to Leon's arm, he said, "That cop won't let you go. It won't be easy if you want to deal with him. You'd better put up a bounty at the Continental Hotel. That'll make it much easier to take care of him. You know where the New York Continental Hotel is, right?"

The sudden turn of events left Leon somewhat stunned. Not knowing what to say, he nodded and asked, "Who exactly are you? How do you know about this?"

"Me? Just an assassin. All right, you'd better relocate first. Having a little girl with you makes it easy for people to track you down. Goodbye." Meng Zu smiled at the two of them, pulled open the door, and left.

Inside the room, Leon and Matilda stared at each other in bewilderment.

What the hell was that guy's deal? X2

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