Chapter Twenty Nine
"Loaine?!"
Elena’s breathing picked up pace as she placed her trembling hands over her gaping mouth. "Your surname is Loaine?! You’re the son of the second most powerful noble family in Mainland?!"
Outside, the man kept slamming his fist against the window. "Ren Loaine! Open the door!"
’It seems like the man outside does know something about the original owner.’ Ren’s grip tightened on the steering wheel. His lips curved down. ’However, there was no information about the surname being Loaine in the fragmented memories of the original owner or this guy. I cannot fully trust him or his words.’
"Do you have a gun?"
Ren’s sudden question made Elena’s eyes flutter at twice their normal speed. "What do you need a gun for?"
"Do you have it or not?" Ren stared at Elena with the same cold eyes her father had when killing monsters and people.
Elena, however, was frozen in time, staring at Ren like she didn’t recognize him anymore. Her chest rose and fell too fast at the new information she had just received.
"Elena, I asked you something."
Elena’s mouth opened and closed. The question was so out of place that it left her thoughts tangled.
"I—my father," Elena stammered. "The car. There’s one in the cabinet. For emergencies."
"Get it."
Elena didn’t move. Her hands stayed pressed to her mouth. The man outside threw his shoulder against the door as the whole frame shuddered.
"Do I have to repeat everything, Elena?" Ren’s voice was low and firm. "Now."
That snapped Elena out of her thoughts as she fumbled under the dashboard, found the hidden latch and pulled out a compact pistol. Her fingers shook as she handed it to Ren.
Their eyes met for half a second before Ren took it. He checked it once before opening the door.
"Ren, what are you–"
BAM! BAM!
Two shots rang in the afternoon air as a cool gentle breeze ruffled Ren’s hair as if he just hadn’t shot a person, begging for help in broad daylight.
"Ren!" Elena screamed as she opened her side of the door, rushing to see the man, who was grumbling now on the floor, clenching his right leg with his left hand. "What did you do?! Are you crazy? He needed help!"
"Stop screaming. You’ll attract people." Ren hissed.
"I—" Elena’s voice cracked, her wide eyes darting between Ren and the writhing man on the ground. Blood seeped through the stranger’s sleeve and pant leg, staining the gray pavement. "How could you shoot him, Ren?"
Ren sighed as he fully stepped out of the car, the pistol still loose in his grip. He didn’t look at the man groaning at his feet. Instead, he scanned the empty parking lot that was reserved for V.I.P before crouching down near the injured man.
"He said he needed help," Elena continued, her voice pitching higher. "And you shot him without asking a single question?"
"How do you know he’s not armed? How do you know he didn’t have an intention to hurt us? Are you god? And, I didn’t shoot him with the intention of killing him," Ren finished, his voice flat.
"What?"
"Right leg and hand. He won’t be able to pull out any tricks and won’t die if we get him to hospital within the next half an hour. The nearest hospital is just ten minutes away."
"... Crazy."
"It’s called self-awareness." Ren didn’t flinch at her judgment. He had killed enough men during his secret service in the military. A judgemental look from a little girl didn’t mean anything to him in front of his safety and hers.
Ren reached out with his free hand and grabbed the man’s collar, hauling him upward just enough to look into his glazed, pain-filled eyes.
"Now," Ren said, his voice dropping to a temperature that felt lower than the air conditioning in the car. "Speak. The faster you can explain the situation to me. The higher are the chances of you surviving."
"Haah...," The man heaved in pain before his lips curved into a smile. "Who would have thought the adopted Young Master of the Loaine Family, who couldn’t kill an ant would grow so cold. Betrayal truly brings wonderful changes to a man."
’So, the original owner’s name really is Ren Loaine... Not Ren Esper.’ Ren’s lips pressed into a thin line before he pulled the man by his collar even closer. "Who are you? Do I know you?"
"No. You- Ugh!" The man coughed as a huge stream of blood left his mouth, staining the gravel of the streets before continuing in a weaker voice than before. "Y-You don’t know me. I’m a Shadow Slave of the Loaine Family.
Y-years ago, my boss who was also a Shadow Slave betrayed Young Master Loaine by faking your grandmother’s death and manipulating her cremation at the hospital. The ashes you received by the hospital upon reaching were never hers."
An unknown chest pain rose in Ren’s chest as unrealised tears rolled down his cheeks, despite his soul feeling no sense of loss or gain. ’Could it be these are the original owner’s feelings?’
’Ugh... With only fragments of Ren’s memories, it’s hard to decide whether this is Xen’s plan to kill me or the truth. Still, it’s related to Ren’s grandmother, even if I don’t know the full truth of what happened then, I cannot ignore it.’ Ren’s free hand clenched into a tight fist as he let out a huge breath. "Where is your boss? If I find out you’re lying, I’ll send you and your boss personally to hell."
"I’m... I’m not lying. He’s on the coast of the Zenia Sea. The venue for this year’s Hunter’s Crystal Test. Young Master Loaine found out about his betrayal and decided that he and his S-Rank Hunter Body will be a reward for the highest ranking hunter this year.
The person who wins this year will decide if my boss will live as a slave or die and be refined into a pill. You have to save him, Ren Loaine. That is if you want to see your grandmother again. Only my boss knows where she is now. You have to help him, Ren."
The man clutched his right leg tighter with his left hand as he finished explaining. He groaned again as his assassin’s tolerance for pain was finally starting to give up.
Without wasting another moment, Ren picked up the guy in his arms and hauled him into the backseat, ignoring his groans. Blood smeared the leather as the man twisted and turned, destroying the seat.
"Elena, drive him to the hospital. Make sure he’s fine."
"What? Ren, you’re not coming?" Elena’s eyebrows scrunched in confusion as she stared at Ren’s heaving figure.
"I have to save his boss and find my grandma." Ren explained as he shut the backdoor.
Elena didn’t bother with any more questions as she sighed before nodding and quickly got inside her car, turning the engine on and pulling the car from the parking lot and speeding away as the image of Ren decreased until it finally disappeared from her gaze.
’Can you really survive against the Loaine Family, Ren Esper?’
Meanwhile, Ren stood alone in the empty lot, watching the taillights disappear. The pistol hung cold in his hand as the blue screen fluttered into existence.
[First Mission: Time To Stream, Baby!]