The First Enemy (1)

"The first flaw is stupidity."

"Second is impulsiveness."

"Third is letting people know how obviously she cares for others, thus giving away her weaknesses."

"If a person like that can't be called dumb, then what? Brain-dead?"

Clarissa chuckled merrily as she conversed with the system. When the people around her noticed her good mood, they all turned to her with shocked and frightened faces as it was common knowledge among them that Clarissa was the most dangerous whenever she was like this. Seven out of ten chances, an innocent person would die. The people around her already lost count of the ways she employed to play those unlucky ones to death.

The laughing girl swept everyone an amused gaze before waving her right hand off, "Don't mind me. Continue."

She crossed her long legs and remained charmingly seated on a chair her people placed at the middle of a raised platform. She was in a 50 square meters room and a few steps below, there were twenty or so young girls and boys either crying or hurling insults toward her. These kneeling group had two things in common. First, their hands were bound behind them. A few struggling ones were roughly being held in place by the gangsters. Second, these young girls and boys were all good-looking and none of them were inferior to most young celebrities.

"Leader," the only business clad thirty-something-year-old woman standing nearest to Clarissa spoke up. "Two-thirds of this batch is sold to us by their parents to pay off their debts."

"Oh," Clarissa indifferently nodded, easily getting her assistant's meaning.

This pretty and enchanting girl was actually not just a student or a high-ranking official's woman. She was also a co-leader of a syndicate. Her real underlings were mostly illegal traders, loan sharks, drug dealers, and pimps. Right now, the people accompanying her today were those running her prostitution den.

As for the kneeling bunch, these girls and boys around her age were the new commodities exchanged by their parents or relatives to escape their debts. The rest were those either illegally trafficked or people who offended some rich brats or high-ranking officials.

Since they were now like this, they surely would have no more chance to a bright future.

Oh, well, they could blame fate, their blood-relatives, or her.

But who asked them to be unlucky, naive or lacking in defense against malicious intentions? Who asked them to be weak and easily cheated? Why did they have to let themselves experience setbacks first before learning how to scheme or fight back? Not at all the times would they be given chance to grow and toughen up. Fate was never kind and would never side with anyone.

Now, all of them would end up slaves to anyone that would buy their innocence and body. If they're lucky, maybe one of the patrons would take fancy on them, redeem them, and treasure them. Who could be sure, though? The chance they would remain commodities passed around by the customers here was actually much bigger.

As she thought of this, Clarissa was lazy to even shake her head.

She suddenly remembered that girl again.

If she was not mistaken, that girl's father was also a gambling addict. Her men said he disappeared like bubbles after leaving her daughter a million credits debt.

'That happened more than two months ago, no?'

She received her system's reply a second later.

<System: Two hundred points deducted. Yeah, and you're only one night late into making her pay off the debts in her father's stead. If that tycoon's meddling didn't happen, by now, your flesh business would have gained another star prostitute.>

This response made Clarissa involuntary click her tongue. 'A pity.'

'She luckily escaped from me once. And now, she's trying to go against me.'

Clarissa's eyes flashed with annoyance. But it also swiftly disappeared.

She faced Lydia, the business-attired woman, and said. "Are the invitations sent out? Have you informed our customers and partners about this?"

"Yes. And they're all attending tonight's gathering. The city mayor has reserved the prettiest. Three other businessmen also want some of the virgins."

"They know the price?" She asked with a naughty smile.

Her boring assistant merely nodded. Clarissa then turned to the noisy bunch below, eyeing one particular boy who was cursing at them the loudest. The angry look from that pretty youngster made her laugh. But not long after, she lost interest and proceeded to inspect the other goods.

She stood up and slowly walked towards one of the girls crying there. The said girl was really beautiful, although still two points inferior to Sofony. This one also looked older, probably 20 or 21. However, the girl was already the prettiest of the bunch.

She grabbed the girl's chin and forcibly made her face her. A few seconds then, she let go of the girl and told Lydia. "Give this one to that fatty."

Clarissa said a few more words to remind her people what they should do and then left for another appointment.

There were only a few hours left. Because of this, her syndicate members hurriedly did their work. They began drugging this group of girls and boys so that when the time comes, their customers would enjoy no opposition, only passionate acceptance.

The evening of the same Saturday, West Alina, in a three-story building that was still a normal restaurant an hour ago, two important-looking men sneaked in through a hidden door with one bodyguard each trailing behind them.

Their goal could no longer be more transparent.

The fatter of the two was politely escorted into a lavishly decorated and faintly perfumed room and was greeted by the sight of a scantily dressed beautiful girl lying invitingly on the red-curtained king sized bed. With eyes glazed with lust and desire, she shamefully begged the grinning fat stranger to impale her sacred place. Evidently, she was under the influence of the drugs because if she was in her right mind, she would have never thought of doing this.

The mayor was too horny to care though. All he knew was that a seductive girl proactively asked for sex and he was more than happy to oblige. Within minutes, he thoroughly ravaged the beauty under his fat body. With creepy laughter, moans, and wet sounds of sex, they passed the night.

Actually, the scenes in every private room of the second and third floor were the same. Of course, there were varieties in the methods and processes, some were even unbearable to look at, but no room didn't stink of sex after this.

It was unknown whether the parents who sold their children to them would regret it if they learn what happened. But anyway, everything was of no concern to Clarissa.

Her only business tonight was to tip off the mayor about something that would surely catch the interest of his daughter.

Of course, the hot quickies she had with her handsome vice mayor was only a bonus.

...

A young man wearing a white long-sleeved polo with ends tucked into a black pair of slacks marched his black and heeled shoes into the dining hall. The place was gorgeously decorated and even the intricately patterned wooden chairs looked to be something with history on it. The ambiance of the room was screaming 'old rich' to everyone coming into the Baroque styled mansion.

Unfortunately, none of the place's grandeur or the pleasantness of the host's smile could erase the scowl in the young man's face. In fact, the creases on his forehead deepened when he saw a person he didn't want to see.

"Young man, you're finally here."

The one that greeted Gio was a dignified fifty-three years old man sitting comfortably on the seat at one end of the long table.

The gorgeously dressed woman seated on the middle-aged man's right side immediately followed up with a greeting, but Gio did not even spare her a glance. He merely walked to his uncle's side.

In an emotionless tone, he asked, "What did you call me here for?"

His uncle only smiled, seemingly ignoring the hint of displeasure mixed in his nephew's words. "I haven't seen you for months, what's wrong with calling you here?"

Gio only gave him a distrustful look.

It was not that he didn't like his uncle or in a bad relationship with him. Contrary to what most people believed, he was in no way antagonistic with Conrad Albarez, the current family head. They were even quite close, like longtime friends.

Conrad did not marry and have children of his own. Maybe it was due to this that he treated Gio like a son, and was always good to him since he was small.

Despite having some playfulness in his bones, Conrad was a very resourceful and smart person. He naturally knew about his nephew's deeds, his replacing of his stepmother not a secret to him. In fact, he was even aware that Gio was having an affair with a senior high schooler. Yet Conrad was not saying about or against it.

Probably within the whole family, the only person Gio could completely trust was Conrad. It was because this man was simply too good of an uncle. He was competent in everything. It was to the point that when Gio was still a child, he even once thought that Conrad was more powerful than their country's president.

Well, that was just a silly claim Gio made when he was a kid. Now, he was already a grown up, and was even the most sought out bachelor in the country... an Eastern Adonis as claimed by some of the female foreigners he had bedded before. He naturally knew every ins and outs of the country, he knew just who the modestly powerful ones are, and who could not be provoked. Gio already made it to the latter group. But even so, he was still maintaining a cordial relationship with his uncle as he was one of the few that he trusted.

This was the reason why Gio rarely refused Conrad's meetup requests.

However, when Gio learned that his uncle's summoning of him to the main house today was to introduce him to the city mayor's beautiful daughter, it really made him angry.

Setting up a dinner between an unmarried man and woman... his uncle's intention could not be any more obvious.

Unfortunately, Gio was not in any mood to play along. Even if he reverts back to his old self, to when he was not yet enamored with his Baby, he would still not give this socialite a damn, unless she was willing to have a one night stand with him and be forever silenced after.

Anyway, from the moment he entered the room, he began ignoring the only woman at the dining table. His uncle hinted him through his eyes to at least give a face to her in front of the maids, but he disregarded it and only spoke with the middle-aged man.

He joined them in their meal, and from time to time, answered to his uncle's question. However, when the woman became impatient and tried to interject in the conversation, he immediately stopped speaking and quietly focused on gracefully finishing his plate of food.

Gio didn't bother to care even when the mayor's daughter audibly and indignantly gritted her teeth to him in frustration.

As for the uncle who seemingly lost face, he was outwardly showing helplessness and 'can't-do-anything-about-him' look but was actually inwardly showering his nephew's actions with praises. He didn't know if this was because the young man was finally restraining his unusual libido and tendency to womanize. But, he was glad about Gio's lack of eagerness to associate with anybody related to Alina City's disgustingly corrupt mayor.

Actually, Conrad also didn't like the presence of the woman in the mansion. This was not only due to how her father made him promise this favor today but also because she was priding too much in being a high government official's daughter. She was too proud for her own good and was annoyingly vocal about liking Gio. It was just too hard to have a good impression with a desperate and attention-seeking woman like her.

Unfortunately, that particular fat man personally asked for this nonsensical favor, and Conrad had no choice but accept since, at that time, they were in front of many people.

The favor was to set up a meal between Gio and Lara, the mayor's daughter.

He was at the scene, but technically he still managed to fulfill his end of the bargain. Now, it was no longer up to him how Gio would react to this dinner.

Why would he care if Gio ignores her? Was it his fault that she lacked enough appeal in his nephew's eyes?

Conrad secretly laughed when Gio politely said his goodbye and walked out. That time, the look on Lara's face was quite pleasing to the point that he, the aloof and mighty head of the Albarez, was almost laughing. Thankfully, he managed to restrain himself or else, this young lady might take it against him, then make a scene to her fat daddy and bring Conrad an endless headache.

Another thankfully, the young woman's face was really thick and would not easily resign to fate, her next actions thus brought peace back to the dining hall. Conrad amusedly watched as she got up from her chair and hastily excused herself from him. Her intention was very obvious.

She wanted to chase after Gio!