Chapter 26: Thank You

As Qiao Jia was nearing the back door, he saw a group of armed bandits burst in, gunning down several fleeing staff members and hotel guests.

A person hit by the 7.62mm bullets fired from an AK at close range dies in a particularly gruesome manner. The entry wound might be small, but the exit wound is as large as a bowl.

Blood, brain matter, and bodily tissues splattered the walls on both sides of the corridor. Qiao Jia, who was a step too slow, slipped and fell. He scrambled to his feet, turned, and ran towards the elevator area, darting into the safety stairwell as shouts echoed behind him, then started to sprint upward.

As he ran, Qiao Jia pulled out his handgun and two magazines, holding them in his hands. When he reached the second floor, he forcefully pushed open the safety door, bursting into the elevator area on the hotel's second floor.

There, he saw the man in the black suit from earlier, loudly scolding the female server. Qiao Jia waved his hand and shouted in Arabic, "Run, quickly!"

As Qiao Jia yelled, a series of bullets riddled the safety door with holes, sending debris from the stone walls in the elevator area flying.

Qiao Jia had initially planned to open fire to cover the two, perhaps even stall the pursuit. However, the man in the black suit and the female server immediately dropped to the ground, swiftly crawling towards the elevator exit.

While crawling, the black-suited man pulled the service cart over to block the door.

Faced with Qiao Jia's handgun, neither seemed particularly afraid. The black-suited man shouted as he crawled past, "Follow me! I know where the exit is!"

From the way he moved, Qiao Jia realized he had underestimated this man. It would take anyone more than just a handful of encounters with terror attacks to be this calm under fire.

Moments ago, he was a petty hotel manager, but now he was acting like a seasoned soldier. This swift change of roles left Qiao Jia feeling quite unsettled.

But what surprised Qiao Jia most was the female server. Although she was obviously young, she remained calm—no screaming, no panic. She kept close to the wall as she moved swiftly, following the black-suited man.

Qiao Jia, who had little combat experience, realized that hugging the wall was safer. It gave him an extra second as the pursuing terrorists needed time to turn the corner.

But Qiao Jia did not choose to follow the female server's example. Instead, he burst into an open restaurant, using the columns for cover as he sprinted. He turned back during brief intervals, firing four shots at the leading terrorists, hitting two of them.

The deaths momentarily halted the others, but soon, a barrage of bullets was directed at Qiao Jia, forcing him to take cover behind a large 50x50 pillar.

The gunfire echoed loudly in the restaurant, and Qiao Jia crouched down, trying to minimize his exposed area. He fumbled with a tactical vest that had a bulletproof plate, awkwardly pulling it over his body.

There was no time to adjust it properly. As he heard the distinct sounds of the terrorists changing magazines, Qiao Jia instinctively dashed out and fired his handgun continuously.

Eleven bullets were fired in just two seconds, and Qiao Jia quickly reloaded as the empty magazine dropped from his handgun. Two more quick shots were fired to finish off the remaining terrorists.

Just as Qiao Jia was about to catch up with the black-suited man and escape the hotel, he saw the man returning from a corner at an even faster pace, chased by four terrorists.

This time, the black-suited man acted heroically. He pushed the female server ahead while pulling down objects from both sides to create obstacles.

As they approached the restaurant, the black-suited man glanced at Qiao Jia, then, as gunfire erupted behind him, he forcefully pushed the female server into the restaurant. He then dove headfirst into a pile of bodies, grabbed an AK from one of the corpses, and began returning fire.

Qiao Jia was out of the terrorists' line of sight, and with the black-suited man drawing their fire, Qiao Jia took aim from behind the pillar and fired.

Qiao Jia had excellent shooting accuracy, especially with a handgun.

With no incoming bullets to worry about, Qiao Jia aimed for the head...

"Bang, bang, bang, bang!" Four rapid shots, and four terrorists' heads exploded.

Having dealt with the threat, Qiao Jia quickly helped the female server to her feet. As he was about to assist the black-suited man, gunfire erupted from the elevator area where they had just been.

The black-suited man got to his feet, holding his rifle. He retrieved a spare magazine from one of the bodies and limped over to Qiao Jia. With a strange expression, he glanced at the hand supporting the female server and said, "We can't get out. The fire exits and garbage chutes are all sealed off. All we can do is buy time until rescue arrives..."

Qiao Jia had no intention of staying. If the local forces in Sudan were truly capable, how could there be terrorists in the heart of the city?

Relying on them for rescue seemed less promising than finding a way out himself.

Hearing the gunshots and screams from the elevator area, Qiao Jia glanced out the restaurant window and saw over a dozen blue-uniformed armed police officers across the street at the embassy, establishing a defensive line.

Unwilling to wait idly, Qiao Jia looked at the black-suited man and said, "There's a green area below the restaurant. We can jump down. Five meters won't kill us."

The black-suited man hesitated, then glanced at the silent female server. Finally, he nodded firmly, "Jump, then do it quickly!"

Qiao Jia didn't need another reminder. He rushed over, opened the window, and jumped down, landing safely in the greenery below.

But unfortunately, a group of terrorists was escorting hotel guests through the first-floor corridor when they spotted Qiao Jia.

Both sides froze for a moment, and then Qiao Jia acted first, raising his gun and pulling the trigger.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang..."

With a series of gunshots, five out of six terrorists fell.

The last one, standing behind his comrades, returned fire, hitting Qiao Jia in the chest. The impact caused him to grunt in pain and fall back into a flowerbed, hitting the back of his head hard on the ground.

As the last terrorist raised his AK to finish Qiao Jia off, a bullet from across the street struck him in the forehead.

Clutching his chest, Qiao Jia struggled to get up, only to hear voices shouting from a hundred meters away at the embassy gate, "Run, quickly!"

The terrorists in the hotel lobby noticed the commotion and were heading in his direction.

Although wearing a bulletproof vest, getting shot was still excruciating.

And Qiao Jia's head was throbbing from the blow he took when he fell, making him dizzy and unsteady on his feet.

As he struggled to find his balance, a hand grabbed his arm, and the usually silent female server, who had also jumped down, helped him towards the embassy.

The black-suited man, who had jumped down as well, turned back and fired at the terrorists on the second floor, preventing them from attacking.

After emptying his magazine, the black-suited man dropped his gun and ran towards Qiao Jia and the female server. Just as he was about to reach them, his body jerked violently, and blood blossomed from his chest.

At this moment, the female server, who had been silent all along, finally made a sound. She let out a pained cry as she saw the black-suited man fall. She released Qiao Jia and turned to help him, but two riot shields closed around them from behind. Two swift and agile armed police officers grabbed them and rushed them into the embassy gate.

As soon as Qiao Jia set foot on embassy soil, the buzzing in his head became unbearable.

He managed to mutter a "thank you" to the armed police who had saved him before losing consciousness.