How Difficult Can It Be?

Natali and Hiro went through many rounds around the nightclub's public and private rooms, playing hosts to a number of guests.

Near the end of the evening, Hiro learned a lot about the ins and outs of the industry, and while he was talking with Natali near the bar, a man in a black suit approached from the distance.

Both Natali and Hiro noticed him coming over, and the former patted Hiro's back with a smile and said, "It's time for you to go."

Then, she turned around and slipped into the bustling crowd, leaving behind a confused Hiro.

The man in black passed by Hiro's side and spoke into his ear, "Follow me quietly."

Even while confused, Hiro followed along without a word. He understood that this must be the last segment of the so-called test.

Silently, the two made their way to the staircase and descended to the underground floors. Based on Hiro's memories, this route led to an area disconnected from the elevator system.

Soon, he could no longer hear the banging DJ music from the main hall, and only the sounds of the footsteps could be heard.

Subconsciously, Hiro began to dive into the untapped professional combat skills he purchased from the system a while back.

In any case, it was better to be prepared than to be caught off guard. As Hiro's muscles began to build up tension, the two finally crossed over some threshold, allowing them to hear muffled cries of agony.

The man in black stopped, rested his palm on a thick steel door, and pushed gently.

The sliding mechanism wasn't smooth, but the door opened to reveal a hidden flight of stairs that wasn't recorded on the blueprint.

Huh? Hiro was stunned. Am I in trouble?

He felt a little anxious, but he couldn't back down at that moment. Thus, when the man in black entered the narrow passage, Hiro could only sigh and follow along.

Worst case scenario, he would beat everyone up and leave. Then, he would consider how to handle this mess at a later date.

While lost in thoughts, a stench of sweat, blood, and urine assaulted his nostrils, almost causing him to choke to death right there and then.

However, he quickly controlled his impulses.

Hiro wasn't really too bothered by the stench, it was just that he was caught off guard by the sudden rush of foulness.

He'd gone through and witnessed worse things in the Legend of Babylon, not to mention a little underground torture room.

The man in black noticed Hiro's brows creasing tightly for a moment, but that display of discomfort was quickly washed away by a neutral expression.

He nodded with a hint of approval in his heart, but he didn't say anything. Soon, they arrived at a closed room with but one ventilation unit located on the corner.

Hiro also found six of his schoolmates stuck to a wall across the room, shivering in place despite their brave expressions.

In the center of the room was a man hung upside down, a thick steel hook piercing through each of his calves, and a heavy metal ball chained to his wrists.

The man was a sorry, bloody mess.

A half-naked fat man sat on a small stool, his face level with the man's inverted eyes, and a thick Cuban cigar rested between his thick lips.

In the four corners of the room were four black-skinned men, but what Hiro found weird was that they were wearing sunglasses in this dimly lit room.

"Wuwuwu… wuwu… wuwu!!!"

The chains rattled as the hanged man spoke into the duct tape covering his mouth.

Hiro somewhat understood the situation in the room. This guy must have broken some rules or crossed some line he shouldn't have crossed, right?

"Not a single one of you is gonna do it, then?" Asked the fat man in a deep voice.

The six boys standing in the back shook uncontrollably, but not a single one of them said a thing.

The fat man sighed, his large hand covering his sweaty face and rubbing it in annoyance.

"Where did you get these scumbags from, Fred? I'm telling you to go and tell Broski not to waste my time on these things. Times changed, money can't solve everything anymore."

The man in black next to Hiro didn't seem bothered at all. "It doesn't matter, just getting to this phase means that they've already passed the test. They can't retreat at this point even if they wanted to."

"Tsk! Nonetheless, every clique needs a little figurehead. Didn't you ask me to help choose your little figurehead? My test is quite simple, deliver justice and kill this motherfucker."

The fat man looked back to inspect Hiro, the newcomer to the party, then pointed at a blackboard that was behind Hiro and next to the door.

"Hey kid, do you think those crimes constitute a death sentence? We don't have to go through the proper channels; this man is one of my guys, it's only right for me to do the cleanup once he crosses the line."

The fat man noticed Hiro's unusual calmness in the face of such a brutal scene, so he took the initiative to talk to him.

Hiro's thoughts were on something else for a moment, as he realized that the students in this room were the select few to act as the core of the freshmen delinquent group.

From this group, one of them would supposedly be chosen as the figurehead, basically the leader of the freshmen delinquents.

Still, isn't asking us to kill someone a little too much? Then again, it makes sense to keep both the goods and the dirt in the family, lest the man opens his mouth to speak nonsense to the officials…

Wait a moment, aren't I getting too absorbed into the role of a syndicate? I'm just here to complete a system mission.

Eh, but isn't he going to die either way? I might as well get my benefits first, right?

Hiro turned to face the blackboard. With his analytical mind, he could immediately capture the dense files on the board, coming to a sound conclusion.

Indeed, this man is human scum.

Extortion, drugs, sexual assault and abuse, loan sharks, coercion and female solicitation… The list goes on, and Hiro wasn't even certain of the validity of this evidence.

Nonetheless, this wasn't his problem. This guy was definitely not clean, Hiro could deduce this much at the very least.

"Isn't it just killing someone? How difficult can it be?" Hiro looked up at Fred and asked casually. "How do you want me to do it?"

Almost too casually…

The room went silent for a moment, and even the wuwu wuuwuu sounds in the background paused. The man's eyes were wide open in disbelief.

A while later, the fat man laughed loud, the fat on his body roiling, twisting the thick tattoos all over his skin.

Fred didn't say anything and silently handed a handgun to Hiro. It was a little heavy, obviously not a toy gun.

Then, he stepped back without saying anything.

Anyone can talk big, he thought to himself. Talking about killing someone and actually doing it are two separate matters.

Bang! Splurge!

"FUCK!" Yelled the fat man as the stool beneath him toppled over. Fred's eyes opened wide, and the six students almost pissed their pants.

The fat man's face was drenched in blood and brain matter from the ruptured skull of their captive, but he was still immersed in the shock of feeling the bullet brushing past his face.

He was too close to death just now! For a moment, he saw his life flash past his eyes in record time.

Fred was just as shocked, not expecting this freshman year student to go through it and kill the bastard.

Everyone looked at the swaying corpse and its blasted head, feeling a chill crawl up their spine when they looked back at Hiro's expectat expression.

"Did I become the freshmen's leader now?" He asked.