Hidden Assassin 229

The air buzzed with noise and the place was packed with people. This was an entertainment venue in the most bustling part of Manhattan. The first floor was filled with large electronic game machines, while the second floor housed mostly activities like pool. According to Marilyn, there were also illegal underground boxing matches in the basement, but those only happened at night, and you needed connections to get in.

“To be able to hold these boxing matches in the middle of Manhattan, they must have several council members on their side. They claim this is the best boxing venue in all of New York, and I heard Joseph fought a few matches here… How did you know about this place, Jia Ming? Do you want to see it? I can take you in tonight…”

“If you hadn’t mentioned it, I wouldn’t have known. I just saw this big entertainment center while walking by, and I thought Heidi would like it… It sounds interesting. Have you ever been down there?”

“No, I only heard about it. Nine out of ten matches end in death.”

They continued their conversation, standing beside a few large game machines. A mixed-race girl, dressed in a tight-fitting down jacket, with her hair pulled back in a short ponytail, was looking very cool and handsome. She was battling it out in front of a game machine with a realistic motorcycle simulator. Her body was low, her eyes focused intently on the large screen. According to the display, the motorcycle was already going at 230 kilometers per hour, leaving all its opponents in the dust. Jia Ming glanced at the screen and whistled.

“Wow, I didn’t know she was so talented at this…”

Marilyn laughed, “This summer, when she graduated from school, everyone organized a gaming competition, and Heidi won the championship.”

“Yeah, yeah.” The little girl, driving the motorcycle, turned her head triumphantly, “I’m amazing, right?”

“Where we’re from, this is a sign of laziness, you’d be scolded… Hey, be careful.”

“Uh…” On the screen, there was a loud bang. The motorcycle, unable to turn in time, crashed into the surrounding guardrails. Both rider and bike flew into the air. The rider scrambled up, looking around for his bike, only to be unceremoniously knocked to the ground by a motorcycle that followed close behind. The tires rolled over him again and again…

“Poor thing…” Jia Ming and Marilyn exchanged a smile. The unfortunate rider, symbolizing poor little Heidi, finally found his motorcycle and chased after the other bikes. Just then, a two-player shooting game machine nearby became vacant. Jia Ming tossed a handful of coins. “Want to play?”

“Shooting game?” Marilyn winked playfully. Jia Ming couldn’t help but laugh and shrugged, “Yeah, shooting game.”

“If you like!”

Marilyn nodded and walked towards the game machine. Before she could grab the gun, two American teenagers dressed in hip-hop clothing rushed over, quickly claiming the spots. “Hey, lady, this isn’t for you.”

“It’s a violent game.”

“Ha-ha-ha…” The two laughed in front of the screen and inserted coins into the machine. Then, one of them turned his head back, looking at Jia Ming, who seemed to be about their age, with a confused expression, “Oh. Chinese.”

The other one also turned his head and looked up and down at Jia Ming, “You’re dressed so old-fashioned…”

With that comment, the two teenagers focused on the game. Marilyn and Jia Ming exchanged glances, and the blonde girl smiled, “I really want to take them down.”

“Funny you should say that, we were just thinking the same thing.”

“What do you think about this idea… I have a gun in my bag…”

“Uh.” Jia Ming froze for a moment. Then he spread out his hands, and they both laughed.

The two American boys might have seemed wild, but their gaming skills were undeniably awful. They hadn’t even gotten past the first level before being bitten to death by the zombies swarming from all directions. They seemed to want to continue, but realizing Jia Ming and Marilyn were watching from behind, they felt a little embarrassed. They turned their heads back and gestured at the screen. Marilyn swung her bag dismissively and shrugged, then walked over, chuckling, “Go home and suckle.” She pulled out the gun on the machine, and Jia Ming followed her, inserting coins. Then they watched as Marilyn held the gun with both hands, aiming it at the screen. The gun was level with her shoulder. Her eyes, the sight, and the target were all aligned. Feeling that commanding aura, Jia Ming instinctively stepped back a little. Marilyn’s posture holding the gun was like a textbook example.

“Wow, well-trained.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t lose to you.” Marilyn smiled and raised her eyebrows, usually seeming cold and independent to others, and sexy and submissive yet unrestrained in bed. But now, she had a captivatingly bold aura. A woman living in a Mafia family wouldn’t be all soft and pathetic. However, thinking back to the night Jia Ming rescued her and her mother and the gun skills he had displayed, Marilyn’s face flushed slightly. Then she nodded, “Let’s go.”

“Oh.” Hurriedly lifting his gun, Jia Ming started shooting at the zombie horde on the screen.

In 1998, there were already a lot of these large game machines in America, but in China, even in a large city like Jiang Hai, game machines mostly stuck to the street fighter, King of Fighters model. They had opened a gaming arcade, but Jia Ming, Ling Jing, and Sha Sha had only been there once. Jia Ming spent more time watching those two girls go wild. He had some concept of these things from his previous life, but he hadn’t had much exposure, so when he picked up the gun, he became flustered. Marilyn, on the other hand, became more focused, and she hit almost every shot, with most of the zombies dying from headshots. Even though it was just a game, Jia Ming could tell from the details that Marilyn had put in a lot of effort on her marksmanship.

He was distracted while playing, but under Marilyn’s protection, he managed to survive until the challenging fourth level before dying. This was already a good score. The two American boys behind them couldn’t say anything sarcastic. After Jia Ming’s character died, Marilyn continued, excitedly holding out until the end of the fourth level before being killed by the boss. She turned her head, and Heidi walked up from behind, smiling and giving a thumbs-up, “I beat it, you can check my new record… Uh, did you only get to the fourth level?”

Jia Ming and Marilyn both shrugged their shoulders. The girl rolled her eyes, walked over and inserted a coin, then pulled out both large guns. The game guns were much larger than regular pistols, and Heidi’s fingers barely reached the trigger. It seemed quite difficult. Just a moment ago, Jia Ming and Marilyn were despising the two behind them, but now, they felt a sense of being despised by Heidi. They stood aside, waiting to see her make a fool of herself.

Five minutes later, people started gathering around.

Fifteen minutes later, the area was surrounded by a crowd of onlookers. In the midst of the crowd, the mixed-race girl with the short ponytail, held both guns, firing precisely with each pull of the trigger. The zombies on the screen fell one after another.

Thirty-five minutes later, the game was successfully completed. Heidi’s record was displayed prominently at the top of the leaderboard. The little girl stretched her fingers, which had been continuously pulling the trigger for half an hour, sticking out her tongue, “I’m so tired.”

It had to be admitted that different people have different talents. They pulled Heidi to the rest area and bought some food for her. After resting for a while, Jia Ming looked out the large glass windows at the road where the snow was gradually easing. After a moment, he stood up and said, “I’m going to the restroom. Save me a slice of pizza.”

“Nope! If you don’t come quickly, I’m going to eat it all!” Heidi announced loudly, holding up her fork, smiling. Jia Ming could only laugh helplessly and walk into the nearby hallway. At the same time, a few men in warm winter clothing were walking into the entertainment venue from the front entrance.

Jia Ming walked all the way to the men’s restroom, fiddling with his wristwatch. The small screen displayed the surveillance footage from inside and outside the entertainment venue, cycling through different angles. After a minute, he pushed the door open and walked out.

He walked towards the inner part of the corridor, which was still crowded. He tapped his fingers lightly on his wristwatch, setting the operation of the monitoring cameras. At the crossroads in front of him, there was a clear “No Entry for Non-Staff” sign. A security guard from the entertainment venue was standing at an intersection further ahead. However, he was putting his hand to his earpiece, seemingly talking. After a moment, his gaze turned to the side.

In the main monitoring room, a nearby surveillance camera seemed to have come loose. It was now uncontrollably pointing downwards. The security guard said a couple of words and walked towards the camera, which was a few meters away. Jia Ming walked straight through the intersection, putting on a pair of gloves.

As one of the strongholds of the American branch of Pei Luo Jia, the interior of the entertainment venue had a complex layout. There were closed rooms everywhere, and the surrounding monitoring footage rolled on the screen of his watch.

At a steady pace, not fast but not slow, he walked straight ahead while taking two thin pieces of wire out of his pocket. He glanced at the footage on his watch and stopped in front of a nearby room, inserting the wire into the keyhole. He looked like he was returning to his own home.

The door opened, and he walked in directly. The moment the door closed, two black security guards appeared at a corner of the corridor. He switched the footage on his watch, then surveyed the room.

The room was large and beautifully decorated. The air was filled with warm air, and on the table in the living room, there were candles that weren’t fully lit, expensive liquor, and a discarded coat and underwear on the floor. The trail led to the bedroom nearby. There was the sound of water running from the bathroom. He glanced at the bedroom, and a naked, overweight man sat up in bed and started putting on his clothes.

Without hesitation, he reached out and grabbed a steak knife from the table next to him, walking towards the bathroom door, which was opening. The moment the door opened, he also reached the front of the door, coming face to face with a naked blonde woman who had just finished showering.

There were no screams. The knife went straight through the woman’s throat. In an instant, he turned and walked toward the bedroom door that was ajar.

From the bathroom, there was a loud bang as a body fell into the bathtub.

“Hey, babe, what… uh…”

A few seconds later, Jia Ming pushed the door open and closed it. He was exactly the same as when he entered, his gaze calm and indifferent. With a leisurely stride, he walked further into the depths of the building.

Previous Chapter | TOC | Next Chapter