In an abandoned area of Libretanhya, Slady sees the lights of some vehicles and the mana, as if ready to defend the place. As he approaches, some men, carrying various types of weapons, stop in front of Slady, trying to intimidate him.
"This place isn't for girls like you."
"..."
"I'm going to get stressed out sooner than I thought."
Slady lifts his head, staring at them. The men widen their eyes briefly, surprised by his mechanical eye.
"I'm not a woman, I'm "GoodSalesMan123."
The men look at each other, laughing among themselves with the man and nodding.
"Sorry, we thought you were a girl. Our bosses are waiting."
They clear the entrance. Slady enters the place, his gaze falling on the scene of over 200 men scattered around the place. All strategically positioned to attack him if he made an offensive move.
"What's this?"
One of the leaders, Morieng, gave a malicious laugh. Forgent was sitting on the sofa with his arms crossed, a grim expression on his face, a small smile on his lips.
"Welcome, Mr. "GoodSalesman123"..." (He laughed, as if it were a joke)
"We're just prepared for any slip-up you might make; you better know who you're dealing with." (Forgent added)
"Right..." (He sighed)
Slady showed the inside of his coat: the pistols.
"I'm just using them for self-defense."
"Better hand them over to us. Nobody wants any trouble, right?"
"..."
As he picked up the pistols to hand to the leaders, Slady's gaze fell on a woman, who was unconscious. Even though he recognized her, he didn't understand why she was there.
"Why is this woman here?"
"This whore isn't of interest to us, but if you want to make a profit... we can trade her for the drugs." (Morieng replied)
Slady remained silent, simply sitting in a chair and placing the package of drugs on the table. The leaders sat side by side, like two competitors fighting for a prize.
The gang members prepared their weapons, locking down the entire place to ensure no one escaped in the process. Slady almost smiled, knowing this would facilitate his plan, even if it wasn't the criminals' intention.
Morieng looked at the drug, eager to test it. Forgent simply crossed his arms, staring at the product in silence.
"You know, Mr. "GoodSalesman123"..." (He repeats the name as if it were a joke)
"The last time I did a drug deal, some poor bastard ended up poisoning the product. Killing some loved ones..." (He smiles maliciously)
"So we gave him a 'nice treatment.' You want to avoid that, right? Just try the drug."
Forgent smiled, excited for what was to come.
"If the product is really good, I can offer you a lot of money and some women. Unlike that idiot over there."
"Shut up, you piece of shit."
The two leaders stared at Slady, who just sighed and leaned in, sniffing the product...
The drug went straight to his brain. He leaned back in his chair, controlling himself. His resistance to poisons was useful, but the substance was still potent.
"I made this too strong!"
He bit his lip, the veins rising from his neck to the sides of his face. The leaders watched the scene, amused and surprised by the drug's effect.
Slady smiled, managing to settle in, letting out a deep moan of fake pleasure.
"Heavens... as a producer and seller, I can't get addicted to this!"
The leaders clapped, and the members cheered in approval, excited to try the drug. Slady stood up, dizzy, but pretending to have pleasure coursing through his veins.
"I'm going to the bathroom, I need... to relax after using this stuff."
"Be at peace, my brother!"
As he walked toward the bathroom, Slady dropped small plastic spheres on the floor, glancing at the criminals over his shoulders.
"Yes, I'll be at peace."
Morieng took the first step, sniffing the product... the drug was extremely addictive, but he wanted it all to himself.
"Let me test-"
Forgent tried to get closer, but Morieng struck him hard, knocking him to the ground.
"Get your hand out of here, you piece of shit!"
The combination of the blow and the drug in Morieng's saliva entering Forgent's nostrils activated the drug in his system as well.
"You son of a bitch!"
For no reason, Forgent jumped on him, brutally punching him. The saliva in the air began to touch the other members, triggering a chain reaction.
When the spheres are stepped on or pressed, they release gases, blinding all the men.
One of the members, who was under the influence of the drug, tried to grab the woman. But before he could touch her, Slady pierced his neck. Slady coughed a few times and scooped her up.
He used his mechanical eye to see beneath the gas and pulled the woman to safety. Then he went down to the living room, retrieving the missing pistols.
"This night is going to be long..."
***
Like in a horror movie, the floor was decorated only by the color red. The bodies, more than two hundred bodies, lay lifeless, strategically positioned, as if they were cursed puppets participating in a cruel theater.
At the bottom, on the stairs, Slady lay. His body was covered in stab wounds, broken bones, almost unrecognizable. But with a sip of a liquid he had produced, everything returned to normal, leaving only the scars, which told ancient and cruel stories.
He sat down, his torn shirt revealing his upper body. He rested the elbow of his mechanical arm on his knee, his chin resting on his palm, and with almost guilt in his gaze, he met hers.
"I've never felt such pleasure... but... does that make me bad, Truth?"
He looked at the spirit, sitting on a table. She seemed quieter than usual, her head turning toward him, her lips trembling, as if he'd done something cruel.
"Once you had your emotions and sensations in your body, I thought everything would get better. I thought you'd become closer to a human..."
"But now, I see what over two hundred years of existence have wrought. You've turned into a monster, Slady..."
"I hate to say it, but you're no longer the Slady I knew."
"..."
Slady remained silent, not offended, not denied, just got up and started up the stairs. Truth started to follow him, worried.
"What are you going to do?"
He didn't answer, he just opened a door, where he found the woman, still unconscious. He crouched down and wrapped his arms around her, getting up and starting to leave the room.
The walk through Libretanhya was silent, the rain falling on Slady, who continued walking. Truth walked beside her, floating in silence.
Arriving at an unfamiliar house, Slady broke in, entered the room, and found a man and a little girl sleeping in a crib. He placed the woman next to the man, the light from his mechanical eye the only thing visible in the darkness.
"Take good care of your beloved."
With that, Slady left the house, erasing all traces of his presence.