Jiang Yuan Shinan burped, watching the two girls in the corner opposite him step out of the elevator on the 17th floor, their faces full of disgust. They quickly disappeared from view.
He snorted and spat, leaned against the elevator wall, and stared at the blinking LCD screen in boredom.
"Bitches…" he cursed, fiddling with the gold chain around his neck. "That woman too, damn… a bitch who looks down on others…"
His ex-wife's decisive departure had been a blow to his self-esteem. Seeing her again today, glamorous and sexy, walking confidently among the crowd, rekindled all the bitterness in his heart.
He drank cup after cup, swaying with every step, but the rage inside only deepened.
"Just wait till I get the virus…"
When he first saw the news about the "Dark Night Baron" virus, Jiang Yuan Shinan had been ecstatic.
When he arrived at the venue and saw the other participants, he nearly burst out laughing.
What kind of competition was this? Kids, high schoolers, senile old men on the verge of collapse… other than that unexpectedly appearing detective, the rest made him sneer.
How could this pack of clueless fools understand the true power of the "Dark Night Baron"?
He had seen it with his own eyes—how that virus reduced sophisticated electronic devices into useless scrap. Not even the most advanced tech could replicate that level of destruction.
This was beyond current technology. It was a miracle. A power impossible to decode or resist.
Even if he couldn't understand how it worked, just holding it in his hands would be enough.
Drunk and delusional, he stumbled out of the elevator, rummaged around with blurry eyes, finally pulled out his key card, and unlocked the room.
After staggering into the bathroom and flushing the toilet, he switched on the bedroom light and collapsed onto the large bed.
Just as he was about to pass out, a strong gust of salty sea wind blew in, waking him up with a jolt.
The wind carried the scent of seawater, damp and cold. Cursing under his breath, Jiang Yuan Shinan got up and walked over to shut the terrace doors.
As he locked the glass doors and pulled the curtains closed, a sudden realization pierced through his alcohol-soaked thoughts.
Wait—were the balcony doors already open when he entered?
A chill crawled up his spine. He felt a wave of cold sweat and slowly turned back toward the room.
"What the hell… scared me…" He let out a breath of relief. The room appeared empty. He laughed at his own paranoia and turned to return to bed.
"You seemed disappointed not to see me?"
A male voice spoke from behind him.
"Ah!" Just as he let his guard down, the voice shattered his nerves. He screamed and fell to the ground in panic.
A man dressed in a floor-length black cloak, a high-collared cape and top hat stood before him. Beneath the brim, a pale, eerie mask smiled coldly.
"D-Dark Night Baron…" Jiang Yuan Shinan lifted his hands to shield himself and backed away in fear. "You're the organizer?"
"Heh, who knows?" The single eye visible through the mask glinted gold like a cat's. Combined with the grotesque smile of the mask, it was deeply unsettling. "You seem eager to see me… Jiang Yuan Shinan."
Panting, Jiang Yuan Shinan summoned a flicker of boldness and shouted with false courage, "What kind of trick is this! Y-You're with the event organizers—you must have an agreement with the hotel. You can't just barge into someone's room like this… you bastard!"
The Dark Night Baron tilted his head slightly. The complete concealment of his face made him seem more like a monster than a man.
"When I said you wanted to see me, I didn't mean the event's organizer…" he said softly. "You've seen the 'Dark Night Baron' virus, haven't you? How was it? Magical?"
"You really do have it…" Jiang Yuan Shinan steadied himself using the nearby chair. His eyes lit up fanatically. "You actually have the virus! You've seen its power too, haven't you? That kind of destructive force—it doesn't belong to this world! It can wipe out data, destroy electronics, appliances—everything!"
He became more and more frenzied as he spoke, completely forgetting his fear. He stepped forward, grabbed the cloak of the Dark Night Baron, and leaned in close to those golden cat-like eyes.
"Don't you get it? This is omnipotent power! If it's released freely, it could send all of human civilization back a hundred years!" Jiang Yuan Shinan was nearly hysterical. "You came to find me because I understand this, didn't you? I'm the one you need! Together, we can hold the entire world hostage! We can rewrite the future!"
The golden pupils locked onto his flushed face, following every twitch and movement with slow precision.
When the Baron didn't reply, Jiang Yuan Shinan grew impatient. Thinking he hadn't made a strong enough case, he pulled on the cloak, trying to grab an arm or shoulder.
His hand landed on cold metal.
Still high on adrenaline, he didn't react immediately. Then he looked down.
A gun with a silencer had slipped through the folds of the robe and was now aimed directly at his face.
"Don't move, Mr. Jiang Yuan," came the voice from beneath the mask, now tinged with mockery. "You really don't want to find out whether this is fake."
The voice was magnetic, cold, and emotionless. Jiang Yuan Shinan was instantly sobered by it.
"You really are an ideal candidate," the Baron continued. "In the dark, cut off from the world, not knowing day or night… living a life worse than death. I wonder what your face will look like then. I'd like to see it for myself."
"You…" Jiang Yuan Shinan's arrogance collapsed. He stumbled backward and tripped over the chair, falling down in panic. "What are you trying to do? You—!"
"Didn't you want to witness 'power beyond this era'?" the masked figure said, gun still aimed at his head. He laughed hoarsely. "Let's play a game. Let's place a bet. Tell me—can I fit a 189-centimeter-tall man into a 32-inch suitcase?"
189—Jiang Yuan Shinan's exact height.
He finally realized what that meant. His blood ran cold.
He tried to get up, tried to run for the door, to scream for help—but a deep, unnatural drowsiness overtook him.
The fear started to fade.
His mind drifted, heavy, calm… like someone singing a lullaby in a dark room.
It felt like being held again in his mother's arms. The tension melted from his limbs. He went limp, falling backwards.
The last thing he saw was the Dark Night Baron approaching slowly.
"Well, since you won't answer, I'll go first," the Baron whispered. His long cloak rustled across the carpet. The golden eyes looked down at Jiang Yuan Shinan's slack, empty expression.
"I guess I can."