After taking a closer look, Jake realized that the wristwatch might be responsible for the heartbeat sound thumping loudly in his head.
He tried to pull the watch out of the muck but stopped to think over what he was about to do.
First off, it was weird for a wristwatch to sound like a heartbeat.
And it was even more weird to stumble upon such a strange wristwatch out here on the edge of a river.
So, any normal person would be skeptical about getting close to such a watch.
Furthermore, there was a high chance the watch could be a demonic artifact, and from what Jake had heard about them, nothing good ever came from having any contact with a demonic item.
This was because demonic artifacts had been known to explode and destroy anything within their vicinity once activated.
Therefore, when Jake recalled someone telling him about this, he swiftly drew his hand away from the watch.
And as though the watch had sensed his presence and the fact that Jake was about to abandon it, it instantly launched itself towards him and clamped itself around Jake's wrist, surprising even Jake, who had been unable to react in time and prevent the watch from attaching itself to him.
"W-What the hell?!" Jake exclaimed in horrified shock as he stumbled backwards.
His foot slid on the wet soil, and he nearly toppled into the river, but he managed to regain his footing.
Then, he tried to yank the watch from his wrist once again but he couldn't, and no matter how hard he tried to pull it off, the watch still wouldn't budge.
While Jake continued to struggle with the watch, he suddenly heard the sound of someone clapping behind him.
*Clap* *Clap* *Clap*
"Well, well, well. Look who's got so much free time on their hands."
Jake's eyes widened in surprise at the familiar voice.
He slowly turned around to see three strong, tall-looking men emerge from the shadows of the riverside walkway.
The man in the middle was someone Jake could never forget, and he certainly couldn't mistake Travis' voice for someone else's, even if his eyes were blindfolded.
"Jake, Jake, Jake. Shouldn't you be busy working hard to get our money?" Travis asked as he walked closer with an evil grin on his lips.
His two bruisers followed behind him with grins on their faces as well.
"Maybe he really has so much time on his hands, so he couldn't help but waste it by coming here."
"Or maybe he came here to put an end to his misery."
Hearing what one of his colleagues said, Travis couldn't help but ask with a 'worried' look on his face. "Oh my, is this true Jake? Were you really thinking of killing yourself without asking us for permission first?"
"....."
"How selfish of you to think of leaving without repaying your debt."
"....." Jake remained silent.
"You know how this works kid." Travis reminded him. "Debts don't pay themselves and we can't have you drowning yourself in the river, now can we?"
"Maybe we should break one of his fingers to show him how serious we are about this."
"I second that."
One of the bruisers suggested, and the other agreed gleefully as they slowly walked towards Jake, but he took two cautionary steps backwards while clenching his fist gently.
"Travis, I told you before. I need more time if I'm to get you your money. I'm trying my best…"
"Oh, but your best isn't good enough, kid. The boss isn't happy and he needs his money right now. Hmm, maybe we should try paying your waitress friend a visit, huh? I'm sure she'll be happy to help you in ways that only she can."
"Don't you dare," Jake said through gritted teeth.
"Oh my." Travis grinned when he noticed the anger radiating from Jake's body. "And what are you going to do about it huh? Are you going to stop me?"
Travis asked in a mocking voice as he stepped closer to Jake while using his huge height to try to intimidate the twenty-year-old. Because, unlike Jake, who was a human, Travis was a tall, one-eyed cyclops whose strength was far greater than that of an average human.
Knowing this, Jake's fist tightened even more in frustration.
If it were just him and Travis, Jake knew he could probably win against him, but since it was currently three against one, there was no way he could handle all three of them on his own.
Now, one might wonder why Jake would even think that he could possibly stand a chance against Travis, and the answer to this was quite simple.
Just like Helen and Travis, Jake had also been affected by a little amount of wild mana and his body had been able to adapt to it.
However, unlike Travis and Helen, Jake's body didn't mutate into that of a demi-human.
Instead, his body only acquired superhuman strength and speed, allowing him to be far stronger and faster than most humans in the slum.
But, Travis' colleagues were also cyclops and since he could only barely win against a single cyclops, it would be completely impossible for him to win against all three of them.
Knowing this, Jake sighed softly before releasing his clenched fist in resignation.
Fighting against all three of them would be a dumb move so it was better for him to prioritize not only his own safety but also that of Alice and Helen.
If he did something stupid right now, Travis would definitely drag Helen and Alice into his mess.
"What's wrong, kid? You ain't gonna throw a punch anymore? I know you want to, so just do it." Travis urged Jake with a sinister grin on his face, but Jake wasn't going to give in to his tricks.
"I'm getting a new job soon, and I'll pay you before the month ends."
Travis smirked as he leaned very close to Jake's face, causing Jake to put up with his disgusting alcohol breath. "So you want to keep stalling, uh? Well, no matter. Your uncle also thought he could do the same until he was unable to breathe through all the blood coming out of his mouth, thanks to yours truly."
Jake's brow creased in confusion and then slowly, rage.
Did he just hear what he thought he had heard?
"What did you just say?" Jake asked as he glared at Travis with bloodshot eyes.