Chapter 16: Monster
"Kirsty, wake up."
Marcus gently shook Kirsty, who was sleeping, holding a document in his hand.
"Mmm."
The girl had expressed her reluctance to part in her own way last night, and was still sleeping soundly, exhausted, when Marcus shook her awake.
Kirsty took the pen Marcus handed her and scribbled her name on the document beside her, half-asleep.
"You can continue to rest."
Marcus picked up the document and looked at it. It was a property transfer document, including the four-unit apartment building, the pet shop, and a check for ten million dollars.
Marcus did not transfer all of his assets to Kirsty because, according to the reward he received, he would return to this world again, and he had the authority to retain his identity.
Then Marcus placed breakfast, the document, and a letter on the nightstand, gently kissed Kirsty, and checked the photo and crystal sphere he carried.
Marcus also made a copy of the photo of Pinhead's human form and gave it to Kirsty—it was the photo she received in the original timeline.
After finishing all this, Marcus headed toward JFK Airport. His flight to Chicago was at 10 PM.
9 PM, Chicago.
Inside the Red Line subway station.
Marcus, wearing a leather jacket and carrying a briefcase, was comparing a downloaded map on his phone.
'According to the coordinates, the guy should be in a blocked-off area at the end of this subway tunnel, where it connects to the sewers.'
That place was the territory of the Underground Kingdom.
"Sir, can you spare some change?"
A homeless man sitting cross-legged on the ground, wearing tattered clothes and with half a blanket covering his legs, said to Marcus.
"Have you seen this person?"
A fifty-dollar bill was placed in the cup in front of the homeless man.
Marcus showed him a printout of a photo he'd found online.
"Oh, yeah, I've seen him. He came by and asked me a bunch of questions about the Underground Kingdom."
The homeless man pointed to the left.
Marcus nodded and walked along the subway tunnel for about twenty minutes, reaching its end.
About fifty yards ahead, a subway car was parked, its engine turned off.
"Stopped running this early—something's definitely wrong,"
Marcus said with a sense of foreboding.
"Ahh~!"
A man's scream suddenly came from near the front of the subway train.
Marcus, now attuned to blood, smelled a strong stench of it, stopped, and gripped his black briefcase tightly.
He had this briefcase custom-made a few days ago because he needed to travel by plane, go through TSA security, and then enter the subway.
Dangerous items like firearms and explosives were impractical to carry.
To utilize his strength, Marcus had specially designed this briefcase with a reinforced handle that could even stop bullets.
Inside the briefcase, there was a genuine leather strap in the middle, which could be used as a shield if necessary.
Sensing something was wrong, Marcus slowly backed away, heading toward the nearest exit.
Better to avoid trouble—whatever lay ahead, a murderer or some monster, was none of his concern.
After walking a dozen steps, a faint, rapid sound of claws scratching the ground suddenly came from around the corner.
Marcus whirled around, raising his briefcase to strike, but stopped abruptly halfway.
It was a small white Pomeranian that had run up to Marcus.
"Help!"
came another man's scream, accompanied by a howl.
There were also various other noises—barking dogs, talking voices, and squeaking rats.
"Help! Is anyone there?"
A woman with burgundy hair, wearing a floral dress and a white fur vest, was running toward Marcus from behind the subway car.
Her chest heaved with each hurried step, threatening to burst free from her dress.
"Is anyone there?"
The Pomeranian, startled by the woman's voice, quickly passed Marcus and darted into a three-foot-square hole in the wall.
Marcus also quickened his pace, heading toward the exit.
The red-haired woman, Elena, saw Marcus at this moment and cried out desperately for help:
"Help! Someone's chasing me! Someone's being attacked!"
Marcus didn't sense any strong dark aura at this time—at least he was certain it wasn't the Cenobites behind him.
Thinking it over, he had a backup plan to teleport away at any time, and there was nothing following the woman.
Marcus decided to stop and ask what had happened:
"Ma'am, seems like you're having a rough night."
Elena felt a sense of trust when she saw this handsome man stop.
Sometimes, good looks can create trust, though they have nothing to do with actual character.
"Help! I'm sorry, I'm trapped in the subway. My friend was attacked, you know? She tried to... then the doors opened and she was taken away. Someone kidnapped her, she..."
Elena rambled on.
"Stop! Did you see what it was? Was it human, monster, or some kind of creature?"
Marcus interrupted Elena's rambling and asked.
"I don't know, it was very fast, like a werewolf in a movie."
"There's something wrong down here."
Elena took out a cigarette, lit it with trembling hands, and took a drag.
"Is that so? In that case, I'm getting out now. You want to come with me?"
Marcus asked calmly.
"My friends..." the woman said worriedly.
"Go outside and call 911, or you can turn around and go find your friends now. I won't stop you."
Marcus finished speaking and continued walking toward the subway exit, ignoring her.
A wise man doesn't stand under a dangerous wall—he had no intention of playing hero.
Hearing this, Elena stopped mentioning her friends and quickly followed Marcus.
Suddenly, a cacophony of squeaking rats erupted from within the passageway wall, along with Elena's cries for help echoing through the tunnels.
Elena, right next to Marcus, was terrified by her own voice echoing through the wall. She turned pale and ran, dropping her cigarette in the process.
The little white dog reappeared, staring intently at Marcus and Elena, wagging its tail.
Then, a man and a woman dressed as homeless people, wielding switchblades, emerged from the maintenance passage and stood beside the dog, blocking Marcus and Elena's path.
Marcus stopped.
"Leave the briefcase and your wallet," the thin man shouted, his eyes bloodshot, trying to intimidate them.
The two vagrants, unaware of what was happening deeper in the tunnels, saw Marcus's well-dressed appearance and decided to rob him.
"Ah!"
Elena screamed in fright, taking a step back and hiding behind Marcus.
"What good is money to a dead man?"
Marcus said coldly.
An ordinary man, of course, wouldn't stop Marcus.
He could easily kill the thin man with a simple touch.
"What do you mean?"
The thin man started to say, then cried out in pain, his voice trailing off.
(End of Chapter)
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