"Great idea! Fantastic idea!" Ryker laughed, clapping his hands slowly.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
"You're a genius, Bourbon. Zero cost, maximum profit. Extorting candidates at the finish line? That's business."
Ryker shook his head in mock admiration.
"But greedy businessmen usually get shot."
Bourbon's smile was harder to suppress than an AK-47's recoil.
Let him talk. He's surrounded.
Can he kill 10 snakes? 100? 1,000? 10,000?
Impossible.
The Amori Brothers were already scrambling to pool their money, their faces bitter.
"So," Ryker continued, his voice hardening. "You three owe me 3 million Jenny. And you, Bourbon... you owe me 6 million."
Bourbon blinked. "Kid... you're confused. Double the price? Are you trying to negotiate while I hold the gun?"
"No," Ryker smiled, extending his hand. "I mean you owe me. Hand over your badges."
Silence.
Ponzu stared, dumbfounded. Ryker-sama... look around! There are thousands of vipers!
The Amori Brothers burst out laughing after a few seconds of shock.
"Hahaha! Is this kid brain-damaged?"
"3 million? You think money grows on trees?"
"We owe Bourbon, not you! Stop barking!"
Bourbon's smile vanished, replaced by a cruel scowl.
"Kid, the world isn't a fairy tale. Since you don't know your place, I'll just kill you and take it from your corpse!"
He blew a sharp note on his flute.
SCREE!
The snakes hissed in unison, their eyes glowing red with aggression.
"Protect yourself. I'll be right back," Ryker told Ponzu.
He walked straight toward the wall of snakes.
Hiss!
The vipers lunged. A tidal wave of fangs and venom.
"Idiot! He's dead!" Amori sneered. "No antivenom can save him now!"
But then... their smiles froze.
As the snakes entered a 1-meter radius around Ryker, they faltered.
They convulsed.
They stiffened.
And then they dropped dead, oozing pus from their mouths.
Ryker walked through the swarm like Moses parting the Red Sea—except the sea was dying.
[You killed a Viper. Trait [Poison] (White) absorbed... Auto-Fusion.]
[You killed a Cobra. Trait [Poison] (White) absorbed... Auto-Fusion.]
The notifications scrolled endlessly.
Trait: [Lethal Poison] (Gold).
Ryker had killed millions of fish over ten years. Many were venomous. He had stacked trash poison traits until they became a Gold-tier biological weapon.
He rarely used it because poisoned meat was inedible (waste of food).
But here?
It was like playing music in front of Mozart. Or dancing in front of Michael Jackson.
A bunch of White-tier poison snakes trying to kill the Ancestor of Poison?
Ryker activated his Poison Aura. Colorless, odorless.
Anything that entered his personal space died instantly.
"H-How...?!" Bourbon rubbed his eyes.
My snakes... are dying of poisoning?!
Is this kid more toxic than the snakes?!
"Kill him! KILL HIM!" Bourbon screamed, blowing his flute frantically.
The snakes surged. A black tsunami swallowed Ryker completely.
"He's done!" Bourbon laughed nervously. "Even a pro would dissolve in that much venom!"
Ponzu covered her mouth, tears welling up.
But the pile of snakes began to melt.
Ryker emerged from the writhing mass, brushing dead reptiles off his shoulder like lint.
He kept walking.
Behind him lay a carpet of thousands of dead snakes.
The Amori Brothers were paralyzed with fear.
"I... I... I..."
Bourbon backed away, his face pale.
He's a monster! A literal poison man!
Ryker reached out.
Bourbon tried to run, but his legs wouldn't move.
He was already poisoned. The air around Ryker was toxic.
"I have money! I have 6 million! I—"
Ryker grabbed his throat.
Bourbon's face turned green, then purple.
His skin began to bubble.
"Keep your money for hell," Ryker said coldly.
Squelch.
Bourbon dissolved into a puddle of goo.
[You have killed Bourbon.]
[Trait: [Strong Luck] (Purple) triggered! CRITICAL LOOT!]
[Plundered ALL Traits!]
[Acquired: [Beast Taming] (Blue), [Snake Charming] (Blue), [Poison Creation] (Blue)...]
[System: Consuming excess traits for EXP...]
[Upgrade Complete: [Beast Taming] (Blue) -> [Beast Mastery] (Purple)!]
Trait: [Beast Mastery] (Purple)
Effect: You possess a supernatural affinity with all creatures. You can communicate with, tame, and command beasts far stronger than yourself.
Ryker released the remnants of Bourbon.
He looked at the Amori Brothers.
"Now then," Ryker smiled, his eyes glowing slightly. "About that 3 million..."
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