In the shadows at the entrance of the Warehouse partition, a figure appeared silently, as if he had been there all along.
Carlos's heart skipped a beat.
He was certain he had been staring at that spot, yet the man had suddenly appeared as if by magic.
The man was dressed in a blue-black skin-tight suit that barely reflected the light. A mask covered his face, leaving only his eyes exposed, and a matching headband was tied around his head. He held a slightly curved katana in his right hand, while his left hand gripped a handgun fitted with a silencer, the muzzle pointing naturally downward.
A ninja?
"Who are you?" The ninja spoke with a distinct Japanese accent, his voice low and raspy. "How dare you interfere with the business of The Hand!"
The Hand?
Carlos felt the name sounded familiar, but the situation was critical, leaving no room for deep thought.
He didn't answer; answering would be a waste of time and an opportunity for the opponent to counterattack. He gripped the desert eagle in his right hand and, without hesitation, pulled the trigger, aiming for the ninja's chest!
"Bang! Bang!"
However, at the moment the desert eagle's muzzle flashed, the ninja twisted his body in a way that defied common sense, sliding forward and to the side like a phantom. His body left a blurry afterimage as the two bullets nearly grazed the edge of his clothes before hitting the wall behind him, blasting out two craters.
What fast evasion speed!
Carlos felt a chill in his heart.
"Hmph!" The ninja snorted coldly, instantly raising the handgun in his left hand to point at Carlos. "Foolish. Your weapon is too large and too slow; you cannot utilize your stealth ability at all."
His gaze swept over the exaggerated desert eagle in Carlos's hand, his tone carrying a hint of mockery: "desert eagle. Five shots outside, two shots now. Seven rounds. You have no chance to reload!"
As he spoke, he advanced with steady steps, his right hand's katana pointing diagonally at the ground while his left hand's handgun aimed at Carlos, closing in step by step: "Now, tell me, who sent you? Perhaps I can give you a quick death."
Carlos's face was grim, but he didn't panic.
Instead, beneath his black neck gaiter, he grinned, revealing a smile.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
While the ninja was still about five meters away, Carlos pulled the trigger repeatedly!
After a momentary pause, Carlos confirmed the ninja was hit, but seeing he didn't fall, he continued to fire incessantly!
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Clatter!"
The makeshift silencer was blown apart by the muzzle blast and fell to the ground.
Carlos stopped shooting, panting heavily.
The ninja fell to the ground with a thud, his eyes filled with extreme shock. He couldn't understand at all why this desert eagle could continue firing!
His previous reaction had been at its limit, dodging the first bullet, but the second shot had hit his left arm, and the subsequent shots had all struck his torso.
The gun in his hand had already fallen, his body twitched a few times, and blood quickly stained the ground red.
Carlos was dazed for a moment, looking at the Warehouse that had returned to a dead silence, feeling his heart pounding wildly in his chest.
The continuous shooting just now had left his wrist feeling a bit numb.
Only then did he step forward to carefully examine this guy dressed as a ninja.
The Hand... Marvel?
Carlos's memories of his past life became clear. It was said to be an ancient ninja organization with deep roots in the New York underworld, and there were even mentions of resurrection and Dragon Bone... [Ding!]
[Story Quest: "Drug Den Cleanup," Warehouse portion completed.]
Carlos ignored the system prompt, turned to run to the door to close the Warehouse entrance, found some clothing to wrap around the muzzle for a makeshift silencing treatment, and then fired two shots into the ninja's head.
"Bang! Bang!"
Looking at the face with two large holes, Carlos let out a sigh of relief. Your brain is mush now; let's see how you resurrect!
I'm a transmigrator who was reborn, why would I fear a minor ninja from The Hand?
Carlos paused for a moment. Well, he was actually a bit afraid. He turned to look for the computer connected to the surveillance cameras and smashed the computer case with a few shots.
A few minutes later, Carlos turned in over a dozen crates of contraband to the system and stuffed several rolls of recovered cash into his pockets.
Finally, he poured a barrel of gasoline he found around the Warehouse and on the corpse, set it on fire, and quickly evacuated.
As he climbed back into the apartment building and retracted the rope, he felt a ripple of distortion around his body.
He looked down, and the blurred light around him seemed to become clear again.
Only then did he realize that if he hadn't been in a stealth state, even if he could have taken out the first three men, he likely wouldn't have been a match for a ninja from The Hand.
Dealing with the ninja and the last-minute decision to set the fire took him five minutes longer than expected.
But fortunately, it didn't delay his evacuation.
Getting into the car, Carlos calmed down for a while. Seeing the direction of the Warehouse beginning to emit some thick smoke, he then started the vehicle and slowly drove away.
Back home, Carlos threw the cash on the table and slumped into the sofa. Looking at the several bundles of cash, totaling about ten thousand U.S. dollars, he rubbed his face hard.
"System, can I end the quest directly?"
[Quest submission criteria met. Submit early?]
Carlos remembered the ninja's eerie movements when dodging bullets and didn't hesitate at all: "Yes!"
[Quest Evaluation: B+. Successfully cleared a drug den, successfully turned in contraband, embezzled illicit funds.]
[Reward Issued: Points x 300.]
[Current Points: 300.]
It's actually a B+?!
It was a bit higher than the evaluation for the side quest of finding Old Joseph's Pocket Watch! And the point reward was more than expected.
It seemed that the neighborhood where Jesse's residence was located, as mentioned in the quest, probably didn't have ninjas. Cleaning it out might not have been difficult on its own, but he didn't dare to gamble, especially on whether or not he would leave any traces.
The Warehouse back alley was relatively remote, and after several observations and a meticulous plan, he was confident he hadn't left any clues. But Jesse's chaotic neighborhood was a different story.
Carlos shook his head and stopped thinking about it.
He stood up and began packing his clothes and daily necessities. He had originally planned to move anyway! Now he didn't want to wait.
He had accidentally poked a hornet's nest. What if they had a way to track him here!
His stealth was only a fifteen-minute trial skill, while they had an entire ninja army that could actually infiltrate and assassinate!
After some effort, he packed two duffel bags and a suitcase, and put other less important items into several cardboard boxes.
The sky was already beginning to brighten. Despite being mentally exhausted, Carlos was not sleepy at all.
Slumping back onto the sofa, Carlos finally remembered to check the system mall.
His consciousness sank into the system interface.
[personal status]
Name: Carlos Diaz
Identity: NYPD Patrol Officer
Strength: 15
Agility: 11
spirit: 12
Skills: None
Items: desert eagle Handgun (Infinite Ammo)
Points: 300
Points changed from 0 to 300.
His gaze turned to the system mall, where the available options had increased.
The original [Basic Stealth (15-minute time limit)] and other cards from last time had disappeared, replaced by several new cards emitting a faint glow.
[Skill Card: Basic Combat (30-minute time limit)]
Effect: Master basic fighting and grappling techniques, improving close-quarters combat ability.
Note: A guarantee for quest completion.
Exchange Points: 150
[Skill Card: Dynamic Vision (Passive)]
Effect: Permanently slightly increases Dynamic Vision and reaction speed, allowing for clearer capture of fast-moving objects.
Note: Seeing bullets clearly is no longer a dream.
Exchange Points: 300
[Item Card: Universal Lockpick (10/10)]
Effect: Can open most mechanical locks and some simple electronic locks; can be used 10 times.
Note: Unimpeded.
Exchange Points: 200
[Attribute Point: Strength +1]
Exchange Points: 100
[Attribute Point: Agility +1]
Exchange Points: 100
[Attribute Point: spirit +1]
Exchange Points: 100
At first, Carlos was attracted by [Basic Combat], but once his eyes fell on [Dynamic Vision], he couldn't look away.
The image of that ninja dodging bullets like a ghost was still in his mind. If his reactions had been a bit faster then, and his ability to capture movement stronger, that guy wouldn't have dodged the first two bullets at all!
Strength and Agility were certainly important, but when facing opponents who defied common sense, being able to capture the opponent's movements was the key to survival.
Although this passive skill would exhaust all his points from this quest, its value was unquestionable.
"Exchange for [Dynamic Vision]."
He didn't hesitate much.
[Consumed 300 points, obtained passive skill: Dynamic Vision... Skill loading...]
A cool sensation instantly surged into his eyes, then spread to his optic nerves and even extended to his entire brain.
The World seemed to undergo a subtle change in his eyes for a moment; the flickering text on the signboards in the distance of his field of vision became clearer.
He blinked. This enhancement didn't feel earth-shattering, but it was real, as if his visual system had undergone a fine calibration and upgrade.
Points reset to zero.
Looking at his [personal status] again, his Agility had unknowingly reached 12 points!
[personal status]
Name: Carlos Diaz
Identity: NYPD Patrol Officer
Strength: 15
Agility: 12
...Exiting the system interface, fatigue surged in like a tide, and Carlos finally felt sleepy.