The atmosphere inside the brothel turned suffocating almost instantly.

One second ago, it had just been a room filled with drunk men, cheap perfume, and loud breathing.

Now?

Every single person in the building had turned toward them.

Nicholas’ eyes narrowed behind the X Glasses.

’I lowered my guard because I didn’t expect this outcome...’

His fingers twitched slightly beneath his coat.

’Fighting this many people in such a cramped space will be troublesome.’

They’d expected resistance.

Maybe armed guards.

Maybe threats.

Not this.

Not an entire building suddenly trying to kill them.

"Don’t tell me to stand back," Selena scoffed, shoving his arm aside as she stepped forward. "You can’t take all of them alone."

Her gaze sharpened coldly toward the crowd surrounding them.

"Supervisors might not have abilities, but we weren’t hired for decoration either." Selena cracked her knuckles lightly. "Handling people like this isn’t difficult."

Her eyes slowly swept across the room.

"And besides..." her brows furrowed slightly, "these people don’t look normal."

The black miasma slowly slithered through the room like living smoke.

It curled around their legs.

Crawled through cracks.

Hung unnaturally in the air.

"They look controlled," Selena muttered. "Some kind of ability."

"It is," Nicholas replied calmly.

The blue glow from the X Glasses flickered faintly across his face.

"The glasses already confirmed abnormal atmospheric readings."

Selena glanced sideways at him.

"Tch. Convenient."

"Just try not to get hurt," Nicholas said with a stern face, as he took the weight of their current predicament.

"I don’t plan to" Selena replied, shifting her stance.

Nicholas ignored the comment.

’Good.’

Something in his chest loosened slightly, ’Protecting her while fighting would’ve been annoying.’

The moment of calm lasted less than a second.

One of the guards moved first.

Nicholas noticed it instantly.

The slight shift in balance.

The tightening of the shoulder and that movement toward the gun beneath his jacket.

But Nicholas was faster, his hand slipped beneath his coat.

A sharp metallic glint flashed briefly through the dim neon lights.

Fwip—

A dart flew through the air.

The guard’s eyes widened.

Thunk.

It buried itself directly into his neck.

The man’s fingers spasmed violently.

BANG!

The gun discharged accidentally toward the ceiling.

The deafening gunshot echoed across the brothel.

Plaster rained downward.

And then—

Everything exploded.

The men rushed forward all at once.

Knives.

Broken bottles.

Metal pipes.

The guards pulled out pistols.

Their empty eyes stared straight ahead like puppets moving under invisible strings.

Nicholas moved first.

His leg slammed into the nearby table.

CRASH!

The heavy wooden table flipped violently into the group charging from the front, knocking several men backward instantly.

Before it even finished falling—

Nicholas was already moving.

A man lunged at him from the left with a knife.

Nicholas tilted his head slightly.

The blade barely brushed past his face. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

His hand shot out instantly.

Grab.

Twist—

Crack!

The man’s wrist bent unnaturally.

The knife clattered loudly onto the floor.

Before the man could scream—

Nicholas drove his knee into the back of his leg.

The man’s knee folded instantly.

He collapsed forward.

Nicholas’ palm struck the back of his neck.

Thud.

The man went limp immediately.

---

Above the brothel—

Vixen stared silently from the rooftop.

The wind whipped through her white cape as her eyes followed Nicholas’ movements carefully.

’...Isn’t he supposed to be a newbie?’

Her brows slowly furrowed.

She’d seen experienced heroes fight before.

Even trained A-ranks.

But the way Nicholas moved felt different.

Too efficient.

It looked less like fighting...

And more like someone carrying out a routine task.

’If he’s not a newbie, how come I’m only seeing him for the first time?’

---

Another man charged straight toward Nicholas.

His hulky frame casting a large shadow as he dashed forward at him.

Nicholas reached beneath his coat and pulled out a handgun.

"Don’t kill anyone!"

Selena’s voice rang out immediately.

Nicholas’ finger was already tightening against the trigger.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

’Late warning.’

BANG!

The bullet tore through the man’s thigh instead.

The man screamed loudly before crashing sideways into a broken chair.

Nicholas stared at him silently for a moment.

Then calmly slid the gun back into his coat.

’Annoying.’

Killing was easier.

Cleaner.

More efficient.

Leaving enemies alive after neutralizing them felt unnecessarily messy.

But orders were orders.

For now.

Nicholas reached beneath his coat once more.

Click—

A collapsible baton extended sharply with a metallic snap.

The men rushed him again.

Nicholas stepped forward calmly.

And the beating began.

Crack!

The baton smashed against someone’s forearm.

A scream echoed out.

Nicholas spun sideways smoothly.

Thud!

The end of the baton jabbed directly into another man’s stomach.

The man folded instantly.

Someone attacked from behind.

Nicholas sidestepped casually, grabbed the back of the man’s shirt, and slammed him face-first into the ground.

CRASH!

Another swung a broken bottle.

Nicholas blocked the arm with his forearm before driving his elbow directly into the man’s chest.

The bottle shattered across the floor.

He never stopped moving.

Every step connected smoothly into the next.

No wasted movements.

No panic.

No unnecessary force.

Just clean efficiency.

The room slowly went quiet.

One body after another dropped across the floor.

Broken tables.

Shattered bottles.

Groaning men sprawled everywhere beneath the flashing red neon lights.

Less than five minutes later—

It was over.

Nicholas calmly collapsed the baton back into its compact form before slipping it into his coat.

Silence filled the brothel.

Selena stood nearby catching her breath slightly.

A split rested across her lower lip.

Her knuckles had gone red from fighting.

But her eyes weren’t on the unconscious men scattered around the building.

They were fixed on Nicholas.

"...Where exactly were you trained?" Selena asked quietly.

Nicholas adjusted the collar of his coat calmly.

"I watched action movies."

Selena stared at him blankly.

"...You’re a terrible liar. What’s going on—"

Selena didn’t finish her words as the sounds of footsteps filled the room. Breaking in from the backdoor were several guards fully armed with guns.

"Shit" Nicholas muttered.