2. A Strange Man

"Asshole."

The sentence escaped Maura's lips after the blindfold was removed. In front of her, a stern-faced man displayed an expression of satisfaction. His sinister laughter came out looking at Maura who was limply bound all over. Echoing in the narrow room, there were many crust stains on the walls, but the lights were too brightly lit.

"Ah, you've grown so big and beautiful, Maura," said a man in front of Maura. His hand moved towards Maura's neck and gave it a gentle stroke. "How come I didn't know about your existence all this time?"

Maura gritted her teeth, then tried to move her hands that were tied behind her body. Maura's brown eyes flashed at the strange man in front of her. "Do you know where I am?"

The man in front of Maura raised both eyebrows, then laughed wryly. "From where? Hey, don't forget my warning a few years ago. I told you not to try to run because I can still find you."

"That's long past, asshole! I have nothing to do with your problems!" Maura shouted in furious protest.

"Of course you do!" The man's tone was no less elevated, making Maura show the sharpness of her eyes even more. The man gripped Maura's jaw hard and looked up. "You think you can live in peace? Even if your father has a seventh descendant, I'll find and finish them off!"

Maura closed her eyes, enduring the pain from the pressure of this man's sharp nails on the skin of her cheeks. The man deliberately lowered the fingers with the pressure of his sharp nails, creating pain on the skin of Maura's cheeks. As Maura hissed in pain, the man grinned.

"You shouldn't be Oscar's descendant. That fool has absolutely no ingenuity, easy to trap," the man whispered in Maura's ear, provoking a pair of Maura's eyes to open.

"S-sial... argh! Don't you feel guilty?"

"For what I did? Unfortunately... your father deserved to die," the man replied, tilting his head with a satisfied look.

Maura really did not understand why this man was targeting her. She wanted to protest more, but the pressure of the nails on the skin of her cheeks held Maura's lips. No words could come out freely, all she felt was the pain of the scratches. Even the pain after hearing the words of the man in front of her.

"B-not... my father who... pan... bag... died..." With difficulty Maura uttered her sentence. "B-but... you..."

The man was enraged. He slammed Maura's cheek to the side. Maura's breath caught, not immediately lifting her face. For a few seconds Maura closed her eyes to catch her own breath. She couldn't let herself get emotional. The rapid pumping of her heart made her chest squeeze tightly.

"You're still acting," said the man in front of Maura. His tone was emphatic and cynical.

It seemed like Maura couldn't help but get angry. After lifting her face, Maura spat in the face of the man in front of her without including any hint of emotion on her face.

"Get off me, you bastard," Maura hissed with firmness. There was no fear.

The man in front of Maura wore an artificially surprised expression. "Wow, it turns out that you also grew up to be a rude person. Just like your father."

Maura's chest heated up at the mention of father. Her mouth snarled as her face slowly advanced until they were already close to each other, now only an inch apart.

"You made my father like that," Maura replied.

The man raised both eyebrows, intrigued by Maura's reaction. "Are you blaming me?" he asked. "It's your own father's fault for breaking the agreement."

Maura's breath caught. The man's words snapped her memory back a few years. Maura clenched her fists and jerked her own shoulders. The rope was too strong.

"What do you want?" asked Maura without further ado.

"Hmm... what do I want?" The man furrowed his brow. Then a mocking smile curved. "I want you," he said with a chuckle.

Maura laughed wryly. "What for? I don't have anything for you to wear."

"Your body," the man said. "You're the only one left from your father's family. It's a shame your brother has to go to prison."

"There is no need to bring up my brother," Maura insisted. "You were the cause of my family's destruction."

"Is that so? But I don't feel that I'm the cause at all."

"What can you realize about yourself?" Maura asked with a sardonic smile. "I will not allow someone like you to touch my body."

The grin on the man's face gradually faded. A streak of annoyance formed from the sharp curve of the eyebrows. A look of offense crossed his face.

"Hey, you're a nobody but dare to challenge me?"

Just as the man raised his hand to deliver a slap, a loud crashing sound echoed. Maura and the man in front of her turned their attention towards the door, then widened their eyes when they saw a truck speeding through the door into the room.

Maura's face was even more dumbfounded as the wide wooden door of this room was shattered instantly.

"Damn. Who's that freak?" The man in front of Maura turned around and squinted when the truck's headlights were turned on.

Maura's eyes narrowed under the spotlight. The truck had only stopped a few meters in front of the old man in front of Maura. The sound of the horn sounding repeatedly was deafening, making Maura hiss because she couldn't close her ears. It only lasted for five seconds.

With the car's headlights still shining in the eyes, the sound of gunshots rang out three times. Unbeknownst to the man, several people descended from the back of the car. The movement was so fast that Maura did not realize that someone was standing behind her.

"Need me to let go?"

Maura gasped as her head turned to the source of the voice. She squinted to see a man wearing glasses and an all-black suit.

"HEY, WHO ARE YOU?"

Maura was confused when the noisy sound of fighting was immediately heard. But from the side, someone who had just arrived who knows who asked again, "Hey, don't want me to let go?"

Maura's gaze turned away. "Who are you?" she asked a man who looked at her straight on behind sunglasses. "I don't want to carelessly follow someone strange like you."

"This place will be destroyed soon. Do you want to stay here and be reduced to rubble?" the man asked.

Maura furrowed her brows. Before she could answer, gunshots suddenly rang out. Maura's breath caught as she saw the sight of several of the old man's bodyguards lying on the ground after being shot. The strangers who had just gotten off the truck had fired brutally.

"Aish. You took so long to answer!"

Maura looked to the side, startled because the Man-who-knows-who had suddenly done God knows what to the rope in her hand. Maura hissed and glared in panic.

Maura looked to the side, startled because the Man-who-knows-who had suddenly done God knows what to the rope in her hand. Maura hissed and glared in panic.

"Hey, what do you want?" Maura asked.

The man behind Maura did not answer. With a wary look, Maura watched the scene in front of her. From a few meters away, the old man who was holding Maura earlier was already running in the direction Maura was. His jaw was covered in blood. Maura instantly panicked.

"He's looking this way!" Maura urged the man behind her.

As if he understood who she meant, the man behind her chuckled. As the man stepped closer, the ropes binding Maura's body and hands were untied.

The man behind Maura straightened up and pointed a gun at the approaching man. Maura closed her eyes as a gunshot rang out from the gun next to her face. The bullet hit the man's leg until the sound of a man's groan could be heard. The man's body fell forward in seconds.

"Get out of here, you can go through all that chaos?" The man behind Maura asked in a voice implying a glimpse of worry.

Maura looked at the scene in front of her. People lying helplessly, blood pooling, fights that crushed each other. The atmosphere that sparked Maura's memory until she didn't realize her body almost staggered backwards. But the man behind her caught her wrist and hissed.

"You come with me!"

Maura gasped when the man behind her suddenly pulled away to run. Just as she opened her mouth to protest, a gunshot jerked her away. Maura let out a shriek, distracting the old man who had gotten up limply. Meanwhile, the man on the side led Maura along the back road, away from the chaotic scene.

Maura gasped when the man behind her suddenly pulled away to run. Just as Maura opened her mouth to protest, a gunshot jerked her away. Maura let out a scream, distracting the old man who was already limping to his feet. Meanwhile, the man on the side led Maura along the back road, away from the chaotic scene.

"Hey, why did you save me?" Maura exclaimed amidst the escape of herself and this man-who-knows-who. Her breathing began to catch between exhaustion and fear.

The man didn't move, still holding Maura's wrist as if he didn't want to let go. Only when he was far enough away from the chaotic atmosphere did the man stop inviting Maura to run. He turned around, looking at Maura with a sharpness in his eyes.

"I only got rid of the witness. Not saving you."

As soon as the man turned around and was about to pull Maura's hand again, Maura pulled her hand to hold the man's steps. When they turned around, their gazes clashed for a few moments. Maura could only see a pair of eyes because the man's face was covered with a black cloth.

"What's your name?"

Then there was silence. The sound of Maura's breathing filled the silence.

"It's not important."

"It is important," Maura said immediately. "I didn't know that if we ever met again, I could recognize you and return the favor."

The man sounded chuckled, sarcastically. "It is certain that you will not want to know me after knowing me, Maura."

Maura's body stiffened. He knew her name?!