Omar was terrified. His legs gave out beneath him.
"No! No more! Please!" he pleaded, collapsing to his knees before Rian.
"I never gave them the evidence, I swear! Let me help you. I'll make you Inspector General of Lac Thanh PD—just say the word!"
But Rian wasn't here for titles. He wasn't interested in trading favors with the corrupt.
He stared coldly down at Omar. "You think a badge will save you? Try surviving a month in interstate prison, Mayor."
"I've heard guys like you get real popular with the steel bar crowd."
Omar's breath hitched. The threat was crystal clear. Either obey, or rot in hell.
His pride as mayor—the status, the power, the money—it all meant nothing now. He was groveling before a young officer with yellow skin, someone he'd once thought beneath him.
But he didn't dare move.
He was too scared.
"You can't kill me," Omar gasped. "You'll go to prison!"
Rian just laughed softly. "You think I'd do it with my hands?"
He pulled three orange bullets from his belt, squeezed them together until they fused into a golden orb.
Omar's face turned white. "Brass…? That's… that's not even lead!"
"You were never going to play fair, were you?" Rian said. "You planned to betray me the moment I turned my back."
"But you don't get to trade anymore. You get to obey."
Omar trembled.
Rian leaned in. "If I ever hear you disobey or so much as breathe out of line… those negatives will be on every front page in the world."
"Yes, Master," Omar stammered.
Rian sneered. "Don't call me that."
Then he turned and left.
Omar slowly got to his feet, touching his face where the slap still burned. His eyes flickered with shame, but deep down… rage was building.
Rian drove off in his Hellcat, but not before noticing the Ford F-150 tailing him in his rearview mirror.
He smirked.
In the Ford, Kudou Tairou, head of the intelligence sub-team, was watching through binoculars.
"That damn yellow monkey cop… driving that fancy car? What a joke."
One of his agents piped up, "Sir, this guy wiped out a 156-man terror cell. Should we even engage?"
Kudou smirked. "Of course. But we're not alone. We've got Itou and the embassy backing us. We'll handle him."
He clicked his comms. "Confirm Rian's location and prepare for interception."
Soon, two motorcycles flanked Rian. One of the riders swung a metal bat toward the Hellcat.
Rian didn't flinch.
The Hellcat's V12 engine roared like a wild beast. The bat connected—and shattered. Both bikes skidded, crashing as the riders tumbled across the pavement.
Rian braked hard. The car came to a screeching halt as he stepped out, shotgun in hand.
The attackers were still twitching.
"You call this imperial bravery?" he spat.
Kudou shouted from the truck, "He's going to kill us in broad daylight!"
Rian's face was calm. He took aim at the shattered motorcycle and fired. The Cobra shotgun barked. The bodies flew.
Another car skidded to a halt nearby.
Inside, a black van, sniper rifle ready, Itou Hisami lay in wait.
He saw Rian step forward, dead calm.
"Target locked. Say goodbye," he whispered, pulling the trigger.
Rian's instincts flared. His mental alertness—pushed to Lv.4—saved him again.
He rolled just as a bullet whistled past where his head had been, slamming into the pavement.
"There you are," Rian muttered, scanning 200 meters ahead.
He dashed forward.
Itou's eyes widened. "No way… he dodged a bullet?! That's not human!"
Panicking, Itou began firing multiple shots.
Rian zigzagged, closing the distance fast. Like a blur, he leapt onto the hood of the van, smashed a foot through the windshield, and jammed his shotgun directly at Itou's chest.
"Sayōnara."
BOOM.
Itou's body slammed back into the seat. Blood sprayed across the dashboard.
But just before he died, he'd pulled the pin on a grenade.
Rian's eyes widened.
The van exploded in a fiery burst, but Rian had already rolled away, using the Hellcat for cover.
Blood rained down in thick droplets. The van was reduced to twisted metal.
Rian stood up slowly, brushing off debris.
"Next time, bring someone stronger."