Chapter 721: What are you hiding

"Ticking? The Cyberpunk?"

The confusion coloring Beatrice’s expression wasn’t entirely unwarranted. Wolf hadn’t meant to be vague when he gave her his opinion on what he saw in the Red Oni Club, but he still didn’t have anything concrete to back up the claims he had.

"He’s an Ascended Cyborg now, so reading him isn’t a easy." Said the werewolf. "That said, there were some signs I had picked."

"Signs like..."

"His tone, choice of words, and the frequency at which he openly showed frustration." Wold said. "Not to mention the way he moves..."

"That still doesn’t prove anything." Beatrice said. "Simply because he’s in a bad mood doesn’t mean he going to explode."

"It’s the impression I’m getting." Wolf cast his gaze down. "He’s... becoming desperate, I think..."

"Are you talking about this secret martial arts technique he’s trying to learn?"

"No, it’s... something different..."

A clash of fists allowing you to learn things about your opponent was a purely fictional concept, but each time he sparred with the red haired demon, Wolf got the impression that he was gradually opening a book. He could only peek a few words at the edge of the pages, so it wasn’t as if he had discovered some ground breaking secret. Still, what he saw didn’t hint a anything good.

Staring down at her desk, Beatrice kept her silence for a while before returning with a question.

"How much time do we have?" 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

"Not much." Wolf replied. "It could happen any day now."

"And we still have nothing on him. I thought something would come up from the mess with Gaia, but..." Pursing her lips, she readied herself to make a choice. "I want you to find something, Wolf. Anything. If we’re going to force the BEO’s hand, we need to expose him before they could silence us."

~[ ]~

Being a guest meant seeing someone’s house at its best. To give the right impression, they would clean the place while being at their best behavior, ensuring that no one glimpses what they’re usually like behind closed doors. Trying to look beyond the presented front was considered rude, but some people still do it anyway.

Whenever he steps through the door of that night club, Wolf would always feel a wave of guilt wash over him. Though it had been a hanging spot for thugs, he had never been made to feel unwelcome. Everyone already knew his identity as the hero Werewolf, but instead of being cautious and suspicious of his presence, they treated him well. He was even surprised to find out that he had some fans among the gangsters.

Inferno didn’t engage in the illegal activities that are normal for most gangs. No drugs, human trafficking, scams, loan sharking or even illegal gambling. All they do was take some protection money from the businesses in the district, but the amount they gather was negligible when taking their finances into consideration. If not for their war against Black Skull, one wouldn’t be wrong to call them a gang only in name.

All of that made it difficult to see them as the evil organization they ought to be. The same went for their leader, the Cyberpunk. Unlike his underlings, there was no doubt about him being an extremely dangerous individual. One would find it difficult to call him a bad person, and if not for his connection to an international scale villain, Wolf felt that he wouldn’t hesitate to vouch for him.

’What are you hiding...?’

Th question played in Wolf’s mind as he stepped into the hexagonal cage. It was a little early to consider what he should ask his red haired opponent, considering he has yet to win their sparring match. He has never won one before, so it felt like there was no point to it. Maybe that was why that guy made the offer in the first place.

’This is my chance...’

As he stared at the red haired man on the other side of the arena, a scene flashed in the hero’s mind. Red hair wasn’t uncommon, but few had it from birth, and fewer let it grow long enough for it to cover their backs. Wolf knew only one person who had done so, and that person was the reason he was putting himself through all of this in the first place.

"Do you need a moment to warm up?" He asked, rotating his green bionic arms.

"No," Taking a deep breath, Wolf activated his ability, transforming into his Werewolf form. "I’m good."

"Going straight to Level 4, huh? Well, I don’t really mind." exhaling a long breath, he let his arms drop to his side and started hopping. "Then..."

Alarm bells rang in Wolf’s head, and the fur on his neck stood straight. As his eyes widened, he watched the red haired demon vanish. The streak of red tracing his motion was barely there, blending with the blurry scene as the world moved upward.

No. It wasn’t the world that had moved. He was the one who ducked so suddenly his mind failed to perceive it, but maybe that had been for the best. If he had tried doing it consciously, he likely would have been dead by now.

"Heeh, you actually dodged that..."

Going by his tone, one would never guess that the red haired demon had just tried to kick his head off. Wolf was sure of it. That attack just now was meant to kill.

"C’mon! Did you think it was going to be going easy!"

The entire cage shook from the impact of an axe kick Wolf barely dodged. Rolling to the side he quickly jumped away, trying to put some distance between them to orient himself. Most of the time, he had been the first one to go on the offence, but the roles were now reversed. The Cyberpunk had switched from his preferred style, no longer bothering with his usual passive approach. Somehow, that felt far more dangerous.

"Better take this seriously!" He said, vanishing only to appear beside him with a glowing fist. "It’s gonna hurt a lot more this time!"

With no opening to evade, Wolf moved to block. That should have been his chosen action, but something seemed to click in his mind as he watched the fist heading his way, and his right hand shot out to meet it, performing what he could only describe as the the perfect strike. The angle was just right, and the force he applied matched that of the bionic fist. The clash resulted in a small explosion, and both their limbs shot back, having repelled each other. As surprise flashed through their faces, Wolf seemed to remember what was at stake.

’I need to win this!’