MIDNIGHT PRINCE: Empire of Sin
Chapter 179 CH 173: DARKNESS

[Wild Hunt]

As always, Yui was working on the seemingly unending pile of paperwork that was placed on her office desk. But this time, she had difficulty focusing on her work.

Every few minutes, she would look up at the clock, at the time that would slowly crawl by, and then would sigh and go back to working on the papers, inspecting them and then finally signing them to approve them.

Standing in front of her, the massive man called by the codename Mammoth gave a small grin as he looked at his boss acting so fidgety at her desk.

He had been busy for the last few days as he had to focus on the expansion of their territory in the other states.

Finding people they could believe in and delegate work and responsibility was not an easy task, especially so in the world of Supernaturals.

But still, he knew very well what worried her so much at the moment. There was only one person in the world that could make the tigress of a woman, that was the boss of their organization, anxious to no end…

"We can leave at any moment, you know…"

Yui was startled at the sudden call, a sight that was impossible to witness in usual times, but in the end, she simply cleared her throat and shook her head in denial.

"The other cadres will go with Nikola and observe. I can't show up. Anyways. I am sure that Adam will show them what he's made of."

She was in no way worried about what would happen to Adam. She just hoped that the show of force that her little brother was about to display would be enough to bury any sense of discontentment that the core members of her group may have against him.

After all, all the cadres were people she personally chose and saved by her own hands. She saw them more like family than subordinates and while it was hard, she wished for their group to be in a harmonious relationship— where each member had great bonds and relationships with each other.

Unity was a virtue that she desperately sought for the group she had established with her own hands.

"Still. I am still feeling so confused right now. Has the lad really become that powerful now? In such a small amount of time?"

Mammoth really didn't know what to say about this matter. Adam had always been a mysterious boy. But since he didn't have the gift and showed no signs of its manifestation until a few weeks ago, Mammoth had not really been concerned about the boy's power level.

If it was just Yui gushing about how wonderful Adam was, he would have taken this for her usual ramblings of her oh-so-dear little brother. But the fact that even Nikola vouched that Adam was now a powerhouse showed that his powers were now the real deal.

'Way to go lad…'

Mammoth cheered him inwardly but at the same time, he mourned the fact that the once innocent young boy would now have to enter deep into the filth of the underworld and human society from now on.

"Well. It should be about time that he started, right?"

"Indeed. Whatever the outcome is, Eric has to die tonight."

This would be the first message she would send to her enemies and potential traitors.

Do not mess with the Black Tiger.

———

On the outskirts of Los Angeles, the canyons covering this remote region was a sparsely populated place thanks to the harsh surroundings of this region.

As such, those who did have houses there were generally extremely rich people who decided to build a mansion away from the hustle and bustle of the City of Dreams.

Those mansions were generally all gigantic and were proof of their fortunes, and for that very reason, each and every one of them was a masterful piece of art that would mesmerize anyone placing their gazes on them.

One such mansion belonged to the man known as Big Eric. Unlike his name, Eric was never extremely overweight or muscular.

He looked like a normal middle-aged man with a slightly rotund belly, the typical dad bod, but nothing particularly outside of the norm.

Usually, the man would be idly listening to some classic music. All his life, he had grown up in the poor streets of the city so he loved giving himself the illusion of being some sort of aristocrat to mitigate the feelings of poverty that accompanied him most of his life.

But this night, he couldn't help but feel slightly jittery inside for some reason. Leaving the expensive-looking chair that seemed more like a throne than anything else, Big Eric took out his phone and called his security personnel.

"Everything clear?"

Most of the guards of this house were just unraked Hunters but they had still received sufficient military training.

It was usually more than enough to deal with most threats coming his way as long as he didn't mess with the wrong person. Furthermore, he even had a few bronze hunters as personal bodyguards that also served as his trump cards and final line of defense against his enemies.

This would have been normally impossible for someone of his level of money and influence. But thanks to his recent deals, he had been able to hire such powerful personnel to act as his bodyguards.

But on this night, he had an odd feeling that this level of security was just not enough.

'Perhaps I should move ahead of time?'

Soon he had a big deal that would allow him to leave the gang under Yui's control and spread his wings in the truest sense. He was just at the last step and this was why he was all the more worried about what may transpire right now.

[Everything is clear boss. Nothing to be seen for miles on end.]

Eric creased his brows, ruminating on his head but he finally leaked a sigh. Perhaps he was indeed worrying for nothing. It was then,

[Wait… What the hell is this?]

"Hey?"

[A bird…? Argh!!]

"Alpha 1! Answer alpha 1!"

The buzzing sounds were all he could hear before finally, someone seemed to have picked up the signal once again.

[This is the first time I'm using this device. Hey, do you hear me?]

Only this time, the voice was completely different from before.

"You… Who are you?"

[Heh… I have been hearing this question so many times lately. Anyways, I am here to give you an ultimatum.]

At the same time as he heard the voice resonating from the intercom, he could hear the voice spreading throughout the entirety of the mansion.

[Hello hello, can everyone hear me? Seems like it. Great. So it seems like you guys have some kind of code of conduct. So I have to say this. Big Eric. Are you ready to surrender?]

'What the fuck is this guy saying?'

[This is also for everyone present inside this property. I will say. Those who surrender will be spared. I will give you 10 seconds to answer. 10… 9…]

"Bastard! Who the hell sent you!"

[7… 6…]

Eric swore inwardly and immediately signaled the bronze hunters. He did not even consider surrendering. He knew very well that as the leader, his fate would not change. All he could do was fight for his life.

[4… 3… 2… 1…]

"Come on, you bastard! I will make sure you regret crossing me."

Even as he spoke, he started to run toward the wall in his second room. He had an elevator that would bring him down to his bunker from where he could observe everything.

'Come, come, come already, dammit!'

Never had the elevator felt so slow.

[0!]

Silence spread for a few moments before the voice echoed once again.

[Very well. Since no one has surrendered willingly, I hereby declare… That all of you have received the death penalty.]

Eric ignored the mutterings of the madman. The door of the elevator finally opened in front of him.

'Finally!!'

But… Just as he entered.

Bzzzz—!

Sparks of electricity coursed through the house and then… Everything was plunged into absolute and complete darkness.

———

(AN:Twitch: https://m.twitch.tv/hikaru_genji9 would be happy if you guys could follow my Twitch channel. My goal is to reach at least 50 followers to be eligible for an affiliate. I would be really happy if you could do this for me.)