Thug and Idol: 10X Rewards Second Identity System

Chapter 45: Dealing with pests creates more questions

The thugs, clueless, shook their heads.

By this point Tristan was almost sure that they were either lowest-rank gangsters, or independent mercenaries—not someone with enough reach to know people like Pierce.

It didn't matter.

"I just thought that after he gave me a day off like that, I could bring him a souvenir after all. It's not like anyone will miss you two."

"Huh?!"

The thug that Tristan held at knife point tried to sneakily reach for the gun in his jacket.

Tristan moved faster, hitting his temple with the handle of his knife and knocking the man out.

[Ding!]

[Close-quarters combat skill increased by 1. Reward: your PP increased by 10.]

The man fell like a tree, and Tristan grinned.

The other thug had pulled a gun—of course they had spares—but didn't have the time to aim.

Tristan was on him in an instant, reaching between the car seats and stabbing the knife into the man's right wrist. Tristan's other hand clamped over the man's mouth, muffling his cry of pain.

Next thing, Tristan pulled out the knife and turned the thug around, slamming his face into the headboard with the crunch of a broken nose.

Now he was bleeding over the car, and not on Tristan.

Holding the thug down with one hand, Tristan pulled out a phone with another and began recording.

"Who sent you to threaten the singers?"

"Why—Why the fuck you ca—hrk!"

Tristan pulled the knife out of the man's arm. The wound was so narrow, it barely bled.

"I'm asking the questions here. Who?"

[Ding!]

[You have terrified a person. Reward: your PP increased by 10.]

"P-please! I will tell, I will tell! His name was Carlos Monfish. He... He's the bodyguard of that hot singer, Greenpawl!"

But Jane wanted to see Gemello and talk to him, and she wanted it NOW. Just like she wanted most other things.

Carlos approached her side. He was frowning over something, but Jane didn't care about his mood.

"Ms. Greenpawl, everybody is leaving. We should return home, too. Your parents will be eager to hear about your performance."

Jane huffed and glared at him. He was just a hired servant in their family house, whom her father ordered to help Jane when she declared wanting to perform in the contest.

Although Jane knew Carlos for a while, she never liked him much. There was something off about him.

"So what? They can wait. Don't hurry me!"

She looked around the audience hall once again and suppressed a sigh. With reluctance, Jane began walking toward the exit.

"When we get home, I want my golden dress prepared for tomorrow's reward ceremony. Got it?"

"Yes, Ms. Greenpawl."

'Everybody is required to come to the award ceremony. I will definitely see Tristan there,' Jane thought dreamily. 'With him, I will have two boyfriends named Tristan... Isn't that funny? You'd think it'd be more probable that I will have two boyfriends named Jack or Bob...'

***

Like promised, Tristan returned to the parking lot half an hour later, in Gemello identity and different, clean clothing. Most of the time was spent sneaking around to change identity in a toilet and pick his bags.

Nel—now without makeup, too—waved at him from the exit of the music hall.

"Tristan! You are there! Was... Well, everything went well, right?" He eyed the outside warily. "I still see their car out there..."

"It's alright. They aren't there," Tristan lied smoothly. "I said that they won't bother us again, so they won't."

Nel relaxed immediately.

"Great! So, you are a local, right? This is about my second or third time in this city."

"I can show you the best joints, then. Cooking is bothersome, so I eat out a lot."

"What are you waiting for, then? Let's move! Nothing like a big dinner after an exhausting day."

Tristan smiled, temporarily forgetting that he had a cut off ear hidden in one of his bags.

Several hours later, after a fun outing with Nel—Tristan found that he kinda missed socializing—Tristan put the ear in his freezer and forgot about it for several more hours.

Instead, all his worries were about the winner of this round of the contest.

The results were going to be declared in two more days. Two days, which were going to pass like no time at all.