Ch.54 : The Shadow Behind the Builders

Julia focused intently on her laptop screen, fingers flying across the keyboard as she hacked into the CCTV systems set up around the Unity base construction site. She replayed the footage over and over, scanning for any hint of the stolen building materials that had gone missing recently.

But even after watching multiple angles, there was nothing suspicious in the footage.

Nic, watching from behind her, narrowed his eyes. "Can you move the view a bit? I wanna see something more clearly."

Julia raised an eyebrow, curious, but scooted to the side. Charlotte, who had also been peering at the screen, still looked confused. "There's nothing weird, right?"

Nic didn't answer right away. He shifted the footage back and forth with a focused expression. Then, a smile crept across his face. "I think I know why the materials are disappearing."

Charlotte and Julia leaned in closer, puzzled. "But there's nothing weird on the recording," Charlotte said again.

Nic nodded casually. "Exactly. And that's the problem."

Julia tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

Nic stretched. "It's already getting late. You two should head home. I'll handle it from here."

Julia and Charlotte exchanged hesitant glances. But seeing the confident look on Nic's face, they eventually gave in. "Alright… but be careful."

---

That Night

Nic arrived at the construction site. Floodlights still lit up the area, though most of the workers had already gone home. Near the supply containers, he saw two familiar figures.

"Vivi? Leona?" Nic approached them. "You haven't gone home yet?"

Vivi folded her arms and sighed. "Even if they're professionals, if no one's watching, they start slacking off."

Leona nodded in frustration. "I'm so pissed. They keep complaining about missing supplies, even though everything was ordered properly."

Nic smiled and wrapped his arms around their shoulders. "Thanks. You two really care." He gently patted their heads.

"But you should both get some rest. Leave tonight to me. You've got exams tomorrow, right? I already had my nap earlier."

They both looked like they wanted to argue, but finally gave in. "Don't stay up too late," Vivi said as they walked off.

---

Once they were gone, Nic's expression turned serious. He clenched his fists and made his way toward the worker's area.

Some of the workers were still busy, but most were relaxing—eating dinner or chatting casually, thinking no one was supervising them.

They didn't know that Nic was actually the one funding this project, even if it was all done under Leona's name.

As Nic approached, one of the workers looked up. "Hey kid, what are you doing here? This place is under construction."

Nic didn't answer right away. He scanned each man's face before finally asking, "Is it true someone's been stealing building materials?"

One worker nodded, thinking Nic was just one of Leona's friends. "Yeah! The stuff we ordered always comes up short. We have no idea why!"

Nic chuckled lightly. "Missing... or maybe you guys are making it disappear?"

Silence fell over the group.

A bulky man stood up and marched toward Nic. "What the hell's your problem, kid?! We're professionals! Don't throw around baseless accusations!"

Without warning, Nic punched the man square in the face, knocking him to the ground. Everyone else froze, some even dropping their spoons and plates in shock.

Nic crouched next to the man and said coldly, "Talk, or deal with the consequences. I don't like wasting time."

The man groaned but refused to speak. Some of the others looked nervous. Finally, one of them dared to speak up.

"You're gonna regret this, kid! We're not just construction workers!"

Nic grinned. "So you admit it. That means you're not just builders… you're also thieves."

Furious, the workers rushed to attack him.

Unfortunately for them, they weren't even close to Nic's level.

One by one, they fell, quickly and brutally. Those still conscious now trembled with fear. One bruised man crawled toward Nic, shaking. "O-Okay! I'll talk! Just please don't hurt us anymore!"

Nic nodded. "You could've just cooperated from the start."

Suddenly, another man shouted, "Don't say a word, you idiot!"

But before he could move, Nic spun and kicked him in the face, knocking him out cold.

The terrified man finally confessed, "Our boss told us to do it! We were ordered to earn extra money by extorting whoever was funding this project! We'd pretend the materials went missing, then secretly resell them. When the inventory looked short, we'd offer to 'replace' them using money that wasn't recorded anywhere."

Nic's face was unreadable. "Who's your boss?"

The man hesitated, but when Nic grabbed his hair and gave him a deadly glare, he broke. "Don't kill me! I'll send the location now!"

He shakily sent an address to Nic's phone.

Nic glanced at the screen. "If you're lying, you know what happens."

He let go of the man and turned to leave. "Get back to work. Don't even think about running."

The remaining workers could only nod, trembling.

---

In the quiet of the night, Nic made his way to the address. After a few minutes, he found himself in front of a hotel.

"A hotel? That's suspicious…" he muttered.

He walked into the lobby. A young receptionist greeted him with a professional smile.

"Good evening. Can I help you?"

Nic didn't waste time. "Is your boss the one in charge of the construction workers?"

The receptionist's face didn't change, but Nic noticed the slight flicker in her eyes. She knew something.

Without hesitation, Nic pulled out a black card. "Tell me the truth. Whatever the price."

The receptionist scoffed. "A hundred million."

Nic immediately swiped his card. Payment accepted.

The receptionist froze, eyes wide.

"So? Where is he?"

She sighed in defeat. "Room 109."

Nic smiled, then added another one million as a tip. Her jaw dropped.

He made his way to the room and knocked casually.

A burly man in a towel opened the door, glaring. "What do you want?"

Nic didn't answer. He just kicked the man straight in the chest, sending him flying.

Inside, a half-naked young woman screamed. "Who are you?!"

Nic calmly asked, "You the boss of the 'professional builders'? Or is it the guy I just knocked out?"

The woman looked horrified. "You've got the wrong person! Get out of here!"

Nic smirked. "Still lying?"

Suddenly, she threw a vase at him, but he dodged easily.

The man jumped up and grabbed Nic, slamming him to the floor.

BAM!

Nic lay motionless.

"Hah! Dumb kid," the man sneered, stepping over him. "Who sent you?"

But just as he turned his back, Nic grabbed his leg and snapped it like a twig.

CRACK!

"AAAAAGH!!"

The man screamed as Nic shut him up with a punch and knocked him unconscious.

Nic sighed and looked at his hands. "Man… if my girlfriends saw me like this, they'd probably be terrified."

He turned to the woman and yanked the blanket off her, making her panic.

"Enjoying that stolen money?" he asked coldly.

She froze in fear.

Nic stepped closer. "You've got two choices: jail… or work for me."

She blinked. "Work… for what?"

"You'll run the builder crew under my name. You'll still make good money—but legally. I'll fund everything. You don't need to know where the money comes from."

She hesitated. "And if I say no?"

Nic gave a lazy grin and took a photo of her in her current state. "Then you'll be trending online before you can blink."

She gritted her teeth. "Pervert! You probably liked taking that picture!"

Nic laughed. "Of course I did."

Before leaving, Nic fired a Love Shoot at her without saying a word.

He didn't plan on making her his girlfriend, but he knew the effect: she'd start thinking about him more and more.

"Still… I better think twice before actually dating someone like that," he muttered. "She might not even be a virgin."

To be continued...