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10 - A Million Debt

There was another reason why Ernest didn’t activate his self-defense mechanism and try to fight the triplets on the spot. Here, he admitted guilt for borrowing money in the first place.

“At the very least, as a civilized human…”

Because Ernest was no longer a fierce demon, he didn’t even want to attempt to kill them, even if he found himself in a situation where he could. However, if necessary, he wouldn’t hesitate to try. Killing someone in the middle of the city wouldn’t be good for him, so it would be better if Ernest resigned and followed wherever the triplets took him.

There was a possibility that they would take Ernest to their organization’s headquarters, and the opponents he had to face might be numerous if that were to happen. However, the probability was low because Ernest’s case was small compared to the scale of the Cerberus organization, which was said to be one of the largest organizations in Orlando.

Ernest was surprised when the triplets seemed to have reached their destination within a few minutes after their car drove briefly to the east.

What concerned Ernest was if they didn’t go to a secluded place but instead would cause chaos in the middle of the city. Then, why did they bring Ernest in a car? But when Ernest looked at the location where he was taken, he sighed because it was hushed.

Looking out of the car window, Ernest saw many tombstones around. He immediately knew that he was taken to a cemetery.

Instantly, when the car stopped, and the engine turned off, Ernest was pushed out of the car by Brinci and Bronco.

Ernest briefly thought, ‘Are they planning to bury me alive without any explanation first?’

In a deserted cemetery, it wasn’t impossible. However, Ernest just smiled contemptuously at their intimidation antics. It was amusing to him, even to the extent that they went through the trouble of tying Ernest’s hands with a bloody, crumpled cloth.

“Seeing you earlier, paying attention to our tattoos, I’ll assume you already know that we’ve come to collect your debt. Do you remember what you promised two years ago if you couldn’t pay your debt?”

As soon as he got out of the driver’s seat, Branca asked Ernest.

However, since Ernest remained silent, smiling dismissively, Branca answered his question himself.

“According to the data I saw, you’ve been in the hospital for two years. Although your body may be damaged, according to our previous agreement, we’re forced to take organs from your body.”

“Seems like you know that I’ve been in the hospital for two years?”

“Don’t underestimate the reach of our information.”

“Didn’t you see my condition, from my clothes to my unkempt face? There’s no way I have money to pay my debt. So, can you give me some more time?”

Ernest tried to compromise.

It was impossible for them not to know that Ernest couldn’t possibly pay his debt. They had even confiscated and searched his sling bag inside the previous car. However, a puff of smoke suddenly wafted from Branca’s head, indicating his anger was boiling over.

Branca approached and grabbed Ernest’s shoulder. By channeling power into the hand holding Ernest’s shoulder, Branca instantly pushed Ernest’s body down.

Receiving Branca’s power, Ernest’s upper body instantly bowed.

“Is two years not enough as an extension?”

Branca shouted, trying to press Ernest’s body down even more. Unfortunately, Branca’s strength wasn’t enough to force Ernest to kneel on the floor.

Ernest didn’t show any emotion; instead, he thought positively that this was a good moment to test his fighting abilities. The worst-case scenario would be just running away.

Ernest was worried about whether they were individuals with powers beyond normal humans, but he shook his head because he didn’t sense the feeling of ‘strong people’ from them.

Perhaps because they were embarrassed for not being able to force Ernest to kneel, after looking at his two brothers, Branca cleared his throat and tried to explain some things.

“Ahem. Do you know your current debt amount? If you add everything, your total debt is around 50 million US Dollars. We know you can’t possibly pay all that when your appearance alone looks homeless. So, don’t rebel and just stay quiet because we’ve prepared everything so that we can take your organs. At the very least, we can get compensation for the money we spent to lend you.”

Ernest didn’t care about Branca’s lengthy lecture. He was more focused on his debt amount.

“50 million?”

Ernest lifted his head to ask directly in Branca’s face.

Ernest was surprised to hear his debt amount. He owed only $100,000 two years ago, but in just two years, it had become 50 million? As far as he remembered, the interest on his debt wasn’t high enough to reach the figure of 50 million.

‘Is this why homeless people warn each other not to borrow from them?’

Seeing Ernest’s silent response, Branca suddenly pulled out something like a syringe. Although Ernest didn’t know what it was, he knew it was a tool to inject something into his body.

“Is that an anesthetic? Um. I apologize if my words are rude, but I don’t like it when something I don’t understand is put into my body.”

Ernest refused with his usual playful expression.

Pow!

The sound of bones colliding rang out.

Just as Branca was about to stab the ‘needle’ into Ernest’s neck, Ernest headbutted Branca’s face using his forehead. Ernest’s hands were tied with cloth, but he could still move his head freely.

“Ugh!”

Branca did have a larger body than Ernest, but he still staggered backward. Blood began to drip from Branca’s nose, flowing profusely, soaking his lips and entering his mouth.

Branca wiped the blood from his mouth with wide eyes.

With boiling anger, he shouted to Bronco and Brinci.

“Hey, hold him tight!”

While holding his nose to prevent further bleeding, Branca told Brinci and Bronco to grab Ernest’s arms.

“Don’t move, you little brat!”

“How dare you rebel!”

Perhaps because they didn’t want to accidentally hit Ernest’s vital organs, Bronco and Brinci didn’t use any weapon; they just hurriedly tried to catch Ernest from the left and right.

But they failed to catch Ernest and only caught empty air.

Ernest had successfully evaded by performing a backflip. As he spun in the air, he even managed to kick Brinci and Bronco’s faces.

Pow!

Pow!

The shape of the bottom of the sandals Ernest wore was imprinted on Brinci and Bronco’s faces. The smell of soil and dirt that Ernest had stepped on during his stroll in the Central Business District entered both of their noses.

Finally, Ernest landed his back on the ground. To dampen the impact of the blow on his back, Ernest rolled backward like a snowball. After finishing the roll, Ernest stood up and took a fighting stance.

“Come on!”

The first thing Ernest did in a ready-to-fight position was provoke the triplets.