"Don't make me come up there and kick you out," the second guy growled, tapping his gun.

I raised both hands in mock surrender and turned around, but then spun around and looked at the other guy who threatened to kick me out.

"You really don't remember me, dude? We partied together that one night."

The guy grumbled something about stupid kids as he climbed up the stairs and grabbed me by the shoulder.

Big mistake.

I grabbed his wrist, twisted it, and held one of the two steak knives I'd pocketed from the restaurant to his throat.

"Aah," he screamed. The other guy's eyes went wide, and he reached for his gun, but I flicked my finger and let the knife fly. It got him in the shoulder, and he yelped, alerting the restaurant and probably everyone in the stash house.

Shit! I was aiming for his throat.

The second knife hit the intended target, and I watched him gurgle to death, a bit horrified by what I'd done. It hadn't dawned upon me until this very moment that I was a killer now. And while my body was practically built for it, my mind wasn't quite yet.

A sharp dig into my side brought me out of my poorly timed crisis of conscience. The second guard was trying to run, but I held onto him with barely any effort and pressed my gun against his temple.

You've earned 2 Red orbs.

Congratulations: You've unlocked Knife Mastery: Basic.

"You don't want to piss me off," I warned. "I'm on a very short fuse. Don't tempt me."

I guided him down the stairs until we came to the door. It swung open a second later to two guards armed with Aks.

I dropped the guy on the left with a gunshot before the one the right opened fire on my designated bodyguard. The bullet ripped through him, killing him immediately.

Still, I surprisingly had the upper body strength to keep him upright and bullrush into the room, tossing the dead guy on the shooter. He yelped in anger, trying to shove the dead guy off him, but my knife went into his eye socket before he even got him up.

You've earned 6 Red Orbs.

I grabbed an AK and immediately rolled to the side, avoiding a spray of bullets. With my heart pumping, I hid behind a crate to the side. I'd caught a few men entering the room from the back entrance at the edge of my vision. I tucked the handgun into my pants and worked the AK like I'd used it for years, checking the ammo, chamber, and safety. While I listened for approaching footsteps, a stray thought occurred to me.

Mercenary.

That was one way to rack up the soul count I needed.

Stolen story; please report.

I listened and counted three pairs of feet lurking in the back.

When they were close enough, I raised my hand without looking and fired in a fan, pelting away at the men. I heard a scream, and others opened fire. I huddled into a tiny ball as hell descended, shredding most of my cover.

More than once, a bullet hit me, but I held on, cursing my foolishness.

Why the fuck did I think this was a good idea!

They had Aks, for god's sake.

I slipped on my mask as the bullets stopped, and I lay in wait for them. This time, I wasn't so eager.

I moved when I felt somebody poke me with their AK. I grabbed the muzzle, brushing it to the side as I fired two shots into his body. The second guy opened fire as I pulled the first man close, using his body as a shield. I repeated the same maneuver of shoving him at the last gunman, but he was smart enough to move out of the way.

When he set his sights on me again, I'd fled deeper into the room, hobbling while I activated Angel Regeneration. My wounds mended while I moved, and I was as good as new in a few moments. That was when I heard the last guy pick up his phone.

You've earned 4 Red Orbs.

140/200

"Hey Marko, we have a situation," he said, with more than a little trepidation in his voice.

"It wasn't our fault. The guy is a freak.

"Got it. I'll be expecting your team! We need to clear out before the cops show up."

The call cut.

"Fuck me," I muttered. The plan had been to make as little noise as possible. At best, I had a few minutes to wrap this shit up before I had to fight the cops and the Santos.

Again, I asked myself. Why did I think this was a good idea?

Pride. That's why.

"Hear that," the guy called out. "Reinforcement is on its way. You won't make it out of here. Better give up now and die like a man than run and hide like the rat you are. Did you really think you could steal from us!"

He called out, and I peeked past the corner as he swept by. His gaze turned back, but by then, I had already put a bullet in him. A shot caught me in the shoulder a moment later, and I grunted in pain. He dropped to the floor with a blank look on his face, and I stepped over him.

Walking up to the padlocked cupboard at the back of the room, I pointed my gun at it and shot it off with some irritation.

Grabbing a duffel bag to the side, I emptied the cupboard and rushed out of the safe room, bringing a fully loaded Ak with me. They must've had close to half a million in there.

You've earned 2 Red Orbs.

How the Santos got their hands on that much cheddar was beyond me, but it was mine now.

I stopped moving at the top of the stairs and listened for movement. When I heard none, I sprinted out, glad to be finally done with the violence for the night.

That was when I came eye to eye with a fat Chinese man with a shotgun at the backdoor. He pulled the trigger as soon as he saw me, and I dropped to my knees, sliding under most of the spread. Grunting as I came up, I perforated his gut with my Ak and made my way out of the restaurant.

You've earned 2 Red Orbs.

Ahead of me, I saw a Buick skid to a halt at the club's front entrance, four dudes spilling out. I hid behind the garbage before anyone saw me. Sweat poured from my face as I activated Angelic Regeneration again, forcing the bullets out of my gut and bringing me to full health.

I swear to God I'll club every Hollywood movie director in the head the next time I come to LA. Dodging bullets was harder than it looked.

I couldn't stick here for long. I couldn't swing around out back, nor could I cross the street without drawing attention to myself, so I went with the next idea that came to mind, looking up at the building across the alley.

"Dante had decent parkour skills in all of the DMC games. Well, DMC Dante had more platforming than parkour, but potato potahto. It'd have to do."

I tossed the bag of cash on the roof of the opposite building and took deep breaths to pump myself up before sprinting towards the walls and running up it. Surprisingly, my fingers reached the ledge on the first try, and I heaved myself up without much effort.

Congratulations: You've learned Parkour: Basic

It'd be awkward if I couldn't make it up the building. I would've pulled out my hair if I couldn't reach the money after going through all of that effort.

I was off to the pawnshop next, but first, I needed a change of clothes.