Just as Joseph's hand started pulling on the trigger, the noisy sound of a can being kicked broke the tension in the air. Startled, Joseph turned while still maintaining a perfect posture. He wasn't dumb enough to let the girl at the point of his gun the chance to turn things around.

Yerin who had expected the hot kiss of a bullet on her forehead was puzzled. She opened her eyes and turned them in the same direction as Joseph. Thankfully, it was still in her line of sight so she didn't have to move her head.

A man followed the offending can for a couple of seconds. He was a tall young adult wearing a long jacket. Yerin couldn't make out his face in this dim alley but according to his built, he was most likely attractive. Most importantly though, she felt a sliver of familiarity at the sight of him.

"Is this the classic 'hero saving the day ?" Uncertainty crept into Joseph's tone. This night was already full of surprise. He didn't want another one.

"Hero? Me?" The amused voice of the man was carried to their ears.

*Even the voice, I heard it before...

Yerin was now truly curious. Who was this man?

"It doesn't matter. Hero or not. I just have to shoot down the witness as well as the victim." Joseph spoke, seemingly to himself, before reaching with his other hand into his suit.

It came back with another gun. This one he aimed at the man blocking the entrance of the alley. A callous chuckle slipped out of the man's lips.

"You want to silence me? This is the funniest thing I heard in a while." Then he became silent for a bit before continuing. "You are a funny guy. I would have left you to your activities if I didn't know that girl. Sadly, I must intervene." Though he said this. He didn't affect the emotion he spoke about.

"Another weirdo. Is their a gathering of y'all nearby?" He asked Yerin rhetorically. "Well, no matter. I will just have another body to dispose of." After coming to this conclusion Joseph pulled the trigger of both guns simultaneously.

Yerin felt the kiss of a bullet and before darkness robbed her sight, she had the time to wonder.

*Why did I feel the bullet hit my chest and not my head.

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Then everything went dark.

Joseph was looking incredulously at his twisted hand. His arm bone was even poking out of the skin. He was so shocked that he didn't register the pain immediately. He directed his gaze toward the figure beside him.

"Tsk, look at this, you are quite skilled. Despite my interference, you still managed to shoot her in the chest." The man who could be seen now wore a sardonic smile.

He was fatally handsome, with honey-colored eyes and hair.

"Now, it's time for you to go to sleep." He casually said to Joseph. Joseph wanted to utter words of incomprehension but was summerly downed with a palm strike on the head.

Joseph the suave gangster also followed the footsteps of his goons. In any case, he would not wake until the morrow. Having gotten rid of the annoying guy, Lutter crouched before Yerin's bleeding figure.

"Who knew? I would meet the 'prized' daughter of the Macht in a place like this." Lutter spoke out loud. Although it was a bizarre situation he found her in, he wasn't that surprised. Not because he knew her well, or knew why she was here/ Merely, he didn't care enough to be surprised.

"Now, what do I do? She is bleeding heavily and will most likely die soon." His hand went upward and he scratched his beardless chin ponderously.

"Oh, well. I will AFFLICT her and advise after she is in better form. I can always kill her if she is not happy with her new condition. Also, it will weaken my AFFLICTION slightly. Win-win, I say." He was extremely pleased with his idea.

He upheld his palm above her chest and frowned. he looked like he was struggling against something. After a few minutes, his frown vanished and he felt incomparably light. As if a burden had been greatly eased.

"Formidable, she can withstand so much of the AFFLICTION? I won't feel the emptiness for at least a few months." A genuine smile appeared on his face.

"And now, we wait." He leaned against a wall and lit a cigarette.

After almost one hour, the inanimated body of Yerin twitched and she opened her eyes. There was no blurriness. She went from unconscious to fully awake expeditiously.

"Well, hello. I trusted you had a restful sleep?" The smooth, slightly velvety voice of Lutter was heard. She rose to a sitting position and turned to observe him.

Yerin was silent for a moment before asking. "Do you want to eat something? I am starving."

Lutter coughed almost choking on his cigarette. He threw it aside and truly observed the girl before him for the first time. Dark hair and eyes, average height, slim waist, perfect proportions, and clear eyes. She was incredibly beautiful. That, he already knew. He was now taken aback by the candidness and the simplicity that existed in her gaze.

He never met a human with a similar vibe. He could tell when she asked that she wasn't pretending to be composed. She was just simply really hungry and expressing it.

"Sure. Why not, I have yet to eat tonight." Lutter found himself answering.

Yerin nodded and got back to her feet. She looked at her hoodie and saw that it was caked with blood. She summarily removed it and threw it in a nearby dumpster.

She was now in a simple black shirt and jeans. The shirt was also caked in blood. She reached and removed it too. Now, she was in bra, jeans, and sneakers.

She picked up her discarded bag and pulled out a navy blue shirt. She wore it and felt much better. Meanwhile, Lutter's lips were twitching. She just flashed him and she wasn't even caring.

"Let's go." She said to him and started walking. They left the alley and the comatose thugs behind.

They soon managed to leave the series of dark alleys and reached a more proper side of the city. While walking, they attracted a lot of gazes from passersby.

"Why are they looking at us so blatantly." She suddenly asked him.

"Because we are attractive?" Although he responded like it was a question, his expression said that he was certain that their beautiful appearance was the reason.

"I've always been beautiful but I never attracted this amount of staring. This is star-level awe." Yerin was not convinced.

"Maybe," He threw her a glance full of meaning. "You've become prettier."

"Maybe..." She nodded thoughtfully.

*What a funny girl.

Lutter thought to himself, amused.

"So, where are we going exactly?" He asked.

"Don't worry about it. I know a place." She answered before leading him in the direction of a bar called "Drunks Heaven"