The clock was ticking, and I had to take care of these guys before the timer hit zero; otherwise, the mission would be a failure. As I approached, I made sure not to make a sound. Now that the guys were within the range of my attacking prowess, I instructed the AI to run an ID on the individuals and hack into Mr. Tough Guy's cell.

'Create a distraction,' I commanded. 'As you wish, sir,' the AI responded. My brain buzzed as the AI worked its magic, but it wasn't painful - just a mild headache.

"Sir, the guy on the left is Ricky Martin and the other guy is Lenny Johnson. Ricky Martin is a classic case of a bad childhood turning to drug business and substance abuse. He is an active member of Braga's drug distribution ring. Lenny Johnson used to serve in Afghanistan sir but was discharged due to a disciplinary action taken." AI reported in a very brief manner.

'Distract Lenny.' I gave the command and almost immediately Lenny's phone rang. He answered it but seemed to have some issues with connectivity. The AI made the call look like it's from a family member and the audio was given some interruptions that made him think he was having bad connectivity. As soon as he went a bit forward, I seized the opportunity and sprinted toward Ricky, who was still unaware of my presence. I grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back, making him drop his gun. I then slammed his head against my knee, knocking him out cold. Lenny, hearing the commotion, turned around and saw me standing over his partner. He reached for his own gun, but I was faster. I threw Ricky's gun at him, hitting him in the chest. He stumbled back, gasping for air. I ran up to him and delivered a swift kick to his face, sending him to the ground. His gun fell off his arms and I kicked both the guns away.

But Lenny was clearly not weak. He rolled over and got back on his feet, ready to fight. He was a trained soldier, after all, and he had some skills in hand-to-hand combat. He threw a punch at me, but I blocked it with my arm. He followed with another punch, but I dodged it and countered with a jab to his jaw. He staggered back, but recovered quickly and kicked me in the stomach. I felt a tinge of pain, but I didn't let it stop me. I grabbed his leg and twisted it, making him fall again. But this time, he didn't try to get up. Instead, he reached for his belt and pulled out a knife. He swung it at me, hoping to catch me off guard. But I was prepared for that. I used my other hand to grab his wrist and applied pressure to a nerve point, making him drop the knife. He groaned in pain and tried to free himself, but I had him in a tight grip. I leaned in and whispered in his ear, "You're done, Lenny. You can't win this fight."

He looked at me with defiance in his eyes and said, "You don't know who you're messing with , you son of bitch. You don't know what he's capable of. His people are gonna fuck you and your family up..." He started babbling and spatting, but he was clearly in very much pain.

I just knocked him with a punch and heaved a sigh. My ribs ached a bit but soon it went away. I now had two men unconscious and tied up with their own t shirts. I just retrieved their guns and cell phones.

I was going to call the cops with one of their phones, while the AI sounded again. "Sir, there is something you should take into account here. The police officers who will turn up to check the area has 60 percentage of chance being on Braga's payroll. It is found that the dealers belonging to the Braga's Cartel, deal in the areas that are covered by the Police patrol units that are on their side. So, there are high chances that the first responders may let these guys leave and there is 85 percent chance that they find you and your family for retribution. So, sir killing them is advised."

I was taken aback. I was no killer. I had never even killed a chicken, let alone a human being. Even if the ones in front of me were the worst of the worst, they, at the end of the day were living human beings.

"Sir there is no need to be conflicted about making the decision. While I looked into their data, I have found traces of the crimes they committed. The number of families that were destroyed by these guys are in the range of hundreds. Lenny is a suspect in disappearance of seven kids and the very reason why he was discharged from the army was due to some allegations of him including a minor. Ricky is no better sir"

That triggered something in me. Am I soft hearted? Yes, I probably was one. I was not the one to take up violence if I can avoid it. But there are somethings that I hated the most and it just happened to belong to the guys i just had knocked out. plus I am having a good time with my family and if they were in danger because of this, that was unacceptable. i tried to channel every ounce of anger in me along with my willpower to come to take the decision. These scums don't deserve to be on earth.

The timer on the mission interface was running out and I need to take a decision fast. Plus, there are teenagers arriving, so I needed to get away soon.

Now I started looking at the options. This was a public place. Firing a firearm would draw attention. Killing them with my bare hands was also out of the question as I was still having second thoughts about killing someone.

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"Sir, there is one way you can kill them without much effort," the AI said. "You can simply put them in your storage space. Any lifeform that enters will lose its life instantaneously. All you have to do afterward is discard them, and their bodies will be destroyed."

I hesitated. I didn't like the idea of killing anyone, even if it was necessary. I knew that if I didn't do something, these men would come after me and my loved ones with more men and I was no superhero. I can't be everywhere at every moment.

I took a deep breath. "Do it AI. Store them in the space." Suddenly the unconscious men just vanished and suddenly a chime was heard from the AI as if storing them was successful. The blue screen appeared and it indicated that there were two dead bodies in my storage.

[Contents]

2 perfectly preserved dead bodies. {retrieve/discard}

I silently prayed for their souls and just pressed discard and the storage space was empty.

I didn't know what should I feel about what just happened. But the guilt was real. There was a part of me telling that I was not right doing this. But I knew this was my only way to avoid accidents and I did what I had to. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down. I needed to think clearly. I had to figure out what to do next. But there was panic and guilt creeping up and I was having trouble keeping them away.

As I was near the verge of breaking down, the AI spoke in my mind. "Don't worry, sir," it said. "I'm here to help you."

"Okay," I said. "Please help me."

The AI began to scan my brain. It was gathering data about my emotional state and my cognitive processes. Suddenly I felt something weird in my head. But whatever it was it was working.

"I'm going to start by helping you to relax," the AI said. "Please close your eyes and take some deep breaths." I closed my eyes and began to breathe deeply. The AI guided me through a series of relaxation exercises. While I was following the instructions, I could still feel the AI doing something with my brain. After a few minutes I was back to normal.

My turbulent emotions had subsided, and the sickness that had gripped me was replaced with a newfound calmness.

'What exactly did you do AI. I don't feel bad anymore.' I asked in a surprised tone.

The AI responded, "I stimulated specific areas of your brain, sir. By doing so, I helped you regain control over your emotions. Think of it as a neural adjustment to mitigate the aftereffects."

'I need to pull myself together. This world is far from the safe haven it appears to be, and I'm certain this won't be my only experience with taking a life. I must find a way to come to terms with that.' I thought as I put the guns that I got into the storage space. Then I asked the AI to retrieve every bit of information present in the two phones.

After I got that, I put them in my system space and discarded it as I did with the bodies. I walked home slowly. I was indeed feeling better now. But I didn't know if I was really alright.

When I reached back home, I saw my mother in quite a conflicted mood. I guess my mom was indeed conflicted with meeting my dad's old 'family'. I didn't want to intrude in their matters as there was a reason that they didn't tell me all this. And by the looks of it, they would be attending the wake. The clock was ticking I need to make contact with Mia Toretto soon.

I reached my room and I was in the showers when I actually remembered the mission rewards. I summoned my mission section of the AI interface.

{Main Mission} As a responsible citizen, it's your duty to keep the neighbourhood safe from the bad influence of drugs. Locate the drug dealers belonging to the Braga Cartel and neutralize them before they sell their product to teenagers. The host will be rewarded with 500 mission coins for the feat.

[Status: Completed, the host has gained 500 mission coins]

{Side Mission} Letting the drug dealers being caught by the police will not be a solid solution. Eliminate them and remove the dregs once and for all. The host will be given a mystery item for the completion of this mission.

[Status: Completed, the host has been awarded with a mystery gift. Do you wish to receive it?]

I got out of the shower and sat down on my bed. I didn't know what to think. I bloodied my hands to get these. Was it worth it?

I clicked Yes and waited. The mission interface disappeared. I was confused for a while. Suddenly in front of me, there was some sort blue coloured pixels appear as though it was building something. Suddenly there was a bright light and when the light disappeared, I finally saw my gift.

The gift was in a case that looked like a military supply. 'Is it some kind of weapon?', I thought while I was opening the crate. When I looked inside, I was stunned. It looked like a spandex suit but made of some strange material. It was light but it looked special enough. 'What is this AI. Is this some kind of a special suit?' I asked the AI while examining the suit.

"Sir, this is a Nano Armour. It is completely made of a very special composite material nanobots that is strengthened to withstand gunshots below fifty caliber. It comes with an instant equip with the AI assistance as you possess the storage space. Its most useful feature it comes with a self-repairing ability for bullet impacts less than the specified caliber."

I was fascinated. It was basically a life saving equipment that was very convenient to use. I stored it in my storage space and dressed and went down to go to the school. I knew that my parents might go to the wake and I really prayed that the story wont change from the movies and they would stay away from the whole dangers that came with that.

'AI, can you bug my parents' phone and listen to it for the rest of the day. I need you to prompt me if my dad meet Dominic and I need you to record the entire thing if they do.' I prompted the AI as I sat in the backseat of the car.

I reached the school and I was clearly not in my best mood. I killed two people first thing in the morning and my parents are attending Letty's funeral that would have unknown outcomes. I sat with Aaron and just decided listen to the class. After a while the class ended.

Suddenly my head hurt a bit and soon I knew why.

"Sir, your father has arrived at the funeral. As per the traffic cams and some cctvs near the cemetery, I have id'd Dominic near the premise. They are yet to make any contact. Do you want me to commence the eavesdropping sir?" the AI reported.

' Yes, commence the eavesdrop, AI', I said as the history teacher arrived.