Apocalypse Landlord: My Tenants Are All Beautiful Heroines.-Chapter 31: Read The Terms And Conditions Carefully

"I did it, thinking you were a professional," Aiden shrugged, walking back inside the warehouse. "I thought you could deal with the goblins with ease. I guess not—"

Marcus lost it and grabbed Aiden’s shoulder to stop him.

"Don’t you dare pin this on me!" he yelled. "You did not have to sacrifice an innocent—"

Before he could say anything, Aiden backhanded him. Although he controlled his strength, he still knocked a tooth out of his mouth.

"All that boasting and no ability to back it up," Aiden scoffed. "If I hadn’t done what I did, I would still be in a delusion of your strength."

"What...?"

Aiden didn’t stop and continued blasting Marcus.

"I merely simulated a possible scenario to test you, and you failed miserably. Imagine if it had been Glenn or Karina down there, injured and needing your support. They would have died in that alley if they trusted your marksmanship."

Suddenly, Marcus laughed, understanding what Aiden was doing. He messed up and wanted a scapegoat to ease his own sense of responsibility.

That’s why he was coming up with all the excuses out of his ass to make him feel guilty enough to stay silent about what happened.

"You want to silence me through your gaslighting?" Marcus snarled. "No, that’s not going to happen! It is your fault, and I’ll make sure everyone knows what you did."

Marcus got up, rushing towards the doors, afraid that Aiden would silence him now that his plan had failed. Just as he was about to reach the door, he fell to his knees and began gasping for air while clawing his throat.

He teared up, unable to breathe. Marcus opened his mouth to compensate, but it was like his lungs refused to work, like someone was pressing down his chest.

"Tsk, poor guy," Aiden clicked his tongue, squatting next to Marcus. "Didn’t your parents teach you to read a document carefully before signing?"

Still gagging, Marcus’s eyes widened in horror.

"Ah, the lightbulb moment," Aiden chuckled, patting Marcus’s cheek. "As amusing as your expression is, I’m afraid it’s a bit too late to regret now."

After saying that, Aiden produced the contract he had made everyone sign and pointed at the exact clause that was choking Marcus at that moment.

"Must not participate in any action, intentionally or unintentionally, that could be harmful to Party A or other tenants without Party A’s explicit permission," Aiden smiled, putting away the contract. "Do you want to guess what you did just now?"

Marcus claimed he would tell others about Aiden’s true nature. Did he think he was stupid enough to expose his ’true’ nature without a plan?

Aiden had been looking for an excuse to check the contract’s enforcement. He wanted to see what would happen to a tenant if they went against the terms. The system did not tell him what would happen, but after seeing it in action, he was impressed.

He didn’t even have to lift a finger to get Marcus to his knees. The system enforced the contract without requiring any input from him. Similarly, whether Marcus lived or was choked to death depended on him.

"Let me give you a life-saving piece of advice," Aiden said, getting up. "If you want to live, let go of that absurd thought. You cannot betray me, at least not when you’re alive."

Marcus didn’t budge and kept glaring at Aiden. He was probably thinking Aiden wouldn’t be able to explain his death to the rest. After all, they knew his nature.

Even if James and Alisha believed Aiden, the others wouldn’t. Marcus hoped that would be Aiden’s undoing. The thought almost brought a smile to his face.

"Did I recruit a fool?" Aiden sighed, massaging his temples. "I showed you the contract, and yet it seems you didn’t read it. So let me make it clear to you."

Aiden cleared his throat to dramatize the scenario, "No one who sets foot inside this building can betray me. No one. Besides, everyone knows the contract they signed."

"I won’t intentionally harm any tenant. So the only reason anyone would be in your position is if they tried harming me, or other tenants, or the apartment itself."

As Aiden said the last part, his eyes fell on the homemade explosives.

Marcus was correct. Aiden did not order them. He asked James to do that for him. Karina didn’t know that, only Old Joe did. Even if the oldie tried something, Aiden would just sacrifice James, saying he was betrayed, too.

Karina didn’t have enough brain cells to uncover the truth on her own. Old Joe, in contrast, had too many. However, he would realize that if Aiden didn’t hesitate before sacrificing James, then eliminating the old man wouldn’t make Aiden lose sleep.

"Let’s just say that you got your hands on the explosive, intending to blow the building up. Since you thought of betraying us, you choked to death."

Aidne laughed and continued, "Sure, your partners would have a difficult time believing that. But what if I make Old Joe the villain? If he forced your hand, then there wasn’t much you could do, right?"

The more Aiden talked, the more disgusted Marcus felt. He would make Marcus a hero in death, winning the loyalty of his partners and maybe even Karina. At the same time, he would use that opportunity to deal with Old Joe, the only one outside Aiden’s influence.

Marcus wanted to curse Aiden to death, but he was already blacking out.

I... can’t die... here.

"For...give... me..."

Marcus forced the words out. As soon as he did, the pressure on his lungs eased. He gasped and began to cough. Aiden, being the kind landlord he was, even patted his back.

"You made the right decision," he said.

Marcus didn’t reply. To survive, he had to submit, but he wasn’t planning to let it go. Someday, he would figure out a way to make Aiden pay for his actions.

However, just as the thought of revenge crossed his mind, the pressure returned. His body felt like it was being crushed from the inside.

"You never learn, do you?" Aiden mumbled, shaking his head in disappointment.

Marcus assumed he was punished since he had expressed his thoughts of betrayal the last time. But he had merely thought about it, and the punishment was much worse.

He looked at Aiden as if wondering if he had read his mind. But Aiden didn’t bother disclosing the truth. He just sat there, watching the show.

In the end, Marcus collapsed. The system only let him go after he swore he wouldn’t harm Aiden in any way. Not even in his thoughts.

Just then, another notification appeared before Aiden that took him by surprise.

[Tenant: Marcus Holloway’s loyalty rose to 97%]

"Seriously? A near-death experience raised your loyalty? And here I thought James was the pathetic one."