QT: Against My Will-Chapter 556 - 8.73 - Release Her, You Octopus - Monster Heist

Henry’s mother lovingly packed them homemade food for their journey, ensuring they had a taste of comfort while they were away.

Shina placed Sunshine into Lina’s arms, "We can’t take you with us."

Lina protested, looking in Leon’s way, who continued to ignore her, "But I want to go with you! At least until you reach the barracks. I can handle it, I promise. If you want money, I still have the ones I received from Sir Russell."

Laura’s eyes sparkled at the mention of money. She began to write off the things Lina had been using on their journey.

Victor snatched the list from her hand and ripped it before her eyes with a slight smirk, "I think these should be covered by Shina since she was the one to force Linda to tag along."

"From what I saw, she was saved," Laura grabbed Linda. She turned the girl around and pressed a knife against her neck. "The price I asked for is nothing compared to the value of Linda’s life, don’t you think?" She challenged him further, "You are not the one who calls the shots here...Your power plays are laughable at best."

Bing Shi glanced at Victor as she put on her protective gloves. This caused the rest of her team to adopt fighting stances, their readiness apparent in their poised expressions and tightened muscles.

Henry’s mom stepped forward, "Now, now, calm down," she said soothingly, "Let’s find a way to resolve our issues without resorting to conflict," she tried to mediate and bring a sense of unity back to the group, hoping to quell any potential confrontations.

{Nora, what are my chances of winning this fight?}

{Zero.} Nora answered, not wanting her brother to separate from Shina’s team. It was more fun than all the PDA she had been fed before.

Victor’s eyes bore into Bing Shi with a menacing intensity as he closed in on her. Was she trying to steal away his system too? With a commanding presence, he raised his hand, unleashing crackling waves of electricity that pulsed around him. His aura exuded raw power, giving a hint of the force he could unleash.

His senses suddenly blackened, and before he could realize it, she was already before him in a blur of motion, sending a punch straight to his face. The impact was fierce, sending shockwaves through his body.

His legs were rooted to the ground by Alain’s roots and Leon’s earth was slowly devouring him inch by inch. There was so much happening at the same time: the countless knives piercing through his skin, molding lava dripping down his shoulders...

{Victor!}

Was he going to die?

Victor could only hear Nora’s cries before blacking out completely.

· · ────────── · ⊱❈⊰· ────────── · ·

Victor slowly regained consciousness. When his vision cleared, he found himself lying on an unfamiliar hospital bed. Ignoring his injuries, Victor flew out of the ward to the place where the intense fight had taken place. His heart pounded in his chest as he saw the barren land before him.

{What happened? Nora?}

Nora’s voice hitched before she answered, {They are gone. You did something and then everyone died.}

The power he wielded was a double-edged sword, capable of immense destruction.

Victor’s steps faltered as Nora’s words hit him like a sledgehammer. He’d pulled worse stunts before, but none had landed him a reaction quite like this from Shina before.

He was just trying to keep his ground like everybody else in her team. He couldn’t afford to be seen as a pushover, because once that happened, it would be a slippery slope. Everyone would start to test him, challenge him, and disrespect him.

Shina didn’t act when he left Bertha in a half-dead state, but ganged up on him when he tried to do something about Laura’s greed, ’Did I miss something?’

His mind reached out, searching for her essence amidst the chaos that unfolded. He could feel her presence, fragile and vulnerable, like a flickering flame amidst the darkness.

Without hesitation, he followed the trail of her soul, guided by an inner force that seemed to push him forward. He teleported to her, just to experience another punch flying in his direction.

He enhanced his body and took a step forward, enveloping the person who had just struck him in a tight embrace, "I’m not going to hurt you. Calm down."

As she moved to evade, Victor suddenly changed direction, using his momentum to try and ensnare her in another hug, wrapping a firm arm around her waist.

"Release me you octopus," said Bing Shi, pointing her gun straight at his chest, daring him to decide if she was jesting or a genuine threat.

"You pulled a bad joke this time," Victor closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against her shoulder, "I didn’t mean to push you this far."

"Then why did you?" she said silently when she noticed that he kidnapped her into his space.

"Who knows?" Victor answered cryptically.

She pulled the trigger. As the sound of the shot reverberated, he slumped, a slow stream of blood tracing its path down her hands, "We can’t coexist."

"Oh, really?" Victor asked in amusement, blood staining his lips, "Even though there is a part of me inside of you and part of you inside of me?" he whispered, his voice a melancholic lament of what had happened, "It’s a cruel irony, isn’t it? Our souls are forever entwined, but circumstances have built walls between our hearts."

It was a dance of proximity without true intimacy, of connection without a true union. And while their souls seemed to be eternally drawn to one another, love had chosen a different path for their hearts.

The tragedy of their bond was that, even in their tightest embrace, there was always a distance, an emptiness as they sought another’s embrace.

Bing Shi had found hers while Victor liked to change his partners like the seasons, forever searching for the passion he could never seem to hold onto for long.

Victor assumed that Bing Shi was being affected by his soul, thus the reason why she was circling through various partners. Her soul on the other hand made his passion last for longer — deep down, he still saw traces of the host he met for the first time — she still knew how to expertly navigate situations, always turning them to her advantage, all while keeping everyone charmed and off-balance.

Leon appeared from behind Bing Shi. He wrapped a firm arm around her waist and drew her close against him. His eyes, dark and assertive, fixed on Victor, "Do you have a death wish or are you just begging for a more... painful end?"

’Did she hide Leon inside of her space in case something like this happened again?’ Victor chuckled quietly. Now, he was witnessing the evolution of that same force, matured and even more formidable.

Sandwiched between the two, each man claimed a side, their arms creating a circle around her.

Victor met Ru Quan’s stare with icy calmness, finally dropping his facade, "Enjoy your fleeting moments. Because soon, she’ll be setting her sights on someone else. And when she does," he paused for emphasis, "You’ll be nothing more than a discarded toy in her collection."

"At least, I will be a part of her collection," Ru Quan answered with an unbothered smile.

"Don’t say I didn’t warn you," said Victor before sending them out of his space, a relieved sight escaped his lips.