Chapter 196: Kingpin’s Flattery
In the second-floor living room of Luke's Bar, the Punisher, Frank, was already fully armed.
He looked ready to charge out and kill.
As for Luke, he was firmly blocking Frank. Outside, the place was packed with gangsters, so many that they had nearly filled the entire street.
Even someone as strong as Luke felt he might not survive if he went out there.
Frank was the same.
But Frank did not care about that. Stubborn as he was, since he knew he could not escape, he might as well start killing. Trading one life for one before dying would not be a loss.
Trading one for many would be a huge win.
It would be best if he could take some of those bosses with him. Then Frank could die with a smile.
However, neither of them had expected Kingpin to suddenly arrive at that moment, surrounding the Irish mafia together with the other gangs of Hell's Kitchen.
Frank was stunned.
What's going on? Are these guys having an internal feud?
What a perfect opportunity.
Frank and Luke exchanged a glance. They pressed against the windowsill, pricked up their ears, and began listening.
The more they heard, the more something felt off.
Judging from the conversation between Finn and Kingpin, Finn was here for revenge, while Kingpin and the other bosses seemed to have been warned by someone.
And they were very afraid of that group, so Kingpin and the other bosses had hurried over to stop Finn.
After thinking it over, Frank and Luke almost immediately thought of one person.
"Your friend?" Frank asked.
"Yeah. I think it can only be her," Luke said with a shrug, looking as if he did not know much either.
How long had he even known Jessica?
Jessica had said earlier that she would solve it, but he had not expected her to solve it this way.
It seemed Jessica had really joined some incredibly powerful organization.
Even someone like Kingpin was afraid of them.
Then came a loud boom. Jessica made a stunning entrance, descending from the sky and landing right in the middle of the gang bosses.
Even from the second floor, Luke clearly saw Jessica's face. A trace of joy and gratitude appeared on his dark features, followed by confusion.
Jessica can fly now?
Did I mishear earlier? Was that a sonic boom?
Then, when he looked at Jessica's outfit, he suddenly sucked in a breath, his eyes widening. He recognized what Jessica was wearing.
"My God…"
"You didn't say your friend was one of those people," Frank also recognized it and could not help muttering to Luke.
It looked like they wouldn't have to die after all.
Luke wore a comical expression, practically embodying an "I didn't know either" meme.
Down below, Jessica felt a burning gaze from a certain admirer. She looked up and spotted Luke and Frank at the second-floor window, both staring in shock. She happily waved at them.
Her movement nearly scared everyone present to death.
Finn, in particular, felt his legs tremble.
"Ma'am, I'm very sorry. This was my failure." Kingpin was both shocked and delighted. He was shocked because a true big shot had really come tonight, and fortunately, he had rushed over. He was delighted because it seemed he now had the chance to show his loyalty.
So Kingpin hurried forward, looking humble.
"It's fine. You did well," Jessica said.
Jessica did not particularly like Kingpin.
After all, as someone who had lived in Hell's Kitchen for a short while, she had heard plenty of rumors about him.
But seeing that his attitude was sincere enough, she did not act too coldly and casually replied.
In the end, her gaze landed on Finn, whose body was trembling nonstop.
She looked at him as if she were looking at a dead man, then walked toward him.
She stopped in front of Finn. The distance between them was less than two meters, yet every step felt as if it had landed on his heart, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
"Don't block the way. Move."
Jessica no longer had the immaturity she once possessed. She now carried the killing intent and authority unique to a Raven soldier.
The difference in the level of life was not something a mortal body like Finn's could resist.
Hearing Jessica's words, Finn's mind went blank.
He obeyed by instinct and subconsciously stepped aside. Not only him, but his nephew Peter and the other enforcers and leaders behind him did the same.
After they opened a path, Jessica walked straight toward Luke's Bar, reached out, and pushed open the door. Her figure slowly disappeared into the dark bar.
Jessica had not paid any attention to the Irish at all.
Finn's heart, which had nearly stopped beating, came back to life.
Was she letting me go?
Just as Finn was about to weep with joy, a thick arm wrapped around his neck. Finn's scalp went numb. He looked up and saw the nearly two-meter-tall, burly Kingpin staring down at him with a "kind" expression.
"Finn, we need to have a talk."
Finn swept a desperate glance from the corner of his eye and saw that the Hand and the other gang bosses' men had already aimed their guns at his subordinates.
He knew the Irish were finished. And so was he.
All because of him.
"Kill them."
With Elektra's command, the slaughter began.
As for Jessica, who had already entered the bar, she did not care about the sounds of killing outside.
The girl's mind had already matured enough to match the strength and status she now possessed. She had a clear understanding of herself, the Raven, the Astartes, and BOSS.
She knew that under the momentum of the greater trend, many things would naturally follow their course. She did not even need to worry too much about them herself.
If the Irish were gone, then they were gone.
They were nothing but a group of wicked people who committed every evil imaginable.
They deserved to die.
It saved her the trouble of doing it herself.
It had to be said, the Punisher really was worthy of being a famous god of slaughter. Even in this desperate situation, he had not given up hope of survival. Instead, he had set all kinds of traps inside the bar.
Using everything available in the bar, he had transformed them all into lethal weapons.
If the Irish had barged in, a large number of them would probably have died in the very first encounter.
Fortunately, with Jessica's superhuman physique, senses, insight, and awakened Observation Haki, she was able to dodge each of those deadly traps hidden in the darkness.
She arrived on the second floor.
There, she saw Luke and the Punisher, Frank.
"Hey, big guy. Long time no see. And Punisher, nice to meet you," Jessica said, still the same warm and enthusiastic girl.
"Jessica, you…" Luke's mood was much more complicated.
He had good feelings toward Jessica, but he never expected the gap in their statuses to become this large. She now had the backing of a mysterious and unknown power that could make even Kingpin and the other gang bosses tremble in fear. On top of that, her combat ability far surpassed his own.
Now Jessica had transformed into a goddess, while he remained just another person scraping by at the bottom of Hell's Kitchen.
How could Luke not feel complicated?
Jessica, on the other hand, did not think that much. Or rather, Luke had hidden some of his thoughts very deeply.
She had not noticed that this big Black man had developed strange feelings for her.
In truth, even if she knew, she would not take it seriously.
After all, the two had only met a few times. At most, Jessica treated Luke as a friend. Develop into lovers?
Sorry, not very likely.
She had come into contact with far too many outstanding men.
"Punisher, my Leader asked me to bring you a message," Jessica said seriously as she looked at Frank.