WINTER'S SWEET EMBRACE

Later that late afternoon, away from the shadowy depths of the black market, the group navigated through the bustling crowds and arrived at a quiet open-air café.

Gwen was already seated at a round table in the corner, casually sipping on a beverage as she waited. The moment she caught sight of Maelle, she stood up and gave a formal bow.

"You can stay seated, Gwen," Maelle said while taking a chair. Vincent, Ava, and Toby slid into the remaining seats. "Report on the deliveries."

"Yes, Your Highness. Both letters were delivered successfully. Principal Brenda is now informed about Lucianne’s treasonous assault. She was visibly shaken by the report and assured me that her academic standing has been frozen immediately, pending an investigation."

"And her family?"

"The patriarch was handed the letter directly. Recognising the devastation the act of treason Lucianne has brought upon their house, the family has been thrown into disarray. They are... not happy, to say the least. It is highly probable they will retaliate against you."

"Hmph. Let them try. I am prepared for whatever measures they take."

Ava, who had been absentmindedly staring at Vincent, blinked behind her thick glasses and tilted her head. "Come to think of it, Princess, but what happened to you that you’re doing all this?"

"Gwen."

"Three days ago, Princess Maelle was lured and abducted by slave bandits. Lucianne was the mastermind who hired them. Her plan failed. In turn, we captured and are holding her to force her family and the Academy into a position where her expulsion and public imprisonment are guaranteed."

Ava’s eyes widened in realization. "Ahhh! So that’s why you’ve been missing for three days! I was looking everywhere for you. Wow, you guys are ruthless. I love it~"

Vincent leaned forward, resting his elbows on the wooden table. "Gwen, do you know anything about a Syndicate boss called Rizer?"

"Yes. Rizer operates out of a stronghold on the edge of the industrial district. On the surface, it functions as a commercial shipyard front, but in reality, it is a fortified fortress that hosts underground death matches for profit. My scouting confirmed at least five dozen humans and beastkin that hangs around that place."

"F-Five dozen?! With beastkin?!" Toby let out a horrified shriek. "We... we can’t break into a place like that! We’d need an entire knight’s squad!"

Ava held her chin thoughtfully as her lenses glinted. "Hmm... I could use my charm to slip past whatever the outer guards there are. Maybe create an illusion, and bypass the perimeter unnoticed?"

"Or we do it the easy way." Vincent put his hand on the table as a confident grin spread across his face.

Maelle raised an eyebrow. "And what is the ’easy way’ according to you, Vincent?"

"Simple. I walk straight through the front gate of Rizer’s stronghold and make a giant mess. I’ll make a scene and draw every single guard, gangster, and beastkin out to deal with me."

He pointed a finger toward Maelle and the others. "While Rizer and his goons are busy trying to take me out, you four could use the opportunity to slip inside, find the stash, and take it."

Gwen stared at Vincent in absolute disbelief. "Are you out of your mind? That’s suicidal. You cannot take on an entire Syndicate stronghold alone."

"Miss Gwen is right! Mr. Vincent, you’ll get wiped out!"

Maelle, however, merely let out a humored humph. She knew what he really was and what he’s capable of; a few dozen thugs were nothing more than insects to him.

"I approve. The simpler, the better."

"But, Your Highness–"

"Kyaaah~" Ava squirmed in her seat, her face flushing crimson as she clasped her hands to her burning cheeks. "Walking through the front door alone?! So reckless! So cool! So masculine! Vincent, you’re so hot~"

Gwen looked between Vincent’s grinning face and Maelle’s calm composure, before letting out a defeated sigh. "If you trust your strength enough to permit this insanity... then I will question her judgment."

"Thank you, Gwen," Maelle said, standing up. "Now. Lead the way."

.......

Six hours later...

The sun had long since dipped below the horizon and most of the city was asleep. After doing some last minute shopping for a bunch of balaclava masks, the group crouched along the high stone wall of a dark alleyway overlooking the stronghold and open sea behind it.

In the distance below them stood the massive, reinforced iron gates of Rizer’s shipyard, guarded by four heavily armed gangsters wearing spiked leather jackets.

Vincent stretched his neck, letting out a soft pop. He put on his mask and pulled the hood of his dark cloak down over his head. "Alright, people. Give me a minute before you make your move."

"Be careful, Vincent," Gwen warned, though her voice carried a hint of genuine concern.

"Not a chance."

He jumped all the way down into the open street, strolling casually toward the front gate with his hands in his pockets.

Meanwhile, Maelle, Gwen, Ava, and Toby moved swiftly along the shadows of the outer perimeter, scaling a low rear wall to position themselves for entry.

Vincent stopped just about ten feet from the iron gates.

The four guards snapped their heads toward him, raising their weapons. "Hey! Stay right there, stranger! This is private property! Turn around or we’ll–"

Vincent didn’t bother talking to them.

With a wide grin, he drew his fist back and channeled a small concentrated amount of dense golden divine mana into his arm. He then threw his fist forward, letting out an explosive impact wave that detonated right as it hit the guards.

BOOM!!!!!!

The structural force was catastrophic. The iron gates were ripped completely off their hinges, blasting inward like artillery shells that flew and crashed all the way through the front courtyard, crushing two supply wagons and sending guards flying into the air like ragdolls.

""AAAAOOOOOGAH! AAAAOOOOOGAH!""

*bwaAAAAAAHHP!!!*

Alarm horns blared across the entire shipyard.

Shouting echoed from every barrack and warehouse as the Syndicate’s beastkin and humans with Familiar’s poured into the main courtyard like an angry hornet’s nest.

"Let’s get this party started, shall we?!"

Vincent casually jumped inside the courtyard. He ran over to a half-constructed wooden boat resting on a repair frame, reached down, and effortlessly ripped a three-hundred-pound slab of metal plating right off its hull.

He slung the iron slab over his shoulder like a baseball bat, grinning at the angry thugs surrounding him.

"Alright, boys! Who wants to go first?!"

"GET HIM!!!"

The entire army charged at once.

One summoned a giant Bat Familiar. The creature hurled three jagged spears of hardened blood straight at his chest. Vincent swung the metal slab, swatting the blood spears out of the air like pesky insects, shattering them into harmless droplets of bloody rain.

Two sword-wielding men leaped at him from the left. Vincent dropped low, sweeping his leg to take out their ankles, before swinging the edge of the metal slab up in a devastating arc with pitch perfect form.

CLANG!

Both men launched forty feet straight up into the air and crashed through the tiled roof of a nearby warehouse with a sickening crunch.

"Homerun!"

A dog beastman lunged with dripping fangs aimed for his throat. Vincent casually ducked under its jaws, grabbed him by his scruff and tail, spun around three times like a hammer-thrower, and hurled the two-ton beast straight into a squad of advancing gangsters.

CRASH!

"Strike!"

"AAARGH! GET IT OFF ME!"

"YOU HAVE TO MOVE FIRST, IDIOT!"

Without fully invoking his divine transformation, Vincent ducked, parried, and struck with terrifying precision. Every punch, kick, and swing of his improvised iron bat sent armored thugs flying, screaming, and crashing into stone walls, leaving a trail of broken weapons and unconscious bodies across the courtyard.

Meanwhile, at the rear of the main building...

Taking full advantage of the chaotic explosions and screaming echoing from the front, Gwen scaled up the wall and shoved open a high rear window. Helping Maelle and Toby up, the group slipped inside, landing quietly on a wooden balcony overlooking a hallway.

Below them, frantically panicking goons were all sprinting toward the front entrance.

"THERE’S AN INTRUDER AT THE FRONT! HE’S DESTROYING EVERYTHING! SOMEONE TELL THE BOSS!"

Once the hallway cleared, Maelle gestured forward. "Move."

Navigating through the opulent wooden corridors, they rounded a corner – only to instantly freeze and duck behind a crate and curtain.

Walking down was a colossal figure. He stood nearly eight feet tall, his upper body was built like a brick wall, covered in coarse gray fur and thick boar-like tusks protruding from his lower jaw.

He had a massive belly hanging out of his leather jack and carried a giant black warhammer over his shoulder.

"That’s him," Gwen whispered to Maelle next to her. "That’s Rizer."

Rizer grunted in fury as another explosion rocked the building. "Useless fools. Can’t even handle a single pest." he chomped down on some meat as he marched down the stairs toward the courtyard.

Once the giant boar-man was gone, the group moved into the office Rizer had just vacated.

Ava darted around the room while twitching her nose. She hurried straight up to a thick tapestry on the far wall, ripping it down to reveal a massive iron vault door built into the stone.

"Found it~"

She flexed her fingers, letting her razor-sharp succubus claws extend. With terrifying ease, she shoved her claws directly into the reinforced iron door, slicing through the locks as if they were wet paper.

CLANK!

Inside, shelves were stacked high with chests full of gold coins, stolen artifacts, and official Syndicate ledgers. Right in the center sat a locked wooden crate containing hundreds of glowing glass vials filled with a shimmering pink liquid.

"That’s the Honey Lake Extract!" Tears of joy sprung to Toby’s eyes.

"Pack as many as you can," Maelle ordered while pulling several leather-bound ledgers off the shelves. "These documents will no doubt prove invaluable for future operations."

They began quickly stuffing the vials and gold into Toby’s large canvas sack.

CRASH!

Suddenly, the glass window of the office shattered into pieces. A full-grown, unconscious goon flew backward through the glass, slamming face-first onto Rizer’s desk and breaking the table in half.

Ava peeked out the shattered window, giggling as she watched Vincent throw another goon into a supply tower. "Perfect~ We have our escape route."

Gwen tightened her grip on her dagger, looking toward the hallway. "I will cause a secondary distraction to cover your retreat so they do not pursue you. Let’s meet back at the sewers."

Maelle nodded one. "Do not take unnecessary risks, Gwen."

"Understood!"

Gwen sprinted out of the office to set the manor’s main armory and supply depot ablaze.

Back in the front courtyard, the ground was littered with over near a hundred groaning, broken men.

Rizer burst through the main doors, his eyes glowing with bloodthirsty malice. "YOU LITTLE RAT! YOU DARE WRECK MY STRONGHOLD?!"

He raised his massive warhammer with both hands and brought it smashing down toward Vincent’s head with a crushing force. "DIE!"

Vincent casually raised his left hand and opened his palm.

THWACK!

The warhammer struck Vincent’s bare hand and came to a complete stop. The shockwave shattered the ground beneath Vincent’s boots, but his hand didn’t move a single inch.

Rizer’s pig-like eyes bulged in horror. "W-WHAT?!"

With a flex of his fingers, Vincent squeezed and crushed a piece of the steel on the warhammer into shattered sparks.

Before Rizer could even comprehend what happened, Vincent pivoted and delivered a brutal, rising kick straight into the giant beast-man’s fat belly.

BOOM!!!

The belly caved in, and the colossal warlord went flying backward, crashing straight through the outer stone wall of his own fortress.

"ARGH! YOU LITTLE SHIIIIT!!! I’LL KILL YOUUUU!!!"

Going berserk, red steam erupted from his skin as he charged back at Vincent like a wild, untamed juggernaut.

Vincent met him head-on.

He ducked under a wild left hook, drove a lightning-fast jab into Rizer’s gut again, followed by a vicious right hook to his jaw that sent teeth flying through the air.

Staggered, he then delivered a rapid-fire combination of brutal punches to the warlord’s belly over and over as if he were offended by just looking at it, before unleashing a devastating upper-cut that lifted the giant beast-man five feet off the ground.

BOOOOOOM!

Plumes of black smoke and roaring orange flames suddenly erupted from the rear of the manor.

Gwen had successfully set the main armory ablaze, detonating crates of volatile items in a series of magnificent, secondary explosions.

Glancing up, Vincent noticed Maelle, Ava, and Toby climbing out of the high window onto the roof.

"Time to go."

He turned back to the dazed, bloodied Rizer, stepped over his body, and delivered one final mean backhanded slap that knocked the pig out cold.

With a flash of golden-blue light, his majestic wings flared open from his back, fanning out in all their radiant glory.

He kicked off the ground, shot straight up into the smoky night sky, and touched down softly on the roof beside Maelle, Ava, and Toby.

With the roaring flames quickly spreading up the framework of the building, Vincent leaned down and scooped Maelle up smoothly into a classic princess carry.

Maelle gasped in surprise, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck as her cheeks flushed with a faint blush.

"ME TOO~!" Ava let out an ecstatic squeal, diving forward and wrapping her arms and legs tightly around Vincent’s waist from below. She clung to him like a needy, blushing koala, burying her face into his shirt.

"AHHH! WHAT ABOUT ME?!" Toby panicked, screaming as the roof beneath them creaked.

Desperate, the young man lunged forward, grabbing hold of Vincent’s ankles for dear life as he ascended!

Vincent looked down at the burning building, noticing a missing person, "Where’s Gwen?!"

"She will be fine on her own!" Maelle reassured him.

"Alright! Hold on tight, everyone!" Vincent grinned.

With a powerful stroke of his wings, he burst upward through the billowing black smoke into the night sky.

Below them, the surviving goons panicked and ran around in chaos, screaming frantically as they tried desperately to throw buckets of water onto the spreading inferno before the entire stronghold went up in flames.

Flying high above it all, Vincent looked back over his shoulder at the burning fortress and let out a satisfied smirk.

"Mission Passed. Respect+."