Chapter 10 Bounty Mission

After taking a good rest in the afternoon, he planned to have a simple dinner and then go to Nishino Ward to have some fun with that group of people as the sun set, while also praying that he would not run into that blond man again.

Just then, Cheng felt his phone vibrate. He opened it and saw that it was Kenji Hagiwara inviting him to go to the night market. Cheng hesitated for a moment but then agreed.

As he expected, besides Kenji Hagiwara, there were four other people from their police academy present, which Cheng You found very satisfactory.

The group simply chatted and ate, with Matsuda Jinpei leading the charge in complaining about the Metropolitan Police Department's work: "It's such a hassle."

Everyone else laughed and joked.

At this moment, the system popped up an interface in front of Cheng You. Sure enough, people from other organizations were trying to break into the website. However, their technology was too poor, and Cheng You didn't need to take action himself. His program alone was enough to defeat them.

However, Cheng needed to know which organization the intruder belonged to, since making an example of someone was the most effective deterrent.

Cheng mentally called out to the system: "Little Fire, help me transfer the interface to my phone."

At this moment, the website interface is projected onto his phone like a screen, and Cheng only needs to pretend to chat with a friend to confidently and boldly type code for reverse tracing.

It was an organization called Ice Factory. Not a significant organization; it's probably already destroyed during the Japanese double-crossing and black market activities of the past seven years.

With this, Cheng You felt more confident and bolder in his actions. He first hacked into the other party's computer and typed in the message "Gotcha!", then posted a notice on the Gray Fox Killer Dark Web stating that the intrusion had been safely resolved.

[Fellow users, please stop trying to hack my website. That intruder has already been punished, for example... address leak (evil laugh). This was not my intention; it's just that your skills are too poor, and you've exposed a lot of things.]

You might be worried about your privacy being exposed, but don't worry, I'm the only administrator behind this website. I guarantee the website's security and privacy because no real-name authentication is required, and I will not snoop on any member's private information. We're all part of the Japanese mafia, one family, helping each other out, and we'll take down the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department sooner or later!

Finally, I would like to add that I do not belong to any organization; freedom is my lifelong pursuit.

—Sender: Nefer, Dark Web Administrator of Grey Fox Assassin.

After sending the announcement, Cheng You couldn't help but smile, his eyes crinkling with smugness. Not requiring real-name authentication made it easier for him to investigate; after all, some malicious individuals might steal other people's identities, which would not only cause trouble for society but also make investigations more difficult.

Matsuda Jinpei inadvertently caught a glimpse of his expression, his lips twitched, and he said jokingly, "Hey, Matsukawa, what's with that expression? What mischief have you been up to? We're the police, you know, we'll arrest you right away." He even reached out and hooked his arm around Cheng You's neck.

"I'm a really nice guy from Beika Town," Cheng You said with a smile. "It's just that I'm going abroad soon, and the visa and everything are already taken care of." He was leaving in half a month, and it was better to inform the other party in advance that he was leaving than to disappear quietly.

"Go abroad?" Kenji Hagiwara was taken aback. "Weren't you planning to apply to police academy?"

"Ah, yes, but I still want to go out and broaden my knowledge," Cheng replied.

"Oh, what a pity," Matsuda Jinpei said with a regretful droop of his eyes. "We've only known each other for a few days and such a close friend is about to leave."

“Hey, hey,” Cheng You squinted at him, “You’re saying that as if I’m gone, that’s really bad luck.”

“It is indeed good to study abroad.” Morofushi Kagemitsu smiled slightly.

While waiting for dessert, Cheng You used the excuse of checking messages from foreign universities to glance at news about the Gray Fox Assassins Dark Web. On the Dark Web's homepage forum, these eager organizations were contacting and discussing among themselves; after all, this kind of website was indeed convenient for them.

However, Cheng felt that some organizations probably wanted to find the mastermind behind the scenes—Nifel. They wanted to use the website and the technology and information of the mastermind behind it to bring down other organizations.

Cheng You looked at the posts on the dark web forum, his fingers tapping absentmindedly on the table, a smile playing on his lips and his eyes upturned.

When the desserts were served, Cheng You looked up and noticed that everyone else was staring at her. Cheng You was taken aback for a moment: "Huh? What's wrong?"

Matsuda Jinpei: "I find your smile rather wicked."

"Huh?" Really? Cheng You couldn't help but doubt it. He had indeed been a little smug just now, but it couldn't have been anything evil...

The night market dessert shop handed them their shop's signboard, displaying wheel cakes and honey pancakes, but Cheng's face turned pale the moment he saw these two desserts.

"What's wrong, Matsukawa?" Kenji Hagiwara asked.

Cheng quickly composed himself and looked at the honey-dripping wheel cakes and honey pancakes in front of him, saying, "Ah, I'm allergic to honey, I'm so sorry."

"Oh? I'm so sorry," Kenji Hagiwara said with a smile. "I'll ask the waiter to get you a different one right away."

"No need, Hagiwara, thank you," Cheng You smiled. "It's getting late, and I still have some things to take care of regarding my trip abroad. Goodbye." He stood up to say goodbye.

Cheng left the bustling night market and hailed a taxi to Dongye District near Xiye District, since going directly to Xiye District would easily arouse suspicion.

I really need to earn money to buy a car; taking taxis is just too inconvenient. Cheng thought to himself.

The car ride was still quite boring, so Cheng casually opened his phone to check the forum on the Gray Fox Assassin Dark Network. Surprisingly, someone had posted a bounty mission, but no one had accepted it yet.

—An assassination mission in Nishino Ward. The target of the assassination is a corrupt official who will be making a deal in Nishino Ward tonight. Cheng You did a simple search on the corrupt official named Uchimura Soichiro. He had committed many evils and abused his power to oppress people. He took a few glances and remembered this fat-headed man.

Releasing such a notorious corrupt official is most likely a test of the dark web. Cheng suspects that members of other organizations might be staking out this corrupt official, trying to find out who accepted the mission or whether the bounty was reliable.

Cheng You looked at the reward amount and couldn't help but be tempted. That's a seven-figure sum of US dollars!

The location was convenient, but could they escape unscathed? Cheng You's answer was definitely yes. He created this website to take orders and learn about assassination missions and the inner workings of Japanese organized crime, so he could protect those close to him in advance.

Cheng Youyong created another account called "Iced Coffee" using the system and decisively accepted the task. He contacted the other party through the website's private messaging function. The other party first sent a deposit and then made a request: the remaining payment would only be received if the head of the corrupt official Uchimura Soichiro was hung in front of the Metropolitan Police Department for all to see.

"Hiss!" Cheng You paused, thinking, "This is too ruthless! What kind of grudge is this?" "Okay, the mission difficulty has increased a bit," Cheng You thought with a smile. "But it's okay, just a little bit. That's what makes it exciting."

After getting off the bus in Dongye District, Cheng went to a nearby store to buy a new hooded shirt and put on a mask to cover his face.

He walked for more than half an hour before arriving at the deserted Nishino district. Just standing there, Cheng You already sensed danger, because the whispers of the heart were unusually numerous and lively tonight.

I wonder which idiot accepted the quest.

This dark web is pretty useful, but I still need to test it out.

...

Based on these whispers, Cheng You quickly learned the location of the corrupt official. But so many people were gathered there wanting to see the "Iced Coffee" who took orders commit murder, and some even had thoughts of fighting with the "Iced Coffee" and seeing his face.

This forced Cheng You to take it seriously. He stood in the shadows of the alley corner, operating the system interface, when his phone vibrated in his pocket. He took it out and glanced at it; it was a message from Kenji Hagiwara, saying that he had left his watch with them and asking when Cheng You would have time to get together for a meal so he could return the watch.

Cheng thought for a moment and replied: "Tomorrow afternoon, please. Thank you, Hagiwara."

After replying, he continued typing on the system interface and finally found the text message number of the corrupt official, Uchimura Soichiro. Cheng edited a message and sent it to the other party, saying he would wait nearby for the fish to take the bait.

Meanwhile, Soichiro Uchimura, who was discussing cooperation with a certain illegal organization, was in a very bad mood. The other organization was unwilling to continue the cooperation, even though he had already raised the price to twice the black market price.

At the same time, Soichiro Uchimura also had a bad feeling, so he didn't continue arguing with the other party and left in a huff.

At that moment, he noticed his phone vibrating in his pocket. He assumed that the other organization had changed its mind and wanted to cooperate again. When he opened his phone, he saw that it was an unfamiliar encrypted scrambled number. Still puzzled, he opened the text message to check the content.

Upon seeing the first line, Soichiro Uchimura felt a chill run down his spine and broke out in a cold sweat. His fingers stiffly traced the lines, but the pent-up panic in his heart made it difficult for him to concentrate.

That ominous premonition manifested as enormous, bloodstained hands, cold and viciously gripping his vulnerable throat.

[Dear Mr. Soichiro Uchimura:]

Hello!

First, look at the photo (the image is a screenshot from the Grey Fox Murders dark web regarding Soichiro Uchimura's selection of bounty missions). I'm the nemesis of this person who took the job, and I'm here specifically to protect you. You should have noticed that someone has been following you, and not just one, but a whole group! (evil laugh)

Do you still want to live?

If you want to live, follow these directions to this place (picture showing the planned route and final meeting point). I advise you to hurry, or you'll die, haha.

It took Soichiro Uchimura a while to finish reading the text message. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, but his arms were still trembling uncontrollably. Ignoring that, he took off with his trembling legs and headed to the target location according to the instructions in the picture.

He realized that this route was indeed very good and could shake off some of the people following him, but as a shrewd and ruthless corrupt official, Uchimura Soichiro did not completely trust the other party's route, so at the last turn, he deliberately went in the opposite direction.

"Ha, you assassins are nothing special." Uchimura Soichiro thought smugly.

However, as he walked down this path, he felt a chill run down his spine, but he figured it was probably just his imagination and didn't pay much attention, since the exit was not far away.

Just as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief, a sudden change occurred!

"—Mr. Soichiro Uchimura, where are you going?"

Without a sound of footsteps, a flash of cold light pressed against his neck.

Cheng gripped the folding knife, his voice as cold as ice, making Uchimura Soichiro stiffen, yet his tone carried a hint of sly laughter.