Villain Saving System (BL)

Chapter 329 - 7.19 Mysterious Aiden

"It still hasn’t been made public yet but our spies have confirmed it, Boss. Zion disappeared and Cobalt Fang Clan is in uproar because there’s rumors that their leader has fallen."

It was deep into the night and the light in Moshe’s study was still brightly lit. Documents strewn all across his table and his brows were knitted as he listened to Kaede’s report. "Impossible," he spat out. "Until you bring his corpse in front of me, I won’t believe that he’s dead."

"That’s also what I am thinking of." Kaede showed a thoughtful look. "Zion was heavily injured that night so there’s no way he could run that far. The trail of blood alone would have led us to him. But strangely... he suddenly disappeared." Kaede pulled out his tablet to show Moshe the surveillance footage he had acquired. "He was smart enough to run into the West Brick District. It’s a very old district. After the earthquake two years ago, half of the houses there collapsed and the government has too many projects to focus on rebuilding. In the end, the area is abandoned just like that. The houses are decrepit and the road is so narrow and complicated that it’s very easy to get lost there. The security maintenance is very lax, and I heard some people have been making it their base to do illegal business . Please have a look at this.

"At 10 pm, we ambushed him and around 11.15 pm, he appeared at the entrance of West Brick District." The tablet was showing Zion’s pathetic figure who was dashing through the dark narrow street, his expression thunderous. Even through the screen, Moshe could clearly sense the man’s anger and frustration. His lips curled up in amusement. But then as he examined Zion closer, he straightened up in alert. "Wait."

Kaede paused the video in reflex. "...Huh?"

"Play it back from the beginning."

"Oh, alright." Albeit confused, Kaede obediently dragged the video back to the start. The street was dark, houses made of bricks were clustered closely together and the camera’s angle was off, slightly hindered by the cables crisscrossing between utility poles. Zion appeared on the fifth second, his head was turned away at first before he focused on running ahead. Kaede found nothing wrong with the video but Moshe paused it once again.

He leaned back on his chair with a thoughtful hum.

"Is there something wrong, Boss?"

Moshe tapped his fingers on the table. "How far is the distance between the location we ambushed Zion to the West Brick District? How many minutes will it take by foot?"

"Wait a minute." Kaede fished out his phone and typed furiously, nose almost touching the screen. "It’s only forty five minutes by foot! If he ran, Zion might have covered the distance in less than thirty minutes!" Kaede was stunned. Even though there was a slight delay when Zion slipped away from them, it didn’t even take more than ten minutes. So why had he only arrived at the West Brick District almost an hour later? Had he made a stop somewhere? Where would he have gone with Moshe’s people hot on his trail?

"Look at him." Moshe said, pulling Kaede’s attention back to the tablet. Moshe pressed play and pointed at Zion’s body.

Kaede’s eyes widened in realization. "His right arm is broken! No, that’s not right. When we fought him, his arm was still okay otherwise he wouldn’t be able to fire the gun. Our people weren’t able to get close to him after that so... who had broken his arm? Had he fought with someone else?"

Moshe absentmindedly opened the map and put the pin on West Brick District and then he zoomed out to scan the surroundings. If he went through the path Zion had gone, then...

Moshe’s left eye twitched when he saw ’West Entertainment District’ written in bold characters. It was the area closest to West Brick District, only less than ten minutes away by foot.

"Boss?" Kaede called out tentatively when he noticed his Boss was frozen still.

"Get me the surveillance footage around the West Entertainment District." Moshe narrowed his eyes. The time of Aiden’s disappearance matched with Zion’s. Not to mention his worsening injuries and the way he was reluctant to answer Moshe’s questions—

Did Aiden escape to meet Zion and fought with him afterward?

Kaede was flabbergasted at his boss’ order. Different from West Brick District, they could only obtain West Entertainment District’s surveillance footage from the local sub-bureau. Even though they were currently maintaining an amicable relationship with the police, that was only on the surface. The truth was, they were wary of each other. Keep your friends close and enemies closer, they’d said. It only needed a breezy provocation for this thinner-than-paper trust to shatter.

Requesting surveillance footage out of nowhere without a clear reason, wouldn’t that just draw unnecessary suspicion toward themselves?

"Boss, that’s a little overboard, don’t you think?" Kaede tried to appeal. "This is a private dispute between us so involving the police is a bit..."

Moshe gave him a look that caused Kaede to click his jaws shut. "That’s why I am asking you to do this in person. There’s no need to let anyone know. Just tell the sub-director that this is a personal request from me. In the future, I will owe them a favor." Without giving Kaede any chance to protest, he added. "You’re the only person I can ask to do this, Kaede. You won’t betray my trust, won’t you?"

How unfair, Kaede tutted. If he said it like that, how could Kaede refuse? "Alright, I will return as soon as possible." With a last nod, Kaede gathered his things and left the study.

As soon as the door clicked behind him, Moshe turned his gaze to the computer that had been on standby mode. With a click on the spacebar, the screen lit up, showing the surveillance record of the mansion on the night of Aiden’s escapade.

Moshe had lost count on how many times he had seen this but still, he played it again.

At 8 pm, he left Aiden’s room and ordered two guards to watch over the door.

Around thirty minutes later, the door creaked open and the two guards looked back, a shocked expression on their faces. However before they could react, a hand shot out of between the gaps to drag them in. Aiden’s movement was fast and precise, leaving no trail behind except the door that was swinging open.

After that, he disappeared.

Moshe had checked every single surveillance footage personally but it was as if Aiden had disappeared into thin air. Even if he left through the window, the CCTV around the swimming pool would have caught his silhouette.

And then, there was also the mysterious incident of the main gate opening on its own. The guards who were responsible for night duty that day had resolved to bury the matter in fear of punishment. If it’s not for Aiden’s sudden disappearance, Moshe wouldn’t even investigate the surveillance footage and find out about this.

When asked, they only said, "We have no idea at all, Boss! The gate really opened on its own!"

Aiden’s mysterious disappearance, the gate, Zion’s broken arm... was it all related?

Moshe pursed his lips and opened his drawer to retrieve the report of Aiden’s background check. It was very detailed; his education and report card, every job he had taken, the salary he got, the frequency of time he had gone to the supermarket per week, what time he left the house to fetch Cheryl from school...

Aiden was only twenty three. He was at the peak of youth where people around his age were supposed to hang out, play games and get drunk in cheap bars. Yet he had stopped going to school after graduating from high school and worked all day and night to earn money. When it wasn’t enough, he resorted to illegal underground fighting and the latest, gladiator arena.

He wasn’t a very bright man, both intellectually and emotionally. That’s why he could only do meager jobs instead of getting an office job with stable income.

Moshe felt like he was reading the file of someone else, and not the Aiden he knew. The strange, peculiar feeling in the back of his mind was getting stronger and stronger. He couldn’t help but feel that there’s something important he had overlooked.

He had read this report even before Aiden woke up for the first time, had already set his expectation on what kind of person he would find, had already planned how to deal with him should he resist. But in the end, everything was shattered as soon as those silver eyes landed on him.

Sharp, brilliant and dangerous. So addictive and beautiful like poppy flowers. Poisonous, yet he couldn’t bring himself to pull away. Just a lick, he told himself. Just a little taste and he would be satisfied.

Except now that he already tasted the sweetness, he couldn’t pull himself out of the quagmire anymore.

Moshe wasn’t stupid nor was he blind. He could already sense from the start that Aiden’s fighting style was very refined. Deathly and fluid, beautiful and precise, as if he was dancing along with the grim reaper to send his enemy to the gate of Hell.

That’s right, Aiden’s skill looked more like an assassin. A trained, professional assassin.

The more he thought about it, the more he couldn’t seem to understand this man named ’Aiden’. It was as if a crucial link was missing, preventing him from connecting the scattered facts he had gathered. But what...?

A series of knocks resounded from the door, breaking off Moshe’s line of thought. Moshe exited the page he was scrutinizing and pretended to look over the document. "Do you forget something, Kaede—" He looked up to find the same subject that had been occupying the majority part of his mind.

"Moshe." Aiden’s voice was low, deep and baritone. Very pleasant to listen to. Somehow Moshe could even sniff a sweet scent in the air as if the man’s very presence had lightened up the entire room. "May I come in?"

Dangerous, he reminded himself. "Sure," he put on a smile. "It’s late. Why aren’t you sleeping?"

"I can’t sleep."

Moshe discreetly observed the way Aiden carried himself. His footsteps made almost no sound and before he entered, his eyes subconsciously scanned the room to focus on a few places Moshe had hid his weapons in. Was it a force of habit or...

Who are you actually, Aiden?

Twenty four hours hadn’t even passed since Aiden’s bold declaration of feelings and then, Moshe suddenly found out, that aside from the secrets he had been keeping, he might have even gotten in touch with Zion — Moshe’s mortal enemies.

Moshe’s paranoia couldn’t seem to rest. One suspicion came out atop of another like a pile of frogs on the base of the well trying to break out into the surface. Their croaks flooded Moshe’s ears, louder and louder until the very top one managed to break to the forefront of his mind.

Did Aiden have some ulterior motives in getting close to him?

Moshe’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach just by the mere idea of it.