Soulless Players

Chapter 18: Got you

"What to do?!" Steve froze upon seeing his karma turned into 0.

Although he had expected that one day his karma would bite him back hard, he still couldn't help but be nervous and afraid of what was about to come.

This emotion was also significantly intensified when he saw the man in front of him change suddenly.

He was confused about how Loen could be changed so quickly. He only just left for a couple of minutes, Why did his golden light dim into nothing?

'It's as if this person is not Loen…' This was the first thing that came into Steve's mind.

Other than his change, what confused him more was its abnormality, specifically about having no light emanating from him.

Steve speculated that the person in front of him was either a mythical creature his power couldn't give a price to or that it was a product of a mysterious ability called magic.

Steve knew nothing about the 'instinct' he was supposed to have, as what Raven said to defend him earlier, but at this time, even he could feel how dangerous the situation was.

'So… the source of the sudden change of my karma is because of this. Maybe it will kill me if….' Steve stopped his thoughts.

'Wait, let's not jump to a conclusion. What if I'm mistaken? What if there's other factors other than this?'

Steve carefully raised his head and looked at his surroundings. After confirming that there were no changes in their brightness, he quietly turned his head towards Raven.

Raven was still the same as ever, with a brightness equivalent to five bulbs.

After seeing no changes, Steve temporarily lowered his guard against Raven. Steve felt it was unlikely for Raven to be the source of his misfortune as he had been all along with him since earlier. If Raven wanted to kill him, he could have done it when Loen left the room.

Steve focused his whole mind on thinking of another possible reason.

'What if the train will soon meet an accident?!' Steve's eyes bulged in an instant. Though this was only a mere speculation, he still felt the need to take preliminary precautions against it.

'For now, let's leave from the most ideal suspect first…' Steve decided while taking a short glance at Loen.

Seeing that Loen was preoccupied with the newspaper, Steve stood up and said, "Excuse me for a moment as I'm going to the restroom."

Loen didn't say anything or stop him so Steve simply continued his way out of their cabin.

Shortly, Steve sighed in relief after leaving the room. 'Thankfully, he didn't say anything about me bringing my luggage.'

Steve walked forward with his briefcase in his hand, following him from behind was the serious and dedicated Raven.

But instead of going to the restroom, his foot brought him towards the other end of the wagon.

While walking, Steve carefully observed his surroundings, trying to glimpse another clue behind the sudden change of his karma.

In Steve's vision, all colors he could see were gold. From the floor to the ceiling, everything was shining as brightly as their respective value.

Even though his eyes were twitching at the brightness, he was still stubborn about using his ability. His mind was only filled with 'Better safe than never.'

Reaching the other end of the aisle, Steve opened the door situated in the center. Behind this door was an entryway to a carriage filled with passengers' seats.

Unlike Steve's seat, this wagon has no enclosure wall separating from others for privacy.

It was fully opened with only two-seater cushion seats facing against each other on both sides of the train.

Steve walked in the middle, passing through some sleeping passengers leaning on their seats uncomfortably.

Later, he stopped and looked at the bulky men talking with each other. When these men saw Steve, they were about to stand and greet him, but Steve quickly intercepted them by raising a palm.

He sat near the corner window and following him was Raven taking the aisle seat.

Steve glanced at the two men nervously examining him across him. After seeing no change in their brightness, he looked across the corridor.

On the other side, four men were also looking at Steve in wonder. Steve felt their confusion but he never said a word. All he did was look at them with his piercing gaze.

Shortly, Steve sighed in relief after confirming that there were no changes in the six other mercenaries.

He then quickly took the first class ticket from his coat and handed it to the man across Raven.

"Take this and observe Loen. If there's anything wrong with him, subdue him. If you can't, you can just inform me of his abnormality."

"Yes, Boss!" The man dashed off to the first-class wagon. His face was stiff but his foot remained actively moving.

This person was part of the three men who remained loyal to Steve during Philip's subjugation. Although he was clearly afraid about the 'abnormality' that Steve was speaking of, he still continued his way without backing off.

The financial reward Steve offered was enough for him to have the guts to face the danger ahead of him. All he needed was to be careful and remain alive 'till the end of the mission.

After he left, Steve quickly unbuckled the briefcase on his lap. When he opened it, stacks of bills welcomed him from within.

Steve's face remained unchanging in the face of money. He dug his hands deeper, and when his fingers caught the clutches, then he pulled his hands up.

The man across Steve trembled upon seeing the thing in Steve's hands. He quickly averted his eyes away hoping that what he had seen wasn't the thing he imagined it to be.

Even Raven shook slightly and quickly leaned his upper body to cover Steve's action.

Steve placed the thing inside his coat and closed the briefcase on his lap.

After these short but quick actions, Steve, along with two men, speedily pretended like nothing serious happened.

Even though Steve acted calm, he knew to himself that he was the most nervous among them.

Steve's tension was different from normal as he knew that his choices would dictate whether he would live or not.

'I can do this!'

While his mind was running at full speed, a lady passed through them, pushing a cart in the aisle. Within this cart were finger food and beverages offered to the passengers.

The woman halted and offered the men a drink and biscuits. After this short act, she smiled and left to distribute to others.

When the lady had gone far from them, Steve quickly reacted,

"Don't eat it!" Steve roared, his voice filled with urgency and vigilance.

The five mercenaries jumped slightly from their seat, surprised by Steve's sudden order.

Although they were confused, they still did it somehow. After all, it was just a food that they could buy outside.

After confirming that they had no intention of eating them, Steve finally couldn't help but be thankful to the System for giving him his ability. Without it, he would never have sensed that there was something wrong with their food.

Because in his vision, the bottle of refreshments and the biscuits were casting more light compared to the other items the lady allocated around.

'This means that there are other substances mixed within that make it more valuable compared to the other goods.' Steve concluded. He didn't even bother to confirm what they were as he was sure that they were poisons.

'But why? Why am I specifically being targeted?' Steve pondered and could only guess the reason behind it.

'Hmm. The lady also emits no light… She is similar to the Loen who returned to their cabin earlier.'

'So this increases the likelihood of Loen being the cause of his impending misfortune…' Steve concluded.

While Steve was mulling over Loen, a man hesitantly came forward in their direction.

He was the same man Steve sent over to watch Loen.

The man stood on the aisle and informed Steve about what had happened, "Boss… I can't find Mr. Loen."

He then quickly reiterated that after he arrived at the cabin, only the newspaper was seen on the table. Seeing this, he was about to look for him but was forced to stop upon noticing a group of men with horrendous and somehow incomplete face structures standing on the other side of the corridor.

Strangely, the man felt as if they were all looking at him, observing every bit of his small actions.

The man was so scared by this sight that he quickly dashed away and informed Steve about it.

Although Steve seemed to be silently listening to the man's report, his hands were shaking as he rolled a fist.

He was right! Loen was really the source of the change.

While contemplating his next course of action, Steve felt as if the area dimmed a bit.

Bothered by it, he subconsciously took a glance at the window beside him.

But what he saw wasn't the grassy fields, instead a figure that made his soul leave his body.

Outside the window, Loen's upside-down face was sticking by the glass, looking eerily at Steve.

When Steve and Loen's eyes met, Loen smiled at him, his eyes were red, showing the greed and desire within.

Shortly, Loen's lips moved, and whispered a two-syllable sentence:

Got. You.