Hayden’s heart skipped a beat.
“You go on ahead.
I have some business to take care of, but I’ll catch up soon.” He ushered Diana into a waiting car and immediately sprinted in the opposite direction.
Glancing over his shoulder, Hayden saw the men in black swarming after him.
Their objective was obvious.
If he had to guess, these were Gideon’s associates coming to finish the job.
The pursuers closed the distance rapidly on the pitch-black street.
Soon, they were less than a hundred meters away.
Hayden let out a cold scoff.
He drew his pistol and activated his Auto-Aim.
The barrel automatically tracked through the darkness, locking onto its prey.
Pop!
Pop!
Two shots rang out.
The bullets sliced through the freezing rain, sinking deep into the chest of the lead thug.
The man collapsed to the pavement with a jagged scream.
Without warning, muzzle flashes lit up the dark street.
Hayden’s instincts kicked in.
He dove behind a parked sedan with lightning speed.
Deafening gunfire echoed through the street as bullets chewed into the metal chassis of his cover.
Hayden did not back down.
He raised his weapon and returned fire.
When his magazine clicked empty, he smoothly ejected it and slapped in a fresh one.
The desolate street was illuminated only by the frantic strobing of muzzle flashes.
The only sounds were the roar of gunfire and the screams of dying men.
Within sixty seconds, Hayden had eliminated four more targets.
He relied entirely on the overwhelming advantage of his Auto-Aim.
The bodies crumpled to the ground, pooling blood into the rain-slicked asphalt.
The remaining hitmen cowered behind their cover.
Watching their comrades get slaughtered one by one had shattered their nerve.
Raw fear was etched into their eyes.
“Fuck!
I thought they said this kid was just a college student!
What the hell is this?
He shoots better than Boss Gideon!” “Did we hit the wrong target?
Tell me we didn’t just ambush someone from the Obsidian Cartel.” While they hesitated in panic, Hayden fired again.
A bullet threaded the needle through a shattered car window, burying itself perfectly in a thug’s temple.
The man dropped like a sack of dead weight before he could even scream.
That was the breaking point.
The survivors completely lost their minds and bolted.
It was pouring rain in the dead of night.
They could not even see their target clearly, yet Hayden was landing lethal headshots with every pull of the trigger.
This was not a firefight anymore.
It was an execution.
Hayden pointed his gun in the direction of the fleeing men.
The System’s Auto-Aim seamlessly adjusted his wrist.
The remaining stragglers were systematically gunned down.
Not a single one escaped.
Hayden wiped the rain from his forehead.
The icy grip of the pistol felt heavy in his palm.
So this was the power of a cheat system?
A burning intensity flickered in his eyes as he stared at the weapon.
After looting the spare ammunition from the corpses, Hayden pulled out his phone.
He opened his map application, intending to navigate to The Continental.
However, typing “The Continental” yielded zero results.
Sensing his intent, the System’s mechanical voice chimed in his ear.
“Locating the nearest branch of The Continental…” A glowing red waypoint materialized on his phone screen.
It was situated right in the heart of Rookwood City, less than two miles away.
Hayden carefully wiped the rainwater from his gun and stored it in his System inventory.
After a brisk walk, the legendary hotel loomed before him.
It was a classic, Western-style architectural masterpiece.
It radiated an aura of solemn majesty amidst the chaotic, prime real estate of the city’s financial district.
A uniformed bellboy offered a polite smile and pulled open the heavy brass doors.
Hayden nodded in thanks and stepped over the gilded threshold.
As a gust of wind caught the bellboy’s coat, Hayden caught a brief glimpse of a Taran Tactical Innovations G34 pistol tucked neatly into the man’s waistband.
Stepping inside felt like entering a modern palace.
Eight massive crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, casting a warm, luxurious glow over every inch of the lobby.
A soothing, expensive incense perfumed the air.
A colossal mechanical split-flap display board dominated one of the walls.
Driven by thousands of tiny gears, it constantly updated the open bounties across Rookwood City.
Click-clack, click-clack.
The satisfying mechanical sound echoed as old names vanished and fresh targets materialized, letter by letter.
A second display board listed the codenames of the top one hundred assassins globally.
Right inside the top ten, Hayden spotted a title that made his blood run cold.
Baba Yaga.
The title representing death incarnate.
Hayden paused.
He wondered if the infamous John Wick had already earned that terrifying moniker in this timeline.
A wild thought crossed his mind.
Would his own name ever climb that high on the board?
The lobby was populated by men and women in impeccably tailored suits.
They exuded a dangerous, elite elegance.
Dressed in soaked, casual street clothes, Hayden stuck out like a sore thumb.
Dozens of curious, perplexed, and highly guarded eyes turned to watch him.
Hayden calmly crossed the marble floor, approaching the reception desk at the far end of the lobby.
The front desk manager was a stunning young woman.
She leaned gracefully against the counter, her ivory silk dress clinging to her curves and highlighting her radiant skin.
She looked up, examining Hayden with polite curiosity.
“Welcome to the Rookwood Continental.
I am Yvette, the front desk manager.
I apologize, sir, but The Continental does not provide services to non-members.” A flawless, professional smile curved the corners of her lips.
Hayden frowned slightly.
“I would like to inquire about the registration process.” Yvette’s smile deepened, taking on a faintly mocking edge.
“Sir, the exit is right behind you.” Hayden stared intently into her eyes.
He shook his head slowly.
Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the bloodstained K6 medallion and slammed it onto the pristine counter.
The blood had not fully dried.
Dark crimson streaks smeared across the polished marble like tiny snakes.
When Yvette saw the “K6” engraving, her professional facade shattered.
Her expression froze entirely, her lips parting in shock.
It took her a full three seconds to recover her composure.
She quickly reached out and snatched the medallion.
Flashing a deeply apologetic smile, she gestured for Hayden to follow her.
Hayden ignored the sudden shift in attitude and followed her lead.
They bypassed the lobby and headed straight to the second floor.
It resembled a vintage bank, complete with a row of old-fashioned teller windows.
The aesthetic was deliberately antiquated.
A dozen women wearing elegant dresses sat behind the counters, operating clunky typewriters and ancient computer terminals.
Stacks of high-denomination banknotes sat piled at their feet.
This was the administrative heart of the hotel.
Yvette did not make Hayden wait at the counter.
Instead, she led him straight into a lavish private office at the far end of the floor.
“Your information, please?” Yvette asked, sitting down at a secure terminal on a long mahogany desk.
She efficiently collected his fingerprints, a voiceprint, and a retinal scan.
The data was instantly encrypted and transmitted across a secure network.
Thousands of miles across the ocean, a permanent file labeled “Hayden Brooks” was cemented into the High Table’s massive server arrays.
“Upon successful registration, you will be classified as a Trainee Assassin.
This grants you the clearance to accept public bounties,” Yvette explained.
“Only after completing your first bounty will you become a full professional.
That is when you gain access to The Continental’s exclusive services, including encrypted comms, sanctuary lodging, and emergency medical assistance.” Yvette handed him a heavy, encrypted smartphone.
It was the exact same model Gideon had carried.
“Bounty tiers range from T9 up to T1.
Assassin ranks scale from K9 up to K1.
Completing high-tier bounties automatically promotes your guild rank.” She slid the blood-stained medallion into a scanner on her desk.
When the system results popped up on her monitor, her pupils contracted sharply.
“Based on the biometric data on this token, the system confirms you have eliminated the T6-tier target, Gideon Cross.
As a result, you have bypassed the trainee phase.
You are instantly promoted to a K6-tier assassin.” Her smile grew significantly warmer as she handed Hayden a pristine, newly minted K6 medallion alongside a sleek black bank card.
Hayden checked the engraving on the back.
It featured a unique identification code.
In that single moment, he had officially transformed into a professional hitman.
“Within twenty-four hours, the four-million-dollar bounty for Gideon Cross will be wired directly to that card.
The temporary PIN is your birthdate.” Hayden nodded slowly.
The plastic card suddenly felt like it weighed a ton.
In his previous life, he could have worked until the day he died and never saved a fraction of that amount.
Now, a few bullets had just made him four million dollars.
Suddenly, the threat of the Azure Syndicate and the Black Sovereign Syndicate crashed back into his thoughts.
“I have one last question,” Hayden said, his tone serious.
“After the bounty is processed, is there any risk of my personal information leaking?” Yvette shook her head.
A deeply respectful, almost reverent smile touched her lips.
“You have absolutely nothing to worry about.
All Continentals worldwide operate directly under the authority of the High Table.
Furthermore, the High Table employs a specialized Adjudicator division to strictly monitor our operations.” “Assassin dossiers are classified at the highest level.
The penalty for leaking them is severe.” Hayden nodded, feeling a wave of relief.
He pocketed his new medallion and the bank card.
“There’s no need to call me ‘sir’.
Just Hayden is fine.” He left the administrative floor and descended the sweeping staircase back into the main lobby.
The moment his foot hit the ground floor, the massive mechanical bounty board on the wall clattered to life.
Click-clack, click-clack!
Gideon Cross’s name flipped from stark white to blood red.
A heavy line mechanically struck through the letters.
A final status indicator flipped into place right beside it.
CLEARED.
In an instant, every single head in the lobby snapped up.
The elite assassins stared at the updated board.
Their eyes were wide as saucers, their jaws dropping in absolute shock.