Under the dim yellow light, Pete's bruised and terrified face looked exactly like Van Gogh's "The Scream."
"Ross, you go back first, and while you're at it... give the brothers guarding this place a week off."
"Oh, and make sure it's paid leave." Matthew instructed Eleanor, who was behind him.
Eleanor hummed softly in response and walked out first. Soon, the guards responsible for maintaining order here also received notifications of their leave.
The guards, stern moments before, instantly showed joy upon receiving the paid leave notification. They had vaguely overheard the earlier conversation but couldn't confirm the news until now. The official notification brought a rare surge of happiness to these corporate drones.
[System Points +5, Marcus Powell feels he's followed the right boss.]
[System Points +3, Brandon Weiss's long-suppressed heart feels extremely relieved.]
[System Points +1...]
[System Points +1...]
With one notification, he gained over twenty [System Points].
Once the notifications on the [System Panel] gradually subsided, Matthew looked again at Pete, who was huddled in the corner.
Seeing Matthew's gaze sweep over him, Pete's body almost instinctively trembled!
"W-what do you want to do?"
"No."
"???"
"Just kidding, Pete." Matthew smiled and waved his hand, then pulled out a stack of documents from his pocket and tossed them in front of Pete.
"I came this time specifically to thank you for your 'care' over the past three years. And the place written on these documents is the reward for you and your upcoming reward."
When he said this, Matthew deliberately emphasized the word "reward."
Fear filled Pete's heart, yet he picked up the documents and cautiously began to read. They weren't mere papers, but shocking experiment reports. They detailed tragic outcomes from experimental drugs, including skin dissolution, projectile vomiting, and hysteria, making Pete shudder with cold.
"I told you, you're going to be volunteers at headquarters to test new drugs. You didn't really think I was joking, did you?" The whisper in his ear made Pete's body tremble once more.
Then he almost instinctively knelt on the ground, looking at Matthew with a pleading gaze.
"Mr. Matthew, I know I was wrong! I only beg for your mercy to spare me!" After a brief pause, seeing Matthew unmoved, he quickly added, "To atone for my past mistakes, I am willing to hand over all my possessions!"
Seeing Matthew still unresponsive, he continued, "Sir, although I don't have any cash on me, I have a total of seven hundred thousand US dollars in savings! It's all hidden in a warehouse at forty-five Citrus Avenue, and there are also many Maggia crime records inside!"
"If these crime records are sold to other gangs, it would be a considerable income!"
"Heh... I didn't expect you to be a snitch." Matthew raised an eyebrow.
Pete quickly agreed, "Sigh! Who doesn't keep a backup plan these days?"
"Forty-five Citrus Avenue, huh..." Matthew murmured, then nodded at him. "Mm, I've noted it."
"I'll send someone to retrieve it."
"Then... Mr. can you let me go now? This is all I have..." Pete pleaded from his knees.
"Of course, my friend~~ I'm very satisfied with the price you've offered." Matthew pressed his palm against the palm print lock of the cell, and the door opened in response.
"You can leave now." Pete's gaze shifted to the gradually opening cell door, and he swallowed hard in disbelief.
"I can really leave?" he asked again.
"If you don't want to leave, you can stay here for a few more days." Hearing this, Pete didn't even have time to speak before scrambling up and rushing towards the elevator.
[System Points +50, Pete Gray thanks you for giving him a second chance, and he has decided to be a good person after getting out.]
Seeing their boss escape, the other Maggia gang members began chattering about their hidden money. Some even considered transferring their girlfriends to Matthew. Matthew gave them the same treatment as Pete, after all, to gain [System Points], he still needed to start with them, waste recycling and reuse.
The gang members, having escaped death, all contributed a considerable amount of [System Points] to Matthew, making his previously empty 'treasury' full once again.
[System Points +80, Lucas Shelton sincerely thanks you for letting him live, and plans to stay away from gang conflicts in the future.]
[Accumulated System Points: 440. Pass Reward: T-001 Tyrant *1 (already stored in System Space).]
[Next stage reward: Accumulated 550 System Points. Please make good use of System rewards to benefit the people.]
[System Points +40+30...]
[Accumulated System Points: 680. Pass Reward: Low-level Optimization Count *3 (already stored in System Space).]
[Next stage reward: Accumulated 800 System Points. Please make good use of System rewards to benefit the people.]
"Low-level Optimization Count?" Matthew frowned slightly, looking at the panel.
[Low-level Optimization Count: Can freely optimize a flaw not exceeding 150 System Points once.]
Seeing this reward, Matthew's eyes immediately lit up. If calculated this way, wouldn't it be like getting four hundred fifty [System Points] for free?
This is great! Coming down here was really great!
...
"Mr. Pete, these are your clothes."
In the spacious and tidy corridor, the burly men who had originally arrested Pete were holding the clothes belonging to Pete and the others.
"These are... for me?" Pete asked cautiously.
"That's right." The leading burly man nodded in response, "Mr. Lawrence instructed us to return all your belongings and drive you all back."
Hearing this, Pete and the others finally relaxed, quickly donning their clothes. Soon, Pete and his group were neatly dressed and followed the burly men to a small truck. It was a box truck, typically used for fresh meat, still bearing the unique Umbrella Corporation logo on its side.
"Get in."
"..."
"You said you'd drive us back... in a truck?" Pete said with a slight hesitation.
"All the company's vehicles have been dispatched for missions tonight, so for now, this is the only one available." The leading burly man said calmly.
"Then what about these..." Pete looked at the almost full parking lot.
"Oh... you mean these... these are private vehicles, and we have no authority to use them, so hurry up and get in the truck." The burly man urged.
Despite their doubts, Pete and the others climbed into the truck under the burly man's urging. Inside the cramped, enclosed compartment, heavy breathing and the ventilation fan filled the space. At first, the atmosphere was light, with American-style cold jokes. But as time passed, their laughter died.
"B-boss, is Umbrella Corporation really this far from our neighborhood?"
"Also, those guys didn't even ask where we wanted to go back to, did they...?"
Realizing something was wrong, everyone started frantically banging on the compartment! Unfortunately, the specially modified truck didn't give them any chance to call for help.
In the darkness, the truck sped along. Under the cover of night, the vehicle pulled into a private hospital. When it emerged again, its speed was noticeably faster than before...