"Hey." Yohan tapped Roman's cheek lightly, but there was no response. He sighed, then delivered a sharp slap across his face.

"Wake up!"

Roman's eyes fluttered open, dazed, as if waking from a nightmare. When he finally focused and saw Yohan towering over him, realization hit — this wasn't a dream.

"W-what do you still want?" he groaned.

"Answers." Yohan's tone was cold and steady. "What was that cake you ate?"

"You mean the buff cake?" Roman sneered weakly. "Why should I tell you?"

"Are you gangsters all dumb, or do you just enjoy pain?" Yohan sighed, glancing over Roman's bruised frame. He was trying to decide which part of the body to start with.

'It's like an unskippable ad full of crying and screaming' he thought.

He was just about to begin when Roman's gaze darted toward the safe.

"My money?!"

He scrambled up and crawled to it, staring into the hollow metal box.

"Where did all my money go?" His voice cracked, eyes watering as he turned back to Yohan.

"Do you want your money back?" Yohan asked calmly.

"Please—I'll do anything! If I don't get that money back, I'm as good as dead!" Roman clutched at Yohan's leg, sobbing.

"Okay," Yohan said, crouching slightly. "Then answer my question."

He had no intention of returning the money, he was just using it as leverage.

"What is that cake?"

Roman gulped. "It's something we call the buff cake. Boss Hatoru delivered a set a few nights ago. When we tried it, we felt stronger—faster—and it was really delicious too."

"Do you know what it's made of? Or where it came from?"

He shook his head frantically. "No! I swear, I have no idea."

Yohan picked up the plain white cupcake box, with a special round logo.

He had been right—there was something inside these cakes, something that made people stronger and faster, even if only for a short time.

'This could be connected to the Wellness Technique Guide' he reasoned.

'Could there be another user like me?'

The thought struck him immediately. It was the only explanation that made sense. If that were true, then Hatoru was the only person who might have answers.

'If Hatoru really has someone like me working for him, this might be harder than I thought'

He never truly believed he was the only person on Earth with mystical knowledge from the Wellness Technique Guide—but he hadn't expected his first encounter with another user to end up on the enemy's side.

"Wait… what if Hatoru is the user?" he muttered.

But even as he said it, he dismissed the idea. Something deep inside him told him he would know if he ever came face to face with someone like himself.

"Hey, when do I get the money back? They'll kill me if I lose all that money!" Roman begged, tears streaming down his face.

"How much was it?" Yohan asked.

"Six and a half million… five months' worth of profit," he sobbed.

Yohan whistled softly. "That's a lot of money."

A bright grin spread across his face—he couldn't help but celebrate his unexpected haul.

Just then, the door burst open with a loud crash.

"Police! Nobody move!" Helen shouted, sweeping the room with her gun raised.

Her eyes locked on Yohan. "Yohan!"

Before he could react, she rushed forward and pulled him into a tight hug.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice trembling with concern as her hands darted over his arms, checking for injuries.

"I'm fine," he said quickly.

"What happened back there? Did you do all that?"

"No… of course not…" He looked away, trying to mask the guilt tugging at his expression.

'She's probably talking about the part that loan shark did…'

"They were already like that when I got here," he added with a small, nervous chuckle.

She shifted her gaze to Roman,

"What about him?"

Yohan glanced at him before answering, "Same thing…"

She looked at him doubtfully but didn't say another word. After all, the people in question were kidnappers.

After a while, a few more cops arrived and escorted Roman and his men away. They found several boxes of illegal drugs hidden in the warehouse, so Yohan was certain those men were going away for a long time.

'Still, I better stay out of sight before he starts crying about his money again' Yohan thought, watching from a corner as they forced the drug lord into a police vehicle.

When he returned to where Helen was standing, he noticed Remi speaking with two officers.

"Does this have something to do with Hatoru wanting your massage parlor?" Helen asked.

"How'd you know?" Yohan replied.

"I know Roman is one of Hatoru's top men. That's the only reason he'd suddenly kidnap that girl."

Yohan sighed. "I didn't want to get you involved…"

"It's fine. This is all part of my job," she said, her tone steady but serious. "But if Hatoru is willing to go this far, I doubt he's going to stop coming after you."

She was right, and that meant the people around him were in danger too.

"And about that thing with your parents," Helen added, "it's a dead end. I've used all my resources, but I still can't find anything connected to their accident… I'm sorry."

"I understand," Yohan replied quietly. But deep down, he already knew the truth. Hatoru had something to do with their deaths — and Yohan wasn't going to let him get away with it.

A short while later, Remi approached them.

"They said I'm free to go home now," she said in a tired, low voice.

"Isn't your grandma coming to get you?" Yohan asked.

"No, she's gone," she said sadly.

"What?! How did she die?"

"I never said she was dead," Remi replied, giving Yohan a light punch on the arm. "She left the city. She'll be back in two months."

"So you've been staying on your own?"

She nodded.

'It's not safe to let her stay alone anymore' Yohan thought. 'But I can't bring her to my place, not unless I want her sleeping in my room'

He hesitated for a few seconds, then turned to Helen with his palms pressed together.

"Helen, can you please do me another favor…" he said, half-pleading with a playful smile.

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