Carrick walked to the garage, wondering what his father's mysterious business deal was about. He felt uneasy, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why. If this business deal was as important as his father made it out to be, then why didn't he send Domino? Domino had always been his favorite. Carrick decided to see this through.. as this was the only way to redeem himself and earn the family's respect.

Edgar, the driver, greeted him and asked if he was ready. Carrick nodded and got into the car. As they drove, Carrick's mind kept going back to his father's words: "Clear away the shame." But something didn't feel right.

The car stopped at a deserted warehouse. Edgar told Carrick to wait while he checked if everything was ready. Carrick watched as Edgar entered the warehouse, feeling his heart pound in his chest.

Suddenly, footsteps echoed from the shadows. A voice called out, "Carrick Gale, welcome." Carrick turned to see a figure emerging from the darkness.

"Who are you?" Carrick asked, trying to stay calm.

"I'm someone who's been waiting for you," the figure replied, its voice dripping with malice. "Your father made a deal with us, and you're part of it."

Carrick's instincts screamed at him to run, but he wanted answers. "What kind of deal?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

The figure chuckled. "You'll find out soon enough. But for now, let's just say you're in our hands."

Suddenly, Edgar appeared beside him, his eyes cold and hard. "Sorry, Carrick. I had no choice."

"What do you mean you had no choice? What's going on." Carrick asked in confusion.

"There was never any merchandise to pick up. I brought you here to die." Edgar replied with the same expressionless face.

Carrick felt a wave of betrayal wash over him. "You're in on this too?"

Edgar shrugged. "I'm just following orders."

The figure gestured to a group of men emerging from the shadows. "Take him away."

Carrick struggled against his captors, but they were too strong. They threw him into a dimly lit room, the door slamming shut behind him. The sound echoed through the space, making Carrick's heart race.

"Welcome, Carrick," one of them said, their voice devoid of emotion. "Your father sends his regards."

Carrick's eyes adjusted to the light, and he saw Edgar standing in the corner, his eyes downcast. Carrick's mind raced with questions. His mind still refused to believe that his father and Edgar would set him up. If they wanted him dead so much, why didn't they just kill him back at the mansion, why go through all these trouble? All he can do is hope that whatever this man was saying is wrong, and Edgar would find a way to help him out of here.

"Edgar, what's going on?" Carrick asked, trying to keep his voice steady. "Why are you here?"

Edgar didn't respond, his eyes fixed on the floor. Carrick's anger grew. Was Edgar really betraying him too?

The captor who spoke earlier stepped forward. "Your father wants you taken care of, Carrick. Permanently."

Carrick's heart skipped a beat. His father had ordered his own son's execution. He couldn't believe it.

"Why?" Carrick asked, trying to stall for time. "What have I done?"

The captor shrugged. "You're a liability. And after we're done with you, Edgar here will be taken care of too."

Edgar's eyes flickered, but he still didn't speak. Carrick knew he had to act fast. He had to escape, and he had to protect Edgar. He knew from Edgar's downcast expression, he didn't want this to happen, but had no choice as he had to follow his father's orders.. a low-level mafia member is a pawn, a chesspiece that can be discarded as trash whenever the big boss wishes, and the pawn can't do anything but accept. But what about him? Would he, Carrick Gale, accept this?

"You're not going to get away with this," Carrick said, trying to sound braver than he felt.

The captor laughed. "Oh, I think we will. Your father has paid us well to make sure this is a clean job."

Carrick's mind raced. He had to think of something, anything, to get out of this situation.

*

Carrick's captors tied him up, his wrists and ankles bound by thick rope. He struggled, but it was no use. They dragged him out of the room, Edgar's lifeless body following behind. They had killed Edgar because they felt he might prove difficult later on, so a bullet to his head solved their problem.

"You're a foolish boy, Carrick," one of the captors sneered. "You should have stayed out of this."

Carrick spat at his feet. "You'll pay for this. My father will make sure of it." Till now, he chose not to believe his father had a hand in this.

The captor laughed. "Your father's the one who ordered this. You're just a pawn in his game. What's so difficult to accept?"

They reached the car, the same one Carrick had arrived in with Edgar. The captors tossed Carrick into the backseat, Edgar's body thrown in beside him.

"Please," Carrick begged, "Don't do this. Just let me go."

The captor just smiled. "You're going to be a nice little bonfire."

One of the captors poured fuel around the car, the smell of gasoline filling the air. Carrick's heart raced as he realized their plan.

"No, no, no!" Carrick screamed, thrashing against his bonds. "You can't do this!"

Just as they were about to light the fuel, gunshots rang out. A gang fight had erupted nearby, the sound of shouting and screeching tires filling the air.

"What the...?" one of the captors exclaimed, momentarily distracted.

That's when a stray bullet found its way to the car, piercing the fuel-soaked metal.

The car erupted in a blaze of fire, Carrick and Edgar's bodies trapped inside, while his captors were blown away to kingdoms come. Carrick's screams were drowned out by the roar of the flames, his world consumed by heat and darkness.

"No!" Carrick shouted, his voice hoarse from smoke. "Mother!"

But it was too late. The flames engulfed them, and everything went black.

Carrick floated in darkness, his mind filled with painful memories. He thought about what had happened, and his emotions swirled with regret, anger, and sadness.

He couldn't believe his father was behind it all. But deep down, he knew it might be true. Edgar, the driver, didn't deny it. He said he was just following orders.

Carrick's mind was filled with questions. Why did his father want him dead? Was it because his mother was a mistress? Because he was powerless in the family? Or because his mother used to be a maid?

Carrick felt angry and hurt. He had never fought back against the family's abuse. He had always stayed quiet. So why did they want to kill him?

He screamed into the darkness, "Why!?" His anger grew with every thought.

If only he had been given a chance to live, maybe he could have become a powerful Mafia Lord one day. But now, he was left with only anger and sadness.

«Ding!

Data collection complete!

Fusion successful!

Host's health is currently in a critical state. Injecting revitalization serum!»

Carrick heard a female mechanical voice. He immediately turned around but saw nothing except infinite darkness.

«Ding!

Host's emotions are a mess! Injecting Ever-Calm serum!»

Carrick felt his mind calm as a cool sensation ran over him. He began to rearrange his thoughts, but first thing first, what exactly was that mechanical voice earlier.

«Welcome Host, I am Erebus. Earlier I detected an attempt of brainwashing on the host, thus I made use of the Ever-Calm serum on the host.» the voice spoke again.

"Erebus, huh? Who or what are you?" Carrick asked.

"I am an Artificial Intelligence System, you can think of me as your personal assistant. Needless to say, I am not of this backwater world of yours. I was soaring through the data airspace when I felt a pull to you. I felt your unbridled desire to make a change in your life, thus I am here to help.» the mechanical voice said with a hint of glee in its voice.

"And how will you be able to help me?" Carrick questioned the system. In the past he would have been fretting, but now his mind was as calm as the sea.

«I can grant the Host sets of skills and monetary rewards should the host walk in the path of accomplishing his goal.» the mechanical voice replied.

"Like those Systems in Light Novels that make their protagonist so OP? Hmm, fine. But where exactly I'm I?"

«You are in the void, an airspace between the Living and Purgatory. Host should awaken in ten minutes.» the system replied.

"Alright. Since you said you're a system and I'm the host, can you show me my stats?"

«Ding!

STAT (System for Transfer and Analysis of Tactical data):

Host: Carrick Gale

Age: 18

Status: Comatose

Attributes:

Strength (STR); 10

Intelligence (INT); 25

Agility (AGI); 10

Vitality (VIT); 25

Endurance (END); 25

Charisma (CHA); 15

Combat stats:

Attack power (ATK); 10

Defense (DEF); 10

Health points (HP); 100%

Mana points (MP); 100

Accuracy (ACC); 0

Evasion (EVA); 0

Performance metrics:

Experience points (XP); 0

Level; 1

Skills:

Revitalization (passive, upgradable)

Ever-Calm (passive, non upgradable)

Gold or currency; $0

Kills or deaths; 0 kills, 1 death

Win-loss record; 0

Goal: To be a Mafia Lord.

(System suggests the host will level up ASAP or the host's goal will just be nothing but a pipe dream).»

Carrick was stunned by his stats, he didn't know he was this weak. But when he saw the Mana point and the skills, he got a bit confused.

"Hey system, what's with Mana point? Isn't that part of a game-like stat for mages and spellcasters? Why is it amongst my stat?"

«Host is correct. But in this case, the Mana point helps you to perform certain active skills which you will acquire in time. With the Mana point, you can perform some skills that can enable you to dodge bullets, shoot in a curved manner, read lips and other excellent active skills.»

"That's really cool. What about the two skills there, Revitalization, what does it do and why is it upgradable?"

«Ding!

Revitalization will aid the host to recover from any wound, illness, or poisonous state. Also when upgraded to a certain level, the host can even regrow a severed limb and recover from even a bomb attack. Nevertheless, that will cost lots of Mana points.»

WHAT!?

"Hold on! Are you saying that with the right amount of Mana points and revitalization level, I can be said to be immortal!?"

«You could say that.»

"This is so damn OP, I feel like I'm a protagonist in a light-novel."

«Ding!

Host will awaken in sixty seconds. Host is currently in a facility. System detected traces of attempted brainwash earlier but terminated it by injecting Host with the Ever-Calm serum. System suggests Host to act brainwashed as Host is currently too weak to defend himself against whatever the unknown individuals will do. Again, System urges the Host to find a way to level up quickly, otherwise the host's goal will never be achieved.»

"Huh!? What!?"

«Host to awaken in 5.. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1..»

*

"He's coming around!"

"He's regaining consciousness!"

"Quick, get Doctor Ambrose!"

"Get some guards in case he goes berserk!"

Carrick could hear a cacophony of voices as his brain and eyes tried to adjust to the new surroundings. He felt he was laying on a soft bed and wearing a strange helmet on his head, also there was a lot of tubing attached to needles that had been inserted into him.

He didn't know where he was, but he had a feeling this was exactly where the system told him about, and he remembered the system telling him to act brainwashed in order to stay alive.

Sigh!

"Even after being revived and given a second chance in the same world, I'm still weak. It won't be long though."

Soon Carrick heard hurried footsteps, he could tell there were more than ten persons coming. Then he saw a clean shaven middle-aged man in a white medical coat that came and stood near him.

"Welcome back son, from now on, your name is X, and you serve Rambosia."

Carrick, now called V5, pretended to be brainwashed. He stared blankly at Doctor Ambrose. The doctor smiled, happy with Carrick's condition.

"You're doing well, V5," Doctor Ambrose said. "You'll be a great asset for Rambosia." He nodded to the guards.

One guard, a tall man with a scar, stepped forward. "Sir, may I talk to you?" he asked quietly.

Doctor Ambrose frowned. "What is it, Victor?"

Victor looked at Carrick before speaking. "I think we should be careful. He's not as brainwashed as we think."

Doctor Ambrose laughed. "That's impossible. The treatment always works. V5 will do what we say."

Carrick's mind raced, remembering the system's warning to level up quickly. He knew he had to play along, but he also needed to find a way to escape and start his journey to become a Mafia Lord. He knew if he remained here, he would be nothing but an experimental subject, a guinea pig for this mysterious organization.

As the guards closed in, Carrick noticed a small, almost unnoticeable nod from Victor. It was a signal, but from whom? Carrick could not help but wonder. He had spent enough time with his family to know when a conspiracy was going on.

Suddenly, alarms blared, and the room shook. "What's happening?" Doctor Ambrose shouted in confusion. The Rambosia hideout was unknown to Major Mafia families, so who would dare attack them?

Victor reacted immediately and drew his gun. "We're under attack. Get V5 to safety!"

Carrick saw his chance. What just happened made him understand that this Victor wasn't loyal to Rambosia, perhaps Victor could be his way out of this sick place. He pretended to stumble, falling to the ground. As the guards rushed to help him, Carrick whispered to Victor, "Who are you working for?"

Victor's eyes locked onto Carrick's. "Meet me in the east wing tonight. Come alone."

With that, Victor dragged Carrick away, into the chaos. Carrick saw a new group of people dressed in a different uniform shooting at the guards.

*

Disguised as a Rambosia guard, Victor pulled Carrick through the winding corridors of Rambosia's secret facility. They dodged bullets and leaping flames, the sound of shattering glass and screams filling the air.

"What's happening?" Carrick shouted above the din.

"Rebellion," Victor replied, his gun firing at unseen targets. "We have to get out, now!"

They burst through a door, slamming it shut behind them. Carrick found himself in a cramped, dimly lit room filled with computer screens and wires. The room seemed like a tech storage room.

"Who are you?" Carrick demanded, his eyes locked on Victor. Before he could decide on anything, he needed to know who Victor was.. what if he was working for his father and was here to finish the job those men couldn't.

Victor ripped off his mask, revealing a scarred face and piercing blue eyes. "I'm Victor Alistair, former helmsman of the Alistair Family. My family was almost wiped out by the joint forces of the Gale family and Giovanni family. And you, V5, might just be the key to our survival."

"What do you mean I'm the key to your survival?" Carrick questioned, but suddenly a ding sounded in his head.

«Ding!

<<System suggests Host should make use of the individual 'Victor' and escape Rambosia.>>

"I will tell you all you want to know, but for now. I have infiltrated Rambosia's mainframe," Victor said as he lifted his face from the computer screen, his voice urgent. "We must escape now. The facility will self-destruct in five minutes."

Carrick's heart raced. "How do we get out?"

Victor handed Carrick a small device. "This is a neural disruptor. It will disrupt any brainwash action that may have been taken against you, and it will also disrupt the aim of those guards, in other words, they won't be able to land a single bullet on us as their aims will be way off. Press the red button to also neutralize their weapons as they are making use of electrical powered laser guns."

Carrick took the device, his mind racing. "What about you?"

Victor smiled grimly. "I'll draw off Rambosia's forces so as to lessen the attention on you. You don't have to worry, I'll be right behind you."

The countdown began, echoing through the room. Carrick and Victor shared a nod before bursting into action.

Carrick charged into the corridor, neural disruptor in hand. The Rambosia guards closed in, aiming their guns at him, they didn't hesitate to pull the trigger. Carrick dodged and weaved, the disruptor emitting a high-pitched whine as it neutralized the guards' mental sense as well as their weapons. The guards pulled the triggers but only the clicking sound was heard.

"You're a dead man, V5!" a guard snarled, charging at him with a knife. The guard was quick to realize something was wrong with his gun, but instead of panicking, he decided to first take out Carrick

Carrick sidestepped, using the guard's momentum against him. The guard crashed into the wall, unconscious.

<<Ding! Congratulations to host for neutralizing a level 3 hostile individual. 200 XP awarded to Host. System suggests the host to kill hostile forces in order to reap maximum XP and level up quickly>> the mechanical voice sounded in his head.

Carrick stared at the unconscious guard, he had never killed a fellow human before. He was about to refuse when he felt his emotion calming down, he realized it was the Ever-Calm passive skill taking effect. He slowly walked over to the guard, picked up the knife that was on the ground and calmly slit the guard's throat. The guard twitched a few moments before becoming still.

«Ding! Congratulations to Host for killing a level 3 hostile individual. 500 XP and 250 gold coins awarded to Host.»

Carrick stared at the small blood puddle in front of him. For someone who just killed a fellow human for the first time, he was awfully calm as if nothing happened.

"Well, it's either them or me, and besides, a weak hearted person can't become a Mafia Lord." He said to himself and smiled.

At the moment, he was seeing the guards as XP points and a stepping stone. A smile played on his lips.