"Hey! John Knight, you're in trouble!" Sophia Turner hissed, slamming the brakes.
The Ferrari skidded to a halt. The Porsche behind them was still motionless, crashed into the mountainside, and silence filled the air.
It was simple—John Knight's casually tossed water bottle had smashed right through the Porsche's windshield. At the speed they were going, the impact shattered the glass instantly.
Caught off guard by the sudden hit, and swerving to avoid the unknown object, Curly lost control and crashed straight into the rocky hillside. What happened inside the car? Well… anyone could guess.
"I... didn't mean to!" John stammered, looking just as shocked.
"So what now?" Sophia whispered, feeling a pit in her stomach.
"We bail. No one saw us. Let's go!" John said like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"…You're unbelievable."
Sophia Turner was now 100% sure: This guy is a total animal. Cause chaos and run? Classic.
But before they could even react, there was a noise from the crashed Porsche. Curly, battered and furious, crawled out from the wreck. His face was twisted with rage as he limped toward them, step by step, eyes locked on the Ferrari.
Hate burned on his face like wildfire.
Sophia noticed his expression and froze. "John… John, he's coming!"
"Yeah, I see him." John's tone was relaxed, unfazed.
Sophia shot him a glare. How is he so calm?!
"What... what do you think he's gonna do?" she asked nervously.
"Hmm, probably demand we pay for the damage... Oh, but I'm broke, so that's on you. You're technically my boss, and it's kinda your fault this race happened, so yeah—you're responsible."
"…You've got to be kidding me."
Sophia wanted to kick him straight out of the car. Is this guy even a man?! Step up and handle this! Sure, she had money, but that wasn't the point!
But just as Curly reached their car, Sophia's blood ran cold.
In Curly's hand was a gun.
What the hell? It's just a car crash—does he really need to kill us over it? Fine! I'll buy you ten more Porsches!
"You! Out!" Curly snarled, pointing the gun straight at John Knight.
Curly was no amateur racer—he'd seen it all. The way John had chucked that bottle earlier? He knew it was deliberate. No racer has time to casually sip water during a street race, let alone throw bottles.
If his boss hadn't ordered him to bring this guy back alive, Curly would've pulled the trigger already—especially after what just happened to him inside the car. The crash had caused his "passenger" to... well, let's just say the damage was personal.
Sophia turned to John, expecting him to pull out some secret agent move. He's a bodyguard, right? Surely, he's got this under control. That's why Dad hired him, right?
And then... John Knight sighed, muttered "Okay," and casually stepped out of the car.
Sophia nearly face-planted into the dashboard. This idiot! This is my bodyguard?! I swear to God, I'll strangle him myself!
Curly was just as surprised. He'd expected at least some resistance, but no—this guy just walked out like a lamb to slaughter.
Curly snickered darkly. This chick has terrible taste. Out of all the guys in this city, you chose this wimp? Babe, you could've had me.
"Put your hands on your head!" the curly-haired man commanded.
Upon hearing the curly-haired man's order, John Knight looked somewhat reluctant. He hesitated for a moment and then asked, "On my head or yours?"
Pfft!
Upon hearing John Knight's words, Sophia Turner couldn't help but burst into laughter. For the first time, she discovered that this brute wasn't entirely detestable.
The curly-haired man, however, thought that John Knight was clearly making fun of him. "Fuck your mother! One more word and I'll shoot you dead, you ugly bastard! Squat on the ground right now and put your hands on your head!"
John Knight had every reason to believe that the curly-haired man had called him an ugly bastard out of psychological distortion caused by jealousy over his better looks. Nevertheless, John Knight obediently squatted on the ground and placed his hands on his head.
Huh? So obedient?
Now, the curly-haired man felt a bit surprised. He had thought this guy was really something, but it turned out he was such a wimp.
Come to think of it, looking at John Knight's frail appearance, he was young and didn't have any weapon in his hand. What else could he do but obey? At that moment, the curly-haired man even felt a bit disappointed!
You gave in so easily. Then where's my chance to show off? You should have resisted first, and then I could have beaten you up until you submitted, and then you obediently did as I said. That would have been more exciting! You brat, with your good-looking face, you have no sense of drama at all! Sigh, it's so lonely being a master!
Ignoring John Knight, the curly-haired man pointed his gun at Sophia Turner again. "Hey, you little slut, it's your turn! Get out of the car!"
Sophia Turner had never been insulted like this in her life. Hearing the curly-haired man use such an insulting term to address her, Sophia Turner was almost driven crazy with anger. "You... How dare you call me that? Do you know who I am?"
"Of course I know. You're Sophia Turner, the precious daughter of Charles Turner, the chairman of Heavenly Enterprises! That's exactly why I'm here for you. Get out of the car now!" the curly-haired man said, pointing the gun at her with a playful smirk on his face.
Sophia Turner finally realized that something was wrong. Even though she hadn't seen much of the world, she now knew exactly what was happening to her—kidnapping! No wonder he had a gun!
No way! Just thinking about being kidnapped made Sophia Turner feel like she could barely breathe.
However, seeing that the curly-haired man was indeed holding a real gun, and that John Knight, that jerk, was crouching over there with his head in his hands like a total wimp, Miss Turner didn't dare to act rashly. She had no choice but to obediently push open the car door and get out.
In her heart, she cursed John Knight. You damned brute! Aren't you the bodyguard my dad found for me? What the hell are you doing now? Are you just going to crouch there with your head in your hands? You're such a coward!
After making Sophia Turner crouch down next to John Knight with her hands on her head, the curly-haired man felt extremely proud. As long as this job was successful, the reward would be enough for him to live a life of debauchery for several years. It seemed that success was within reach! The curly-haired man could almost see a large pile of money waving at him! Haha, then that top courtesan at the Paradise Entertainment Club would be nothing but his plaything!
Just thinking about this made the curly-haired man feel a surge of excitement.
So, in his excitement, the curly-haired man took out his phone and started contacting his accomplices. The sooner this matter was over, the better. It was best to get the money and leave as soon as possible!
"Hey, you brute! Think of something quickly!" Sophia Turner crouched next to John Knight with her hands on her head and said through gritted teeth. This man seemed to have no idea what to do and just kept crouching there with his head in his hands.
"What can I do?" John Knight still had his head in his hands and said helplessly.
What can you do? Of course, you're the one who should think of something! If you don't think of a way, do you expect a beautiful woman like me to do it? Seriously! If it weren't for the fact that there was a gun pointed at her from behind, Sophia Turner would have jumped up and bashed his head with her high heels.
"Are you even a bodyguard?" Sophia Turner asked in a low voice, seething with anger.
"Yeah, I am!"
"Then you have no idea what to do at all?"
"But he has a gun!" John Knight said, looking very troubled.
Why don't you find a way to take the gun away? Sophia Turner really wanted to bite this spineless man.
Not long after the curly-haired man finished his call, a flash of light appeared, and a car drove up from the bottom of the hill.
The smile on the curly-haired man's face grew wider. As long as these two people got into that car, his mission would be accomplished, and then he could just wait to count the money.
These two, they really are more likable than gold!
Huh? How did it become one person? The curly-haired guy's smile froze on his face.
From the very beginning, John Knight knew that this curly-haired guy wasn't his match. What he was doing was just trying to draw the enemy out. Who could have known how many traps were set ahead? The more enemies he could lure in, the fewer risks he'd have to face. The danger hiding in the shadows was always much more threatening than the one in plain sight.
So when he saw the car speeding towards them, John Knight decided to act—he didn't need to wait until the enemies were all here. As the great ones say, the best way was to strike them one by one.
And judging by the curly-haired guy's actions, it was clear they had no backup left. Now was the perfect time to strike.
The two suddenly became one. The curly-haired guy wondered if his eyes were playing tricks on him, but then he felt a hand patting him on the shoulder from behind.
A ghost!
In that instant, that thought flashed through his mind.
And honestly, who could blame him for thinking that?
This was a desolate, isolated mountain with few people around, and people often died here. Now, it was the dead of night, and with all the eerie rumors, combined with the fact that just moments ago there were two people, and now there was only one—he'd be crazy not to think of ghosts!
"Ah—!!"
So, when John Knight gave him a tap, the curly-haired guy screamed in surprise.
His scream startled both John Knight and Sophia Turner.
"At this hour, are you trying to scare people to death?" John Knight complained. He could tell the guy had figured him out, but he didn't expect him to scream like that.
Hearing that, the curly-haired guy realized it wasn't a ghost that had tapped him but a person! And not just anyone—it was the guy who should've been up ahead!
How the hell did he end up behind me?
But whatever! Not only had he scared him out of his wits, now he was blaming him for scaring him? Fine, I'll make sure you end up as a ghost!
In a flash, he no longer cared about the order to capture him alive. He raised his gun and fired!
Though John Knight wasn't faster than a bullet, he was fast enough to outpace the curly-haired guy. That was all he needed. Just as the curly-haired guy aimed, he felt a sharp numbness in his arm. He looked down to see John Knight holding his wrist, and instantly, all strength drained from his arm—there was no way he could pull the trigger now.
John Knight smiled as he took the gun from the guy's hand, flipping it around and using the stock to slam it against his forehead…
With a flicker of confusion in his eyes, the curly-haired guy passed out cold.
"Shit, this guy's ruthless..." was the last thought before everything went black.
Things had happened so quickly that by the time Sophia Turner came to her senses, the curly-haired guy was already lying unconscious on the ground.
"What happened to him?" she asked.
"Probably knocked out by your world-class beauty," John Knight replied nonchalantly, inspecting the gun.
Although she knew he was lying, Sophia Turner couldn't help but blush, feeling a little less annoyed with him.
Just as she was about to compliment him, a car sped toward them, and she panicked again.
She had heard the curly-haired guy talking on the phone earlier, so she could guess this was his backup. Grabbing John Knight's arm, she started shaking him urgently, "John Knight, they're coming! They're coming! What do we do? What do we do?"
"I see them!" John Knight replied impatiently. This girl—when will she ever calm down?
What's with this attitude? How can he be so indifferent to a woman? Any normal guy would try to comfort me now, like in those Korean dramas!
"Come on, over here!" John Knight finished checking the gun and pulled Sophia Turner by the hand.
"Oh!" She didn't know why she obeyed him so easily, but the moment he took her hand, she felt a lot less afraid.
At this point, they could clearly see that the car coming toward them was a black Volvo.
John Knight pulled Sophia Turner into the shadow behind the car, gripping his gun, aiming at the Volvo.
Sophia Turner could feel the sweat building up in her palms. She could tell John Knight was planning to take a shot at the car. But... did this guy even know how to shoot? He'd been eyeing the gun for so long, like it was more interesting than a beautiful woman.
The Volvo was getting closer—one hundred meters... eighty meters, sixty meters, fifty meters...
Still, the gun didn't go off.
Sophia's heart was pounding in her chest. She wanted to speak, to say something, but she didn't dare—afraid of disturbing him. She knew that one shot from John Knight would determine whether or not they were getting out of this alive.
Closer... closer...
Thirty meters, twenty meters, ten meters!
"Bang!" Finally, John Knight fired. The shot hit the Volvo's tire, and the car immediately veered off course, heading toward the reservoir at the base of the mountain. They heard the splash of it hitting the water a few moments later.
Sophia Turner had been right. John Knight didn't really know how to shoot, which is why he had been studying the gun for so long.
After figuring it out, he couldn't guarantee his aim. He only took the shot when the car was close enough, knowing that he had only one shot. If he missed, they'd be in serious trouble. Thankfully, his luck was on point.
"Yay! We're saved! We're saved!"
When Sophia saw the car tumble down the cliff, she jumped up, her excitement taking over. In a burst of joy, she grabbed John Knight and kissed him hard on the lips.
It was brief—just a fleeting moment when her lips brushed his. But it left John Knight completely stunned. After all these years, no young woman had ever kissed him.
He'd thought countless times about kissing Emily Park, but had always been rejected. And yet, here he was, not even knowing Sophia Turner for more than a few days, and she had kissed him! For a moment, he felt like the ghost of his virginity was finally gone—uh, wait, it seemed like his chastity was back, too!
"What are you zoning out for?" Sophia Turner asked, her mood light and playful, a grin on her face.
"You kissed me?"
"Who kissed—ahhhh—!" Sophia Turner suddenly screamed as it dawned on her what she'd just done. She remembered in her excitement, she'd just grabbed something and kissed it. She didn't expect that someone to be...
"You owe me! You owe me! That was my first kiss—!!"
The more she thought about it, the more she felt wronged. She kept pounding on John Knight's arm, tears brimming in her eyes. Her first kiss... and it had gone to that damn animal!
She thought the real culprit was, of course, this animal—if he hadn't been standing right there, would she have kissed him?
"Well, actually, there's something I should tell you!" John Knight said, completely unfazed by her reaction, taking his time to speak.
"What is it?" Even though she didn't want to care, her curiosity got the best of her.
"That was my first kiss, too."