Reincarnated as the Baby: The foolish heir of Ravencrest

0.2 The End of the Beginning

After retrieving the item, we made our way to the designated location—an abandoned building on the outskirts of the city. It was eerily quiet, and the most peculiar was the sheer number of cars parked around the building.

"Why do they send so many people just to retrieve an item?" Selery muttered.

She wasn't one to get rattled easily, but the sight of this many vehicles definitely put her on edge. She scan the area with sharp eyes for a moment, then she turned to me.

"We're going to do the handoff like we always do. Wait here until I get the money. When I give the signal, come in with the item."

"Wait, Selery, I don't know why, but something feels wrong about this." I glanced again at the number of parked vehicles.

She smiled at me with the usual grin that always masked her real emotions. "Kiddo, this is what we always do. Just wait for my signal until it is safe."

I wanted to argue, but I knew it wouldn't help. Selery always took the lead. It wasn't that she didn't trust me; it was her instinct to shield me from harm. Over time, I had come to know the lengths she would go to keep me safe, even if it meant throwing herself into the fire. I recalled a night when she returned with a gaping wound in her stomach after a deal had gone horribly wrong. Since then, she has become even more cautious.

I watched her as she walked away, her figure growing smaller with each step. I opened the box containing the item we were about to trade, the syringe. Its contents glowed faintly like some otherworldly substance. Why would one of the most powerful men in the world need something from a Norm lab? And why would he send a small army to retrieve it? I clenched my fists, my eyes still locked on the glowing syringe.

As I waited for Selery's signal, I heard the gunfire erupted inside the building. My blood ran cold, and without thinking, my legs started moving on pure instinct. I sprinted toward the entrance. My worst nightmare flashed before my eyes—the memory of Selery bleeding and barely alive. I couldn't let that happen again, not while I stood outside doing nothing.

The moment I stepped inside, a chill ran down my spine. There she was—on her knees, bleeding from her shoulder and stomach.

"Selery!" I shouted with cracking voice.

She turned her head toward me and whisper. "Hey, Zelo..."

"Hey." That single word meant more than danger. This was not just a deal gone wrong—it was a trap.

"You can run if you think you're faster than my bullet."

The voice came from a man exuding an exclusive aura. He is the CEO of Elysium ecos, the very man whose face I saw daily on television. He is sitting casually on a chair, pointing a gun at Selery's head. The sight of Selery, bleeding and helpless, sent a wave of panic through me. I wanted to move, to act, but I was frozen. It all made sense now, the vehicles. They hadn't come just to retrieve the item, but they were here to kill us.

My mind raced desperately for a way out. The only option that came to me was the syringe. I didn't know what it was or why it was so valuable, but it was clear this man is desperate for it—desperate enough to show himself.

Without a second thought, I grabbed the syringe from my pocket and held it up. The man's eyes widened as he noticed the syringe.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," I said, holding the syringe near my neck.

"Let her go, or I will inject this into myself."

The man stood up; his calm face turned to something else, panic. Pure, panic. He stared at the syringe like his life depended on it, and maybe it did.