Chapter 10: 10 The Truly Ferocious
Strictly speaking, the fight ended before it began!
The seemingly frail Karman, in the moment he approached Wild Bull Allen, bent his body and turned, dodging Allen's thick arms, and circled behind him to slash open Allen's throat with the hunting knife in his hand.
It was the first time Joe Ga had seen a person being killed up close, the first time he knew that blood could spurt four or five meters when a major artery was severed, and also the first time he knew that a person couldn't scream when their windpipe was cut—only making a futile 'hissing' sound as they struggled to breathe.
Honestly, Joe Ga was petrified!
He realized that Karman knew what he did for a living, and he also heard the implied message when Karman introduced himself, that as long as you pay me money, I will sell you my life.
Joe Ga made an offer, actually intending for Karman to give Wild Bull Allen a lesson for seeking trouble, but he didn't expect the old man to misunderstand, or rather, there was no misunderstanding, as he chose to use Wild Bull Allen's life to seal their verbal agreement.
Watching Wild Bull Allen kneel on the ground clutching his neck, his face filled with a plea for help, Joe Ga struggled to suppress the urge to call an ambulance and watched as Allen fell face-first to the ground, convulsed a few times, and then lost his life.
Describing the feeling of watching a person being killed like an animal is difficult.
It wasn't the urge to vomit like in movies, but rather a complete eruption of insecurity; Joe Ga's body tensed up naturally, his senses seemed to be suddenly amplified, and he subconsciously touched the pistol tucked at the small of his back.
Not until Karman wiped the hunting knife on Allen's back and sheathed it did Joe Ga begin to come around a bit.
Seeing that Zhabu wasn't surprised, Joe Ga knew there had been a misunderstanding in the communication between him and Karman, but the misunderstanding stemmed from Karman's own misperception of his identity, or rather, it wasn't a misperception; Karman believed that a gun merchant hiring someone meant he wanted a good hand who dared to kill, and this was just the final step in the 'interview' process.
Joe Ga knew he couldn't show weakness. His gaze swept over Wild Bull Allen's body, then he said to Karman, "This isn't over. I'll be coming to Ad-Damazin often, and I don't want any trouble."
Karman glanced at Joe Ga, his eyes inadvertently sweeping over Joe Ga's right index finger, which twitched from time to time. He nodded and said, "My son will take care of his body. The Nile will erase everything.
Nobody cared about Allen, he had no family, only debtors and enemies.
Last week he harassed a white woman, and the town sheriff was contemplating whether to arrest him. Everyone will breathe a sigh of relief with his disappearance."
Zhabu, who was missing a few teeth, squatted indifferently beside Allen's body, searching him, found no money, and after comparing his foot size to Allen's shoes, found them to be much too large. He kicked Allen's body in dissatisfaction then said with a strange look in his eyes to Joe Ga, "Karman is right, nobody will care about Allen's death.
Last week he broke a white man's arm, almost raped a white woman; others might just think he ran away."
The casual attitude toward human life present there was something Joe Ga was not accustomed to.
SD is indeed poor, but where there are Chinese people, at least some measure of law and order exists.
Moreover, Chinese people have a relatively high status in SD; even those who want to commit wrongdoings would subconsciously avoid the gaze of Chinese people.
Joe Ga had been to Ad-Damazin many times, but it was always the airport boss, Sayram, who received him, to thank him for helping with the maintenance of airplanes, and even a casual stroll in town would be accompanied by Zhabu. He truly had never encountered such a scene before.
Joe Ga had anticipated this aspect of his job, but he had never expected it to come so soon—a human life vanished just because of a slight communication mishap with a new employee.
The feeling was surreal, but when everything truly happened, Joe Ga fully understood that the realm he was about to enter was far from any paradise.
The feeling of tension and adrenaline rush caused by a sense of insecurity made Joe Ga feel extremely thrilled, perhaps even overly so.
If Joe Ga couldn't adjust, maybe he would soon be consumed by this exhilaration and become a real killer.
His response to death and fear was slightly different from that of a normal person.
Years of survival training had caused him to subconsciously choose to counterattack when faced with fear.
It's not just soldiers who can suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; people working under high pressure can also develop mild PTSD.
The issue with Joe Ga was 'fear.' Out of necessity for his parents, he had to engage in dangerous and illegal dealings and maintain normal behavior in the presence of many of his peers—a pressure incomprehensible to most.
He wasn't a born desperado, so he felt fear, and his stress reactions formed under long-term pressure made him instinctively retaliate whenever he was scared.
In his condition, Joe Ga simply couldn't lead a normal life in his own country.
Cheat codes are a great thing, but sometimes 'good things' can lead to bad habits.
Karman's son silently walked over to Arun, effortlessly lifted the at least 280-pound Arun, who was nicknamed Wild Bull, and carried him towards the greenery at the end of the airport, heading to the river a kilometer away.
Watching Zhabu kick the dirt on the edge of the runway over the freely flowing blood to cover it, Joe Ga hesitated for a moment before nodding and saying, "Since you all put it that way, I'll take it seriously."
Joe Ga looked at the expressionless Karman and said, "You had better and safer options, but you chose one that was dangerous for me.
This is the first time I forgive you. If there's a next time, I will deduct your salary. Do you agree?"
Karman looked up at Joe Ga and said resolutely, "That's fair. From now on you're my boss. I work for you, and it's my duty to ensure your safety."
Joe Ga looked at the 'very obedient' Karman, nodded, and said, "I'm a businessman. From now on, don't kill anyone without my command, unless they threaten your safety or mine."
Karman nodded and said, "Your word is law. I'm not a butcher; I am just Hyena."
Joe Ga was tempted to ask Karman about the origin of the nickname 'Hyena,' but after consideration, he decided to let it be.
No nickname is given incorrectly; the story behind 'Hyena' must certainly be far from peaceful.
Watching his pickup truck finally approaching in the distance, Joe Ga turned, picked up his backpack from the ground, and took out two stacks of banknotes to hand to Karman, saying, "This is the agreed advance payment. In the future, I will pay you a salary of 20,000 US dollars a year. You can choose to take it all at once annually, or you can take part of it each month.
I suggest you take 1,670 US dollars each month because according to our tradition, the year-end bonus can amount to one or two months of salary depending on the employee's performance.
If you take your salary all at once, I fear I might feel stingy, haha~"