Chapter 21: Information Investigation Complete

"Run!"

Roger reacted immediately by rolling aside.

"Boom!"

The axe smashed into the floor, carving a deep gash.

Roger turned around and saw a white man with short brown hair glaring at him with murderous intent.

"Damn, it's a gang job after all."

But he wasn't afraid—he held the truth in his hands.

Roger drew his pistol and aimed it at the brown-haired man: "Stop! You son of a bitch, move one more inch and I swear I'll put two holes in you!"

The brown-haired man froze at the sight of the barrel, yet showed no real fear—only a cold sneer.

"You laughing at your mom?"

Roger couldn't stand the man's arrogance—he fired without hesitation, hitting the man's leg.

"Ahh!" The man's scream echoed through the house, waking nearby residents with the gunshot.

"That's the way!" Mrs. Fiona cried out, satisfied: "Untie me quick—I'm going to shoot this son of a bitch!"

"Alright." Roger, while the brown-haired man clutched his wounded leg in agony, continued untying Fiona.

But the moment the ropes loosened, he heard footsteps crunching on the floor behind him.

"Who!" He swung his pistol sharply toward the kitchen.

"It's me, Roger." Juan stepped out from the kitchen.

"You scared the hell out of me." Roger sighed: "I've taken care of these two—just call the cops later."

Juan nodded, glancing at the brown-haired man writhing in pain and the unconscious man with glasses.

"Didn't expect two of them working together."

"Yeah." Roger shrugged: "Lucky they didn't have guns."

No sooner had he spoken than he frowned: "But where's Natasha? Hasn't she woken up yet?"

Mrs. Fiona, hearing his question, frantically tugged harder at her bonds: "She ate the apple pie too—she should still be asleep."

"Is it the door on the left?"

"Yes."

Roger nodded and walked toward Natasha's door. Just as he raised his hand to knock, he heard a faint, muffled clicking sound.

Thanks to Firearm Proficiency, he was now hyper-sensitive to that sound.

In an instant, he dropped flat to the ground, leaving Mrs. Fiona bewildered.

The next second.

"Bang!"

The bullet pierced the wooden door and embedded itself in the living room wall.

"Shit! There's someone else inside!"

Roger hadn't expected three of them—his scalp prickled with dread.

No wonder the reward was better than before—it was more dangerous!

After the shot, the person inside didn't fire again or rush out—instead, the sound of breaking glass came from within.

'He's running!' was Roger's first thought.

'No, I can't chase him!' was his second.

Because if the man inside was just luring them in to ambush them, it would be disastrous.

'Then what do I do?'

Roger turned to Juan, who had already pushed open the living room window, apparently planning a flanking strike.

Even so, the situation remained unstable.

The ruthless bastard inside would surely take Natasha as a hostage.

To avoid danger and end this quickly, Roger pulled the Pepper Grenade from his pocket.

Now he could only hope the system's gear actually worked.

Thinking this, he rose and kicked open the door, then quickly sidestepped behind the wall.

"Bang."

Another gunshot shattered the TV screen.

Seizing the moment, Roger hurled the Pepper Grenade into the room.

"Cover your nose and mouth!" He gestured to Mrs. Fiona with his hands.

Mrs. Fiona didn't fully understand, but seeing the man clamp his nose and mouth with his shirt, she instinctively did the same.

Immediately after, an overwhelming wave of pepper fumes erupted from the room, stinging their eyes until they reddened and teared.

"Damn, this thing is amazing."

Roger couldn't bear it—he stuck his head out the window to breathe.

The criminal inside fared worse—he'd been caught completely unprepared, doused in pepper like a police pepper spray.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!" Uncontrollable coughing erupted, followed by gunshots and the sound of breaking glass.

"He's escaped!"

Roger, covering his nose and mouth, rushed into the room and found Natasha—thinly dressed, wrists and ankles bound—coughing violently.

But because the criminal had covered her mouth and nose with clothing, she'd suffered less.

Roger scooped her up, carried her out to the kitchen, and handed her to Mrs. Fiona.

Then he quickly flung open the front door and looked outside.

Just as Juan was fighting the bald criminal, whose skills were impressive—clearly trained—even after being blasted in the face by a Pepper Grenade, he still managed to block Juan's punch with his arm.

At the same time, he pulled out a pistol to counterattack.

Unfortunately, he was not facing just one person.

There was also a Pit Bull.

"Woof woof woof!"

Jose surged forward like lightning and bit down hard on the bald criminal's thigh.

"Ahh!"

The bald criminal screamed, collapsed to the ground, and then received several punches to the face from Juan, his flesh splitting open.

"Good job, Jose!"

Roger cheered, stepped forward quickly, and kicked the bald criminal's pistol away.

Three minutes later.

The three serial killers were bound with ropes; Roger pulled out his phone, took a photo of each of them, and sent them to Vanessa.

Fiona picked up the bald man's pistol—it was actually hers, stolen from her while she slept.

At this moment, Natasha had also woken up, though her mind was still foggy, trembling violently in her mother's arms.

"Vanessa will be here soon; the police should arrive a little later." Roger put away his phone, sensing a headline—he knew the female reporter no longer cared about the Forbidden Zone.

"Thank you so much—I don't even know what to say—shit, if not for you, Natasha and I would be dead." Fiona's mother spoke with trembling gratitude.

Fortunately, she had agreed to Roger's request out of compassion—otherwise, she and Natasha would not have survived the night.

More importantly, these three would have subjected Natasha to brutality; just imagining that possibility filled Fiona with anguish.

Natasha stared fixedly at Roger, silently expressing her thanks.

Roger accepted their gratitude with perfect calm.

The system promptly delivered a notification.

【【Terror Under the Moonlight】intelligence investigation completed】

【You endured a harrowing night—SAN Value -5, Spirit Vision +1】

【Reward obtained: Skill 'Camouflage', Ancient God's Silver Coin ×1, $100】