Rio quickly checked the time on his wristwatch before letting out a slow breath.
"I don't have much time left," he muttered under his breath. "I should leave now."
His expression had turned serious. Staying here any longer would be dangerous.
If Arjun had really planned all of this beforehand, then that meant one thing. He must already know a way out of this place. And if that was true, then whatever was about to happen inside that building had been carefully arranged.
Rio narrowed his eyes toward the dark structure.
"But before that…" he murmured, irritation flashing across his face, "he'll have to deal with some idiots first."
Without wasting another second, Rio turned around and disappeared into the darkness.
Meanwhile, a little farther away, three familiar figures were standing near the roadside.
Or rather… two noisy idiots and one deeply unfortunate human being forced to babysit them.
That unfortunate soul was Nitin.
He had shown absolutely no interest in coming here in the first place. But because Gaurav and Manya had dragged themselves into this mess, he had no choice except to follow them.
Gaurav looked around in confusion.
"Where did he go? He was right there just a second ago!"
Just moments ago, he had been keeping an eye on Rio. But the genius had blinked for barely two seconds... and Rio had vanished completely.
Smack!
A sharp hit landed on the back of Gaurav's head.
"Ow! What the hell?!" Gaurav shouted, instantly turning around.
Manya glared at him.
"I gave you one simple task! Just one! And you couldn't even do that?"
Gaurav rubbed his head angrily. "How is that my fault?! The guy disappeared like some movie ninja!"
"Excuses," Manya snapped. "You're just useless."
"Useless?!" Gaurav pointed at himself in disbelief. "At least I was doing something! Unlike you, standing there acting smart!"
"Say that again!"
"Gladly!"
Within seconds, the two started arguing like complete lunatics, throwing insults at each other while poor Nitin stood there with the dead expression of a man questioning every life decision that had brought him here.
Then—
A voice suddenly came from behind them.
Calm. Cold. Mocking.
"Did you three lose your way?"
The three froze.
The voice continued.
"Come."
A faint chuckle followed.
"I'll safely take you back to your parents."
There was no need for the three of them to turn around.
The voice alone was enough to make the atmosphere freeze.
Gaurav's body stiffened instantly, while Manya's expression darkened. Only Nitin remained relatively calm, though even he let out a quiet sigh. Deep down, he had already expected this. Following someone like Rio this openly and then creating noise in the middle of the road... getting caught was almost guaranteed.
Rio stood a few steps behind them, his sharp gaze calmly fixed on the group. He looked at the time on his wristwatch once before lowering his hand, a faint irritated expression crossing his face.
He didn't have much time left.
If Arjun had really planned all of this beforehand, then whatever was happening inside that building was no coincidence. Which also meant Arjun probably already knew a way out. Staying here too long would be dangerous.
But before leaving, there was one small problem to deal with.
These three idiots.
Gaurav slowly leaned toward Nitin and whispered under his breath, trying to act brave despite the fear clearly visible on his face.
"What should we do with this barking dog?"
Nitin slowly turned his head and stared at him like he had just witnessed the purest form of stupidity.
This idiot really wanted to die.
A few days ago, Rio had nearly broken him, and somehow Gaurav still hadn't learned his lesson.
Nitin spoke in a flat voice.
"Then ask him yourself, dumbass."
Before Gaurav could even process what he meant, Nitin shoved him forward.
"ABE, YOU SON OF A—!"
Gaurav stumbled straight ahead, nearly losing his balance, but Rio casually caught his shoulder before he could fall.
That single touch was enough.
The blood immediately drained from Gaurav's face.
Rio's grip wasn't even strong yet, but Gaurav's body had already remembered exactly what kind of person was standing in front of him.
Rio looked at him quietly for a moment, then spoke in a calm voice.
"I'll keep this short."
His fingers pressed slightly harder into Gaurav's shoulder, making him flinch.
"Tell me what Arjun's plan is."
The playful expression on Gaurav's face disappeared instantly. A nervous smile awkwardly took its place.
"Plan? What plan?" he laughed weakly, avoiding eye contact. "Bhai, you've got the wrong idea. We're not even that close."
Rio's expression didn't change.
Instead, his grip tightened just enough to make Gaurav suck in a sharp breath.
"AAH... fuck!"
Rio tilted his head slightly, his eyes never leaving Gaurav's face.
"That's strange." His voice remained calm, which somehow made it worse. "A few days ago, you were acting very differently."
He leaned slightly closer.
"You made it seem like you knew him pretty well."
Sweat began forming on Gaurav's forehead. His throat had gone dry.
"T-that was just random talk," he stammered. "People say shit all the time."
Rio stared at him for another second before letting out a quiet breath.
His expression turned colder.
"Listen carefully."
The playful tone in his voice was completely gone now.
"I don't care about your nonsense. I just want one answer."
His eyes narrowed slightly as he glanced toward the under-construction building in the distance before looking back at Gaurav.
"What is Arjun planning?"
Gaurav was already trying his absolute best to free himself.
Both his hands had grabbed Rio's wrist, and he kept struggling, trying to force that terrifying hand off his shoulder, but it was useless. It felt less like a human hand and more like an iron clamp fixed in place. The harder he tried, the more pathetic he looked.
Rio watched this silent struggle with complete indifference.
He already knew what kind of person Gaurav was. A loudmouth, an idiot, and definitely not someone who knew anything important. Getting useful information out of him was probably a waste of time.
His gaze slowly shifted toward Nitin and Manya.
Without removing his hand from Gaurav's shoulder, Rio spoke in a calm but cold voice.
"Whatever happens to this asshole…" his eyes narrowed slightly, "happens to both of you too."
The air around them instantly turned heavier.
"So tell me," Rio said, his tone sharp now, "what exactly is Arjun planning?"
Manya crossed her arms, looking more annoyed than scared. Then she turned toward Nitin as if Rio's threat meant absolutely nothing.
"Should we just leave this idiot here?" she asked casually, jerking her thumb toward Gaurav. "Honestly, I'm completely fine with that. You tell me."
Nitin looked at Gaurav, who was still struggling like a trapped animal.
Then he calmly nodded.
"Sounds good."
Gaurav's eyes widened so much they nearly popped out.
"WHAT?!"
Without another word, Manya and Nitin turned around and started walking away.
For exactly two seconds.
Then suddenly—
"NOOOOOOO!"
A miserable cry echoed through the road.
Before either of them could take another step, something grabbed both their legs tightly.
They looked down.
Gaurav was on the ground.
Somehow this shameless creature had thrown himself down, wrapped around both their legs like a dying parasite, and was now looking up at them with tears practically forming in his eyes.
"You two traitors!" Gaurav cried dramatically. "You're seriously abandoning your dearest friend and handing him over to this monster?!"
He pointed at Rio with a trembling finger.
"Have you both lost your humanity?! Take me with you! PLEASE! Who knows what this psycho will do to me!"
Manya's face twitched.
Nitin slowly closed his eyes.
For one brief moment, both of them genuinely felt like beating Gaurav to death right there.
Not even joking.
The urge was very real.
The two exchanged a look.
A silent conversation passed between them.
How do we escape this embarrassment?
But before either of them could say anything—
Another voice suddenly rang out from nearby.
Loud. Shameless. Dramatic.
"Oi, daddy's here!"
END OF THE CHAPTER