Chapter 1717


    [Right, he went in like two minutes ago. Didn’t you catch that?]


    Horace handed his phone to Arabe, who stood up to leave the bustling pub. Horace scrambled to


    keep pace with her swift strides.


    The second floor was a lively bar, but the floors above were a maze of private party rooms.


    N?velDrama.Org owns ? this.


    As they left the raucous atmosphere of the bar, Horace’s ears finally got some relief. He quickly asked


    Arabe, “Do you reckon he might have slipped into one of the private rooms?”


    With so many rooms to search through, it could take forever.


    And they risked tipping him off.


    “Let’s head up and see,” Arabe said, opting for the fire escape instead of the elevator.


    As she pushed open the door to the stairwell, they heard a tter from above – something, or


    someone, had taken a tumble.


    They trod lightly and intended to creep upward, when they heard a hoarse cry for help echo down the


    staircase.


    Arabe hastened her steps, with Horace panting behind; the gap between them widened – she was


    just too fast.


    It didn’t take long before they reached the sixth floor.


    In the hallway, they found a man with a buzz cut and a menacing stare clutching a rope tightly around


    the neck of someone they called "Viper." Two others, one in ck and the other in gray, held down


    Viper’s limbs, preventing any struggle.


    Arabe delivered a swift kick, and with the rope loosened, Viper gasped for air, his face flushed


    crimson from the near-strangtion.


    “Who the hell are you?” the buzz-cut man demanded, eyeing Arabe with clear hostility.


    The others, sensing a threat, red at Arabe with murderous intent.


    “Hold up, Boss,” Horace called as he finally made it up, but the man in ck was already dialing for


    backup. “We got trouble!”


    Meanwhile, Viper tried to make an escape through a window, but Arabe yanked him back into the


    fray.


    Buzz-cut lunged to grab her, but before Horace could even step in to assist, the stairwell door burst


    open and reinforcements flooded in.


    Outnumbered, Viper made a break for the rooftop; Horace wanted to give chase, but seeing Arabe


    taking on so many alone, he had no choice but to step in and help.


    “Go after him, don’t worry about me,” Arabe grunted, kicking one man clean off his feet and


    sweeping another into the crowd. She used the railing to deliver a few well-aimed kicks, then pulled


    Horace behind her, urging him to go up.


    Horace had no option but to pursue Viper.


    As others tried to follow onto the rooftop, Arabe knocked them down one by one, guarding the


    staircase and blocking their path.


    Some realized they were no match for Arabe and quietly retreated, opting for another staircase to the


    roof.


    There were two staircases to the rooftop – one at the corridor''s beginning, the other at its end.


    Viper reached the rooftop and ran to another staircase for escape, only to be tripped up by another


    group that had arrived. Horace dashed into the fray, trading blows with the neers.


    With the crowd against him growing, Viper made a desperate move to the edge of the roof, ready to


    jump.


    “Don’t do it! I’m not like them.” Horace tried to get to him, but the encircling foes were too many. Before


    he could break free, Viper had leapt from the edge.


    “Hey—” Horace dropped a few more attackers and rushed to the edge, only to see that Viper had


    jumped to another balcony one floor below.


    Horace had no choice but to follow suit, tracing Viper’s path.


    The rest, unwilling to be outdone, also followed suit and leaped onto the balconies in pursuit.


    As Vipernded on the fourth-floor balcony, he felt the pain from his wounds became unbearable – he


    had been stabbed twice, and blood had soaked through his pants, now dripping onto the ground.