The darkness rippled like water as he moved, until he emerged once more in another alley.
"That was close," Abel muttered calmly.
He lowered his hoodie cap over his head and walked out of the alley. He looked around to check where he was and realised that he had somehow arrived in front of a grocery store.
Suddenly, the grocery store's door burst open.
Two masked men rushed out with a bag in their hands.
"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" They screamed at him fiercely. One of them stretched out his hand to push him out of the way.
But the moment he grabbed him, he felt as though he had seized a statue that was far too heavy to move.
BANGG!!
Abel stretched out his hands to block their path. The two men felt as though they had slammed into a brick wall. They collapsed backwards on the ground, wincing in pain.
The bag split open on the ground, revealing stacks of cash.
"Thieves," Abel muttered. He had just been thinking about securing payment for his rent and had unexpectedly come across some cash.
"Get back here!"
Suddenly, an old man ran out of the store. He froze mid-step when he saw the scene before him. His gaze darted between the two armed robbers lying on the ground, their bags spilling cash beside them, and the unknown man standing over them.
"Grab them! Don't let them escape! Please, I'll pay you anything you want...!" the old man screamed, seeing the robbers struggle to get back on their feet.
Abel swiftly kicked them back to the ground and grabbed the two bags with sharp reflexes. If he had used his full strength, he would've shattered their ribs or crushed their waists, so he restrained himself and used only enough force to knock them down.
"ARGGHH!!"
"ARGGHH!!"
It all happened before the old man could finish his sentence, causing him to freeze once more in shock and fear.
Abel walked over to the two men, picked up the bags of cash, and then approached the old man.
"How much are you willing to pay me for retrieving your money and catching these criminals?" Abel asked.
"I... Ahem!" The old man cleared his throat. "Young man, you've done me and this entire community a great service by stopping these criminals. This community needs more people like you, men willing to uphold justice and order instead of waiting for the authorities to arrive."
"Unfortunately, that money is everything my store has at the moment. I need it to cover expenses so my shop can survive until next mon... HEY! Where are you going, young man?"
The old man shouted as Abel turned away midway through his speech and began walking back toward the robbers.
Abel halted and turned to look at him with narrowed eyes.
"This is Sapphire City, old man. If you make a promise, stick to it. But if you change your words seconds later, don't be surprised if I look for a better offer elsewhere." He glanced at the two men on the ground.
"I doubt these two would refuse an offer to help them get away, or to stash some cash and testify that I wasn't here against your words if they do get caught. That is, if the authorities arrive in time."
He turned and walked toward the robbers.
The two men had heard every word. The moment Abel stood before them, their eyes lit up with excitement and relief.
The old man stared at Abel, resentment and anger flickering across his face. His thoughts raced before he made a quick decision.
"Wait a minute! I'll give you one per cent of what was stolen!" he shouted, hobbling forward with his walking stick.
He swung the stick and struck the two robbers, forcing them to roll away from Abel, then planted himself in front of them.
"Ten per cent or nothing," Abel said, raising an eyebrow.
Naturally, Abel wouldn't have minded doing a good deed and returning the money in exchange for nothing. But he remembered this was the same store that had sold him expired canned food while he was stockpiling supplies to lock himself inside, costing him hundreds of Rubles.
And most importantly, he desperately needed cash. He might as well take this opportunity to recover some of what he had spent, along with money for rent.
"I can only go for two per cent," the old man said, grinding his teeth.
He didn't know how his luck had turned so badly today that he now had to negotiate to recover money stolen from his store, but he also knew the police wouldn't arrive in time. And if these two were affiliated with a gang, the investigation might lead nowhere if they managed to flee.
Abel remembered that he was looking for a job and asked, "Do you have any employment?"
The old man blinked. After a brief pause, he asked with a suspicious expression, "Yes. I have a position for a cashier. If I had one earlier, they might've put up a fight, and the cash wouldn't have been stolen so easily."
"But why do you ask?"
"Because I'm looking for work. I'll take the three per cent and the job. With the demonstration of my capabilities, you can see that you won't have to worry about getting robbed again," Abel replied with a smile.
The old man frowned, scrutinising Abel from head to toe. For a moment, he suspected that Abel might be a robber as well and that he had orchestrated everything with them.
But he quickly dismissed the thought after glancing at the two robbers. No one would be foolish enough to come up with such a plan.
"Deal. I'll give you three per cent and the job. We'll discuss the salary later. Hand over the bags first and tie up these criminals so the police can come get them," the old man said.
Abel nodded. He handed the two bags to the old man, then turned back toward the two men.