CHAPTER 325: DIBS ON JAGUAR’S HEAD.

A ball of ice clanged in the glass as it hit the table. In the private room on the Golden Hummingbird’s second floor, Rose sat on one of the sofas her expression calm, her lips slightly curved. She wore clothes similar to her usual: skinny jeans, a low-cut shirt, and a black leather jacket. It was almost as if the winter cold didn’t bother her at all.

Sitting on the other side of the coffee table were Dante and Finn. The latter looked like he was about to crumble from nervousness, while the former still maintained the annoyed expression he had for a while now.

"So," Rose finally spoke. "You want to take out the Daggers."

"And you want to take out Black Skull," Dante said.

"... I can see why you think those are connected, but there is a problem."

"And that is..."

"The scale." Rose sighed. "We’re talking about two of the biggest gangs in the city."

"And we are going to take them out at the same time," Dante replied.

It was as insane as it sounded, even when delivered in such a serious tone. Rose said nothing, continuing to stare at him. Her eye veered toward Finn, and though the boy seemed to tense up a little, he did not avert his gaze.

Picking up her glass, she brought it to her lips, taking a small sip. Her gaze went down as she thought, the golden liquid in her glass swirling as she moved her wrist. Not long after, she sighed again, and her brows furrowed slightly.

"This is the same as last time." She said. "You’re in way over your head."

"Really now?" Dante raised an eyebrow.

"Things are different this time—We aren’t trying to steal something while unnoticed. I already said it, these are two of the biggest gangs in the city. Messing with them won’t end well for you."

"We already know the risks," Dante said. "And if you didn’t hear my first question, I asked whether you’re in or not."

Rose’s frown deepened. Noticing the hint of confusion in her eye -the one not covered by her hair- Dante elaborated.

"We’re doing this either way." He said. "I’m just giving you the chance to help. And to accomplish your goal."

Rose’s frown deepened. She undoubtedly has complicated feelings on the matter, considering her stance on the two boys joining the heist. She’s clearly against them being involved in anything dangerous, but there wasn’t much she could do about the matter.

DING!

Just as he was about to prob her for an answer, Dante received a message.

[Viktor: Can’t you go a single day without causing me trouble?]

His eyes turned to the purple-haired woman.

"You snitched on us?"

"Was just checking if Vik was in the know." She said. "Apparently, he wasn’t."

"Vik!!?" Finn’s face paled immediately. "Does he-"

"Calm down." Dante sighed. "I will talk to him.

[

Dante: What are you talking about?

Viktor: You’re messing with the Daggers?

Dante: Pretty sure I already told you about that.

Viktor: No, you did not.

Dante: C’mon, is your memory that bad?

]

Truthfully, Dante couldn’t remember if he had discussed the matter with his Fixer or not. He had a vague feeling that he had done so, but he wasn’t sure it was true.

[

Dante: Well, no matter.

I promised the brat that I would help him kill Jaguar.

I plan on making some Gs while I’m at it, so...

I will probably end up crushing the whole gang.

Viktor: You could have run that by me first.

]

At that moment, Dante thought he could see the fixer massaging his temples as if he was having a major headache.

[

Viktor: You plan to fuel the fire between Black Skull and the Daggers, right?

Dante: Yeah, that’s the pan.

Viktor: Just make sure you don’t get caught.

]

"We just got the OK." Saying that, Dante turned to Rose with a smirk.

The purple-haired woman clearly didn’t expect things to turn out this way, and going by her silence and the change in her expression, she was undoubtedly texting the fixer, trying to understand why he was giving them the green light.

"You really should stop looking down on us," Dante said. "Last I checked, you owe the heist’s success to the brat."

Finn was his stand-in as the Diver of the heist crew, and thus, the boy took all the credit for what he did back then. From snatching control over the hotel’s systems to disabling the power suits and bionics of the police force, if he hadn’t intervened, the infiltration trio would have never made it out.

As for Dante, it was thanks to him that they discovered the sorcerers working for Klaus Stahlwölfe, and he was the one who held back the heroes and allowed them to escape. Though his contributions paled in comparison to the boy’s, since no one knows how much effort he truly put into the heist’s success, one could still say they more than proved their capabilities. Despite that, the purple-haired woman still underestimates them just because they’re a little young.

For a while, she seemed conflicted. She likely thought that her refusing their invitation would discourage them from going on with their plan, but now that they had made it clear they wouldn’t back down, the only choice she had left was to work with them, if only to ensure they didn’t get into trouble.

"Alright, I got it. " Finally giving in, Rose let her shoulders slump. "I never imagined things to turn out this way."

"Neither did I." Dante shrugged.

"Still, Dante... why do you want to take on the Daggers?" She gave him a questioning look. "Is it personal?"

"Well, not for me." Saying that, Dante glanced at the brat beside him.

Finn had kept his silence up to that moment, and though he was startled when they turned their gazes to him, he still kept his silence.

"Looks like he still doesn’t want to talk about it." Dante sighed. "He called dibs on Jaguar’s head, so..."

"Oh..." Rose’s eyes widened slightly, as if she understood. "Okay, I understand." Pausing, she then put on her usual playful smile. "I will help you, but on one condition."