Chapter 184: Numbers

"If this is training for a modeling agency… then you wouldn't be here." Lyca countered. The sweet smile plastered on her face was the exact opposite of the sharp words that she just utter. "Or did you think you were tall enough for a male model?" She smirked. Almost immediately the man's face change, his eyes squinted before he suddenly walked out of the line and approach Lyca. "Hmmm. Impetuous. Rash without even thinking if the enemy could kill them in one attack."

Her words stopped the man in his tracks. He stood about five feet away from Lyca, glaring at her, hesitating. The thick silence hung in the air as everyone stared at Lyca, realization swirling in their orbs. Everyone was aware that someone just attacked most of the people in the agency earlier. Of course, those people were still in the infirmary right now.

"Are you going to try and teach me a lesson?" Lyca tilted her head, like a snake watching its prey. "Do it." Seeing the man stared at her for a few seconds, Lyca didn't hesitate. She took a few steps towards the man and delivered a quick roundhouse quick. The action was swift and agile, even Hogan wasn't able to see her leg hit the man's stomach.

"The first lesson is to not hesitate. NEVER hesitate." Lyca said. Her stern voice echoed inside the space. She stood next to the man that had fallen, kneeling on the ground. "Even if you are weaker, never hesitate. It's like telling your enemy that you are weaker than them. That you are not confident of winning. " She said. "It will make them play you, intimidate you." She looked at the man. "The moment you hesitate, you already gave me the power to defeat you in one blow."

She put her hands behind her back. "Bluff if you can."

"What if… what if the enemy is stronger? What if we already know that we have no chance of winning? What if they could kill us in one blow?" Surprisingly, the one who asked was the one that Lyca hit.

"Name?" Lyca asked.

"Ma Ping."

"Ma Ping…" Lyca said. "If you know that the enemy is stronger than you and you had no chance of winning then you can only do one thing." She smiled. "Run."

She turned her eyes back to the people in front of her. Every one of them had a mixture of expressions on their faces. Some were visibly scared while others didn't hesitate to hold her gaze the moment she stared at them. Lyca only smiled. "I want to create a team. The best of the best. People that could kill, kidnap, bluff, defend, and fight. I will train everyone for two months then there will be an examination that will determine if you are one of the twenty people that will work under me. However, Hogan insisted that I asked everyone if you agreed to my terms before I start doing anything. So, if you don't want to be trained by me then I suggest you step out of the line now. I won't ask any questions nor wonder why you don't want to train. You can still stay and work boring jobs in this facility, free of accommodation and food."

The silence this time was suffocating. After all, Lyca just told them what she needed them for. She needed a fighter, killers. From her words, many of them immediately assumed that this was some sort of a special team that would act as Boss Q's special team, people task to kill for the Boss.

Seeing that no one actually moved out of the line, Lyca smile. "My rules were simple. I am lazy. I don't like to do much. So, everyone will have to do the work as I sit. First, let me name you… using numbers. You— " She pointed at Ma Ping. "You are number one. Start counting from left to right."

"Two… three… four…"

Lyca only shrugged when she met Hogan's gaze. Isn't it better to call people using numbers? It would be easier to remember that way. Some people's names were too complicated to pronounce and write. Lyca had no time for that kind of effort.

"Thirty two!" the last one on the line said. For a few seconds, Lyca got confused before she realized that the others that she attacked earlier were still in the infirmary. She didn't really expect that those people would spend this much time trying to make their limbs move again. She thought the poison that she used should at least make them unable to move for ten minutes. It seems that those people were weaker than she originally thought.

"Good. Training starts at four in the morning tomorrow. Be ready by three, we are going somewhere." Lyca uttered. "And oh… tell the others in the infirmary about their new names." Lyca smiled before she walked towards Hogan.

"That— That is better than what I anticipated." Surprisingly, Lyca didn't actually harm everyone for laughing at Ma Ping's joke.

"It's normal for someone to underestimate people. Especially a cool and harmless girl like me."

"Harmless my ass." He muttered.

"What was that?"

"I said… you were brilliant."

"Thank you." She smiled.

"Do you really think that we can win this?"

"What do you think?"

"I— " Hogan looked at the people who started walking towards the space that they were using as their rooms. "With the right training, I think we can."

"Hmm," Lyca said as she put her hands behind her back. "Then… you can do all the preparations now. I needed to do something important." Lyca didn't wait for him to say anything more. She just walked towards the exit, humming. Right now, she was extremely in a good mood. It seems that her plan is actually doing well.

Twenty people… twenty experts… twenty assassins.

Once she would have those people, Lyca would have more time to relax as all of the killing tasks will be assign to them. Ah… what a blissful life.

The thought of just sitting and doing nothing is already making her excited.