[Short Flashback: Lola’s]
"So, what?!" the boss yelled, clearly distressed by the plan they were about to execute. "Are we just going to march straight at the enemy and tell them, ’We’re here, motherfuckers! Kill us!’"
"We can do that." Lola nodded, earning looks from everyone else. "Easier that way."
Her answer shut the boss up instantly, while the lackey quietly wept.
"We can’t do that," one of the Bellemonte captives shook his head. "That’d be too dangerous, especially for the townsfolk."
"Especially for me! Me!" the boss shouted, as if everyone had conveniently forgotten that he, too, did not want to die—and that he was being forced into this situation.
"If we can, we should take them down one by one, quietly..." the other Bellemonte captive said after some thought. "At least thin out their numbers before they realize what’s happening."
Lola darted her eyes toward the two Bellemonte men, finally understanding how they’d survived for so long. Even though they were eventually captured—to be publicly executed—they’d lasted far longer than most would.
She leaned back, rocking her head slightly as her thoughts drifted to Gigante.
But why?
Her eyes narrowed as she replayed the situation in her head.
How did the enemies find out about the old granny?
Only two possibilities came to mind. If someone knew about the injured men hiding in the granny’s house, then that information could’ve spread. But that didn’t make sense—if that were the case, the governor’s men would’ve raided the brothel long ago.
Or...
Could it be that because Lola had drawn attention to herself in the bar, someone paid a fixer to find out what she needed?
Lola shook her head. That was possible, and honestly, I prefer that.
But the other possibility meant that the people she never wanted to know she was here... already knew.
And in this situation, her instincts leaned toward the second.
But why the granny...
Her thoughts cut off as her gaze sharpened. She clicked her tongue, running it along the inside of her cheek.
"Damn that Haji," she muttered. "What the hell did you do?"
There was only one reason the governor would order his men to drag the old madam out of Gigante and take her to the main city.
Because the governor knew that, one way or another, the granny was Haji’s leash.
And Lola wasn’t the type to abandon that idiot.
Even so, she didn’t believe Haji and his entire team were caught so easily. If anything, she assumed the man had confronted someone and exposed himself in the process.
She massaged the bridge of her nose, clicking her tongue repeatedly, until she realized the others were staring at her.
She cracked one eye open and raised a brow. "What?"
"Is something wrong?" One of the captives asked. "You look a little distressed, Goddess."
"Did you just call me Goddess?"
"Plan B is..." Lola hummed. "We face them head-on."
The lackey’s and the boss’s breaths hitched. When they turned to the Bellemonte men, they saw them nodding calmly.
"Are you all insane?!" the boss yelled. "How can you just agree with her other crazy plan?!"
"Because there’s nothing else to do once we’re discovered," one of the captives replied evenly. "Either we survive—or we don’t. And I’m not dying after we were just saved."
"You do realize that contradicts itself, right?" the lackey muttered, but no one cared.
Even if they voted, the boss and lackey would lose.
And so, the plan commenced.
Just as planned, when they reached the edge of town, Lola, the boss, and the lackey slipped inside and broke into a nearby house. Like thieves, they rummaged through the closets and changed clothes. Once disguised, they deliberately let some of the men ransacking the town discover them, and they were captured.
Meanwhile...
The two Bellemonte men entered from the same direction. Unlike the others, they moved in the dark, struck the enemies from behind, and silently knocked guards unconscious one by one.
"Hey," one of them whispered, leaning against a house wall and peeking toward the square.
There, Lola and the other two were already surrounded—one of the men gripping her chin and jaw.
"She’ll be fine," the other said after checking the situation. "She saved us, and I get the feeling she’d save them too. Let’s move."
They nodded to each other and slipped back into the shadows, executing their task exactly as planned—launching silent, precise strikes against those stationed away from the square.

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