By Zephyria 
The fist landed squarely on Grayson’s face, and his tall frame swayed violently. A few seconds of silence followed, then birds startled by the sudden noise took flight all at once. As the sound of flapping wings faded, Grayson, who had stumbled backward, slowly turned his head.
When his face returned to its original position, Dane hesitated for the first time. Deep violet eyes gleamed with an eerie light, momentarily tinged with gold before reverting to violet, then mixing with gold again in a repeating cycle.
“Heh heh. Heh heh heh.”
An unsettling laugh escaped Grayson’s lips. Simultaneously, an enormous amount of Pheromone emanated from his entire body. Flowing against his will, it was clearly overflowing from an uncontrollable excitement. Dane involuntarily shuddered and took a step back. He seemed truly insane.
“AHAHAHAHAHA, HAHAHA, HAHAHAHA!”
He was laughing, as if he were about to die from pleasure. As proof, Grayson trembled violently once, then slowly but firmly clenched his fists.
“Now it’s self-defense.”
He then lunged forward with surprising speed, toward Dane.
Desire Me if you can
More time than expected passed relentlessly. Wilkins glanced anxiously between his wristwatch and the mountain.
“Isn’t it taking too long?”
Someone spoke, and another replied.
“That’s what I’m saying. Even at the longest estimate, they should have been back by now.”
“Yeah, and for Dane to be this late is strange. Could something have happened?”
“Come on, would a firefighter need rescuing from another firefighter? Especially when that firefighter is Dane?”
Amidst their back-and-forth, unable to conceal their worry, DeAndre nervously chewed his thumbnail. A considerable amount of time had passed since Dane and Grayson disappeared behind the mountain. DeAndre had fully anticipated that his request was being fulfilled there. The problem was that it was taking too long. What on earth was happening? Could something have happened to Dane…?
He anxiously scanned the direction they had disappeared in. He hoped everything was alright.
Desire Me if you can
Smack! With a loud noise, Dane staggered violently. “Oof,” a surprised groan escaped his lips. He nearly tumbled down the slope. The rather steep area led to a deeply sunken cliff that was terrifying to even glance down at. If he rolled and failed to stop in time, he would fall to the bottom, suffering at least fractures, or, if unlucky, a fatal injury.
He wondered if choosing this location had been a mistake.
For the first time, he questioned his choice, but he didn’t have time to dwell on it. Grayson immediately launched a kick. Contrary to expectations, he was quite flexible and particularly skilled at using his body. He had probably met a reputable instructor and learned multiple martial arts. Of course, that wasn’t true, but Grayson was no ordinary opponent, so Dane, who didn’t know him well, could easily make that assumption.
He had only thought of him as a pampered young master.
This was a disaster. He had to admit his misjudgment. If he had known things would escalate this much, he should have charged at least $100. He should have charged more than $38.25 from the start. He regretted it belatedly. If he had known things would escalate this much, he should have charged at least $100. He should have charged more than $38.25 from the start, but now he had to exert himself just to get out of here. He was infuriated. What he hated most in the world was this kind of pointless waste of energy. He shouldn’t have participated in such a ridiculous plan in the first place!
Regret washed over him, but there was no time to wallow in sentimentality. Dane quickly lowered his upper body to avoid Grayson’s attack, then placed his hands on the ground and grounded his legs to snatch the man’s ankle. Grayson, who had been standing and attacking on one leg, easily tumbled to the ground, and Dane seized the opportunity to take the dominant position.
For a while, the two rolled around on the dirt ground, grappling back and forth. When Dane punched Grayson’s face, Grayson grabbed Dane’s neck and threw him to the ground. Dane crossed his long legs over Grayson, who was choking him, and broke free by applying an Armbar. As he used his legs to pressure Grayson, Grayson flailed his arms from below and tried to choke Dane’s neck again.
He had the physique and strength, so he was quite skilled for an ordinary person. But no way, Dane sneered, even with a bloody nose. He hadn’t spent three years in the military for nothing. No matter how outstanding, how could a civilian possibly do anything against a professionally trained former soldier?
The outcome was as good as decided. Dane planned to knock Grayson unconscious and head down first. He had already done far too much. If he explained the situation, the others could drag him down, or he would come to his senses and come down on his own.
Anyway, he just didn’t have good luck with this guy. Of course, he would refuse even if offered a good relationship, but this was already the third time he had knocked him unconscious. Maybe he really should just leave this town.
He didn’t believe in fate or anything like that, but constantly encountering and getting involved with him was not a good sign at all. Moreover, the other party was not of good character. He had already knocked the crazy psychopath, who had been smiling while suppressing Omegas with Pheromones even when handcuffed in a burning mansion, and who was disgustingly rich, to the ground three times with Pheromones and punches. Of course, he couldn’t complain since this situation was a request he had accepted…
Damn it, it was even more annoying when he listed it out in words. Ever since this guy came to his quiet workplace, nothing had gone right. He might have to seriously talk to Darling about leaving this town soon.
He thought that far, and then he applied the final pressure. Suddenly, Grayson grabbed Dane’s arm. He thought it was a last-ditch effort, but what happened next was completely unexpected. Grayson pulled Dane with tremendous force, and in a moment of carelessness, Dane tumbled down the slope with Grayson.
Desire Me if you can
The test that had started in the daylight had not ended by the time the sun was setting. Everyone gathered was anxiously staring at the mountain. Eventually, Ezra, unable to bear it any longer, spoke urgently.
“Shouldn’t we go check? What if there was an accident?”
Starting with that, voices of concern followed from here and there.
“It’s taking way too long. Something must have happened! There’s no way Dane would be this late.”
“If they’re injured, the faster the rescue, the better. No matter how good Dane is, he’s helpless if he’s unlucky, right?”
“Miller can take care of himself, but we have to save Dane!”
Wilkins was at a loss with the outpouring of voices. He was worried as well, but it wasn’t easy to take action as the one who had started this. However, it was now at the limit of trying to appease the employees by saying they should wait a little longer. There was no more time to delay. Once the sun set, it would be difficult to search, even on a small mountain. It was better to move as quickly as possible. While thinking that, he was struggling to find the right timing, but suddenly, an unexpected voice was heard.
“What are you all doing here? If you have time to spare, you should be doing physical training instead of gathering and gossiping!”
At the stern scolding, they all turned around at once. As expected, the Station Chief was standing there watching them with a very angry face.
“Um, well, Station Chief…”
Ezra tried to make something up, but it wasn’t easy. Seeing him flustered, Wilkins took responsibility and stepped forward.
“I’m sorry, we were conducting Miller’s physical test.”
“Physical test? Miller’s? Without telling me?”