What to do?
Merritt believed that while the robbers might kill, they wouldn't kill everyone—they needed hostages. He also knew that the police in Ancient Splendor were quite capable in such situations, with a sixty percent chance that the robbers wouldn't escape.
But!
He wouldn't leave his fate to "chance," nor would he entrust his life and deathto the police—waiting for rescue was not an option; he had to do something!
If he had a gun, he was confident he could take down the robbers. Even without a gun, if he were in good health, he could manage it. Unfortunately...
Due to a significant loss of vitality, his physical condition was worse than an average person's. His once formidable skills were nearly depleted, leaving only a faint trace of inner strength, barely enough to keep him alive.
Even if he used this trace of inner strength, it was too weak to guarantee success. Moreover, once it was used up, he would have nothing left to protect himself.
"Where's the money?!" the knife-wielding robber demanded coldly.
"If you want to die, no one's stopping you!"
Merritt pushed Felicity aside, shouting angrily at her, "I don't want to die like this. Trading money for our lives is better than dying!"
"You... you coward!" Felicity was furious.
Merritt ignored her completely. He pushed her aside and moved to the aisle, pulling open a canvas bag to reveal stacks of crisp euros inside.
"Holy crap!"
The robber's eyes lit up with excitement at the sight of the money. "Harley! It's real... all 500-euro notes, a whole bag full!"
The other robbers were overjoyed upon hearing this, but then Merritt spoke up, "You guys want money, I want my life. I don't care about this amount of cash. If you can keep me alive... I'll give you a hundred million euros."
A hundred million!
If anyone else had said this, the robbers wouldn't have believed it. But coming from Merritt, it was a different story.
A man carrying hundreds of thousands of euros in cash, who knows how wealthy he really However...
"Your money is your business. Do you think... in this situation, what are our chances of getting away? No matter how much money we can't get, it's useless," Harley said, surprisingly calm.
"With a bus full of hostages, your chances of escape are almost zero. But if you only take one person... the outcome could be different."
"What do you mean?" Harley was puzzled.
"The smaller the target, the greater the chance of escape."
Merritt took a deep breath and said calmly, "Given my wealth and social status, I alone am worth more than all the people on this bus combined. I am the best hostage."
Harley stared at him intently, enunciating each word, "You are very calm."
"Navigating the business world, I've seen all kinds of storms. When I'm making billion-dollar deals, I'm just as calm because I know that panicking only makes things worse."
"Very well! So... why are you helping us escape?"
"If you take a large number of hostages, your chances of escape are very slim. If you get desperate, my life becomes more endangered. Your survival increases my chances of staying alive—I don't care about money. Money can always be earned again. As long as I'm alive, I can make endless amounts of money."
"That's a good explanation. Since you're smart, you should also realize that even if we manage to escape with you as a hostage, you might still be silenced."
"No way."
Merritt shook his head slightly and said, "Who hates money? Robbing a gold shop only gets you a few bucks. I'm offering a hundred million euros. You won't kill me. At least, not until you get the money I promised. And the longer it takes, the better my chances of survival, right? It can't get worse than now."
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Harley tucked his rifle under his arm and, to Merritt's surprise, started clapping and laughing.
"A businessman through and through. You've convinced me."
After saying this, a cold glint flashed in Harley's eyes as he ordered his men, "Take him away!"
"Wait!" Merritt suddenly spoke up.
"What the hell is it now?" Harley snapped.
"Well..."
Merritt pointed to the blond guy lying on the ground and smiled at Harley, "If you break one of his legs, I'll give you an extra hundred million euros."