With a heavy heart, Luca ended his conversation with Denham early and returned to the SSR Club to think about the situation surrounding the Colombo family civil war.
"Who exactly issued the bounty?"
The more Luca thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed.
According to Mariggio, the bounty hadn't been issued through the management of the Continental Hotel, but through other channels.
Bounty contracts issued within Continental Hotels could only target very specific people:
• Rule violators
• Individuals expelled by the High Table
• Targets designated by High Table representatives
Clearly, members of the Colombo family didn't fall into any of those categories.
And the Continental Hotel had no authority to interfere in Mafia internal affairs.
The Continental system didn't concern itself with personal grudges.
Even when the John Wick—known as the Baba Yaga—received a blood oath mission to assassinate the leader of the Camorra, the hotel itself still remained neutral.
Even missions targeting members of the High Table did not involve the hotel management directly.
This time was different.
The bounty wasn't issued through the Continental system at all.
It was an assassination contract circulating through the broader underworld.
Just like when Viggo Tarasov once privately issued a bounty on John Wick.
"Could this be Carlo Gambino's doing?"
Luca immediately thought of the old fox who loved stirring conflict and letting rivals destroy each other.
"Or maybe Viggo Tarasov?"
Luca frowned.
Surely they weren't planning to drag John Wick out now to finish some impossible job.
But then again—what would be the point of wiping out the Colombo family?
The Russian mob wouldn't gain much from it.
In the end, the spoils would simply be divided among the other four Mafia families.
---
Still, one thing was certain.
For the next few months, New York City would descend into chaos again.
"As long as this city isn't peaceful, the Peace Ambassador has to worry about it every single day."
Luca rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"How exactly do you collect the 'peace reward' for a war like this?"
He would be lying if he said he wasn't tempted.
This was no longer just a Mafia civil war.
The assassin underworld had already joined the party.
Who knew how many people would die?
The scale of this conflict was already comparable to the previous drug war.
If Luca could somehow resolve this crisis, the reward would be enormous.
Maybe he could even unlock another talent aura skill.
While thinking, Luca pinned a photo of Winston Scott to the blackboard.
Manager of the New York Continental Hotel.
An old acquaintance.
An S-card holder.
Winston probably had no interest in interfering with the Colombo family's internal problems.
But the assassins staying at the hotel…
That was a different matter entirely.
Luca pulled out several more photos.
All of them belonged to rare-card assassins.
Many were former colleagues.
"This is going to be fun," Luca muttered.
"I wonder how many old colleagues will jump in."
After all, the bounty ranged from couple hundreds to millions of dollars.
Although that amount was only about a week's gasoline-tax profit for Luca, it was a fortune for independent assassins.
Who knew how many killers would appear?
"I might run into a lot of old acquaintances."
Luca smiled with anticipation.
Most assassins were lone wolves.
But some served organizations.
For example, John Wick had once worked for Viggo Tarasov's Russian mob.
Meanwhile Luca himself belonged to the Mafia.
The Continental Hotels only provided logistical support.
They didn't control what assassins did outside.
If someone dared hunt Mafia members, they had to be ready for Mafia retaliation.
Money moved people's hearts.
While Luca was thinking, two assassins arrived.
Elle Driver and O-Ren Ishii.
"I saw the bounty notice."
Elle Driver leaned against the club bar, grinning.
"The Colombo family has a bounty on their heads worth millions."
She looked at Luca.
"Dove, I came to ask your opinion."
"What do you think?"
"You know the consequences of assassinating a Mafia member," Luca replied.
"High risk, high reward."
Elle Driver casually touched the eyepatch covering her missing eye.
O-Ren Ishii sat upright beside her.
"Dove, you don't want us getting involved, right?"
Luca laughed.
"Are you short on money?"
O-Ren Ishii smiled faintly.
"Bill doesn't want us involved either."
"He says the Colombo civil war is extremely complicated."
"Jumping in blindly could get us killed."
"Bill is a smart man."
Luca clinked glasses with her.
Watching them exchange looks, Elle Driver rolled her eyes.
"Seriously?"
"Are you two communicating telepathically now?"
"When did you become so close?"
"Are you jealous?" Luca laughed loudly.
"Jealous of my friendship with O-Ren?"
Furious, Elle Driver grabbed her glass.
She clearly wanted to throw the drink in his face.
"I'm the third wheel here!"
"Goodbye!"
"You two keep flirting!"
She stormed off toward the casino floor and immediately began causing chaos.
O-Ren Ishii sighed.
"I'll calm her down."
"Deadly Viper won't participate in this bounty."
"But I can't speak for the other assassins."
"Don't worry about them," Luca said.
"Just come visit whenever you want."
From Luca's perspective, this conflict barely affected him.
At worst, it might disrupt a few cooperative businesses between the Colombo crime family and the Lucchese crime family.
But the gasoline-tax operation wouldn't suffer much.
Luca could easily sit back, watch both sides exhaust themselves, and then step in at the perfect moment.
Classic profit-harvesting strategy.
O-Ren Ishii suddenly added:
"Some Japanese assassins I know are interested in the bounty."
She remembered a group of Japanese swordsmen selling fugu and takoyaki on the street.
Their leader had loudly declared he would defeat John Wick.
A cold glint flashed in O-Ren Ishii's eyes.
One day she planned to crush them all.
Then recruit them.
Make them her loyal dogs.
And return to Japan to compete for leadership of the Yakuza.
---
Inside a hotel in Manhattan, Brian secretly met with his superior.
They first discussed the criminal intelligence Brian had gathered about Luca.
"So after months of infiltration," the boss said incredulously, "the only thing you discovered is that Luca opened a casino in his club?"
"And nothing else?"
"You are the most useless undercover agent I've ever seen!"
"What's the point of investigating a small casino?"
"That alone isn't enough to convict Luca!"
"Look at Donnie."
"He already collected solid evidence against the Bonanno crime family."
Brian slumped lazily on the sofa.
He looked nothing like an elite Federal Bureau of Investigation agent.
"Sir, I'm trying my best."
"Do you know my daily routine?"
"Every morning at six or seven I take Dove's sister to school in Central Park."
"Then I go work at one of his auto repair shops."
"A real auto repair shop."
"The worst crime there is maybe smuggling spare parts."
"In the afternoon I pick up Mathilda from school."
"Then I help her with homework."
"And late at night I go to Brooklyn to race cars for money."
Brian shrugged.
"That's the thrilling life of an undercover agent."
The boss stared silently.
It sounded… extremely pathetic.
Look at Donnie.
He was already in Miami, running a bar with Lefty and Sonny Black.
Rubbing his temples, the boss asked:
"What do you know about the Colombo family civil war?"
Brian blinked.
"What civil war?"
The boss nearly collapsed in despair.
This idiot knew absolutely nothing.
Useless!
Hopefully headquarters would send more capable agents soon.
The Colombo war had turned New York into a battlefield.
Explosions.
Shootings.
Total chaos.
They desperately needed competent operatives.
---
The Next Night At Continental Hotel, New York City
Outside the entrance, a black vintage car slowly stopped.
Luca stepped out and turned to Jimmy.
"Head back first."
"Come pick me up later."
He walked calmly into the lobby.
The iron gates opened.
He passed through the quiet corridor and arrived at the front desk.
"Long time no see, Mr. Greco."
The Black concierge smiled politely.
__________________________________________________________________________
[Character Card: Charon]
Rank: B
Source: John Wick Series
Skill: Hotel Concierge
Bond: Familiar
__________________________________________________________________________
Charon had worked as concierge at the Continental Hotel in New York for decades.
Luca knew him from his previous visits.
Back then Luca had been a lone assassin.
Their relationship was simply that of a regular guest and a concierge.
"Checking in?" Charon asked.
"I'm here to see Winston."
"Do you have an appointment?"
"I owe him a drink."
Charon hesitated briefly, then picked up the phone and called upstairs.
After a short conversation he nodded.
"Mr. Greco, Mr. Winston will see you in the lounge."
The Continental Hotel was practically Luca's second home.
He had slept here more nights than he could remember.
Sometimes he stayed for weeks at a time.
He knew every hallway.
He took the elevator to the underground level and walked through several corridors until he reached the bar.
At a corner table, Winston sat alone, drinking and reading the newspaper.
__________________________________________________________________________
[Character Card: Winston Scott]
Rank: S
Source: John Wick Series
Skills: Hotel Manager; High Table Strategy
Bond: Attention
__________________________________________________________________________
"Luca."
Winston removed his glasses and smiled.
"When exactly did you owe me a drink?"
Luca sat down across from him.
"The banquet at the People's Assembly."
"Remember?"
"If that accident hadn't happened, we'd be drinking together at the club."
Winston squinted slightly.
"I'm sorry about what happened to Colombo."
"Many people didn't want to see such an incident occur."
"Not necessarily," Luca said quietly, leaning forward.
"Winston."
"You know who issued the bounty on Joe Gallo and his crew, don't you?"
Winston smiled calmly.
"You should understand the Continental's position."
"We do not interfere in Mafia internal affairs."
"But the guests staying here might."
"Once they leave the hotel, they are free to do whatever they want."
"As long as they don't kill anyone inside the hotel."
He took a sip of whiskey.
"Across the world, families under the High Table fight civil wars every year."
"Power struggles."
"Revenge."
"The High Table created these rules to stop everyone from becoming animals."
Luca smiled faintly.
"Winston, Winston…"
"When you first took over this hotel decades ago, you broke plenty of rules yourself."
"You killed the previous manager."
"Stole the gold coin minting machine."
"And even killed one of the High Table adjudicators."
Before John Wick ever rebelled, Winston had already done it once.
And he survived.
That was impressive.
Winston raised his glass casually.
"If the Colombo family wants peace…"
"They should prepare for war."
---
Upstairs at the front desk.
A Black man walked in with a German Shepherd.
He placed three gold coins on the counter.
"Three nights."
Charon glanced at the dog.
"I'm sorry, sir."
"Pets are not allowed at the Continental."
The man replied calmly.
"This is my emotional support animal."
Charon stared at him.
"…."
"Sir."
"Do you think I'm an idiot?"
"Why must Black people make life difficult for other Black people?"
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