Waking up tied to that chair, Dante was undoubtedly not in his right mind. Why else would he allow himself to be tortured like that? Why else would he let himself get punched and his fingers get severed?

Well, he did have a reason, even if it's a stupid one. To put it simply, he was punishing himself.

A legion of androids clad in dark cloaks appeared out of thin air. They stood motionless for a moment, then they all knelt around him.

'Find the jammer and expand its range,' Dante thought. 'And make sure nine of them get out of this place.'

[Understood.]

The androids took off right away, rushing to the door the hairy bastard slipped through. Dante returned his gaze to the armored truck he had brought out, then he turned to his left hand, now entirely fingerless.

This was the second time he had been captured by an enemy. The second time, he had been tied to a chair and left to be tortured for information. The first time, his capture wasn't as painful, and he was able to escape without a problem. Things were different this time, but he didn't think it mattered.

He had allowed himself to be captured. He let his guard down, and his enemies took advantage of it. His current conditions were the result of his own shortcomings.

He could have escaped the moment he woke up. He could have deployed Volcan's androids, freed himself, then proceeded to massacre every gangster in the building. But that would have been the easy way out.

In his mind, Dante knew that he wouldn't have learned anything if he had taken that path. It was because of the easy solutions that he had grown complacent, allowing his arrogance to affect the way he carried himself.

This time, it was one of the gangs. Next time, the heroes would come knocking on his door.

He had to make sure the lesson stuck. That's why he refused to turn off the pain. That's why he allowed that bastard to cut his fingers and electrocute him. He deserved to feel that pain, so until he learns his lesson, he has no right to avoid feeling it.

The armored truck disappeared, and the thug who had been under it came. He hadn't been turned into a pancake per se, but his head and spine had been crushed, and he died on the spot.

Paying him no mind, Dante went and gathered his severed fingers. He did not need them now that he had burned his hand to seal the wound, but he wasn't going to leave them behind.

Sending the fingers to his Storage, he gave the command to equip 1-3. The dragon-themed armor appeared in a second, and Dante went about incinerating the entire room, making sure that not a drop of his blood remained.

[Dante, I have found the jammer.] Said Volcan. [I have also intercepted all messages sent in the vicinity and eliminated any individuals that are en route to make contact with the man named Henry.]

'Good job,' Dante thought. 'Just leave the big guy to me.'

Once every inch of the torture room was charred black, Dante gave the command to change his armor. The red armor vanished, and in its place, a dark gray suit appeared. Though encased in a tough alloy shell, it lacked the bulk of the previous armor. It was slender, compact, and sharp, as if it were assembled from a series of bladed edges ready to cut through anything and everything.

Nothing demonstrated that fact better than the gauntlets at the end of each arm. Five long, scythe-like blades extended from each hand, ready to rip everything into shreds.

On the armor's back, several panels retracted as five boosters popped out.

[

Name: Dante

Species: Human

Threat Level: 2

Baseline Retention: Advanced (75%)

Stats:

Strength: 6 (+20)

Durability: 20 (+30)

Agility: 4 (+50)

Dexterity: 4 (+20)

Computing Power: 7 (+30)

Energy: 0 (+300/300)

Implants:

Neural Interface Module (C)

Optic Augmentation Module (C)

Diamond Fist (D)

Kinetic Absorption Protective Sub-Layer Generation 15 (C)

RespiraCore Series V (D)

NephroCore Series X (D)

Overmind Cortical Interface Module (A)

Overmind Neural Response Enhancer (A)

Armor: Type 5-3

Abilities:

Instant Acceleration

Friction Resistance

Inertia Reduction

Velocity Retention

Kinetic Charge

]

Dismissing the status screen, Dante glanced at his left hand. He had no fingers to control the blades with, so he commanded the armor to lock their movements.

With that out of the way, he enhanced his perception to the max and leaned forward. The boosters on his back flared, releasing a blue tint that quickly grew brighter. He vanished the next instant, and when a second ticked by, the basement quaked as an explosion bounced off its walls.

'Stand down.'

The command reached his resident AI, and right away, the androids under his control came to a halt.

One of the gangsters pressed his back against a wall, an energy blade only inches from his neck. His attacker froze for some reason, but he wasn't about to try and understand. Dropping to the side, he tumbled to his feet and dashed away. No sooner did he take a step than something flashed in front of him. His legs wobbled as he took the second step, and the third brought him to his knees. His head fell out of its place between his shoulders, and as soon as it hit the floor, several lines spread over it as it spread like a sliced onion.

The silver flash moved through the building, cutting anyone who happened to be in its path. Some were on the verge of being attacked by the cloaked androids, and others were trying to escape. Some were completely unaware of what was happening, but they all faced the same fate.

Dante went through the entire building, not missing a single room. One by one, he painted their walls red. No one was spared the wrath of his blade, and in no more than fifteen seconds, more than fifty people met their end at its edge.