American TV Writer

While working hard in his rented warehouse, Castle received a panicked call from the chubby kid. It turned out that the kid had unintentionally captured footage of the most brutal and psychotic member of the Assassin Brotherhood, known as "The Butcher," murdering someone with a drone camera.

In the footage, "The Butcher" was seen killing an innocent person, who had been hung on a meat hook, purely for his own sadistic enjoyment. This was too much for the kind-hearted chubby kid to handle.

After calming the distressed boy, Castle reluctantly reached out to Moz: "Moz, I forgot to warn you. Among the members of that assassin group, the one wearing the leather apron you guys saw is the most twisted. He's the kind who takes pleasure in killing and has completely lost his humanity. I'm sorry for not telling you earlier, but I'm preparing for a raid tonight. I hope you can hold on a bit longer and keep monitoring any changes over there for me."

Even Moz, who usually had a good temperament, was furious after what he had just seen. "Rick, I need you to promise me something. If you get the chance, you have to take that man out for good. People like him don't deserve to live."

"I'll work with Harry to keep two drones hovering above the target from the east and west. There's a small river in front of the southern gate, so by covering the east and west directions, we can monitor the whole place. There's only one exit—the southern gate. If you block it, they won't escape easily. But just a heads-up, we haven't been able to check for any underground passages, so you might want to proceed cautiously."

Castle chuckled while responding to his friend's concerns, though he knew once Moz realized what he was planning, there would be no keeping it secret from someone as sharp as him. But he hadn't intended to keep it from his good friends anyway. "Yeah, I'm planning to give them a little surprise. I killed one of their assassins in Central Park today, and the place you're monitoring now is their hideout. I'm making some gifts for them. After all, it's Christmas, so I thought I'd play Santa."

Moz quickly caught on and knew Castle must be working on something far from "nice." Sharing his anger and concern, he only reminded Castle to stay in touch, then went to comfort the traumatized chubby kid.

After the call, Castle's face darkened. He hadn't expected that asking the chubby kid to scout the Assassin Brotherhood's hideout would lead to him witnessing "The Butcher," the most brutal killer in the group, in action. Fortunately, Moz was there to help calm the kid down, or he might've ended up with lasting trauma.

This only deepened Castle's hatred for the Assassin Brotherhood, led by Sloan. These psychopathic lunatics, hiding behind twisted justifications, no longer belonged in this world. Hopefully, his revenge plan tonight would take out as many of them as possible.

Afterward, Castle mused whether he should find a way to join forces with the Cross, who was also at war with the Brotherhood. Together, they could wipe out the organization for good. But the problem was, how could he locate the elusive Cross?

Before the Cross's son had been taken by Fox, Castle might have been able to track him down near the house where his son used to live in Brooklyn. But now, the Cross surely wouldn't be staying in the same place where he had once spied on his own son.

Given the mortal enmity between the Cross and the Brotherhood, Castle figured that the only way to draw the Cross out would be to capture his beloved son, Wesley. That would surely get his attention. However, Castle wasn't in the mood to pursue this line of thinking for now and put it aside, focusing entirely on the task at hand.

In reality, destroying the Assassin Brotherhood wasn't as difficult as it seemed. Once the Cross reunited with Wesley, whose potential had now been unleashed, the two of them could probably tear down the entire organization with ease, whether or not Castle got involved.

For now, he had to concentrate on preparing tonight's surprise for Sloan.

The skills Castle had received from the system were truly remarkable. As he worked on the "big bomb" at his desk, the hundred or so white mice, who had been fed and rested, obediently returned to their cages under the guidance of a few leader mice, ready to assist Castle in his dangerous mission.

Thanks to the bomb-making expertise of Ferris Targo, which the system had rewarded him with, Castle had been able to design a setup where C4, normally difficult to detonate without a blasting cap, could be rigged to go off with a single trigger. To ensure everything went smoothly, Castle installed multiple triggers and assigned the smartest mice to carry out the most critical tasks. After inspecting his masterpiece, Castle realized it was already 10 p.m.

The timing was perfect. By leisurely heading toward New Jersey now, he would arrive at the Assassin Brotherhood's hideout, disguised as a textile factory at 17 North Bergen, around midnight. Santa Castle was ready to deliver his presents.

He carefully placed the well-fed mice into their cages and loaded them into the backseat of the Dodge he had borrowed from the police station. Then, he stored his carefully constructed "big bomb" in his personal space, not wanting to risk an accident during the drive, like getting pulled over by the cops or a car accident. With a satisfied smile, Castle drove off slowly toward New Jersey.

Once again, his earpiece connected, and the chubby kid, having calmed down after Moz's reassurances, eagerly reported what he had learned from the drone surveillance since the afternoon.

"Uncle Rick, that castle-like textile factory has several rooms that block infrared and thermal imaging, so it's hard to get an exact count of how many people are inside. But we did find a few small blind spots in their surveillance system. If you plan to go in yourself, it might be tricky!"

Castle then revealed his plan to use the mice to smuggle in the C4, stacking it up like ants building a mound, and then detonating it from the inside. Both the chubby kid and Moz were intrigued by the idea but wondered why Castle was so confident the mice would follow orders.

Castle, of course, wasn't going to tell them about his ability to command the little creatures, who were now resting quietly in their cages. He simply assured them that he had a way.

Eager to see the assassin group punished, the chubby kid sent Castle a roughly drawn but functional map of the building, identifying several weak spots. The building was old and had been heavily modified by the Assassin Brotherhood, so accurate blueprints weren't available. But the kid's map highlighted weak points that Castle could exploit.

Castle gratefully accepted the gift, and with a smile, continued chatting with Moz and the chubby kid through his earpiece until he arrived at a forest near the Brotherhood's hideout just before midnight. He turned off the car's headlights and quietly released the well-rested mice from their cages.

Castle divided the hundred mice into five teams. Nineteen in each group would carry C4, while one would handle the detonator. Normally, C4, with its pliable, clay-like consistency, couldn't be set off easily, but Castle had found a way around this. Once the nineteen mice placed the C4 in position, the one carrying the detonator would place it in the center, triggering a massive explosion that would give Sloan the shock of his life...

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