After eliminating the traitor at the underground gambling den, Kaien and Cindra returned in silence—no applause, no blood spilled. But unknown to them, one of the traitor's henchmen had miraculously survived. Covered in blood, the man dragged himself back to the Government-affiliated Assassin Guild, gasping for breath as he delivered the message:
> "We failed. There are two... incredibly dangerous operatives inside Aigris."
The news quickly reached Velgas—a seasoned assassin, cold as steel, once a storm on the Northern Central assassination fronts. His face revealed nothing, but his eyes lit up with a flicker of intrigue.
> "Finally… someone worth drawing my blade for,"
he muttered, sheathing his katana and walking away without a backward glance.
---
Aigris's next rendezvous point lay hidden behind the façade of a rundown tobacco shop, thick with the smell of smoke and burnt resin. As usual, Kaien and Cindra assumed their roles, weaving through gamblers, flirtatious women, and guards disguised as cigar-smoking patrons. But this time... something felt wrong.
Too quiet.
Too perfect.
Too clean.
Cindra's assassin instinct was silent. Kaien felt like he was walking through fog.
"I see nothing," Cindra whispered.
"It's not that there's nothing," Kaien replied.
"It's that something is hiding everything."
And just as they feared—on a crumbling dome high above, cloaked in darkness and dust, Velgas watched them. His gaze pierced through cracks and shadows, studying their every move. No signal emitted from him. The detection system remained active... but it completely missed a deadly presence—as if he didn't exist.
The chip Velgas carried didn't just block all forms of biosignal tracking. It mimicked the surrounding environment, blending into the heartbeat of the place as though he had always belonged. No one knew how he bypassed the system. No one saw how he got in. But clearly—something was wrong within Aigris. A leak. A hidden hand opening doors from within.
---
Hours later, Velgas approached them in a narrow alley behind the tobacco shop. Cindra glanced briefly at Kaien. Both understood—this wasn't a hunt. This was a trap… one all three believed they were setting for each other.
"You're good," Velgas said. "But like all good ones... you'll die just the same."
The battle erupted.
Velgas moved like a phantom, his katana slicing the air with surgical grace—each swing capable of taking a life. Cindra caught a slash across her shoulder; Kaien barely avoided a piercing thrust. They fought back with everything they had, but Velgas was a veteran—every motion calculated, rehearsed, deadly.
After over ten minutes of brutal fighting, Velgas believed he had won. Kaien and Cindra lay on the ground, bleeding, gasping for air.
"Disappointing," he sighed. "I thought you'd be more entertaining."
He turned to leave.
But at that moment—they sprang to life like coiled springs.
Kaien's foot slammed into his neck, and Cindra lunged, her blade flashing under the dim alley light. The strike was perfect. Velgas crashed to the ground, katana flying from his grip.
"We weren't lured here," Kaien said coldly, leveling the stolen katana at his face.
"We walked in willingly. And right now, the one dying... is the one who took the bait."
Pinned to the ground, Velgas gave a dry chuckle, blood at the corner of his mouth:
"Hahaha… You think beating me is the end? Your foolishness just doomed Aigris... The tracker chip has already been planted. The coordinates are recorded. In five minutes, government forces will swarm this place. And then… Aigris's hideout will be exposed."
Cindra's eyes flared with fury. Kaien remained silent.
The katana Velgas once wielded... became the blade that ended him—under Kaien's hand.
---
Wind hissed through the narrow alley as Cindra still tried to understand.
"So what now? We remove the chip?"
Kaien shook his head. Every movement slow, cold.
From his coat, he pulled out a timed bomb.
"Too late. Even if we remove it, the data's already sent. Worse, he bypassed our signal scanners. Someone betrayed Aigris. If even one person walks out of here alive, tomorrow the world will know Aigris… as nothing more than escaped convicts."
Cindra looked at the bomb. Then at Kaien. Her eyes silently asked, "Is this really the only way?"
Kaien pressed the trigger.
"We're not destroying the rendezvous point.
We're erasing it."
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
The sound echoed—cold as judgment—through smoke and blood.
---