The lamps glowed softly, casting warm yellow light against the cool tones of steel and marble in Rin's hotel suite. He stood at the door, barefoot, hair slightly tousled, still dressed in a whit shirt — the kind of rare moment of calm he rarely got during missions.
Knock. Knock.
His brows drew together.
"Who the hell is that? Did I order anything? No… did Kai forget something?"
"If it's him again, I swear to Buddha—"
He opened the door slowly, his eyes scanning — instinctively trained to catch details: the hallway empty, save for a woman standing with a covered tray in hand, wearing the crisp uniform of the hotel's room service.
"Room service, sir. May I come in?"
Rin tilted his head slightly, eyes narrowing.
"I didn't make a call."
"It was requested for this room — Room 1700," she replied, voice light, polite. "From the CEO of Gazenergo."
That caught his attention.
Rin's eyes flicked to the tray, then back to her. Every muscle in his body tensed beneath his skin — not overtly, but like a coil winding inward.
"The CEO? That smug bastard didn't even show up for his own meeting — now he's sending me dinner like it's a damn schoolyard apology?"
He stared at the tray again. White cloth. Covered dishes. Steam faintly curling from under the lid.
"This is weird. Random as hell. I don't like this."
Still, refusing would draw more attention. It might offend the CEO — and right now, Rin couldn't afford to cause political ripples. Not this early.
"Fine. Bring it in," he said with a tight-lipped smile, stepping back.
The woman entered, moving robotically, unnaturally smooth. Something about her gait was too precise — the kind of thing only someone who studied body language would notice.
She set the tray on the table and turned to leave without a word.
The door clicked shut.
Silence returned.
Rin eyed the tray like it was a live snake.
"Why does this feel off? …Too well-timed. Too quiet."
He walked over slowly, cautious, as though approaching a trap.
Then he spotted it.
A note.
Neatly folded on the tray. Just paper.
No logo. No signature.
He picked it up.
Unfolded it.
One word. Written in red ink, like it had been scribbled with a child's crayon:
"BOOM :)"
The smiley face was drawn with such lazy glee that it made Rin's stomach drop faster than gravity.
"Oh f—"
His eyes widened.
"Shit—SHIT!"
Adrenaline shot through his veins like acid. He turned on his heel and sprinted for the door, heart hammering, feet pounding against the carpeted floor—
BOOM.
The wall behind him detonated.
Glass shattered like a scream. Flames licked out through the air vent. A wave of fire erupted from the bathroom, swallowing porcelain and mirror in an instant.
Rin was flung forward — his shoulder slamming against the doorframe, pain blooming like a firecracker down his arm.
BOOM.
A second explosion.
The ceiling gave way, pieces of plaster and chandelier raining down behind him. Smoke billowed, black and choking. The air filled with the scent of burning wood, scorched electronics, and blood.
His ears were ringing.
His legs kept moving on instinct — pure muscle memory as he launched himself out into the hallway just as the floor beneath the windows collapsed inward, taking the far side of the room with it.
"Someone wanted me buried."
He stumbled into the corridor, coughing, disoriented — red emergency lights flashing, alarms screaming, the hall filled with the panicked thudding of feet and chaos as guests fled their rooms.
"This wasn't just a scare. This was meant to wipe me out completely."
He gritted his teeth, blood dripping from his temple, vision spotted.
"That smiley face — it was a message. Not just to scare me... it was personal. Someone wanted me to know."
Was it Kai? Was it the so-called CEO who never showed up?
Was it Tsar' Nochi?
Or worse —
"Is someone playing a deeper game than we've even begun to touch?"
The street outside the crumbling hotel was an absolute warzone.
The fire had swallowed nearly the entire upper half of the structure. Glass continued to rain down in jagged, glittering shards from half-melted windowpanes, while black smoke coiled into the summer sky like a serpent.
Sirens wailed from every direction — fire trucks screeched into the cordoned-off zone, medics rushed around frantically, shouting orders. The heat was unbearable, rippling off the pavement in shimmering waves.
And out of that blackened ruin... stumbled Rin.
His white dress shirt was scorched and shredded, sleeves dangling like the limbs of a ghost. A gash ran from just under his cheekbone to his jawline, blood leaking in thin, bright trails. His knuckles were torn, shoes half-melted, the disguise he'd carefully curated peeling off in chunks of synthetic flesh.
"Keep moving. Keep walking. Don't let them touch you. Don't collapse. You can't afford to."
His ears were still ringing from the blast. Every breath tasted like soot and sulfur. It was like trying to inhale through crushed coal.
A firefighter jogged toward him, face covered with a gas mask, but concern in his voice.
"Sir! Sir, are you alright?! You need to sit—"
"No sudden movements. No expressions. If you let them see you hesitate, they'll start asking questions."
"I'm fine," Rin rasped, stumbling again. His left knee buckled slightly. He didn't even look at the man.
The firefighter reached out to stabilize him — bad idea.
"Sir, you might be in shock, you're clearly injured—"
"No, I'm exposed. I'm exposed and unarmed and in the open."
Rin shrugged off the man's touch like it burned.
"Don't worry about me and your damn business," he snapped, voice still low, still tense — but sharp.
Another medic approached cautiously, holding a tablet and a scanner.
"Sir, we just need to run a vitals check. Standard protocol—"
"I said I'm fine."
His voice cracked that time. He covered it with a cough. A sharp one.
"My neck's raw. I can feel the fake skin peeling. One more second and they'll see I'm not even fully Korean, let alone Choi Beom-gyu. If someone runs facial recognition…"
"Doctor will decide that," one of them muttered, giving a subtle nod.
Two medics moved — fast — each grabbing one of Rin's arms, trying to guide him toward the line of ambulances.
"No. No no no. I need out of here. I need to think. I need a weapon. A safehouse. Anything—"
"I SAID—!"
He jerked violently, twisting one arm free, but the other medic held fast.
"If they scan me, I'm finished. If they see under this face, the entire op is burned. I'm already halfway out of my skin — literally."
His heart was pounding now — erratic and wild, chest rising like he'd been sprinting for miles.
And then—
Movement.
Just beyond the barricade. Beyond the crowd. On the opposite sidewalk.
A figure.
Still.
Calm.
Watching.
Wearing a long coat that billowed faintly in the warm wind, the collar turned up. His posture was elegant — effortless — hands in his pockets like he was simply out for a stroll.
But it was the face that stopped Rin's lungs.
Sharp jaw. That uncanny stillness.
"No… no way."
Rin's breath hitched.
"I've seen that face. That's him. Tsar Nochi. That's the one Kai warned me about."
Everything inside him screamed RUN.
And yet he stood frozen — not out of fear, but calculation.
"What is he doing here? He doesn't show up for messes like this. Unless… unless this entire goddamn explosion was orchestrated to flush me out."
That thought sent a crack through his mind like a lightning bolt.
"No. This wasn't a message. This was a net."
And he was the prey.
The sound of shouting yanked him back to the moment — two medics yelling, trying to pull him toward the ambulance.
"No. No, no, NO. I have to vanish before that man sees me — before he recognizes me—"
Rin's body acted before his brain did.
WHAM.
He drove his knee into the medic's groin. The man howled and collapsed.
Rin spun, elbowed the other in the temple. The man dropped, blood spattering the pavement.
"HEY! HEY! HE'S ESCAPING!"
Chaos erupted.
Rin bolted through the maze of emergency vehicles. People yelled. Hands reached. But he moved like a ghost on fire.
He kept his eyes locked on Tsar Nochi.
"I need to see where he's going. If I lose him now—"
SCREEEEEECH.
A car. Black. Sleek. Low to the ground. Tires burning rubber as it drifted into view, slamming to a halt.
Doors opened.
BANG. BANG.
Gunfire.
Broad daylight. Middle of the city.
"What the hell is wrong with these people?! Who the hell shoots in the middle of traffic?!"
Bullets ripped through windshields. Bystanders screamed and scattered. Rin dropped behind a firetruck, heart hammering so hard he could hear it in his skull.
Then—
SCREEEECH.
Another car. Closer this time. Headlights blinding him. Door swung open.
"Nope. Not doing this."
He slammed the door shut with his foot just in time before it could trap him inside.
VVRRRRMMMMMMM
A motorcycle now — freaking motorcycle — barreling toward him from the alley, rider masked, swinging something long and heavy.
He dove to the side just in time as the weapon WHOOSHED over his head.
He landed hard. Skidded. Elbow tore open on the concrete.
"What. The actual. FUCK. Is going on right now?!"
And then—
CRACK.
Pain.
White-hot and sudden. A blunt object collided with the back of his skull.
Rin's body went limp as all light evaporated from his vision.
He fell. Hands flailed. Legs twitched. Mouth opened, but no sound came.
The last thing he heard was a sound so surreal, it felt like it belonged in a dream:
THWUP-THWUP-THWUP.
The blades of a helicopter, circling above like a predator bird.
The fire raged behind him.
And Rin...
was gone.
His skull was pounding like war drums.
Everything was heat, static, and a dull, nauseating sense of motion.
Rin groaned, a low animal sound, as he stirred from unconsciousness. His eyes fluttered open—sluggish, dry, grainy.
The blur of passing lights outside the car window told him they were moving. Fast.
His wrists twitched. Bound.
Shoulder—burning. Neck—bruised.
His mouth tasted like metal, and every breath felt like breathing through wet cotton.
"Am I gonna be dumped in a river like Liam?"
The thought cut through his haze with a cruel kind of clarity.
He had seen the way Liam's body was found — bloated, mouth open mid-scream, throat slit clean and deep.
CIA didn't even bother with a funeral. Just a memo.
"So this is how it ends?"
"Dragged into some foreign grave in a country that doesn't even know I exist?"
He gritted his teeth, trying to shift — but pain shot through his back like lightning.
He leaned his head back, letting out a long, raspy exhale, hands trembling.
"Where the fuck is Kai? That manipulative little bastard said he'd meet me tomorrow—"
"Well guess what, Kai. Tomorrow's here. And I'm about to meet my maker instead."
"SIR! I SEE HIM!" the driver suddenly barked.
Rin's head jerked up. Eyes wide.
Above them — a black helicopter, tail marked with no insignia, hovering low enough to rattle the damn car roof.
And hanging out the side — a familiar silhouette.
Kai.
Clad in his white fur coat, expression split into a delighted grin like this was just another game.
He held the minigun like it was his favorite toy.
Then—
CLICK.
Beside Rin, Tsar Nochi calmly leaned forward.
His face was unreadable, carved out of stone — no panic, no urgency. Just calculated silence.
And in his lap?
A goddamn missile launcher.
"Open the window," Tsar said, his voice smooth. Almost amused.
The driver obeyed without question.
Rin's blood froze.
"What. The FUCK."
"NO—!" Rin choked, trying to lunge forward, wrists yanking against restraints.
Too late.
FWOOSH.
The missile fired — but Rin's interference made it swerve.
It missed the helicopter by inches and slammed into a nearby building.
An explosion bloomed behind them like hell cracking open.
Above, Kai didn't flinch.
In fact, his grin widened.
He gripped the minigun tighter and began firing.
BRAAAATTATATATAA—!!
Bullets rained like a goddamn monsoon, chewing through metal and glass.
Rin screamed, ducking low as the back window exploded behind his head.
The driver caught a bullet straight through the neck, slumping over the wheel.
The car swerved violently—
SKREEEEEE—CRASH!!!
Rin's world spun. Metal crushed.
The vehicle tipped off the bridge and plummeted into the river with a thunderous splash.
Silence.
Cold.
Bubbles surrounded Rin's face, thick and frantic.
He coughed underwater — mistake — and fought to hold his breath.
His restraints floated around him like seaweed.
The car was sinking fast, nose first, dragging him with it.
Above the water's surface — gunfire still continued.
Kai's chopper circling like a vulture, raining bullets even into the river.
"You psychotic BASTARD! I'M STILL IN THE FUCKING CAR!"
He slammed his shoulder into the door, trying to pry it open.
Water pressed in through the cracks. His lungs screamed.
"Shit. I'm gonna die in here. I'm gonna drown like some rookie idiot—"
Then—
A hand.
GRABBED HIS LEG.
His eyes snapped wide — and there, barely visible in the murky water:
Tsar Nochi.
Eyes open. Bloody. Still alive.
And he was dragging Rin down with him.
"OH HELL NO."
Rin thrashed violently, bubbles streaming from his nose.
He twisted his body and kicked Tsar in the face, again and again.
"LET. GO. OF. ME!"
A bullet pierced the water like a harpoon —
It tore through Tsar's forearm, splashing out blood like ink.
He let go.
Rin didn't hesitate.
He swam.
Up.
Up.
The pressure pounded his skull like a hammer.
His vision narrowed.
Until—
PUAAHHH!!!
He broke the surface, gasping like a man reborn.
Water spewed from his mouth. His chest heaved. He was drenched, freezing, and barely conscious.
And then—
A hand.
Strong. Gloved.
It grabbed his collar and yanked him out of the river like he weighed nothing.
He hit the dock with a wet thud, coughing uncontrollably. His vision was blurred, dark around the edges—
And there—
A silhouette.
Standing above him like a devil carved out of silk and steel.
Kai.
Towering, backlit by the smoke of the burning building he helped collapse. His long white fur coat draped over his broad shoulders, rippling in the wind. Black gloves. Hair tousled just enough to look artfully chaotic. He stared down at Rin, expression unreadable. A twisted mix of amusement... and something far darker.
He looked like a fallen angel, freshly bathed in sin.
Rin blinked slowly, still wheezing.
"...You," he rasped, his voice shredded raw.
Kai's smile was faint — cruel, clinical.
"Aww. You made it."
Kai's voice floated over like smoke — soft, amused, cruel.
Rin, soaked to the bone and barely upright, whipped his head toward the sound, his body throbbing with pain, anger, and sheer disbelief.
"It wouldn't have been so hard if you weren't trying to fucking kill me, you psychotic bastard," Rin snapped, staggering to his feet. His voice was hoarse from screaming, from river water, from rage.
Kai chuckled. Not the kind that comes from joy — no, this one slithered. It danced with condescension, pure mirth at someone else's chaos.
"Mm. What about the other guy?" he asked, like it was casual gossip over drinks. He didn't even look fazed — not a single wet thread on his lavish fur coat, not a single bead of guilt in his expression.
Rin rubbed the back of his aching skull, sneering.
"He was clinging to me like a leech. So I sent him straight to his maker."
That earned him another hum of amusement.
"Impressive," Kai murmured, his grin lingering like it had nowhere else to be.
But then Kai's eyes shifted. And stayed.
He stared at Rin.
Hard.
His gaze sharpened — and Rin felt it like a blade dragging along his jaw.
Kai's stare wasn't just looking at him. He was dissecting him. Mapping his nerves, his irritation, every twitch in his face.
Scarlet's thoughts snapped.
"Does this bastard get some kind of sick thrill out of just... watching me? What, is he trying to memorize my face or read my soul? Fucking creep."
Rin's lip curled, his patience paper-thin. He was seconds away from snapping — a punch, a scream, anything — but then—
Kai finally spoke.
"It's kinda creepy," he drawled with a wicked smirk, leaning his weight to one side like this was all very amusing.
Rin blinked.
"…You think I'M creepy?"
Before he could throw that line back with claws, Kai lifted a finger and pointed — slow, lazy, smug.
"Your mask," he said, circling the air toward Rin's face. "It's peeling off."
He smirked deeper.
"Why don't you just take it off already?"
Rin scowled and turned his back. Silent protest. He kept walking.
WHOOOOOSHHH — a gust of wind howled down the street, catching his soaked shirt and chilling him to the bone.
"Shit. It's cold," Rin muttered, raising a hand to flag down a taxi. One passed— and sped up instead.
He stared at the taillights as they faded.
"...Are you fucking serious?"
Behind him:
"PFFFT—HAHAHAHAHA!"
Kai lost it. That low, sharp laughter split the tension like a match in kerosene.
"Probably because of your face," Kai said through his cackles, one hand lazily on his stomach. "Let me peel it off for you. I'll be gentle."
His voice dipped, teasing and dangerous.
"Why so stubborn, sweetie?"
Rin grit his teeth, shoulders rising.
"It's not about being stubborn," he thought, spinning on his heel.
But before he could bark that out loud, a hand reached forward.
"What the hell—"
Rin slapped Kai's hand away like it was made of fire.
"Don't you have any concept of personal space?!" he growled, his voice sharp and tight.
Kai, unfazed as always, leaned in — bending forward until they were eye-level. Their breath practically mingled.
"Why do you keep resisting me?" Kai whispered, not angry, not annoyed — just curious, like Rin was some stubborn puzzle to solve.
Rin's brow twitched, jaw clenched.
"Why are you so damn persistent?"
Kai's grin turned wolfish.
"Because," he breathed, "I always get what I want."
And before Rin could move—
Kai reached forward.
With one swift tug, he ripped the mask clean off.
Rin stumbled back, eyes wide. The cold air hit his skin like a slap.
Kai froze.
For the first time in this entire chaotic mess, his smirk wavered — just slightly.
He stared. Not with the amused indifference from before — no, this was focused. Still. Unblinking.
Scarlet's mind reeled.
"What the hell is he looking at me like that for? He's seen my face. He's seen my photos. We've met. So what's with that expression like he just discovered Atlantis on my cheekbones?"
Rin felt exposed. Raw. Naked in a way that went deeper than skin.
Finally, Kai blinked.
And then—
"Your face is very..." he tilted his head, smirk returning like a loaded gun.
"I mean," he said slowly, "you've got a pretty face."
He licked his lips.
"I wonder what it'd look like covered in my cum."
Rin nearly lunged.
"WHAT THE—"
"WHAT THE FUCK is WRONG with you?!" Rin barked, shoving Kai hard in the chest. "What is wrong with you, you creep?!"
Kai just laughed. Again. Like he lived for the chaos.
That same arrogant glint flickered in his eyes — the glint of a man who knew exactly how to ruin people and enjoyed every minute of it.
Kai didn't even flinch.
He stepped forward.
"Just admiring."
His tone was syrupy sweet. Dangerous.
"I never waste my bullets on anything less than beautiful."
Rin's pulse was a thunderstorm in his neck.
His skin was still wet. Still cold. But his face?
Flushed. Boiling. Violated.
"Scarlet… remember who you are. You're not some trembling rookie. You've snapped necks in silence and burned cities to ash. He doesn't control you."