Midnight.
The streets of Mushin never truly slept, but tonight, they shivered. Not from the wind or fear of area boys—but from something else. Something unseen.
Something hunting.
Ajani moved like mist, blending into alleys, darting through the dark. Blood still dripped from the edge of the iron pipe in his hand, though his grip was calm. Focused.
> 📢 "Three targets identified. Moderate hostility. All armed."
Distance: 42 meters.
Estimated threat level: D-Rank.
His mini-map pulsed faintly in the corner of his vision. A red glow hovered over a compound where the stench of crime hung thick in the air—traffickers. Girls. Drugs. Guns.
They were part of a small syndicate. Until now, no one dared touch them.
Until now.
---
Inside the compound…
Laughter echoed in the compound. One of the thugs—Ibra, sat with his feet on the table, cleaning a small pistol.
"Guy, Lagos dey sweet when you no dey fear anybody," he said to the other two.
The second, Kash, was counting pills into small bags. "Na money go choke us this week."
The third, Dimeji, sipped dry gin while scrolling through TikTok videos of girls. "Small small girls dey even rush me now. Na this work get levels."
Suddenly—
THWACK!
The door exploded inward.
Ajani dashed in like lightning. The iron pipe flew—Kash's wrist shattered. His scream was cut short as Ajani spun and sent him crashing through the plastic table.
> 📢 Combat Skill Gained: Brawler Instinct (Passive)
Your strikes now have +10% accuracy and +5% critical chance during melee.
"Who the hell is this?!" Ibra yelled, pulling his pistol.
Ajani didn't speak. He dashed forward, sliding across the floor, and snapped Ibra's knee with a brutal swing. The gun misfired. Ajani grabbed the weapon mid-air and pointed it at Dimeji—
Bang.
The gin bottle dropped. Dimeji's body followed.
---
> 📢 Target Eliminated: 3
+300 EXP
Skill Gained: Quick Reload (Firearms)
You have reached Level 2
+5 Stat Points Awarded
> 📢 New System Function: Inventory Unlocked.
Ajani crouched, breathing steady as Alice's voice returned—smoother now, almost pleased.
> 📢 "Your growth rate is… impressive."
"Would you like to allocate your stat points?"
"No. Not yet."
He looted one of the vests from the traffickers and strapped it across his chest, placing the pistol and a switchblade into the newly unlocked Inventory—a translucent space that opened with a thought and closed like a second skin.
---
As he stepped outside, the street was still.
But far above him, on a rooftop two blocks away, a figure watched through binoculars. A girl—wrapped in black and red hunter gear—clicked her tongue.
> "He's not registered… not tagged… who the hell is this guy?"
She tapped her earpiece.
> "Control, this is Scout Bravo. I've got an unranked rogue killing traffickers in Mushin. He's good. Scary good. You want me to engage?"
> "Negative. Observe only. Rogue or not, he's doing us a favour."
---
Back in the darkness, Ajani leaned against a wall, hands shaking slightly.
He wasn't tired. No.
He was alive.
Alice's voice returned.
> 📢 "Congratulations, Devourer. Your path is clear. Your soul burns bright."
"But remember—your vengeance has only just begun."
Ajani wiped blood from his temple, looked at his reflection in a broken window, and smirked.
The scars were still there. But his eyes…
They had changed.