The night split open with gunfire.
Muzzle flashes lit the dark like jagged lightning, carving brief glimpses of faces twisted with hatred. Men in black leather surged forward from the shadows, rifles raised, knives glinting. There were too many. Ten… twelve… more shadows kept pouring in.
Ayu's breath caught in her throat. Her knife felt so small in her trembling hand. She pressed her back against the wall outside the warehouse, her heart hammering in her chest. For a moment, the fear almost swallowed her whole.
But then she looked at Luv.
He stood in the open, unflinching, the faint glow of the streetlight catching in his black eyes. His body was coiled, precise, like a predator ready to strike. Calm. Cold. Terrifying.
"Stay behind me," he said, voice sharp, steady. "And breathe."
The first wave of enemies rushed them. Three men with bats and knives, moving fast.
Luv stepped into the storm.
The first attacker swung wide. Luv ducked low, drove his shoulder into the man's gut, and slammed his knife upward under the ribs. Blood sprayed hot across his arm. Before the body even fell, he spun, yanking the blade free and slashing across the second man's throat in one motion.
The third froze for half a heartbeat. That hesitation cost him his life. Luv kicked his knee inward, shattering bone with a sickening crunch, then buried the blade in his temple.
Three bodies hit the ground. Three seconds.
Ayu's stomach twisted at the brutal efficiency—but her awe was stronger. This… this is who Luv really is.
Gunfire barked from the left. Ayu screamed as bullets tore into the warehouse wall inches from her head. Luv shoved her down, throwing himself over her as sparks rained around them.
"Move when I say," he growled into her ear.
She nodded, though her throat was dry.
He surged up, flinging a knife at the gunman's arm. The weapon spun, flashing silver in the dark, before it buried into flesh. The man cried out, his rifle clattering to the ground. Luv was on him in an instant, finishing it with a slash so fast Ayu barely saw it.
But more poured in—too many.
"Luv!" Ayu cried, panic lacing her voice as three surrounded them from behind.
Without thinking, she lunged. Her blade caught one man's shoulder, slicing deep. He roared, swinging at her with a crowbar. She ducked clumsily, the metal grazing her scalp, pain burning across her skin. She stabbed blindly, catching his thigh. He fell, howling.
Another enemy raised his gun at her. Ayu froze.
Then a blur—Luv appeared like a shadow, grabbing the man's wrist and snapping it backward with a brutal crack. The gun fell, and Luv crushed the man's throat with a single, merciless twist.
Ayu gasped, her chest heaving, blood dripping from her temple. Her fear hadn't gone—but something else had sparked beneath it. A strange fire. She wasn't just surviving anymore. She was fighting.
They moved together now, not perfect but instinctive. When one faltered, the other filled the gap. Luv struck fast and brutal; Ayu darted in where she could, her blade clumsy but desperate, drawing blood again and again.
The alley became a slaughterhouse. Shouts turned to screams, gunfire to silence, until only ragged breaths remained.
Ayu stumbled, dropping to her knees. Her knife clattered on the concrete, slick with blood. Her arms shook so badly she thought they might snap.
Luv stood above her, chest heaving, blood dripping from a shallow cut across his cheek. He scanned the street, every nerve alert. No more footsteps. No more voices.
It was over. For now.
Ayu's vision blurred. She pressed a hand to her head, feeling the sticky warmth of blood. "We… we made it," she whispered, half in disbelief.
Luv crouched beside her, gripping her wrist firmly. His voice was low, almost gentle. "You held your ground. You didn't run."
Her breath hitched. She wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn't come. Instead, she gave a shaky laugh. "If I ran, you'd probably drag me back anyway."
For the first time, his lips twitched. Not a smile—something harder, sharper. But it was enough.
He looked at her, really looked, as though seeing past the trembling and the blood. She's not weak, he thought. She's raw… but not weak.
He stood, offering her his hand once more.
"Come on," he said. "This city won't let us rest. Not yet."
And though every bone in her body screamed with exhaustion, Ayu took his hand.
Because she knew one thing now—if she stayed by his side, she would survive. And maybe, just maybe… she would become stronger than she had ever imagined.