Bella handed in her apron with shaking hands.
"I'm done," she said, voice flat. "I've survived assassins, cursed forests, demon generals, and one smoking incident too many. I quit."
The manager didn't argue. He just nodded slowly, eyes tired. "Fair. Honestly? Fair."
Nyx opened her mouth to tease her—then stopped when she saw Bella's face. Pale. Serious. Done.
Yuwen watched from the back aisle, silent. Vario said nothing at all.
Bella turned and walked out of the convenience store, the automatic doors sliding shut behind her with a soft ding.
For the first time in days, the store was quiet.
Too quiet.
Outside, the streetlights buzzed. Bella pulled her jacket tighter around herself, breathing in the night air like it was freedom. No fluorescent lights. No demons coughing smoke. No Beybrolls.
She didn't notice the van at first.
It parked too smoothly. Too quietly.
A door slid open.
Bella sensed it a heartbeat too late.
A cloth pressed over her mouth. A sharp smell. Her vision swam as she struggled, training screaming at her to move, to strike—but her body betrayed her. The world tilted.
The last thing she heard was a voice.
"Got her. Move."
Darkness swallowed her whole.
Back at the store, Nyx frowned.
"…Has anyone seen Bella?"
The manager looked up from the counter. "She left."
Vario's eyes narrowed. Something cold stirred in his chest.
Yuwen stopped mopping.
Outside, the street was empty.
No Bella.
No footsteps.
Only the echo of a decision that had come too late.
The convenience store lights hummed on, unaware that the night had just crossed a line.
The automatic doors slid open again.
Nyx stepped outside first, arms crossed, scanning the street. "She didn't even wait five minutes," she muttered. "That's a new record."
Vario followed. The moment his boots touched the pavement, he felt it.
Wrong.
The night air was too still. No footsteps. No lingering presence. Just the faint scent of something sharp—chemical, unfamiliar.
Yuwen stepped out last. Her eyes narrowed. "…She did not leave calmly."
Nyx blinked. "What do you mean?"
Vario crouched, fingers brushing the ground. His expression darkened. "There was a struggle. Brief. Efficient."
The manager leaned out the door. "Uh—guys? If this is about overtime, I swear I didn't—"
Yuwen straightened. "Bella has been taken."
Silence fell like a blade.
Nyx's joking expression vanished instantly. "…What."
A low hum echoed down the street.
Vario looked up just in time to see red taillights disappear around the corner.
His aura flared.
The streetlights flickered.
Inside the store, cans rattled on the shelves.
"So," Nyx said quietly, cracking her knuckles, "who kidnapped the assassin elf who survived demon wars and night shift?"
Yuwen's eyes glowed faintly. "Fools."
Vario stood slowly, shadows curling around him like a living cloak. "They have made a grave error."
The manager swallowed. "Please tell me you're not about to wreck the neighborhood."
Vario turned back toward the store. His voice was calm. Too calm. "Close the shop."
Nyx grinned, sharp and dangerous. "Guess Bella's sick day just turned into a rescue arc."
Somewhere far away, Bella stirred in the dark, head pounding, senses slowly returning.
She didn't know where she was.
But she knew one thing.
They were coming.
And the convenience store would not be responsible for the damage that followed.