After bursting out of Eden's dressing room, Li Mu carried the "unconscious" Eden in his arms and sprinted toward the concert exits.
Behind him, the kidnappers were running for their lives, lungs on the verge of exploding.
Not from anger. From sheer exhaustion.
"S-slow down… Spade Four… slow down already!"
As professional assassins, peak physical conditioning was a basic requirement. Everyone present was already at the upper limits of human fitness.
And yet, they still had to wring every last drop of strength out of their bodies just to barely keep up with "Spade Four" in front.
What made it even more ridiculous was that this "Spade Four" was carrying a person, yet still moved with long, effortless strides, posture elegant, breathing steady, like she was out for a casual walk.
While running, Li Mu casually glanced back and flashed them a smile overflowing with mockery.
"Tsk tsk. You're really useless, you know?"
"With stamina like this, why be assassins? Go home and babysit instead."
"You—!"
The kidnappers nearly exploded with rage.
Already under extreme stress, that bit of provocation pushed them over the edge. Eyes bloodshot, they ran like mad, desperate to tear apart the woman sprinting ahead of them.
Li Mu turned his gaze forward again, continuing along his planned route with Eden in his arms.
He had no interest in teasing them for fun. Everything he was doing was about dragging them into his rhythm, piling one emergency on top of another so they had no time to think.
Specifically, no time to question his identity.
Yes. At its core, this was still a performance.
The goal was to draw out the mastermind behind the kidnapping.
These kidnappers were just hired hands, disposable tools. The one hiding behind the curtain was the true instigator.
Feeling how utterly still Eden was in his arms, as if truly unconscious, Li Mu nodded inwardly.
Working with smart people really was easy.
Once Eden got past the initial confusion and watched how Li Mu handled things, she quickly understood what he was trying to do and cooperated without hesitation.
Of course, part of her compliance was due to how Li Mu looked right now.
Eden slightly opened her eyes, catching a glimpse of the person holding her.
Different hair color. Different eye color. A mask covering the face.
But at this distance, cradled in his arms, she could clearly feel his presence. That aura… it was familiar.
Elysia. So it really is you.
You said you did not have time to come support my performance, yet here you are anyway. Honestly…
The corner of Eden's lips curved into a barely noticeable smile. Trusting Elysia's strength, she was not worried about their safety at all. Instead, she was curious to see what Elysia planned to do next.
What was the plan?
Simple. Infiltrate the kidnappers directly.
Since the real Spade Four was late, Li Mu decided to borrow her identity, blend into the group, and follow them straight to their employer.
Because he planned to recruit Sakura, Li Mu already knew a fair bit about assassins employed by Poison Cocoon.
Their identities were managed centrally by the organization. Members did not know each other's real identities, only forming temporary teams during missions, usually under false identities.
Only truly trusted members ever learned each other's real names.
So odds were high that these assassins did not know each other either, relying instead on code phrases to confirm identities.
That gave Li Mu the opening to impersonate the missing Spade Four.
And if they did know each other?
Then there was nothing to be done. It would just mean these assassins were unlucky. If he could not dig out the mastermind, he would simply clean up the lackeys first.
Finding the one behind it all was really just about selling Eden a favor anyway. And then… cashing it in.
Finding them would be ideal. Not finding them was also fine.
Fortunately, these people truly did not know each other, allowing the act to continue.
Li Mu's lips curved into a smile. A soft murmur slipped from them and vanished into the wind, but Eden, so close, heard it clearly.
"Ah… you really did save your lives, you know."
"Shouldn't you thank Miss Faded Fairy already?"
Even after infiltrating the group, one problem remained.
For such an important operation, there would definitely be code phrases or other methods of verification.
Li Mu did not know any of them. So the only solution was to skip the verification step entirely. Which was exactly what he was doing.
Snatching Eden, ordering everyone to retreat together, forcing them to subconsciously accept him as a teammate.
At the same time, overwhelming them with constant crises so they had no mental space to question his identity.
Like right now.
A pre-planted bomb detonated, sealing off the path ahead.
At the same time, sharp police sirens wailed in the distance.
Li Mu stopped. The kidnappers behind him finally got a moment to breathe, clutching their chests and gulping air.
Li Mu turned around. His tone, light just moments ago, became serious in an instant.
"Enemy ahead. Change route."
The moment they heard that, the kidnappers who had just caught their breath stiffened.
The captain pulled out an adrenaline injector and jammed it into his body without hesitation, then ground his teeth as he barked at Li Mu.
"Spade Four, you take the target and stay with the others. I'll clear the way!"
"No breaking formation. And do not run ahead of me!"
If they let this rabbit-fast lunatic run point again, they would blow their lungs out before escaping the cordon.
Li Mu snapped to attention, feet together.
"Yes, sir!"
After glaring at him, the captain led everyone along the preplanned escape route.
Following behind while carrying Eden, Li Mu silently declared success.
As long as he stayed with them, he would likely reach their employer soon.
Then he could sell Eden a huge favor. And then… cash it in.
Perfect.
Just as Li Mu was enjoying his plan, someone suddenly rolled down from an upper floor ahead, landing directly in their path.
The newcomer had pink hair, a tall, slender build, wore stylish urban clothing, and had a black mask covering her face.
Most striking of all was the long blade strapped to her back.
Seeing this, the kidnappers raised their guns, ready to fire, when the woman shouted immediately:
"Wait! I'm Spade Four!"
"I'm on your side!"
Gunfire answered her instead.
Bang. Bang bang.
Bullets tore through the air.
The pink-haired woman moved fast, diving behind cover before the shots even rang out.
"You're attacking me?" Her angry voice rang out once the shooting stopped. "Killing each other during a mission. Are you trying to violate organization rules?"
The captain sneered and pulled a grenade from his belt.
"Idiot. If you want to impersonate us, at least do your homework. Our Spade Four is already in the team. Trying to sow discord with such a stupid excuse?"
He moved to pull the pin.
"Our Spade Four is in the team?" The woman sounded confused. "No, you're being fooled. I'm Spade Four!"
"AE535. That's the operation code."
The captain froze, fingers still hooked in the grenade pin.
All the strange details of the mission rushed back into his mind at once.
He whipped his head toward Li Mu.
Li Mu tilted his head apologetically.
"Sorry. I'm the mole."
Bang!
The captain fired instantly, but the shot missed.
"Heh. I was planning to follow you all to your employer and sell Eden a favor."
"Too bad."
Bullets poured like rain, but Li Mu dodged them effortlessly.
Watching him stroll through the hail of gunfire as if taking a leisurely walk, despair sank into the assassins' hearts.
"Damn it… is that speed even human?"
At that moment, the pink-haired woman burst from cover, long blade flashing as she charged Li Mu.
She was fast. Beyond human limits. Her blade arcs even crackled with electricity.
Li Mu felt a faint flow of Honkai energy. A Honkai-powered weapon.
Unfortunately.
Useless.
In this era, before fusion warriors existed, in terms of solo combat, aside from Kalpas the alien and Elysia the Herrscher, he feared no one.
Even holding Eden, he was still invincible.
He lifted his leg, kicked the blade from her grip, and sent her flying into a distant wall.
As she tried to rise, Li Mu flicked the fallen blade with his foot.
It shot forward like a bullet, embedding itself beside her forehead. Strands of pink hair drifted down.
Her body went rigid.
Even through the mask, she could feel the mocking grin beneath his.
The remaining assassins exchanged looks.
Grinding his teeth, the captain shouted, "He's alone and has to protect Eden! Get the automatic weapons! If we rush him together, we still have a chance!"
Eyes flashing with ferocity, the others replied in unison, "Fine. All together!"
Their response surprised Li Mu.
Oh? They did not run right away? These mercenaries were actually this dedicated?
He prepared to disable them.
But before he could act, the captain suddenly pivoted and bolted in the opposite direction.
At the same moment, everyone else turned and ran as well.
The group scattered like startled birds.
Any assassin who had survived this long knew better than to be reckless.
They all understood one thing clearly.
This was not someone they could fight.
If they could not win, only one option remained.
Run.
Teamwork mattered here. No matter how fast the enemy was, he could not catch everyone. You just had to run faster than your teammates.
Better them than me.
Unfortunately, they all thought the same way.
The fleeing captain glanced at the others keeping pace, cursed under his breath, and injected another shot of adrenaline, his speed surging again.
Li Mu did not chase them.
He only needed information, and now he had a better candidate.
He turned toward the pink-haired assassin he had slammed into the wall.
She was inching away quietly, not even daring to retrieve her Honkai weapon, trying to slip off unnoticed.
When Li Mu's gaze locked onto her, she froze, then stiffly turned to meet his half-smiling eyes.
Spade Four. Or rather, the girl named Sakura.
Cold sweat poured down her back.
Heh. Is it still possible to reconcile?
…
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