NOVPUBThe man called Edward didn’t seem the least bit interested in me. He completely ignored my presence and continued speaking to Tong Jialin.
“How’s it going on your end? Did you find the target?”
“Aiya, I was just heading over there when I ran into this little brother... Didn’t the report say there wouldn’t be anyone else here? I got a little curious about him.”
The man glanced at me, and the moment our eyes met—that icy cold stare sent a chill straight through my heart.
That wasn’t a look meant for a human. That wasn’t even something a human should be able to express... It was the gaze you’d give a thing.
I’d seen that look somewhere before—right, back when Lillian Ji was chasing me. The way she looked at me was exactly like this man.
Luckily, he still didn’t seem all that interested in me. He just gave me that one glance, then went back to talking to Tong Jialin.
“‘Skinner’ is searching the northern section. ‘Strangler’ went west. I was the first one inside—already cleared the east and was about to assist the others... Didn’t expect to run into you on the way. You’re too slow, ‘Eye-Gouger.’”
!!!
That was a ton of information all at once.
Besides these two psychopaths, there are at least two more?!
All of them showing up here—for the sole purpose of hunting Snowy.
Despite the bony man’s criticism, the blonde woman still kept smiling, completely unbothered.
“Hehe, is it really necessary to go this far just for one little girl? Who knows—maybe one of us has already found her and tortured her to death in their favorite way.”
Tong Jialin seemed to think this whole operation was overkill. She gave a little wiggle of her hips and spoke breezily, like it was no big deal.
“So relax, will you~ Just take it slow~”
But Edward clearly didn’t agree. He snorted in contempt.
“Hmph. Big tits, no brain... as expected.”
“...What’s that supposed to mean, ‘Bone-Scraper’? You’d better explain yourself, or I swear I’ll turn on you!”
Called out as brainless, Tong Jialin’s smile twitched. Her eyes sharpened as she glared at Edward—one wrong word and she’d go off.
Oh? A fight? Are they going to fight?
Yes, fight! Fight each other!
Then I can escape in the chaos!
“That superior already warned us—not to be fooled by appearances. That target, the white-haired girl, has already slaughtered twenty-eight of our kind. And every time, she walked away without a scratch. When it comes to close combat, she might even be stronger than any of us.”
Twenty-eight kills already?! As for Snowy’s actions... I could only say one thing—
Hell yeah.
“That’s why they sent in the top-tier killers this time... Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten that already, ‘Eye-Gouger.’”
“...Tch.”
Unfortunately, Tong Jialin didn’t take the bait. Her killing intent vanished as she turned away and gave a quick reply.
“That superior promised us a long stretch of ‘time’ if we complete this mission. I doubt you want to miss out on that rare ‘vacation time’ either. Even cold-blooded killers like us wanna relax once in a while, don’t you think?”
Edward didn’t push the issue any further. Instead, he clarified their objective and emphasized that they couldn’t afford internal friction.
I stood to the side, scowling as I listened.
Time...?
I didn’t really get what they meant by “time,” but based on how seriously they were taking it, it was clearly important.
This was no random assault. These guys had come prepared.
“And the enemy anticipated our intrusion. The fact that everyone on this street evacuated ahead of time proves it—they’re trying to trap us here and take us all down.”
So that’s it... All those background characters vanished because they knew a bunch of killers were coming. They evacuated before the chaos hit.
Damn it, why’d it have to be today? If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve just taken the normal route to the meeting even if it meant being late...
But at this point, it wasn’t about being late anymore—
It was life or death.
“‘Limb-Cutter’ is setting up a reverse barrier. That’ll temporarily block all exits and cut off their pincer attack. But even with that, our operation time is still limited. I hope you understand.”
“...Hmph, I get it. No need to keep repeating yourself.”
Edward was calm. He clearly knew how to handle Tong Jialin—first scold her, then dangle the shared goal in front of her. Stick and carrot. And it worked.
This scrawny man... he might be the leader of this entire operation.
Then Tong Jialin turned back toward me.
“What should we do about this little brother? Seems like he knows that little girl, hmm? Maybe we should take him hostage?”
Tch. No matter how invisible I tried to make myself, I guess I couldn’t escape her attention...
Even though I’d quietly backed away to the edge, she still noticed me.
And with that line, it was like she’d declared, “You’re not getting away.”
Use me as a hostage against Snowy?
Fuck no. Are you kidding me?
Wait... if I think about it in reverse—if I am taken hostage, I might be able to feed them the wrong info, lead them away from Snowy. And if she catches wind of their movements, maybe she can escape—and bring help...
But I was getting ahead of myself. Edward didn’t even spare me another look. He just said:
“No need. He’s already heard too much... Just get rid of him. I’ll go find ‘Skinner.’ After you take care of him, head south to search. And remember, time is short—don’t overdo it.”
“Hmph, got it, stingy man!”
After saying that, Edward shoved his hands in his pockets and casually walked right past me.
And I ran.
Ran with everything I had.
If Tong Jialin was just playing around before, she definitely wasn’t now—she was serious about killing me, and I didn’t stand a chance in a direct fight.
So no need to think—just run!
Run for my life!
Maybe I got a split-second head start. Maybe she didn’t expect me to bolt so decisively. She hesitated for a second before giving chase.
But... she was fast. Insanely fast.
When I glanced back, it didn’t even look like she was running—it was more like she was floating toward me!
What the hell?! How is this woman, in a tight low-cut dress and high heels, moving that fast?!
After about a hundred meters, I could feel her presence getting closer without even turning around. Her gaze—it was like claws on the back of my neck.
Another fifty meters—she had to be within striking range now.
I dove forward without hesitation. No shirt, so the road scraped up my chest and arms, but I think I dodged her attack.
But the next hit—I wouldn’t be able to dodge.
I rolled, trying to throw her off, but I was just delaying the inevitable...
“Hehe, little brother, you sure know how to run. Got some experience in this, huh?”
“...Can’t say I’m thrilled to be complimented for that...”
Caught.
No escape...
“Oho~ Since you tried so hard, big sis will make sure to carefully preserve your eyes in a glass jar—labeled and everything. Isn’t that thoughtful?”
Snowy’s already doing that kind of thing! And if I have to hand over my eyes, I’d rather give them to her than to some hag like you!
Tong Jialin crouched over, pressing both hands down on my head.
I—I couldn’t move!
It was like being caught in a vise. I felt like my skull was caving in.
“Come on~ Let big sis have a look at your pretty eyes~”
She pried my eyelids open and stared directly into them.
“Oho~ So close up, little brother, your eyes are even more beautiful, aren’t they?”
“Heh. That just means you haven’t seen better eyes—like that little girl you’re hunting. Her eyes are more beautiful than anyone’s.”
I... I still have one card left.
I can’t let her realize anything. I need to keep distracting her, steer her off course.
“Oh? Is that so~? That’s wonderful news~ Thank you, little brother, for telling me~”
Not yet. I need her just a little closer. I have to hit from her blind spot—
“But your eyes aren’t bad either~ Hehe. Even when facing someone who might kill you, even knowing how dangerous this is... they haven’t flinched at all. I bet even if you saw a corpse, your eyelids wouldn’t twitch, huh? Such deep, beautiful eyes~”
“Thanks, but they’re just dead fish eyes.”
“Well then... these eyes belong to big sis now~”
Her lips curled into a twisted grin, mouth half open, stretching disturbingly wide.
She brought that weird scoop-blade of hers toward my eyes—
Now!
I threw the short blade I’d hidden down my pants, thrusting it up at her chin—aiming to drive it straight into her brain!
But at the last second, she twisted her neck 180 degrees like it was nothing and dodged!
The hell?! Is this woman some kind of owl?!
Tong Jialin looked back at me and wiggled her eyebrows, taunting me.
“Aiyaya~ So close~ If I weren’t so flexible, you might’ve gotten me~”
That’s way beyond flexible! Humans aren’t supposed to move like that!
“Say, little brother, you used that knife earlier to block my attack... Even though you knew I was a killer, how’d you know I was the Eye-Gouger? From the start, you acted like you knew who I was...” 𝓃𝓸𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
Shit. She noticed.
“Ahh~ Could it be~ these eyes of yours saw something? Heehee... I want them even more now~”
With seductive eyes, she straddled my lap, long legs wrapping around my waist. Her left hand gripped the back of my neck, and she pulled my face straight into her chest—like she was nursing a baby.
Soft. Way too soft.
But I felt no pleasure at all. It was like—
Like I was being possessed by a ghost woman.
“To the boy so numb to death—see you in the next life~”
She forced my eyelids apart, about to gouge them out—
“That won’t do.”
A familiar voice echoed—but I couldn’t quite place it...
Suddenly, a bunch of weird crap rained down on us. Red beans, other kinds of beans, even peach pits.
Tong Jialin flinched and leapt away, clearly wary of them.
“I’m honored to meet Lord Ethan again in this lifetime. There’s no way I’d let some ghostly thing take your life!”
The person who threw that stuff landed behind me, catching my falling body and supporting me.
I turned to look—and saw a beautiful face that felt just slightly unfamiliar.
Who... is this?
I couldn’t remember her name—but I knew I knew her. From deep within me, something recognized her...
She turned her face toward mine. Our cheeks were just inches apart. But I didn’t feel embarrassed or awkward.
It felt natural.
It felt like this was the distance we were meant to be.
Then she smiled. Warmly.
And seeing that smile made me feel safe—like I’d finally found shelter.
Who was she...? Why does she feel so familiar?
“Don’t worry, Lord Ethan. From now on, I won’t let anyone hurt you again...”
Ahh... now I remember...
She is—
“Because I’ve come.”
Rainie Bai.
