Seojin walked down the corridor, her pulse thundering in her ears. She kept her steps steady, her expression neutral—like nothing was wrong.
But inside?
She was on the edge of losing control.
Her father had just ordered her to kill Minji.
And if she didn't find a way out of this, the Council would get to her first.
Her coded message—"Run."—had already been sent. But was it fast enough?
She didn't know.
All she knew was that Minji was in danger, and time was slipping through her fingers.
At the safe house, Minji stared at her phone screen, Seojin's single-word message glowing like a warning siren.
Her stomach dropped.
Kade, who was sitting across from her, frowned. "What is it?"
Minji's hands clenched around the phone. "Seojin just told me to run."
Kade's expression hardened. "Which means—"
Before he could finish, a bullet shattered the window.
"Move!" Minji yelled.
They dove to the ground just as another shot tore through the walls. The safe house was compromised.
The Council's assassins were already here.
Kade grabbed his gun, scanning the exits. "We need to get out. Now."
Minji's mind raced. They had minutes—maybe seconds—before the Council's team stormed the place.
Her heart pounded. Seojin had warned her.
And now, she had to survive.
Seojin sat in her temporary quarters inside the Council's facility, staring at the tracker on her laptop.
A red dot blinked. Minji's location.
She was moving—fast.
Good. She got my message.
Seojin took a shaky breath. But getting out won't be enough.
Even if Minji escaped tonight, the Council wouldn't stop hunting her.
They would never stop.
Which meant Seojin had to do more than just warn Minji.
She had to erase her.
Not literally—but on paper.
Seojin grabbed her second laptop and pulled up the Council's surveillance logs. Every operative, every target, every kill order—they kept records of everything.
If she could get into their system and erase Minji's file, it would buy her time.
Maybe even save her life.
She flexed her fingers and started typing.
Hack the system. Delete the target. Make Minji disappear.
Every second counted.
Minji and Kade burst out the back door, the cold night air hitting them like a slap.
A black SUV screeched to a stop in front of them.
The driver's side door opened—and a man stepped out.
Dressed in a sleek black suit, his presence was cold, calculated.
Phoenix's best assassin.
Kade inhaled sharply. "That's… Lee Hyun."
Minji's blood ran cold. The Council's deadliest hunter.
The man tilted his head, studying them. "You've been ordered to die," he said, his voice calm. "Don't make this harder than it needs to be."
Minji clenched her fists. "Yeah? Well, we don't take orders."
Hyun smiled slightly. "Shame."
Then he lunged.
End of Chapter 87