The streets of Velmoria stretched wide before them, lantern-lit pathways cutting through the night like veins glowing beneath the city's skin. Hikaru walked without urgency, but his mind raced. The plan was in motion. Renholt had taken the bait. By morning, the Magisterium would be scrambling to contain the information.
And yet… something felt off.
Budi moved beside him, silent but tense. He had noticed it, too. The lingering weight of unseen eyes.
Selene kept her injured wrist close to her chest, her movements calculated, controlled. Her silver eyes flicked between rooftops and alleyways, her gaze landing on nothing—yet something.
"We're being followed," she said finally.
Budi exhaled. "Yeah, I figured."
Hikaru adjusted his glasses, smirking. "Took them long enough."
The night air shifted.
A presence. Not heavy, not oppressive—but precise.
Whoever it was, they weren't just watching.
They were hunting.
Hikaru flicked a card between his fingers. "Budi, how do you feel about making a scene?"
Budi sighed. "I was really hoping you wouldn't say that."
Without another word, they moved.
They turned sharply down a narrow alley, the shadows swallowing them whole. The sound of the city dimmed behind them, replaced by the quiet hum of breath and footsteps.
And then—silence.
They had stopped moving.
But the footsteps continued.
Hikaru grinned. "Gotcha."
Budi spun, lunging without hesitation. His hand snatched at the empty air—
And caught a wrist.
For a second, nothing happened.
Then—a blade flickered in the darkness.
Budi twisted, barely dodging as the dagger whistled past his ribs.
Hikaru reacted instantly, flicking a card into the air. [Skill Activated: ♠7 – Weighted Deck]
The air around the figure warped. Their movement slowed by half a second—just long enough.
Budi countered.
His knee slammed into their side, his free hand striking at their elbow. The attacker barely flinched, twisting with the force of the impact instead of resisting it.
Hikaru caught a glimpse of them as they moved.
A woman, cloaked in black, her face hidden behind a veil of shadows.
She was smaller than Budi, but faster. Her movements were too smooth, too controlled.
Not a mercenary.
Not an assassin.
A professional.
She spun free from Budi's grip and landed lightly on the alley wall, crouching against the stone like a spider waiting to pounce.
Her voice was low, calm. "You're faster than I expected."
Budi scoffed. "You're not."
Selene, still watching from the side, finally spoke. "Who are you?"
The woman tilted her head slightly. "A messenger."
Hikaru smirked. "I don't suppose you brought us good news?"
The woman's shadow shifted. Not unnaturally, not like Shroud's—but deliberately. It moved with her, controlled, practiced.
She was trained in stealth magic.
A shadow-walker.
The kind of people the Magisterium used for the things they didn't want in official records.
The woman adjusted her stance. "You made a mistake."
Budi narrowed his eyes. "Yeah? Which one?"
She flicked her dagger downward, the blade glowing faintly.
"You stole something from the Magisterium."
Hikaru grinned. "Pretty sure I stole a lot of things."
The woman didn't react. "You thought revealing a single page would distract them."
Selene's fingers twitched slightly. "It didn't?"
The woman exhaled. "It worked. They're in chaos."
Budi frowned. "Then why are you here?"
Her gaze flicked toward Hikaru.
"You were supposed to keep running."
Hikaru clicked his tongue. "I don't like being told what to do."
For the first time, the woman hesitated.
Then—she moved.
Not to attack.
To step back.
She lowered her dagger.
"I was sent to kill you," she admitted. "But my orders changed."
Selene stiffened. "Why?"
The woman glanced toward the rooftops, where the faintest shift in air pressure suggested more people were watching.
She turned back to Hikaru. "Because someone else wants you alive."
Hikaru's mind raced.
This wasn't normal. The Magisterium didn't spare people.
"Who?"
The woman took another step back. "Someone with more power than the Magisterium."
She flicked the dagger once—and vanished.
Budi exhaled. "I hate when people do that."
Selene's silver eyes darkened. "This is bad."
Hikaru adjusted his glasses. "Bad?"
Selene nodded. "We're not just fighting the Magisterium anymore."
Budi crossed his arms. "So what do we do?"
Hikaru grinned. "We find out who's pulling the strings."
Budi muttered, "And how do we do that?"
Hikaru flicked a card into the air. "Simple."
He caught it.
"We cheat."