Zain vanished into the nearest mirror just as the echo of his last shot faded.
Mirro's eyes darted. "Where the hell—?"
She turned, searching every surface. Her breath hitched.
Her finger hovered over the trigger.
A flicker. A shimmer in a broken shard behind her.
There—! She spun, fired without hesitation.
BOOM—!
The mirror exploded.
But no one came out.
Smoke and dust settled slowly around her.
She squinted, heart racing.
"Did I get him...? Or did he run?"
The rooftop was silent.
Not far from the blast zone, deep behind a collapsed storage vent, Zain crouched low.
He exhaled quietly, controlling his breath.
He had slipped away the second he exited.
He used Quick Step to quickly go into the shadows.
He also used Quiet Step and Fading in the Dark instantly.
Now, his body was hidden in the shadowed vents. Silent and unseen.
His fingers worked fast.
One round.
He loaded another shot of Blast Breath into the stolen sniper rifle.
The chamber locked with a soft click.
Zain's eyes, now enhanced by Sharp Eye, scanned the rooftop slowly.
Every movement of Mirro's silhouette appeared in perfect detail.
He whispered, "One shot. That's all I need."
---
Mirro crouched low on the rooftop, scanning the smoke-filled air.
Her fingers itched on the trigger.
"Come on… show yourself," she muttered.
Nothing.
Silence.
Suddenly—crack!
A gunshot echoed.
Mirro's head snapped to the left. "Shit!"
She dove into the nearest mirror shard without hesitation.
Glass shimmered around her, and she reappeared across the rooftop on the far side.
As expected—the mirror she'd just exited exploded into flaming shards a second later.
"Fucking hell," she hissed.
"That was close—"
She raised her sniper rifle, aimed back toward the direction of the shot—
Then froze.
A breath. Behind her.
"Goodbye," Zain said quietly.
Mirro's eyes went wide.
She spun, panic flooding her face. "Wha—?!"
She barely got the word out before she saw it.
Zain. Standing right behind her.
Rifle up. Calm. Focused.
"Damn it!" she screamed, twisting—
Too late.
Zain's smirk didn't waver. "You've had enough time to play."
The earlier shot had been a decoy.
It was fired from his small pistol, not the sniper.
It worked.
She panicked. She moved.
And he guessed right—one of the last few usable mirrors left on the rooftop.
One guess. One shot.
That was all he needed.
Zain pulled the trigger.
BOOM—!
The bullet hit her square in the head.
The effect was instant.
Mirro's skull exploded, scattering charred fragments across the rooftop.
Her body collapsed without a sound, twitching once before going still.
Smoke rose from the blackened hole where her face had been.
Her sniper rifle clattered and skidded away from her corpse.
Zain stood still for a moment.
Then took a single step forward.
He looked down at what was left of her.
"You weren't strong," he muttered. "Just annoying."
He crouched beside the body and picked up her custom sniper rifle.
It was heavy, worn, but solid.
He reached into her pouch and retrieved the special bullets—still intact.
"Thanks for the gifts."
He slung the rifle over his shoulder, pocketed the ammo, and let out a slow breath.
Finally, he sat down.
Just for a moment.
He opened his system interface.
"Absorb everything," he said.
"The corpse, the broken gear, the rooftop debris. Clean it all up. And while you're at it—restore me. Full reset."
---
[Hack Initiation: Absorption & Restoration]
[Target: Area Materials + Mirro's Corpse]
[Hack Points Gained: +400]
[Effect Applied: Full Body Restoration – All injuries healed, body returned to perfect condition]
[Total Cost: 100 Hack Points]
[Status: Executing...]
---
Zain exhaled again as warmth surged through his body.
The pain in his ribs faded. Burns peeled away. Scratches vanished.
He rolled his neck.
"Better."
He stood.
Time to move.
"Hold on, Zelia," he said quietly, eyes sharp again.
"Your little brother's coming."
---
Deep inside the Rust Rats base.
Behind rusted steel doors and reinforced concrete, Scavratt sat comfortably in his private chamber.
His fingers drummed against the table.
Across from him, unconscious and bound to a chair, was Zelia.
He leaned forward, his sharp, rodent-like snout twitching as he stared at her face.
His beady red eyes gleamed.
"What a beautiful woman," he muttered.
"Mirro really did well. I ought to reward her for this... oh wait."
He chuckled darkly.
Scavratt stood up, cracked his neck, and walked toward Zelia.
He crouched beside her, then slapped her cheek.
Not too hard, just enough to wake her up.
"Wake up, little princess. You've got company."
Zelia stretched, her eyes opening slowly.
At first, things were a blur, then cold air, the smell of metal and something worse.
Then she saw the thing in front of her.
A man-shaped rat with ragged clothes, sharp teeth, and long claws.
Her eyes widened. "Wh—what the hell—?!"
She thrashed in her restraints, panic surging through her.
"Where the hell am I?! Who the hell are you?!"
Scavratt grinned, straightening his back.
"I'm Scavratt, the boss of this lovely dump you're sitting in. Welcome to the heart of the Rust Rats."
Zelia's voice trembled, but she forced herself to glare.
"You… you kidnapped me…"
"Oh, we did a little more than that," he said, pacing slowly around her.
"We handpicked you. You can thank your brother for this."
Zelia froze. "Zain…?"
Scavratt nodded, chuckling.
"Yep. Heavenly Demon, right? Big attitude, scary powers, likes setting people on fire?"
"Well, he killed four of my enforcers. Four. So now—"
He leaned down, eyes inches from hers.
"You're the payback."
Zelia's breathing turned rapid. She struggled harder.
"You're insane! My little brother would never do something like that!"
Scavratt blinked, then burst out laughing.
"Never?" he grinned.
"You really don't know him, do you?"
Zelia shook her head, her face flushed.
"He wouldn't kill people like that. He's not a monster!"
Scavratt crouched in front of her again, nose twitching inches from her face.
"Then let me give you a little update, princess."
He raised a finger and counted off.
"Burnshot? Dead. Cooked alive."
"Ruckle? Neck snapped and roasted."
"Skritch and Flicker? Bodies reduced to ashes."
Zelia's jaw trembled. "Shut up…"
"He's not your sweet little brother anymore,"
Scavratt whispered, voice sharp now.
"He's a demon. Just like this name, Heavenly Demon."
"Liar!"
Zelia screamed, jerking violently against the ropes.
"You're lying! He… he protects me! He wouldn't—he's not some killer like you! You're just trying to break me!"
"I don't need to," Scavratt said casually.
"He's doing that for me. Every bullet. Every scream. You're just the cherry on top."
Zelia closed her eyes and could only cry in that situation.