"How's the battle going between Tucker and your partner?"
"That's right."
"Yeah, but what can you offer in return?"
"Offer?"
Nessley frowned.
"How about this," Kaizen said. "I can show you a video of Tucker fighting your partner—but only if you agree to one condition."
"What condition?"
"If your partner loses and Tucker survives, then you kill yourself."
Nessley's pupils contracted.
A long silence followed.
"...Fine."
She nodded.
"But... aren't you worried I won't keep my word?"
"It's possible," Kaizen admitted. "But every deal carries risk. You can't avoid action just because of that. And for me, there's nothing to lose by showing you the footage."
"How do I see it?"
Kaizen pulled another laptop from his storage in the Sumus space and gave Altan the order to bring up the video feed. Then he tossed the device toward Nessley.
She caught it—and froze as soon as she saw the screen.
Her two teammates, the ones assigned to assassinate Karoo, were locked in a prolonged struggle. Karoo's guards were fighting desperately, but had managed to prevent any fatal blows. Meanwhile, the team facing Tucker was being completely overwhelmed.
The operation had failed.
Her companions had lost any real chance of killing Karoo. Their best option now was to flee—while they still could. If they ran, they might survive... but it also meant that Tucker would remain alive.
And that meant Nessley would have to die.
Her heart twisted.
She wanted her teammates to escape.
But she didn't want to die.
"I didn't expect Tucker to be this strong..."
"And I never imagined Karoo's bodyguards could last this long."
"But the real problem is those two people Tucker brought in."
"No intel at all. And they're far stronger than Tucker himself."
"Where did he find them?"
The Dark Night had agents embedded among the kingdom's nobility. If Tucker had hired anyone through those noble channels, Dark Night would've heard. But this time, Tucker had acted independently—and personally recruited Kaizen.
That's why Dark Night was caught completely off guard.
Kaizen was simply too powerful.
If he hadn't been here, Nessley would've been the strongest among the three Dark Night assassins. She could've kept Tucker occupied—even if he powered up mid-fight. That would've been enough time for the others to eliminate Karoo and escape.
But with Kaizen in the mix, all their plans had fallen apart.
Nessley's greatest asset had become meaningless.
Her teammates were doing their best, but it wasn't enough.
...
BOOM!
A deafening sound cracked through the air.
One of the intruders—wearing armor—was blasted backward and slammed into the rubble. His gear was in tatters, and blood splattered from his wounds.
Tucker snorted and stepped forward.
"Die."
He gathered a surge of aura into his fist, leapt into the air, and aimed a devastating blow at the armored intruder. With injuries like that, there was no way the assassin could survive the attack.
On the other side, the second intruder gritted his teeth.
A flash of silver—a pair of Nen-infused scissors.
Tucker's eyes narrowed. He twisted mid-air to avoid the sneak attack.
The evasion saved him but cost him the finishing blow. The armored intruder caught a brief moment of respite—but the outcome was already clear.
They weren't going to kill Karoo.
...
Realizing this, Karoo burst into hysterical laughter.
"Dark Night? Assassins?"
"Bunch of dogs, that's all you are!"
"You thought you could kill me? Keep dreaming!"
"Bhae—just wait until I catch you later. You'll make a fine addition to my toy collection!"
His face twisted into a cruel grin.
Tucker was facing both intruders at once, but showed no sign of struggling. One opponent was badly wounded, the other clearly weaker. Against Tucker, who was now fully fired up, they didn't stand a chance.
Nessley's anxiety was rising fast.
"Run... just run already. There's no chance left. If you keep fighting, you'll both die!"
She no longer cared about her own fate.
This was already the worst-case scenario for Dark Night.
All three of them could die here.
But her teammates couldn't hear her.
Nessley kept glancing toward Kaizen.
She desperately wanted to help them. But every time she moved, Natsu would immediately draw closer, blocking her.
It was hopeless.
"Dammit..."
Nessley clenched her fists, trembling.
"Why?"
"Why did it come to this?"
"Why am I so powerless?"
Another figure was flung through the air—another assassin, coughing blood as he crashed to the ground.
Karoo's eyes were alight with madness.
"Good! Very good!"
Nessley gritted her teeth.
"What do I do? How can I change this? I can't just watch this happen! Isn't there any way to turn the tables?"
She looked at Kaizen.
"I don't know what Tucker's paying you, but I'll give you ten times more. Let me go. I won't even touch Karoo—I just want to take my companions and leave."
"I swear I'll do exactly what I say."
Kaizen shook his head.
"Sorry. I can't."
"Why? Isn't ten times the money enough?"
"This isn't about money," Kaizen replied. "It's about principles."
He looked her dead in the eye.
"Your friends. Karoo. None of them have anything to do with me. I was hired to do a job—and that's all I'm doing. If you want to change things, you'll have to do it yourself. Don't count on me."
Nessley's eyes welled with tears.
"How can you be so cold?"
"Do you even understand what we're doing here?"
"We're not fighting for ourselves!"
"We're trying to save this rotten country!"
"You don't know the real Karoo."
"We're the ones fighting for justice!"
She lunged toward Natsu.
...
At the same time, a shadow emerged silently behind Kaizen.
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