Shu-mai wiped her mouth, her eyes blazing with hate as she glared up at Jin-Woo… yet for a brief moment, her voice came calmer, measured.
"…What do you want? An apology? Money? A planet?"
But just as the bitter words left her mouth, her holocommunicator began to chime , the flickering light casting uneven shadows over the tense table.
Jin-Woo said nothing.
Instead, with deliberate, lazy precision, he reached into his coat and placed three small, heavy objects on the table — three cold, gleaming 9mm bullets.
He set them down one by one,.
Then, slowly, Jin-Woo raised his gaze to Shu Mai, locking eyes with her in a silent, unblinking stare that carried a single, undeniable message.
Go ahead.
Shu Mai's breath hitched, her trembling fingers darting to her holocommunicator. With a shaky touch, she activated the connection — the device flickered sharply to life, casting a faint glow over her pale, sweat-slicked face.
The hologram snapped up.
A Muun appeared — tall, narrow-faced, dressed in the immaculate robes of the InterGalactic Banking Clan (IGBC). His long eyes glinted an unnatural, vivid green, glowing faintly like they had been branded by Wraith energy.
"Presidente," the Muun said smoothly, his voice cold, almost mechanical, "I have finished liquidating all your accounts at IGBC."
Shu Mai's face twisted, her voice cracking sharply.
"I-I never authorized that! I didn't say that! I never liquidated my seven hundred billion credits!"
But then, just behind her, Rey appeared — slipping smoothly from the shadows, her green eyes burning with a fierce, inhuman glow as her Shadow Nazgûl, Talion-like ability activated fully. She raised a hand casually, fingers wiggling in a mock wave.
The Muun on the holoprojector… waved back.
Without a flicker of hesitation, the Muun calmly raised a blaster to his own head — and pulled the trigger.
The hologram winked out with a faint pop, leaving behind a stunned, frozen silence.
Shu Mai's face went slack, her mouth hanging open, her breath short and frantic.
But before she could even scream, another holocommunicator chimed.
The sharp, desperate chime echoed across the table.
Her hands fumbled, shaking violently as she activated the next call.
This time, a familiar face flickered into view: one of her own Commerce Guild administrators on Felucia — the lush, exotic planet she considered a personal jewel in her portfolio.
The employee's face was pale, trembling slightly. But his eyes…
They flared green.
"Presidente," the employee said softly, almost apologetically, "we've finished the paperwork. Felucia's full planetary ownership… has been transferred to the Purple England Company."
Shu Mai's throat tightened, her breath catching sharply.
"N-No… you can't— I didn't—"
But the employee gave a faint, bittersweet smile, his head tilting slightly.
"Goodbye, Presidente. It's been fun."
With a flicker, the holo-feed cut off.
Shu Mai sat frozen in place, her arms limp at her sides, her eyes wide, staring blankly at the empty holocommunicator screen.
Her breath came in short, shallow bursts, her mind spinning. Seven hundred billion credits… gone. Felucia… gone. Her command, her empire, her life… slipping away, piece by piece, right before her eyes.
A sick, raw wave of despair rose in her chest, crawling up her throat like bile.
Her trembling hands clutched uselessly at the edge of the table as she forced herself to whisper — hoarse, broken, desperate —
"…W-what… w-what do you want from me…?"
Across the table, Jin-Woo sat perfectly still, perfectly calm, his sharp eyes locked onto hers with a bone-chilling smirk.
Suddenly, a soft surge of green energy flared beside him.
Rey appeared, her eyes glowing faintly, a wide, mischievous smile curling across her lips.
"I've finished the robbery, Jin-Woo!" Rey chimed brightly, her voice lilting with satisfaction. "Can you blow me a kiss?"
Without breaking his cool expression, Jin-Woo leaned slightly forward, placing a gentle, almost absentminded kiss on Rey's forehead.
Rey giggled softly, slipping beside Morgan with a light skip in her step. She gave a playful little bow — and then, with a smooth, practiced motion, she presented a tall, stacked pile on the table:
Thousands of encrypted credit cards, glittering , each one loaded with Shu Mai's seized wealth.
A glowing holo-page displaying the official Felucia planetary transfer, the ownership seal now branded with the emblem of the Purple England Company.
Jin-Woo's sharp gaze flicked slowly down to the table, his fingers drumming lightly for just a beat. Then, in a low, voice, he spoke.
"Presidente…" he murmured softly.
"In front of you are three bullets — bullets from my world."
His fingers gently tapped the cool metal, 9mm bullets into precise alignment.
"One of them," Jin-Woo continued quietly, "contains the restoration of Felucia. One holds the key to your liquidated money. And the last… the permanent potion for the cure inside your body."
His eyes glinted faintly, sharp as a blade.
"Be careful, Shu Mai. Flick the wrong bullet… and you lose everything."
Beside him, Rey bounced excitedly on her heels, her green-glowing eyes gleaming with a wild thrill.
"Oooh, ooooh! But what about if I test my Shadow Strike instead?" she chirped eagerly. "I want to decapitate someone now!"
Jin-Woo gave a small, dry chuckle, his gaze flicking briefly toward her without losing its icy edge.
"Later, Rey," he said smoothly, "Later."
Across the table, Palpatine, still wearing his smooth, innocent senator's mask, lifted his hands slightly in a polite, placating gesture.
"Isn't it enough, Jin-Woo?" Palpatine said softly, his voice edged with false concern. "She's beaten. Why press on? You'll only prolong conflict… and damage Naboo."
But then —
Rey threw her head back, eyes blazing bright green, and let out a laugh.
"Hehe… AHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The sound cracked through the air — sharp, echoing, chilling — a laugh that didn't belong to the sweet, eager young woman standing there. It was an echo, a shadow, a sinister mirror. A laugh… eerily reminiscent of him.
Palpatine's breath caught .
His thoughts curled inward, sharp and uneasy.
Why… why does this woman laugh exactly like me? Like the way I laugh… when no one's watching? I don't even know you…
Rey, her grin widening, her green-glowing eyes flaring even brighter, snapped her head back down — locking eyes directly on Palpatine.
"An eye for an eye…" Rey murmured.
"A life for a life… and if a planet is killed…"
Her grin sharpened. "…then let's commit genocide."
Palpatine could only keep silent, his smile frozen.
Inside, his mind tightened like a steel trap.
This is worse than a lion's den. I accidentally brought them prey. And that prey… is Shu Mai herself.
Across the table, Morgan and Rey clapped in perfect unison — sharp, crisp, like a countdown timer ticking toward its last second.
Shu Mai's breath hitched violently, her body shaking as her gaze darted back to the three bullets on the table.
They looked exactly the same — cold, metallic, gleaming faintly under the dim light.
Her trembling fingers hovered, her pulse hammering in her ears.
She squeezed her eyes shut, sucking in a sharp breath… and flicked the center bullet.
For a split second, everything felt like it froze — she braced herself, heart thundering, ready to die if she'd chosen wrong.
But then —
Jin-Woo gave a slow, smooth smile.
"Congratulations," he murmured, his voice low and calm. "You just chose the right bullet… the one with the permanent potion."
Without another word, he smoothly slid a small vial across the table — the liquid inside gleaming a deep, rich red, shimmering faintly like blood.
Shu Mai snatched it up without hesitation, ripping the cap off and downing the potion in a single, shaky gulp.
Jin-Woo leaned back slightly, his sharp eyes glinting faintly, his tone edged with cool amusement.
"Thanks for playing," he murmured softly.
"But still… you're poor now. So, Presidente… the merchant fighting spirit is still there, right?"
Shu Mai, swallowing hard, her voice trembling but determined, forced herself to speak.
"Sir Jin-Woo… I want to make a deal. For my money — in exchange, you can have… fifty percent ownership of the Commerce Guild."
Across the table, Rey gave a wide, mocking smile, her green-glowing eyes glinting with a dark, amused edge.
This Gossam doesn't even understand… she thought with quiet, biting laughter. She doesn't know how terrifying Jin-Woo really is. Even his Joever Bideney persona is like a small child compared to what he is now.
Without a word, Jin-Woo raised his hand slowly.
A soft crackling shimmer pulsed in the air as he summoned the Remnant of Cronus — the divine fragment Zeus, the Lostbelt King, had given him months ago.
The Remnant hovered above his palm — a complex gear, ancient and metallic, spinning in slow, deliberate loops, radiating a golden glow.
Then, with the faintest flicker in his sharp gaze, Jin-Woo silently activated his original ability…
The power of Magsarion — the Symbol of Duality.
From the air above his hand, a double-bladed weapon manifested — sleek, brutal, edged in cold light, with a halo embedded at the center where the two blades crossed.
And with that, time itself Stopped.
The plaza's air shimmered — and suddenly, everything froze.
Except Jin-Woo.
And Morgan. And Rey. And Shu Mai.
Palpatine, still sitting across the table, was caught mid-motion — perfectly frozen in time, his faint smile locked in place, his golden eyes wide but unmoving.
Rey leaned lightly on the table's edge, her smirk widening with excitement.
"You should've invited me to fight that Lostbelt King, Jin-Woo," she teased playfully, her voice edged with wild eagerness.
Morgan, standing calmly beside her, crossed her arms with a small, sly smile.
"I'm a Lostbelt Queen of England, remember?" she murmured smoothly.
Rey giggled, rocking slightly on her heels.
"You should've introduced me to the others, Morgan. We'd have gotten along just fine."
Across from them, Shu Mai sat froze , her own growing terror of the situation.
Her thoughts spiraling, her heart pounding in her chest.. He's a liar wearing the occupation of a merchant like a mask.
Suddenly, glowing words materialized in the air before them — floating, shining with a supernatural light.
They hovered between Jin-Woo and Shu Mai, hanging like a hovering contract written across the fabric of space itself.
────────────────────────────
Pledge of Tentsui (転墜, Tentsui)
This is the binding agreement forged between:
Jin-Woo, Monarch of Shadows and Holder of the Symbol of Duality
and
Presidente Shu Mai, Leader of the Commerce Guild
Under this Pledge, Jin-Woo shall grant the sum of 700 billion credits to Shu Mai.
In exchange, Shu Mai shall submit herself to the following terms:
She shall obey five (5) direct commands issued by Jin-Woo.
— Each command, once issued and fulfilled, shall reduce the remaining count by one.
— The command count shall reset after one full day from the initial binding.
Shu Mai is forbidden to speak of the Pledge of Tentsui in specific terms.
— She may state only, "I am being restrained by Jin-Woo," but no further details or disclosures about the binding may be revealed, nor anything about what this involves.
— Any attempt to deceive, lie, or bypass this rule will be detected, as the Pledge itself pierces all deception and reaches directly into the soul.
Penalty Clause:
If Shu Mai disobeys, defies, or resists the commands,
then the binding shall unleash The Fall — Tentsui (転墜) upon her.
-The first penalty is a warning strike upon her surrounding family or planetary holdings.
-The second and subsequent penalties will enforce destruction directly upon her body and soul without reprieve.
Additionally, should Jin-Woo fail to deliver the promised 700 billion credits to Shu Mai,
the Pledge will enforce its penalty equally upon him.
The power of Tentsui cannot be annulled, bargained with, or resisted once invoked.
Signed under the shadow of duality,
by the hand of Jin-Woo.
────────────────────────────
Jin-Woo leaned slightly forward, his sharp eyes glinting faintly, his tone smooth and cool.
"Do you accept it, Presidente?"