Zain’s gaze flicked between them, expression unreadable—but his eyes were sharp.
"I recognize you two."
He pointed at Eron without hesitation.
"You’re the one who got his ass handed to him by Skritch and Flicker."
Eron stiffened.
Zain kept going.
"If I hadn’t stepped in, you’d be a corpse in the rubble. You rember that, right?"
Eron clenched his jaw, saying nothing.
Zain turned to Orlin. "And you... we’ve t before."
Orlin’s brows furrowed.
Zain tilted his head. "Battle test. C-Rank qualifying match. Just last week."
Orlin’s frown deepened.
Zain continued.
"You were the one judging and losing to in that battle."
Orlin didn’t respond.
Zain smirked.
"So what the hell are you two doing tailing now?"
Orlin and Eron froze, frowning hard.
They hadn’t expected this.
They wore masks. Moved in silence.
There was no way he should’ve known.
But he did.
Eron forced a laugh—awkward, forced.
"Tailing? Nah, man. We were just... walking around. Patrol stuff."
Zain raised an eyebrow.
"With masks on? In civilian zones?"
Orlin stepped in.
"We weren’t trying to cause anything. We just saw soone heading out late and thought we should check it out."
Zain tilted his head, unimpressed.
"So now you’re part of night patrol?"
Eron shrugged, trying to stay calm.
"Hey, you’re a big deal now. B-Rank. We figured you might be up to sothing dangerous."
Zain’s smirk widened slightly.
"So you followed for my safety?"
Orlin let out a breath.
"Look, we didn’t an anything by it."
Zain stepped forward, eyes locked on Eron.
"You sure? Because I rember watching you get folded in half by Skritch. You couldn’t even stand up afterward."
Eron’s mouth twitched.
Zain turned to Orlin.
"And you—you judged , didn’t you? Said I had ’potential if I stayed humble.’ Guess you’re here to make sure I do?"
Orlin raised his hands slowly.
"We were curious, that’s all."
Zain’s smile vanished.
"Curious?" His voice lowered.
"Curiosity’s dangerous when it follows the wrong people."
The air tensed.
Orlin nudged Eron. "Let’s go. We’ve said what we needed."
Eron didn’t argue.
They both turned and started backing off, steps quickening.
Zain didn’t move. Just watched.
A slow smirk crept across his face.
"You co all the way out here... and think you get to run?"
They froze.
Then—
Flash.
Zain vanished.
In a blink, he appeared right in front of them, blocking their path.
His eyes glead under the streetlight.
Eron stumbled back. "H-He’s fast—!"
Orlin imdiately activated his Claw Shift.
Beast claws were ford across both hands. "Tch—get ready!"
Eron growled and raised his hand.
Lightning sparked to life—Thunder Hand now active.
"Back off, Demon!"
Eron shouted, trying to keep his stance steady.
"We don’t want a fight!"
Orlin snarled. "We’ll defend ourselves if we have to!"
Zain just stood there. Calm. Silent.
Then he moved.
Two strikes. Fast. Clean. Brutal.
His fists slamd into their guts—first Orlin, then Eron.
Both n dropped instantly, gasping, choking, and collapsing to the pavent.
Zain stood over them as they writhed, eyes rolled back.
"Too slow to dodge, huh?"
He looked down at their twitching forms, breathing heavily, unable to stand.
Zain crouched beside them, voice cold.
"What should I do with you, huh?"
He looked them over, eyes calculating.
"Can’t kill you because it wouldn’t be worth the paperwork."
He tapped his fingers against his knee.
"Can’t break your bones either. Savra would whine."
Then he smirked.
"But your minds? That’s fair ga."
He straightened slowly and turned toward the system in his vision.
"System, hack them to forget this little stalking incident."
"But don’t stop there."
He grinned.
"Make them suffer for it."
---
[Hack Initiation: mory Alteration & Fear Conditioning]
[Target: Eron & Orlin]
[Effect 1: Erase all mory of current eting with Zain]
[Effect 2: Implant fear trigger—upon seeing Zain or Savra, they will experience intense fear and hallucinations]
[Cost Required: 1,000 Hack Points]
[Status: Executing...]
---
A soft pulse of light shimred over their unconscious forms.
A faint twitch ran through both n’s eyes.
Zain stood there, arms crossed.
He frowned. "Bit expensive..."
Then he scoffed.
"But worth it. Trash like you shouldn’t walk near us ever again."
He looked down at them one last ti.
"Next ti, I won’t hack your brain."
He turned and walked away, hands in his pockets.
"Hope there aren’t more idiots waiting in line."
---
Zain stepped back into the apartnt, closing the door behind him.
His smirk hadn’t left.
Zelia glanced up from the couch.
"You’re back... there’s no blood."
Zain shrugged off his jacket. "Of course not."
Savra raised an eyebrow, arms crossed as she leaned against the table.
"No blood, huh? Any broken bones?"
Zain smiled wider. "Nope."
Savra narrowed her eyes. "Zain..."
He walked toward the kitchen, grabbing a glass of water like nothing happened.
"Their bodies were perfectly fine when I left them."
Zelia tilted her head. "So... no fight?"
Zain took a sip. "Not physical."
Savra stepped forward. "What did you do?"
He set the glass down and turned toward them, grinning.
"I just broke their minds a little."
Savra frowned. "Zain..."
He held up a hand.
"You told —no killing. No injuries. I followed that."
Savra crossed her arms tighter. "Define ’broke their minds.’"
Zain chuckled.
"Relax. I just made it so that every ti they see either of us... they feel terror."
"Maybe a few hallucinations. Panic attacks. The usual."
Zelia blinked. "...You can do that?"
Zain smirked. "Of course."
Savra shook her head. "You’re impossible."
Zain walked past her, brushing her hip with his hand. "I’m obedient."
She gave him a look. "That’s not the word I’d use."
Zain laughed on his way to the couch. "But I didn’t hurt them."
Savra sat beside him, muttering. "Not physically."
Zelia smiled faintly. "Well... at least we won’t have visitors again."
Zain leaned back, arms stretched. "Exactly. Problem solved."
He glanced at Savra, smirk still lingering. "And now..."
He stood up, rolling his shoulders. "Let’s go to bed."
Savra blinked. "Huh—?"
A soft red spread across her cheeks.
"You—idiot. Don’t say it like that."
Zain tilted his head. "Why? It’s true."
Then his gaze slid toward Zelia, who was still watching from across the room.
He grinned. "Big sis."
Zelia blinked. "What?"
"Use earmuffs tonight."
She tilted her head. "Earmu—?"
Her words stopped as she caught sight of Zain casually wrapping his arm around Savra’s waist.
His hand slipped a little lower.
Savra didn’t protest—just glanced away, cheeks burning red.
Zelia’s eyes widened.
Then it hit her.
"Oh—"
Her face flushed instantly. "I-I see."
She stood up quickly, looking everywhere but at them.
"I’ll... I’ll just go to my room now."
Zain gave her a wink. "Thanks, sis."
Zelia nodded fast, practically fleeing.
Savra elbowed him once they were alone.
"You really had to say it like that?"
Zain grinned, pulling her closer. "I say what I an."
She didn’t resist when he led her to their bedroom.
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