(Yuuta’s POV – Plan Execution)
Everything was finally set. We were deep inside enemy territory, but for the first ti since we got here, things felt... under control.
Erika crouched beside the captured guard, carefully setting two walkie-talkies down near him. She worked quickly but thodically, double-checking the frequencies like she’d done it a hundred tis before.
"Alright," I whispered. "Open his mouth. We need to make this sound real."
She nodded and loosened the cloth we’d used to gag him. He was still half-conscious, groaning, but not enough to stop what we had planned.
Between the two of us, Erika was the one who knew how to actually use this tech. I could bluff my way through a comm line, but she was the one syncing radios, rerouting channels, and making it look easy.
I handed her my walkie-talkie and tried not to let the tension show in my voice.
"I’ll count to three," I said. "When I say one, connect them. All the radios need to be on the sa channel."
She gave a tight nod.
I exhaled slowly, steadying myself. "Three... two..."
Before I could say the last number, Erika was already working—fingers quick and sure.
"...One."
Click. Static. Beep.
The radios lit up. The channel was hot connect to all guard walki talkie.
It was go ti.
I turned to the bound guard, clenched my fist, and drove it hard into his stomach.
He jerked forward with a violent gasp, eyes wide with pain. His scream tore out of him raw and loud—exactly what we needed.
"AAGHH—!"
He couldn’t form words, not with the wounded tongue, But his cries were real. Desperate. Convincing.
Erika didn’t hesitate. She stepped in and landed a precise kick to his ribs—brutal, but controlled. She knew exactly how far to go without killing him.
His howls echoed through the bathroom.
Perfect.
"What the hell was that?"
"No.4, report! What’s going on over there?!"
"Is soone screaming? Are you under attack?"
I picked up the walkie and forced my voice into a shaky, urgent tone.
"This is No.7!" I shouted. "We caught one—he broke loose! He’s fighting back—strong as hell! We’ve restrained him again, but we need help!"
Erika fired a round into the ceiling. The sharp crack echoed like thunder.
"Did you hear that?"
"Was that gunfire?!"
I jumped back on the radio.
"He’s heading toward Rock’s position! Send three n—now!"
"Copy that. Backup en route. Hang in there."
I lowered the walkie and looked at Erika.
She raised an eyebrow, half-impressed. "Not bad."
I gave a small grin. "We just baited the trap. Let’s shut the door and make it count."
We closed the bathroom door, leaving our ’bait’ inside—tied up and still screaming like a man possessed. The radios kept broadcasting, sending his cries down every hallway.
"Ti to move," Erika said.
We sprinted out, moving through the corridors with calculated speed. Left. Right. Left again.
Then, just up ahead—footsteps.
Three guards, fully ard, rushing straight toward the commotion we’d created.
I gave Erika the signal.
She dropped to her knees instantly, grabbing her side like she’d been shot. I ran toward them, breathing heavy, putting just enough panic into my voice to sell it.
"You!" one of them barked. "What’s the situation?!"
"I’m No.7," I gasped. "He broke free! Went for Rock! I tried to stop him—my partner’s hurt!"
They barely looked at us. One of them muttered, "Shit," and they pushed past us without question, weapons raised, heading toward the bathroom.
Hooked. Completely.
As soon as they were out of sight, Erika stood up and dusted herself off like she hadn’t just played dead seconds ago.
"Convincing enough for you?" she said, half a smirk on her face.
"You’re wasting your talent In lebuis agencies," I replied. "You should be in theater."
Shut up, Moron.!
We kept moving. Down the hall, past the checkpoint we couldn’t get through before. No more guards. The path to the hostages was open.
We were in.
And we weren’t leaving without them.
Erika gave this look—half surprise, half respect.
"You know... that plan of yours actually worked," she said, slightly breathless as we ducked into the shadows.
I smirked. "Told you. The guards in the first auditorium would panic first. It’s closer. Faluni and the others wouldn’t bother unless it was their near hall."
She didn’t say anything else, but I caught the way her lips twitched into the faintest smile.
We turned down a narrow corridor, feet light on the ground. After a few quick turns, we reached the end of the hallway—the big steel doors lood ahead, cold and unwelcoming.
Locked.
Of course.
I muttered a curse under my breath.
"There should only be three guards inside now," I said quietly.
Erika pressed her back to the wall, watching the corridor behind us. "This is the hard part," she replied. "Be careful."
I gave her a small nod. "Don’t worry. I’m not planning to die today."
I crouched low and crawled along the floor toward the heavy door. Erika slipped behind a pillar, silent as smoke. She was ready.
I eased the door open just enough to squeeze through, leaving it cracked behind .
Ti to act.
"Help!" I called out, panting, stumbling into the room like I’d barely survived. "Please—we need help!"
The three guards spun toward instantly, weapons half-raised.
"Who are you?"
"What’s your number?"
"Where’s your team?"
"What happened?"
I clutched my ribs, faking a cough as I leaned against the wall. "Boss! He got ambushed—near the washroom! We tried to hold the guy back, but he’s too strong. I barely got out..."
Two of the guards exchanged a quick glance. Then, without hesitation, they ran straight past , boots pounding down the hallway.
Hook, line, and sinker.
That left just one.
He didn’t move. He studied , face scrunched with suspicion.
Damn. This guy wasn’t buying it so easily.
I staggered again, adding a cough for good asure. "Ngh—man, I think I’m gonna puke..."
The guard stepped closer, cautious. "You okay? You’re sweating hard. Take that mask off—it’s ssing with your breathing."
He reached for .
I grabbed his wrist, looked him dead in the eye, and said, "Hey, listen... before I die, promise sothing."
He blinked. "What?"
"Delete my internet history."
"...Wait, wha—?"
He didn’t get to finish.
Crack!
A blur of black and red shot from behind the pillar—Erika.
She slamd the butt of her rifle into the back of his skull. The guy dropped to one knee with a grunt.
Before he could recover, we both grabbed him by the arms, dragged him outside the door, and tossed him into the hallway like trash.
I slamd the steel doors shut and locked them tight.
Erika exhaled, brushing hair out of her eyes. "That line about your internet history... seriously?"
"It worked, didn’t it?"
She rolled her eyes but didn’t argue.
Inside, the auditorium was silent now.
We were in.
The guards were gone. The kids were just beyond the next set of curtains. Our mission—one final phase from completion.
No more pretending. No more distractions.
Just the rescue Elena.
As soon as the door creaked open, I stepped inside—and everything just... stopped.
The air was thick, almost heavy. The kind of stillness that wraps around you and presses against your chest.
The auditorium was massive. But more than that—it was ancient.
Stone pillars reached for the ceiling like skeletal fingers. Strange carvings traced the walls, spiraling in a language long lost to ti. It looked less like a school and more like a forgotten temple. The kind of place that shouldn’t exist. Not here.
But that wasn’t what froze .
It was the children.
Dozens of them. Lying across the floor. Silent. Unmoving.
I walked in slowly, breath catching.
"Elena...?"
I rushed forward, kneeling beside the first kid I saw—a boy, maybe eight or nine. His chest was rising and falling, but barely. I touched his shoulder and shook him gently.
"Hey, kid... wake up."
Nothing.
My heart thudded faster. "Co on... wake up..."
No response. His head lolled to the side, eyes still shut.
Erika was already moving. She crouched near a girl closer to the center. Her hands hovered over the child’s face, checking her vitals, scanning her body for injuries.
"This one’s bleeding... from the ears," she said, voice low.
I blinked. "From her ears?"
She nodded slowly. "It’s not from gunfire. This is sothing else."
"Like what? A nerve agent? Sonic tech?"
Erika stood up and walked over to one of the side panels on the wall. She ripped it open and dug through the wires, moving fast. Focused. She pulled out a small, humming tal device the size of a lunchbox.
"Signal jamr," she muttered.
She didn’t wait.
Crack!
With a single, hard punch, she shattered it.
My phone buzzed almost instantly—bars flickering back to life. Signal restored. Internet back.
But that barely registered.
Because as the device died, the room began to stir.
The kids... they were waking up. Slowly. Groggy, confused, crying.
I turned, scanning every face.
"Elena?"
Nothing.
"Elena!" I called again, louder this ti, moving quickly. I checked behind the stage curtains. Under the seats. Every corner. Panic rising like a wave in my chest.
She wasn’t here.
"Elena!!"
My voice echoed across the chamber, bouncing off the cold stone walls. But the only answer was the quiet sobbing of children beginning to realize where they were.
Then—sothing tugged at my jacket.
I spun around.
A little girl, blonde pigtails, stood there. She couldn’t have been older than six. Her eyes were red from crying, her cheeks streaked with dirt and tears. She looked up at with a face that had seen too much for soone so small.
"Are you here to help us?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
I crouched down, doing my best to keep my voice steady. "Yeah... we’re here to get you out. You’re safe now."
But she shook her head. "No... not just . My friend."
My chest tightened. "Your friend? What happened to her?"
"She... she didn’t fall asleep like the others she scream. guards got scared of her," the girl said softly. "They took her sowhere else."
My throat went dry. "Do you know what she looked like?"
She paused, then nodded. "She had white hair... and red eyes."
My heart dropped.
I didn’t need to hear anything else.
"Elena," I whispered.
She wasn’t here. She was taken. Again.
And now... she was all alone.
(Rock’s POV)
Shit.
They were gaining on —fast.
"You traitor!" one of the guards roared behind . "I swear, I’m going to kill you!"
I didn’t look back. I couldn’t afford to. My legs burned with every stride as I sprinted through the dark corridors, Elena cradled tightly in my arms.
"I have to get us out of here," I muttered, teeth gritted.
"Uncle!" Elena chirped, voice bright and bubbly. "This is so much fun!"
I nearly stumbled. "What—?! Are you serious right now?! Can’t you at least pretend to be scared?!"
She just giggled, kicking her little legs like she was on a playground swing.
This kid...
She was insane—or fearless. Maybe both.
Then the radio on my hip crackled to life.
Faluni’s voice slithered through the speaker. Calm. Cold. That oily kind of evil that always sounds like it’s smiling.
"I knew it, Rock. I knew you’d betray eventually. That’s why I sent two guards after you. If you hesitate—even for a second—to kill the girl... they’ll do it for you."
I slamd to a stop, breathing hard. "You twisted son of a bitch..."
"Guilty as charged," he said smoothly. "But don’t act like you’re surprised. This was always going to be how it ends."
I growled under my breath and kept running.
I didn’t have a plan. No map. No backup.
Only her.
Elena laughed again. "Go, Uncle, go! You’re really fast! Are we winning?!"
God, this kid had no clue.
We tore around the last corner—and slamd into cold, rciless reality.
Dead end.
A wall.
No doors. No vents. Just four stone walls and one way in.
I spun around instantly, pushing Elena behind . Arms wide. Breathing hard. Heart hamring like it was trying to escape my chest.
I couldn’t let them have her. I wouldn’t.
The sound of boots echoed closer.
Then Faluni’s voice ca through the radio again—low and satisfied.
"Well... that was a fun little chase. But it looks like the ga’s over."
Two guards stepped into view.
Rifles raised. Faces blank.
"Aim for the head," Faluni ordered. "Empty every bullet you’ve got into him."
They didn’t hesitate.
The guns clicked—tal against tal. Fingers curled around the triggers.
I took one deep breath.
Closed my eyes.
Pulled Elena close, wrapping my arms around her tiny fra.
"If I die," I whispered, "I’m taking at least one of you bastards with ."
And then—
BAM!
To Be Continued...
(Elena’s Important Announcent to the Readers!)
(Elena’s POV )
Hmpf!! (＞︿＜)
I’m not talkin’ to you today!!
I’m mad...
I no talk to you today!!
You... you all forgot my power stone!!
(´;︵;`)
Now Daddy say...
NO. CHOCCY.
Nooo... choccy gone... foreverrrrr...
(╥﹏╥)
She sit on floor, puff cheeks big big like this: (￣^￣)
I was good girl!! I say pwease! I even share my gummy bear...
...but no power stone. So now no choccy. Daddy say "nope."
(>︿
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