"…Who are you?"
The fake Leo smiled.
"My name is Blue," he said calmly. "And I was assigned to kill you and your friends."
The next moment—
Both of Blue's arms disappeared.
Null's eyes narrowed.
Then—
From midair behind him, outside the range of Axiom, Blue's arms reappeared and instantly wrapped around Null's neck.
GRAB.
Null's breathing stopped.
Blue's hands entered Axiom only at the final moment, perfectly bypassing its effect.
Null immediately struggled, trying to pry the arms away—
But the grip tightened.
So Null ran forward.
Straight at Blue.
The instant Blue's body entered Axiom—
The teleportation collapsed.
Blue's arms snapped back to their original position.
Null instantly turned—
BAM!
A fist slammed into his face.
He crashed into the wall.
Blue didn't stop.
Again—
His arms vanished.
This time emerging from inside the wall itself.
But before Blue could grab his neck—
Null caught his wrist.
"You're predictable."
With brute force, Null yanked him forward.
Blue's upper body was dragged through the wall and into Axiom.
CRACK!
Null's elbow smashed directly into Blue's nose.
Blood exploded outward.
Blue's expression twisted.
Then he grabbed Null's hair and repeatedly slammed his head into the wall.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Blood ran down Null's forehead.
But Null suddenly grabbed Blue's hair too and pulled with all his strength.
Blue's entire body was dragged fully into Axiom.
Several strands of hair tore free.
Null immediately started punching him repeatedly in the face.
Blue kicked upward—
THUD!
Null staggered and collapsed to the floor.
Blue rushed forward and began kicking his stomach over and over.
Null suddenly grabbed his leg—
And bit down hard.
"AAAGH!"
Blue screamed in pain.
He swung his other leg toward Null's face—
But Null yanked his trapped leg violently.
Blue lost balance and crashed onto the floor.
Null immediately stood and tried to stomp his face—
Blue rolled away.
This time, Blue lunged to bite Null's leg instead—
But Null slammed his foot directly into Blue's chest.
Then began kicking his face repeatedly.
Blood splattered across the floor.
Suddenly—
Blue's leg vanished.
It reappeared behind Null, outside Axiom, then shot inward—
BAM!
A kick slammed into Null's back.
Null staggered but didn't fall.
Blue used the opening.
He charged forward with a full-force punch—
Null dodged and punched him in the stomach.
Blue instantly answered with a knee strike to Null's abdomen.
Then grabbed his hair again and repeatedly smashed his knee into Null's face.
Null raised his left arm to reduce the impact—
While his right hand grabbed Blue's throat.
He squeezed.
Blue's eyes widened.
But then Blue grabbed Null's neck too.
Now both of them were choking each other.
Null punched Blue's face repeatedly with his free hand.
Blue tried to do the same—
But the moment he attacked, his grip loosened.
Null shoved him backward—
Then tackled him into the wall and started punching him again and again.
Blue suddenly kicked Null in the stomach.
This time, the force pushed him back several steps.
And Blue ran.
Straight through the door.
Null chased after him immediately.
Outside—
The streets were crowded.
Blue disappeared into the sea of people.
Null stood there breathing heavily, blood dripping from his mouth and forehead.
Everyone around him stared.
But Null ignored them all.
His eyes searched only for Blue.
Then—
Something tugged on his pants.
Null instantly turned.
A little girl stood there.
"…Mister… are you okay?"
Null froze.
For a moment—
A memory surfaced.
A younger Null sat bruised and injured after fighting several children.
Little Lana ran toward him in panic.
"Brother! Are you okay?!"
Back to present
Null smiled softly, sat down, and patted her head.
"Thanks for asking," he said gently. "But you don't need to worry about me."
Then he looked around.
"Where are your parents?"
A shadow appeared behind Null.
Blue.
CRACK!
A wooden plank slammed into Null's head.
He collapsed instantly.
Blood spread beneath him.
His vision blurred.
Blue grabbed his collar.
"…Finally passed out—"
Suddenly—
Null's hand shot upward and grabbed Blue's throat.
Even unconscious—
He still resisted.
Blue's face twisted in rage.
"You monster!"
BAM!
He kicked Null directly in the face.
This time—
Null finally lost consciousness completely.
Blue exhaled heavily.
Elsewhere—
Inside the white realm.
"…Yes," Leo answered quietly. "She's important to me."
That single sentence was enough.
Something dark flickered behind Iris's smile.
But she hid it instantly.
Before Lana could fully process anything—
The world distorted.
Leo and Iris vanished.
"…What—?"
A hand suddenly landed on Lana's shoulder.
She turned—
BAM!
A punch smashed into her face.
She crashed to the ground.
Before she could recover—
A knife stabbed directly through her palm.
"AAAAAH!"
Lana screamed in pain.
"Stop shouting," Iris said coldly.
Lana glared at her.
"Why… are you doing this…?"
Iris tilted her head.
"Oh right. You're new." She smiled faintly. "I guess they never explained things properly."
She crouched beside Lana.
"You and your brother are anomalies," Iris whispered. "There's a massive bounty on both of you."
"But that's not the real reason."
Her eyes darkened.
"The real reason…" she said softly, "…is because you're important to Leo."
Lana's breathing shook.
"If I'm important to him… then why are you hurting me?!"
Iris smiled.
"Because I want to become the only person important to him."
Her voice remained terrifyingly calm.
"I'll happily kill anyone he cares about."
Lana's eyes widened.
Slowly—
She grabbed the knife stabbed through her palm with her other hand.
Then stood up despite the pain.
Blood dripped from her fingers.
"This isn't love," Lana said through gritted teeth.
"…This is obsession."
"I don't care," Iris answered immediately. "As long as he stays with me."
Lana stared at her.
"…Did you ever think about Leo's feelings?"
Silence.
"…Do you really think he'd be happy like this?"