The assassin coughed.
Blood touched the corner of his lips.
"Not really."
His gaze shifted—
past Jin.
Toward the end of the corridor.
Jin felt it instantly.
A presence.
Slow footsteps echoed through the hallway.
Calm.
Unhurried.
Jin turned his head slightly.
A figure stepped out of the shadows.
Veron Walker.
His hands rested casually in his pockets—
as if he had arrived for a conversation… not a killing.
His sharp eyes moved between Jin—
and the assassin on the floor.
"…You made a mess," Veron said.
The assassin laughed weakly.
"Told you he was troublesome."
Veron stopped a few meters away.
Jin looked at him with quiet boredom.
"You finally showed yourself."
"No more lurking. No more running."
For a brief moment—
Veron's expression almost shifted.
Almost.
Then it vanished.
He looked at Jin, ignoring the remark.
"You're not supposed to kill him."
Jin raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
Veron smiled faintly.
"Because he still knows things… our employer would like to hear."
The air between them grew heavy.
"Your employer," Jin repeated.
Veron shrugged lightly.
"You already know who."
The assassin watched them, amused.
"This is awkward," he rasped.
Jin ignored him.
His eyes remained locked on Veron.
"Were you going to stop him?"
Veron thought for a moment.
"…Probably not."
Jin exhaled slowly.
"Good."
His foot lifted slightly from the assassin's throat.
Then—
CRACK.
His heel came down.
Hard.
The assassin's body went still.
Completely.
Silence swallowed the corridor once more.
A system window flickered.
559 / 1000
For a split second—
A memory surfaced.
A hospital room.
White lights.
A body lying on a bed.
Jin standing beside it.
The steady sound of a monitor—
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Then—
A long, flat tone.
The heartbeat stopped.
Silence.
And in that silence—
A message appeared.
The system updated.
Jin's expression changed.
Instantly.
The calm in his eyes shattered.
Something darker replaced it.
Not fear.
Not anger.
Something deeper.
A wound that had never healed.
Veron looked down at the corpse.
Then sighed.
"…That was rude."
Jin looked at him again.
Calm—once more.
"You said I shouldn't kill him."
Veron shrugged.
"I also said 'not supposed to.'"
He glanced at the body.
"Well…"
"…too late now."