“Miss, are you sure you’re alright?” Rafe asked again, his voiceced with concern. “If things get worse, we can retreat right now,”

    Aliana inhaled slowly, trying to regain control of herself, even though her chest still throbbed slightly. She didn’t fully understand what was happening to

    her body, but her resolve to confront Bianca was unwavering.

    “I’m fine, Rafe,” Aliana replied firmly, though her voice trembled slightly. “I’m getting better. Let’s continue with the n.”

    Rafe paused for a moment, still clearly unsure about Aliana’s condition. But he knew nothing could stop her once she had made up her mind,

    “Very well, Miss,” Rafe answered calmly and steadily. “I’m ready for yourmand.”

    Aliana turned her focus back toward the room where Bianca was. She monitored the situation, then gave her next instruction:

    “Kill the lights now, Rafe.”

    In an instant, all the lights in the restaurant went out. A nket of darkness engulfed the room. From the front, the panicked voices of guards could be

    heard.

    “What’s going on? Check immediately!” one of the guards shouted.

    Rafe, outside the building, triggered the fire rm, adding to the chaos. People scrambled and ran in panic.

    Bianca’s guards quickly prepared to check on her condition, but before they could act, Aliana-equipped with special vision gear that allowed her to see in the dark-moved swiftly and silently. Within seconds, she had incapacitated them all before they even realized what was happening.

    From inside the room, the sound of Derek’s footsteps could be heard, his phone light guiding his path.

    “What’s going on-?” Derek asked in panic, but his sentence was cut short when he saw the unconscious bodies of the guards on the floor. His eyes widened in shock when he noticed a masked figure standing still before him.

    “Who are you?!” Derek shouted in fear, but before he could do anything, Aliana struck him with precise force, rendering him unconscious.

    Without wasting time, Aliana stepped into the room. The dim light from Bianca’s phone was the only illumination in the pitch-ck space.

    Bianca looked bewildered, her face showing panic and fear as she tried to make sense of the situation.

    “Derek?” she called softly while backing away. Her voice was trembling, full of uncertainty. “What’s going on out there? What happened?”

    No response. The silence only made her heartbeat race faster. She backed up until her back hit a table, her eyes straining to see in the dark.

    Her fear deepened when she heard footsteps approaching. She quickly aimed her phone light toward the sound, but saw nothing.

    “Who’s there?” Bianca asked more loudly, her fear clearly audible.

    Without speaking, Aliana advanced, her movements hidden in the shadows. In an instant, she seized Bianca from behind, tightly gripping her arm and covering her mouth with her other hand.

    Bianca’s phone fell to the floor. She struggled violently, trying to scream, but Aliana’s grip was too strong. In the darkness, Bianca couldn’t make out who her attacker was-only that she was being forcefully pinned to the table.

    “Don’t move!” Aliana hissed coldly near Bianca’s ear, her tone sharp and furious. “If you scream, I’ll make sure you die right here.”

    Bianca’s eyes widened in panic. Her breathing was erratic, her heart pounding furiously. She tried to remain calm, not wanting to make things worse.

    “Who… who are you? What do you want?” Bianca asked, her voice shaking with fear.

    14:39 Thu, 28 Aug A

    Aliana spun Bianca around so they were face-to-face, inches apart. Her eyes were fierce, filled with long-buried rage and hatred.

    “Have you truly forgotten all your sins, Bianca?” Aliana said coldly. “Or are you just so arrogant you thought you’d never pay for them?”

    Bianca squinted in the dark, her face still a mix of fear and confusion. She tried to look at Aliana, but the darkness made it impossible.

    “What do you want? I don’t even know you! Let me go!”

    Aliana brought her face even closer, the nano-fiber mask pressing against Bianca’s cheek. A clear glint of hatred shone in Aliana’s eyes.

    “You’ll know me very well soon,” Aliana whispered threateningly. “I’ll make you feel every wound you gave to the person I loved.”

    Bianca froze, her lips quivering in terror. She fought hard to break free from Aliana’s grip, but it was useless-Aliana was far too strong.

    “Please…” Bianca whispered faintly. “Let me go…”

    Aliana smiled faintly behind her mask, victorious. Her hand slowly reached for the dagger strapped to her waist.

    “No one ising to save you, Bianca. Tonight, you’ll pay all your debts.”

    Without hesitation, Aliana raised the dagger and shed it across Bianca’s once-prized face.

    In an instant, Bianca screamed in agony.

    “AAARRRGGGHHH!!!”

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    She screamed hysterically, intense pain burning across her cheek. Her hands trembled as they reached for her face, feeling the warm liquid pouring between her fingers.

    “No… it can’t be… my face…”

    Bianca sobbed hard, her tears mixing with the blood dripping to the floor. In her panic, she copsed to the floor, clutching her wounded face.

    “Please forgive me… I’ll give you anything… just don’t hurt me… please…” she sobbed, broken.

    But Aliana remained unmoved. Her gaze was cold and full of hatred.

    “You were always so proud of your pretty face. From now on, you’ll have nothing left to be proud of.”

    With one swift motion, Aliana shed again-this time across Bianca’s shoulder-prompting another scream, even louder, filled with pain and terror.

    Aliana took a step back and released her grip, letting Bianca fall to the ground sobbing uncontrobly. She was satisfied seeing the woman suffer-but it still wasn’t enough.

    “We’re not done yet, Bianca,” Aliana said in a chilling tone. “You haven’t even begun to pay for everything you’ve done.”

    Bianca trembled violently. In panic, she crawled away, desperately trying to escape. Seeing this, Aliana calmly walked toward her. This time, her eyes were fixed on Bianca’s long legs-something the woman had always unted with pride.

    Just as Aliana raised her dagger again, ready to strike Bianca’s leg, a bright light suddenly illuminated the hallway, followed by a very familiar voice.

    “Bianca?!” Andrian’s voice rang out clearly from outside the room, full of worry and urgency.

    “Andrian! I’m here! Help me, Andrian!” Bianca screamed.

    Aliana growled in frustration, angered by Andrian’s arrival. She moved to finish Bianca off-raising her dagger to sh the woman’s throat and end it all.

    But just then, Rafe’s voice came through the earpiece in Aliana’s ear, speaking in a panicked tone.

    14:39 Inu, 28 Aug 07

    “Miss, Andrian’s here with an armed security team. You must withdraw now! It’s too dangerous!”

    Aliana clenched her dagger tightly, suppressing the fury still raging in her chest. Her gaze stayed locked on Bianca, who sobbed in terror on the floor. She wanted so badly to end this, but Aliana knew she couldn’t afford to take further risks.

    Reluctantly, Aliana put away her dagger. She walked over to Bianca-still crying and terrified on the ground-leaned close to her ear, and whispered with a threatening tone:

    “This is only the beginning, Bianca. I’lle back to make sure you lose everything.”

    Without giving Bianca a chance to respond, Aliana struck the back of her neck, knocking her unconscious.

    She moved quickly toward the window she had nned as her escape route. Just as Aliana slipped out the window and vanished into the darkness, the door burst open and Andrian rushed in, arge shlight in hand.

    “Bianca!”

    Andrian shouted in panic, his face filled with worry as he spotted Bianca unconscious on the floor. He hurried to her side, inspecting her injuries with

    increasing distress.

    “Elric! Find the attacker! I want them caught immediately!”

    “Yes, sir!” Elric responded swiftly and deployed the security team to track down the intruder.

    Outside, Aliana was already on the back of Rafe’s motorcycle. They sped away from the scene at high speed, leaving no trace behind.

    Moments after their departure, the restaurant lights flickered back on. In mere minutes, the ce was thrown into chaos and confusion. Staff and guards scrambled to understand what had happened, while medics were called in to tend to Bianca, who was found unconscious, badly wounded, and clearly

    traumatized.

    Though everyone was panicking and asking questions, no one knew who the assant was or what their motive had been. The attacker had vanished,

    leaving only fear and confusion in their wake.

    Meanwhile, at the back of the restaurant where Julian was being held, Lucas had just finished tying up thest trash bag. Night had fully fallen, and only

    the dim glow of a wallmp illuminated the narrow alleyway.

    Everything was still, until suddenly, Lucas noticed a fast-moving shadow approaching from the dark corridor beside the building.

    Startled, Lucas turned instinctively-and stumbled back a step when he saw the figure d in tight ck clothing advancing silently toward him. His heart nearly jumped out of his chest when he recognized who it was.

    “Nyx…” Lucas whispered, eyes wide and body frozen.

    Nyx stood tall before him, unmoving. A tense silence hung in the air.

    Lucas quickly bowed his head deeply, both out of respect and overwhelming fear for the woman known in the underworld as the Goddess of Death. His breathing grew shallow as memories of the brutal torture Nyx inflicted on Julian flooded back to him.

    “I-I’ll go get my father right away, Miss,” Lucas stammered, turning to leave.

    “That won’t be necessary,” Nyx said coldly, her sharp voice piercing Lucas’s ears. “I just want to see Julian.”

    Lucas swallowed hard, fully understanding what Nyx meant. She had returned-likely to continue tormenting Julian.

    With a hoarse and fearful voice, Lucas quickly responded, “Julian is still where we left him. I just fed him and treated his wounds like Mr. Rafe instructed. I’ve made sure he stays alive and can’t kill himself.”

    14:39 Thu, 28 Aug A

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    Nyx remained silent, offering no reaction. The masked woman’s aura was colder and more terrifying than ever before, making it hard for Lucas to breathe under the weight of her presence.

    “Take me there,” Nyx ordered curtly.

    Lucas was slightly puzzled, as Nyx already knew the location where Julian was being held. Still, he didn’t dare question or oppose her. He simply nodded quickly and began walking ahead, leading the way to the secret underground warehouse where Julian was imprisoned.

    Their footsteps echoed softly yet clearly, and the night felt colder and more ominous to Lucas than usual. He could feel Nyx’s piercing gaze on his back, yet not a single word came from the masked woman behind him. Her silence only made Lucas more nervous-especially since this was the first time he had ever walked alone with the woman he both admired and feared.

    Though the memory of Nyx’s brutality was still fresh in Lucas’s mind, his admiration for her hadn’t diminished in the slightest. In fact, tonight, that admiration grew stronger as he witnessed her cold presence up close.

    When they reached the door to the underground warehouse, Lucas stopped and slowly opened it.

    “Please go in, Miss. The man is inside.”

    Nyx entered without a word. Lucas followed behind, and immediately felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He realized that Nyx’s aura had be several times darker and more terrifying than before.

    In the center of the room, Julian sat bound to the same old wooden chair. His head drooped, breathing steady, indicating he was asleep. Nyx stood still, staring at Julian from behind her mask. Lucas held his breath, his body trembling unconsciously.

    Suddenly, Nyx turned slightly, casting a sharp nce at Lucas.

    “Leave. I suggest you don’t watch what’s about to happen here.”

    Lucas was startled by themand but quickly shook his head. This time, he wanted to prove to himself that he wasn’t as much of a coward as he had been before.

    “No, Miss,” Lucas said with forced courage. “I’ll stay here with you. Last time I left because I was afraid. Tonight, let me stay. I want to prove I can be

    trusted.”

    Nyx gave no response. She simply stood in silence-whether out of indifference or contemtion, Lucas couldn’t tell. He took a deep breath and spoke again, this time with more conviction.

    “I’m ready to be someone you can rely on, Miss. I want to help with whatever you’re doing.”