[EXT. BACK ALLEY DISTRICT — DUSK]
The city was sinking into evening.
Streetlights buzzed weakly overhead, flickering against narrow alley walls stained by years of rain and smoke. Restaurants nearby were beginning dinner rushes; distant voices and clattering dishes echoed faintly through the streets.
But this alley?
Quiet.
Too quiet.
A young woman walked through it alone.
Around twenty years old.
Long dark hair tied loosely behind her in two ponytails, though strands kept slipping free around her face. She wore a pale oversized hoodie beneath a dark jacket, black pants, boots slightly dusty from walking too long.
In one hand was a tablet glowing faintly blue.
And judging by her expression—
She had absolutely no idea where she was going.
Cold air condensed lightly around her as she walked.
Not enough for ordinary people to notice consciously.
But enough that nearby puddles had begun forming thin layers of frost.
Her Ice Arm leaked naturally.
Uncontrolled.
Comfortably.
Unlike Nán Lín's cold, sharp pressure, this one felt… quieter.
Winter-like.
Natural.
Almost gentle.
Almost.
---
Behind her—
Something moved in the darkness.
Not people.
Not exactly.
Shadows shifted strangely between the alley walls.
Long.
Distorted.
Following.
Watching.
Yet whenever someone from the street glanced into the alley—
Nothing was there.
---
The young woman stopped abruptly.
Looked down at the tablet again.
Her brows furrowed.
Then she smacked the side of it twice.
"Seriously, how does this thing even work?!"
The screen rotated sideways.
She stared harder.
"…Why are there three arrows?"
She tapped randomly again.
The map zoomed in so far it became useless.
"Oh, come on."
The cold around her intensified slightly in irritation.
Tiny crystals formed briefly along the edge of a dumpster nearby.
Nán Xuě groaned dramatically.
"I knew I should've made somebody else come with me."
She turned the tablet upside down.
Paused.
"…Wait."
Another pause.
"…Was I holding this backward?"
Silence.
The shadows behind her seemed to stop too.
Like even they were judging her.
Nán Xuě quickly straightened the tablet.
"Nope. Nobody saw that."
She glanced around suspiciously.
Then narrowed her eyes toward the darkness behind her.
"You especially."
The shadows immediately became still again.
Satisfied, she huffed softly and resumed walking.
---
A notification suddenly flashed on the screen.
TARGET AREA: 500 METERS
"Oh."
Nán Xue blinked.
"…THAT'S how this thing works."
She looked personally offended.
---
The cold breeze followed her quietly as she moved deeper into the district.
Though compared to Nán Lín, there was something oddly approachable about her.
She didn't carry herself like a hardened operative.
More like someone thrown into responsibilities she technically could handle—
…but complained about the entire time.
Still—
Her eyes were sharp.
Alert beneath the frustration.
And the things moving behind her in the shadows suggested one important fact:
Nán Xuě was not defenseless.
Not even close.
---
She looked back down at the tablet.
Reading the mission file again under her breath.
"Observation target… possible Specialist contact… avoid public conflict…"
A pause.
Then—
"Why did they send me on this weird mission?"
The shadows behind her shifted again.
One stretched unnaturally tall against the alley wall for half a second before shrinking back down.
Nán Xuě didn't even look.
"Don't start acting scary now," she muttered.
"I'm already annoyed."
The shadow immediately settled.
---
She finally reached the mouth of another alley.
Stopped.
Looked up slowly.
The tablet beeped once.
LOCATION REACHED.
Nán Xuě stared ahead.
"…Huh."
Then her eyes narrowed slightly.
Because at the far end of the street—
Light spilled from the windows of a familiar apartment building.
And standing near the entrance—
Was a figure she recognized from ET files.
Yè Yī.
Nán Xuě slowly lowered the tablet.
"…Well."
A tiny grin appeared.
"This just got interesting."