While Ju Ci Yun was lost in thought, Do Mingxi was having a complete meltdown in the living room of the house.
She stood frozen in place, legs trembling uncontrollably, her fists clenched at her sides.
"H... how is this possible? Where am I? What happened? Wasn't I just on the street?"
Looking at her friend's near-collapse, Ju Ci Yun let out a quiet sigh.
Fortunately, her adoptive parents were not in the living room. Otherwise, she genuinely worried that her adoptive mother, who suffered from Alzheimer's, might be frightened into a medical emergency by their sudden appearance.
The immediate priority was getting Mingxi out of the way before she became caught up in whatever conflict was about to happen.
With that in mind, Ju Ci Yun turned toward her and spoke in an unusually cold tone.
"Mingxi, go to your room."
"Ah... what?"
Do Mingxi blinked in confusion.
Her mind was still trapped somewhere between alien invasion stories and the fantasy dramas she watched on television.
Ju Ci Yun frowned.
"What do you mean, what? Go to your room. Now."
"A... alright! I'll go! I'm going right now!"
Startled by the sharp command, Do Mingxi hurried upstairs on shaking legs.
Once she was gone, Ju Ci Yun exhaled slowly and flexed her fingers.
Then she switched to English and looked at Axel.
"You don't need to prove anything to me. If you found me, then you already know who I am.
You should understand that someone like Do Mingxi is merely a tool that allows me to maintain a normal identity.
Her, my adoptive parents, all of them are useful tools.
Why would I care whether a tool lives or dies?"
As she spoke, a dark and charming smile appeared on her face.
Her parents weren't home, and Do Mingxi couldn't understand English anyway.
There was no risk of anyone being hurt by her words.
Axel grinned.
Then he stepped forward and raised a hand toward her head.
The instant she saw the movement, countless lethal scenarios flashed through her mind.
A hand crushing a skull.
Fingers piercing eyes and reaching the brain.
A neck snapped with brute force.
To her, Axel's action looked exactly like an attack.
She retreated at maximum speed.
It didn't matter.
When she stopped moving, Axel's hand was already resting atop her head.
She hadn't seen him move at all.
Ju Ci Yun's eyes widened.
"It's over."
"I'm dead."
Instead, Axel simply rubbed her hair.
His fingers moved through it as he casually scratched her head like someone petting a cat.
"Uh?"
Her expression stiffened.
Looking at him coldly, she said,
"So it isn't an attack, it's harassment?
After I escaped, has the organization become this pathetic?
Do your operatives care more about bothering women than completing missions?
If that's the case, then what do you want from me?
I can return with you because you're stronger than I am.
But I have no interest in becoming your toy."
"Huh?"
Axel patted her head impatiently.
"What kind of logic is that?
You think saying you're not my toy changes anything?
In my eyes, everyone is a toy.
So where exactly are you planning to run?"
As he spoke, he casually draped an arm around her shoulders.
At that moment, a nervous voice came from upstairs.
Do Mingxi had somehow gathered enough courage to peek over the railing.
"L... let go of Ci Yun! If you... if you need someone, I can take her place. She's too weak..."
"Shut up, Do Mingxi! Go back to your room!"
Ju Ci Yun's furious shout sent her scrambling away instantly.
Axel glanced at Ju Ci Yun's expression.
She looked less like a high school student and more like a venomous snake ready to strike.
"What was that girl saying?"
"Nothing. It's none of your business. Where are you taking me? I'll go with you. Stop wasting time here."
Ju Ci Yun tried to push away the arm around her shoulder.
It didn't move.
Axel laughed.
"Good. That's a sensible answer.
Don't worry. This old man will treat you well.
My wife will probably like you too.
You look far too easy to bully."
"Stop talking nonsense, uncle."
Ju Ci Yun shot him a glare and headed toward the door.
Axel followed with his arm still around her shoulders.
Once they stepped into the yard, Ju Ci Yun glanced at the old pickup truck parked nearby.
"We aren't taking the truck, are we?"
Her eyes lingered on the vehicle.
If it disappeared, her adoptive father's life would become even harder.
Ten years ago, before escaping the facility that created her, she had carefully chosen the family she intended to join.
Her current adoptive parents.
They had once lived in America and held dual American and Korean citizenship.
Her adoptive mother had been an architect.
Her adoptive father had been a mathematics professor.
They returned to Korea after their son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter died in a car accident.
An elderly couple with a stable background, decent finances, and a devastating personal tragedy.
They had been the perfect choice.
As expected, when Ju Ci Yun collapsed outside their home and pretended to suffer from amnesia, they took her in without hesitation.
They raised her with genuine care.
But misfortune struck again.
A few years later, her adoptive mother developed Alzheimer's disease.
Treatments consumed nearly all of the family's savings.
Now, the farm and the aging pickup truck were all they had left.
Without the truck, the farm couldn't function.
Without the farm, her adoptive parents would slowly lose everything.
A trace of sadness surfaced within her.
Her face, however, remained expressionless.
She couldn't afford to reveal weakness.
Axel rubbed her shoulder and smiled.
"Relax. Why would I want that piece of junk?
Besides, I'm taking away their precious daughter.
The least I can do is leave something behind.
First, we'll visit the place where you were created and get the treatment that lets you use your powers freely.
After that, you can accompany me on a little tour of Korea's banks, treasury vaults, and maybe even some corporate vaults.
We'll collect a bit of gold.
Then we'll leave your parents plenty of money.
Think of it as a bride price.
You'll get married eventually anyway.
I guarantee I'll leave more behind than whatever poor guy marries you someday."
His laughter echoed through the yard.
Flames ignited around his body.
The fire spread to Ju Ci Yun.
Moments later, both vanished.
From a second-floor window, Do Mingxi watched them disappear.
Her legs immediately gave out.
"W... what is happening?
I teleported.
They teleported too.
Am I dreaming?
Did I watch too many movies last night?"
She slapped herself hard.
"Ow!"
Pain shot through her cheek.
Her expression crumbled.
"No... this is real.
Oh God..."
Her eyes rolled back.
She collapsed unconscious.
Meanwhile, Axel and Ju Ci Yun emerged from the flames inside a dining room.
A gray-haired woman sat at a small table across from a scar-faced man.
Both stared in shock at the two newcomers.
The woman swallowed her food with difficulty.
"Mr. Choi, did you see that too? I'm not imagining things, am I?"
"You're imagining nothing!"
Mr. Choi cursed as he drew a pistol.
Pointing it at Axel, he spoke in a low voice.
"Who are you, and why have you come..."
"What are you talking about? I don't understand a word."
Before he could finish, Axel slapped him.
His head exploded instantly.
Blood and brain matter splattered across the room.
The gray-haired woman was drenched.
Mr. Choi's body collapsed lifelessly to the floor.
The woman shot to her feet.
"Who are you?!"
This time she spoke in English.
Nearby, Ju Ci Yun glanced at the corpse.
Then she looked at Axel again.
The hostility in her eyes lessened slightly.
She knew Mr. Choi.
He had been one of the organization's earliest enhanced humans.
The technology used to create him had been crude.
Walking over, she knelt beside the corpse and took the pistol from his hand.
Removing the black glove covering his right hand, she revealed purplish-blue skin beneath.
Exactly as she expected.
A fatal flaw of the first-generation subjects.
Their bodies deteriorated at the genetic level.
None survived long.
Even without Axel's intervention, Mr. Choi had been close to death.
After confirming his identity, Ju Ci Yun stood and casually aimed the pistol at the guards near the doorway.
The guards immediately raised their own weapons.
Neither dared fire.
To them, Axel looked less like an intruder and more like a terrifying envoy sent directly by the organization's leadership.
An English speaker with impossible powers and overwhelming confidence.
Unfortunately for them, hesitation proved fatal.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Four shots echoed through the room.
The guards fell.
Only the gray-haired woman remained.
Ju Ci Yun returned to Axel's side.
"She's Dr. Baek.
She created me.
If a treatment exists that can solve my condition, then it either came from her or from her research.
Do you want me to interrogate her, or should I watch for additional security?"
"You should stop talking."
Axel interrupted her.
Then he reached up and wiped beneath her nose.
When he pulled his hand away, his fingers were stained red.
He held them in front of her.
"You're bleeding from your nose, little sister.
Are you starting to break down?"
Grinning, he withdrew his hand.
Across the room, Dr. Baek's eyes narrowed.
Recognition dawned.
"So it's you."
Ten years had passed, but she could never forget her greatest creation.
The fact that Ju Ci Yun had survived this long surprised her.
More importantly, the nosebleed confirmed her suspicions.
The hidden defect was finally taking effect.
Ju Ci Yun had reached her limit.
Immediately, Dr. Baek regained her confidence.
Mr. Choi was expendable.
She was not.
She possessed the one thing Ju Ci Yun desperately needed.
Believing herself untouchable, she slowly smiled.
"You truly are remarkable. I never expected you to survive this long.
But you've reached your limit.
And the only person who can save you is..."
Her words ended abruptly.
Axel shoved his blood-covered fingers directly into her mouth.
After wiping them clean, he pulled his hand back out.
Then he deliberately smeared the remaining blood across the front of her expensive suit.
===
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