Exactly one entire month had smoothly passed since the life-altering journey into the distant mountain valley of Altkanz.

  The long, peaceful spring semester break was officially over. The quiet, almost entirely deserted atmosphere that had briefly blanketed the massive capital city of Justenau was now completely shattered by the chaotic, energetic return of thousands of university students pouring in from their respective hometowns.

  The central train stations, the wide cobblestone avenues, and the massive iron gates of the prestigious university were flooded with a colorful sea of young adults dragging heavy luggage and carrying overstuffed backpacks. The spring season was slowly reaching its peak, leaving behind a beautiful trail of pink and white flower petals drifting gently in the cool afternoon breeze.

  Inside the historic, red-brick girls' dormitory building, the long narrow hallways were incredibly noisy. The sounds of rolling suitcase wheels and the ringing laughter of young women happily reuniting echoed off the walls.

  Inside room three hundred and twelve, Aoi was sitting comfortably cross-legged on the center of her small bed. She was meticulously organizing her thick psychology textbooks and fresh notebooks, enjoying the last few moments of peace before the academic storm began.

  Suddenly, the heavy wooden door of her room burst wide open with a dramatic, loud bang.

  Before Aoi could even turn her head to see who had just breached the room, an energetic, unstoppable small blur launched itself directly through the air.

  "Aoi!" Kana screamed at the top of her lungs.

  Kana practically tackled Aoi, throwing her entire body weight onto the soft mattress and wrapping her arms around her roommate in a suffocating, incredibly tight bear hug. Aoi let out a loud, musical laugh, abandoning her academic notes to return the fierce embrace.

  "I literally thought I was going to die of absolute boredom without you!" Kana whined loudly, burying her face deeply into Aoi's shoulder. She actually let out a highly dramatic, exaggerated fake sob. "Do you have any idea how quiet and miserable this room is when you are not sitting right there?"

  "It is so incredibly good to see you too, Kana," Aoi laughed genuinely, patting her best friend's back. "You are being so dramatic. We only spent four weeks apart."

  "Four weeks is an absolute eternity in college time," Kana grumbled, finally pulling back and sitting cross-legged directly in front of Aoi.

  Kana's usually sleepy eyes were now completely wide and shining with a demanding curiosity. She looked exactly like a seasoned police detective preparing to interrogate a prime suspect.

  "Alright, enough about my miserable life," Kana demanded, clapping her hands together. "Spill every single detail right now. I want a comprehensive report regarding your romantic mountain getaway with the terrifying federal advocate. Did he finally propose, or did he just drag you to boring museums?"

  Aoi smiled sweetly, her dark eyes filled with cherished memories. She reached over to her bedside table and picked up a brand new, elegant leather-bound photo album she had just printed.

  "No proposals, Kana," Aoi chuckled softly, handing the heavy album over to her friend. "But it was absolutely incredible. We actually did visit a lot of historical spots, but it was not boring at all."

  Kana flipped open the first page, her eyes scanning the vibrant panoramic photographs of the Silberkranz mountain ranges and a few candid shots of Erwin smiling genuinely amidst a chaotic spring market.

  "Wow, he actually knows how to smile like a normal human being," Kana teased, pointing at a picture of Erwin holding a candied apple. "I always assumed his face would crack if he tried to look happy."

  "He is entirely different when we are alone," Aoi defended him warmly. "And he is incredibly brilliant, Kana. He knows almost the entire political history of the Hohenreich kingdom by heart. He narrated the ancient tales for me, starting directly from the bloody era of King Albrecht the First all the way down to King Friedrich the Sixth. He spoke with such passion, it felt like he had actually lived through those ancient wars."

  Kana let out a long, dramatic sigh, entirely dropping her shoulders in defeat.

  "I am so incredibly jealous of your life right now," Kana complained bitterly. "You were out there exploring ancient mountain ruins and experiencing a cinematic romance with a handsome billionaire heir. Do you want to know what I did for an entire month?"

  "What did you do?" Aoi asked, completely amused.

  "I was forced to wake up before dawn in my freezing coastal village just to help my demanding father and my annoying younger brother haul heavy, wet fishing nets out of the ocean," Kana grumbled, crossing her arms. "I spent my entire break smelling like raw saltwater and dead fish. My brother actually dropped a bucket of squid on my favorite shoes."

  Aoi threw her head back and laughed loudly at Kana's incredibly expressive complaints.

  "It sounds like you had a very authentic family bonding experience," Aoi teased her gently.

  "It was torture," Kana corrected her firmly. She reached out and grabbed Aoi's hands. "But do not try to change the subject. I know you are holding back. Tell me the juicy stuff. Did you two discover any hidden treasure? Did he buy you a castle?"

  The bright, joyful smile on Aoi's beautiful face slowly began to fade away, replaced by a somber, heavy expression. She took a slow, shaky breath, lowering her gaze to stare quietly at the leather photo album.

  "Actually, Kana," Aoi began, her voice dropping into a much softer, highly serious tone. "It was not entirely perfect. The trip actually took a very dark turn near the end."

  Kana's playful demeanor instantly vanished. Her wild, protective imagination immediately jumped to the worst possible conclusion. She tightly gripped Aoi's hands, her voice trembling with genuine worry.

  "What happened?" Kana asked frantically. "Did Erwin do something terrible to you? Did he revert back to his cold, toxic corporate persona? If he hurt you like he did during the whole Helena Weissman drama, I swear I will march over to the boys' dormitory right now and kick his aristocratic teeth in."

  Aoi immediately shook her head, frantically waving her hands to shut down that terrifying assumption.

  "No, no, absolutely not!" Aoi assured her quickly. "Erwin did not hurt me at all. In fact, he is the one who was deeply hurt."

  Kana blinked, entirely confused. "Hurt? By who? A bear?"

  "We visited a secluded forest trail known as the Path of the Oath," Aoi explained softly. "At the end of the path, there were ancient stone monuments left by the old kings. But we ran into an incredibly terrifying, unhinged old woman who acted as the guardian of the stones."

  Aoi took a deep breath, recalling the chilling mountain clearing.

  "She screamed at us, Kana. She told us all about Erwin's founding ancestors. She revealed that they were incredibly greedy, manipulative, and absolutely evil traitors who destroyed the ancient kingdom from the inside out just to fill their own pockets with gold."

  Kana's eyes widened in shock. "Oh my god. That is insane."

  "It completely devastated him," Aoi whispered, her heart breaking all over again for her boyfriend. "He was entirely paralyzed by the truth. He spent the rest of the holiday trapped in his own head, heavily burdened by the unforgivable sins of his bloodline. He feels incredibly guilty, Kana. He feels like his entire existence is cursed."

  Kana slowly released Aoi's hands, letting out a heavy sigh as she processed the massive psychological weight of the story.

  "But those are the sins of dead men," Kana reasoned logically. "Erwin is not them. He fights against his own corrupt father every single day. Why would he carry the guilt of ghosts?"

  "I told him exactly that," Aoi agreed sadly. "But you know how principled and honorable he is. He takes everything so seriously. Even now, after we have returned to the dorms, I can still see the dark shadows in his eyes. He is trying to hide it, but he is still hurting."

  Aoi looked directly at Kana with a desperate, pleading expression.

  "I really want to buy him a special gift," Aoi confessed. "Something meaningful to cheer him up and distract his brilliant mind from all those toxic historical curses. Maybe an expensive vintage fountain pen, or a rare historical law book. What do you think?"

  Kana sat completely silent for a long moment. She stared directly at Aoi with a flat, incredibly sarcastic, and utterly unimpressed expression.

  Kana slowly crossed her arms over her chest, letting out an exasperated sigh.

  "Aoi, you are an incredibly brilliant psychology major," Kana began, her voice dripping with biting sarcasm. "You can flawlessly read the complex psychological profiles of difficult clinical patients in our lectures. You literally dissect human behavior for fun."

  "Yes?" Aoi asked hesitantly, entirely confused by the sudden attack.

  "So why are you being so incredibly dense when it comes to your own boyfriend?" Kana asked, shaking her head in disbelief. "Erwin von Stahlberg is a billionaire heir. If he wanted an expensive vintage fountain pen or a rare book, he could literally buy the entire store. He does not care about expensive things."

  "Then what should I do?" Aoi asked defensively.

  "Think about your own habits, Aoi," Kana instructed her firmly. "Whenever you are stressed out of your mind from studying, or when you feel sad, what do you usually do late at night when the cafeteria is closed?"

  Aoi blinked, thinking about her typical late-night routines. "I usually walk out to the eastern campus alleyways and buy a warm box of cheap street food."

  "Exactly!" Kana exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "Erwin does not need an elaborate, expensive gift. He is just an exhausted, highly stressed young man who loves you. All he truly needs is your undivided attention. Just take him on a simple, normal date. Go buy him some cheap, warm street food from the alleyway tonight. Simple, human comfort. That is what cures sadness."

  Hearing the sharp, completely logical, and incredibly accurate advice, Aoi's face instantly turned a massive, vibrant shade of deep crimson. She had completely failed to realize something so incredibly simple.

  Feeling incredibly embarrassed by her own complicated overthinking, Aoi let out a muffled groan of defeat. She quickly grabbed her soft sleeping pillow and violently threw it directly at Kana's laughing face.

  The pillow landed with a satisfying, harmless thud. Within a single second, the small dormitory room was completely filled with the joyful, ringing laughter of two best friends who were finally back together.

  Meanwhile, completely across the sprawling university campus, inside the imposing, structured red-brick architecture of the boys' dormitory, the atmosphere was significantly more chaotic and aggressive.

  Inside his immaculate, perfectly organized room, Erwin was sitting completely silently at his heavy wooden study desk. He was currently wearing a crisp white casual shirt, the sleeves casually rolled up to his strong forearms. A pair of sophisticated reading glasses rested perfectly on the bridge of his nose as his long fingers rapidly typed across the sleek keyboard of his laptop.

  Erwin was currently deeply immersed in drafting complex, sensitive corporate legal documents explicitly assigned to him by Dr. Alaric. He was intentionally using the massive intellectual workload to force the dark, agonizing historical ghosts of his family out of his brilliant mind.

  However, his terrifying state of absolute, unyielding focus was suddenly and violently shattered into a thousand pieces.

  From the blind space directly behind his chair, Samuel had silently crept into the room with the flawless steps of a trained assassin.

  Exactly at the precise moment that Erwin was analyzing a complex liability clause, Samuel violently slammed both of his heavy hands directly down onto Erwin's broad shoulders.

  "BANG!" Samuel screamed aggressively, his deep, booming baritone voice exploding across the quiet room.

  Erwin violently jumped out of his heavy wooden chair in sheer shock. His broad shoulders jerked, and his elegant hands almost knocked his expensive laptop onto the hard floor. His lethal survival instincts instantly flared to life before his mind could register his roommate's annoying voice.

  "Samuel, what the hell is wrong with you?" Erwin snapped coldly, his heart pounding in his chest.

  Before Erwin could completely turn his body around to reprimand him further, the heavy wooden door of the dormitory room burst wide open.

  Marek charged directly into the room exactly like an enraged bull. The massive, heavily muscled young man aggressively ran straight toward Erwin and violently wrapped his thick arm directly around Erwin's head, trapping the dignified young professor in an aggressive, suffocating physical headlock.

  "Get over here, professor!" Marek yelled joyfully. He violently ruffled and entirely destroyed Erwin's usually immaculate dark hair. "God, I actually missed your terrifying, robotic face during the break!"

  "Get off me right now," Erwin demanded, aggressively slapping Marek's heavily corded muscular arm. "Release me before I legally sue you for attempted murder on the first day of the semester."

  Marek simply let out a massive, booming laugh that shook the room. He completely refused to release the trapped advocate.

  "Not a chance, Mr. Billionaire," Marek laughed loudly. "Where are my highly anticipated mountain souvenirs? You promised me loot from Altkanz!"

  Erwin, entirely realizing that physical resistance against the giant was absolutely futile, let out a long, exhausted sigh. He finally managed to smoothly slip his head out of Marek's arm, taking a moment to aggressively fix his ruined shirt collar and smooth down his chaotic hair.

  "You are incredibly annoying," Erwin muttered coldly.

  He walked directly over to his massive wooden wardrobe, opened his travel bag, and smoothly pulled out a thick, ancient-style Altkanz mountain wool hat. Erwin turned around and threw the heavy wool hat directly into Marek's expectant face.

  Marek caught the hat with impressive reflexes, his dark eyes lighting up with genuine childish excitement. He immediately shoved the thick wool hat onto his massive head. It looked completely ridiculous and slightly too small for his skull.

  "Oh, this is magnificent," Marek declared proudly, striking a ridiculous, comedic pose in front of Erwin's wardrobe mirror. He casually turned his large body. "Are there any other expensive, luxurious items hidden in that bag for me?"

  Erwin simply rolled his dark eyes. He took a single, calculated step forward and delivered a highly accurate, gentle but firm kick directly to Marek's backside.

  "Be thankful I even remembered your existence while I was navigating the mountains," Erwin told him coldly.

  Shortly after that chaotic exchange, the noise level in the small room entirely violently escalated to a deafening volume.

  Three more of Erwin's close, trusted friends, Felix, Jonas, and Ryo, suddenly appeared in the open doorway and aggressively stormed directly into the room.

  All five energetic young men immediately formed a massive, suffocating human circle directly around Erwin. They started firing off dozens of rapid, intrusive questions simultaneously.

  "Give us the details, Erwin!" Felix demanded eagerly. "How was the romantic getaway? Did you just drag her around to look at boring historical rocks for a month?"

  "Did you finally loosen up, or did you act like a rigid tour guide the whole time?" Jonas teased, shoving Erwin's shoulder playfully.

  Samuel, who was comfortably leaning his back against the far corner wall, could not stop himself from loudly laughing. He watched amused as Erwin, the untouchable corporate heir who routinely destroyed powerful executives in court, was currently trapped and swarmed by his own idiot friends, looking exactly like a desperate suspect being interrogated by an aggressive mob.

  Erwin shot a dark, terrifying glare directly at Samuel through the gaps in the crowd.

  "I require immediate security assistance, Samuel," Erwin stated sarcastically. "Call the federal police."

  Still chuckling, Samuel finally pushed himself away from the wall and stepped forward. He firmly slapped Felix and Jonas heavily on their shoulders.

  "Alright, back off, you absolute idiots," Samuel demanded, acting as the bouncer. "Give the man some room to breathe before he passes out and takes us all down with him."

  Felix reluctantly took a small step backward, but he was still staring directly at Erwin with bright, eager eyes.

  Erwin slowly shook his head, reaching up to rub his throbbing temples. The sudden, massive wall of aggressive noise was giving him a headache. He walked back to his heavy wooden chair and sat down, looking up at his five loyal friends.

  "The trip was actually incredibly beautiful," Erwin began carefully, narrating the broad strokes. "Aoi was very happy, and the scenery was perfect."

  However, the deep, smooth baritone of Erwin's voice slowly began to drop in pitch, transforming into a much more serious, guarded, and dark tone.

  He decided not to hide the dark truth from these specific young men. They were his trusted brothers.

  "But I did learn some things while I was there," Erwin revealed quietly. "I discovered some highly dark historical facts regarding my own family. I learned that my founding ancestors committed incredibly cruel, manipulative acts to secure their political power. They betrayed their own people for gold."

  Erwin let the words hang heavily in the quiet air. The specific historical details were too bitter to speak out loud.

  Samuel, who was incredibly perceptive and always spoke his mind with brutal honesty, immediately understood the heavy direction of Erwin's thoughts.

  Samuel firmly folded his thick arms directly over his chest.

  "Your ancestors were massive, toxic parasites on this nation, Erwin," Samuel stated with a serious, honest tone that entirely lacked any malicious intent. "Even since the ancient era, the Stahlberg family has always sought to aggressively maximize their own profits at the agonizing expense of innocent people. Sorry to say it so bluntly, but it is true."

  Samuel looked directly into Erwin's eyes with an apologetic expression. "Do not take offense to the word parasite, but it fits."

  Erwin absolutely did not take any offense to the accurate statement. He stared directly at Samuel and slowly nodded his head.

  "I do not take offense, Samuel. It is the absolute truth," Erwin confirmed firmly. "But I simply refuse to let the bloody, dark past of my ancestors constantly terrorize me or dictate the trajectory of my life today. I am going to break that chain."

  Erwin paused for a moment before casually mentioning the next detail with a flat, terrifyingly cold tone.

  "Furthermore," Erwin added smoothly. "While we were in the mountains, I actually directly faced off against trained corporate spies explicitly sent by my own father."

  The second the word spies left Erwin's mouth, the relaxed atmosphere in the room violently shifted into absolute, terrifying high alert.

  Marek, who had been busy playfully adjusting his ridiculous wool hat, instantly froze. His jovial face completely transformed into a massive mask of absolute, violent fury.

  Marek aggressively took a heavy step forward, his massive hands clenching into terrifying solid fists.

  "Who were they?" Marek demanded loudly, his voice vibrating with rage. "Where are they right now? I swear to god, Erwin, I will personally hunt them down and beat them into a bloody pulp for daring to disrupt your holiday and threatening Aoi."

  Erwin quickly raised his elegant hand, signaling for Marek to absolutely calm down and restrain his explosive temper.

  "Calm down, Marek. I already handled it," Erwin explained with a deeply calm, calculating tone. "I utilized the crowded environment of a massive spring market to entirely deceive the operatives. I caused them to lose my trail and forced them to surrender their pursuit."

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  His loyal friends looked at each other with mixed expressions of deep confusion and profound awe.

  "Are you absolutely sure about that?" Felix asked nervously. "Are you entirely certain those dangerous spies did not silently follow you directly back here to the capital city?"

  Erwin slowly nodded his head with absolute, unshakeable certainty.

  "I am certain," Erwin stated confidently. "I believe the physical threat orchestrated by my father has been broken for now. We are safe inside the secure boundaries of the university complex."

  However, Erwin's strong conviction was entirely a massive, deeply fatal miscalculation of the highest magnitude.

  While Erwin sat comfortably, feeling highly secure inside his well-lit, heavily populated boys' dormitory room, a terrifying, lethal threat was patiently waiting in absolute silence on the opposite side of the sprawling university campus.

  Located on a small, narrow public street that bordered the high brick walls of the girls' dormitory, a highly unremarkable grey sedan was parked with its engine turned off entirely. It rested beneath the deep shadows of a large oak tree. Its heavy, dark tinted black windows flawlessly hid whoever was sitting inside the suffocating cabin.

  In the driver's seat, Magnus Adler was sitting with a deeply relaxed, motionless posture, yet he was radiating an absolute, lethal level of predatory alertness. His cold, dead eyes stared directly straight through the windshield, flawlessly observing the massive iron gates of the girls' dormitory.

  He looked exactly like an apex predator silently watching its unsuspecting prey.

  Magnus was absolutely not playing any games regarding his highly lucrative, illegal contract with Helena Weissman. He had accepted the exorbitant payment, and he was going to execute the violent extraction with flawless, terrifying precision.

  Suddenly, the massive iron gates of the girls' dormitory smoothly swung open.

  Magnus slightly leaned his imposing torso forward. From behind the heavily tinted glass, he clearly saw his primary target, Aoi Mizuno, gracefully walking directly out of the secure dormitory area. She was stepping out to enjoy the cool evening breeze, her dark hair fluttering gently.

  However, Aoi was absolutely not alone.

  Magnus slowly, silently raised a sophisticated digital camera equipped with a massive, powerful telephoto lens from the passenger seat. He carefully aimed the lens directly through a tiny crack he had deliberately left open at the very top of his tinted window.

  A faint, muffled electronic clicking sound echoed inside the dark cabin as Magnus smoothly snapped several high-resolution photographs of Aoi.

  Through the powerful lens, Magnus clearly observed that Aoi was laughing freely, walking closely side-by-side with her trusted, loyal friends. Kana was affectionately wrapping her arm around Aoi's slender shoulder, while Hina, Yuri, Mei, and Nana were walking closely around her, forming a massive, natural physical protective wall. They simply looked exactly like a normal group of happy college girls enjoying a peaceful spring evening.

  Magnus slowly, calmly lowered the expensive camera. His cold face absolutely did not register a single ounce of genuine disappointment or explosive anger. He was a cold-blooded professional who possessed an infinite reserve of lethal patience.

  He rapidly evaluated the tactical situation in his dark mind. Attempting to violently extract a struggling, screaming target who was currently surrounded by five highly alert, vocal witnesses was an absolutely idiotic, amateurish tactical maneuver. Those girls would easily scream for the federal police and memorize his specific license plates. That was not how a feared ghost like Magnus Adler operated.

  He quietly placed the digital camera back onto the passenger seat. He slowly leaned his broad back directly against the cold leather seat, casually crossing his strong arms in front of his chest.

  Magnus would wait.

  He had already flawlessly memorized every single specific pattern of behavior and the exact daily schedule of his vulnerable target. He knew with terrifying certainty that this populated, protected moment of joyful companionship would absolutely not last forever.

  He would remain perfectly still inside this dark, invisible vehicle exactly like a terrifying dead shadow. He would wait with absolute, lethal patience until the cold night finally arrived. He would wait until Aoi's loyal friends finally returned to their secure dormitory rooms to diligently work on their demanding academic assignments.

  He would wait until the beautiful, unsuspecting psychology student absolutely stepped outside the massive iron gates of the prestigious university entirely alone, walking directly toward the narrow, dark, and chaotic alleyways of the cheap street food market.

  And when that specific, isolated moment of absolute vulnerability finally arrived, Magnus Adler would not give his innocent target a single, microscopic opportunity to let out a terrifying scream.

  The vibrant, beautiful colors of the spring sunset slowly bled out of the massive sky over Justenau, entirely replaced by a deep, highly chilled, and completely dark twilight.

  As the cold night fully descended upon the sprawling university campus, the chaotic, bustling energy of the returning students began to naturally settle down. The loud laughter and the heavy sounds of rolling luggage faded away, entirely replaced by the quiet, highly focused hum of academic life. Thousands of students retreated into the warm, brightly lit safety of their respective dormitory buildings, entirely preparing to tackle the massive mountains of coursework waiting for them on the very first day of the new semester.

  Inside room three hundred and twelve of the girls' dormitory, the atmosphere was incredibly peaceful and deeply comforting.

  Aoi stood quietly in front of her small wooden closet, gently pulling a thick, warm woolen cardigan over her shoulders to completely protect herself against the biting chill of the spring night. She reached over to her small desk, smoothly picking up her slim leather purse and a set of dorm keys.

  Kana was currently lying entirely flat on her stomach on her own bed, completely surrounded by a massive, disorganized pile of thick psychology textbooks. She looked up from a heavy academic journal, highly casually resting her chin on her hands as she watched her best friend get ready to leave the room.

  "Are you absolutely sure you want to go all the way out there entirely alone right now?" Kana asked softly, a highly genuine, deeply caring tone entirely coloring her usually sarcastic voice. "The campus cafeteria is completely closed, but I am pretty sure I still have some stale crackers and a highly questionable jar of peanut butter hidden somewhere in my luggage if you are just feeling a little hungry."

  Aoi turned around and offered her best friend a highly radiant, deeply beautiful, and completely genuine smile.

  "Thank you for the highly generous culinary offer, Kana," Aoi laughed musically, entirely shaking her head. "But I am not doing this for myself. I am going out to the eastern alleyways to buy that specific warm, spicy street food that Erwin absolutely loves. I want to entirely surprise him at the boys' dormitory."

  Kana let out a long, highly dramatic sigh, rolling completely over onto her back and staring directly up at the white ceiling of their small room.

  "You are incredibly, entirely too good for that terrifying, robotic lawyer, Aoi," Kana complained playfully, though a deeply fond smile entirely curved her lips. "He is absolutely, undeniably the luckiest billionaire heir on the entire planet to have someone who cares this much about his highly complicated feelings. Tell him that if he does not entirely appreciate this late-night delivery, I will personally come over there and entirely confiscate his food."

  "I will be sure to pass along your terrifying threat," Aoi promised softly, her dark eyes shining with pure, unadulterated affection for her friend. "I will be back in less than an hour, Kana. Do not completely fall asleep while reading that massive textbook."

  Aoi gently closed the heavy wooden door of her dormitory room, entirely stepping out into the long, quiet hallway.

  She walked highly gracefully down the stairwell, her heart feeling incredibly light and deeply full of absolute, undeniable love. Kana's highly sarcastic, deeply practical advice from earlier in the afternoon had completely entirely resonated with her empathetic soul. She knew exactly how heavily the dark, highly toxic historical sins of the Stahlberg ancestors were completely crushing Erwin's brilliant mind.

  She could not magically rewrite a thousand years of bloody, entirely corrupt history for him. But she could absolutely provide him with a highly simple, deeply human moment of pure comfort. A warm meal, a gentle smile, and a quiet moment entirely shared together away from his massive, highly demanding legal textbooks. That was exactly how she was going to entirely pull him out of his dark, highly agonizing historic shadows.

  Aoi pushed open the massive iron gates of the girls' dormitory, entirely stepping out onto the wide, beautifully paved pedestrian pathways of the campus.

  The night air was incredibly crisp, entirely completely carrying the highly fresh, deeply poetic scent of blooming spring flowers and damp earth. The tall, highly ornate vintage streetlamps lining the pathways cast a beautiful, highly romantic golden glow across the cobblestones.

  She walked highly peacefully through the massive campus, completely enjoying the quiet solitude of the cold night. She passed by massive, towering gothic library buildings and highly quiet, deeply serene academic courtyards. Her mind was entirely completely occupied with highly beautiful, deeply affectionate thoughts of exactly how Erwin's dark, exhausted eyes would completely light up the absolute second she entirely knocked on his dormitory door with his favorite food.

  Eventually, Aoi completely reached the far eastern perimeter of the sprawling university grounds.

  She entirely bypassed the massive, heavily secured main campus exits, completely opting to use a much smaller, highly discreet pedestrian gate that entirely led directly out into the narrow, highly chaotic, and deeply historic cobblestone alleyways of the local district.

  The absolute second she entirely stepped completely out of the quiet, highly sanitized campus environment, her senses were entirely completely overwhelmed by the highly vibrant, deeply lively atmosphere of the night market.

  The narrow alleyways were completely crammed with small, highly independent street food vendors operating out of brightly lit, completely colorful carts. The cold spring air was entirely completely filled with massive, highly thick clouds of white steam rising from massive boiling pots. The highly intoxicating, deeply savory aromas of roasted meats, sweet soy sauce, and highly spicy chili oil completely entirely dominated the narrow space.

  Despite the late hour, the alleyway was still completely populated by a highly decent crowd of hungry, entirely exhausted university students desperately seeking a cheap, highly comforting late-night meal.

  Aoi navigated the highly chaotic, entirely completely crowded space with practiced ease. She smiled politely, gently weaving entirely through the clusters of loud, heavily talking students until she completely entirely reached her absolute favorite food stall located near the center of the bustling market.

  An elderly, highly cheerful man wearing a stained white apron was entirely completely busy tossing fresh noodles and highly spicy vegetables in a massive, deeply blackened iron wok over a roaring, highly aggressive open flame.

  Aoi stepped up to the warm counter, her beautiful face entirely illuminated by the bright, highly harsh fluorescent light hanging directly over the small cart.

  "Good evening, sir," Aoi greeted him with a highly polite, completely warm bow of her head. "Could I please have one large, highly spicy portion of the roasted pork noodles? And please entirely make sure to add extra green onions on top."

  The elderly vendor looked up, his deeply wrinkled face completely breaking into a massive, highly welcoming smile entirely recognizing one of his favorite, highly polite regular customers.

  "Ah, the beautiful psychology student has finally returned from her long holiday!" the vendor cheered loudly over the roaring sound of the open flame. "One massive, highly spicy portion coming right up for you, my dear. I will entirely make it extra special tonight."

  Aoi stood highly patiently entirely near the warm cart, completely completely entirely rubbing her small, freezing hands together to entirely generate some heat while she happily waited for the fresh food.

  However, entirely completely unknown to her, a highly dark, completely deeply terrifying shadow had already entirely completely detached itself from the absolute perimeter of the university walls.

  Magnus Adler was no longer sitting entirely highly patiently inside his invisible, completely dark grey sedan.

  He was currently completely entirely on foot, highly completely seamlessly blending directly into the highly chaotic, entirely distracted crowd of hungry students. He was wearing a highly unremarkable, deeply dark hooded jacket, his highly terrifying, completely lethal physical presence entirely entirely masked by his absolute, deeply professional ability to remain completely invisible in plain sight.

  His cold, completely dead eyes entirely entirely locked directly onto the back of Aoi's dark hair from entirely across the narrow alleyway.

  He entirely completely watched her highly politely entirely interact with the elderly food vendor. He completely analyzed the entire, highly complex spatial geometry of the crowded market. There were entirely completely too many highly active witnesses directly surrounding the brightly lit food carts. If he completely entirely attempted to entirely extract her right here in the center of the crowd, the massive, highly aggressive commotion would absolutely entirely draw immediate, highly highly unwanted attention.

  He needed her to entirely completely walk directly away from the light. He needed her to completely take the highly specific, deeply secluded shortcut entirely back to the main campus.

  Magnus entirely completely reached his highly calloused hand directly into the deep, dark pocket of his tactical jacket. His long, heavily scarred fingers completely entirely wrapped around the cold, highly clinical plastic barrel of the pre-filled medical syringe. He highly smoothly, entirely completely removed the small plastic cap directly from the incredibly sharp, deeply lethal needle, keeping the highly dangerous weapon completely entirely concealed within the dark folds of his heavy jacket.

  At the brightly lit food cart, the elderly vendor highly cheerfully entirely handed Aoi a highly thick, completely tightly sealed cardboard box entirely overflowing with the steaming, highly savory spicy noodles.

  "There you go, my dear," the vendor smiled warmly. "Be highly careful carrying it back to the dormitories. It is incredibly hot."

  "Thank you so incredibly much, sir," Aoi smiled beautifully, entirely handing him the required cash. "Have a wonderful, highly peaceful night."

  Aoi completely entirely turned away from the warm cart, holding the highly steaming, deeply hot cardboard box entirely carefully in both of her small hands. The highly comforting heat completely radiated directly through the thick cardboard, entirely warming her freezing fingers. She could absolutely entirely completely already picture the highly genuine, deeply surprised smile on Erwin's handsome face.

  She began to completely entirely walk directly back toward the main university campus.

  However, instead of highly entirely completely returning directly down the main, highly populated, and brightly lit market street, Aoi entirely completely decided to take a highly familiar, completely common shortcut. She turned highly sharply entirely directly into a much narrower, deeply secluded, and incredibly poorly lit connecting alleyway that entirely completely led directly to the boys' dormitory gates.

  It was a highly common path that hundreds of entirely completely exhausted students used every single night to save a few minutes of walking in the freezing cold.

  As Aoi stepped entirely deeply into the highly dark, entirely completely narrow connecting alleyway, the loud, highly chaotic noise of the bustling night market was instantly, entirely completely muffled by the heavy brick walls entirely surrounding her.

  The tall, deeply imposing brick buildings entirely blocked out the beautiful moonlight, casting the narrow path into deep, highly terrifying shadows.

  The air in this specific section of the alleyway was incredibly cold, entirely completely devoid of the warm, highly comforting steam from the food carts.

  Aoi walked highly quickly, entirely completely hugging the warm box of spicy noodles entirely directly against her chest. Her small boots entirely clicked highly softly against the damp, deeply uneven cobblestones.

  Magnus Adler completely entirely highly smoothly stepped directly into the dark alleyway entirely right behind her.

  He moved with absolute, completely entirely terrifying, and highly highly lethal silence. His heavy tactical boots completely entirely made absolutely zero sound against the rough cobblestones. He completely entirely closed the highly small, deeply highly vulnerable physical distance between them with the terrifying, highly absolute speed of a massive, deeply hungry apex predator entirely entirely moving in for the absolute kill.

  Aoi suddenly highly entirely completely heard the highly faint, deeply soft sound of clothing rustling entirely directly behind her in the dark.

  She did not immediately completely entirely panic. She highly logically, entirely innocently assumed it was simply another entirely exhausted university student completely completely taking the exact same dark shortcut entirely back to their warm dormitories.

  She highly entirely completely started to slowly entirely turn her head, completely politely entirely preparing to step entirely slightly to the side of the narrow path to let the highly rushed student completely pass her in the dark.

  But before she could even entirely completely finish turning her head, absolute, highly deeply unadulterated terror entirely completely violently struck her from the dark shadows.

  A massive, highly calloused, and incredibly strong hand suddenly, highly violently entirely clamped completely directly over her mouth and her nose from entirely behind.

  The highly massive, completely undeniable physical force of the sudden attack entirely completely violently jerked her small body completely backward, entirely violently pulling her directly into a highly massive, completely solid, and entirely immovable muscular chest.

  Aoi's dark eyes completely entirely widened in absolute, highly profound, and completely entirely unimaginable horror.

  The highly sudden, completely entirely violent physical shock entirely entirely caused her small hands to completely spasm. The heavy, completely hot cardboard box of spicy noodles entirely violently slipped directly from her freezing fingers.

  It completely entirely fell directly onto the hard, damp cobblestones, highly violently bursting entirely open. The highly savory, deeply comforting warm food completely violently spilled entirely out into the dirt, the thick white steam rising highly tragically into the freezing, completely dark night air.

  Aoi instantly, entirely completely violently exploded into highly massive, completely desperate physical resistance.

  She was absolutely, entirely completely not a highly weak, deeply fragile, or completely entirely helpless victim who would simply entirely surrender to the terrifying darkness.

  She was entirely completely driven by a highly massive, deeply absolute, and entirely entirely desperate desire to completely entirely survive, to completely entirely return to the highly beautiful, completely deeply peaceful life she was entirely building with Erwin.

  She highly violently entirely completely bit down completely as hard as she absolutely could entirely directly onto the massive, deeply calloused hand completely entirely suffocating her mouth.

  Magnus completely entirely entirely did not even highly flinch. He entirely possessed absolutely zero highly microscopic reaction to the sharp, highly desperate physical pain. He simply highly entirely completely tightened his incredibly massive, deeply highly lethal grip completely entirely around her small face, his thick arm entirely entirely completely locking tightly around her slender waist like a highly massive, entirely unbreakable iron vise.

  Aoi highly frantically, completely violently kicked her legs entirely backward, highly desperately entirely completely trying to strike his knees or his shins with the hard heels of her leather boots. She highly violently, completely aggressively thrashed her small body entirely from side to side, entirely completely desperately highly trying to entirely entirely completely throw the highly massive, deeply terrifying predator completely off balance in the dark alleyway.

  Her massive, entirely completely desperate physical struggle was incredibly fierce, highly violent, and completely entirely entirely impressive for a young woman of her small size. She was absolutely entirely forcing the highly trained, completely deeply lethal mercenary to completely actually exert genuine physical effort to entirely completely contain her highly violent, deeply frantic movements.

  For a single, highly brief, entirely completely miraculous fraction of a terrifying second, Aoi's highly frantic, completely violent thrashing managed to highly slightly entirely completely dislodge the massive, suffocating hand completely from her mouth.

  She completely entirely highly violently entirely sucked in a massive, highly desperate breath of freezing night air, her lungs burning with absolute terror.

  "Let me go!" Aoi screamed at the absolute top of her highly terrified lungs, her highly musical voice completely entirely entirely shattering the cold, deeply suffocating silence of the dark alleyway.

  She entirely completely completely desperately entirely tried to project her highly terrified voice entirely directly toward the bustling, brightly lit night market located just entirely around the dark brick corner.

  "Somebody please help me! Let me go!" Aoi shrieked highly violently, entirely completely putting her entire soul into the desperate, highly terrifying cry for absolute salvation.

  But her highly terrifying, completely deeply desperate screams were entirely highly tragically completely entirely swallowed by the massive, towering brick walls of the dark alleyway. The distant, highly chaotic noise of the busy street food vendors and the loud, highly entirely completely highly distracted chatter of the hungry students completely entirely drowned out her highly desperate, entirely terrified pleas for life.

  Magnus highly coldly, completely entirely ruthlessly completely clamped his massive hand directly back entirely over her mouth, entirely violently shutting down her highly terrifying screams with absolute, deeply lethal, and entirely completely brutal physical efficiency.

  He was absolutely, entirely completely deeply entirely entirely annoyed by her highly massive, completely aggressive resistance, but he was absolutely entirely not completely entirely panicked. He had entirely completely handled hundreds of highly desperate, completely entirely fighting targets in his dark, deeply illegal career.

  He entirely completely violently used his massive, completely undeniable physical strength to entirely highly forcefully completely drag her highly struggling, deeply thrashing body entirely directly backwards, entirely completely entirely dragging her completely entirely entirely deeper into the absolute, deeply highly suffocating shadows of the narrow cobblestone alleyway, entirely completely away from the faint light of the distant market.

  Aoi highly frantically, completely entirely desperately entirely clawed at the massive, completely immovable hand entirely entirely covering her face. Her small nails entirely completely highly desperately entirely dug completely deeply into his rough skin, entirely completely trying to entirely violently entirely pry his terrifying fingers completely off her mouth so she could entirely entirely completely scream for Erwin one absolutely final, highly desperate time.

  But she entirely completely highly entirely suddenly felt a highly sharp, completely terrifying, and entirely deeply deeply agonizing pinch entirely entirely directly entirely pierce completely entirely through the thick fabric of her warm woolen cardigan, completely entirely violently driving deeply entirely directly into the soft muscle of her shoulder.

  Magnus had entirely completely highly smoothly, entirely violently completely injected the entire, highly concentrated dose of the incredibly powerful, highly lethal chemical sedative completely directly into her bloodstream in the absolute middle of her highly violent, completely desperate physical struggle.

  The absolute, entirely undeniable, and completely deeply terrifying effect of the massive chemical cocktail was entirely completely entirely immediate and absolutely, highly devastating.

  Aoi felt a highly massive, entirely completely terrifying wave of absolute, deeply suffocating, and highly entirely completely unnatural coldness highly violently entirely rush directly entirely through her entire body.

  Her highly frantic, completely aggressive, and entirely violent physical struggles entirely highly completely instantly began to drastically entirely completely weaken. Her highly desperate, entirely completely highly terrifying kicks became entirely completely slow, deeply sluggish, and highly entirely uncoordinated.

  Her small hands, entirely completely highly desperately clawing at his massive wrist, suddenly entirely entirely lost all of their highly fierce, deeply absolutely determined strength, completely entirely highly dropping entirely weakly directly entirely to her sides.

  A highly massive, entirely completely deeply suffocating darkness began to entirely entirely highly rapidly completely creep directly into the edges of her entirely terrified vision. The tall, highly imposing brick walls of the dark alleyway began to completely entirely spin and entirely highly violently entirely blur together into a highly terrifying, deeply completely entirely unrecognizable mass of dark shadows.

  She tried to entirely completely entirely highly scream entirely completely one absolute, highly entirely completely last time. She entirely completely highly wanted to entirely scream Erwin's highly beloved name. She completely entirely highly wanted to tell him that she loved him, entirely completely highly hoping that somehow, highly miraculously, his brilliant, completely deeply entirely terrifying mind would somehow hear her absolute, deeply highly completely desperate final thoughts across the massive campus.

  But absolutely entirely completely no sound entirely came out of her mouth. Her throat was completely entirely paralyzed by the highly powerful, completely deeply entirely toxic chemicals entirely flooding her terrified brain.

  Her highly beautiful, completely entirely dark eyes rolled heavily back into her head. The absolute, completely entirely deeply final image that entirely completely highly flashed across her highly rapidly entirely fading consciousness was the highly beautiful, completely deeply peaceful memory of Erwin entirely smiling warmly entirely directly at her in the sun-drenched apple orchards of Altkanz.

  And then, Aoi completely entirely went entirely entirely absolutely limp.

  Total, highly deeply completely absolute darkness entirely swallowed her soul.

  Magnus highly smoothly, entirely completely highly effortlessly entirely caught her entirely completely unconscious, deeply heavy body completely directly entirely in his massive, highly highly capable arms entirely before she could completely entirely highly violently entirely hit the damp cobblestones.

  He entirely highly completely entirely entirely did not pause for a single, highly microscopic fraction of a highly terrifying second. He completely entirely highly seamlessly adjusted his highly lethal, entirely completely deeply secure grip entirely entirely around her waist.

  He entirely completely highly rapidly entirely carried her entirely highly unconscious, completely completely limp form entirely directly entirely entirely down the highly narrow, completely deeply dark alleyway.

  He completely highly efficiently, entirely entirely highly smoothly entirely walked directly toward the absolute, entirely completely deeply highly secluded dark exit where his highly unremarkable, completely entirely sterile grey sedan was highly quietly, completely entirely highly patiently waiting for him in the deep shadows.

  He entirely completely highly smoothly entirely opened the heavy rear door, completely highly efficiently entirely tossing her unconscious body completely entirely deeply inside the dark cabin. He slammed the heavy door entirely highly entirely shut, entirely completely entirely cutting off her physical existence from the entire outside world.

  Magnus highly smoothly entirely completely slipped directly entirely back into the driver's seat. He entirely completely entirely started the quiet, highly silenced engine. The highly unremarkable grey vehicle entirely completely highly smoothly, entirely deeply quietly entirely pulled entirely completely directly away from the highly dark, entirely deeply secluded curb.

  entirely completely entirely disappearing completely directly entirely into the massive, highly chaotic, and completely entirely highly oblivious night traffic of the capital city exactly like a highly terrifying, completely entirely deeply lethal ghost.

  Back in the highly narrow, completely deeply dark, and entirely highly terrifyingly quiet cobblestone alleyway, absolutely entirely completely no one entirely entirely realized that a highly violent, completely deeply terrifying, and entirely highly absolute tragedy had just completely entirely entirely occurred.

  The cold spring wind entirely completely highly quietly howled through the massive brick buildings.

  The absolutely entirely completely only highly remaining physical trace that Aoi Mizuno had entirely completely highly ever entirely completely walked down that dark, highly secluded path was her highly small.

  completely entirely entirely abandoned leather purse lying highly silently in the dirt, and the completely highly entirely violently crushed cardboard box of highly spicy, completely entirely warm roasted pork noodles.

  The highly savory, completely deeply comforting food was entirely completely spilled highly tragically entirely across the cold, damp cobblestones, the highly thick white steam completely entirely entirely slowly fading away entirely directly into the freezing, completely dark, and entirely completely highly unforgiving night sky.