Part 2
Moments earlier, while Haruto was rescuing the silver wolf demi-humans, Rina stood face to face with Hans Versalles.
The promise she had made to Haruto echoed in her mind. Refusing to let her run. Forcing her to go against everything she'd ever done to survive.
"Rina… finally have friends. Rina won't disappoint them!" she declared, golden eyes burning with a fierce determination she'd never shown before.
Hans gave a crooked smile, eyes evaluating her like a fascinating work of art.
"I like those eyes," he said admiringly. "Those are the eyes of a natural-born predator."
Rina didn't answer, but her stance remained tight—ready for anything.
"Let me ask you something, just out of curiosity… Why not join the Empire willingly?"
"You… bad person. Rina can feel it. Bad smell. Hurt people."
Hans let out a low chuckle, clearly amused by her blunt honesty.
"You're not wrong. I didn't choose to become this monster. I had no choice. But you… you've got envy-worthy potential."
He paused.
"Camouflage, night vision, trap sensors, hyper smell… If I had your talents, I'd be the perfect assassin."
Rina gritted her teeth, visibly uncomfortable. Her gaze never left him. Her instincts screamed danger.
"You're lucky the king wants you alive. Otherwise, you'd make a magnificent trophy."
Hans tilted his head, thoughtful, then raised one hand with dramatic flair.
"But enough talk… time to raise the curtain!" he declared, tossing a handful of smoke bombs at her feet.
The smoke spread quickly, choking the air with thick clouds that blurred all vision.
Rina didn't waste a second. She activated her heightened senses and moved.
"Kunkun…" she whispered to herself, sniffing the air, trying to pinpoint Hans's location.
From within the haze, his low, sinister laughter echoed.
"Come on, show me what you've got… little raptor."
Rina blinked twice, adjusting her vision. Through the fog, her eyes caught the heat signature of Hans charging toward her with deadly speed.
Their daggers clashed, the sound of metal rang out—neither one yielding an inch.
"Impressive, ladies and gentlemen!" Hans exclaimed, voice theatrical as ever. "More! Show me more!" he shouted gleefully, drawing more daggers from his coat and hurling them at her with terrifying precision.
Rina dodged with instinctive grace, her body moving like it had been trained for this. But her focus wavered for just a second. And to her horror, her tail slipped into view.
"Is she losing focus…? Or is she struggling to keep her human form…?"
Without missing a beat, Hans pulled the massive crossbow from his back.
It was a monster-hunting weapon, designed for something far larger than a demi-human.
"Let's see how you handle Big Daddy," he grinned darkly, caressing the weapon.
Rina vanished.
Her camouflage magic kicking in instantly.
Only a faint shimmer from her golden eyes remained before she disappeared completely.
Hans narrowed his eyes, scanning calmly.
His smile widened.
"Invisibility magic…" he muttered, crouching and analyzing the ground, looking for the smallest sign.
From afar, Seraphina watched in disbelief, still hiding.
"Where did she go…?" she whispered, unable to follow Rina's movement.
But Hans wasn't surprised. With practiced ease, he reached into his coat and pulled out a small vial.
"Unfortunately for you… I've been studying your behavior for two months," he said, with terrifying certainty.
Without waiting for a response, Hans threw the vial to the ground.
The glass shattered, and a pungent scent spread rapidly through the air.
Rina, who had been moving in for an attack, broke her camouflage for an instant—startled by the scent that now betrayed her position.
"Found you," Hans murmured with a triumphant smile.
She lunged from the right with all her fury, but Hans, prepared, easily deflected her strike, using the side of his crossbow to shove her back with force.
The impact sent her stumbling, though the ferocity in her golden eyes never faded.
"Not bad… but you'll have to do better than that if you want to impress me," Hans said, spinning the crossbow in his hands with elegant flair.
Rina calmed her breathing, rising slowly. Though her body showed signs of fatigue, her gaze stayed locked on him—disgust and determination burning ever brighter.
"Multiply!" she shouted, her voice echoing with power.
In an instant, six identical clones of Rina appeared around her. Before the assassin could react, all six vanished—invisible.
Hans stepped back, assessing the situation with narrowed eyes.
"Now this is bad," he muttered, his tone losing a bit of its usual arrogance. "I didn't expect her to have that ability…"
Before he could plan his next move, the clones began to strike—appearing one after another, attacking at high speed before vanishing again.
With a short sword in one hand and his crossbow in the other, Hans did everything he could to deflect the barrage. Each strike rang out, echoing through the smoke that still lingered and amplified the confusion.
"Enough! You're ruining my performance—and that's starting to piss me off!" he shouted, spinning mid-swing to block yet another strike.
That was when the real Rina appeared behind him—silent and swift.
Before Hans could react, she pressed her palm against his back, eyes filled with fierce resolve.
"Electro Impact!"
A blast of green lightning exploded from her hand, surging through Hans's body with a deafening crack.
The shockwave knocked him to his knees, his crossbow slipping from his grip as his suit sparked and sizzled.
From a distance, Seraphina watched with a mix of disbelief and elation.
"Yes! She did it! She took down that maniac!" she cried, unable to contain her joy.
But Rina didn't move.
Her expression remained grim—
As if she knew this wasn't over.
Still on his knees, Hans began to laugh—soft at first, then growing louder.
He rose slowly, despite the visible damage to his body.
His movements remained unnervingly steady.
"Fascinating…" he murmured, brushing dust off his ruined suit as residual sparks faded from his figure.
"You really are your mother's daughter… Zarakov's child."
Rina took a step back, eyes narrowing.
"What kind of monster is this guy?" Seraphina whispered from her hiding spot, the confidence draining from her as Hans stood up like nothing had happened. "Is he even human…?"
Hans adjusted his collar, his smile darker now.
"This suit's ruined. And that pisses me off," he said coldly, dusting off his sleeves before regaining his usual composure. "Now I'm really angry."
Rina clenched her jaw.
"How do you know about my mother? Who told you that?" she demanded, voice wavering between rage and confusion.
Hans smiled with calculating precision, as if savoring the suspense.
"It's my job to know everything about those the king takes interest in," he replied with smug certainty. "That includes Franceszca Zarakov and her little studies on green lightning."
Rina's eyes widened in shock.
"So… the report I received—and your reaction—confirm everything," he added, brushing his hair back with elegance. "You're exactly what I was expecting."
He paused, letting the words sink in before adding in a dramatic whisper:
"But now… it's time to drop the curtain."
In a blur, Hans vanished—
Moving at inhuman speed.
Before Rina could react, he was beside her.
With a precise strike from the butt of his crossbow, he knocked her unconscious.
Her body hit the ground.
The fiery glow in her golden eyes faded.
Hans turned to Seraphina, who stared in horror from the distance.
"And you—stay right where you are," he warned coldly, pointing his crossbow at her. "I'm so done with this filthy forest."
Without waiting for a reply, he knelt beside Rina and pulled out a slave collar. With practiced ease, he fastened it around her neck.
The collar shimmered faintly as it activated—locking perfectly into place.
"Time to head to the extraction point," he muttered, clearly pleased with himself.
With effortless motion, he hoisted Rina over his shoulder like she weighed nothing.
"Can't wait to see the king's happy little face…"
Without another word, Hans vanished into the shadows of the forest, taking Rina with him.
The wind that remained behind carried a quiet unease. A foreboding stillness that spread across the clearing.