Freedom, Danny soon learned, was not a reward.
It was a declaration of war.
Three nights had passed since he tore the cursed mark from his face.
But peace was fleeting.
On the fourth night, the sky above the city bled red.
A terrible, oppressive silence descended. No cars, no voices. Not even the night winds dared to breathe.
And then, his phone buzzed.
📧 FROM: Fate Exchange"Final Notice: Termination Protocol Initiated. The Hunter is coming. Surrender or face annihilation."
The temperature dropped instantly. Frost crept along the windowpanes of his tiny apartment.
Outside, a figure appeared in the fog—tall, draped in chains, and wearing a featureless, gleaming silver mask twisted into a permanent smile.
The Final Hunter.
The Executioner of the Fate Exchange.
The being that existed solely to hunt down those who broke their contracts.
Danny's pulse thundered in his ears.
He grabbed Claire's hand. "We have to run. Now."
But before they reached the door, the walls around them fractured like glass, and a wave of paralyzing cold rolled over their bodies.
Time seemed to slow.
The Final Hunter stepped through the cracked fabric of reality, dragging a massive, jagged scythe forged from countless broken contracts—each one etched with the names of souls it had already claimed.
One name glowed brighter than all the others.
Danny Wong.
The Hunter raised its hand, and with a sickening pull, Danny felt his very soul being dragged forward—ripped from his body, drawn toward the glowing sigil on the Hunter's chest.
His vision blurred.
The world darkened.
And through the swirling shadows, he heard the voice of the Exchange one final time:
"There is no escape, Agent Wong. You made your choice. Now… accept the final consequence."
But as his soul drifted closer to the Hunter's waiting grasp, Claire's voice cut through the darkness.
"Danny, fight it! You broke the curse once… fight for us!"
Something snapped inside him.
A defiant spark reignited.
He wasn't the man who bowed to Fate Exchange anymore.
With a primal scream, Danny pulled his soul back into his body and stood to face the Hunter.
The cursed mark may have been gone…
But the experience had left him changed.
He wasn't a broker anymore. He was something far more dangerous—
A man with nothing left to lose.
The Hunter lunged, scythe slashing through the air with impossible speed.
But Danny dodged at the last second, his reflexes sharper than before, almost… supernatural.
His hand closed around a fragment of the broken Fate Exchange token still hidden in his pocket.
It flared with blue flame, reacting to his defiance.
And for the first time ever, the Hunter… hesitated.
Danny grinned, a real smile this time.
"Tell your masters," he growled through clenched teeth, "I'm not running anymore. And if they want me… they'll have to come down here themselves."
The Hunter paused, its head tilting, and then… it spoke.
"Then prepare, Danny Wong. The Architect is coming."
And just like that, the Hunter vanished into black mist, leaving behind only the unbearable cold… and the promise of a final reckoning.
🎬 [End of Chapter 14]