Everything was a ticking bomb. The Reaper. Shelly. Mike. Rafael. The third controller. The IB agents outside. The military surrounding the area. Every variable existed at once. The Reaper calculated relentlessly. Every possibility. Every branch. Every outcome.

  As the Reaper froze everyone in place, the IB agents reached the rusty door.

  “This is the IB! Open the door now!”

  The controller spotted them. He activated the choker and ran. The Reaper’s sensors immediately locked onto him. The moment the man moved from his position, he found him.

  Shelly began twitching violently. Pain surged through her system as the sonic waves intensified, their wavelength far stronger than before. The choker was now fully linked to her.

  CLANK!

  The IB agents broke through the door and aimed their weapons at Mike and Rafael, who were still seated on the floor, unable to move. The unit captain nodded toward the Reaper. The Reaper released them and rushed to Shelly.

  “Hold on, sister.”

  He knelt beside her. She tried to rip the choker off with her hands. It did nothing. The Reaper took her blade and struck the choker. Nothing. Instead, it absorbed the energy and retaliated, releasing even stronger sonic waves. It was anti-plasma composite.

  “ENOUGH!” the Reaper shouted.

  He grabbed the choker with both hands and began tearing it apart using sheer physical force. Shelly stopped twitching. All the sonic waves redirected into the Reaper.

  “N–No…” Shelly’s voice glitched as she tried to push him away. She couldn’t. She watched his eyes glitch violently, his growl building. Her blind trust in humans now costing her the only one who had accepted her.

  The Reaper’s HUD erupted in warnings. System alerts flooded every corner of his vision. He ignored them.

  Now, he understood her pain. He applied more force. The choker began to crack.

  Shelly stared at her brother in agony. He tried to hide it, but his body vibrated uncontrollably. His eyes flickered on and off. Then, With a single scream from the Reaper, so deep and violent that the agents instinctively stepped back after securing the wanted,

  CRACK!

  The choker shattered. Shelly was free. The Reaper remained on one knee, unmoving. His systems slowly stabilized, but his body continued vibrating so intensely that the wooden floor trembled beneath him.

  She moved to hug him. He pushed her away.

  “I’m still unstable,” he said coldly.

  She knew it was a lie. But she respected it. After all, she had pushed this. He warned her. He helped her. He sacrificed himself for her. At this point… who was really the older one?

  The Reaper turned to the IB team. “I assume you are with us.”

  They were staring at Shelly. They had missed the E-UNIT. The safe streets. The days they could smile at an E-UNIT without fearing gunfire. One of them snapped back to reality.

  “Y–Yes. We are the Intelligence Bureau under local force management. Mr. Jacob Marine sends his regards.” He swallowed. “We are all hoping to see you stand against this rotten system… again. From now on, you have our full protection and assistance.” The agent knelt beside the Reaper. “Anything to restore the Metromania and Altea we grew up in.”

  “Then,” the Reaper said slowly, his arms still recovering from continuous shock, “I froze the third man in the building next to us. I cannot hold him much longer. Retrieve him.”

  The agents exchanged looks, shocked, but moved immediately. “Come on, boys. Let’s bring that idiot in.”

  Minutes passed. The Reaper rested against the wall, silent. Not a single word directed at Shelly. No matter how hard he tried, her words echoed in his HUD. 'Monster.'

  She watched him quietly. As she tried to break the silence, the agents returned with the third man. Shelly turned away and rested her head on her folded arms.

  “Mr. Reaper, we got him.”

  The man trembled. He was the same unit as the soldier who had tried to scan reaper’s barcode.

  “You,” the Reaper said coldly.

  The soldier avoided eye contact.

  “Now I understand how this group tracked us among all the protesters,” the Reaper continued. “You were surveilling us directly.” The Reaper stood. One hundred ninety-five centimeters of black plating. One dripping red eye.

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  The man turned pale. With a single devastating punch,

  CLANG!

  The Reaper slammed him into the wall. The man lost consciousness instantly.

  The IB agents glanced at the scene and smiled faintly. “That brings back memories,” one of them said. “That’s exactly how the E-UNIT cleaned Metromania. Clean. Metallic. Fists.”

  The Reaper looked down at them. “Thank you for your assistance. What is the situation outside?”

  The agent sighed. “It’s getting worse. Civilians armed themselves and are now clashing directly with the military. We believe this is part of Tamer’s plan to restrict your movement.”

  “I see…” The Reaper rested his chin in thought. “…Then we move at night again. While the military is occupied with the protests, we can move safely. They will be exhausted by then.”

  “I agree. We will provide cover. IB agents are positioned across the city.” The agent extended his hand. “Happy to work with you.”

  “Likewise.” The Reaper shook his hand. Then he glanced at Shelly. She had a sad face drawn on, but he couldn’t determine whether it’s hers or just another acting.

  Hours Later.

  Night fell over Metromania, and a form of peace settled in. A broken, fragile one. The streets were filled with corpses from both sides. Civilians suffered the heaviest losses, yet they did not give up. Their silence promised an even harsher fight tomorrow. The IB agents took the lead. Every intersection was covered, every shadow watched, every movement met with raised pistols.

  The duo followed in silence. Shelly kept sneaking glances at her brother, unsure how to start a conversation. Every time she opened her mouth, she stopped herself. The Reaper scanned constantly. His left eye glowed red, thin cracks shining faintly in the darkness. He was not wearing his cloak anymore. Not tonight.

  The agents gestured right as they leaned against a wall. Shelly hid behind them. Reaper followed with slow, heavy steps. Two more agents appeared from behind a corner across the street and signaled that the path was clear. The team advanced silently.

  Their footsteps were soaked in blood. The streets were no longer clean. Every ten meters, a corpse or two lay still. Proof of how little the system valued individual lives.

  Suddenly, gunfire erupted.

  The two agents ahead were shot down by a military unit. The soldiers were heavily armed and already aware of the IB’s betrayal. Their orders were clear. Clean the streets of them. Completely.

  An agent beside Reaper spoke into comms.

  “We lost Team Charlie. Alpha team, advance and free—”

  The Reaper waved his hand across his chest. At that exact moment, an armored vehicle flipped violently and slammed into the wall. It was crushed so hard that the soldiers’ screams echoed through the street. Then the wreck dropped lifelessly to the ground.

  The IB agents looked back. Impressed. Terrified. The captain opened his mouth, but no words came out.

  “I’m done being chased,” Reaper said coldly, pointing forward. “Move.”

  “Understood,” the captain replied after a pause, then signaled the team to continue.

  The streets grew emptier as they moved. Most soldiers were resting for tomorrow’s confrontation with the civilians. Those still outside were either patrolling or hunting IB teams aiding the Reaper.

  Another group’s voices echoed ahead. Loud. Careless. Young soldiers. The veterans were being saved for tomorrow.

  As the group approached, they froze in place. Five pairs of boots stopped mid-step. Within fifteen meters, Reaper's field ‘caught’ muscle control like a net.

  The IB captain looked back. Reaper nodded, cold and tired. “Move.” They passed without another word. Every patrol froze before reaching them, remaining frozen until the team vanished into the darkness.

  The Reaper simply did not have it today. He was tired of suppressing himself. Tired of holding the fragile family together with Shelly. And when she attacked him at the first chance, choosing strangers over him, something inside him cracked.

  His fist clenched without him realizing. Shelly noticed everything.

  After two hours of walking, the agents stopped and hid behind a park wall. Reynold Bridge stood ahead.

  The captain turned to Shelly. “Is this your destination?”

  She was lost in thought and did not answer.

  Reaper spoke instead. “Yes, Agent Dan. Thank you for your service. I will never forget your help. We will inform our father about you.”

  The agent smiled. “No problem, Reaper. Seeing our hero in action was heartwarming. It gives us hope again.”

  He stood straight and saluted. His men followed. “Return to us safely… Reaper.”

  Reaper returned the salute. “Affirmative.”

  Shelly’s chest tightened. This was their word.

  The duo reached the entrance of the bridge. The old E-UNIT factory stood ahead, silent and abandoned. On the way, ten tanks and five helicopters blocked the road. Every bridge in the city was sealed the same way.

  Reaper finally spoke to Shelly. “Go hide.”

  “No,” she refused. “I will not leave you alone anymore.”

  “This is not a request. You are not made—”

  “I said no!” she shouted, then immediately stepped back, realizing what she had done.

  Reaper snapped. “I am tired of your childish behavior. I cannot believe I handled you all the way here. Now I see why father wanted 02 back. You are insufferable.”

  Shelly fired back. “And you are a double-morality monster. You’re afraid to kill, yet you compressed an entire military unit into metal and flesh sphere. You never know when to push back.”

  “I can’t believe you’re lecturing me on morality while you slice human heads for fun and carve blood like a vampire.”

  “And you,” she shot back, “you hydraulic-press everyone in your way like a trash machine. Talking about protecting humans while turning them into paper like a cartoon.”

  “What?” Reaper paused. The sheer absurdity of the insult stopped him.

  Silence fell between them. Heavy, exhausted breathing was the only sound. Shelly stood there, fists clenched, chest heaving. But her eyes weren't angry anymore. They were wet with electronic tears. Her hands were shaking

  The red glow in his eye dimmed slightly. His shoulders dropped.

  He let out a short, dry laugh. It wasn't a happy laugh; it was the laugh of someone who had seen too much in one day. “I cannot believe the world’s strongest weapon is standing here, shaking, yelling about cartoons.”

  Shelly wiped her eyes aggressively. “Shut up.”

  Reaper laughed, pulled her and put his arm around her shoulder. “I realized shouting at you is pointless. It’s like arguing with a small, cute blue monkey.”

  Shelly froze, then hugged him back. “Was I supposed to accept that insult just because you called me cute?”

  “Yes.”

  “You are manipulative.”

  “And you are easy to manipulate.”

  Reaper pushed her lightly and turned toward the military force one kilometer ahead. “Alright, blood freak. Time to slice some heads and satisfy your bloodlust.”

  Hsssssst.

  Shelly drew her blades and stepped beside him. “Stop making me sound like a vampire.”

  “I will the moment you say you’re sorry. Until then, I’ll drop garlic everywhere you go.”

  “Do that and you’ll miss your fingers.”

  “Affirmative,” he replied, slightly stressed.

  Shelly finally smiled. “Code Red… initiated.”

  Facade: The Girl who will Destroy the System

  Facade: The Girl Who Will Destroy the System

  The world is governed by a hidden System.

  Llyne is not chosen. She gains no powers.

  She is simply aware—and the System was not built for that.

  Comedy first. Psychological collapse later.

  Read before the System notices her. ????