The folder remained on the table.
Kaien looked at Seraphina.
"Actually..."
She placed a hand on the folder.
"I do."
Kaien walked over and picked it up.
Before he could open it, Selene suddenly pointed at him.
"Wait."
Kaien stopped.
"What?"
"Turn around."
Kaien frowned.
"Why?"
"Just turn around."
He slowly turned.
The room went quiet.
Lucien stared at his back.
Darius raised an eyebrow.
Nyra's eyes narrowed slightly.
Even Noah lifted his head from the couch.
Kaien looked over his shoulder.
"What?"
Lucien pointed.
"...Is that a sheep?"
Kaien froze.
He had completely forgotten about the emblem.
The back of his black armor had a small stylized sheep stitched into it.
Simple.
Fluffy.
Almost cartoonish.
It looked hilariously out of place against the rest of the armor.
Kaien slowly turned toward the nearest mirror.
He stared at the sheep.
"...Oh."
Selene walked around him.
"You put a sheep on your armor."
"Yeah."
"Why?"
Kaien hesitated.
"It's complicated."
Lucien smiled.
"Now I definitely want to know."
Kaien sighed.
"It started at school."
Nyra looked at him.
"School?"
"Mira."
Selene immediately understood.
"The girl who calls you sheep?"
Kaien pointed at her.
"Don't."
Selene smiled.
"I'm just confirming."
Kaien looked back at the emblem.
"Mira said I looked like a sheep because of my hair."
Lucien looked at Kaien's massive afro.
Then at the sheep.
He nodded slowly.
"She's got a point."
Kaien stared at him.
"You're walking on thin ice."
Lucien laughed.
Kaien continued.
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"It became this stupid joke between us."
He touched one of his braids.
"And..."
His voice became quieter.
"I didn't mind it as much as I pretended."
Darius glanced at the braids.
"Your parents?"
Kaien nodded.
"They started the braids."
The room became quieter.
"They used to do them whenever my hair got too long."
Kaien smiled faintly.
"One was always tighter than the other."
Selene smiled.
"Sounds like they had their own style."
"Yeah."
Kaien looked at the sheep again.
"After they died, I kept the braids."
His fingers rested against one of them.
"So when I was designing this..."
He shrugged.
"I thought I'd put the sheep on the back."
Lucien folded his arms.
"So Gluttony has a secret sheep."
"It's not secret."
"It's definitely not something I expected."
Kaien sighed.
"It's not part of the Sin."
Nyra tilted her head.
"Then what is it?"
Kaien thought for a moment.
"A reminder."
Nobody joked after that.
Kaien looked down.
"That's all."
Darius nodded.
"Then keep it."
Kaien looked at him.
"Wasn't planning on removing it."
Selene smiled.
"It actually suits you."
Kaien groaned.
"Great. Now everyone is doing it."
Noah slowly raised his hand.
"Sheep."
Kaien turned.
"You've said one word all day."
Noah lowered his hand.
"Sheep."
Kaien stared at him.
"...I'm going back to school."
Seraphina cleared her throat.
"Finished?"
Everyone looked toward her.
Kaien turned around.
"Yeah."
"Good."
She slid the folder toward him.
"Because this is why I called everyone here."
Kaien opened it.
The humor disappeared from his face.
Photographs.
A man's face.
A building.
Several documents.
Kaien flipped through the information.
"Who is he?"
"Han Seojin."
Seraphina pointed at the photograph.
"Thirty-four. Publicly, he owns a private security company."
Kaien continued reading.
"Privately?"
"He's involved in weapons trafficking, illegal dungeon material, and several disappearances."
Kaien's expression hardened.
"How many?"
"We don't know."
Kaien looked up.
Seraphina continued.
"What we do know is that he's responsible for enough deaths that we've decided he's no longer worth watching."
Kaien closed the folder.
"So..."
He looked around the room.
"Assassination?"
Seraphina nodded.
"Yes."
Kaien was silent for a moment.
This was different from training.
Different from hunting monsters.
There was a person on the other end.
A person he was being asked to kill.
He already knew the answer.
If the Veiled Crown was going to operate outside the law, there would be moments like this.
Kaien put the folder under his arm.
"When?"
"Tonight."
Kaien nodded.
"Alright."
Darius stood.
"I'm going with you."
Kaien looked at him.
"Thought you said this was my assignment."
"It is."
Darius grabbed his coat.
"I'm just making sure your first one doesn't become your last."
Kaien smirked.
"Fair enough."
Later that night, Kaien stood on a rooftop overlooking Seoul.
His armor was hidden beneath a long black coat.
His rifle rested beside him.
The sheep on his back was covered.
Darius stood several meters away.
"You remember the plan?"
Kaien nodded.
"Target enters the building at 11:40."
"Then?"
"Wait for a clear shot."
"Then?"
"Take it."
Darius nodded.
"No unnecessary fighting."
Kaien looked through his scope.
"Got it."
The city stretched beneath them.
Thousands of lights.
Cars moved through the streets.
People walked beneath them, completely unaware of what was happening above.
Kaien adjusted his scope.
11:39.
He waited.
11:40.
A black vehicle stopped outside the building.
A man stepped out.
Han Seojin.
Kaien raised his rifle.
He watched the target enter.
"He's inside."
Darius nodded.
"Wait."
Kaien waited.
Several minutes passed.
Then the target appeared behind a large window.
Kaien adjusted his aim.
The crosshair settled over his chest.
His breathing slowed.
His finger rested against the trigger.
Then—
something felt wrong.
Kaien frowned.
The target wasn't looking at him.
But his body language had changed.
Like he knew something was coming.
Kaien narrowed his eyes.
"That's strange."
Darius looked over.
"What?"
Kaien didn't answer.
He pulled the trigger.
BOOM.
The bullet flew.
But Han Seojin moved.
Not after the shot.
Before it.
The bullet shattered the window behind him.
Kaien's eyes widened.
"...What?"
Han Seojin slowly turned toward the broken window.
Then he looked directly at Kaien.
Across hundreds of meters.
Kaien lowered the rifle.
There was no way he could have seen him that clearly.
Darius immediately stood.
"Kaien."
"I know."
The target smiled.
Then he disappeared from the window.
Kaien's instincts screamed.
"Move."
A bullet struck the rooftop.
Darius rolled away.
Another shot hit the concrete where Kaien had been standing.
Kaien grabbed his rifle and ran.
"He's shooting at us!"
Darius drew his weapon.
"Fall back!"
Kaien jumped behind a concrete barrier.
"Yeah, I'm trying!"
A figure landed on the rooftop.
Han Seojin.
Kaien stared.
He'd crossed the distance far too quickly.
The man straightened his suit.
"You people really need better manners."
Kaien slowly stood.
"You know..."
He drew a knife.
"I was supposed to kill you quietly."
Han Seojin smiled.
"Then I suppose we're both disappointed."
Kaien's eyes narrowed.
He didn't know it yet.
He didn't know who Han Seojin really worked for.
He didn't know that the man standing in front of him wasn't some ordinary criminal.
He was an officer of one of Seoul's largest underground organizations.
And Kaien had just walked directly into their territory.
Han Seojin rushed forward.
Kaien barely blocked the first strike.
The impact threw him backward.
He twisted through the air and landed.
His armor absorbed most of it.
Most.
His arm still hurt.
Kaien flexed his fingers.
"...Yeah."
He drew another knife.
"This guy's definitely not normal."
Han Seojin smiled.
"Finally figured that out?"
Kaien rushed forward.
The assassination had become a fight.
And somewhere inside Kaien's mind—
something suddenly appeared.
[Milestone Quest Detected.]
Kaien froze.
"What?"
Han Seojin's fist came toward his face.
Kaien ducked.
The notification remained.
[Level 25 Milestone Reached.]
[Milestone Quest Unlocked.]
[Quest: Unavoidable Encounter]
[Objective: Defeat an opponent beyond your current ability.]
[Reward: Weapon Evolution — Armored Arsenal: Panzer Series]
Kaien's eyes widened.
Panzer.
The ability he'd been waiting for.
The system hadn't revealed it before.
He hadn't been able to unlock it.
Until now.
Han Seojin attacked again.
Kaien blocked.
His feet slid backward.
The concrete cracked beneath his boots.
[Quest Accepted.]
Kaien looked at the notification.
Then at Han Seojin.
A grin slowly appeared beneath his mask.
"Alright."
He tightened his grip on his knife.
"Let's get this over with."
Han Seojin charged.
Kaien met him head-on.
And for the first time that night—
Kaien wasn't trying to escape.
He was fighting to win.