Despite being pushed to the brink of death, a gun pointed at his head at close range, a knife lodged near his heart, caught in situations where only one life could be saved, or even facing the risk of becoming a global criminal, there was one quality that set Chae Eun-woo apart in the world of espionage.
Adaptability.
He had an uncanny ability to adjust on the fly.
To mentally calculate a Plan C when Plan B was already off the table.
To devise multiple backup strategies as if he were navigating a complex mental map with countless routes available.
Chae Eun-woo who—
“….”
.…Always convinced himself he could survive any situation, despite clearly having no plan.
That unwavering belief in himself that, even on his dying breath, even with the odds stacked against him, he would somehow make it through.
That was what drove him now.
Even when he knew that fighting Adrienne at this moment was completely impractical.
Bang—!
A magic bullet tore through the air as Vanitas pulled the trigger. But Adrienne barely reacted, only flinching as the bullet struck the ground in front of her.
“You missed,” she said, her gaze shifting from the bullet hole, then to Vanitas.
There was no need to pretend, Vanitas Astrea clearly knew the truth.
“Are you an idiot?” she asked, then shifted her gaze toward the unconscious Margaret.
The deal was off. Clevius was most likely dead. Without hesitation, Adrienne raised her staff, aiming it at Margaret.
“You’re a mess, professor,” she remarked, scanning Vanitas from head to toe. He looked like a man moments away from death.
“Don’t,” Vanitas said, raising a trembling hand. “You don’t want her dead, and you don’t want me dead either.”
Adrienne’s brow arched in curiosity. “What do you mean?”
“The Araxys wants to unseal the Dragon Bones, right?”
For a brief moment, surprise flickered across Adrienne’s face before she quickly masked it. “How do you know that?” she asked.
No one should have known. While suspicions surrounding the Araxys and the theft of the Dragon Bones were justified, very few even knew which individuals within society were members of the cult. Naturally, those in the loop assumed Araxys was behind the theft. But the ultimate goal—to unseal the bones—was something no outsider should have been aware of.
“….”
Adrienne’s mind raced. Insider information? That was impossible. Anyone even thinking of betrayal would suffer the brunt from both the Araxys and the world itself.
“But you can’t unseal it,” Vanitas continued. “Because none of you can read the demonic language.”
Adrienne pursed her lips, considering his words before finally speaking. “And what does that have to do with your lives?” she asked.
At that moment, Vanitas opened his mouth.
“읽을 수 있어요.”
“….What?”
“I can read demonic language,” he said. “Even speak it, to a certain extent.”
“….”
Silence stretched between them. Adrienne’s grip on her staff tightened.
Her expression remained unreadable, but Vanitas could see the subtle shift in her posture. The way her fingers twitched ever so slightly. The way her breath slowed as she processed his words.
“….”
Then, after a pause, she let out a quiet chuckle.
“….Lying won’t save you.”
“I’m not lying.” Vanitas’s tone remained calm despite the blood still dripping from his wounds. “You just heard me speak it.”
Adrienne’s gaze bore into him, searching for any sign of deception. If he was bluffing, if this was a desperate attempt to stall for time, she would see through it.
But there was nothing.
“….”
The gears in her mind turned. She definitely did hear it.
The tonality, the warped structure of a language no human could ever hope to understand, despite centuries of research.
The same cadence she had only ever heard from demons had slipped from his lips so casually just like that.
The Araxys had spent years trying to decipher the demonic inscriptions. If Vanitas was telling the truth…. then killing him now would be a grave mistake.
“….”
No. The very fact that there was even a chance Clevius could have won instead of him was already a miscalculation.
Adrienne had nearly made a mistake.
“Fine,” she said, frowning. “Let’s say I believe you. What do you want?”
Vanitas let out a slow, shaky breath before speaking.
“You let her go. In exchange, I’ll give you exactly what the Araxys wants.”
“You’re in no position to bargain.” Adrienne tilted her head, amusement flickering in her eyes. “What gives you the assurance I won’t take you by force?”
“….”
Vanitas didn’t respond. Instead, he pulled the trigger.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Four bullets fired into the air.
Adrienne flinched, caught off guard. “What are you—”
Without a word, Vanitas flipped open the revolver, tilting it just enough for Adrienne to see the inside of the chamber. Then, with a smooth motion, he spun it and pressed the muzzle to the side of his head.
“Five empty chambers. One bullet,” he said.
“….”
Adrienne’s lips pressed into a thin line as a slow realization dawned upon her.
If she tried to capture him, he’d pull the trigger without hesitation. And if he died, the knowledge of the demonic inscriptions would die with him.
A beat of silence passed between them.
“러시안 룰렛.”
“….”
He wasn’t bluffing. He could really speak demonic.
This was the first of this case Adrienne had ever encountered. How was it even possible?
A man in his mid-twenties, single-handedly deciphering the demonic language to this extent? Not just reading it—but speaking it fluently? Even the most accomplished scholars had only managed partial translations, and those were still riddled with inaccuracies.
This shouldn’t have been possible.
“Wait.” Adrienne stepped forward.
Click.
Vanitas pulled the trigger.
“….”
Her breath hitched as she felt like time had frozen for a split second.
Then—nothing. Just the empty, hollow sound of a dry fire.
Adrienne’s gaze flickered to Vanitas, but his expression remained steadfast. He didn’t flinch, nor did he hesitate. He had committed to the gamble entirely.
Her grip tightened around her staff. “You’re insane….”
“나는 더 나쁘게 불렸다.”
“….”
“Put your staff down and move away from Margaret,” he demanded.
Her fingers curled tighter around the staff. Inside her coat, a parchment lay ready for activation. She didn’t want to obey. There was no guarantee that Vanitas Astrea would even cooperate. If anything, it was highly likely he wouldn’t. Yet, one undeniable fact weighed on her mind. He might be the only person in this world who could read the demonic tongue.
“….”
This was humiliating. It was like she was nothing more than a dog on a leash.
The order given to her was to kill Vanitas Astrea. He knew too much about the Blood Moon, far more than he should. The Araxys understood the weight of that knowledge. If he had deciphered this much, it was only a matter of time before he uncovered the truth about them as well. That alone made him a priority target.
“….”
But now, the tables had clearly turned.
“….”
Slowly, Adrienne lowered her staff. But at the same time, her fingers discreetly reached into her coat, slipping toward the parchment—
Click.
The sharp sound of metal echoed through the silence.
Ba… Thump!
Adrienne’s heart skipped a beat.
“Are you an idiot?” Vanitas asked, spinning the chamber as he threw her own words back at her.
“….”
Her fingers froze over the parchment.
Then, without hesitation, Vanitas lowered the revolver, pressing the muzzle under his chin.
“Do you not understand?” he said. “This is your one chance. Why do you hesitate?”
“We both know you might kill me the moment I put this down.”
Vanitas scoffed. “You think I’m in any condition to even do that?”
“….”
She said nothing, but her eyes flickered over him. His shaky figure, the blood soaking his clothes, the tremble in his fingers. By all logic, he should be near collapse. Yet the way he carried himself, the way he controlled the situation, made it impossible to ignore the risk.
“당신은 선택의 여지가 없습니다.”
“….”
Adrienne swallowed, sweat trickling down her forehead.
“If you doubt me, have you not considered just who I am?”
Her eyes widened.
She had completely overlooked Vanitas Astrea’s reputation due to his recent deeds. But he was…. Yes. He was Vanitas Astrea.
The man accused of practicing dark magic. The one whose name was tied to countless rumors.
Things began to piece together in her mind, despite the absurdity of it all.
Perhaps First Inspector Damien’s instincts had been right all along.
“….”
Slowly, Adrienne set her staff down.
Without missing a beat, Vanitas spoke. “Everything. Your pockets. Your coat. Your clothes.”
“W-What…?”
Adrienne’s face flushed red, caught entirely off guard by that statement.
Vanitas raised a brow. “Relax. I don’t have the time or the energy for whatever you’re imagining.”
“T-This is ridiculous….”
Click.
The sound of the revolver’s hammer being pulled back made her stiffen.
Without another word, Adrienne hastily removed her coat and set it down. Then, reluctantly, she began unzipping her skirt.
But at that very moment….
Swoosh—!
She hadn’t heard him chant. In fact, he had still been speaking to her. Yet suddenly, a massive Stone Cannon erupted from the ground, slamming into her torso and sending her stumbling backward. Blood dripped from her abdomen.
“Fuck—”
Adrienne frantically reached for a hidden parchment tucked inside her bra. But before she could activate it—
Slash!
A Windblade tore through the air, knocking the parchment from her grasp—and slicing through her hand in the process.
Her scream barely escaped her lips before, in a blur, the bloodied figure of Vanitas Astrea was upon her.
“Akh—!”
She had no time to react.
In an instant, he pinned her down, fingers wrapping tightly around her throat. His thumbs pressed against her windpipe, cutting off her air completely.
Desperately, she fought back, clawing at his arms as her nails dug deep into his forearms, drawing blood. She couldn’t chant. She couldn’t use magic. “Huukh….”
Those cold, indifferent amethyst eyes bore down on Adrienne. Not with rage, but with something Adrienne couldn’t describe.
How could she?
“Huukh…!”
When her vision was slowly fading to black.
With his hands still tightening around her throat, Vanitas reached into his coat and pulled out a knife.
“….”
Adrienne’s gaze flicked to the side before she smirked.
Slash—!
At that moment, the light drained from her eyes as blood gushed out in torrents from her throat, staining Vanitas’s face, his coat—everything.
——No!
A voice screamed beside him.
Before Vanitas could react, a force slammed into him, knocking him aside. “Ugh!”
He staggered as pain tore through his side, his wound ripping open beneath the poorly wrapped cloth. Fresh blood seeped through, but his focus blurred as he tried to process what had just happened.
“….”
When his vision cleared, he found himself pinned beneath Margaret.
She was on top of him, staring with a hollow, tear-streaked expression. Her lips were pale. Her eyes were swollen as if she had just woken up. Her body trembled weakly, likely from the injuries she had suffered earlier.
“What the hell did you do?!” she screamed. “Why?! Why?!”
Her hands clenched around his collar, shaking him.
Vanitas coughed, and Margaret’s eyes had already shifted to the side. He followed her gaze.
“….”
Johanna’s lifeless body lay in the distance, gruesomely severed at the waist.
Margaret turned back to him. “How could you?!” Her voice cracked with betrayal.
“Listen to m—”
“I trusted you!”
Vanitas frowned, feeling his body growing colder with each passing second as the bleeding worsened.
His trembling hand brushed against Margaret’s cheek, but she only stared down at him with a gaze that could have killed on its own.
“You don’t know… the full story,” Vanitas murmured, his voice weakening with every breath.
His finger slid down her cheek, smearing it with both his and Adrienne’s blood.
Margaret’s breath hitched before she snapped.
“What’s there to know?!” she screamed. “Johanna is dead! Adrienne is dead! Clevius is nowhere to be seen! And you—you’re lying here like you didn’t just kill them!”
Her hands trembled as she gripped his collar tighter, shaking him.
Vanitas groaned, pain ripping through him as his body nearly went limp under her grasp.
Margaret’s vision blurred with tears. “Say something, damn it!”
Vanitas forced a slow shudder, his eyelids fluttering. Darkness pressed at the edges of his vision.
But then, barely above a whisper, he muttered, “What was I supposed to do… leave you to die?”
“….”
….Before his eyes finally slid shut.