The ICU room was dim, lit only by the faint glow of the monitor screens.
Dahlia had fallen asleep in the chair beside Jaemin's bed, her hand resting over his.
The room was silent except for the slow, steady beeping of his heart.
Then—
His fingers twitched.
His eyelids fluttered.
And with a faint groan caught in his throat,
Jaemin woke.
The ceiling above him swayed slightly, his vision blurry, pain flaring in his ribs and abdomen. But the moment he turned his head and saw Dahlia sleeping beside him, his chest loosened.
He lifted a shaky hand, brushing a stray hair from her cheek.
"…Dahlia…" he whispered.
His voice broke.
His heart clenched.
But there was no time.
The moment his senses cleared, the dread inside him surged like a cold wave.
They're coming.
Jaemin slowly, painfully pushed himself upright. The monitors protested—beep—beep—beep—rapid, warning.
He ignored it.
He pulled the oxygen tube from his nose.
Then ripped the IV from his arm.
Blood trickled down his skin.
The noise jolted Dahlia awake.
"J–Jaemin?! Why—what are you doing?!" she gasped, rushing to steady him.
"We need… to get out," he hissed through the rising pain. "Or everyone here will—"
His words cut off as agony stabbed through his wound.
He doubled over, gripping his side, breath hitching.
"Stop!" Dahlia cried, voice trembling. "Please, you're hurting yourself—"
The door burst open.
Dojoon ran in first, followed by Coach Han Insung.
"Hyung!" Dojoon's face drained of color. "You shouldn't be awake—"
Insung froze.
For a heartbeat, the world stilled.
"Jaemin!" Insung froze, tears filling his eyes. Before he could stop himself, he pulled Jaemin into a shaky embrace.
"You stupid boy… you almost died… I can't lose you twice…"
His voice broke, raw with years of bottled grief.
Jaemin gripped his arm.
"Coach… we don't have time."
"We're in danger," Jaemin continued hoarsely. "They won't let me live. And they won't spare Dahlia. Black Viper is already moving."
Dahlia stiffened.
Dojoon clenched his fists.
The door opened again—Judge Choi entered, breath sharp, eyes heavy with worry and authority.
"Then we move you to a safe house," he declared. "Both of you. Tonight."
"No."
Jaemin's answer was firm despite his weak, trembling body.
Judge Choi stared at him, startled.
"Why?"
"You can't predict Black Viper,"
Jaemin said, voice low.
"They already know that strategy. Safe houses are pointless. They'll find us in hours."
Silence washed over the room.
Dahlia swallowed.
"Then… where will we go?"
Jaemin met Judge Choi's eyes directly for the first time.
"There is one place they won't anticipate.
It's not far. But I'm taking Dahlia with me."
Judge Choi stared at him for a long, tense moment.
A heavy silence.
Dahlia looked at her father.
Her father looked at Jaemin.
"…If you could trust me, sir," Jaemin said softly,
"I will bring her back safe."
Finally—Judge Choi nodded once.
"Fine. Take care of my daughter."
His voice shook, though he tried to hide it.
"But Dahlia… stay in contact with us. At all times."
Dojoon stepped beside her.
"And noona—don't forget the capsule GPS.
Keep it in your pocket.
Activate it if anything feels wrong."
She nodded quickly.
Dojoon asked, "So when do you leave?"
Jaemin's expression hardened.
"Now."
Dahlia panicked.
"Now?! Jaemin, you're still bleeding—"
He cut her off.
"They're already on their way."
The room went cold.
Insung swallowed.
"So… what do we do now?"
Jaemin took a slow, painful breath.
"All of you stay alert. We leave discreetly. No direct exits. No elevators."
He pointed toward the doorway with a trembling hand.
"Coach… Judge… please leave the hospital first.
If they see you, they'll follow you. Not us."
Reluctantly, they nodded.
Dojoon looked at Jaemin.
"We'll cover you. My team is armed and ready.
But these aren't ordinary killers."
"No."
Jaemin's voice darkened.
"They're monsters."
----------------------------
Dojoon called his armed forces team.
"Gear up. We protect this hospital with our lives."
Jaemin turned to the empty bed.
"Give me the mannequin."
Dojoon raised an eyebrow. "We're actually doing movie tricks now?"
Jaemin ignored him and arranged the blankets over the mannequin, placing the oxygen mask over its plastic face.
It looked disturbingly real.
Dahlia retrieved medications, bandages, and wound supplies from the nurse's station—everything he'd need to stay alive.
Finally, Jaemin put on a doctor's coat. Dahlia slipped into a nurse's uniform. They pushed a supply cart between them like any other medical team.
Jaemin glanced at Dojoon.
"If they break in—stall them. Don't fight alone."
Dojoon smirked bitterly.
"I'm not stupid. But we won't let them take this hospital."
Jaemin nodded once.
Then they pushed the cart out the back corridor and boarded the ambulance waiting in the restricted area. The engine hummed to life, lights off, silent.
They escaped.
Just in time.
---
INSIDE THE ICU — 10 MINUTES LATER
The air pressure changed.
The temperature dropped.
The fluorescent lights flickered.
Then—
THUD.
THUD.
THUD.
Footsteps.
Not human footsteps.
Shadows slid under doors.
Black coats glided across the glass windows.
Guns raised.
Eyes cold.
And Jin stepped inside.
His smile was razor sharp.
He approached Jaemin's ICU room.
Pulled back the curtain.
Lifted the blanket—
A mannequin stared back at him.
His smile vanished.
"…They tricked us."
He ripped the mask off the figure, fury twisting his face.
"FIND THEM!" he roared.
His voice thundered through the entire floor.
"Now!"
---
The hallways erupted.
Three Shadow assassins lunged forward with knives drawn—silent, fast.
Dojoon's team opened fire.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Bullets tore through walls. Nurses screamed and ran for cover. The emergency shutters locked down automatically.
Dojoon fired at one assassin, but the shadow flipped sideways, dodging bullets like a blur.
Another assassin leapt from the ceiling, landing on an officer and twisting his arm until bone cracked—
"AAARGH!"
Dojoon kicked him hard off the man and shot twice—
BANG! BANG!
The assassin fell, but not dead—
only wounded.
The third shadow slid behind Dojoon, blade raised—
"DOJOON!" an officer screamed.
Dojoon spun around just in time to block the knife with his forearm, blood slicing instantly across his skin.
He hissed in pain but punched the assassin hard across the face.
Two officers tackled the assassin together.
"Hold him—HOLD HIM—!"
The assassin twisted like a snake, knocking one unconscious, stabbing the other in the shoulder.
Dojoon grabbed him from behind, locking the assassin's neck with sheer force.
"You picked the wrong woman to hunt,"
he growled.
He snapped the assassin's arm and slammed him to the ground.
FIVE more shadows broke through the stairwell.
Dojoon's eyes widened.
"Oh, hell—"
"FIRE!"
Gunshots thundered.
Smoke filled the entire ICU floor.
Dojoon shielded his injured men and yelled into the radio:
"THEY'RE AFTER DAHLIA AND JAEMIN! ALL UNITS—BLOCK THE EXITS NOW!"
Screams.
Bullets.
Footsteps like thunder.
Shadows vs. guns.
Silent killers vs. trained police.
The hospital became a war zone.
And Jin…
was still smiling.
Because the hunt had only begun.