As Kai stood there, grappling with the overwhelming weight of everything that had just happened, a cold, distant sound cut through the thick silence: the click of a gun’s safety being released. It was so faint at first, almost imperceptible, but it sliced through the moment like a blade, pulling him back to reality. He turned his head slowly, his eyes locking onto the shadowy figure standing a few feet away.

Sato.

Kai’s breath caught in his throat as he saw the man, dressed in a black coat that seemed to absorb the light around him. His face was a mask of cold indifference, but the look in his eyes was something far more dangerous. There was no hesitation, no regret, just calm, calculated violence.

The gun in Sato's hand gleamed ominously in the faint light, its barrel pointing directly at Kai. The weight of the situation hit him hard—harder than the guilt, harder than the realization of Hana's death. This was real. This was death staring him in the face.

“Kai…” Minseo’s voice wavered from behind him, filled with a mixture of fear and confusion. “What... what’s happening?”

But Kai couldn’t respond. His throat was dry, his body frozen. He knew that Sato wasn’t here for a chat. He wasn’t here to ask questions. He was here to finish it.

Sato’s lips twitched into a faint smirk, though there was no warmth in it, just a hollow expression. His finger tightened ever so slightly on the trigger.

“You should’ve known better, Kai,” Sato said, his voice low and measured, almost eerily calm. “You played with something far beyond your control. And now... it's time to pay.”

Kai’s mind raced. He didn’t know how Sato knew about the Ledger. He didn’t even know why Sato was here or what had led him to this moment. All he knew was that there was no escape. Not this time.

“Sato… wait,” Kai finally managed to croak, his voice barely above a whisper. He raised his hands slowly, palms facing outward in a gesture of surrender. “You don’t have to do this.”

Sato's eyes narrowed, his finger resting lightly on the trigger. “Oh, but I do.”

Without another word, the gunshot rang out—a sharp, deafening crack that echoed off the walls of the empty space around them.

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For a split second, everything seemed to slow down. The world blurred, the sound muffled, and Kai felt a hot, searing pain explode in the side of his head. It was a strange sensation—sudden, violent, and then... nothing. His body crumpled to the ground, his vision swimming as the world around him faded into darkness.

Minseo screamed, a raw, piercing cry that filled the air, her body frozen in place as she watched Kai fall. Her mind couldn’t comprehend what had just happened. She could feel her heart pounding, her chest heaving as her breath came in ragged gasps.

“Sato, no!” she screamed, her voice trembling. “Please, no!”

But Sato’s gaze was cold and unwavering as he turned the gun toward her. There was no mercy in his eyes, no hesitation in his movements. Minseo could see her reflection in the polished metal of the gun’s barrel, her wide, terrified eyes staring back at her.

She stumbled backward, her hands flying to her face as if trying to shield herself from what was coming. “Please, please don’t—”

Another gunshot cracked through the air.

The impact was immediate. The bullet tore through Minseo’s skull with brutal precision, cutting off her plea mid-sentence. Her body jerked violently before collapsing onto the ground beside Kai, her lifeless eyes still open, her last breath lost in a soft exhale.

Sato lowered the gun, his expression unchanging as he looked down at the two bodies lying motionless at his feet. For a moment, he said nothing, the silence around him thick and oppressive. The smell of gunpowder lingered in the air, mixing with the cold scent of death that now clung to the space.

He didn’t feel anything—no satisfaction, no relief. It was just a task, just another step in a long chain of events he had been set in motion long before either of them had even known him. The Ledger had always been dangerous, far more dangerous than Kai had ever realized. And now, it was his responsibility to take it back, to make sure it never fell into the wrong hands again.

Sato stepped forward, kneeling down beside Kai’s body. His fingers found the edge of the Ledger, still tucked into the folds of Kai’s jacket. He pulled it free, holding it up to the dim light as if studying it for a moment. There was something almost reverent in the way he handled it, as if the book held more power than anyone could truly understand.

With a sigh, Sato tucked the Ledger into his own coat, standing up and giving the scene one last look. Kai and Minseo were gone. The mistakes they had made—the choices that had led them to this—were over now. They had underestimated the power they had been playing with. And in the end, they had paid the price.

Turning on his heel, Sato walked away, his footsteps echoing in the now-empty space. He didn’t look back. There was no need to. The Ledger had been retrieved, and his mission was complete.

But even as he left, the weight of the book in his coat pocket seemed heavier than before, as if the souls of those it had claimed still clung to it, whispering, waiting for the next person foolish enough to open its pages.