Nekomata couldn't help but shiver. The sudden drop in temperature dulled even her reflexes.
She watched in horror as the Butcher raised its frozen cleaver...
And as it began to fall, her pupils dilated in shock. Nicole's voice rang in her ears.
"Nekomata! What are you doing?! Get out of the way—now!"
Dodge!
Yes—she had to move!
Snapping out of her daze, Nekomata launched herself like a true Nekomian, legs exploding with force as she narrowly avoided the falling blade.It all happened too fast.
A deafening explosion tore through the building—half of it was blown apart, and what remained swayed on the verge of collapse.
But that wasn't the worst of it.
As the dust from the blast settled, a massive figure began to emerge—a towering monster, seven or eight meters tall, its body encased in obsidian-like crystal. In its hand, it gripped a massive piece of construction machinery, thick with frost, shaped like a gigantic, menacing cleaver.
The Butcher of the Dead End.
The moment it appeared, the temperature around them dropped several degrees.
The pressure was suffocating.
She made it!
Relief surged through her—but only for a second.
The Butcher's cleaver slammed into the ground with a thunderous boom, sending a shockwave through the floor that tore up the surrounding debris like an earthquake.
Nowhere left to run.
Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind and pulled her back—Sam Li had caught her just in time.
Then—
Billy's voice rang out.
"Star Emblem Glory Phantom!"
Bullets erupted from his twin pistols, each shot striking a piece of falling debris, shattering the rubble before it could land.
But—one massive slab got through.
Anby didn't hesitate. She drew the blade at her waist, leapt into the air, and sliced the stone clean in half.
"Meow—thank you all for saving me!!!"
"Billy, stay focused!"
"I am focused! I'm out of ammo! We're seriously screwed—"
"Anby! Billy! Sam Li! Nekomata! What are you all standing around for?! Run! You're not seriously thinking of fighting the Butcher, are you?!"
Nicole had one arm around the little girl and the other gripping her briefcase.
And she was still trying to rally the others to run.
She was more desperate than anyone.
But...
They didn't call it the Butcher of the Dead End for nothing. On the public forums, there was a saying: "Those who see the Butcher meet a dead end."
Hardly anyone who had ever encountered the Butcher survived.
The only survivor had been saved by a Rift that appeared out of nowhere.
And now—Nicole, Anby, Billy, and the others were already in its sights, locked in at close range.
Escape wasn't going to be easy.
And the building beneath their feet was about to collapse. If they didn't escape soon, it wouldn't be the Butcher that killed them—it'd be the rubble.
It was now or never.
Then Nicole spotted it—a shimmer of rainbow-colored light in the distance.
Her heart leapt.
She turned and shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Anby! Billy! Sam Li! Nekomata! It's the Hollow's exit—we're saved! Hurry and follow me!"
"Boss Nicole, you're amazing! You always lead us out alive—"
"Not good! The Butcher's catching up—jump!"
"Meow! It's too late—someone help me—!"
Nekomatacould feel the crushing pressure bearing down from behind. She scrambled forward on all fours with everything she had—but she still couldn't shake the Butcher's lock-on.
A quick glance over her shoulder.
The Butcher of the Dead End had already leapt into the air, raising his cleaver—several times larger than Nekomataherself—and brought it crashing down in her direction.
In that moment, as death loomed overhead, time seemed to slow to a crawl.
Her pupils dilated.
Images flashed through her mind like scenes from a film.
Her joyful childhood memories with the Red Fang Gang...
The moment the gang lost its way and turned to violence...
The entire scheme she'd devised to deceive Hare's House in the name of revenge...
And the moment she was saved by the very people she meant to betray...
Was this... her life flashing before her eyes?
She didn't know.
But right then, she remembered something White Boss had told her as a child:
"Hurt others, and you'll only end up hurting yourself."
If White Boss hadn't strayed into wrongdoing, Hare's House wouldn't have taken him down.
If she hadn't plotted against them, she wouldn't be in this situation now.
Her life recap ended.
Nekomatastared helplessly at the massive cleaver descending on her.
The hope in her eyes faded, replaced by utter despair.
But at that moment—
A familiar figure, dressed in retro clothing, suddenly appeared out of nowhere, positioning himself between Nekomataand the deadly blade.
A flash of golden light erupted.
The giant cleaver slammed down onto the figure.
BOOM!
Golden light burst outward like a storm, sweeping through the surroundings.
Caught in the shockwave, Nekomata's small frame was thrown into the air—
she arced through the sky like a tossed doll, landing hard near the Hollows exit.
"No—Sam Li! Get out of there—!"
She cried out instinctively, reaching up, desperate to pull him with her.
But the distance was too great.
She couldn't reach him.
She could only watch—watch Sam Li take that terrifying blow for her, watch the Butcher strike him down.
At that moment, there was only one thought in Nekomata's mind:
Sam Li is dead.
And that—had been her plan all along.
But now, seeing it with her own eyes, watching Sam Li fall to protect her, she didn't feel any satisfaction.
Only sorrow.
Her eyes welled up.
She felt the sudden urge to cry.
She was the one who had planned to kill Sam Li and destroy all of Hare's House.
Yet when her life was in danger, it was Sam Li who had stepped forward—
risking everything to save her.
No!
This... wasn't how it was supposed to go.
As she tumbled into the exit, the Hollow behind her began to close in, shrinking until it disappeared entirely from sight.
Gone with it was the exit itself...
The terrifying Butcher of the Dead End...
The wounded Sam Li...
And that dazzling golden light...
...
Outside the Hollows—
Thud! Billy was the first to land.
"Ha!" He struck a stylish pose.
"Rough landing—but cool as hell."
Then—
Thud thud thud thud—
Nicole, the little girl, Anby, and Nekomataall came crashing down on top of him in quick succession.
Billy lay flattened against the ground.
"!!!!!!"
Anby exhaled with relief.
"Under Nicole's wise leadership, Hare's House once again turned disaster into survival—escaping the Butcher."
Billy groaned, muffled.
"Boss Nicole..."
Nicole, now sitting on Billy's back, braced herself with one hand on her hip.
"Ugh... So stiff. Billy, wear more padding next time."
Billy muttered again, "Boss Nicole, Nekomatais crying... I think our client might be injured."
Nicole turned around.
"Huh? Let me check. But just so you know—if the client gets hurt during the commission, Hare's House takes no responsibility."
She rushed over to Nekomataand gave her a quick once-over.
No wounds. Not a scratch. Not even a single hair out of place.
Nicole raised an eyebrow.
"Nekomata, we made it out. Why are you crying?"
Nekomata lifted her head, tears brimming in her eyes.
"Sam Li... Sam Li is dead... I got Sam Li killed—"