Chapter 26: I prefer to handle things peacefully

The guards immediately gathered in a tight circle, standing back-to-back as they looked around the dark room in alarm.

"Don’t think acting mysterious will save you today! Who are you trying to scare?!" Mr. Halka shouted into the shadows.

"I’m not trying to scare you..." Nova’s calm voice echoed through the dark. Her words were instantly followed by the sickening crunch of breaking bones and the agonizing scream of a guard.

"You aren’t worth the effort," Nova finished.

She appeared directly in front of another guard, flashing him a sweet smile. Before the man could even raise his gun to shoot her, a dagger materialized in her hand. In a blur of motion, she stabbed him repeatedly in the eyes.

"Ahhh!" the man shrieked in agony.

But Nova wasn’t done. She delivered a heavy, crushing blow to his chest, shattering his ribs and sending his body flying across the room.

"Ah... finally, I feel alive. Haha!" Nova laughed aloud.

A barrage of gunshots rang out, but Nova dodged them effortlessly. Moving like a shadow, she slaughtered the men brutally until only two remained.

The floor was painted red, scattered with corpses and severed limbs. Blood already drenched Nova’s clothes.

"I’m right here. Don’t panic," Nova whispered. She appeared right behind one of the two surviving men, her dark, wicked smile never fading.

The other man was terrified. Desperate to survive, he fired his weapon repeatedly without checking his target. When the room finally went quiet, he stopped shooting and slowly raised his head. Shock washed over him, and his gun slipped from his trembling hands.

The person he had just shot to pieces was his own partner. Nova was still standing behind the dead man, entirely unharmed, her dark smile still perfectly in place.

The shot guard cast one last, confused look down at his bleeding body before collapsing flat on the floor, lifeless.

The last remaining guard, realizing he had just shot his own comrade to death, broke down in pure terror. "Please... please spare me!" he begged, crawling backward across the floor.

Nova’s eyes glowed fiercely as she stepped closer to him. "What a pity. Apologies are the most useless things to me," she whispered.

Suddenly, she thrust her bare hand straight into his chest. With a ruthless tear, she pulled her hand back out, his still-beating heart resting in her palm.

The man stared at her with a frozen expression of pure shock before his body collapsed lifelessly to the floor.

Nova stared at the heart in her hand. A moment later, it dissolved into a glowing blue light, disappearing from her grip in the blink of an eye.

She turned her gaze to the terrified father and daughter, who were shivering in the corner. "I told you earlier that you made a mistake. I don’t need to bother my husband to back me up. I prefer to handle things peacefully," she chuckled. In the pitch-black room, her laughter sounded like a direct invitation from death itself.

She no longer looked like a delicate, harmless young woman. Bathed in the faint moonlight, she looked like a female devil collecting the souls of the living.

"Who... who are you?" Mr. Halka stammered, his voice dry and barely audible.

Nova stared at him, her smile widening. "Your worst nightmare," she replied. She turned and walked toward the entrance, pulling the heavy doors open. "From this moment on, every step you take brings you closer to your death," she promised.

She walked out freely. No one dared to block her way.

As soon as Nova stepped outside, the power returned. Bright lights flooded the room, fully revealing the bloody, horrific mess that used to be the sitting room.

Alan rushed back inside. His expression twisted in horror at the sight of the blood and mangled bodies scattered across the floor. "Where is she?!" he demanded in a panic.

Mr. Halka and Dora were far too terrified to speak. Deeply traumatized, Dora could only raise a shaking finger and point toward the entrance.

Without another word, Alan dashed back outside, desperate to catch up with Nova.

"She... she is a devil! A true devil," Mr. Halka murmured. His legs finally gave out, and he collapsed heavily into his chair.

Outside, Alan spotted Nova walking calmly down the dark street. He quickened his pace, reaching out to grab her hand and stop her. His eyes went wide as he finally got a good look at her. She was covered from head to toe in blood.

"Are you injured?" he asked frantically, his eyes scanning her body for wounds.

Nova just smiled, staring up at him. "Are you worried about me?" she teased softly.

Alan paused, looking deeply into her eyes. "You... you need to leave the country. You’ve deeply offended him. He definitely won’t let this go. Come with me, I’ll help you escape," he urged her.

Nova glanced down at his hand, which was still gripping hers tightly, and slowly shook her head. "Do you really think he can do anything to me?" she asked.

Alan bit his lower lip. "It’s exactly as you said—my mother owns seventy-five percent of his wealth and power. But... she still isn’t ready to fully turn against him. He will definitely use his remaining power to come after you," he insisted, his eyes filled with genuine concern.

Nova chuckled lightly. "Don’t worry, he can’t touch me," she replied. Her tone was completely empty of fear; she spoke with absolute confidence, as if merely stating a simple fact.

Alan stared at her for a long moment, his heart racing in his chest. "Come to my apartment, then. It’s too late, and walking around looking like this isn’t safe. You can go back home tomorrow," he offered.

Nova gaze at him for long, her playful smile never fading. "Fine then. Let’s go," she agreed.

Alan breathed a quiet sigh of relief and led Nova back to his place.

.....

"You should go freshen up. I’ll find you some clean clothes. As for the ones you’re wearing, just leave them in the bathroom and I’ll wash them for you," he said once they were inside.

Nova raised an eyebrow but chuckled. "If you say so," she replied, slipping into the bathroom and closing the door.

Out in the bedroom, Alan clutched his chest, feeling his heart pounding wildly as he stared at the closed bathroom door. "Damn, I actually ended up bringing her to my apartment," he thought, taking a shaky breath. "I’m just trying to protect her, nothing more... nothing more," he chanted to himself repeatedly.

Once he finally managed to calm his racing heart, he walked over to his wardrobe and pulled out a soft green shirt.

"I wonder if she will be comfortable in this," he thought.

Just then, the bathroom door clicked open. Nova stepped out, wrapped only in a fluffy white towel. She stared at him, her gaze dropping to the green shirt in his hands.

"Seems like I’ll have to get used to wearing different colors," she thought, sighing helplessly to herself.

Alan froze, completely stunned. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from her damp skin and bare shoulders. His freshly calmed heart immediately started hammering against his ribs again. "She... she looks so beautiful... so soft," he thought in a daze, completely unaware of the warm trail of blood slowly dripping from his nose.

"You’ve got a nosebleed," Nova pointed out casually, folding her arms over her chest.

"Huh?" Alan reached up, touching his upper lip. Realizing what was happening, he cursed and instantly spun around, turning his back to her in extreme embarrassment. "Damn it," he hissed under his breath.

He blindly held the shirt out behind him, refusing to turn around and look at her again.

"There are no stores open this late, so you’ll just have to wear mine for tonight. I’ll buy you some proper clothes tomorrow," he stammered.

"Sounds like you’re planning to keep me here for a long time," Nova teased, lightly plucking the shirt from his grasp.