Chapter 26: Subject 03-999
The air buzzed with unnatural pressure.
Jay’s system screen flickered—not in malfunction, but in anticipation. Lines of binary danced across the glowing HUD before stabilizing.
> [WARNING: Core System Conflict Imminent.]
[Opponent: Executioner Venn, Codename "Breaker of Patterns"]
[Class: S-Rank System Hunter | Authority Level: Redacted]
The figure stood tall beneath the archway of the tower, clad in obsidian robes with silver glyphs stitched across the sleeves—symbols of the old System Wars. A cold blue eye glowed through a crack in the Executioner’s bone-like mask.
"Your very existence is a violation," Venn spoke in a voice smooth as silk, yet devoid of warmth. "Prototype 03-999 was not designed for long-term synchronization. Yet here you are. Laughing. Sleeping. Living."
Jay raised a hand to scratch his head. "So... you’re like an antivirus program?"
"No," Venn replied. "I’m the uninstall button."
Alicia stepped in front of Jay, sword braced. "You’ll have to go through me."