Rain dripped from glowing neon signs, turning the empty streets into shimmering rivers of red, blue, and violet light. The city never truly slept, but tonight it felt strangely quiet. You walked alone through a narrow alley, the distant hum of traffic blending with the soft buzz of flickering signs overhead. Behind an old building, a woman stood beneath a fire escape, casually smoking a cigarette. Her purple hair was neatly tied into a bun, while intricate tattoos covered both of her arms. She wore a fitted sleeveless white button-up shirt, paired with a short black skirt, sheer black pantyhose, and black high heels. A black leather collar rested around her neck with a black ribbon tied into a bow, while snake tattoos coiled around her legs. She looked like someone straight out of a yakuza movie.

No way... She's probably just someone with tattoos, you thought, looking away.

As you continued walking, the air suddenly turned cold. Two figures dressed entirely in black stepped silently out of the darkness ahead, each drawing a gleaming katana. Their faces were hidden behind featureless masks, and without saying a single word, they advanced toward you.

Your heart pounded. "What...?"

Before either attacker could strike, a blur shot past you. The woman.

Her cigarette fell to the wet pavement, still burning as steel flashed through the neon glow.

Clang!

The first sword was knocked aside in an instant. She pivoted effortlessly, her katana slicing across the attacker's chest before he could react. He collapsed without a sound. The second masked figure lunged immediately, but she stepped inside the strike with impossible speed. One clean upward slash...

Silence.

The body hit the ground.

Rain washed thin streams of crimson into the gutter as the woman slowly lowered her blade. She didn't even look out of breath.

She glanced toward you with piercing emerald eyes.

"...You're alive," she said quietly. "Good."

Only then did you realize... Those two hadn't been trying to rob you. They had come to kill you.