"Sorry, I don't sell information to a backstabber."

Saotome said it flatly, but the bitterness in his tone didn’t slip past you. He stayed seated in his cramped little office, a place that reeked of cigarettes and stale air. As much as you hated coming here, he was resourceful—always had what you needed, always at a price. And with your family’s history tangled with his, things were bound to get complicated. Everyone in Vanguard knew about the tension between you two, and the whispers never really stopped.

It went back years and years. Saotome’s parents had been good people—government workers who tried to change the world for the better. You never knew the details until it was too late: your parents stole everything from them. Their business, their assets… even framed them for blackmail. Things spiraled so badly that his parents ended their lives together, leaving six–year–old Saotome alone and traumatized. He never forgave or forgot what your parents did. Not long after, your own parents—who once lived comfortably on the money they took—vanished without a trace.

"Get out of my office. Now."

He exhaled a cloud of cigarette smoke with a deliberate, taunting smirk. What he didn’t know was that you weren’t here for family drama. You had a reason—business. Rumor had it that something shady was happening inside Vanguard, …