"You've done this before," William said. "The combat. The tactics. Not trained for it—actually done it."
"In previous loops, yes."
"How many times have you died?"
"Zero." Kai's voice was precisely flat. "I have watched other people die many times. I have reached the reset point at the end of the loop seventeen times in total. But I have not personally died." He paused. "The distinction matters to me."
William accepted that without pushing. There were things a person held carefully, and that appeared to be one of them.
"The Hollow Court," he said instead.
"Yes. That's the connection point." Kai turned to face him more directly. "Your mother independently identified them as the most sophisticated organization on her threat list. They appeared at the dungeon after the first assassination team failed. They had a contract—but crucially, they had not confirmed their primary target."
"Meaning they weren't there for you specifically."
