The Null-Broker didn't blink. He couldn't. The horizontal violet lines that served as his eyes pulsed with a low-frequency hum. He set his glass rifle down on a velvet cloth made of flickering pixels.
"You're late," the Broker said, his voice overlapping like two mismatched audio tracks. "Or maybe you're just early for your own funeral."
Jinsu stepped closer to the counter, the violet static on his skin hissing against the shop's air. "I don't have time for a funeral. I have a world to un-write. Elena said you're the only one who can mask a 0.00% Compliance."
The Broker leaned forward. "Elena is a sentimentalist. I just see a file that hasn't been corrupted enough yet. I can build you a 'Ghost Profile'—a fake System ID. But I don't want your credits. The System tracks those."
The Broker pointed to a flickering neon map. "Sector 02. The Old Library. The Association is 'Optimizing' it tomorrow, deleting physical archives. In the basement, there is a Logic Core that hasn't been backed up. Bring it to me."
"Sector 02 is High-Security," Jinsu said. "It's crawling with Hardwired Pruners."
"Then show me why the Architect chose you." The Broker pulled a heavy, jagged black cloak and a sleek, matte-black hilt from under the counter. "This is the Fragmented Shroud. It'll hide you from scanners, but it eats your Stability. And this... is The Eraser's Edge. It doesn't cut flesh. It deletes the space between atoms."
Jinsu took the hilt. "Consider it done."
The rain in Sector 02 didn't fall; it was executed. Each drop hit the obsidian pavement with a mathematically perfect splash.
Wrapped in the Fragmented Shroud, Jinsu stood on a rooftop overlooking the Library. He was a blurry smudge against the hyper-clear skyline.
"Processing at 55," Jinsu whispered.
The world slowed. The four Enforcers guarding the entrance moved like they were trapped in syrup. Jinsu looked at their necks. Thick, golden Tethers connected them to the sky.
He stepped off the ledge. [Void-Step Activated: -1% Stability].
For 1.5 seconds, he became intangible, drifting through the security lasers and landing directly behind the lead Enforcer. Jinsu didn't draw his blade. He just grabbed the Enforcer's helmet.
"The server is full," Jinsu rasped. "Absolute Arrest."
Violet static surged. The Enforcer didn't scream. His armor and flesh turned into a grey wireframe before collapsing into white salt.
[Target Erased: +1,200 EXP]
The other three spun around, their visors flashing red. "ERROR. UNAUTHORIZED ENTITY.
INITIATING TRUNCATION."
"You can't truncate what isn't in your database," Jinsu said. He ignited The Eraser's Edge. A blade of jagged violet light hissed from the hilt.
He lunged. One swipe severed the Tethers of two guards. Their bodies instantly locked up, blue energy violently exploding from their chests as their connection to the System was forcefully cut. Jinsu grabbed the final Enforcer by the throat, channeling his static directly into the guard's core to siphon the dead data.
[ERASURE RANK UP: D+ ➔ C-]
[Processing +2]
Jinsu kicked the Library doors open and headed for the basement. The air grew freezing cold. He heard a rhythmic thumping.
At the bottom of the stairs, standing in front of a pedestal, was a figure draped in tattered gold robes. He held a massive claymore, and his entire body was wrapped in billions of golden strings.
[Entity Identified: The Ghost (Fragment of S-Rank Hero 'Jin-woo')]
[Status: System-Thrall]
Jinsu gripped the Analog Journal in his pocket. Elena's brother.
The Ghost turned. He had no eyes, only screaming blue code. "Intruder... detected," the Ghost groaned. "Initiating... Final... Optimization."