The night in Virell felt heavier than usual.
Not louder.
Not darker.
Just… heavier.
Aldric stood beneath the dim streetlamp for another few seconds after the man disappeared into the deeper parts of District 7. His hands rested quietly inside the pockets of his black pullover while his eyes remained fixed ahead.
Calm.
Calculating.
The wind brushed past the narrow residential roads, carrying distant traffic noise from the commercial district nearby.
Then Aldric finally turned.
And started walking home.
Virell District—
District 7 sat farther north of Virell.
Older infrastructure.
Tighter housing rows.
Fewer cameras.
A place where people minded their business and closed their curtains early.
The man entered a modest single-story house tucked between two aging concrete homes. No lights came on immediately after he stepped inside.
Disciplined.
Careful.
He locked the door.
Removed his black jacket.
Then the boots.
His movements were methodical. Efficient.
Military.
Inside the dimly lit room sat a small wooden table near the kitchen area. He opened the top drawer slowly and pulled out a compact military-grade walkie-talkie.
Static crackled.
He pressed the button.
"Delta Squad Number Four, Keno Reeves reporting."
Silence.
Then static again.
Keno leaned back slightly in his chair.
"The target, Aldric Benedict, is smart. I haven't said anything about occupation or left an alias or anything to jeopardize my mission but…"
He paused briefly.
"…he still found out I'm a spy. Over."
The radio hissed.
A cold voice answered:
"Delta Squad Number Four, this is HQ. We have received your report. Stay on guard because he's not your average person. Over."
Keno's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Roger that."
The signal cut.
He returned the walkie-talkie into the drawer carefully.
Then opened another compartment beneath it.
A black 9mm pistol rested there.
Loaded.
Clean.
Maintained daily.
Keno picked it up and checked the chamber from habit alone before turning off the lights entirely.
Darkness swallowed the room.
He laid back on the bed fully alert, one hand holding the pistol loosely against his chest while his eyes stared upward at the ceiling.
Silent.
But his mind wasn't.
A woman's laughter echoed faintly in his memory.
Then two children running through sunlight.
Gone.
All of them.
The images disappeared as quickly as they came.
Keno closed his eyes and took a long breath.
Then another.
Professional.
Controlled.
But tired.
Very tired.
Meanwhile—
Aldric returned home quietly.
The house was dark except for the faint kitchen light left on by his mother.
Everyone was asleep.
Everyone except his father.
David Benedict sat alone near the dining table with a blanket over his legs, one hand holding a cup of warm tea.
The retired colonel looked up when Aldric entered.
"You found him?"
Aldric stopped briefly.
"…Yeah."
David nodded once.
"I figured."
Aldric gave a small smile.
"You should sleep, dad."
David snorted lightly.
"You say that like you're going to."
Aldric said nothing.
That alone answered the question.
David watched his son carefully for a moment before speaking again.
"You've changed."
Aldric leaned against the hallway wall quietly.
"I know."
"No." David shook his head slowly. "Not in a bad way. You just look like someone carrying too many things at once."
Aldric looked down briefly.
Then exhaled.
"Maybe I am."
David stared at him for another second before finally waving him off.
"Go do what you need to do."
Aldric nodded once and headed upstairs.
Straight to his room.
The moment the door closed behind him—
His expression changed.
Cold focus replaced everything else.
Aldric reached beneath the false layer inside his desk drawer and pulled out the secure phone Fox had given him.
Untraceable.
Independent signal routing.
No government access.
He dialed immediately.
Three rings.
Then—
"Benedict?"
Ms. Vos's voice.
Aldric leaned back in his chair.
"I found a lead."
Silence.
Then her tone sharpened.
"Talk."
"Who I found was a spy."
Aldric's eyes drifted toward the ceiling light.
"Spies have protocols. They report after engagement, especially if something unexpected happens."
Ms. Vos listened carefully.
"And?"
"I caught him off guard."
Aldric crossed one leg over the other.
"So naturally the first thing he'll do is report."
Ms. Vos responded instantly.
"You think he belongs to an active operational unit."
Aldric:
"I know he does."
Aldric's voice remained calm.
"The thing is…"
Ms. Vos:
"What?"
Aldric:
"He carries himself like a marine."
A brief pause.
Then Aldric began listing details one by one.
"Six feet tall. Brown complexion. Short neat black hair. Slim athletic build. Heavy scarring on the hands. Close-combat conditioning."
Ms. Vos immediately turned toward one of the secured terminals inside the LCO operations room.
"I'll use the system you coded."
Aldric nodded slightly despite her not being able to see him.
"Good. Do it quickly. I want to engage tonight."
"You're planning something already?"
"I'm planning ahead."
Ms. Vos sighed quietly.
"I'll call back."
The line disconnected.
The room fell silent again.
Aldric leaned further back in his chair and stared upward at the ceiling light.
Thinking.
Then—
A memory surfaced.
His grandfather's voice.
Old.
Steady.
Clear.
"Listen, Aldric… there are things we know and might know… and things some of us will never know."
Young Aldric sat quietly beside him beneath the shade of a tree years ago.
"The world is more cruel and wicked than you think," the old man continued. "You're smart, so eventually you'll understand."
A younger Aldric had asked:
"Then what do I do?"
His grandfather smiled faintly.
"To prepare you… I'll teach you how to survive it."
And he did.
Jujitsu.
Taekwondo.
Aikido.
Wing Chun.
Muay Thai.
Knife defense.
Pressure points.
Movement discipline.
Situational awareness.
Not for glory.
Not for sport.
For survival.
Back in the present—
Aldric murmured quietly to himself.
"Maybe I should go against this system as both a lawyer… and a warrior."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"They'll keep sending warriors."
A pause.
"And more innocents will die."
He slowly clenched one hand.
"So while I protect them during the day…"
Another pause.
"…maybe I should hunt them back at night."
The secure phone rang again.
Aldric answered instantly.
"Ms. Vos. What do you got for me?"
Her voice came immediately.
"He's a former marine."
Aldric stayed silent.
"Spent three years in the army. Name's Keno Reeves."
Aldric's gaze sharpened.
"One of the best combatants in his division. Extremely focused. Mission-oriented."
Ms. Vos continued reading.
"He recorded over two hundred confirmed kills during active service."
Aldric closed his eyes briefly.
Professional killer.
Not random surveillance.
Not local law enforcement.
Something deeper.
"Anything else?" Aldric asked quietly.
There was a pause on the line.
Then Ms. Vos spoke again.
"Yes."
Her tone lowered.
"He was part of a project called Black Faction."
Aldric's expression darkened immediately.
Ms. Vos continued.
"Assassinations. Torture. High-level interrogations. Deep operations."
Another pause.
"The project was officially dismissed two years ago."
Aldric already knew what was coming.
"And the members?"
"Presumed dead."
Silence.
Then Aldric spoke calmly.
"So we assume there's still a group operating."
"Yes."
"And they're using him to spy on me."
Ms. Vos didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
Aldric stood slowly from his chair.
"He's still here in Virell."
Then his voice became colder.
"Ms. Vos, here's what I want you to do."
She immediately grabbed a pen.
"Go ahead."
"Find his exact location. He entered District 7."
"Understood."
"Round up a few SLCO operatives."
Ms. Vos nodded while writing.
"And take the entrance on the left side of the city."
Aldric walked toward his window slowly.
"The commercial district cameras won't pick you up from there."
Ms. Vos finished writing everything down.
Then finally asked:
"And what are you planning to do, Aldric?"
Aldric looked out through the curtains toward the distant dark buildings of Virell.
His reflection stared back at him from the glass.
Calm.
Dangerously calm.
Then he answered quietly—
"I'm going hunting."