Yohan turned to see the curved blade slicing through the air, aimed directly at his throat.

A knife whistled through the air and buried itself in the assassin's wrist. The curved blade clattered against the stone floor as the attacker staggered back, and grabbed onto his bleeding hand.

His face hardly reflected any sign of pain, maintaining an indifferent calculating expression.

Yohan whirled around. Jenna stood at the entrance to the training hall, her feet planted in a perfect fighting stance, a shorter knife balanced in her palm. Her expression was ice focused, and lethal.

The assassin lunged forward despite the injury, pulling out another curved blade with his good hand. Jenna was already moving. She closed the distance in three swift strides and launched herself into the air, her boot connecting with the man's chest in a devastating drop kick.

The impact sent the attacker crashing into the weapon rack behind him, wooden staffs and practice swords tumbling across the floor.

"Yohan, are you okay?" she asked, her voice dripping with worry as she rushed to his side.

"Yeah… you showed up right on time."

"I'm already too late, look at you, you're covered in blood!" she cried.

Yohan let out a weak chuckle. "I'm not that easy to kill. Most of these are just flesh wounds."

"But you're losing so much blood," she pressed, panic creeping into her voice. "You need to get to the hospital right now, at this rate you could pass out any second,"

She wasn't wrong. If he didn't stop the bleeding soon, he might actually be a goner.

His gaze dropped to the strange item clutched tightly in his hand.

'This thing kept him standing… it let him tank all my attacks,' Yohan thought. 'It must have some kind of healing or endurance attribute.'

"Give that back, kid," the man growled coldly. "You have no idea how expensive that is."

Yohan didn't respond.

He grabbed the knife still lodged in his hand and ripped it free with a short grunt of pain. Blood spilled instantly, but only for a brief second. Pressing his palm tightly around the wound, he watched as the bleeding abruptly stopped. The gash remained open, but it dried up unnaturally fast, and moments later, he could even move his fingers again.

"I didn't think I'd have to use this against you," the man clicked his tongue before letting out an irritated sigh. "I just wanted things to end quicker."

His gaze shifted to Jenna, who had already moved into a defensive stance in front of Yohan. The moment he saw her footing, her guard, the way her weight was distributed he understood immediately.

She was well trained.

"Hand it over," he said coldly, "and I'll consider leaving you two alone."

Jenna didn't respond. She was far too locked in—muscles tense, breath steady, eyes fixed on him as she waited for the slightest movement.

The fact that he had ripped that blade from his own hand without so much as a flinch, and even managed to push Yohan to this state, meant only one thing.

This man was no ordinary fighter.

She was usually the type to stay on the offensive in a fight, but this situation was different. Too many unknown variables made it too risky.

"He's using a specialized weapon," she muttered to Yohan without taking her eyes off him. "That means he's highly trained."

Then her gaze sharpened.

"Wait… I know you."

His brow twitched slightly. "You do?" the assassin asked, clearly surprised.

"You're Kai Lu—the executioner of the Black Blood gang," she said slowly. "Infamous for carving people apart with those scimitar blades of yours."

A faint, amused smile tugged at his lips. "Wow. I didn't know I was that famous. You must've done your homework." His eyes narrowed. "Are you with the police?"

"No," Jenna replied coolly. "Let's just say you're a person of interest under the protection of my client."

Kai Lu glanced past her at Yohan. "Is that your client?"

"That's none of your business," she shot back. "I know exactly what you are—a cold-blooded murderer who's taken countless lives."

"Aren't you the same?" Kai Lu replied lightly. "The way you came storming in, throwing knives everywhere… it wasn't hard to guess."

Then his smile widened, dark and curious.

"So—you know who I am," he said. "Now tell me… who are you?"

"No," she said flatly. "Go fuck yourself."

Kai Lu let out a short, amused laugh. "I'm already starting to enjoy your company," he said lightly. "But why don't we continue this another time?"

He shifted his gaze to Yohan. "What do you say?" he asked. "Hand over my stuff and I'll let you leave here peacefully."

"Not until you tell me what it is," Yohan demanded as he forced himself to his feet.

"I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Then we have no deal," Yohan replied coolly. "If you want it, you'll have to come and get it."

Seeing Jenna's calculating stare locked onto him, along with Yohan's unyielding resolve, Kai Lu immediately knew—

This wouldn't be easy.

'The boy alone was already troublesome…' he thought. 'Taking them both with the time I have left is impossible.'

With a reluctant sigh, his shoulders dipped slightly. "And how do I know you'll actually hand it over?" Kai Lu asked.

In response, Yohan casually snapped the object in half and tossed one piece toward him.

A flicker of real panic crossed Kai Lu's face as he lunged to catch it.

"You crazy bastard!" he snapped. "Do you have any idea how much that thing is worth?!"

Yohan ignored the outburst. "Tell us," he said calmly, "and you get the other half."

It was a fair compromise.

Kai Lu clicked his tongue, then let out a resigned sigh. "Fine," he said. "What do you want to know?"

"What exactly is this thing?" Yohan asked.

Kai Lu scoffed. "Can't you see? It's a cookie."

"Okay," Yohan said flatly. "Then what does it do?"

"Let's just say it dulls pain… a little."

Yohan's eyes widened slightly.

'So that's what it is?'

He had already taken a bite in secret while no one was paying attention—and now he finally understood why everything felt so wrong in the best way possible.

All the pain in his body had vanished.

But it didn't stop there.

It felt as though something invisible was holding his injuries in check. The bleeding had stopped completely, and the dizziness that had clouded his vision earlier was gone. Even his breathing felt stronger and steadier.

'I could go another round like this,' he realized in disbelief.

Then reality caught up with him.

The cookie only blocked the pain. The damage was still there. His body would still continue to be torn apart beneath the numbness—and once the effects wore off, everything would crash down on him at once.

Even so…

To think a single cookie could do something like this was terrifying.

"Where did you get it?" Yohan asked.

"I don't know," Kai Lu replied dismissively. "Even if I did tell you, you couldn't afford it. It's not something you should concern yourself with."

"Tell me," Yohan said calmly, "or forget about the other half."

Kai Lu faltered.

Losing something like that hurt far more than losing money. He wasn't even making ten percent of its value from this job. Letting it go now would be a massive loss.

"But I can't tell you that," he said at last. "It's a trade secret."

"Have it your way," Yohan replied with clear disinterest.

Kai Lu clenched his jaw.

He hated this. Leaving the other half behind felt like throwing away months of survival.

'That thing could last me over three months…' he thought darkly.

'Maybe I can just tell him… and come back later to kill him.'

That did seem like the better option—he had already planned to come back for Yohan anyway.

"…Fine," Kai Lu muttered at last. "I'll tell you."

"There's someone known only among the top bosses of the criminal world as the Baker. He runs an underground auction where items like that are sold."

"Only a handful of people across the world even know he exists. His food-based items go for millions. His real identity is unknown—even law enforcement has no record of him."

Kai Lu's eyes darkened slightly.

"In a way… you can say he's the one who sits above all of us, making money off us without having to involve himself,"

Everything clicked into place for Yohan.

'So this Baker… was the same person who supplied Hatoru with the Buff Cake'

'He must have a special technique guide just like mine,' Yohan thought. 'And his ability is probably something related to food…'

"How do I meet this person?" Yohan asked.

Kai Lu scoffed. "Are you deaf? I just told you—no one knows who he really is."

"Then how do you get his products?" Yohan pressed.

"I bid online," Kai Lu replied. "Then I receive instructions to collect the item at specific locations."

"Then give me the site link," Yohan said immediately.

"No." Kai Lu shook his head. "We don't reuse links. New ones are sent out only when an auction is about to begin."

"…That's annoyingly well thought out," Yohan muttered.

There really was no direct way to track the Baker.

Still—he wasn't about to give up.

"I've told you everything you wanted to know," Kai Lu said sharply. "Now hand it over."

"Hmmm…" Yohan tapped his jaw thoughtfully, then smiled almost playfully.

"I think I'd rather not."

The grin that spread across Kai Lu's face was twisted and unhinged.

"What do you mean… you'd rather not?"

"I mean I'm keeping this," Yohan said coolly, his smile turning daring. "And you can fuck off."

Kai Lu's grip tightened around the blade.

"Are you sure this is how you want things to end?" he warned quietly. "I promise you—it won't be pretty."

Yohan met his gaze without flinching.

"Then stop standing there making threats," he replied confidently.

"And come at me."

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