Shadow Assassin Rebirth

chapter 3

CHAPTER 3: The Fight Before the Descent

BAM!

The wooden door exploded open, like a tempest had kicked it in. The hinges shrieked. Thud… crack! The sound ricocheted off the cramped apartment walls, rolling like a thunderclap that lingered stubbornly.

Li Wei remained unfazed at first.

He turned his head slowly, calmness radiating in a stormy moment.

The chipped coffee cup in his grip shivered slightly. Clink… drip… A dark droplet slipped down, hitting the floor with a soft tap echoing louder than it should.

The air thickened, tension like a drawn bowstring.

At the doorway stood Li Xue, hair askew, cheeks flushed, eyes aflame. Her chest rose and fell in rapid succession. Hhh… hhh…

Barefoot and clad in an oversized shirt, she radiated pure frustration.

Li Xue.

Li Wei's little sister.

She looked younger than he remembered, soft skin, cheeks still blooming with teenage stubbornness. But that storm brewing in her eyes? He recognized it. He had seen it before, the tempest that once consumed them both.

With each deliberate step, she advanced, each footfall echoing like a war drum on the quiet floor. Tap… tap… thud…

“Why didn’t you answer my calls, huh?!”

Her voice sliced through the silence, reverberating off the walls until it nearly rattled the air. Boom!

Li Wei didn’t reply. Not yet. He remained seated, back straight, gaze steady, steam swirling from his coffee like ghosts of the past. He raised his cup, savoring one last sip. Sip…

That single calm act ignited her fury further.

“Hmph!”

She barged forward, kicking the small metal trash can. Clang! The sound rang out, sharp as a clash of swords. Crash! Papers erupted like confetti, carpeting the floor, bills, old receipts, torn envelopes, forming a chaotic mound at her feet.

Li Wei stayed unmoved.

He watched her quietly, eyes distant as if listening to echoes from another time.

He remembered this day.

Every breath. Every sound. Every word.

The last morning before chaos descended with the Forsaken Game LYTABERN.

This very fight once played out.

It ignited everything.

The first step down a road paved with blood.

He glanced beyond her, at the wall behind her shoulder, plastered with colorful posters of a young man with silvery hair and an insufferable grin.

Yang Xun.

The idol's name made a faint twitch appear in Li Wei’s jaw.

He remembered. Every moment.

The posters lined up perfectly, edge to edge, smothering the paint beneath. Each displayed Yang Xun posing, hand raised, eyes alight, a million-dollar smile that felt too polished to be genuine. The words XUN GE FOREVER! sparkled in silver letters on one.

Before fire and chaos descended, Yang Xun was a flashy underground K-pop idol with a lunatic but loyal fanbase. Girls screamed his name, threw hearts, and wallets, at his feet.

Yet behind that radiant grin lurked a charlatan, a scoundrel who bamboozled his fans out of everything.

Li Wei had seen through him early on. He tried to warn his sister, pleaded, argued.

But she never listened.

And now, here she stood again, the same rage, the same blind devotion burning bright.

Li Xue pointed a trembling finger at him. Thud!

“You think you can control me, ge? You think I don’t know what’s best for me?!”

Her voice cracked, a volatile mix of rage and hurt.

Li Wei remained stoic. His face held calmness, but inside, his heart ached. He knew how this argument would unfold.

“I told you,” he said softly, voice deep but unwavering, “Yang Xun is not—”

“Shut up!”

Her scream collided with him mid-sentence. Her eyes glistened, lips quivered, but her fury didn't wane.

“It’s your fault he lost first place this month!”

She clenched her fists hard, nails biting into her palms.

“You didn’t send your vote! You didn’t buy his album! You didn’t help me! If you don’t give me money to boost him this time—”

She took a shaky step closer, slamming her fist against the wall. Thud! The posters rattled.

“I’ll hate you forever! You hear me? I’ll never call you brother again! You’re trash! Always trying to control my life!”

Her voice cracked at the end. The words dripped with the pain of ignorance and youth.

Li Wei sat frozen. He didn’t raise a hand, didn’t retort. He merely looked at her, truly looked.

That little girl who once clung to him, crying for food. The same girl he starved for, bled for, fought monsters for. And yet, in this moment, she had forgotten it all.

The air between them thickened. Crackle… hiss…

The aroma of coffee mingled with the sharp scent of anger. The flickering bulb overhead cast shaky shadows across broken floor tiles.

For a heartbeat, everything stilled. Only her breath filled the space. Hhh… hhh… hhh…

Then Li Wei gently placed his cup down. Clink.

The tiny sound shattered the silence like glass.

His hand moved, unhurried, deliberate. Just enough.

SLAP!

The sound was crisp, sharp, and unyielding.

Li Xue's head turned, a sudden thud matching the impact. Her body lurched, foot slipping as she crashed backward. Crash! The posters trembled as she hit the floor.

The slap echoed once, twice, then faded.

Li Wei’s hand lingered midair a moment before falling to his side. His face remained calm, yet his eyes, they brimmed with something darker than mere anger.

Li Xue sat shocked on the floor. Her mouth fell open. Her hand brushed her cheek, red, swelling, hot. Her eyes widened in disbelief, slowly brimming with tears.

She looked up at him, as if facing a stranger.

“You… you hit me…”

Her voice splintered, soft and fractured.