Ivy slipped away from her spot with practiced ease, blending into the passing crowd as if she had always been part of it. Within seconds, she was gone.

A nearby café caught her eye.

Perfect.

She stepped inside, her expression softening instantly into something polite and unassuming. Offering the owner a small, friendly smile, she walked past the counter and took a seat near the corner where a computer terminal sat.

Hidden, but not suspicious. Exactly how she liked it.

She logged in swiftly.

Raven and Sal had always used separate identities to communicate. Clean. Untraceable. Safe. Even now, her fingers moved with familiarity as she accessed the account and sent a short message.

A simple ping. But beneath it... urgency.

Raven needed to know.

Was Sal safe? Had he survived after everything that went wrong? Or— Her jaw tightened slightly.

Had the DarkKnight Clan already dealt with him?

Sal had always been a quick responder. Almost annoyingly fast. But now... seconds passed, then a full minute, but nothing.

A deep frown formed on her face, her fingers hovering over the keyboard.

Did they kill him? The thought landed heavily.

Failure, in their world, was not forgiven. It was erased. And her last mission... had been her first failure.

If the organization decided to clean up loose ends, Sal would have been the easiest target.

A strange, unsettling feeling crept into her chest, tightening slowly as the silence dragged on. For a moment, she stared at the screen, her thoughts spiraling and then—

PING.

Her eyes snapped to the screen instantly, and the corner of her lips curled up with sheer delight.

***

Meanwhile, outside the food outlets...the four guards stepped out, each one carrying multiple bags filled with takeout, their earlier argument completely forgotten in the face of their assigned task.

"Alright, I got—" Benny stopped mid-sentence. All of them did, but what they saw ahead left them stunned.

Ivy was gone. The spot where she had been standing moments ago...was empty.

For a second, none of them reacted. Then—

"Holy shit—where the hell did she go?!" Benny blurted out, panic rising instantly.

Nico’s face drained of color as dread settled in.

"This is bad... this is really bad," he muttered, scanning the area frantically.

Then his gaze snapped to Percy. "This is your fault! Why would you suggest food in the first place?"

Percy frowned, equally panicked.

"Excuse me? You were the one talking about that place with the crowd!"

"No, YOU started it with the fried chicken!" Nico shot back.

"Right, it was you!" Benny jumped in, pointing at Percy.

Both Percy and Nico turned on him instantly.

"And YOU talked about discounts!"

Benny froze. "That’s not the point!"

Teddy closed his eyes briefly, already feeling the headache coming.

"Enough," he said firmly, his voice cutting through the chaos.

They fell silent. For half a second. Then all three turned to him at once.

"Teddy, help us," Percy said, his voice dropping. "We don’t want to face Boss like this."

"I’m too young to get fired," Nico added.

"And I don’t want to get fired and beaten," Benny muttered.

Teddy looked at them, their pale, almost ghost-like expressions telling him everything.

They knew. They had all heard the stories.

Failing Xander was not an option. And losing the person they were assigned to protect?

Unforgivable.

Teddy exhaled slowly, his gaze sharpening as he scanned the surroundings.

"Panicking won’t help," he said calmly. "She hasn’t gone far."

The others immediately straightened, clinging to his composure like a lifeline.

"How do you know?" Benny asked.

Teddy’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Because she wanted us gone," he replied.

That realization hit them all at once.

"...We got played," Nico whispered.

Teddy didn’t deny it. Instead, he stepped forward, already moving.

"Split up," he ordered. "Check every nearby shop, café, and alley."

The others nodded instantly, their earlier arguments forgotten.

As they rushed off, only one thought echoed in all their minds.

If they didn’t find her soon... they were done.

***

While the guards were spiraling into panic outside, a very different kind of chaos was unfolding inside Xander’s office.

"Boss..."

Taylor’s voice broke the silence, unusually hesitant.

Xander did not look up immediately. "What is it?"

Taylor was staring at his phone, his brows slowly knitting together as another notification popped up.

Then another. And another...

"Boss," he said again, this time more confused, "did you... by any chance order food for the entire company?"

That got Xander’s attention.

He finally looked up, his expression calm but faintly puzzled. "No."

Taylor blinked.

Ding

He turned the screen toward Xander, his face now caught somewhere between disbelief and amusement.

"Because your account is currently paying for..." he paused, scrolling, "...fried chicken, premium meals, combo offers, and—wait—family-sized platters?"

Xander’s eyes narrowed slightly. "I didn’t authorize anything." he said with a plain tone.

"I figured," Taylor muttered. "You don’t even eat this much yourself, let alone feed a company."

Ping.

Taylor looked down again, then let out a short, incredulous laugh.

"Oh, this is getting better."

"What now?" Xander asked, his tone cooling.

"Someone just ordered from four different outlets at the same time," Taylor said, raising a brow. "And all of them are billing under your name."

A brief silence settled in the room ad Xander leaned back slightly, his gaze turning sharper.

Taylor, however, was now fully invested.

"Should I be impressed or concerned?" he added, half amused. "Because whoever is doing this is either very bold... or very hungry."

Another notification popped up and Taylor held up the phone again.

"Correction—extremely hungry."

Xander’s expression darkened just a fraction, his mind already connecting the pieces.

"Taylor."

"Yes, Boss?"

"Call Teddy."

Taylor straightened instantly, though the hint of amusement still lingered in his eyes.

"Yes, Boss... but just saying—" he added under his breath while dialing, "if this turns out to be Miss Ivy..."

He glanced at the growing list of orders.

"...I think she’s planning a feast, not a meal."

Xander said nothing. But the look in his eyes said enough. And for some reason, Taylor suddenly felt like this situation was about to get a lot more interesting.