Sorry for the long absence. Please accept this whopping 5800 word chapter (before AN's) as an apology.

Chapter 6

Millia walks down the street, absentmindedly flipping over the few world dollars in her pocket. She had just over 200 world dollars in her bank account, which might be enough for a train ticket to her destination, but that will leave her with no money for food or other necessities. In the blonde's experience, it is better to save her money for food. After all, it's not too hard to sneak onto a train.

Her best bet of boarding a train would be near Le Petit Rosne crossing, which is on the other side of the city. The 43 line will take her close, but it will still take her the entire afternoon to get there. Perhaps that's good, because—

Thump.

Millia is snapped out of her thoughts when she collides into someone's back. She's about to apologize, but her words die in her throat when she realizes who she bumped into.

Red dress, brown hair wrapped in that ridiculous loop...it's that bounty hunter from yesterday!

Jam turns around with slight annoyance to see who walked into her, and her expression shifts instantly to that of surprised recognition.

"Aiyah!" she cries. "It's you!" Several passersby turn to look at the commotion. Millia tenses. Surely the bounty hunter is not thinking of causing a fight on a crowded road! Worst comes to worst, the blonde will just have to run away. What Jam does next, however, catches her by surprise.

The brunette bows. Her waist bends ninety degrees and her gaze is directed at the ground, such is the depth of her bow.

"I'm very sorry for the trouble I caused you," mumbles Jam, who has clearly eaten some crow. "A nice gentleman in a black coat told me the bounties I was chasing were made up."

Millia is rather taken aback, though her face doesn't show it. The Chinese woman seems like the headstrong type, so it's a shock to see her apologizing like this.

"That's fine," Millia manages to reply. "Just be careful about picking the wrong target next time."

"Allow me to make up for my mistake by treating you to a meal at my restaurant."

As hungry as Millia now realizes she is, she has a more pressing matter to attend to. "I'm in a hurry, so how about later?"

"Ehhh? No way! I can't just come to France whenever I want, and there's no easy way for you to find me. It has to be now!"

Millia wants to refuse a bit more firmly, but Jam has already placed a hand on her arm, the strong grip making it impossible for her to get away.

"Fine," concedes Millia. "Let's make it fast then. Where's your restaurant?"

"...China." That's on the other side of the world, and the opposite direction of where the Russian wants to go! Impatience starts to gnaw at Millia's belly.

"Well, that's a problem."

"Yeah, especially since I have no way of getting back."

"What, did you spend all your money getting here?"

"Not exactly. The woman that gave me the fake bounty list also kinda teleported me here."

Teleportation...back in the Assassin's Guild, a couple of the Guild's mages managed to tap into the Magic Guild's worldwide teleportation grid, allowing the assassins to traverse the world easily. Millia has never been to Paris as an assassin, but, seeing as there's a node in every major city around the world, she's willing to bet there's one here too. However, breaking in and using it for her own purpose is out of the question. The teleportation spell unfortunately requires at least three mages to be directing it, and Millia can't threaten three people at once.

"You wouldn't happen to have enough money for both of us to catch a train to China would you?" pipes up Jam.

"No."

The two of them stand there awkwardly, at a loss as to what to do next.

"You think if I caused a big enough ruckus," begins Jam, "the authorities would deport me back to China?"

"That might work, if you don't mind a criminal record and never being able to come back to this country again."

The chef seems to deflate as her idea is shot down.

Wait a second; Jam said something to give Millia an idea. The authorities...IPF...Ky Kiske... What did he say again?

"Present this badge to any branch of the IPF and you will have access to unenchanted weapons, transportation, and records."

Millia's hands shoot into her pocket and wrap around the cool brass of the badge Ky gave her. She had access to free transportation all this time! If only the blonde slowed down to think things through, she wouldn't have to deal with this detour to China.

"I have a solution," says Millia.

"Really?" asks Jam, instantly perking up.

"Yes. Follow me."

With that, the Russian turns on her heels and walks off in the direction of the police headquarters. Her Chinese companion falls in behind her.

A wall of cool air greets Millia as she steps out of the noonday sun into the IPF headquarters. Behind her, Jam emits an audible sound of relief.

The taller woman scans the area before heading for the receptionist's desk. The receptionist that had been on duty in the morning is replaced by a sandy blond—Brian says his name tag—who looks up from his book as Millia's footsteps approaches him.

"Welcome to the Central Parisian branch of the International Police Force," he greets smoothly. "How may I help you?"

Millia digs out the badge and places it on the desk. "We need help getting to China."

Brian checks the badge over before nodding and pointing to the left. "The hallway furthest to the left will take you to where you want to be."

Millia shoots him a word of thanks before stuffing the badge back into her pocket and gesturing for Jam to follow her. The leftmost hallway is fairly short, and soon the two women find themselves in a massive circular room. It's not unlike the main lobby, with hundreds (possibly thousands) of wooden doors branching away. The room appears to be normal, but Millia's Forbidden Beast, which is sensitive to magic, can feel it: this place is the nexus of many spells.

"Hey, what does this say?" asks Jam, pointing to a plaque above one of the doors.

"It says 'Kandahar, Afghanistan.'" Answers Millia. The door next to it says 'Khost, Afghanistan', and the one next to that is labelled 'Kunduz, Afghanistan.'

"Hmm, the doors seem to be labelled with the names of cities in alphabetical order," muses the ex-assassin as she walks and scans each plaque. "If my hunch is correct, then..." Millia's voice trails off as she reaches the end of the Afghani cities.

"Tirana, Albania. That confirms it. The doors seem to be labelled by towns and cities of the world in alphabetical order by country." The Russian turns to face Jam. "You said your restaurant is in China. Now tell me, which city is it in?"

"Hong Kong."

Millia nods and sets off to find the appropriate door, Jam bringing up the rear. It takes a surprising amount of time; there are more cities in the world than she thought there were. After a minute of silent searching, the cook decides to speak up.

"So...uh...thanks, for reading the signs."

Millia doesn't feel the need to respond.

"It's not that I can't read English, it's just that those words were very foreign, and I wasn't sure what they meant."

"...You're embarrassing yourself."

Jam wisely decides to not talk anymore. The rest of the search is conducted in silence. To Jam's relief, it doesn't take too long afterwards to find the door with the Hong Kong plaque over it. Millia doesn't know what to expect but, after the crazy tingling her hair experienced when passing through the doorway, emerging into an identical rotunda is the last thing she expects.

"Ehhhh? Is this a joke?" exclaims Jam, anger coloring her voice. "Another one of these rooms!"

"That can't be. The police building is not big enough to physically contain another room like this. There must be something we're missing."

Millia turns around to examine the door. Curiously enough, the plaque above the door on this side reads "Paris, France." The blonde goes through the door beside the one they came from, which is labelled "Reims, France," to enter into another identical room.

"Aiyah!" wails Jam as she sticks her head through the doorway. "This just goes back to where we were! Are we stuck in this maze?"

"No," responds Millia. "This doesn't lead back to where we came from. Both this sign—" the taller woman points up at the plaque which reads 'Hong Kong, China'"—and the sign over the first door says 'Hong Kong'. That should be impossible, given the spatial difference between the doors."

"So...what does this mean?"

"It means," answers Millia as she steps back into 'Hong Kong', "that we're already in Hong Kong. Let's go."

"Ehh? What? How?"

"Teleportation. The IPF must link all of their headquarters via the Magic Guild's teleportation grid." This is just a guess on her part, but if the Assassins can access the grid covertly, then the police force should easily be able to do so legally.

"...I'm still confused."

The ex-assassin sighs in exasperation. "Stepping through these doors will take us to a different city anywhere in the world, and by stepping through the 'Hong Kong' door we have arrived at your city instantly."

"Wow, the wonders of modern magic!"

Millia's hunch is confirmed as soon as the women leave the room. Every officer they meet on their way out of the station is Chinese. Exiting the station proves to be a trivial matter, as the layout of the Hong Kong headquarters is identical to the Parisian one, even if the building material is wood rather than stone and much less decorated.

The ex-assassin pushes the double doors leading outside open, and is instantly forced to look down as a brilliant orange sunset shines directly in her face. For a second, Millia is confused. It's noon, the sun should be at its zenith. Then, the confusion passes as she remembers she's on the other side of the planet now.

Millia takes a moment to take in this foreign new world she finds herself in. Life clearly proliferates here. The evidence for that is everywhere, not just in the throngs of people crowding the roads. It's in the buildings (wooden and two-three stories compared to the six story stone apartments of Paris), which vie against each for space to the extent that structures seem to grow out of each other. It's in the air: the smell of bodies, days-old cooking oil, and waste—human and animal alike—permeates the atmosphere and threaten to overwhelm Millia's senses. It's a lot to take in at once, and the blonde finds herself at a loss as to how to proceed.

Thankfully a certain bounty hunter grabs her by the wrist and pulls her onwards.

"It's getting late, so let's go to my home," suggests Jam as she leads the two of them into the crowd. Were it not for the brunette's grip on her arm, Millia would be separated within seconds in this press of bodies. "It's not too far away" –Jam is yelling to be heard now, and even then it's just barely audible— "and there's not a lot of people in that area. No one wants to get near since they think it's bad luck."

"Why would that be so?"

"It burned down."

"What?"

"I said my restaurant burned down." repeats Jam a bit louder.

"We're going to spend the night in a burned down restaurant?"

"Well I've managed to rebuild a little sleeping space so it's not like we're going to sleep outside."

By now the crowd has thinned out, and Millia doesn't have to shout to be heard anymore. Nor does it feel like she's being squished in from every direction anymore.

"We don't have to spend the night in Hong Kong," suggests the blonde. "We can wait for the morning to come in Paris. That's probably a better idea than sleeping in a burned down building."

What Jam's response is, Millia will never know because the bounty hunter will never vocalize it. Golden locks flare into activity and form a protective shield around the back of Millia's head. Something smashes into the barrier with enough force to make the Russian take a step forward. A sense of déjà vu grips Millia as the people around her (sans Jam) screams and backs away at the sight of her hair coming to life. The former assassin doesn't pay any heed to the people gawking and pointing at her. Someone is after her life, nothing else matters at the moment.

"What's going on?" asks Jam in surprise as she takes a step back.

Millia whirls around, but does not catch sight of her attacker. In a crowd like this, thinner though it may be, it is simplicity itself for a trained assassin to blend into the background and escape. Something tells her that the attack is not over yet.

"Stay here," orders Millia. "This is my fight."

People part before her as the blonde runs back to where her attacker was. There is an alley to the side, but which way did he go?

A pool ball flying towards her from the left both alerts Millia to her attacker's position and confirms her suspicions: Venom is here and after her life (again).

A mass of yellow hair slams the projectile into the ground as Millia dashes into the alley in pursuit of Venom. The confused noises of the crowd behind her fades away as she sprints down the corridor. It occurs to her that this may be a trap, but she continues on anyways.

More balls shoot out from the darkness of the narrow passage, but the Forbidden Beast deftly deflects them. Before long, the alley widens out into a rectangular cul-de-sac. Multiple fire exits lead into it, and there are multiple dumpsters and garbage cans scattered near the sides. There could be assassins hiding in or behind them. Furthermore, Millia is aware of two presences on the rooftops around the entrance to the cul-de-sac. In the center of the opening stands Venom.

"You again. I'm getting really tired of you." says Millia casually as she enters the open area.

"Rejoice, then. Today is the last day you'll ever see me, as well as your last day on this earth," replies the Guild's leader.

The two assassins above her leap down from their perches. Millia doesn't even turn to face them. Her golden mane extends out and, in a single flick, cuts down the masked assailants before they enter striking range with their weapons. Millia ignores the soft thumps of lifeless bodies crashing to the ground, instead focusing her attention on what's in front of her. Most of her attention is on Venom, but, in the back of her mind, she's always watching for more hidden assailants. It is this precaution that allows Millia to spot one of the trash cans' lid lift just as the white haired assassin shoots a pool ball at her.

The Russian woman takes off, running in a curved line towards Venom so as to dodge his projectiles easier. As Millia closes in, the dark skinned killer thrusts his cue out, seeking to impale her. The white clad fighter gracefully flips over both the weapon and her opponent. Mid-flip, she gives her hair a flick, separating a lock of her hair and sending it flying towards the trash can whose lid had risen suspiciously. Even after separation, the hair is enchanted and flies straight like a javelin. It easily pierces the aluminum of the garbage container and exits out the other side. The blood that splatters out with the golden pin confirms Millia's suspicions.

"Have any more friends?" challenges Millia as she turns to face the new leader of the Assassin's Guild.

"It's my lucky day," chuckles Venom darkly as he rolls balls out of his sleeves into his gloved hands. "Not only has Master Zato's body been spotted nearby, but now I find you as well? In just one day I'll be able to put Master Zato to rest and avenge him!"

If Millia isn't so focused on Venom and the upcoming confrontation, she would've registered all of what he said. "You've come to resemble Zato, you know?"

"Hmm?"

"That man was always consumed by his obsessions. For him it was the "perfect assassin." For you it is Zato himself. How fitting that you should follow in his footsteps."

"Say what you will," seethes Venom as the balls in his hands starts to form a star shape around him. "I will uphold my loyalty. I don't expect someone like you, who threw everything away, to understand."

"And now you are involving me in your obsession too. I fear for you if you keep going down this path."

"Enough! Shut your mouth!" With that shout, Venom spins his cue, sending all the balls flying towards Millia. The former assassin raises her hair in defence, but is surprised when she feels no impact against her hair. The balls speed past her, crashing into a wall behind her. The purpose of those projectiles was to prevent her from moving! Millia lowers her defence to see Venom swinging his stick low, trying to sweep out her legs. She never expected the long range specialist to go for a close range attack. The Russian woman jumps over the attack and snaps a leg out. The white haired assassin jerks to the side to avoid the kick, but cannot dodge it fully. Millia's foot connects with Venom's deltoid, sending him stumbling back.

The projectile specialist seems to take this new development in stride, using the space to keep away and launch ball after ball at Millia. The blonde is forced to run to avoid the balls and using her hair to block any she can't dodge. Each ball is capable of breaking bones if it hits. Millia's stamina hasn't atrophied to the point where a little bit of dodging will wear her out, but Venom can definitely outlast her if this becomes a battle of endurance.

Venom is accustomed to taking down his targets with his sniper-like precision. If I can get close to him, his fighting ability drops drastically. He may have been able to best me yesterday, but now that I'm rested up, such a thing will not happen again.

Millia's hair can outrange Venom's cue, but the amount of concentration such an attack would require will force her to stop moving, and such a loss of mobility may prove to be fatal. Thus the better strategy is to slowly close the distance between the two of them. And close the distance she does; the gap between them shuts as Millia circles around her foe.

Once Millia is in range, Venom slams the butt of the cue down to crush her skull. The ex-assassin sidesteps, and white haired killer swipes after her. Millia somersaults forwards and rolls under the cue, ending up behind Venom. He tries to hop away and gain some distance, but it is too late. Millia shakes her head downwards, sending her hair to smash into Venom's stomach like a hammer. As the dark skinned assassin gasps for breath, Millia commands her hair to pick him up and throw him against a dumpster. The impact is strong enough to leave a dent on the metal box.

The blonde bends low and dashes towards her foe, not wanting to let up on the pressure at all. With his back to the dumpster, Venom has nowhere to go. He parries a few slashes and, while Millia is recovering from a particularly hard downwards crush, shoots forward while twirling his cue in his right arm. This move catches Millia off-guard—she expected such a weak close quarters fighter to try to maneuver away, not go in—and forces her to block with her arms. The stick collides with her bare arms, forcing a hiss of pain to escape through her clenched teeth. Her forearm isn't fractured, thankfully, but the pain forces her back. Venom, however, doesn't press his advantage. Rather, he takes a couple of steps back to continue attacking Millia from afar.

Millia finds herself impressed by Venom's adaptation. He has clearly accepted the weakness in his fighting style and has worked to improve in that area. But it's strange; in all the years they worked together, Venom has never once bothered to seriously improve his close range fighting abilities. Something must be afoot.

"So even this old dog can learn new tricks," comments Millia as a ball zips over her head.

"Of course," responds Venom. He stabs out with his cue to prevent Millia from getting too close. "As the guardian of Master Zato's legacy, I must have no weaknesses if I am to fulfill his ambition."

"Zato's ambition?"

"I'll make sure the Guild continues to expand its business. And no one, not even the Guild's founder, will stand in my way."

"Expand its business? Do you really think that's what he wanted? The Guild was only ever his tool to satisfy his obsessions with."

"Watch your mouth woman." With the white hair obscuring his face and his neutral tone, anyone unfamiliar with Venom might think he's unaffected by this exchange of words. However, Millia is able to pick up on the subtle nuances in his voice denoting anger. Indeed, even his stance has become more aggressive. Perhaps if she provokes him more... "You who have betrayed Master Zato and forsaken his gifts have no right to speak of him."

"I had to do it to keep on living. I'd do it again, you know."

"You bastard!" Venom charges forwards with reckless abandon, clearly acting out of rage rather than reason. But even when acting out of anger, the assassin does not present an exploitable opening.

Venom thrusts his cue at Millia's gut, which she promptly blocks. Quick as a flash, the dark skinned fighter drops a ball by his feet and jabs downwards, bouncing the ball off the ground and zooming into the defending woman. While the projectile clashes harmlessly against Millia's defensive wall of hair, it pressures her long enough for Venom to continue his offensive. His offensive ability is amazing; he's managed to incorporate his unique theme of billiards into close-quarters combat well. However, if Millia can escape his pressure and put the assassin on the defensive, this fight will swing in her favor.

Venom launches into a series of three quick jabs with his cue, aiming at the stomach, chest and head, all of which Millia blocks. Venom's strength has certainly increased since Millia left the Guild; each hit, though blocked, forces her back. The mental concentration required to maintain her hair's defensive form is immense, and only increases as each blocked hit puts more stress on her mind. If Venom even lands a single hit, the damage would be massive.

The leader of the Assassins once again bounces a ball off the ground at Millia, forcing her to stay on the defensive. Dropping to one knee, Venom thrusts his weapon, trying to kneecap his opponent. The blonde leaps up to dodge, and Venom launches a ball at her to prevent her from escaping. The white haired killer takes a step forwards and swings down with the butt of his cue. This time, instead of having her hair be an unbreakable shield, Millia allows it to take a more fluid form. Yellow strands bend around the cue (but doesn't yield completely, denying Venom a solid hit) and shoots upwards and outwards in the shape of a wing, though the tip is sharp as a spear. Venom manages to pull back quickly enough to save the soft flesh of his thorax from being pierced, but still sustains a cut to his chin for his blunder.

Millia rushes forwards, not letting Venom regain his composure. She attacks relentlessly in a series of quick slashes and jabs. To Venom's merit, he manages to fend off the assault, but it's clear he's having trouble keeping up. He's being pushed back hard, and once his back is to the wall, he will have nowhere to go. On the next slash of her hair, Millia applies a little bit of magic to leave behind a disk of green energy after a short delay. Venom quickly conjures a florescent green barrier to fend off the disk, but this gives the Russian plenty of time to take to the air and attack him from above. Millia's hair splits into two prongs, one on either side of her head. They swing forward while moving towards one another like a pair of scissor blades. The English assassin parries the blow with his trusty cue, only to realize his mistake too late. The two prongs wrap around the stick and interlock, forming a firm grip on his weapon. The two strands merge at their bases, forming one tress of hair. Millia rotates this tress, ripping the cue out of Venom's hands and flinging it away as she lands in a crouch.

The two combatants find themselves face to face without their weapons. Venom's cue is a few meters to the side and Millia's hair is still reforming after the last maneuver. The dark skinned assassin acts fast, diving for his cue, but Millia acts faster. Using her left arm to support her weight, the blonde drops down and rotate around her limb with her right leg extended straight out. The kick catches Venom in the stomach and sends him tumbling into a wall. Millia rises quickly, her Forbidden Beast once again composed and ready to attack while Venom gasps for breath.

As Millia gazes upon the pathetic sight of Venom on his hands and knees struggling to breathe, she realizes she has no desire to kill him. He may be the leader of the Guild that's after her life, but she can't muster the will to kill him. Maybe it's because of what she said: that he was beginning to resemble Zato. She couldn't help that man; she could barely help herself back then. But for Venom, it's not too late for him to change and avoid the path to destruction. Strange, when did she become so merciful?

Even so, the white haired killer is a threat to Millia's goal and her life, so she can't just leave him be. She's going to have to beat him into submission first.

Millia forms her hair into a massive clenched fist. The former assassin dashes at Venom, reaching him just as he manages to stand upright. An arm of hair collides with his chin in a brutal uppercut. To Millia's surprise, the cue wielding fighter keeps his footing. Just how strong is his determination?

The Russian strikes again, this time ducking down before rising explosively to add more power to her punch. Venom cannot withstand this blow, and is knocked off his feet and into the air. Millia takes off after him, her Forbidden Beast shooting out in a jab. Venom bounces off the hairy fist, into the wall behind him and back to Millia. Said woman concentrates and unleashes a burst of magic from her palms, propelling her forward. Her hair reaches out and slams the white haired assassin into the wall. He remains suspended against the wood for a second while Millia descends to the ground before falling after her. His journey down is cut short by a fist of hair to the chin that launches him back up. Millia becomes airborne again, her hair splitting into two branches, each sporting a fist of its own. One arm punches Venom in the face, causing a mist of blood to spray out as his nose breaks. The other arm boxes him in the sides, possibly causing organ damage, as indicated by the crimson fluid spurting out of his mouth. Once again Millia boosts forward, this time utilizing her Beast's versatility instead of magic from her hands. Her hair shifts from acting as a motor from behind her to stabbing out and smashing Venom into the wall again.

Millia lands in a crouch and commands her hair to stretch forth and grab her battered opponent. She could launch him back into the air and juggle him, but that would be overkill; the dark skinned killer is near the end of his endurance. Perhaps she will just—

"Stop it!" shouts a high pitched voice, causing Millia to pause. It was only a matter of time before all this commotion drew unwanted attention. "You're killing him!"

Millia lets Venom drop to the ground (quite ungently) and turns around to assess her situation.

To her surprise, it's only Jam standing at the exit. How long has the chef been there? Millia didn't pick up her presence at all!

The Chinese woman rushes over to the prone form of Venom. Seeing that he's still breathing, Jam lets out a sigh of relief.

"Relax, I haven't killed him," Millia assures. "I just made sure he won't get in my way for a while." Blue eyes widen as Jam drapes Venom's right arm over her shoulders. "He's a wanted criminal, you know? You should just leave him here." Even her voice betrays her shock.

Jam shakes her head. "It would be better for him to be turned over to the police than to be left here. It is said that the organ harvesters don't care if you're alive or dead and they don't use medicine."

"Hmph," coughs out Venom. "I am not so weak that I will fall to such scum." Jam utters an eep of surprise and drops the wounded assassin, while Millia's hair erupts to life. How is this man still conscious? "Peace, woman. As much as I detest you with every fiber of my being, I know when I am defeated. Nothing good will come from my continued struggling."

"So you are capable of using your brain." Millia doesn't look away even once, even as she backs out of the cul-de-sac, and neither does her hair relax.

"You're leaving me behind. Again." It's a simple statement. There's no demand behind it, no hidden implication. But the bitterness in Venom's voice is powerful enough to make Millia pause. "I suppose I should be used to it, seeing as how that's a recurring theme all throughout my life. It's not just my parents who have left me early on; even in the Guild I was left behind. You and Zato always shared something special. A world that belonged to the two of you which I had no place in, no matter how much I desired otherwise. And even though I've worked so hard to become worthy of inclusion, it's not enough. Master Zato is already gone, and even you I cannot touch.

"I...I just...I just... AAAARGH!" Venom lets loose a frustrated shout as he slams a fist to the ground. Jam shies away from the horizontal man, and even Millia can feel the intensity of his emotions. However, the blonde doesn't say anything. What can she say? This is the first time she's seen Venom vent his feelings so openly before, the first time she's seen anyone vent their feelings openly. She knows nothing to say in this kind of a situation.

And yet, she can understand his frustration. The former assassin knows quite well how bad it feels to watch a back clothed in white and blue recede in the darkness of an alley. Is…is she empathizing with the defeated assassin? What would she, a person whose sole talent is killing, know about empathy? And yet, what other feeling is driving her to say these next words?

"Look, you've got Zato on a pedestal, so take it from someone who knows him." Millia almost grimaces at her tone. She'd meant to be gentle, but what she said just came out as condescending. "He never cared about the Guild. Everything he did was for his own benefit, and the Guild was a tool for that end. We were his slaves, Venom. Don't delude yourself into thinking otherwise. We were never free to do as we pleased, and that's why I left. But Zato is dead now; you're free to pursue your own path. Don't follow in his footsteps."

For a moment, Venom is silent, and Millia turns to leave. But then, the dark skinned killer speaks up, stopping her in her tracks.

"You say that, but you don't seem to be taking your own advice. Isn't the reason you're here in this city the same as mine? To find Master Zato?"

That's right...Venom did mention, during their fight, something about Eddie being spotted in the vicinity. Millia didn't pay too much heed to that at the time, but now that she's out of combat, just the mention of it is enough to bring out nasty emotions out of her. Still, it is quite convenient that Eddie is around. Perhaps it was fate that made her cross paths once again with Jam and be brought here.

"Zato is my business," says Millia coldly. "I must be the one to bury him with my own hands, so that I can finally escape from the specters of the past. Goodbye Venom, may you find your way."

The Russian beauty leaves without looking back, with Jam following behind her silently and awkwardly.

First I'd like to respond to Mr. kawaiijoe. I usually hate people that respond to reviews in their AN's, but as you're a faithful reader and reviewer, and as I have no other method of communicating with you, I'm forced to resort to this:

I'm glad you've enjoyed what I've written so far! It's honestly very flattering and touching. I'd like to sincerely thank you for taking your time to read. I'm not a romance writer (this is my first foray into the genre), so I hope I'll be able to meet your expectations!

I'd also like to extend the same appreciation to everyone that has read my story. You all encourage me with your actions! I'd like to see your (pen)names though, so you become a person in my mind, not just a number.

Next, some bad news. My update schedule (which was already slow), has been shattered since returning from my trip. This coupled with an exhausting new semester (I've got a messed up semester that starts in MARCH) beginning means new chapters are going to become irregular, so you can expect 3-6 month gaps of inactivity. I'll try not to let that happen, but I've always been a lazy person. Expect the worst.

Finally, a bit about this chapter. This was a lot of fun. I love watching Venom's offensive pressure, and writing it out has been just as much of a blast. Millia's air combo was also great, though I had to abridge it a bit. Her in-game moves are just too lethal to be used in this story, as no one is supposed to die except Eddie. I've always had a thing for incorporating game mechanics into my stories as well, so the bits about guard gauge and faultless defence were also pretty satisfying. I hope you had as much fun reading as I had writing. Until next time.