As night birds leaped from trees and flew high in the skies, while leaves danced in the cold wind, warmth drifted through the walls of Qing’s Safe House.

Diamond shadows filled the floor as the moon shone its light through the diamond-patterned glass door.

Min-ji’s face appeared and disappeared when the wide blue curtain swayed upward, driven by the cold air that flew through the open window and bounced the fabric into the room.

Metal grinding sounds echoed as she squeezed her grip on the silver rail, while the beauty of her face contorted as she frowned.

The heat in her died when she saw two birds that had no nest, standing on the top branch of a mango tree and hugging each other to keep themselves warm. ’Was leaving the Storm Mansion a good choice?’

"What is bothering you, my lady?" Darian’s voice rose from behind her and brought a smile to Min-ji’s cheeks, but her eyes remained solemn.

"Nothing that much," she said in a low voice, then shook her head once.

"You know I’m here for you," Darian said while placing his hands on her shoulders. "And if making that wreckage of a Storm Family crawl under your feet would make you happier, I would spend every penny to see that happen."

Min-ji’s eyes calmed for a second before turning wild as she rested her head on Darian’s shoulder. ’Min-seo, you better start packing before we strike, else the world would never remember we were once siblings when Darian and I get there.’

They stood there for a moment before moving into the secret bunker of the building, where natural light had stopped reaching from the very day the building’s completion took place.

The moment the huge titanium door slammed shut behind them, the ceiling began gracing the bunker with its blue lights that appeared one after another.

With every step they took, massive tactical vaults appeared, each carrying a name that wasn’t supposed to even exist in the world in the first place.

"What are these?" Min-ji asked when she caught sight of a vault with the name Death List inscribed at its center.

Darian looked at it once, then smiled. "That is not something you have to worry about or think of."

He brushed his palms across Min-ji’s neck, then slowly pushed her gaze forward. "There are things you need not ask about once you see them."

Min-ji turned her head and glanced at the vault once before slowly succumbing to Darian’s words with a giggle.

’How are the Qings keeping records of these things?’ she thought while glancing at the men standing guard over vaults that had no names attached to them, only chained and sealed in glass chambers.

As soon as they stopped before a red door with a two-crossed-bones symbol carved at its center, Darian loosened his hand from her shoulder, then bowed down slightly. "After you, my lady."

Min-ji looked at Darian’s bowing form and the door, while her heart rate increased drastically. ’What if I don’t come back after entering through that door?’

Two seconds after no movement, Darian lifted his head, then smiled at Min-ji. "Don’t be afraid. There is nothing in there you can’t handle."

"Are you sure?" Min-ji asked as she slowly moved toward the door and stopped.

"With my life, my lady," Darian said in a calm voice, then gave the guards standing at a far distance behind them a single nod.

A hydraulic sound erupted when one of the guards went and pressed a green button at the far left of Darian, while the rest formed a straight line, like a human wall in the very direction Darian and Min-ji had taken.

"Darian," Min-ji said the name with chills running down her spine and moved a step back when gas sprayed out of the door as its base raised.

Darian moved a step forward and caught Min-ji before she could even think of running, then shifted his intense gaze to her. "Don’t you trust me?"

Min-ji’s eyes moved quickly between Darian’s before they settled, when Darian blinked once. "I trust you, but..."

"There shouldn’t be any ’but’ if you really do trust me," Darian said while his grip tightened enough to straighten Min-ji and force her toward the smoke-filled entrance.

The guards exchanged smiley glances while the door slowly closed shut behind the two figures.

Glowing screens and transparent panels lingered in the room when the ceiling’s white light flashed on and brightened the new room.

Min-ji placed her palms on her cheeks while her heart rate slowly calmed. "I’m sorry I made you feel that way."

"Don’t worry," Darian said and smiled back at her. "That’s how everyone behaved when they all saw it at first."

"Everyone?" Min-ji’s eyes went cold in seconds.

"I mean every new member that joins the Qing family," Darian said and laughed. He walked to the front of the transparent rolling seat, then gestured for Min-ji to join him.

As soon as Min-ji sat on the adjacent seat, a loud crashing sound echoed from Darian’s left side, where an eight-foot, diamond-blue door stood.

Without hesitation, Darian got up from his seat and stormed into the research room, where countless scientists and other high-tech officials were. "Get them out!"

Min-ji swallowed hard and shifted a shocked face to the door when the voice hit her like a bomb. She forced a smile on her face when Darian exited, stroking his left fingers from his forehead through his hair.

He shifted his gaze to Min-ji while placing his right hand over her folded arms on her lap. "Sorry for what just happened."

Two men with half-burnt faces walked out of the diamond door wearing long white gowns. They lowered their gazes when they saw Darian staring at them.

One of the men forcefully raised his head, focused his gaze on the lady sitting beside Darian, then shook his head once.

"What are you looking at?" Darian barked at the second scientist when he caught him trying to whisper something.

"I’m not looking at anything, sir," the man said in a shaky voice, then rushed out of the room, following the other.

As soon as the red door closed behind them, gunshots echoed like rain outside the door and caused Min-ji’s body to jolt countless times until the sound died down.

Darian’s gaze lingered on Min-ji for a couple of seconds, while his expression slowly sharpened.

"Where were we?" he said in a cold voice, turning Min-ji’s face to his.