Nicholas wiped the blood from his blade as the last body hit the concrete floor.

The mission was over—almost. One man remained, but Nicholas didn’t kill him, at least not immediately.

Over the years, after ending more lives than he cared to count he had learned to recognize the change in people’s eyes at the end.

The fear, the regret, the desperation.

But these men were different.

They looked ready.

It was as if they had already accepted their deaths long before Nicholas arrived.

That realization left a bitter taste on his tongue.

Since only one person was left alive, Nicholas decided to indulge his curiosity.

"I’ve had a bad taste in my mouth since I started this mission," he said calmly. "So let’s make this quick."

He squatted down until they were eye to eye. Their gazes locked—Nicholas’s cold and calculating, the man’s defiant and unbroken.

"We both know you’re going to die," Nicholas continued, twirling a sharp dagger around his index finger. "The only favor I can do you is make it fast. Usually, the last one suffers more than the others..."

He paused, lips curling slightly.

"But today I feel... merciful. Yeah. Merciful." The man didn’t flinch.

"So tell me," Nicholas said, his eyes glinting darkly. "Did Rayner put you up to this?"

The man’s eyes widened at the name.

For a moment, disbelief flashed across his face—then it vanished, replaced by mockery. A low, hollow laugh spilled from his lips. For someone standing at death’s door, he held nothing back. His laughter echoed through the warehouse.

"So you figured it out, huh?" the man sneered. "Well, it doesn’t matter anymore. In no time—" "The military will flood this warehouse and kill me?" Nicholas finished casually.

The man froze mid-sentence, confusion flashing across his face.

"How do you know that?"

Nicholas sighed and rose to his feet.

Usually, he didn’t have to learn the names of his contractors except in rare cases like these.

"I knew something was off when Rayner kept pushing me to take this job," he said. "I may be greedy, but that money was ridiculous. And besides this won’t be the first setup I’ve walked into."

The man stared at Nicholas, eyes wide with disbelief, confusion, shock, "Then.. if you knew... Why why did you take the job?"

Nicholas shrugged, "You know, even with the nature of my work... hundred million dollars doesn’t just land on your desk every day."

"You knew it was a trap and you dived straight into it because of the money?" The man couldn’t help but be amazed by Nicholas bravery.

Nicholas pinched his nose, looking away shyly, and then flashed a grin at the man, "The money was worth it, I mean, I knew it was the government at hand... But once in a while, you have to help politicians with their money"

The man stared at him completely lost for words, he truly thought that they had him this time. But it seemed the man before him was completely out of his mind.

But the realisation quickly dawned on him as he recalled Nicholas words.

If he had been in situations similar to this several times, then it meant that he also came prepared for this one! His life would go to waste, the life of all his comrades will go to waste! Everything they had done up till this moment, this monster already knew of it beforehand.

Nicholas watched with a grin as he saw the defiance melt away from the man’s face, replaced with cold realization that his death would serve no purpose.

Watching the man despair was very much satisfying, and now he could see it. He watched as the fear crept in, eating away at the man’s confidence.

"You’re mad! You’re a monster" The man yelled, but his voice was silenced as the dagger moved with blinding speed, falling in-between his torso.

Nicholas let the silence sink in, long enough to make beads of sweat visible on the man’s pale face as he stared at him.

"As much as I’d hate to admit it, yes, yes I am" Nicholas voice dripped with a cold intensity, enough to make the man feel a chill, but suddenly he chuckled making the man confused yet again.

"But, since I love money so much... If you pay me well enough I might just let you live...." Sounds of the helicopter blades quickly caught Nicholas attention.

The bright blaring light flashing all over the glass panes of the warehouse, "Well, I guess we don’t have time for any of this anymore, your friends are here... So I’ll give you your heroic death" Nicholas eyes narrowed with a cold glint as he pulled out another dagger, throwing it straight at the man’s neck.

There was no resistance, only a pained squelch as the dagger tore straight into his throat. The man desperately held on to his throat trying to stop the blood, but his struggles could only last so long.

He fell to the ground, the colour in his eyes dying off. Nicholas stared at him silently, "Don’t worry, you might actually be a hero this time" Nicholas said with a tired sigh as he looked at the man’s dead body.

"Now what do they have for me this time? Did they bring a squad?" As much a he didn’t want to admit, he knew the chances this time were really slim.

They had already tried several methods in the past that didn’t work, considering he had escaped before... He was certain they would take more drastic measures to get him.

"I guess I’ll only find out if I go outside," Nicholas thought with a weary sigh. He glanced at his watch: [2:32 AM.]

"It’s late. This might be my last night job... I need more sleep." He walked calmly toward the warehouse entrance, the air vibrating with the presence of something outside.

The whipping wind from helicopter blades grew fiercer as he approached the exit. As soon as he pulled the warehouse door open, he was forced to shield his eyes. A blinding light from above cut through the darkness, far too bright for a standard spotlight.

He waited for his eyes to adjust, but it was useless; with each passing second, the radiance grew more intense, as if the sun had suddenly appeared in the dead of night.

There were no words, no warnings, and no demands. Only the shrill whistle of something tearing through the air.

Nicholas forced his eyes open to face the light.

Disbelief washed over him as he realized the truth.

"Those bastards," he muttered.

An instant later, a catastrophic explosion shattered the silence.

BOOM.

"Sergeant, we have a clean kill. Nicholas Von is down," a man spoke into his headset, his voice cold. "Not even the devil is bringing him back this time."

"Good, Lieutenant. Confirm the kill. Ensure he stays that way."

Staring down from the helicopter at the deep, scorched crater and the thick smoke billowing into the air, the Lieutenant replied with grim confidence, "He’s dead. I’m sure of it."

As the echoes faded and the smoke settled, the night sky regained its heavy silence.

[BBC-HUB Breaking News]

Earlier this morning, officials confirmed the death of Nicholas Von, the notorious assassin and mercenary responsible for the deaths of two presidents and several government officials. The massive explosion reported at dawn served as a violent end to his career. Our sources have gathered additional details regarding the incident...

Watching the news on the screen, a woman sat alone at the bar counter. Her eyes widened in shock as the headlines scrolled past.

The bar erupted into loud chatter as others noticed the broadcast.

"They finally caught him... He really gave them a hard time." 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"For them to use a bomb that massive on one guy? He must’ve been a huge headache for the government. Good thing he’s dead, though."

The woman overheard their conversation, but she didn’t know how to react. A storm of emotions welled up inside her. Her hands trembled as she gripped her glass, teeth clenched as she lowered her head, doing her best to keep herself together.

Just then, her phone vibrated.

{Orphanage}

{Donation received: $50,000,000 from XXXX-XXX NGO}

{Take care of the kids}

The moment she read the message, Maria broke down in tears, drawing confused glances from everyone around her. They didn’t understand why she was crying.

While the world celebrated the death of a tyrant, she was mourning a man who had stained his hands so that thousands of others could live better lives.

"Nick... I’m sorry. Please forgive me."

Her voice broke as the tears finally spilled freely, beyond her control.

And while the world hailed his death, Nicholas felt his consciousness wrapped in darkness.