Chapter Three: One Mistake, One Ability Lost

A motorcycle shot around the corner. Its rider raised a suppressed pistol at Chen. Lin tackled the boy by instinct, a courier's knowledge of angles saving them as the bullet grazed his helmet. Su dragged them behind a planter. Police cars sealed the intersection, and the shooter abandoned the bike for the subway. Chen collapsed. "They're going to kill me! I have the task portal. I'll give it to you." After police took him away, Lin found a payment verification code on the old phone: ZERO-0719-LAN. July nineteenth was Lin's birthday. LAN was the romanization of his mother Lin Lan's name. She had vanished twelve years ago. Police called it a death at sea.