Archive of Our Own

Work Text

Transmission - 9 March 2024, 09:10:21
“Got it. All set.”A man in his fifties was in a hotel room, adjusting the camera on his phone to face him. He had black hair and was donning a business suit. He looked around at his surroundings before turning back to the camera.“This is Agent J, reporting. I’ve reached Naples not long ago, and just booked into my hotel room. So far, everything is on track. I managed to find Marshall and ‘bumped’ into him so I could place a tracking device on him. Remember him? He’s the guy I told you about who was with Sean in the alleyway the other day. He didn’t seem to recognize me, fortunately, so that’s a good sign. I’m sure he’ll meet up with Sean in the next few days. Until then, I’ll update you again when there is movement from either of them. Agent J, out.”
Transmission - 12 March 2024, 18:04:43
It was the evening, when the sun had just set and the skies took on an apricot tint. The man sat down at a table a few meters away from the Piazza del Plebiscito, facing the camera towards him. He was wearing a hat, a pair of sunglasses, and a long grey coat.“This is Agent J, reporting. Today, I tailed Marshall into the Museo di Capodimonte in the afternoon. It was like what I had predicted. He and Sean met up at a corner of the museum. It seemed like they were discussing something about getting supplies and men. Afterwards, the two of them and a few other people convened right here at the Piazza del Plebiscito. This time, I was able to discern their conversation using a disguise. They planned to travel to Rome in a week’s time, raid the St Peter’s Basilica at night with no one around, and make it their base of operations. That’s all they talked about before dispersing. Their plan might be temporary, but I wouldn’t be so brave as to take a gamble. If they’re really intending to turn that church upside down, then I would need some agents to help me. Please send them to my hotel as soon as you see this, and I’ll handle the rest here. Don’t you worry. As usual, I’ll send a transmission any time there’s an update. Agent J, out.”
Transmission - 20 March 2024, 20:03:15
Five agents each stood behind an enormous pillar around St Peter Basilica, while Agent J leaned his back against the back of the Vatican Obelisk. He was holding the phone with one hand and a gun in the other.“This is Agent J, reporting. We’re in position. We’ve been waiting here for almost three hours now and there is no one in sight. Nada. Culo. Dick. I don’t remember getting the location wrong. I clearly heard it with my own two ears, and I followed Marshall here, so where could they be? Speaking of him, I’ve lost track of him the moment I got here, like he somehow found out about the tracking device. The signal just went static. Everything that could go wrong is going wrong. Maybe they might have suspected we’re here. Perhaps they’re waiting for us to leave before taking action. Still, I’m not leaving. I will stop Sean and his goons from terrorizing this place at all costs. I’ll probably go to a different spot nearby and remain hiding until they appear. Until then, I’ll update you once they come. Agent J, o…”Just as he was about to finish speaking, he heard a bullet go through a pillar and a ‘pew’ sound, followed by a body thumping onto the floor. He was astounded, to say the least. For a moment, he was unable to process the situation. That came out of nowhere, and it startled the wits out of him.“Holy shit.” was the only thing he could utter. Thankfully, he managed to snap himself back to reality. He turned his head towards the camera and spoke again.“One of our agents was just killed by some sniper. We’re being ambushed. Someone knows we’re here. This is not good. I’ll talk to you later. Agent J, out.”Before the transmission ended, more gunshots could be heard.
Transmission - 20 March 2024, 21:04:21
“Boss, this is urgent. I repeat, this is VERY urgent.”Agent J was panting and sweating all over as he squatted behind a wall. He even had a knife slash mark on his left cheek, blood stains on his shirt, and a bullet in his right arm. He grabbed the phone tightly with his other hand and stared at the camera intensely.“We’re in deep fucking shit, Boss.” He continued with uneasiness obvious from his voice and tone, “We got discovered by Sean and his men. It was a set-up all along. He knew I was following Marshall this whole time, and he made use of it to lead us here and kill us. I need backup immediately. Pronto, before they find me. I hope this reaches you as soon as possible. I don’t have much time left. Shit.”He then dropped the phone onto the floor and ran away as an agile man sprinted after him. Midnight. That was when she received a new video transmission. Out of nowhere, right when she was about to go to bed. However, this was no longer the time to think about sleeping. This video was of utmost importance, and she must view it.The woman, a late-thirties millionaire residing in a mansion, grabbed an access card from the bedside table and her car keys before leaving her room. Wearing a simple white shirt and jeans, she walked to her garage. Ranging from exotic hypercars to off-road trucks, there were a variety of vehicles for her to choose from. With a click of a button on the key fob, a loud ‘beep’ sound came from a Lamborghini Gallardo, emitted throughout the depot. She marched to the sports car, hurriedly pushing herself. With a sense of emergency, she pressed the start-stop button and stepped on the brakes. Immediately, the engine roared to life. With her foot still on the brakes, she pulled back the right paddle shifter and went to first gear before driving off towards the city. The bustling metropolis, usually filled with civilians walking the pavements on their way to work, the huge amount of cars on the roads traveling in an orderly manner, and the lively advertisements shown on buildings playing in full volume in the daytime, had fallen silent during the late night. The streets were empty, there were no signs of any cars except the woman’s, and the lights in the buildings were mostly switched off, turning the town into a silent, unilluminated, and eerie place to be in. All that was left was a faint glow of moonlight here, the low hum of wind rustling through the trees there, and a drunk straggler swaying left and right as he moved forward.One thing she could appreciate about the quiet night though was the bright moon, which casted a soft, silver glow on the quiet city.As she stopped at a traffic junction, she darted her eyes in the direction of her phone, which was on the passenger seat. There were no notifications of any messages or calls, which only increased her levels of anxiety. She had sent numerous texts to Agent J, but none of them were answered. The more she pondered what might’ve happened to him, the more her whole body shivered in fear.No, she couldn’t have these thoughts right now. She needed to believe that he was safe and in one piece. That way, she wouldn’t feel as guilty for sending him over to Italy to stop her nemesis. After all, he was a strong man. In their five years of working together, ever since the agency started, he had made it out alive through some tough and dangerous situations. Jumping off a ten-story building and barely lived on by landing on trash bags, narrowly dodging bullets in a gunfight, and even handling a one versus five brawl. He survived all those near-death experiences, so this time shouldn’t be any different, right?Warding off the unpleasant thoughts she had in her mind, she decided to focus on the road and her driving instead. With that, she turned on the radio to listen to classical music, something that could calm her down. The piece that played immediately was Camille Saint-Saëns’s “Danse Macabre". She looked at the infotainment screen with confusion. She knew exactly the meaning of this musical work. Was this just a mere coincidence, or an imminent sign? She shook her head, ignoring whatever that was. Fate can’t be that cruel to the both of them.After what felt like thirty minutes, when in reality it was only just one-third of it, her car pulled into a nearly empty office building’s carpark. She shut the engine off, allowing her to finally hear the tranquility around her. She exited the car, locked it with the car key, and walked to the lift lobby at a brisk pace. It took a while for the elevator to arrive, only causing her apprehensiveness to greatly intensify. On her way up, she put her hands together and started praying for Agent J’s safety. She hoped nothing had happened to him. She hoped he was out of harm’s way. She hoped he would come out of all of this alive. Once the lift reached the designated floor, she strode out of the lift and into her office. Flicking the light switch with a finger, the pitch-black room was now illuminated. On her left was a shelf full of history and literature books. In front of her was her working table, along with a computer on it. Behind them was a painting of Mona Lisa, and opposite it was a big 64-inch screen. On her right, the windows were blocked by gray silk curtains, and a leather sofa was placed against the wall.She went to her table and connected her phone to the computer so that she could see the transmission on the big screen. She sat down on her ergonomic armchair, wishing her worst nightmare wouldn’t come true.All her hopes were dashed immediately as soon as the transmission started playing. 
Transmission - 21 March 2024, 00:09:33
A brown-haired muscular man was straightening the camera, with a badly beaten-up, heavily bruised, and bloodied Agent J lying on the floor. Besides the two of them, there were two other women surrounding Agent J. One of them had mauve hair tied in twintails. The other had purplish indigo hair tied in a ponytail to her left with a white ribbon, with some dirt marks and specks of blood on it.“Hello, Laura.” The muscular man waved at the camera as he smiled, “It’s your favorite ex-agent, Sean. Didn’t expect to see me, did you? Surprise. This should’ve been shocking to you. However, knowing you, you probably anticipated this would happen. Well, you can’t change the outcome now anyways.”He pulled the camera to Agent J, “Am I right, little Johnny? Speak to me. Tell me how you feel about your boss sending you on a suicide mission.”As Agent J slowly opened his mouth, the ponytail woman kicked the side of his skull with force. The mortally wounded spy let out a low, deep groan, like how a dying whale would sound. His face, although it was discolored, blood-soaked, and full of lesions, was enough to articulate the extreme physical and mental pain he was suffering. “Your oldest and most loyal agent somehow found Marshall talking to me in the alleyway, and then you sent him to track me down and stop me by putting a tracking device on my friend.” Sean continued speaking, “Just so you know, I was well aware of what you were up to, so I decided to play a little trick on you.”He took out the tracking device from his coat and waved it in his hand, “This little fiasco in Italy was set up by me, with Marshall’s cooperation, of course. I made use of this little device to lure Johnny and your agents to an open space with some plans I made up, expecting some kind of raid. What they did not expect was my men easily eliminating them from unreachable spots. It was fun seeing them unable to react in time. By then, the only one left…was dear Johnny, fending for himself. Too bad he couldn’t outrun my assistant. Poor thing.”He went back to Johnny and held his head up by his hair before shoving the device in his left eyeball. Agent J screamed at the top of his lungs in agony as blood oozed out from his eye.“You’re a cunning woman, Laura, but I like being challenged.” Sean smirked as he faced the camera, “I played you this time, and I will every single time. You will never beat me at my own game. Ever. You thought you were smart, but I was one step ahead. You only created a small mess for me to clean up. Johnny here will now suffer the consequences of your own actions.”He took out a gun and aimed it at Agent J’s head. Afterwards, he pulled the trigger, and a blaring bang sound was emitted throughout the room. The operative’s lifeless skull dropped onto the floor with a deafening thud. Sean then turned his head towards the camera and stared at the screen, as if staring right into the viewer’s eyes.“He deserved it, so do you.” He bellowed, “Bring on whatever you have, bitch.” Once the transmission ended, the woman clenched her fists in anger. She was pissed at Sean for killing Agent J, but more importantly, she was mad at herself for letting this happen. She couldn’t blame anybody but herself for assigning Agent J this task. This was his last mission before his retirement. She wanted to give him some glory before bowing out of this risky industry. She indirectly caused his death, and she felt so remorseful for it. She couldn’t let this happen again.“No more deaths, no more games.” She muttered to herself with firm determination, “I’ll bring you down with my own hands, Sean Robinson. By hook or by crook.”A band, consisting of two female singers, a drummer, guitarist, and bassist stepped up on a Tokyo’s live house’s stage as its staff were setting up the instruments and doing some sound checks. Meanwhile, five hundred spectators murmured among themselves about the music performance before this, patiently waiting for the current one to start.After everything was settled, one of the singers, a blonde woman with shoulder-length hair, raised the microphone up to her mouth, tapped it, and then spoke into it.“Hello, and thank you for coming to the event to see us. I am Alisa Ayase, and my partner here is Yukiho Kosaka. Together, we are…”“YukiLisa!” The two vocalists said in unison. The audience screamed and cheered for them. Both of them smiled brightly and waited for them to stop before Alisa resumed with the introduction.“Here with us are Raana-chan, the guitarist, as well as Miyu-chan, the bassist. Last but not least, Shinji-san, the drummer. We hope you enjoy our performance. Please listen to us.”Alisa proceeded to give the thumbs up to the stage control personnel. The stage lights went on, and the ellipsoidal reflector spotlights shone on the band. The drummer raised his sticks up and lightly clanged them together four times.With that, the guitarist and bassist started playing the instrumental to ‘Snow halation’, a song by a school idol group µ’s, while the vocalists sang the lyrics to it. Loud resounding cheers erupted from the crowd as they sang along and fisted their hands in the air.One such person in the audience was Eli Ayase, a woman with long blonde hair tied in a scrunchie and light blue eyes. She might look like a normal human living an average life. However, she was no ordinary individual. She, together with her friends Maki Nishikino and Umi Sonoda, stopped a large-scale crime syndicate two years ago. It was their drive to bring justice to the families of those innocent victims killed in the heinous crimes that united them together and enabled them to take down the illegal organization led by Regis Yazuka. A ruthless man driven by vengeance and greed with thousands of connections all throughout Tokyo, even a marksman and the police force chipped in to help as he became nearly untouchable by the end of his reign.Eli was a dependable person everyone could rely on, be it her great physical strength, her level-headed thinking in dire and life-threatening situations, or her leadership. She would see through something once she had set her sights on it, and nothing would stop her.She might’ve been stern at times, but not when it came to her sister, Alisa, and her tunes. Whenever Eli would play a song of Alisa’s, she would unconsciously bob her head back and forth and sing out the words, even in the shower. It was just that catchy and melodic. She even brought lightsticks just for today to support the singer.After the performance, the audience gave a boisterous round of applause. The band members bowed down in response, appreciating the support. They then played an original song, written by Alisa and Yukiho, and composed by the band members.An hour later, after the whole show was done, Eli waited for her sister in the dressing room. She was starstruck and amazed by Alisa’s performance earlier. She had recorded a video of it too, and she just couldn’t stop watching it.“Onee-chan?” Alisa opened the door to the room, “Are you there?”Eli stood up from her seat and went to hug Alisa, “You did wonderful out there, Alisa. As your number one fan, I’m so proud of you.”“Thank you, Onee-chan.” The singer squealed in delight as she looked at her older sister, “Thank you for coming all the way to Ikebukuro for me. You must be tired from the long distance trip here.”“I’m fine, Alisa.” Eli caressed her younger sibling’s hair, “It’s all worth it just to see you perform. I can’t bear to miss out on it.”“You know, I was so nervous when I went on stage.” Alisa voiced out, “This is my first time performing in a live event like this. I was scared that I was gonna mess up my singing and ruin the whole thing. Thankfully, the practice sessions beforehand helped me loosen up a bit.”“Have some confidence in yourself.” Eli patted Alisa’s shoulders, “You have really fantastic singing abilities, the talent to create such beautiful melodic lyrics, and great chemistry with Yukiho. Today’s proof of that. I’m sure you’ll do just fine. More people will come flocking to your lives once they witness your godly vocals.”“You flatter me, Onee-chan.”“What I’m saying is true. Everyone is able to see that you’re so hardworking, putting all your efforts into your craft. There is no doubt your songs are superb and outstanding.”“You’re really good at coming up with compliments, Onee-chan, but I’ll gladly take them.” Alisa remarked with a grin. The Ayase siblings then laughed in unison. “Let’s go for dinner, Onee-chan.” Alisa commented, picking up her handbag from the couch near her, “We wouldn’t want to keep Yukiho waiting for too long.” “Wait.” Eli took out a small box from her handbag and passed it to Alisa, “I bought you something to celebrate this special occasion. I hope you like it.”Alisa was taken aback that she received a gift from none other than her older sister. Nonetheless, she decided to open the box, and in it was a sterling silver necklace with a music note pendant styled on it. Her eyes sparkled with joy. “Congratulations on completing your first live show, Alisa.” Eli smiled at the singer. Alisa ran to Eli and embraced her tightly with tears in her eyes, “Thank you, Onee-chan. I’ll cherish it forever.”“Fufu, I’m sure you will.” Eli giggled, “Do you want me to put it on you now?”“Yes, please!” The excitement in Alisa’s voice was enough for Eli’s heart to melt right then and there. Eli took out the necklace and hung it around Alisa’s neck. Alisa then went to the dressing mirror and stared dreamily at her reflection.“It’s beautiful.” She remarked with awe.“So are you.” Eli replied, “I’m glad you love it.”“I love anything that you give me, Onee-chan!” Alisa twirled around, “I’m going to show this off to Yukiho later! She’s gonna be so jealous! C’mon, let’s go!”Eli grinned at her sibling and nodded her head before switching off the lights in the room as they left the live house.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Eight at night.

Normally, during this time, people would be loosening up after work and having dinner in either food courts or restaurants. Or, they would be returning home by cars, buses, or trains to rest and relax and mentally prepare themselves for the next day.

Not for the police force, though. They were busy and exhausted, just like any other usual day. They were always occupied with paperwork to fill and reports to write. After all, as one would say, crime never sleeps.

Despite the crime rates in Tokyo decreasing significantly since the fall of the biggest crime syndicate in the capital, there was no such thing as peace in the city. There would always be offenders breaking the law and committing illegal deeds.

Today was no different, as more cases of various unlawful acts were disclosed to the Tokyo branch by the citizens, ranging from small things like fights breaking out on the sidewalks to large-scale ones like murder. Its chief inspector, Huang Zi Yang, was sitting in his office, reading some of the accounts of the aforementioned incidents written by several officers. He needed to check every single one of them before signing and sending them to the higher-ups.

As he was flipping through the files, he heard a knock on the door, interrupting his concentration. He looked up and saw a female officer standing at the door, who possessed semi-long dark green hair and vermillion eyes, as well as a folder in her hands.

“May I come in, Sir?” She asked politely, yet with seriousness. Her solemn tone indicated some sort of importance, as if the case she was about to show him was pretty severe. Seeing this might be more significant than some little brawl between three men over staring, he nodded his head in response.

She is Shioriko Mifune, a helpful, earnest, and diligent officer who was well-known for her exceptional critical thinking and strong sense of justice during her training days. She was able to carry out tasks swiftly, be it independently or in a team. Her knack for identifying strengths and weaknesses, whether it be in her teammates or the methods used, had impressed her superiors.

However, she also had a reputation among her colleagues of being really straightforward and pragmatic, lowering the motivation and morale of those around her. She was often strict too, lecturing them on how crucial it was to follow the rules. Her stiff demeanor and lack of self-expression didn’t help her image of a stern person either.

Shioriko marched to Zi Yang’s desk and placed the folder on it. She then opened it and explained the details of the case. A few hours ago, there was a big commotion that took place in Shibuya. Apparently, a building that was illegally selling firearms was burnt down.

Sources said that it was the work of one unknown guy, and others told the cops they heard gunshots and bombs going off. Most of the shop owners and patrons were killed in the wake of the destruction except for one, who escaped from the fire and was sent to the hospital. His statement was currently being taken.

She took a photo out from the binder and showed it to the chief inspector. Although it was snapped from a far distance, the silhouette of a man could still be faintly seen from the windows. Zi Yang squinted his eyes to see if he recognized either of them, but to no avail.

“Do you have any information about this person here?” He questioned his partner as he pointed at the two figures in the picture. Shioriko shook her head in response, eliminating any possibility of jumping straight to going through the dossiers. It seemed like he had to start from the roots.

“Looks like I’ll have to pay that arms dealer a visit soon.” He muttered to himself.

As morning dawned, the sun shone brightly on Tokyo, with vivid shades of golden orange blanketed by the white wooly-like clouds as a gentle, cool breeze passed by.

In the kitchen of a cozy little house, an ocean-haired woman took out a nine inch springform pan from the cabinet and sprayed the overflipped base with non-stick cooking oil.

She blended the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and sugar in a blender. She then smoothened the mixture using a measurement cup until it became an even layer. With a preheated oven at 350 °F, she inserted the pan in and set it to eight minutes.

She is Umi Sonoda, one of the trio that helped take down Tokyo’s biggest crime syndicate two years ago. A marksman who was athletic and strict, her logical thinking helped the team of three and their ally Jeff Connor greatly in defeating Regis and his men.

Meanwhile, an ash-gray brunette with a side ponytail and a small hair loop above her head opened two bricks of cream cheese and placed them in a stainless steel bowl. She then poured sugar and salt in before blending it with an electric mixer. A minute later, she put the sour cream and vanilla extract in the mixture, and then the flour gradually to not get clumps of it all over the bowl.

After scrapping the blend with a wooden spatula, she cracked her six eggs one at a time on top of the bowl, slowly plopping each egg yolk into the mix. She turned the mixer back on to mix the batter and subsequently poured it out into the springform pan.

She is Kotori Minami, a conscientious, diligent police inspector, and Umi’s wife. She, together with the police force, had assisted her spouse and her friends in the downfall of the criminal organization. In the end, her efforts were noticed, and she got promoted thanks to it.

However, going up the ranks wasn’t all sunshine and roses. Over the past year, she had been busier with a lot of cases handled to her, which meant going to the crime scenes, investigating what had happened, gathering evidence, and taking statements from victims and eye-witnesses. On some days even, this would result in her having less sleep and lovey-dovey moments with Umi.

Not only did she have additional responsibilities like taking care of her juniors’ well-being and setting a good example for them, she had to perform better than ever because of her superiors’ high expectations of her.

Even when she used up a lot of time and concentration to finish her load of work, more of it came rolling in. It felt like the work would never be done. She finally understood the pressure her senior had faced previously. Nonetheless, she managed to barely complete the tasks given to her just before Golden Week. She could finally rest and take a breather. More importantly, she could finally spend quality time with her spouse.

Umi set the oven to 350 °F once again for ten minutes before tuning it to 300 °F for an additional forty minutes. With that, she and the ash-gray brunette washed their hands. All they had to do now was to wait for the cake to be ready for consumption.

As the couple was walking out of the kitchen, Kotori went to the coffee stand in the living room and stared dreamily at a photo contained inside a plastic tabletop frame.

The police inspector always loved to see this specific snapshot. Be it going out or around the house, she would never fail to stop dead in her tracks to gaze at the wonderful picture that she adored and treasured.

It was a selfie she took of Umi and her kissing with a diamond ring on her finger. It was the latter who slipped it on for her during a romantic date, the day she got proposed to.

She could never forget that moment when Umi went down on one knee and popped the question, something she had wished to hear for a very long time. The passionate kiss they had after she said yes was definitely something that was etched in her mind for eternity too.

Umi, who was behind Kotori, gave her wife a warm hug from the back, “You really enjoy looking at this, don’t you?”

“I do, Umi-chan.” Kotori beamed, “I reeeeally love this special moment. I will never be tired of looking at it, even if it’s for a thousand times.”

“Me too.” The ocean-haired woman grinned, “That moment indeed is something I hold dear. You had no idea how nervous I was that day. I fumbled up my script, I almost dropped the ring, and I was so scared when you said nothing for a good few seconds after I proposed.”

“I was just so shocked that you did it out of the blue.” Kotori turned back and faced her loved one, “But I loved it, Umi-chan. Besides, I had always wanted you to say it, so the outcome wouldn’t have changed either way.”

Umi planted a kiss on Kotori’s forehead and smiled at her, “Then I’m glad I worked up my courage, so that I could have this beautiful and loving wife by my side.”

The ash-gray brunette giggled softly and snuggled her head against her partner’s chest as Umi caressed Kotori’s soft, silky hair.

Elsewhere lay a different scene.

The scent of freshly-baked bread filled the atmosphere of a bakery named Homura. An assortment of sandwiches, bun rolls, and baguettes were displayed nicely and accordingly. Their lightly sweet-scented and welcoming aroma enticed customers to reach out for them.

The store was owned and operated by Mr. and Mrs. Kosaka. They live on the second floor of the shophouse, and they have two daughters. While they were busy tending the shop, their children were in their respective rooms.

Yukiho was sleeping soundly after her mini concert with Alisa the previous day. She got so worn out from the performance, the stress it brought her, and the numerous amounts of intense vocal training she had to go through for weeks prior to the live performance that she fell asleep in her dress the moment her body touched her bed.

Meanwhile, in a different room, an orange-haired woman placed down a circular tray containing a plate of red bean manjuus and two cups of hot tea on a small table in the middle of the room. She then sat down on the floor, seemingly waiting for someone.

She is Honoka Kosaka, the energetic and bubbly older daughter. Even though she was working at the confectionery downstairs as the cashier, she currently wasn’t living with her parents unlike her younger sister. Instead, she had moved out after graduating from high school eight years ago due to two reasons; her hectic schedule when she was an idol back then and her wanting to live independently without her parents’ monetary support.

That was one of the most horrible life decisions she had ever made. Not only was her idol career at risk already, she was scrimping whenever she could, like surviving off cup noodles and water every day as if she was a poor beggar. She even wore the same clothes until they were in tatters. Still having hope, she spent most of her money on her rent, idol coaching and costumes to improve herself in order to become a better idol.

Unfortunately, the odds weren’t in her favor, and she wasn’t successful even after all her efforts. That was when she understood reality was harsh. Dejected and too ashamed to tell her parents, she quit being an idol a year later and returned to studying while also working part-time to make ends meet. She managed to enter a university after barely passing the entrance exam. That was when she met the apple of her eye. The center of her world. The love of her life.

Back to the present, Honoka stared at the plate of manjuus. She had specially made these for her partner to eat. She had steamed this delicacy for quite some time now, but she never got tired of making it as long as her significant other loved the taste of it.

The mastering process was tough, though. She had been in the kitchen every day after work without fail, training with her mother on making the delicacy for a good few months before she got the hang of it.

She then heard the door open as a woman with scarlet red hair walked in and gracefully took a seat beside her. The redhead picked up a manjuu and placed it in her mouth. She chewed it with her mouth slowly, relishing every part of the food, from the sweet and delicious paste to the soft yet fluffy dough.

This is Maki Nishikino, an ex-air stewardess and Honoka’s girlfriend whom she met in university. She was the last member of the trio that caused the dissolution of Tokyo’s largest crime syndicate. Usually shy and reserved, she constantly had a hard time expressing her true feelings, but she had since learnt to be more expressive by being with Honoka.

When they had first become an item, Maki found out about Honoka’s struggles. She loved Honoka so much because the latter accepted her for who she was without looking at her status or money. She didn’t want to see her partner suffer.

Because of that, in addition to fully paying Honoka’s university fees, she also allowed Honoka to move into a house owned by the Nishikinos, which would soon become their shared home. Honoka was eternally grateful for Maki, and tried to suggest repaying the goodwill multiple times, but Maki kindly rejected her and told her it wasn’t necessary.

“How’s the manjuu, Maki-chan?” Honoka asked, eagerly waiting for a response, “Is it still as good as before?”

“It’s delicious as always.” Maki nodded her head in response, “You never fail to make such savoury food, Honoka.”

“Hehe, you flatter me, Maki-chan.” Honoka let out a shy laugh as she scratched her head, “I haven’t done this in a while, so my skills on making it were a little rusty. I was afraid you’d find it awful.”

“Honoka…”

“Your compliment did reassure me though, but I hope you’re not just comforting me.” Honoka continued, “You don’t have to play nice, Maki-chan. Just tell me what you

really

thought of it.”

Upon hearing that, Maki passed her girlfriend one manjuu, “Maybe you should try it for yourself. That’s how you know whether you still have the skills or not.”

Honoka listened to her and took a bite off the confection, taking her time to munch. Her eyes immediately lit up once she felt the delectable flavour lingering in her mouth.

“Mmm,

oishi

!” A delightful coo escaped her lips, “I didn’t know I could make such delicious manjuu! I’m surprised I haven’t lost my touch yet.”

“See, I wasn’t lying to you.” Maki crossed her arms and turned her head to the right, emitting a ‘hmph’ sound along the way, “Do you believe me now…”

Honoka didn’t wait for Maki to finish her sentence as she stretched her arms wide open and cuddled Maki, with the orange-haired woman’s head on her girlfriend’s shoulders.

“I love you so much, Maki-chan! You’re the best!”

“D-don’t spring up on me like that!” Maki blushed, “A-at least give me some time to prepare myself for it!”

“You don’t need to be prepared for stuff like this, Maki-chan. Just enjoy my affection.” Honoka gave her a smug smile before swiftly pecking her on the cheek. Yet again, it startled Maki as her whole face turned as red as a tomato.

“H-Honoka!

Mou

, that’s not fair.” She pouted, earning a grin from Honoka.

Eli stepped out of the lift and walked into the hospital lobby. She and Alisa had decided to meet for lunch today after the latter’s appointment and Eli was instructed to stay right at the entrance where Alisa could see her.

The blonde woman sat down on one of the foldable seats and took out her phone from her bag. She informed her sibling of her location by text and then went to the news app, reading the latest articles while patiently waiting for the singer.

Meanwhile, Zi Yang and Shioriko were walking in the hallway. They were just done interrogating the hospitalized arms dealer, and they were currently discussing what he had told them in his statement.

As they were approaching the lobby, Zi Yang saw Eli from the corner of his eye, halting himself to a stop. At the same time, when Eli put her phone down, she spotted the chief inspector. They walked towards one another and embraced each other.

“Long time no see, Zi Yang.” Eli said with a tinge of joy, “How are you doing?”

“Busy as ever.” He tittered as he pulled away from the hug, “Being a high ranking official isn’t fun as it sounds. What about you, Miss Justice Warrior? How’s that civil life of freedom going so far?”

“Considerably well.” She replied, “I kinda have nothing to do now that the police force is more competent to deal with crimes than before, especially with you in command. I have trust in your acumen to serve fairness and justice, as well as your capability to fight crime and protect the vulnerable.”

“You give me too much credit.” He then turned to his underling, “Oh, in any case, Shioriko, this is Ayase Eli. She and her companions brought the biggest crime syndicate in Tokyo down. Eli, this is my new partner, Mifune Shioriko.”

“I’ve heard a lot of good things about you, Ayase-san.” Shioriko extended her hand out, “Nice to finally meet you in person.”

“Nice to meet you, Mifune-san.” Eli shook the police officer’s hand, “Is Zi Yang a good superior to you? Hopefully, he isn’t too harsh on you, haha.”

Eli’s laugh was met with awkward silence, a stern look on Shioriko’s face, and her response afterwards, “He’s nice to me.”

“I’m sorry, Eli.” Zi Yang voiced out, “Shioriko is quite a serious and stringent person. She doesn’t really reciprocate jokes that well.”

“It’s fine.” Eli looked at him with an unrelaxed smile, “Anyways, what are you two doing in the hospital? Is it anything to do with the arson that happened recently?”

“So you’ve read the news.” Zi Yang nodded his head, “That makes it easier to explain. We went to grill the only arms dealer who survived the arson about the attack and take his statement down.”

“I see. I wish you all the best in solving this case then. I’m confident you can do it.”

“Thanks…”

He was interrupted by the sound of a gunshot and an alarm. The three of them were startled by the sudden sounds, but recovered fast. It was at that moment a sudden realization hit Zi Yang.

“Could it be…”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Zi Yang and Shioriko ran towards the arms dealer’s ward as fast as their legs could carry them. As soon as they heard the loud gunshot, they knew something was wrong.The chief inspector suspected that the arms dealer had been shot dead, but he needed to get to the scene to see it for himself. He also had to be there as soon as possible to prevent any further loss of lives.Once the pair reached the ward, they saw two beaten up police guards and seven men standing around the bed, staring at the patient. They all turned around and locked eyes with the police personnel, holding what seemed to be knives.Zi Yang took a glance at the arms dealer and noticed that a bullet was engraved into his forehead.His suspicions were confirmed. The patient was deceased.“Shioriko, find the guy that shot Fusuke.” He whispered to his protégé, “Call for some backup too. There should be lots of thugs guarding this place.”“Sir, what about the men here? They seem to be big in numbers. Do you need my help to take them down?”“No worries, I can handle them by myself. Just stick to my instructions and we should be alright.”“Understood, Sir.” She bowed.The moment she turned around to leave the ward and search for the shooter, the men made their move. With his fast reflexes, Zi Yang pushed Shioriko out of the room, shutting the door behind him and locking it, cutting them off from getting to her.With that, the men charged at the chief inspector. The first man swung his blade at Zi Yang’s face, but the latter ducked and delivered three hard punches to his abdomen, causing the man to stumble back into two other men.The second and third assailant brandished their knives and aimed it at Zi Yang’s throat. Zi Yang booted the second attacker’s chest, pushing him to the bed. The policeman then gave the third man’s skull a hard hook and disarmed him by kneeing his wrist. The man cried in pain, his head throbbing badly from the impact of the jab and his carpus hurting.As Zi Yang was about to pick up the knife, the first and fourth man hurled their weapons at him. Straight away, he rolled his body to the right, and the blades hit the floor instead. The inspector cursed under his breath, frustrated that he was outnumbered. The men proceeded to pick up their knives from the ground and walked towards Zi Yang. The police official darted his eyes around the room, looking for anything that could help him. He settled his sights on a pitcher full of water and four glass cups on the small coffee table. He stood up and, in one shot, splashed the water at the men, distracting them as the liquid temporarily blurred their visions. Afterwards, he grabbed the tray containing the cups.“Catch.” Giving them no time to recover, he flung it at the men like a frisbee, hitting more than half of them. The cups dropped onto the floor and broke into a few hundred pieces of shards. Zi Yang took the pitcher and smacked the first man’s right cheek with it, as well as his zygomatic arch. Zi Yang rammed the man to the wall using the former’s body weight and slammed his rock-hard head against the man’s, resulting in the man bleeding. The inspector then held the attacker’s wrist and twisted it, forcing the man to drop his weapon.Zi Yang picked the knife up and swiftly slashed the man’s thighs to incapacitate him before fisting him on the face. The man fell down to the ground like a rag doll, badly injured and out of energy to fight back. The second, third, and fourth man launched their blades at Zi Yang, but he managed to defend himself with the glass container as cracks formed on it and the knives plopped onto the floor. He left the pitcher at one corner of the room and cracked his knuckles to relieve himself of the physical pain, for the fight had just started.The other half jumped over the bed and rushed to Zi Yang, taking any opportunity to harm the chief inspector and claim a big credit for the murder. The fifth man held his knife high with his two hands and thrusted his weapon down, aiming to stab Zi Yang’s shoulder.The sixth one gripped the handle of the knife tightly with his left hand and pushed the butt of the cutter with his right palm forward, intending to forcefully impale the policeman with it. Before the last man could do anything, Zi Yang pulled him over by the left arm in a flash and held him on the hips, using him as a shield from the incoming attacks. He then slashed the man’s same arm with brute force, preventing him from fighting back and causing him to yell loudly in pain.The seventh man got stabbed not only in his right shoulder, but also his stomach. He screamed loudly in agony, blood oozing out of the wounds. Zi Yang kicked the man’s legs to the left and slapped his head downwards, making him plummet to the ground. To ensure he stayed down, Zi Yang did a hammer kick on his spine, immediately fracturing it.As the remaining men went near Zi Yang, he retrieved another knife from the floor and backed off from the criminals to gain some upper-hand distance. The second man clenched his fists, leaped towards Zi Yang, and punched him in the face, but Zi Yang dodged it by sidestepping to the left and slashed the man’s right tricep and thigh with his two knives. He elbowed the man on the face before booting him on the belly, pushing him away.The third and fourth man teamed up, ran to the chief inspector, and booted Zi Yang on the chest. He toppled onto the ground, his back landing on some of the glass fragments. As the assailants stampeded in his direction, he threw the two knives he had at the third man’s knees with precision. They pierced through the joints, causing the man to tumble to the floor and groan.The fourth man scooped up a few of the broken glass pieces and catapulted it at Zi Yang as he got up. The inspector at once covered his head with his blazer, protecting himself from the sharp shards. The man darted to Zi Yang, aiming to strike the latter in the ribcage. Fortunately, Zi Yang reacted just in time by swerving his body to the right. Because of that, the attacker missed his target and lunged at the air instead. Zi Yang took the glass jug he left at the corner earlier and whacked the rear of the man’s cranium with it, shattering it and causing the man’s head to bleed profusely. Zi Yang then did a back kick on the assailant’s vertebrae, knocking him out.By this time, Zi Yang was worn out, having fought in a one-versus-five match. Sweat was dripping from his forehead like he was in a shower. His blue-black knuckles were bloodied, and he had fresh cuts on his face. The worst part was that he still had two more to take down. Not letting him have a chance to catch his breath, the fifth man homed in on him, punching him in the gut. The sixth one spun one round, kicking the inspector on the left cheek with the heel of his shoe in the process. Together, they leaped to their front and jump-kicked him on the chest once again, making him fly in the air for a few seconds before hitting his back on the wall. He moaned in pain as he rubbed his dorsum to ease the soreness. He ought to take better care of his back. After all, beyond his jobs and the fights he partook, he was just a normal human being getting on in age. He wasn’t getting any younger. Any more strains in his body and it would most probably break. He slowly got up on his feet and glared at the two remaining men. Eager to finish the old man off, the fifth guy lunged at him with a pen. Zi Yang turned his torso to the right, effectively evading the attack. He then seized the man’s arm and turned around before pulling him forward. This led to the man being flipped forward and landing on his back with a loud thud.The sixth man moved closer to Zi Yang to hit him, but the inspector steered clear of his fist by lowering his head. Dashing forward, he hopped over the bed, ran into the toilet, and closed the door. The sixth man warily advanced towards the restroom with light steps. When he reached it, he gripped onto the handle with his left hand and steadily pulled it to the left, opening the door.Zi Yang instantly jabbed the man on the nose and did an elbow uppercut on his chin. After that, Zi Yang tugged the man’s shirt collar towards him with one hand, and slammed the door shut with the other. It wounded the man’s throat and led to him gasping for air from the blunt force as the door retracted. Zi Yang proceeded to kick him on the thorax, rendering him unconscious from the impact of his head and throat hitting the wall.As Zi Yang got out of the toilet, the fifth man got up, ready to fight the policeman. Wasting no time, Zi Yang applied some toothpaste from the restroom on his hand and sprinted to the attacker. The man delivered a blow at Zi Yang with his fist, but the latter guarded it with his forearm. He countered it by kneeing the man’s pelvis, making the man shriek. Seeing that the man was open to attacks, Zi Yang smudged the man’s eyes with the toothpaste. The man screamed in anguish as he felt a strong burning sensation in his retinas and his vision became hazy. He tried to search for anything to mitigate the stinging, but he couldn’t keep his eyes open for more than three seconds, and the only source of water was gone due to Zi Yang wasting it all.Zi Yang went to the man’s back and grabbed ahold of his torso with a bear hug. For the finishing blow, he bent his body backwards, slamming the man’s head on the floor vigorously and putting him out cold.Zi Yang slumped onto the floor, relieved he was able to rest at last. Finally, he defeated all seven of his attackers, and came out victorious. It was arduous, and he had sustained some injuries, including him spitting out blood from his mouth, but he was glad the fight was over.He gradually reached for his phone in his jacket to call Shioriko, only to notice that his screen protector had a big crack. He sighed as he scratched his head in frustration. He had just recently replaced his old one, and now he had to buy another new one again. Well, on the bright side, at least his phone was still in one piece. Meanwhile, Eli was briskly walking in the hallway towards the other end. Alisa had informed her minutes ago that she went into a restroom to hide when she heard the gunshots, and that she was safe and sound.Eli was thankful her sister was alright and out of harm’s way. She didn’t know where the gunshots even came from, but she assumed it had something to do with the case Zi Yang was handling. All she hoped for now was that nobody would touch Alisa.As she made a left turn out of the hallway, she heard the sound of a pistol reloading and footsteps approaching her. She stopped in her tracks as she felt a cold metallic surface touch her hair.“You do what I tell you to do, or I’ll put a bullet right through your head.” He bellowed with a menacing tone, intending to scare the blonde woman. However, she wasn’t afraid in the slightest. In fact, she knew how to disarm him and take him down.“Alright, I’ll listen to you.” She raised her hands up in the air. In her mind, though, she was already one step ahead. All she needed to do was execute a horse kick to his crotch, and then twist his arm to force him into dropping the gun.As she was about to carry out her plan, she perceived the sound of a metal tray smacking the man’s head, causing him to groan loudly in pain. Eli used this opportunity to turn around, twisting his arm along the way. The affliction in his wrist made him drop the gun in response. She squatted and swept his legs off the ground with hers, resulting in him falling face flat onto the floor.It was at that moment she saw who was holding the tray. A purple-haired nurse who had her twintails tied with scrunchies. Eli immediately recognized her without a doubt.“Nozomi?” She was flabbergasted, a shocked look on her face. She stood rooted to the ground, too stunned to even speak or move. It was like her body stopped working completely.The man growled as he jumped back up to his feet and took out a knife from his pocket. He then rushed aggressively towards Eli. Upon seeing what was happening, Nozomi quickly wrapped her arms around his belly and tugged him towards her to the best of her strength, which wasn’t much to begin with.“Elicchi! Watch out!” The nurse yelled loud enough for Eli to return to reality. The blonde woman leaned the upper half of her body backwards just as the blade was just centimeters away from cutting her face, narrowly missing it. Enraged that she caused him to miss, the man elbowed Nozomi’s abdomen, forcing her to let go of him, and shoved her onto the floor. She whined in pain as her back hit the ground with a terrific thump. As he was about to impale her with the knife, Eli rammed into him on the side of his ribcage. The collision was so hard they both fell down and rolled until they crashed onto the wall.He got up and attacked Eli with the knife, but she grabbed his wrist with one hand and his tricep with the other before the sharp edge could touch her. She then forcefully pulled his wrist to the front, flipping him to the other side. Afterwards, she sat up and chopped his radiocarpal joint with the ulnar border of her hand, compelling him to open his palm and enabling her to swipe the knife away from him. He growled in anger and did a hook kick on the back of Eli’s neck. She stumbled to her front and stopped centimeters away from the wall as he regained control of himself. He rose to his feet, bringing his fists up and ready to fight.Not wanting to admit defeat yet, he roared in fury and dished out punches at her, determined to make one of them hit her. Nonetheless, she eluded them all and booted him on the chest, pushing him back. He bolted to her and kicked her abdomen with his left leg, but she blocked it with her hands. He placed his right leg in front of him and lunged forward at her with his fist. However, this only gave her an open window to strike. She seized hold of his forearm, stepped onto his right thigh, and kneed him on the nose, as well as the eyes. He staggered sideways, his vision blurred and blood flowing out of his snout as he felt really dizzy. Just then, Shioriko and two officers were seen running towards them. As soon as he turned around and saw them, he made a run in the other direction and attempted to get away.Shioriko picked up her speed, and in a short time, she caught up to him. She leaped ahead and kicked him on the vertebrae, causing him to tumble down to the floor. Before he could do anything else, she promptly handcuffed his hands behind his back, preventing him from running away any further. Five minutes later, the other two officers brought the gunman to the cop car, while Shioriko picked up the gun he used earlier with gloves and placed it in a plastic ziploc bag. After giving her statement to the police, Eli walked over to Nozomi, who was stretching her back to alleviate the soreness she had suffered from the fall.“Are you…alright?” Eli asked with concern. “E-Elicchi.” Nozomi looked up at her with surprise, “I-I’m fine. What about you, though? You fought with the perpetrator for quite some time. Your body must be aching right now.”“Far from it.” Eli replied, “Barely a scratch. I’m used to situations like these. I’ve been trained to fight too. You, on the other hand, need to get some rest. Take sick leave for a few days to recuperate at home, you hear me?”“I will be okay, Elicchi. Don’t worry.” Just as the purple-haired woman said that, her back started hurting again, and she whimpered in pain. Eli quickly snatched a wheelchair from nearby and helped Nozomi sit down.“I told you.” Eli sighed, “Trust me. You need rest. Don’t argue with me anymore.” Nozomi silently nodded her head.“Say, Elicchi…”“Stop right there.” Eli turned away from Nozomi, “Let’s not talk about the past. We should let bygones be bygones.”“But…” As she was about to speak more, the two women could see Alisa running to them. The younger Ayase sibling had an anxious look on her face as she held her sister’s hands.“Onee-chan! I heard you got into a fight.” The singer frantically searched for any potential injuries on Eli, “Are you okay? Do you need any medical attention?”“I’m as good as I can be.” Eli responded in a reassuring tone, “I’ve been in worse brawls than these. Nevertheless, I’m glad you’re unharmed. Are you done with your statement?”“Mhmm. Let’s go for lunch now. I’m sure you’re famished from all that fighting. Are you craving for some borscht? I heard there is a restaurant nearby that sells that.”“That does sound good.” Eli nodded before looking at the nurse, “Take care of yourself, Nozomi.” With that, she and Alisa strolled towards the lift lobby. Nozomi could only watch them walk away with a distraught look on her face. Just then, she felt someone touching the handles of her wheelchair. She turned her head around and saw another nurse with ribbon-tied twintails and black hair. The name tag on her read ‘Nico Yazawa’.“She still refuses to hear your reasoning, huh?” Nico tapped Nozomi’s shoulders, “What a cruel world this is, isn’t it?” Nozomi let out a deep sigh as tears formed in her eyes.The clock struck twelve, signifying that it was midnight.In the superintendent’s office, Zi Yang reported to his superior about the events that had taken place that morning. The killing of the arms dealer, the mysterious men appearing, and the fight.“You look like you’ve been through a hella lot.” The superintendent pointed at the bandages on Zi Yang’s face and hands, “Physically, at least. You sure you don’t need to take a break?”“How long have you known me for, James?” The chief inspector questioned with his eyebrow raised, “Do I look like the kind of guy to break down with just a few bruises? Fret not, despite this old-looking body of mine, I can still take a few more hits.”“Thought you would say that.” James smirked, “You have one more file on your hand. I assume you found out something else about this whole fiasco.”“There’s more to the case than we all thought.” Zi Yang opened the file on the table for James to see, “Shit gets more complicated each time we dig deeper and deeper into it. It took me almost the whole day to get all of this information, and it’s driving me nuts. Whenever we think we got it, we’re reminded that we’re not even close to the truth.”“Looks like our dear chief inspector has finally hit a stump.” The superintendent teased his subordinate with a smirk. Zi Yang responded with a deadpan expression.“Anyways, I’ve reviewed the footage at the hospital numerous times, and I’ve discovered something was amiss.” Zi Yang told James, “Fusuke had a bullet in his head, but Hajime Akiyama, the gunman we had just detained, wasn’t responsible for the murder.”“How so? He had a gun with him.”“That’s what I thought too, but the bullet came from somewhere else.” Zi Yang took out his phone and showed the superintendent the surveillance footage in the ward a few seconds before the incident. It showed a bullet breaking in through the window and piercing through the patient’s head. “The window.” James realized what his subordinate meant, “So a sniper rifle might have been involved in this?”“Correct.” Zi Yang nodded his head, “Me and Shioriko interrogated Hajime earlier. He confessed that he wasn’t the one who shot Fusuke dead, and that it was someone else. He was just instructed to stand there and take the fall for the shooting.”“So, did he say who the real sniper was, then?”“He doesn’t have the slightest idea. All he knew was that he was working for a guy named Jo so that he could support his gambling debts. Jo’s described as a ‘mysterious shadow walker who appears as fast as he disappears’.”“Anything else?”“Yeah. Hajime gave us a location. A building in Yokohama. He told us this was where he accepted the job and received his income. He also said we might find Jo doing business with other vendors there. That’s all we’ve gotten thus far. Me and Shioriko will bring a few police officers to check it out in the next few days.”“Got it.” James folded his arms, “To be frank, I’m tired as shit. My phone’s been ringing non-stop thanks to the countless calls from the affected prefectures about the havoc in their areas. I have a feeling their cases and ours might be related. If my instincts are right, then I’m counting on you to get to the bottom of this and solve it, like you do with the past few cases.”“Thank you for trusting me.” Zi Yang bowed with confidence, “I’ll do my best to not leave you disappointed.” As he was about to leave the room, he heard James calling his name, stopping him in his tracks.“I forgot to mention this, but you might need some support for this mission.” The superintendent voiced out, “I fear it might get much more complex than we think. Why not seek those who have assisted you before, Chief Inspector? Who knows, they might be of some help.”Zi Yang immediately understood what his higher-up had meant.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

As the late morning sun settled down in the sky, Shioriko was organizing some files on Zi Yang’s table in his office room, neatly stacking them into a pile. Those were the folders consisting of statements, particulars, and photos, all from the recent arson case they’ve been investigating. This was the first major case she had gotten since she was assigned to work with the chief inspector. So far, in these six months, there was nothing to prove her worth. However, this could finally be her time to shine. With this case, she would be able to show her merits. She was determined to make Zi Yang feel she was a competent and useful partner capable of helping him out.A knock from the door interrupted her train of thought. She turned her head to the right, only to see Zi Yang standing at the entrance. He waved at her before stepping into the room.“I thought you went for your lunch break.” He said, “What are you doing here?”“I’m sorting the files out, Sir.” She replied, “Your table looked a bit messy, so I thought I would just tidy it up. How did your talk with Sir James go?”“It’s a success. He was impressed with us. We’ll visit the location Hajime gave us sometime this week. For now, you can take a short break. Get some rest. You deserved it.”“Thank you, Sir.” The police officer bowed, “I’ll go get my lunch now, then.”She went to her bag that was placed on the sofa and took out a cup-shaped container of instant noodles. When Zi Yang saw that, he instantly felt pity for her. From the day he started taking her under his wing as his partner, he noticed she had been eating cup noodles often during work. Not only did they contain little nutrients, they were also small in size. It surely wouldn’t give her much energy to carry out her tasks either. He wondered how she even managed to survive throughout each day, and he was worried she might just faint one day from malnutrition. He couldn’t just idly stand around and watch her consume cup noodles all the time. “Hey, Shioriko, I’d like to suggest something.” He voiced out, “To celebrate our small victory in getting somewhere for this case, how about I bring you to a fast food restaurant for lunch?”“Negative.” She turned her higher-up down, “I don’t think that’s necessary. This cup of noodles is enough for me. It’s simple and easy for me to make. Besides, if I still feel hungry, I can go to the cafeteria to buy some snacks.” At that moment, her stomach growled loudly, contradicting what she was saying earlier. She covered her stomach with her hands, embarrassed of herself for not being able to cover up her lie.Both of them kept quiet for a while, with Shioriko unsure what to say and Zi Yang thinking of a way to convince her to go to the fast food restaurant. “How about this?” The inspector voiced out, “I’ll treat you to lunch. Take this as a token of appreciation for the help you’ve given me.”“I’m fine, Sir.” Shioriko shook her head, “Really. I appreciate the kind gesture, but I’m afraid I will have to reject your offer. I don’t want to trouble you too much.”“A cup of noodles and some snacks are obviously not sufficient for your body, Shioriko.” Zi Yang retorted, “That audible growl is enough to tell me you have not been feeding yourself well.”He let out a sigh before he continued, “As your partner, I care for you, and I will get anxious if you fall sick because you don’t eat enough. It would be best if you could follow me to the restaurant so that you can have a proper meal. I genuinely don’t mind paying for your food. Moreover, it’s only right for seniors to reward their juniors for their efforts, is it not?”As much as Shioriko wanted to decline his offer, the last point he made was something she couldn’t refute. She would feel bad declining his goodwill too. With no other options, she agreed to his request.At the fast food restaurant, once Zi Yang and Shioriko sat at a table, he called for a waiter to take their orders. As he was still choosing his drink, he perceived through his ear what she had told the server.“A double beef cheeseburger set, with the fries and apple sparkling soda, please.”He was stunned and shocked when he heard that. There was no way she had just ordered such a meal. He couldn’t have possibly heard it wrong. He refused to believe there would be a coincidence like this. He had to calm himself down. Perhaps this was all by chance, and he might be thinking too much into it. Someone else just happened to order the very same thing. The yearning for a loved one he had lost in the past took over his mind, but he couldn’t let this affect him. He needed to move on and look forward. After all, life goes on.Shioriko was about to ask him to say his order until she caught sight of the mixed expressions on his face. She was confused, to say the least. She waved her hand in front of his face to get his attention, but to no avail. After two more tries, he was finally brought back to reality.“Sorry for spacing out.” He then turned to the waiter, “May I have one fish and chips set, with onion rings and cola?” The waiter jotted it down on the notepad and left.“Are you okay, Sir?” Shioriko asked him in a caring tone, “Is something wrong?”“I’m alright.” He shrugged it off, “I was just thinking of something else. Don’t mind me.”A few minutes later, their food arrived on the table. They placed their hands together and muttered a ‘itadakimasu’. While Shioriko started digging in, Zi Yang stared at her eating the burger. ‘The burger…the drink…this really reminds me of…her.’ The voice in his mind spoke, ‘No, what the hell am I thinking? It’s not her. It definitely cannot be her. She’s far away from your grasp, Huang Zi Yang. She’s gone. Stop relating everything to her.’He gripped onto the sides of his head with his hands and closed his eyes as he tried to get that notion out of his mind. After many attempts, he finally managed to regain his composure. Shioriko, who had been witnessing him this whole time, was disquieted by his actions.“Sir, do you need a doctor?” She questioned, “You seemed to be in distress.”“I’m good.” He answered, “It’s nothing. Let’s eat.” “That’s clearly not the case, Sir.” Concern was written all over her face, “You looked so stressed out by something, as if you’ve woken up from a nightmare. It surely couldn’t have been nothing.”Zi Yang looked at the police officer in silence for a while, and let out a half-suppressed laugh, “I didn’t know it was that apparent.”“Is there any way I could help you, Sir? I don’t want to seem like a busybody, but I do feel uneasy seeing you like this. Maybe I should take my leave?”“Don’t worry, Shioriko. You’re not the problem. I am.” He cut a part of his fried crispy fish with a knife and ate it. He leaned back on his chair and sipped on his cup of cola.“I had a daughter.” He explained to his partner, “She and I were very close, and I loved her dearly. Sadly, she was taken away by my ex-wife more than a decade ago. I have tried every method to find them for years. Posters, notices, word of mouth. All were in vain. It was like they vanished into thin air. Since then, I’ve just been living alone with depressing thoughts in my mind.”“Oh, I-I’m sorry to hear that.” Shioriko looked down, “I apologize for bringing up such an unpleasant memory.”“It’s not your fault. You knew nothing about this. This police job has been an outlet for tucking my sorrows away, but I still think of her every now and then. That might affect me, and in turn, our work. If that occurs, I’d like to ask for your understanding on this matter, and if needed, pull me back to reality.” He then bowed down in front of her, causing her to be flabbergasted.“S-Sir! You don’t have to do this!” She gently pulled him up to face her, “I get how you feel, and I’ll do my utmost best to help you. We’re partners. It’s only right that we care for one another.”“Thank you, Shioriko.” He replied, “Sorry for spoiling the mood. I didn’t mean to get this sentimental over some food.”“It’s fine, Sir.” She told him in a reassuring tone, “Everyone has that side to them and the unavoidable sad thoughts that tag along. It’s only human to feel downhearted because of it. That, I can understand.”“You know, you’re pretty good with words.” He grinned at her, “C’mon, let’s eat our food before it turns cold.”After their meal, Zi Yang volunteered to drive Shioriko back home as she needed to settle something, though she asked him to drop her off at the Tokyo train station instead. He agreed to do so.“Thank you for the meal, Sir.” She voiced out on the journey there, “I’ve enjoyed it. I’ll pay you back when my next salary comes in.”“No need.” He replied, “You deserved it. By the way, why are you going home now? Is there an emergency or something?”She stayed silent for a while, visibly hesitant about speaking what was on her mind currently. However, she felt that since he shared something personal with her, she should do the same.“Can I tell you something, Sir?” Zi Yang stopped his car at a red traffic light, turned his head to look at Shioriko, and looked back at the front, “Go on.”“I’m sure you’re wondering why I’m always frugal and eating small food like cup noodles and biscuits.” She rested her back against the passenger seat, “Well, the truth is, I’m from a poor family with a single mother.” She sighed and placed her elbow on the door panel as she stared outside the window, “I used to have a stepfather. He was the breadwinner of the family until he passed away in a plane crash. Since then, it’s just me and my mother.”A loud disheartened sigh escaped from her mouth. Thinking about her family situation made her despondent and dejected, but she knew she had to explain the story fully to her higher-up for him to understand. “I eat very small and cheap food to save costs so that I can provide for my mother.” She explained, “She wasn’t able to accept my stepfather’s death. She lost control of herself, and doctors deemed her mentally unstable, thus she couldn’t work anymore. Now that I’m the sole breadwinner, I have to spend money on our basic necessities and Okaa-san’s medication to keep her condition in check.”She took out a flask from a bag and gulped down a portion of the water before resuming, “You asked me why I’m going home now. I want to check up on my mother, feed her lunch, and make sure she takes her medication before she goes to sleep. The Tokyo station has the fried rice she loves, so I’m going there to buy it first before I take the train home. I’ll be back before break time is over, Sir, so you don’t need to worry about me.”“That…must be tough on you.” Zi Yang commented, “It’s remarkable you’re doing so much for your mother, even to the point of starving yourself and using your rest time to take care of her.”“I’m living a really poor and exhausting life, but I’d rather see my mother alive.” She responded, “She’s my only family. My only glimmer of hope. The only one I have left.”“Don’t mind me, Shioriko, but you said you had a stepfather earlier.” He voiced out, “If I may ask, where is…”“My biological father?” She finished the sentence, “I suppose there’s no harm answering it. He…left me and my mom when I was young. That’s what Okaa-san told me.”Zi Yang nodded his head quietly and continued driving. She was just an officer. Someone he only knew for a half a year. Yet, he had this strong urge to help her. Maybe it was because she was his partner. Perhaps it was her past. It might even be the harsh circumstances she was currently facing that tugged his heartstrings. He just had this feeling that if he did nothing to help her, he would come to regret it later.A few minutes later, he stopped his car in front of the Tokyo train station. She thanked him for the ride and stated she would live on all right. As she was about to leave, he called out her name. She turned her head towards him.“From now on, please use your salary for your mother.” He told her, “I will bring in food every day for us to eat at the office. That way, you don’t have to starve yourself. An empty stomach is not good for an officer. If you can, treat yourself a little with your pay.”“But, Sir…”“No ifs, ands, or buts.” He cut her off, “It’s final. If you regard me as your respected senior, then don’t turn me down. Can I ask that from you?”Shioriko looked at him with surprise before grinning at him, “Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir.”At nine in the night, Eli took a taxi to Zi Yang’s house, which was at the Takashimadaira Danchi in Itabashi. It wasn’t very far away from her house, only making it a thirty-minute journey.She was unsure why he would want to meet her in private at such short notice. All he gave her was a time and location. Nothing more, nothing less. When she asked for the reason, his answer was that it would be easier to explain face-to-face, which only made her more confused.Once she reached the destination, she got off the vehicle and walked to the lift lobby. After taking the elevator up to the thirteenth floor, she went to his unit and knocked on his door. The chief inspector allowed her in, telling her to sit down on the living room sofa as he prepared two cups of water and a plate of taiyaki. He then sat on a chair opposite of her.“Thank you for taking your time to come here, Eli.” He said, “Sorry for asking you to come out so late in the night. I had some research to do in the afternoon, and I just finished it. Help yourself to the food and water.”“So, what’s the reason you asked me out?” Eli questioned curiously, “Surely this isn’t some catch-up, is it? What could be so important that it couldn’t be spoken through the phone?”He took a bite of a taiyaki and glanced at her, “First off, I have to apologize for getting you into unnecessary trouble. That was not supposed to happen, but he escaped my sight before I could get to him.”“Oh, you mean the man I fought in the hospital?” She asked, “He wasn’t that difficult to deal with. What’s a man like that doing in the hospital though?”“Well, long story short, we got a problem on our hands.” He replied with a groan, “This is not as simple as I thought it to be.”“Same case as before?” “Same case as before.” He repeated, “Say, Eli, can I ask you for a favor?”“I think I know where this is going.” She crossed her arms.“Then you’re probably right.” He uttered, “I seek to request your assistance in the case, along with Maki’s and Umi’s.”The blonde woman picked her glass up and drank a portion of her water before speaking, “I kinda figured as much.““Frankly speaking, Eli, I need all the help I can get.” He let out an exasperated groan, “The police can track down people, but we’ll lose our men faster than the blink of an eye. You girls, on the other hand, can fight like professionals. Heck, y’all defeated Venus and Regis Yazuka, as well as beat their men to a pulp and shut a whole crime syndicate down. We need a team like that for this case.”Eli sighed as she placed her cup on the table, “Look, Zi Yang, I don’t think I can help you this time. Now that Alisa is a well-known singer, we have much less time to spend together, so I’d like to be with her more. After all, she is my only family left. We have no one but each other.”She then stood up from the sofa as she continued reasoning, “Besides, this is the police’s job, isn’t it? I do not wish for you and I to get into any trouble because I, a member of the public, aided you. I don’t want people to criticize the police force as useless either. You have the brains and the brawn, Zi Yang. I’m sure you are able to do it to solve this crime just fine. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave.”As Eli was about to leave the house, Zi Yang got up from his seat and called her name out, “You and the girls are the best of the best. If I didn’t think so, I wouldn’t be here pleading with you. This threat we’re facing…they’ve caused chaos in Hokkaidō and the Tōhoku region, and they’re most likely coming here next. Numerous lives are already lost, and more would be at stake. This might not only endanger Tokyo, but the whole of Japan too. Please, Eli. I really need help from you girls.” She stopped in her tracks upon hearing what he said. Was it really that serious that he had to come and beg for her help? From what she knew about his personality, he wouldn’t usually ask for any sort of aid as he was able to solve the cases he was assigned to for the past two years. The fact that he was now seeking help from her must’ve meant he couldn’t do this on his own any longer.He walked to her with a file with papers and newspaper clippings in his right hand and passed it to her. She shot him an apathetic stare before looking through the contents of it and analyzing the information given.“The number of deaths here…” Her voice trailed off when she saw the amount stated on the paper.“Mostly bystanders.” He rejoined, like he knew what she was going to ask, “People who never expected their deaths. If I’m not wrong, only five percent of those deaths are those involved in committing these heinous crimes. It’s a pretty high number, isn’t it?”More innocent lives taken away once again. Their families were usually left without any reason or closure for their demise, and her heart would ache for them, pushing her determined self to seek justice for them. She remembered all of this pain back when she was dealing with the now-fallen crime syndicate.Upon noticing something else on the documents, she whipped her phone out, opened her notes app, and tapped on an entry she had created months ago. In it were an address, a date, and details of the location, which was Nippon Budokan.The title of the note? ‘Alisa’s next performance’, underlined and bold. “Who’s this Benjamin guy?” Eli questioned.“Ah, he’s an up-and-coming rapper.” Zi Yang sat back down on the sofa, “Hajime overheard a conversation his boss had with someone else in a phone call about the whereabouts of Benjamin.”He flipped to the next page of the file and pointed at his portrait, “According to Benjamin’s friends, he loves to flex his money off, but in reality, he seemingly hasn’t paid a loan for months. We suspect he owes the very same bunch of outlaws, and that he’s gonna be hunted down. He’s appearing in this music festival, so we’re positioning officers at the venue on the day itself for precaution.”Eli’s eyes widened in dismay when she heard that. That didn’t sound good. She was worried for her sister’s safety and for the threat that was about to come. She looked at her phone screen, then the file, and then Zi Yang as a sigh escaped her mouth.“Consider me in.” She declared with resolution.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Elsewhere in Tokyo, in the middle of the night, two vans were heading to Koto City. They headed towards the Sengoku Bridge, proceeding to drive in the direction of the warehouses nearby.

Once the vehicles reached a depot, twelve masked men from each van stepped out of their transport and went to the entrance. One of them took out a key from their pocket and slotted it into the U-shaped lock. A few clicks were heard as he turned the key left and right. He then pulled up the handle of the lock and swung open the doors.

Unbeknownst to them, a team of five secret agents were hiding in different places, all surrounding the warehouse. The leader, a woman donning a white-collared shirt and black pants, tapped her earpiece.

“At the location, Boss.” She reported, “In position. They seem to be taking something from the warehouse.”

“Alright, keep track of them.” Laura’s voice could be heard, “Try to get some information about Sean’s whereabouts from them. Use brute force if needed.”

“Got it.” The leader touched the side of the earpiece to end the call. She then signaled the rest of her team to get ready to execute the ambush.

As soon as the masked men got out of the warehouse, the secret agents started opening fire, gunning three of them down with their automatic rifles. The remaining men retaliated back with their pistols, but most of them unfortunately missed their shots.

Soon enough, nearly all of the men were killed. Only six remained. Although the agents were somewhat wounded by the bullets inflicted on their arms, they were able to hold out against their enemies. Just like that, they eliminated two more men.

Just as one of the agents was about to fire away at a masked man, the agent was suddenly shot in the head, killing him instantly. Upon hearing the gunshot, the leader turned around and saw a motorcyclist on her left drifting, holding the handle on one hand and a gun in the other.

The rider, who was wearing a helmet, took aim at a different agent and pulled the trigger. The small metal projectile flew in the air and went through the agent’s skull at supersonic speed, with the audible sound of bones cracking and the visuals of blood spattering everywhere accompanying it.

As if one wasn’t enough, another motorcyclist appeared from her right, also donning protective headgear. A female agent attempted to shoot the second motorcyclist, but the latter managed to shoot her in the right leg and arm, making her drop her weapon and become disarmed.

Before she could even run away, the motorcyclist revved the engine and sped up directly behind her. The biker rammed the agent with the front wheel, causing her to fly a few meters forward before landing on the ground with a loud thud. She groaned, her back in immaculate pain.

Not giving her a chance to escape, the motorcyclist performed a wheelie on her chest. It resulted in her spitting out her vital fluids from her mouth in various directions as her body jerked up and down without any control. The motorcyclist then landed the front wheel on her neck and shot her in the head, ending her life.

“We’re outnumbered! Fall back!” The leader yelled a command that came too late. The first motorcyclist fired three bullets at the second-last agent; one in the head, and the other two in the spine and neck.

The leader cursed under her breath and darted her eyes around her surroundings to find a suitable spot to hide. With two assassins coming for her and gunshots heard everywhere, she had to think of a solution quickly to get herself out of this sticky situation.

Alas, today was not her day.

One of the bullets grazed her left popliteal fossa while she was running away, slowing her down. With her reduced speed, one of the masked men was in a position to take aim and shot her right ankle. She immediately fell down onto the floor, unable to walk any longer with the numerous injuries on her legs.

She weakly pulled her right index finger up and tapped her earpiece, “Boss…send…back…”

The first motorcyclist stopped the bike beside her and dismounted the vehicle. The rider walked to the leader and snatched the earpiece out of her ear. The rider then stomped on her finger and the earpiece with extreme force, shattering the latter into pieces and breaking her finger. The leader screamed loudly in agony from the pain inflicted on her.

The first motorcyclist proceeded to punt her on the stomach, sending her body rolling for a distance before stopping right in front of the second motorcyclist. The second motorcyclist trampled on the leader’s chest with their right leg and pointed a gun at her.

“I bid thee farewell.” The second motorcyclist then shot her in the face thrice, finishing her off. Afterwards, the rider took off the headgear, revealing it to be the woman with purplish indigo hair that was involved in Agent J’s death.

She wore a zebra-striped shoulder strap top, a jacket that was the same color as her hair, a pair of fingerless gloves, and black short pants. Her ribbon was now replaced with a bowtie hair clip on the left side of her hair, and the rest of her hair was let down.

She took out her phone, dialed a number, and put the receiver to her ear, “Sean, this is Sarah. We’ve killed another one of Laura’s agents. They somehow managed to track us down and ambush us, but we got everything under control. It was like what you had said.”

“Good work out there.” Sean replied, “I knew you girls would do a fantastic job. It seems that the old bitch thinks she could play some tricks on me. Wishful thinking. Is the money stored there safe?”

“From what I can see, it is untouched. Nobody brought the strongbox out yet. We have lots of casualties, though.”

“Understood. Report back to the base and we’ll discuss what to do next.”

“Roger.” Sarah then ended the call.

After conversing with the masked men that survived, the first motorcyclist walked to Sarah and took off the helmet, revealing it to be another person that took part in capturing Agent J; the mauve-haired woman.

Her hair was currently tied into a ponytail and slung to her left shoulder. She donned a zebra-striped halter neck top, along with a pink jacket zipped up to her chest, black short pants, and a pink cap without the top. She removed her own fingerless gloves and held it in one hand.

“I just finished talking to the men.” She told Sarah, “They said Robinson-san gave them the wrong key and thus they couldn’t open the safe. They reported it to him, and he instructed them to come back and take the correct key. That’s pretty much about it.”

“So Sean really expected this to happen.” Sarah muttered to herself, “He lured the agents out with his own men to get back at Laura Glover.”

“You appeared to be deep in thought, Onee-sama.” The first motorcyclist shot Sarah a concerned look, “Is something not right?”

“Oh, it’s nothing, Leah. I’m just thinking of Sean’s rationale of asking us to come here.”

“What else can it be?” Leah whined, “It’s to do his bidding and clean up after his shit, of course. He treats us like we’re his workers or something. Mind him, we’re not his minions. We’re working WITH him.”

“Relax, Leah.” Sarah patted her sister’s shoulder, “He pays us a hefty sum for each job, so it’s only fair he tells us what he wants us to do. For the sake of our livelihood, hold it in, alright?”

“I’ll try my best. No guarantees, though.” Leah sighed before looking at Sarah, “By the way, Onee-sama, where did your white ribbon go? Why are you not wearing it?”

“Ah, I didn’t like the blood stains and dirt that appeared after we’ve dealt with Johnny Jenkins. It looked ugly on me the last time I tried it, so I decided not to use it. After all, you must put on your best look for people to remember you, even after death.”

“Agreed.” Leah nodded her head in response, “Let’s get going, Onee-sama.”

In Laura’s office room, she clenched her fists and slammed the table as hard as she could, all the pent-up frustration and anger in her instantly released in one go. She couldn’t believe that Sean saw through her plans and killed one of her agents once again.

She thought that since Agent H was one of the more experienced agents, she would have little to no problem handling Sean’s thugs. However, not only was the agent utterly defeated, she was possibly murdered mercilessly in cold blood while she was asking for backup before the signal was lost.

Laura couldn’t let this go on. Otherwise, it would be her on the chopping board. She was one to uphold her pride very highly. She could not afford to lose to the likes of her enemies, especially Sean. She swore to herself never to bow down to him no matter what, or even worse, lose her life in his hands.

At that moment, she heard a knock on the door. She turned her head around and saw another agent standing at the entrance of her room, waiting for her command.

“Come in.” Laura said in a calm and stern tone, “Please tell me there is some good news, Agent E.”

“We saw Agent H’s body being taken away by cleaners.” was the straightforward, stone-cold, chilling response the agent gave, “So were the other five underlings who were dead too.”

Laura’s even-tempered demeanor immediately changed into a ferocious and vexed one, “Which part of that is good news, god damn it!?” It scared Agent E as she flinched a little.

It took some time for Laura to calm down. With an audible sigh escaping her lips, and an exasperated look on her face, it seemed as though she would rather slam her head against the wall. She felt like she could crush anything with her hands in this very instant.

Maybe it was really time. She shouldn’t be delaying this any further, now that it has come to this. She needed to take extreme measures in order to have a chance to win this battle.

“Agent E, do me a favor.” She instructed her subordinate, “Call Agent A and K for me, and inform them to report here by ten tomorrow morning.”

“And if they don’t make it here on time?” Agent E looked at her with curiosity, expecting an answer.

Laura slipped her hands in her jacket pockets and stared at the agent, “Well then, Agent E, you get them here by hook or by crook. It’s either their asses on the line or yours.”

A confused Agent E watched as her superior strode out of the office room. She wondered if the situation was that dire it needed two of the most expert agents to get involved.

More importantly, as a newly-instated agent, she didn’t even know how to contact any one of them. Heck, she didn’t even have her colleagues’ numbers. Furthermore, only high-ranking or senior agents have Agent A’s and Agent K’s contacts. Why was a newbie like her already given such a crucial task?

However, this was not the time for freaking out and questioning herself. It was not her position to doubt her higher-up’s actions. She had to find a way, or else she’d be toast.

The morning sun glowed softly on Tokyo, casting its bright rays of light on every corner of the city streets as the sky turned from the rosy hue to a lighter blue color.

Maki was driving her red Ferrari Roma to Jeff Connor’s house. She received a call from Eli the previous night, interrupting her intimate moment with Honoka. The blonde woman had asked for her to convene at the basement in Jeff’s house to discuss ‘their next course of action’, and nothing else.

Maki was understandably puzzled and a little annoyed by it, but decided to leave the questioning for later. She turned into the garage and parked her car in there. She then locked her vehicle and took the stairs down to the basement, where Eli, Umi, and Kotori were waiting.

“Wow, to think the whole gang’s here.” Maki remarked, “We just met up two weeks ago. Y’all miss me already?”

“Perhaps.” Eli answered in a teasing manner, “Not more than your girlfriend, though.”

“You sure got jokes, Eli.” Maki let out a smirk as she sat down on the sofa nearby, “I’ll give it to you.”

She darted her eyes around the room and caught a glimpse of the projector sitting on the table. At once, the past came flooding back to her.

All the times the trio and Jeff worked in this basement, tirelessly working around the clock to get clues about the crime syndicate and take them down. Those were good memories. She was glad nothing here changed since her last visit.

“Eli, you haven’t told us the reason you gathered us here.” Umi voiced out as Maki was about to speak up, “You said it was an urgent matter. Did something bad happen?”

“You could say that.” Zi Yang walked into the basement with a bag, “And it was me who requested for you girls. Eli just relayed my message.”

“Sir!” Kotori stood up and turned around to greet him, “I didn’t know you’d be here too.”

“It’s been a while, Sir.” Umi got up from her seat and smiled at him, “How have you been?”

“I’m doing just fine.” The chief inspector responded, “I haven’t seen you since your wedding. I hope things have been great for you since.” The ocean-haired woman nodded her head.

He proceeded to turn to Maki, “I hope life has been going well for you too, Maki.”

“It has.” Maki rejoined, “Thank you for asking.”

He then walked into the room, with Shioriko following behind him. He took out the laptop and four copies of the file that he showed Eli the previous night from his bag. While his partner was connecting the device to the projector, he handed out four folders to Eli, Maki, Umi, and Kotori.

“Before I start, I would like to introduce my new partner.” He said, “Eli and Kotori have seen her before, but Maki and Umi might not. She’s Mifune Shioriko.“

“Nice to meet you, Nishikino-san and Sonoda-san.” Shioriko bowed down, “It’s an honor to meet you. Sir has mentioned to me the countless efforts you two and Ayase-san have contributed in eradicating the crime syndicate. I’ve heard nothing but high praise for the three of you.”

“I see you hold us in high regard, Inspector.” Maki folded her arms and placed her right leg over her left, “Certainly wasn’t expecting you to compliment us greatly like that.”

“I was just commending you girls for your valiant deeds.” He commented, “Nothing wrong with that. Anyways, please look through the file I’ve just given out to each of you. All the files have the same content, so you won’t miss out on any information. Nevertheless, this will probably allow you to understand why I called y’all over.”

Kotori was the first one to express her shock when she saw the news articles reporting the amount of destruction in Hokkaidō and the Tōhoku region, as well as the aftermath. Umi stared at the number of deaths and the percentage of it being innocent civilians stated in one of the papers with a grim expression.

An astounded Maki scanned through the information provided with horror in her eyes, all the while empathizing with the families of the poor casualties who unjustly lost their lives. Eli, naturally, was nonchalant about it because she knew of this earlier than the rest of them.

“Judging from your reactions, I think you’re well aware of how dire and severe of a situation this is.” The inspector observed the women’s appalled looks that were visibly written on their faces, “No worries, I’ll explain in just a bit.”

Once Shioriko was done setting up the laptop, he clicked on the mousepad, displaying the slides he had created on the projector.

“Recently, a bunch of outlaws have been hitting the road, destroying anything that comes in their path.” He explained, “Police from affected prefectures have attempted putting an end to their destruction, but from what I’ve heard, these criminals are really skilled in fighting. The cops stood no chance.”

“It’s that bad?” The ocean-haired woman sounded out in an anxious tone.

He nodded his head in response, “Not only that, there was a building burnt down in Shibuya a few days ago and a few murders that came with it. Even worse, there was an incident in Koto City just about nine hours ago. Five deaths were reported.”

“Well, that was fast.” Eli’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Let me get this straight.” Maki leaned back on the sofa, slightly furrowing her eyebrows in the process, “Based on the information you’ve gathered, you think these criminals are coming for Tokyo next, right?”

“Not just me.” Zi Yang replied, “The Tokyo police force, the Hokkaidō’s, and Tōhoku’s think so too. From the direction these criminals are advancing and the events that had transpired recently, it wouldn’t be a far-fetched thought.”

He then closed the lid of the laptop and faced the girls, “Which is why I am seeking your assistance in this. I know what y’all are capable of. You took down the biggest crime syndicate in Tokyo, after all. With your help, we could prevent more innocent deaths and stop this threat from further terrorizing our city. Eli has agreed to aid me, so it just comes down to the two of you and Kotori. Please.” With that, he bowed down.

“I’m in.” Kotori rejoined with determination almost immediately, “I would be willing to help Sir in any way possible!” Upon hearing that, the chief inspector smiled at her.

Meanwhile, Maki and Umi were still quiet, thinking about this situation in their minds. They were unsure if they should tag along. Both of them have partners whom they want to spend more alone time with, but their passion for justice fighting never changed from the start.

However, their predicaments were quite the difference. In Umi’s instance, she would still have lots of opportunities to stick by Kotori’s side since her wife had decided to lend a helping hand to Zi Yang in this.

The same couldn’t be said for Maki. Her girlfriend Honoka was just a normal civilian. If Maki were to agree to help out, she most probably wouldn’t be able to spend time with Honoka as much as she wanted to, like the way it was currently.

“I’m in.” Umi spoke up, resulting in Kotori beaming at her spouse and the chief inspector thanking her. Everyone proceeded to turn and look at Maki, which in turn gave her extra pressure.

Just thinking of how she couldn’t be with Honoka more often pained her greatly. On the other hand, it would be cruel of her to not help the other two girls. They’ve been through thick and thin as a trio above all. She felt she would be a heartless person if she were to step out of this operation.

Besides, this was the one thing she loved to do; crime-fighting. Additionally, she knew Honoka wholeheartedly supported her in anything that she does, and that Honoka would try to talk her into doing this mission.

She was in a quandary.

After a while, with a long and loud sigh, she shot Zi Yang a deadpan stare, “I guess I don’t have a choice, do I? Since Eli and Umi are in, as their sister, I can’t just leave them in the lurch, can I? I’ll do it.”

“Thank you so much, girls.” Zi Yang bowed once more, “I really appreciate it, and I look forward to working with you again.”

He took a map out from his bag and laid it out on the table. He whipped a red and blue marker out of his shirt pocket and circled two parts of the map, each with a different color.

“Okay, so here’s the plan.” He announced, “Three of us will go to the Yokohama building mentioned that possibly has some suspicious activities going on in it. The other three would go to the festival, with its details written in the file you’ve just gone through. Police officers would be following us too for each location. So, who’s taking what? I’m going to the festival.”

“I’m taking the music festival too.” Eli said.

“I would like to stick with Umi-chan, so we will take the Yokohama building.” Kotori stated.

“I’m fine with anything.” Maki went next.

“Me too.” Shioriko added.

“Really?” Zi Yang placed his hands at his hips, “Then Maki, you’ll follow us. Shioriko, you’ll follow Kotori and Umi.”

“Understood, Sir.” The female officer acknowledged.

“Alright, that settles it.” The chief inspector clapped his hands, “Have a good rest for the remainder of the day. We’ll set out tomorrow.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Not so far away from the bustling metropolis was Ota-ku, the largest special ward in Tokyo. The streets were frequently busy with residents who often crowded the lively shopping districts. Not only did this city have convenient transportation to other parts of Tokyo, it even housed various historical landmarks, as well as many refreshments options like cafés, bars, and restaurants. Besides, it was pretty close to Haneda Airport. That fact alone was more than enough for a certain person to stay in a mansion here.In the master bedroom of the aforementioned residence, a woman with shoulder-length navy blue hair was sleeping on the king-sized bed. She changed her position a few times, turning her body left and right at moments.She had just returned from her holiday to Paris with her partner last night, and she was already feeling tired from all the traveling and jet lag due to the differences in time zones. Her body was sore, and there was constant throbbing in her head, making it hard for her to fall asleep. Nonetheless, she managed to do so after a long time.“Good morning, Karin-chan.” She heard an angelic voice talking to her, “Rise and shine. I’ve made breakfast. Get up so we can enjoy it together.” As she was too exhausted to even open her eyes, she ignored the words and went back to sleep. She then sensed that her body was being tugged continuously, albeit gently. “It’s time to wake up, Karin-chan.” The voice resumed talking, “Or else you’re going to be late for your meeting. Your boss isn’t going to like it when you don’t report to the headquarters on time.”Karin slowly opened her eyes and saw another woman staring at her with a worried look. She had semi-long auburn hair tied into two short low braids, and freckles across her nose, as well as her light blue eyes.Karin slowly sat up on her bed and gave the woman a sheepish, dazed smile, “Emama~”The woman was flabbergasted upon hearing that. Whenever Karin was awoken from a deep slumber due to her being fatigued the previous night, she would wake up bewildered, sometimes saying some stupefying stuff. The woman knew that, and yet she often got stunned by Karin’s actions. Still, she loved this cute side of Karin. In fact, she loved everything about Karin. After regaining her composure, she got Karin out of her sleepy state and dragged her down to the first floor, where they had sushi, bread, and vegetable soup in the dining room.“Your vegetable soup always tastes the best, Emma.” Karin remarked, “I hope you didn’t sacrifice your sleep just to make me this.”“I had enough sleep, Karin-chan.” The woman replied in a tender tone, “Besides, this soup isn’t that hard to make. As long as you love drinking it, I’ll always whip it up for you.”“Aww, thank you, Emma.” Karin grinned at her.After they were done with their breakfast, Karin went to take a shower while Emma washed the cutlery. Minutes later, Karin came out of the shower, donning a blue shirt and jeans. She sat down at the step in front of the porch and put on her sneakers.Emma went to her and handed her a set of car keys, “Don’t forget these, Karin-chan.”“Thank you, Emma.” Karin grabbed the keys and glanced at her, “I’m…sorry for cutting our holiday trip short. It was supposed to be our romantic getaway for two weeks, and you were looking forward to it. I…” She then looked down on the floor, letting out a big sigh. She was at a loss of words. She was mad at herself for not being able to provide her girlfriend with the vacation she desired for. She also felt bad for Emma as the latter had always accommodated herself to Karin’s work schedule, but she never once complained.“I understand, Karin-chan.” Emma embraced Karin from the back, “It’s your job, after all. I do know though that I’ll always support you no matter what. As long as I get to be with you, I’m content.”“Emma, I know you’re trying to cheer me up…”“C’mon, let me see a smile.” Emma turned Karin around towards her and used her two index fingers to curl each end of Karin’s lips upwards to form a smile on Karin’s face. Emma giggled while Karin shot her a confused look.“Did anyone tell you that you have a pretty smile, Karin-chan?” Emma beamed at her partner, “You can be whoever you want to be as long as you’re smiling. That’s the best you.”“Uplifting words, heh.” Karin smirked before she stated with determination, “I promise to make it up to you, Emma. You have my word. With your motivation, I’ll be able to finish any task I’m given with ease.”“I know you will.” Emma kissed Karin on the cheek, “Alright, it’s time for you to go. You don’t wanna be late.”“Right.” Karin pecked Emma on the forehead, “I’ll see you tonight, sweetheart.” She proceeded to walk off to the garage.“Stay safe, Karin-chan!”With that, Karin got into her gray Porsche Macan GTS and drove out of the house.Karin drove towards the same building Laura’s office was in and turned into the entrance of the basement carpark. She saw a Toyota Altezza RS200 Z Edition and decided to park beside it.She got out of her car and marched to the lift lobby. She was certainly not pleased to be summoned back to work in the middle of her holiday trip with her loved one. A blissful break ruined by a phone call. She clenched her fists as the elevator arrived.When the lift reached the twenty first floor, she walked out of it and stepped into Laura’s office room, where she saw a blonde woman with orange eyes and hair tied into a ponytail sitting down on the sofa. She turned to her left and noticed Karin standing at the doorstep.“Heyo, Karin!” She waved her hand at Karin. “So you’re here too, Ai.” Karin voiced out as she trod towards the other woman gracefully and lightly, but with a face that made it clear she wasn’t to be messed with. She took a seat beside the blonde and folded her arms as she leaned her back towards the cushion.“Don’t be all grumpy, Karin” Ai looked at her, “Turn that frown upside down. You have me, and maybe Ai can do something to cheer you up.” Karin stayed motionless and silent, staring into space. She was more bothered with the issue of…“Ai’s pun show has begun!” Ai resumed speaking, “What does the beach say to the tide when it came in? Long time no sea! I got another one too. What do you call an alligator in a vest? An investigator! Ha ha! I had this next one stored in my head. If I were a dolphin, I’d have a whale of a time! Hahaha!”That made Karin look at Ai with a deadpan expression, “I do not appreciate pun jokes right now, Ai.”“Then I’m sure you won’t appreciate the trouble we have at hand.” Laura strolled into her office room and towards the two of them, “Welcome back, Agent A and Agent K. Still in good shape, I see. Looks like it hasn’t been that long since we’ve last met.”“Boss!” Ai got up from the sofa, “It’s good to see you again! I was starting to miss a lil bit of that action already. Doing nothing at home really bores me to death.”“Seeing you so eager to work makes me happy.” Laura then turned to Karin, “Unfortunately, we still have someone here who’s less than enthusiastic to start work.”“Of course.” Karin glared at her superior, “You forced me to put an end to my holiday with my partner to come back here. Don’t I earn the right to be mad?”“Need I remind you of the contract, Agent K?” Laura walked to the window and closed the curtains, “By being a secret agent, you’re in a dangerous industry, thus you get to reap the numerous benefits that come along with it. A wealthy income, a luxurious life, insurance.”She showed the number ‘1’ using her index finger and resumed speaking, “All under a single condition. I am able to demand your presence anytime, regardless of where you are, what you’re doing, and who you’re with. You agreed to the terms and conditions. You signed it, so you can’t just breach it. I didn’t want to call you back either, no less in the middle of your holiday, but this is an emergency. I had no choice.”“Just…” Karin sighed as she balled up her fist, only to uncurl it and let her hand droop down, “…tell us what you want us to do.”“Thank you for understanding, Agent K.” Laura went to her computer and switched it on. With a few clicks, its screen was shared to the 64-inch monitor, showing Sean’s face.“Our dear friend-turned-foe is back again.” She said, “Sean Robinson, formerly known as Agent S, had returned from hiding and has decided to wreck some havoc again. In Japan this time, where our main base is held. Right here, in Tokyo. He has already done damage to Hokkaidō and the Tōhoku region. And this time, he’s not alone.” She tapped on the wireless clicker, and the next page showed three other people; Leah Kazuno, Sarah Kazuno, and a middle-aged man. Seeing the picture of the third person perked a confounded Ai’s interest.“That can’t be…” Ai’s voice drifted off, still taken aback by his appearance.“Ah, you remember dealing with him, don’t you?” Laura looked at Ai, “Joseph, or Jo as they call him. Sean’s trusty assistant. He caused your girlfriend to be incarcerated, didn’t he?”Immediately and suddenly, the past all came back flooding into Ai’s mind. 
She was badly injured, bleeding and bruised all over. She could barely move an inch due to all the physical pain her body was suffering. Standing in front of her was a short woman with pink hair, pointing a pistol at Ai.

“Kill Miyashita Ai.” Ai could hear a man behind the pink-haired woman speaking, “Do it. Now.”

“Please…don’t…” Ai muttered softly.

However, the pink-haired woman ignored her weak pleas as she reloaded the pistol and aimed it at Ai’s head. Unable to convince the woman any further, Ai closed her eyes and accepted her fate.

She then heard a loud gunshot.
“Stop being dazed.” Laura’s words and finger snap brought Ai back to reality, “I know you love to reminisce about old memories, but we have more important things to talk about today.”Once again, Laura clicked on the wireless remote. The monitor now showed a portrait of Agent H and Johnny Jenkins.“Recently, we lost two agents.” Laura voiced out, “Agent H and Agent J. Killed in action while trying to stop Sean from becoming an even bigger threat. Two of my most experienced veterans…gone. Just like that.”She proceeded to look at Karin and Ai, “I already lost two great agents, and I can’t afford to lose more. I had to summon you girls here on short notice. The most professional, expert, powerful agents. I need them back in the field. Pronto.”“So, what exactly do you want us to do, Boss?” Karin questioned her higher-up in a slightly puzzled tone, emphasizing on the last word. “Very simple.” Laura replied, “Protect the base. Kill the target. End this war. Three objectives. Easy to understand?”“Yes, Boss!” Ai was the first to acknowledge Laura’s instructions. Karin couldn’t believe Ai had agreed to this instantly, but understood why she had done so. Ai had been vocal and determined to hunt those who had brainwashed her partner and turned the latter evil at one point. Besides, knowing the type of person Ai was, she must’ve grown tired of idling around. She was a person who couldn’t sit still, after all. Karin eyed her colleague, and then the head of the secret agency. Karin was already here in Japan anyway, and her trip would be postponed too. She might as well make use of the time here and oblige with the contract. “If Ai’s in, then I’m in too.” Karin stated.“Perfect!” Laura clapped her hands, “Let’s get straight to the briefing then.”She picked the wireless controller up and pressed a button on it, “In about 30 hours, there will be a music festival held in the Nippon Budokan. There is a person by the name of Benjamin who is performing there. Using my resources and connections, I have found out Sean has his eyes on him for quite some time. That bastard would likely send some of his goons to take the rapper out.”She then switched off the monitor, “Thus, we could use this opportunity to eliminate them, and find out where Sean might be. You two will be stationed there with some of the other agents. You have a blank check, but remember to leave one of ‘em alive so we can get a grasp of Sean’s location.”“Understood.” Both agents nodded their heads in unison.“Great.” Laura shut her computer down, “By the way, the armory and tailor are open today. It’s probably time you get some new weapons and suits since it’s been some time since you’ve gotten into action. Adiós.” With Laura’s departure from the office room, Ai turned from happy to apprehensive. She had a lot of internal thoughts at this moment. After hearing the exact details of the mission and the people involved, she had her reservations about it. She was about to go head-to-head with the guy who almost ruined the lives of her and her girlfriend. The near-death experience had formed a scar in her mind. He was a strong opponent, to say the least. She was dead set on bringing him down, but would she really be able to do it when the time comes, if all his appearance did was remind her how she didn’t treat her significant other well enough?Karin caught sight of Ai’s expression and patted her shoulder, “What happened to Tennoji-san wasn’t your fault, Ai. Don’t push yourself too hard. We’ll get that son of a bitch this time, and he’ll pay for what he did to you and her.”Ai laid her head on the top of the couch with a despondent look on her face. She was uncertain on what the future might hold, but there was one thing she knew for sure.The tough part had yet to come.The light of the silvery moon gleamed on the city of Tokyo at half past seven in the night. During this time, the street lamps were all lit up, and various restaurants were packed with patrons having their dinner.Maki and Honoka had just finished their meal, so now they were taking a walk at a nearby park. They strolled on the stone path as they held hands, their fingers interlocked with one another.“Huh? You’re going off to do crime-fighting again?” Honoka stared at Maki, confused and curious. “Apparently.” A troubled Maki replied, “Some bunch of criminals might be en route to Tokyo to cause some chaos. They’ve done damage to the people in Hokkaidō and those in the Tōhoku region, so Zi Yang asked me and the girls for help to try and stop them before Tokyo turns into a warzone.”“That sounds like something you would love doing, Maki-chan!” Honoka commented, “It’s crime-fighting with your besties! Why are you pulling a long face though? Is there anything wrong with the arrangement?”The redhead scratched her head in frustration, “Thinking about it now, maybe I shouldn’t have agreed to his request so readily. I felt bad for the victims and I wanted to stop the threat with my good friends, but I also promised to spend more time with you. And now I can’t hold up my end because I said yes.”“You made the right choice, Maki-chan.” Honoka stopped in her tracks and smiled at Maki, “You love to seek justice for the vulnerable and their families. That’s how you’ve always been. This is the Maki-chan I love dearly. Beautiful and caring. I’m glad that you decided to help him too. I’m proud of you, and I’ll support you all the way.”Maki’s face turned as red as a tomato from all the compliments her partner was handing out to her, but she was also touched that Honoka would unconditionally give her moral support in anything she did, which she was extremely grateful for.She then cooled herself down and grinned at Honoka, “Well, I guess the one good thing to come out from this is that I’m not wanted by the authorities like before, so it’ll be way easier for us to see each other.”“Yatta!” Honoka jumped up in joy. A smirk was plastered on Maki’s face. Seeing Honoka being this elated made her happy too. She really does love her girlfriend a lot.In the hospital, Nico was getting ready to knock off from her shift. She needed to get back home quickly to take care of her three siblings because her mother had just gone out for work to make ends meet for the family of five. She changed into her civilian clothes and wanted to find Nozomi as her colleague was also slated to finish work at this time. Nico strolled to the lounge to meet her and take the public transport back together, but she couldn’t find Nozomi there. She went to the washroom and even the two wards that Nozomi was in charge of, but the nurse was nowhere to be seen. With most of the options canceled out, Nico could only think of one more place.She walked up the stairs to the balcony and opened the door slowly and quietly. There, she saw Nozomi, still in her uniform dress, sitting down on the floor, her back leaning against the railings. Tears were dripping down from her eyes as she stared at the phone.Nico knew what the purple-haired woman was heartbroken about, and decided to give her some alone time. She sent a text message to Nozomi before closing the door. Meanwhile, Nozomi rubbed her eyes to clear off her tears. She was going through her phone gallery, reminiscing of the wonderful memories she used to have with a certain someone. As she swiped right on her phone, she came across a video. Curious to know what it was, she played it.
It was a clip filmed in her own bedroom. She wore a strapless crystal blue dress with a purple ribbon tied around her waist. She also donned an embroidered tulle bolero cape with snowflakes over the top of the dress.

Additionally, she had her hair tied into a ponytail with a purple rose placed on it, and a crystal snowflake accessory on the braided part of her hair. She was twirling around in front of the person who was filming it.

“H-how do I look?” She heard herself asking in the recording. There was a moment of silence before Nozomi looked worried and uneasy.

“D-does this not look good?” She asked with an anxious face, “I…”

“It’s…amazing.” Eli’s voice could be heard, “You look…stunning, Nozomi.”

“R-really?“

“Positive. I wouldn’t lie to you about your beauty.”

“You always say I look pretty in anything, Elicchi.”

“You are beautiful in every aspect, Nozomi, but this dress absolutely fits you to a tee. That color blue really compliments your looks. It goes well with your purple hair and fair skin. It makes you look like a queen. An angel that descended from Heaven.”

“I-I can’t take so many praises at one go, Elicchi.” Nozomi blushed, “No fair.”

“What else can I say?” Eli let out a giggle, “You know, you should wear this dress more often.”

“Since you love it so much, I will definitely wear it in front of you every single day.“

“Even when I eventually get sick of it?”

“Mhm. You love me anyways.” Both of them then started laughing, and that was when the video ended.
Upon watching the footage, Nozomi started crying uncontrollably as tears fell down from her face to her uniform like a river. She really missed being with Eli. She wished those happy times didn’t end, but she couldn’t blame anyone but herself.She had only one regret in her life, and that was leaving Eli Ayase. Because of a mistake she had made in the past, she couldn’t undo the damage it did to both of their hearts, and now she had to live with the consequences of her own actions. That was why sometimes, Nozomi Tojo hated herself.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Just another normal day.

As the clock struck seven in the morning, the alarm from Shioriko’s phone started ringing loudly. She woke up from her deep slumber and sat up from her bed as she stretched her hands and twisted her torso left and right.

She picked her phone up and switched off the alarm. Afterwards, she walked into the toilet and brushed her teeth. She proceeded to take a quick shower to freshen herself up for the day.

Donning a simple gray shirt and jeans, she went to the dining table, where the loaf of bread she had bought the previous night was sitting. She took two slices and spread some peanut butter on them before putting it together. She then grabbed a plate from the kitchen and placed the sandwich on it.

The police officer took one more slice from the loaf and tore it into two diagonally, with each half shaped like a triangle. She coated them with hazelnut chocolate spread and combined them together. She fished a container out of her bag and placed the food in her bag.

A half-sized sandwich wasn’t big or filling for her, but she wasn’t planning to eat much for breakfast anyways. She didn’t mind starving so her mother could get the nutrients she needed.

Shioriko wanted to save money for more important things like their basic necessities, her mother’s medicine, and her frequent therapy sessions. With a loaf that had twenty four slices, the family of two could survive with it for a week, probably a bit more.

And she was already content with that, so long as her mother was alive and well. Shioriko slipped her feet into her sneakers and stepped out of the house, locking the door in the process.

That was the daily morning schedule for Shioriko Mifune.

Upon reaching the police station, she took the lift up to the third floor and stepped into Zi Yang’s office. The chief police inspector already had a few files in his hand, with his laptop in the other.

“Good morning, Sir.” Shioriko went to him, “Is there anything you need me to carry?”

“Oh, good morning, Shioriko. Just in time.” He handed the folders over to her, “Take these for me. They’re files for the briefing later. I still need to carry my mouse and water bottle.”

Once he got what he needed, they left the office room. They walked down the stairs to the second floor and into the conference room. There, they saw Kotori and numerous police officers sitting around a big U-shaped conference table.

Shioriko gave Zi Yang the files and took a seat beside Kotori while he connected a LAN cable to his laptop. Shioriko looked around the room, only to hear murmurs and her name being mentioned by her colleagues.

She wasn’t exactly well-liked by her comrades, and she knew that since the first day she set foot into the station. She was straightforward, pragmatic, and strict. Of course nobody would even bother to get along with a person like her who decreased the morale of any team she was in. Today was no different. She was already used to the horrible treatment she received from her fellow officers anyway.

When the screen was shared to the projector, he turned towards everyone with a serious, stern look on his face. Immediately, all the policemen and policewomen in the room sat up straight and stared at him in attention.

“Good morning, fellow officers and inspector.” He started speaking loudly, “I am Chief Inspector Huang, but you can just call me Sir. Today, I’ll be briefing you about this afternoon’s operation.”

He clicked on his mouse, and the screen showed an industrial building with three floors. He then passed the folders around the room, which contained information on the infrastructure, letting the officers and Kotori have one copy each.

“This is a building located in Yokohama.” He continued, “There’s intel that lots of illegal activities might be conducted in that place, so your job is to raid it and arrest anyone involved in those shady deals. As I am unable to make it for today, Inspector Minami will be leading you guys instead.”

Kotori stood up from her seat and looked left and right for the officers to recognize her face. Afterwards, she sat back down on her chair and signaled for Zi Yang to resume talking.

“Report to Inspector Minami if you see anything suspicious.” Zi Yang stated, “If she’s not free at the moment, you’ll report to the next person-in-charge assigned by me, which would be Officer Mifune instead.”

Shioriko looked at him with surprise as soft muttering filled the atmosphere, which got noisier and more obvious with each passing second. Many officers either glared or sneered at her, talking among themselves about how she was the least capable person. She had mentally prepared herself for the badmouthing and insults directed at her, but it still hurt a little hearing it.

“Sir, there are clearly many other officers who can do the job a hundred times better.” A female officer stood up as she protested with a tinge of anger, “Why would you pick Mifune Shioriko? She never listens to others, and always thinks her way of doing things is right. That’s not teamwork. That’s just being a solo ranger.”

“Well, officer, this is a police mission, not a high school orientation camp where you get to pick whoever you want for your small little friend group.” The chief inspector walked over to her, “I feel that Officer Mifune is a suitable stand-in for a leader. Not only does she get things done with her leadership, she has good critical thinking, which is vital, especially in this situation, in case anything might go wrong.”

He proceeded to stare at her right in the eyes, “Since I’ve stated my reasons, are you still going to question me? Or do you doubt my judgment?”

“N-no, Sir.” She bowed down, afraid to talk back in fear of getting written up for arguing with a superior.

“Great.” He backed off and glanced at the rest, “I want everyone to be ready by three in the afternoon, weapons, vests, and walkie-talkies drawn. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Sir!”

“Meeting dismissed. Inspector Minami, please stay back for a while. I need to discuss something with you.”

As the officers left the room, Kotori went to him, “You looking for me, Sir?”

“Yup. Tell Umi to report to the police station by two. I’ll provide her with a vest, but she has to come with her own gun. The police can’t let her use ours. Meanwhile, it’ll be good if you could get her up to speed on the mission details.”

“Roger that, Sir.” Kotori bowed and left. He switched his laptop off and tidied up the chairs. As he was about to leave the conference room, he saw Shioriko waiting outside.

“Shioriko?” He was surprised, “Were you waiting for me?”

“Why did you choose me to be the co-leader?” She questioned with a doubtful look, “The other officers might think you are biased. You never told me anything about this, or gave me time to prepare for the role.”

She then looked down on the floor as she spoke up with uncertainty, “I…don’t think I’m the right candidate for this too. Whatever I do, I think I’ll just make the rest hate me more. Most of them probably won’t listen to me either, and we might fail the mission because of that. I think you should replace me with someone else.”

Upon hearing that, Zi Yang knew he needed to assure her and give her some self-confidence. He invited her back into the room as they both sat down on the chairs.

“I picked you not because you’re my partner, but because I trust that you can lead this team well with the skills you have.” He told her, “I’ve seen what you can do from the time we’ve spent solving cases, and I’m impressed with your performance. Thus, I am giving you this opportunity to shine. To prove the force that you’re more than capable. To show everyone what you’ve got.”

“You really see it that way, Sir?”

He patted her shoulder, “I believe in you, Shioriko. You should believe in yourself too. I know it can be hard for you and the other officers to get along, considering your past interactions with them during academy training.”

“I expected it.” She let out an audible sigh, “I tried to force my plans and ideals on them, after all. Even when I’ve thought of the most practical yet suitable method to solve a case, they would never listen to me and think I’m wrong for going against their way of doing things. I just don’t know how to get along with them.”

“Well, you can try listening to them this time.” Zi Yang suggested, “Hear them out on their explanation as to why they want to do it. Sometimes, others might have a better plan. You remember the second case we worked on?”

“The pawn shop theft?”

“Yup. We were stuck back then. Surveillance cameras didn’t show us the right angles, and we couldn’t trace any fingerprints on the doors. I wanted to check all of the cameras around the area to find more leads quickly, but you had a different strategy in mind. You placed a counterfeit jewel with a tracking device in it and baited him out of hiding to try and steal it. That’s how we caught him easily.”

“I can’t believe you didn’t forget that, Sir.” She replied, “You do have a good memory.”

“You made a lasting impact on me with your thinking, Shioriko.” He shot her a grin, “You knew greed was his weakness, and you used it to our advantage. More importantly, you made me see that there could be more than one solution to a problem. That’s why I want you to lend an ear to what solutions your colleagues have in mind. Doesn’t hurt to try it at least once.”

“I understand now, Sir.” She bowed down, “Thank you for your guidance and advice.”

“It’s my duty to look after you.” A reassuring Zi Yang responded, “I see your potential, and I have faith that you’ll get through the tough times. Good luck with the mission, and please come back in one piece

Shioriko faced her senior with a determined look “I won’t let you down, Sir!”

4:00 PM.

The sky turned to a dark hue of blue as the clouds passed by. The temperature sat at a very good twenty one degrees Celsius, and with the wind blowing, it surely would be a comforting weather.

However, now was not the time for the police to rest. They had a task to complete. Several cop cars have been parked outside an industrial building in Yokohama, while the officers were gathered outside the entrance, along with Kotori and Umi.

“Are you sure your officers won’t find anything strange about why I’m here?” Umi asked her girlfriend, “I’m not a member of the force anymore.”

“Technically, you aren’t, but Sir gave you a temporary inspector pass, so you’re considered one now.” Kotori replied, “We could also say you’re from a different prefecture, and that you’re sent here to assist us.”

“Wow, you and Sir really got it all planned out, huh?”

Kotori nodded her head, “Let’s just hope this mission goes according to plan too.”

After separating the juniors into three different teams and assigning them to different areas of the building, the inspector warned them to be careful at all times, and to inform her of anything or anyone suspicious before engaging. With that, they set off into the structure.

Kotori led the first batch of officers onto the third floor. They barged into every office room on the level, checking if there was anything out of the ordinary in them. Besides finding abandoned desks, dusty armchairs, and empty shelves, nothing else was strange or unusual.

Umi guided the second group to the second floor, where they spotted a kitchen counter with unfilled wine bottles on it, unoccupied cabinets and cupboards, as well as numerous inoperable computers, lots of empty tables, and wooden chairs.

Shioriko was leading the third and last group on the ground floor. The officers dispersed away to other parts of the area, not wanting to associate with her. She was definitely annoyed by them, but she ignored them and instead decided to explore on her own.

“Anything so far?” Kotori spoke through the walkie-talkie, “Mine has a lot of abandoned offices. Over.”

“Mine looks like a kitchen with no soul to be found, along with some tables and chairs.” Umi reported, “Probably used by the vendors here. Over.”

“Seems like either they’ve vacated the place in advance, or Akiyama-san didn’t tell us the truth.” The inspector stated firmly, “What about you, Mifune-san? Over.”

“Nothing in my radar so far, Ma’am.” Shioriko replied as she approached the staircase, “I’ll keep in touch in case I find something. Over.”

In the secret agency’s underground car park, Ai and Karin placed an assault rifle, a shotgun, two pistols, and a bag of shuriken in the boot of a Cadillac XT6. Afterwards, Karin hopped onto the driver’s seat while Ai took the passenger’s seat.

“Karin, do you think this mission’s going to be…the one for me?” Ai questioned as Karin started the car. Karin just looked at her with confusion, which prompted the blonde woman to explain what she had meant.

“My one and only fear. My lifelong regret. They’re finally catching up to me, and I can’t run away from them anymore. I don’t even have the strength or willpower to face Joseph. This could really be the end…for me.”

“Tough…might be an understatement, considering what you’ve gone through.” Karin replied, “You know what they say though. The only easy day was yesterday.”

She proceeded to push the shift lever down to the D section as she stared at Ai with conviction, “But I can tell you one thing. You’re not alone. We’re gonna get through this together, and we are definitely going to accomplish the mission.“

Ai leaned back on her seat as a loud sigh escaped from her mouth, “I wonder if I can even carry out the task at all. Seeing that man is all it takes for me to crumble.”

“Let’s not think about it right now.” Karin told her, in hopes to put her mind to rest, “We’ll get to the location first, and then we’ll play it by ear. Try not to let your thoughts run wild. Maybe he won’t be there at all.”

Ai looked out of the window and muttered, “I can only hope so.”

The Nippon Budokan. A recognized indoor arena that was built and opened in 1964. A place well-known for holding live performances and concerts. A stadium with a capacity of fourteen thousand people.

The venue was filled with spectators scrambling around to find their seats. One of the biggest music festivals was about to start in a few minutes, and everyone was excited to say the least.

The same couldn’t be said for the artists performing. They were in the dressing room, preparing themselves for later. Some were nervous, some fidgeted with their fingers, some paced around while muttering to themselves the lines of their songs.

Alisa Ayase was one of the singers who fit into all three categories. Additionally, she was inhaling and exhaling heavily, as if she just went through a rigorous physical exercise. Seeing how jumpy her sister was, Eli went to her and patted her shoulder.

“It’s going to be alright, Alisa.” Eli told her, “I’m sure you’ll do fantastic in your performance tonight.”

“Thanks for coming, Onee-chan.” Alisa gently grabbed Eli’s hand and held it as she looked at her older sibling, “If you weren’t here, I would’ve just lost my composure and broke down already. This is such a big event, and I don’t want to screw it up.”

“I understand the pressure, but try to take it easy.” Eli grinned at her, “You’ve been through a lot of training, and I’m sure your hard work will pay off. The audience would be able to see the effort you put into your performance, and they’ll love it. Just relax and stay calm.”

“Mhmm, thanks for comforting me, Onee-chan.”

“No problem.”

Eli then felt her phone vibrating in her pocket. Once she excused herself, she went to the corner and whipped it out. Seeing that Maki was trying to ring her, she answered the call.

“Maki, are you and Zi Yang here yet?” She questioned.

“Yeah. We’re blending in with the audience so we don’t attract any unwanted attention.” Maki responded, “Officers are also on site. What about you? Have you reached?”

“Yeah. I’m with my sister in the dressing room. I’ve seen Benjamin too. He seemed pretty confident for a guy who has many targets on him. Did you see any suspicious figures walking around?”

“None so far, but we’ll keep a lookout. You should too.”

“Roger that.” Just as Eli ended the call, she saw a brown curly-haired man in his twenties taking a couple of big strides towards the door and went out of the room.

Alisa stood up from her chair and turned to Eli, “That’s the sign that I need to be prepared. My performance is after Benjamin-san’s. I oughta get going too.” With that, she made her way to the door.

“I’ll follow you.” Eli followed behind her younger sister.

Meanwhile, Maki sat down on one of the seats on the arena floor. She darted her eyes around her surroundings, paying attention to any dubious individuals.

Benjamin’s performance was going to start soon, and yet she couldn’t find anyone that looked shady. She wondered if the chief inspector had yielded any results. She tapped her earpiece and asked him.

“None.” He responded, “I’ve sent some of my men to comb through the place. Yours was a dead end as well?”

“I’m afraid so, Inspector.”

“Shit.” He cursed almost inaudibly, but loud enough for Maki to perceive, “You continue your search and give me an update, while I keep an eye on him. We need to find the people who want Benjamin dead now. We can’t afford to wait for him to die.”

At that very moment, the brown curly-haired man appeared on the stage. He picked the microphone up from the stand and introduced himself to the audience as Benjamin before he started rapping. Zi Yang, who was on the first floor, looked in all directions, whilst calculating and predicting in his mind where the attack might come from.

Maki took the staircase up to the second floor and slowly walked through the southwest entrance and into the stadium. Most of the seats were already filled up by now, which meant there were currently over ten thousand people in the venue.

She had to be careful and nimble in everything she was about to do. She could not afford to alert the public until the criminals who were targeting Benjamin had been found so as to not let chaos ensue and the citizens go into panic mode.

Soon after, she saw a man at the top of the stairs to the highest row of seats on the east side. He was assembling a sniper and reloading bullets into it. She was pretty intrigued on how he smuggled the weapon in at all. Nonetheless, she reported it to Zi Yang.

“Inspector, there’s someone with a sniper.” She whispered to him through the earpiece, “He got it through security, probably by concealing it well. He is most likely here to shoot Benjamin down. Do I go ahead and tackle him?”

“No. It’s dangerous to do this out in the open with a twelve thousand crowd here. Advise him to drop the weapon first. If he doesn’t listen to your warning, you can do your thing, but try your hardest not to hurt the civilians in the process. I’ll send some of my officers up now to assist you.”

She acknowledged the instructions given and moved slowly but steadily towards the shooter. She walked up the steps warily, trying to make as little sound as she could.

She got closer to him with every footstep. Unfortunately, just as she was just three rows away from him, he was done setting up his sniper and noticed her approaching him.

She immediately stopped in her tracks, took out her pistol from her pocket, and aimed it at the man, which shocked some of the spectators there.

“Hands off the sniper.” She stated firmly, “Now. I don’t intend to go rough on you for the safety of the public, but I will if I have to.”

“Ooo, so scary.” He made a sarcastic remark as his hands reached into his pockets, “I’m shivering in my boots right now. You’re not a police officer now, are you?”

“We can resolve this peacefully.” She glared at him, “We don’t have to resort to violence. Frankly speaking, I don’t want to either.”

“You talk too much, miss.” He had a mischievous smile plastered on his face, “Too bad you’re not the one paying me. It’s my boss, so I only listen to him.”

He took out two daggers from his pockets and hurled them one by one at her. She twisted her torso to the left as the first blade went past her, and she ducked to dodge the second one.

What she didn’t realize was that it was just a distraction for the sniper to take aim at Benjamin’s head. Maki quickly loaded her pistol and pointed it at his wrist.

At that moment, two gunshots could be heard.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Zi Yang was on the first floor, carefully observing his surroundings as he walked around from the far left to right and vice versa. His eyes darted all over the place, attempting to catch any movement, sharp or not, but nothing seemed out of place. He found it strange that everything was normal. With all the information he had gotten from his research, friends of Benjamin, and Hajime’s statements, there ought to be many more targeting the rapper. However, his performance was about to come to an end, and only one sniper was spotted by Maki so far.All the chief inspector could see was the audience around him clapping their hands happily and cheering loudly. Their joyful faces did not show any intention to kill Benjamin. There couldn’t only be one person wanting to take the musician down.Was this all just a hoax to distract the police force from dealing with the outlaws that were causing trouble to Japan? If not, where could the others that aim to assassinate Benjamin be at? Why was the rapper still performing even though he knew about his own debt and that people might hunt him down for it? Zi Yang couldn’t think of an answer to any of these questions, but he had a really bad hunch about this. As he turned his head back to the stage, he heard gunshots and saw a bullet graze Benjamin’s right shinbone. The musician groaned loudly in pain as he clutched his leg with his hands. As expected, the audience were immediately filled with fear and confusion. They stood up from their seats, shoving each other and screaming as they scrambled towards their nearest exit. Amidst all the chaos, he heard someone shout from the second level.“Fire!”As if on command, a few more men walked out from the frantic crowd on the ground floor, with revolvers in their hands. They stared at an unsuspecting Benjamin, who was still whining about the pain inflicted on him. Once they aimed their gun barrels at Benjamin, the men pulled their triggers, using every last ammunition in the loaded magazine on him. Bullets flew all around the stage, mostly hitting Benjamin and instantly killing him.Zi Yang was taken aback by what had just happened, but he recovered from it in no time. He took out a pistol from his belt and inserted a magazine into it.“Officers, I need some support on the arena floor pronto.” He tapped his earpiece.Alisa and Eli, who were at the stairs leading up to the podium, saw Benjamin’s lifeless body fall onto the ground. Eli looked at the scene with horror while the singer let out a frightened gasp, loud enough for the men to hear her. One of the men pointed at Alisa, and the rest of them glared at her. Noticing that they were reloading their weapons, Eli realized they were planning to kill her and Alisa. She quickly grabbed Alisa’s wrist and dragged her away from the area, barely escaping as the bullets started flying everywhere. Not having that many places to go without the risk of being spotted, the Ayase siblings could only advance to the nearest room. They ran down the hallway and decided to enter the empty dressing room. Eli needed to find a hiding spot for Alisa so that the men wouldn’t be able to find her while Eli dealt with them. She saw a few empty cardboard boxes lying around, as well as a cotton tablecloth. With the limited amount of items that she could utilize, she had to think of a way to ensure Alisa’s safety. Fortunately, an idea struck her within seconds.She told Alisa to squat down at the corner of the room. Afterwards, she stacked the boxes around Alisa. Two in front of the singer, two on her right side, and one on top of her. Eli then covered it all with the cloth.“Try not to make any noise so that they won’t be able to find you.” Eli said to Alisa, “I know squatting in heels can be uncomfortable, but please bear with it for now. I’ll come back for you, I promise.”“I trust you, Onee-chan.” Alisa muttered in a slightly petrified tone, “Don’t take too long, please.”“I’ll try my best. Hang in there.”Back at the second floor, an exasperated Maki gripped the sniper’s throat and pushed him to the wall. She glared at him with menacing eyes, which garnered a chuckle from him.“What was that shout supposed to mean?” She growled.“You’ve seen it for yourself, miss.” He let out a maniacal laughter, “What is there for me to say?”“Better fuckin’ stop horsin’ around and tell me the truth.” She tightened her grip on his neck, “What. The. Fuck. Is that supposed to mean?”“Go…to…hell…” He coughed while giving her a sly grin. Out of anger, she elbowed him in the face, knocking him out.“Motherfucker.” She muttered under her breath. Just as she turned around, she saw more men advancing towards her. She rotated her head left and right to crack her neck before running towards the one closest to her.She leapt towards him and kicked his head, but he blocked it with his arms. She then punched his chest thrice, causing him to stumble back a little. They exchanged a few blows with each other for the next few moments. He threw a fist at her skull, but she managed to stop the attack with her left bicep and grabbed his arm. She pivoted her right foot to the left as she inserted her right arm underneath his armpit. Afterwards, she turned 180 degrees and curled her arm over his. She proceeded to bend her knees and pull his arm forward, flipping his whole body to the front in the process. His head hit the dead center of one of the seats, knocking him out as his body plopped onto the floor.Once she looked back, she saw five other men charging in her direction, all with knives in their hands. Breathing in and out to provide herself with more energy, she popped the knuckles on her fingers and dashed towards the men. The first of the five guys swung his knife at her face, but she dodged it by stepping back and seized hold of his right forearm. She tugged it roughly towards her and kneed his axilla, forcing him to drop the blade. She then lifted her right leg up, squeezed her knee inwards, and straightened her leg, booting him on the throat and leading to his back hitting the railings. As a result, he lost his balance and toppled over them, falling down two floors before he landed on the floor, rendering him unconscious.After she picked the knife up, she noticed the second and third man approaching her. The second guy stampeded in her direction, hammering her shoulder with his knife, but she ducked and slashed his thighs. He groaned in pain as he stumbled backwards. Seeing that he was open, she punted him on the groin and did a roundhouse kick to his head. She grabbed his left carpus and twisted it forcefully without any warning, making him let go of his weapon. For the finishing touch, she pushed him away from her before jumping forward and booting him on the abdomen. He flew back and collided with the third man as they both fell onto the floor together.She snatched the other knife on the ground and swayed the knives she obtained around. The third and fourth man looked at each other before nodding their heads. The third assailant stepped on one of the seats and sprung at Maki while the fourth guy lunged towards her. As the third man was meters away from reaching her, she slid under him. She clutched his legs from the back and drew them back, making him drop to the ground face-flat. She then gashed his right calf with one of her blades to prevent him from moving, earning an anguishing scream from him.Once she got closer to the fourth man, he veered his knife to Maki’s face, but she blocked the attack with her left hand hooking onto his right wrist and pushing it down, disarming him at the same time expeditiously. With her other hand holding the other knife, she used it to slit the bicep and the cubital fossa. He cried loudly in agony as he gripped his arm, trying to slow down the blood loss.Maki did a spinning hook kick on the side of his skull, defeating him as he lost consciousness and fell onto the floor. Upon looking at his comrades getting beaten up by Maki, the fifth man shivered in fear as he shot her a terrified look. She cracked her knuckles as she wiped the sweat off her forehead.Only one more to go.Meanwhile, inside the Yokohama industrial building, Shioriko walked down the stairs to the basement floor. It was dimly lit, with its measly source of light coming from a bulb in the middle of the room.She took out her flashlight and held it in one hand, while her pistol was in her other. First, she shone her electric torch to her front, checking for any booby traps or tripwires that might activate something undesirable. Once she had ensured there was none of those, she slowly and steadily took steps forward while looking around the room to inspect it. There were lots of empty boxes and crates lying around. She was curious why there were so many of those stored here.She got her answer once she emitted light on the wall in front of her. She saw a 1.5 inch LED timer plastered on it, with the display showing ‘00:03:00’. Just before she could even blink her eyes, the timer started counting down. She could hear ticking and beeping sounds coming from under her. That was when she realized what was going on. With her hands trembling a bit, she put her pistol in her pocket and took out her walkie-talkie to communicate with her seniors.“Ma’am, Sonoda-san, there’s an emergency.” She stated sternly, “You need to vacate everyone out of the building now. There’s a bomb planted in the building, and it’s gonna blow up in three minutes. Over.”“There’s a what now?” Umi could be heard screaming through the device.“We need to focus on getting out of here right now.” Kotori spoke in an anxious tone, “We don’t have much time left either. Tell everyone to evacuate this instant. Over.”Shioriko sprinted up the stairs and towards her team members, who were at one corner talking in their own groups. In one of those, she could hear her name being mentioned as an overbearing woman. Honestly, she didn’t want to save them. They had no regard for her anyways, so why would she need to risk herself to inform them about the incoming danger when they wouldn’t listen to her at all? She should’ve just bolted out of the place and left them to their own devices. Her life would be so much better without them insulting her at any given moment.However, she couldn’t just dump them behind. She was determined to carry out her job to lead the team to victory and prove to her superiors, especially Zi Yang, that she was a capable officer with leadership and expertise. Besides, if she were to just step out, it would give others more chances to look down on her and slander her even more for being an irresponsible leader. Letting out a long, deep, dispirited sigh, she stormed to her colleagues, who took notice of her appearance.“Oh, look who it is.” A male police officer scoffed at her, “It’s the Miss Know-It-All. Our lord and savior has returned from her self-declared journey. Please, enlighten us on what you’ve found.”“This is really serious, Steve, and I’d appreciate it if you would stop making fun of me.” Shioriko voiced out in a stern tone, “There’s a ticking bomb down in the basement, and we need to get out of here now.”“A bomb, you say?” Steve let out a hearty chuckle, “Real funny, Mifune. You tryna create a dangerous situation and then make yourself look like a hero so that you can get all the credit and rank up? I won’t give you an opportunity like that.”“I have no time for your chit-chat, Steve.” She retorted, “We need to evacuate this building immediately, so please heed my orders for once. I’m doing this for the safety of you guys.”“Steve, I don’t think she’s lying.” Another female officer told him, “She looks pretty solemn. She might be telling the truth.”“Who the hell knows, Karen?” He questioned, “Maybe she just wanted some brownie points from our superiors for doing her job as a ‘leader’. Besides, she’s always giving this face to us. She’s never had any other expression either, like her face’s a stone statue or something.”“You…” Before Shioriko could talk back, the rest of the officers saw Kotori’s team members running down the stairs and towards the exit, followed by Umi’s officers. The people in Shioriko’s team muttered among themselves, pointing at the ones rushing out of the building.“Let me repeat this once more.” Shioriko voiced out, “We have NO more time to waste. Let’s get out of here NOW, or we’ll all die.”Finally realizing the dangerous situation they were in, they started panicking and darted to the door. They shoved each other, not caring for one another and only concerned for their own safety as the feeling of fear and worry slowly settled in. A helpless Shioriko was unfortunately caught in the middle of the stampede. She was being pushed towards the exit by the crowd, and there was nothing she could do to move.Out of the blue, she heard a loud gunshot and a rope snapping. The next thing she knew, she saw a large wooden box falling from the ceiling to the ground, where it hit a few officers at the back of the pack. This placed everyone else left in this threatening structure that was about to give way into a frenzy, with officers screaming in terror at the top of their lungs.At the grass patch just a few meters away from the building, Leah was kneeling on one knee, her left eye looking through the scope. Pleased that she had hit the mark, she dismantled her sniper and kept the parts of it in her backpack before wearing it. She then picked up a remote with a red button from the floor and slipped it into a pocket of her leather jacket.She was quite satisfied with the trap she had set up for the police, and pleased to know that her marksman skills hadn’t deteriorated yet. She hopped on her motorcycle and took one last look at the building before driving off.Back in the building, Umi led most of her officers out of the place and told them to take cover a few meters away. Knowing that it was her team members who were hit by the falling boxes just moments ago, Shioriko turned back to see if they needed any help. Most of them managed to escape the hazardous situation, but one was still stuck under the pile of boxes. She inched a little closer to her front and immediately recognized the face of the officer.“Steve?” The male officer was shrieking with fear as he struggled to get out of the predicament he was in. He attempted to push the boxes away, but they felt too heavy to even be moved, as if they were made of steel. The moment his eyes and Shioriko’s met, he gave her a look of mixed emotions; distressed, frightened, and pain.“Shioriko, help me get the fuck out of this mess, please!” He cried in an upset yet pleading tone, “I don’t want to die! I’m still young, and I have a long life ahead of me!”Shioriko tried to lift up a box, but it was as if it contained numerous things with great weight in it. It was too massive for her to pick it up despite using all of her strength. There were at least ten of them stacked on top of Steve, but she couldn’t even carry one of them. Was Steve…doomed to just perish here? Shioriko hated his guts for the longest time because he led the big hate train towards her. At long last, she had an opportunity to serve him the best cold dish of revenge for all the insults and stress thrown her way. All she had to do was leave him be and run away from here as fast as possible.“No. I must find a way.” She muttered to herself. She couldn’t allow her personal opinion of him to cloud her judgment and stop her from what she needed to do as a leader and officer. Just then, Kotori ran to Shioriko just as the inspector’s group of officers were rushing out of the venue.“Mifune-san, what are you still doing here?” Kotori had a tinge of concern in her voice, “The bomb’s about to go off. You should be outside with your team now. Let’s get out.”“Please don’t leave me here, Shioriko! I beg you!” An agitated Steve pleaded with her colleague, “I don’t want to fuckin’ die! I won’t pick on you after this, I promise!”Once again, Shioriko tried carrying another box, but it proved to be too heavy for her. Noticing that they didn’t have much time left, Kotori sighed as she grabbed the officer’s wrist and looked at her.“We need to go. Now.” Kotori stated sternly, “We can’t afford to be here any longer. The bomb might go off any minute.”“But Steve…he…”Without listening to what Shioriko had to say, Kotori pulled her away from the scene. The both of them then started sprinting towards the entrance, leaving behind an afraid Steve screaming in fear.Just as the two policewomen stepped out of the building, it exploded and burst into flames, sending them flying in the air for a few meters before their backs landed on the floor. Concrete rubbles flew everywhere like a meteor shower, forcing Umi and the officers nearby to duck and cover their heads with their hands.All Shioriko could see afterwards was blackness before she became unconscious.Meanwhile, in the Budokan, Eli was walking down the hallway on the first floor with slow but careful steps. She wondered if the men from earlier were still finding her and Alisa.Every few seconds, she’d turn her head around to check for anyone approaching the room her younger sister was hiding in, before looking back at the front. She was relieved there was no one coming after her sibling.Just then, she heard footsteps from a few meters away. She darted her eyes around her surroundings, searching for something she could defend herself with. However, there was nothing around her that she could use.She quickly leaned against the wall near the T-junction and held her breath, waiting for the footsteps to get louder and more audible. She stretched her arms as she tried to perceive what the men might be saying.“…We need to find that woman quickly.” A male voice was heard, “Or else, we won’t be able to answer to Boss. He specifically told us to eliminate anyone who witnessed Benjamin’s murder.”“It’s that woman in the gray dress and the tall blonde woman, isn’t it?” A second one replied, “I heard they’re quite well known. One is a singer on the rise, the other took down a crime syndicate. She’s not to be messed with, that’s for sure.”“We just have to shoot the taller woman, then we can kill the singer.” The first man uttered, “In a fist fight, a gun always wins.” The moment he reached the intersection, Eli ambushed him by grabbing the right collar of his shirt with her left hand and tugged it towards her. As his face was about to reach hers, she fisted him on the stomach and slammed his head against the wall with her right palm.The second man took out his gun and aimed it at Eli, but she ran to him and rammed him into the wall with the side of her left shoulder. She knocked her skull against his and kneed his left wrist, disarming him as the pistol dropped onto the floor.After throwing a few punches at his chest, she grabbed his right collar with one hand and his tricep with another. She proceeded to place her heels on his lower abdomen and lowered her body to the ground as she threw him overhead, defeating him.She picked up the gun from the floor and saw that the first man was slowly recovering from his injuries. She hurled it at his head, causing him to get hit in the eyes by it and stumbling back. Seeing he was distracted, Eli ran towards and leapt, executing a butterfly twist on his left temple. The strong and forceful impact to his head knocked him cold instantly. Eli patted the dust off her long pants and straightened her linen blazer. As she was about to walk onward in the direction of the main hall, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a figure at the other end of the hallway.What caught her attention though was how the person didn’t even look like the men who attacked her earlier. Who could that be? It couldn’t be anyone she knew. Where did this person come from? Was this individual here to assassinate her too? While she was thinking to herself, the figure took a step forward with every second until they were two arms apart. It was only then she could make out what this human looked like. It was a middle-aged man, the same one that commanded someone to kill Ai Miyashita. Joseph.However, Eli didn’t know him, and had only one question to ask him.“Who are you?”“Doesn’t matter, miss.” He replied with a smug smile as he got into a fighting stance, “ Saya hanya berharap anda siap untuk apa yang akan datang (I just hope you're ready for what's to come).”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Karin and Ai had finally reached the parking lot outside of the Nippon Budokan after a fifteen minute drive. The secret agents hopped out of their car and opened the trunk. Karin grabbed an assault rifle and slung it over her left shoulder, while Ai took the shotgun and slid the twelve gauge bullets into the chamber.

“For you.” The dark blue-haired woman scooped the two pistols out of the car and gave one to her colleague, “In case you run out of those armor piercing steel slugs.”

Ai let out a half-hearted smirk, “You think I could grab some of those shurikens?”

“Be my guest.” Karin grinned at her, “Don’t have too much fun with it though. We have a mission to complete.”

The blonde spy looked up at the ceiling and closed her eyes as she took in deep breaths and heaved out with her whole chest. Smelling the fresh breeze did relieve a little bit of her mental stress.

She proceeded to take some time to mentally prepare herself. After all, she was about to confront her mortal enemy. Her dreadful nightmare. Her worst fear. It constantly reminded her that no matter how good she was at her job, she failed as a lover and was never good enough for her partner.

She was extremely afraid to face it, and her insecurities and anxiety started to cloud her mind. However, she knew she had to overcome it sooner or later. Today was the day she told herself she was going to do just that

“Alright, I’m ready.”

They walked into the venue’s ground floor, where they saw some civilians scrambling out of the arena with horrified looks on their faces. From the expressions of the frightened patrons to the chairs lying all over the place, they figured something big must have already gone down prior to their arrival. With that, the agents went further in to get a better understanding of what was going on.

There were sounds of people fighting and gunshots, which led them to believe the police were already in the Budokan, probably fighting Sean’s men. Earlier, before they entered the site, they noticed two police vans parked just meters away.

In the middle of the stage lay a lifeless corpse, which caught Karin’s attention. She stared at it for some time before realizing that it was Benjamin. She couldn’t really recognize him initially as his face was punctured by numerous bullets.

“Ai, come take a look at this.” She turned to her partner-in-crime, signaling to her to come over to the stage. The moment Ai saw the deceased rapper, she furrowed her eyebrows and let out a disgusted ‘ugh’.

“Any approximation on how late we might be?” Ai asked.

“No idea.” Karin shrugged her shoulders as she adjusted her rifle, “This dead body looks kinda fresh though, so I’d say we’re still on time. I guess we’ll still just have to find out for ourselves.”

“So, what’s the plan?”

Karin scanned her surroundings while formulating what to do in her head. They were only a team of two, while there were three floors in the Budokan.

She thought of assigning Ai to one level and herself to another. However, she didn’t want Ai and Joseph to cross paths too, lest Ai break down and think of the past, so she was planning to place Ai as far as possible away from him. However, she did not know where he might be, or whether he was even here, so she could only take a gamble.

“You take care of the first floor.” Karin voiced out to Ai, “I’ll be on the second floor. Once I’m done with my level, I’ll come and help you out.”

“Got it!” Ai gave a thumbs-up, “I’ll do the same once I’m finished kicking some ass on mine!”

“One more thing before you go, Ai.” Karin looked solicitously at Ai, “If you ever see Joseph, and I’m saying it might be a possibility, don’t hesitate to call for my help. You can…”

“Karin.” Ai patted her colleague’s shoulder, “I do appreciate your concern. But this time, I wanna try and face it alone. I can’t just keep depending on you to shield me from my phobia, can I?”

“Ai…”

“I’m not too sure on how I’ll even do it.” Ai continued, “I’ll manage, though. I’ll do my best. Ultimately, this is my fight. If it’s not for bringing Sean down, it’s for Rinari. I hope you can have some faith in me.”

Karin kept quiet for a few seconds before nodding her head, “I understand. Be careful out there. I wish you good luck.”

“Thanks, Karin.” Ai had a bright smile on her face, “I’m glad I am able to count on you.” She proceeded to take the stairs up to her location.

Karin was proud of her fellow agent for having the courage to attempt getting over her fears. She promised herself to treat Ai to a meal once today ended.

With that, she loaded her gun and muttered to herself, “Let’s dance.”

Back on the ground floor, Eli and Joseph stared at each other menacingly.

Eli was still unsure of this man’s identity or what his intentions might be. From his silence the past few seconds, she deduced he won’t be revealing anything anytime soon. She stretched her arms and formed a defensive stance.

Joseph waited for a few seconds before making the first move. He lunged towards her, wrapped his left arm around her neck, and kneed her right scapula thrice, sending an electrifying pain down her arm. All in an extremely fast movement that she was unable to avoid or block.

Eli stumbled back and felt the static in her arm for a moment. After rotating it a few times to ease the strain, she rushed forward towards him. She raised her right leg up to kick him in the chest, but he caught her ankle and pushed her back with it.

He ran to her and threw a fist at her, but she was able to dodge it this time by bending the upper half of her torso forty five degrees. Seeing that he was defenseless for a moment, she attempted to knee him in the gut, but he swiftly grasped her leg this time and flipped her around. She fell onto the hard concrete floor on her face.

Eli couldn’t believe Joseph was able to dodge every one of her attacks with such rapid speed and ease, as well as counter her with his own devastating moves. She was slowly starting to realize he was not only agile, but he was strong too. He was a formidable opponent. She might have finally met her match.

However, she wouldn’t concede easily just because her enemy was powerful. She was not down and out yet. She still had every chance to bring him to his knees.

She pushed her palms against the floor to get up and turn around. Joseph seemed to have taken a few steps back, giving space for Eli to recuperate. He grinned at her before he made a beckoning sign with his finger.

Annoyed at that taunt, Eli decided to give it her all and finish this man once and for all. She walked with slow and steady steps in his direction, with the pace increasing in each step until she started to sprint. Once she got near him, she jump-kicked him in the face, but he clutched her calf and swung her to his left, with the back of her head and dorsum being slammed onto the wall.

Once again, she plummeted to the floor as her head was throbbing vigorously. Without giving her time to recover, he dragged her up by the collars of her dress and punched her face thrice. He proceeded to use his left leg to kick her stomach and forcefully boot her abdomen.

Eli attempted to strike him in the head, but he blocked it with his left wrist and thumped her left cheek. He kneed her left hip bone to incapacitate her further. He proceeded to carry her by grabbing both sides of her hips, turned around, and hurled her to the opposite side. She landed on the floor on her back with a loud thud.

She coughed out blood as she slowly stood up, staggering midway. While there were bruises and lacerations on her face, as well as her arms and legs, Joseph looked like he was untouched. At this rate, her injured self couldn’t beat him.

She wasn’t sure how much longer she could last,  but all she knew was that she had to protect Alisa from harm no matter what, and she was not going to let him get past her by any means. She had to find a way to delay him.

She got into her fighting stance and glared at Joseph, signaling to him that she was ready to give it her all. 
 
Meanwhile, Ai reloaded her shotgun and shot one of Sean’s men, causing him to stumble down the stairs. As three more men approached her, she aimed her weapon at them and mowed them down, killing them instantly. She took out a few shurikens and flung them at two men running towards her.

Once they were distracted, trying to defend themselves from the small blades, Ai blasted them with two armor piercing bullets, puncturing their lungs and ending their lives on the spot.

She saw a group of five men, probably the last few people Sean had deployed because she didn’t see anyone behind them. After she pointed her gun at them, she pressed the trigger, only to hear a clicking sound.

She broke her barrel open and realized that the chamber was empty. She cursed under her breath and closed her weapon before throwing it at the man nearest to her. She whipped out her pistol and shot him in the abdomen, knocking him out of the fight.

The remaining four men charged at her with guns in their hands. Ai discharged a bullet at one of their necks, threw all the shurikens she had left at them, and quickly hid behind a wall that led to the stairway. She waited for a few moments before slowly peeking her head out to see where the men could be.

She saw a gun pointed towards her eyes and immediately turned her head back as the bullet barely passed her, grazing the side of the wall instead. She took in a deep breath and let it out as she patiently waited for the men to come.

As soon as she caught sight of one man’s leg, she positioned the barrel of her weapon at his feet and pulled the trigger, emitting a loud bang and a horrified scream from the guy as he fell face flat onto the floor.

She shot each of his calves to restrict his movement and kicked his pistol away. The other two men ran to her and aimed their guns at her, but she kicked the first man’s crotch, which resulted in him squealing in agony.

She grabbed his head and slammed it against the wall numerous times. She then booted his stomach, causing him to lose his balance and topple down the stairs behind him.

As she was about to shoot the second man, he kicked the gun out of her hand and did a spinning kick on the left side of her skull. She stumbled to her right as her vision was momentarily blurred.

He pushed her head against the wall and booted her on the chest, which sent her toppling onto the floor. He took out his gun as she regained her balance and whipped out her firearm.

They both aimed their guns at each other’s head, staring at each other with hostility, as if they each were daring the other party to pull the trigger first. Just then, someone shot the man’s arms and legs. He cried in pain as his body instantly plopped down to the ground.

Ai was wondering who fired that shot since she wasn’t the one who did so. It was until she saw a police officer slowly lowering his revolver. Two more came over to handcuff Sean’s men.

Heaving a sigh of relief, she leaned her back against the wall and closed her eyes as she turned her head to the left, away from the light. She could finally take a break from all that fighting. Her injuries were not that serious, but her head was still feeling a bit of pain.

She could hear the officers asking someone about who she might be and why she was holding a gun, but she didn’t want to care about it for the time being. Maybe she would explain herself later.

“Miss, are you okay?” She heard a familiar voice ask her, but she couldn’t identify who it belonged to. It was like she had met this person somewhere before. She opened her eyes and turned to face the person, only to see Zi Yang. She let out a surprised gasp.

“Miyashita-san?” He widened his eyes in shock, “Is that you?”

“Inspector Huang!” Ai had excitement in her voice, “What are you doing here? Are you here to take Sean’s men down too?”

“I don’t know who Sean is, but these men were carrying out an assassination, so we came here to try and stop them.” He explained, “I was at the other side of the level when I saw the men who I assume were trying to kill you. How were you able to get in though? I thought my officers blocked off the Budokan.”

“We have our own ways, Inspector Huang.” Ai smirked, “That’s the power we secret agents have. But you said assassination. By any chance, are you talking about Benjamin, the rapper whose body is lying lifelessly on the stage?”

“Yes.” He nodded his head, “Yes, I am. How…did you know that?”

Ai slid her gun back in her pocket, “It might sound crazy to you, but I think we might be in the same case.”

Eli was not having it good at all.

By this point of time, she was all battered and bruised. A few more beatings and she would be completely worn out and defeated. On the other hand, Joseph only had a small contusion on his left arm, where she had landed one of her very few successful attacks on.

She knew that if she were to continue fighting him, she might just pass out and never wake up again. Despite that, the thought of keeping her younger sister safe was enough for her to persevere a little more. Besides, she had to wait for backup from the police before she could even think of collapsing from all the physical pain she was currently suffering from.

She stretched her arms as she and Joseph slowly advanced towards each other. As soon as they were one arm’s length apart, she threw her fist at his face, but he ducked and did an uppercut on her chin, causing her to cough out more blood as she felt an electrifying and shocking sting on her jaw.

After sending his right elbow to her nose, he punched her a few times in the stomach, making her hurl out more of her vital fluids. He then delivered one strong punch to her abdomen, resulting in her stumbling backwards.

She could discern the metallic and salty taste of blood as it trickled down from her nose to her mouth. Her body was about to give way and she was close to dropping. She wiped her blood off with her hand and charged at him with the last ounce of energy that she had.

Without much effort, Joseph executed an elbow uppercut on her face, distracting her with the throbbing pain. He proceeded to press her head against his chest, held her hips, and lifted her up before throwing her behind him.

This was it, she thought. It was over for her. She did not expect him to be this strong and agile. At least she would be able to rest in peace, knowing she tried her best to defend her loved ones.

Joseph turned around and stared at an almost-dead Eli and let out a chuckle. Another one to add to his list of dead opponents. He raised his right leg up, planning to do a hammer kick on her skull to finish her off.

Just as his heel was about to reach Eli’s hair, a woman behind him wrapped her arm around his neck and strangled him. He swiftly grabbed her arm and pulled it away from him, but that only gave her the opportunity to yank him to the opposite of where she was standing. As he was stumbling back, trying to regain his balance, she sprinted to him and jump-kicked him on the chest.

He flew a few meters back. Just before his body could touch the floor, he quickly placed his palms on the floor and executed a somersault, allowing him to get up on his own two feet. He looked up at the assailant and recognized her from her scarlet red hair right away.

Maki Nishikino.

“

Sengat menarik

(Very interesting).” He scoffed, “I wasn’t aware there was a tag-team going on here.”

“Shut that mouth of yours and let’s fight.” Maki growled, pissed off that he wounded her friend badly. She got into her fighting stance as she shot daggers at him. He just smiled at her as he patted his shirt and straightened his bomber jacket.

Maki was the first to make a move. She darted in his direction and threw a fist at him, but he dodged it by stepping back. He did a few front kicks on her, but she blocked it with her arms. On his last kick, she managed to get a hold of his leg.

She was planning to slam his body to the wall by swinging his leg. Before she could even do that, he hopped with his other leg, curled it around the back of her neck, and flipped himself, overturning her to the side in the process and causing her vertebrae to be the one hitting the wall instead. She groaned in pain as her body dropped onto the floor.

Joseph got up from his fall to punt her face, but she rolled to her right in the nick of time. Still on the ground, she swept his left leg off the ground with her ankles and booted him in the chest forcefully. The impact sent him soaring rearwards until his spine hit the wall behind him.

Moaning in agony, he rubbed his back and slowly stood up. He realized he was back at the T-junction, the spot where he came face-to-face with Eli a few minutes ago. Right there and then, he felt a sense of déjà vu. His fight with Eli that started here ended with him winning, so perhaps he would overthrow Maki in this match-up too. He got excited and energetic just thinking about it.

Just as he was preparing himself to fight Maki, he heard footsteps and the sound of guns cocking from his right. He steadily turned his head in that direction and saw Zi Yang, Ai, and Karin running towards him, with their pistols pointing at him.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Joseph was not one bit surprised to see Karin and Ai, like he had expected them to come. They were his enemies, after all. Of course their boss would want him dead. What he didn’t get though was why a police official was with them.

Once the two agents and the chief inspector were one meter away from Joseph, Zi Yang sneered at him, “Hands up where I can see them, punk.”

The moment Ai saw Joseph, a mix of emotions hit her like a truck. Fear, unsettledness, perturbation. Still, she kept her cool and glared at him as she continued to aim her gun at his head.

“Where. Is. Sean?” She questioned him, stopping at each word for a second.

“Miyashita Ai.” Joseph let out a hearty chuckle, “I didn’t know you were still that afraid of me. I guess that

incident

from years ago is still affecting you, ain’t it?”

“D-don’t act like you know me!” Ai’s voice quivered a little.

“Isn’t it a bit too late to play the hero now, Miyashita?” The fighter resumed speaking in a taunting tone, “You couldn’t even save your girlfriend back then. That’s why she turned against you. YOU let her down. YOU will never be good enough for her, or anyone for the matter of fact. YOU are just a delusional person trying to be noble and cover up the horrible mistakes you’ve committed that made everyone around you suffer.

Kamu adalah pemborosan hidup, dasar anjing

! (You are a waste of life, you fuck!)”

“Shut the fuck up!” A trembling Ai screamed at the top of her lungs as her hands started shaking. Out of the blue, all the traumatic memories of that unfortunate day flashed before her eyes. The chaos. The fights. The pink-haired woman pointing a gun at her. She tried her hardest to fight back these thoughts, but it proved futile as they were way too strong for her to overcome.

Before she even knew it, she was staggering backwards, attempting to get away from Joseph and the scene. However, she unconsciously tripped on her own feet and fell down to the ground. Unable to hide any longer, she cowered in fear, her insecurities and helplessness overwhelming her completely as Joseph’s evil laughter just became background noise to her.

Karin took notice of it and scowled at Joseph, “Say another word, and I swear I’ll put a fuckin’ bullet through that thick skull of yours.”

“

Tedap tenang

, Asaka (Keep calm, Asaka).” He grinned at the navy-blue-haired woman, “You wouldn’t be this cocky if your girlfriend was the one in Tennoji’s shoes, don’t you think?”

“Don’t you dare fucking touch her, you imbecile.” She growled, anger swelling up in her as she gripped tightly onto her pistol handle.

“Enough talking.” Zi Yang interrupted their conversation with a stern voice, “There’s nowhere left to run, Joseph. You take one step further and we’ll shoot you. Surrender, and we’ll consider giving you leniency.”

Joseph shook his head as he snickered, “You would have to catch me first.”

He then took out three smoke grenades, swiftly removing the pins, and dropping them on the floor. Almost instantly, the smoke filled up the whole corridor. Everybody else couldn’t see anything that was in front of them, even when they tried to swipe away the mist or squint their eyes.

Regardless, Zi Yang and Karin still fired some bullets in hopes of stopping Joseph from running. When the smoke cleared though, he was nowhere to be seen. Zi Yang expressed visible confusion while Karin let out a sigh of disapproval.

“Where the hell could he have gone to?” The chief inspector scratched his head.

“He got away again.” A disappointed Karin shook her head. She then looked at Ai, who was hyperventilating. She was still affected by Joseph’s words earlier. Karin squatted beside Ai and laid Ai’s head on her shoulders.

“Thank you for helping us, Inspector Huang.” The agent turned to him and told him, “You saved us once again, and I appreciate that.”

“Don’t mention it.” He replied, “Is Miyashita-san going to be okay?”

“I got it under control. Thank you for your concern. You and your comrade should go and find any remaining survivors. Be careful on your way out. Joseph might still be hiding among these walls, waiting to ambush you.”

“Got it.” Zi Yang slid his gun back into his pocket. He and Maki carried a knocked-out Eli on their shoulders. They still needed to find Alisa since she was slated to perform at the event, but they didn’t know about her whereabouts as Eli was currently unconscious. They both agreed they should start looking for Alisa immediately.

“Inspector Huang.” Karin called out as he and Maki were about to go off, “I’ll see you soon. If fate permits.”

Zi Yang responded with a light nod.

Meanwhile, Alisa was getting tired of squatting in her heels. She had been in that position under the boxes for almost an hour, and her feet were starting to hurt. She wondered when Eli would come and get her.

Was she facing any difficulty fighting the bad guys? Was she badly injured? Even worse, was she possibly taken away to be tortured for any intel she might have? Alisa was panicking more with each passing second. She knew she shouldn’t doubt Eli with her fighting capabilities, especially considering she brought a crime syndicate down, but anything could happen. The future was never predictable.

As she was busy worrying about Eli, she heard the sounds of faint footsteps, with each one getting louder as they inched closer towards her. She held her breath and hoped that whoever was nearby just walked past the room.

Just then, she felt a sneeze incoming from her throat. It must’ve been from all the dust she had been inhaling from the boxes. At the same time, her calves were on the brink of giving out. She decided to rub her calves to ease the aching with one hand and cover her mouth with the other, trying her best not to let out any sound.

When the sneeze came, she managed to hold it in, preventing herself from making too much of a noise. However, once she let go of the hand covering her lips, she let out a squeal audible enough for anyone in her surroundings to hear, due to the throbbing in her calves.

She quickly placed her palms over her mouth once again. She had accidentally exposed her presence, automatically putting herself in real danger. Right now, she could only pray that nobody had heard her.

Nonetheless, she heard footsteps approaching her direction. She closed her eyes and gulped her saliva down her throat. She breathed in and out in an attempt to maintain her composure. If this was not Eli, she might be very well dead. Saying she was scared was an understatement. She was petrified with fear as her heart started beating faster and faster.

Within moments, she could hear the boxes being shifted away as a bright beam of light greeted her. She was then pulled out of the spot. She started screaming for help, but a hand went over her mouth. Tears started running down a terrified Alisa’s face, afraid of being abducted or killed.

“It’s me.” She heard a familiar voice, “I’m Eli’s friend, Maki. Don’t make a sound, or else we might be inviting more trouble.”

As soon as the hand went down, Alisa turned around and saw the red-haired woman staring at her with a weary expression. The singer cleared her tears and let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank you for saving me, Nishikino-san.” She uttered.

“Are you okay?” Maki asked worriedly, “Are you hurting anywhere?”

“My legs, but it’s nothing too big.” Alisa replied, “Where’s Onee-chan, though? I don’t see her with you.”

“Well, about that…” Maki stepped aside, allowing Alisa to see Zi Yang at the entrance, carrying a badly injured and passed-out Eli on his shoulder.

“Onee-chan!” She gasped in horror as she ran to her sister, “What had happened to her?”

“A lot.” Zi Yang voiced out, “C’mon, let’s get to the hospital.”

As evening dawned upon Tokyo, the sun slowly started to set, and the skies turned from blue to orange. The two secret agents gathered in Laura’s office room as their boss gave them a debrief.

“So, now we know Benjamin is six feet under.” Laura said, “May his soul rest in peace.”

“Neither Sean nor the two women who tortured Johnny were at the scene.” Karin reported before taking a glance at a still-shaken Ai, “However, Joseph made an appearance. He might be involved in Sean’s plans once again.”

“As expected.” Laura responded as she paced around the room, “Joseph is Sean’s right hand man, after all. It would make sense for Sean to call him in for help.”

“If I may, Boss.” Karin looked at her superior, “Could you please take Ai off this mission? His presence would only make her emotionally unstable.”

“I’m afraid I can’t accede to your selfish request, Agent K.” Laura stopped in front of her desk and rested her hands on it, “This operation needs professional agents like you two. Either one of you back out, and we might be royally fucked.”

“Can’t you see how Ai’s suffering right now?” An irritated Karin stood up and marched to Laura, pointing at her colleague’s face, “She’s being reminded of her trauma and fear over and over again because of that goddamn jerk. If she sees him one more time, she might just break down.”

“All the more reason why you and her should be fighting against him.” Laura reasoned in a calm tone, “Only by facing him would she be able to build the resilience and confidence to get over it. Her avoiding the problem wouldn’t solve a single thing.“

“Putting her in this type of situation isn’t the best for her either!” Karin slammed her fists on the table and glared at Laura, “You’re only hurting her by doing this! Have you ever thought of her feelings? What if her mental health deteriorates?”

“Don’t mix work and personal matters, Agent K.” The mid-thirties woman stared at her agent right in the eyes, “They should never come together. As an agent, I believe you know that very clearly. Having emotions during your job could lead to disaster. Is Agent A’s situation with Tennoji Rina not a good enough example for you?”

“You…”

“It’s alright.” Ai voiced out, “I can handle it, Karin.”

“But…”

“I appreciate your concern, but Boss has a point.” The blonde woman resumed talking with her head hung, “My fear will remain with me forever if I continue to run away from it. I’m not helping myself by letting it linger. It may be really hard, and it hurts a lot, but I want to be brave and face them, so that I can be a better version of myself. For my loved ones and the people I’ve let down.”

She proceeded to force out a fake smile, “Until then, I’ll carry on with trying my best. Maybe one day, I’ll really be able to gain the strength to overcome it. I believe I can do it. I’m going to the toilet to wash my face and freshen myself up.”

With that, she stood up and bowed before leaving the office. Karin could only watch her drag her feet out of the room. Karin knew she was just trying to stay positive, but in reality, she was distressed. The blue-haired agent wished she could do something to ease the mental anguish Ai was suffering from.

“It’s not that I want to torment you or Agent A by forcing you two to go against Joseph.” Laura spoke up, “I just hope you know in this cruel world of ours, nobody cares about how we feel. Joseph or anyone against us won’t consider our emotions when they are trying to wipe us off the face of this earth. It’s a dog-eat-dog world, and we just so happen to be a part of it.”

Laura switched off her computer and left the room, leaving Karin to collect her thoughts in there. She let out an exasperated sigh, unsure of how she could even help Ai with her situation. She felt so helpless, but all she could do now was try to be by her side and give her some comforting words.

In the toilet, Ai rinsed her face with the tap water before facing her head up. Staring at the mirror, she looked at her own reflection with dread. Pathetic, useless, horrible. That was how she felt about herself.

Why couldn’t she get over her own fear? All she had to do was be valiant, pluck up her courage, and face it head-on. Instead, she hid like a coward every time she came into contact with it. She even made the people around her worried for her, burdening everyone with anxiety and her wellbeing. Why did she have to be so weak-hearted?

A deep sigh escaped her breath, fogging a spot on the mirror. She straightened her collared shirt and walked out of the washroom. There, she saw Karin waiting for her.

“Are you feeling any better now, Ai?” Karin asked with concern, “I’m here for you, should you need anything.”

“I’ll be fine after a while.” Ai nodded her head, “Thank you for caring about me, Karin. I am grateful to have a good friend like you.”

“That is what friends are for.” Karin patted her partner’s shoulder, “Don’t think too much about today. Go home and take the good rest you very much need.”

“Not before I visit Rinari.” Ai’s lips curled into a weak grin, “I promised her that I’ll visit her once a week, and I just so happen to be free today.”

“Are you sure?” Karin questioned, “Your emotions aren’t exactly in the best state. Maybe it’s better for you to head home.”

“I’m fine now. I’ll manage.”

“It’s important to take a break and recuperate, especially after today.” Karin suggested, I’m sure you’re feeling mentally tired, and you’re holding on to that last ounce of energy you have left. I don’t want you to overexert yourself too.”

“But…”

“If you really see me as a good buddy of yours, then you should listen to my advice.” Karin placed her arm over Ai’s shoulders, “I care for you a lot, and I just hope you don’t force yourself to face everything alone. In the little things like these, I want to help. Please, Ai.”

Ai looked at Karin for a while before replying, “Alright, I’mma heed your advice. I’ll just visit Rinari another day.”

“That’s much better.” Karin smiled at her friend, “I’ll see you tomorrow. Wanna come to my house for breakfast? Emma’s making some delicious pancakes.”

“Thanks for the offer, Karin, but I’ll pass.“ Ai responded, “A sandwich with nukazuke is still the best for me.” She then waved goodbye to Karin and walked away.

After ensuring that Ai was out of sight and Ai’s Toyota was not in the parking lot anymore, Karin took out her mobile and dialed Emma’s number. She placed her phone to her ear and waited for her girlfriend to pick up.

“Hello? Karin-chan?” It was Emma’s voice on the other side of the line.

“Emma, leave some of the dinner for me. I have something to attend to.”

Karin drove her gray Porsche Macan GTS away from the building and onto the highway. Turning into an exit, she steered right at the T-junction.

After a few meters, she had reached the entrance of the prison. She showed her identification card to the security guard, who allowed her to drive in after checking the details of the card.

She parked her car, got out of it, and locked her car, the sound echoing in the late night. She strode into the lift lobby and went to the receptionist.

Five minutes later, a guard led her into the visiting room, where there were only two chairs and a table. She took a seat on one of the chairs as the guard told her to wait.

‘Maybe I should’ve told Ai.’ Karin thought to herself, ‘She might get mad at me if she knew about this. But if I were to tell her, she would also be mad at me. There’s no difference in any of these outcomes. It’s better to keep it a secret, I suppose.’

Her train of thoughts were interrupted by the guard, who announced the arrival of the prisoner. The door opposite her swung open, revealing the same pink-haired woman who pointed a gun at Ai back then, as well as an officer behind her.

“Prisoner 1113, you have fifteen minutes to converse with your visitor.” The officer told the woman.

“Understood.” A cold and monotonous yet chilling voice escaped the woman’s lips. The officer then stood by the door, staring at the woman and her every move.

“So, what did you call me over for exactly?” Karin questioned with a slightly irritated tone, “Are you going to finally break up with Ai and let her live for once?”

“No.”

“Then this is a waste of time. You should’ve just stayed in your cell and continue reflecting on that shallow soul of yours.”

“I…I just want to ask how…” The woman seemed to be at a loss for words, shy or ashamed to ask, but she continued, “I’ve heard that you two went on a mission…and saw Joseph there. I-I…want to ask…how…Ai is doing right now.”

“How’s she doing right now, huh?” Karin sneered at her, “Do you really think she is alright at all, Tennoji Rina? Did you even ponder about it before asking this stupid question of yours?”

“I…I’m sorry.” Rina looked down at the ground.

“Sorry doesn’t bring Ai back to the cheerful way she was.” Karin berated with anger and frustration, “If you never had any thought or intention to try and end Ai’s life back then, do you think she would be traumatized like this? She tried her best. She might not have been the best at romance, but she gave it her all to love you. Was she wrong?“

Karin stood up and slammed the table as she glared down at Rina, “She worked so goddamn hard just to support you because she loved you. And you repaid her by siding with that twat and pointing a fuckin’ gun at her fuckin’ head?! Are you a psychotic maniac?”

Even though Rina’s face showed no emotions, tears started running down from her eyes to her cheeks. She couldn’t talk back because what Karin had said was true. She was the cause of Ai’s mental health deteriorating. If it wasn’t for her actions, Ai wouldn’t be suffering so much right now. Rina regretted what she had done in the past and it had constantly been weighing heavy on her conscience since then.

“And yet she never ever blamed you for what had happened.” Karin sighed as she sat down on the chair and leaned her back on it, “She still loved you like before. She even held herself accountable for not being a loving girlfriend to you. If I’m being honest, Tennoji Rina, you do not deserve a good person like her.”

“I know.” Rina muttered, “This is all my fault she turned out like this. That’s why now, I want to try and make it up to her.”

“How?” Karin looked at Rina, “Tell me how. Have you stayed in that small cell of yours for so long that your brain started to rot? What can a ten-year sentence do to help you achieve that?”

“I…nothing.” Rina wanted to reason, but realized she had no argument.

“That’s what I thought.” Karin scoffed at the prisoner. She stood up and was about to leave the room when she stopped in her tracks. She let out a deep sigh and turned around to face Rina.

“To answer your question earlier, Ai was deeply affected by Joseph’s appearance today.” The agent voiced out, “He mocked her on how she wasn’t good enough for you, which caused her to have a mental breakdown.”

“I-is she okay?” Rina asked softly, still not daring to look Karin in the eye.

“Not too good. She wanted to visit you, but I advised her against it and instructed her to go home. Last I called her, she sounded hoarse. She is probably in her room now, letting go of all that anguish by crying her heart out. Even if she had come to see you today, she would have put up a front just to not make you worry.”

“Thank you for looking out for Ai-chan.” Rina uttered.

“Her wanting to stick to the promise of visiting you every week shows how fantastic of a girlfriend she is to you.” Karin said, “The least you could do is serve your prison sentence with good conduct, and treat her like an actual human with feelings after your release.”

“I will.”

“Don’t tell Ai about our meeting, or the fact I told you about her current condition. You’d better show some concern for her the next time she comes to visit you.” With that, Karin left the room.

Rina rubbed her eyes to clear her tears, feeling guilty of what she had done to Ai. She ought to treat her girlfriend better. Just then, the officer went to her, signaling her that the visiting session was over. She nodded her head and stood up from her chair.