> While the classes dragged on in their usual boredom, I didn't waste my time. I made some extra cash.
Four scumbags were threatening a defenseless old woman — one already had a knife raised. I couldn't just walk by.
I acted fast. No blades, no weapons — just the technique I learned in the hell of my past. It was over in minutes.
They wouldn't be getting up again. And me... I looked like a hero. Though no one saw it but the old lady.
I helped her cross the street, made sure she was safe — and then went back...
To collect what was mine. Four eyes. Two kidneys. And... four brains.
> I'm not even sure why I took the brains. Instinct? A hunch? Either way — the buyer took everything. 1.8 million. Not bad.
19:00
Chiori left the school. I followed from a distance, careful not to be noticed.
Out in public, she looked normal — calm, maybe a little tired.
But when she got home and the lights turned on, I realized something:
She wasn't alone.
I moved closer.
The window was cracked open. They spoke in whispers, thinking no one could hear.
— So, how's it going with him? — A hoarse, disgusting voice. — You know if you don't bring him in within two days... you're dead.
> They're… talking about me?
— O-okay… I'll try. Just… can you leave, please? We can talk on the phone. I'm uncomfortable with you living here…
— What'd you say, bitch? Lost your fear already? I'm not going anywhere until you bring him in.
— Now… strip. Heh.
— Are you… serious?
— Was I ever not?
— But—
Slap! The sound of a hit. Dull. Painful. Filthy.
— O-okay... I will…
> So that's how it is… She's not a traitor. She's a hostage.
And I was too blind to see it. But that's not the real issue.
> They're looking for me.
But why?
Her whole story… her past, the millions, even our first meeting — could it all have been part of someone else's plan?
> If that's true — this isn't just a gang.
This is the hand that's been pulling the strings from the beginning.
> First it was my father. Taken out in a plane crash.
Then my mother… they destroyed her from the inside. Emotionally. It all lines up.
That girl I saved — they knew about her. They knew about me. From the very start.
> Am I just a puppet?
Or… are these all coincidences?
> If I'm right about what I'm thinking…
...then this game runs much deeper than I ever imagined.