Chapter 9: Chapter 7

Chapter 7
Idol and Agent

Felix quickly dashed away as bullet shells fell in rapid succession. One by one, the loud sounds reverberated across the room. Natsumi, the girl who he was supposed to be protecting, was firing at him.

“What are you—!” He yelled out, only to instinctively back away as he heard the next round fired.

He reached for his gun, but it was too far from his hand.

“Come on, why won’t it work?” He muttered to himself as a bead of sweat slid down his cheek.

He leapt over to grab his gun and peaked from the corner of his blue eye, he quickly aimed it at her. But when he noticed her frightened face, he was unable to pull the trigger. He glanced back down to steel himself, but then noticed something strange about the area – there was no damage anywhere in the room.

When the metal clanging stopped, the girl lowered her arm. The scent of umami that permeated the room was replaced by the sharp scent of the gunpowder.

Felix got up and looked around, even as she continued to fire at him. He then approached her, and without hesitation, she pulled the trigger once more.

A loud bang rang, while the scent of smoke followed. He let out a cold, unfazed glare as he towered over her.   

The girl’s voice cracked as she saw how undaunted Felix was.  “You’re surprisingly calm. People normally panic… after getting shot.”

“…Great acting…maybe I would have died… if this were real.” He answered in a simmering rage as he grabbed her wrist and took the gun off her hands.

Her eyes widen for a moment before letting out a relieved sigh, “…There shouldn’t be any way to differentiate a real one from a fake.”

“The difference is that a real gun destroys things.” Felix answered as he looked back to where he hid from her assault.

Natsumi’s hostile exterior changed to a softer one as a gentle laughter escaped her lips, “Ah, I see.”

“I assume those bullets were holograms?”

“They were, courtesy of Brilliant Light Industries.” She cheekily admitted.

“They were pretty convincing when I could barely see them. Now tell me, who are you?” Felix placed his gun against her head.

She put on a brave front as she answered, “I-I told you, my name is Natsumi Sakurai.”

“How do I know you’re not lying?”

“Mhm… Natsumi Sakurai, daughter of Takeuchi Sakurai of Obsidian Industries, incorporated. That introduction alone should be enough.” She assured him as she showed him an ID with Obsidian Industries’ seal on it.

Felix let out an exasperated sigh, “You gave me a heart attack…”

“I tend to do that. So you must be the Black Cat of Ruin, then? Elite Agents are really something else, aren’t they?”

“I actually go by Blue Phantom, now.” Felix corrected her.

“Hm… So you really are the genuine article. Still, I think Black Cat suits you better.” She smirked and placed her hand on her chin.

“How many times do you intend to test me?”

“I’m done. You’re the real thing.”

“Right. Are you really Natsumi Sakurai?”

“Sometimes, I wish I wasn’t.”

Felix rolled his eyes and replied, “Well, it shouldn’t be too long until security arrives and—”

“No worries, they know. The staff is currently under my control.”

Felix inhaled sharply and took his luggage to the black leather couch in the living room, where moonlight illuminated through the glass walls. Natsumi’s expression turned curious as she watched him walk away.

“You’re not gonna ask why I shot you just now?” She followed him to the living room.

“It’s probably because you wanted me to prove myself, or perhaps it was to prove to daddy dearest that you can take care of yourself.”

“Color me surprised. And you’re not mad?” She answered in a stunted expression.

“I’m actually furious. I was all too ready to kill you if I hadn’t noticed the surroundings.”

“Perceptive, but your expression doesn’t say furious at all.”

“I’d advise against doing that again, there are agents who would’ve killed you by accident for pulling a stunt like that.”

“That would’ve been bad, wouldn’t it?”

“I’d say that’s pretty bad.”

“Well, not much to lose other than my own life I suppose.”

Felix sighed and looked at her with a worried expression, “Your recklessness reminds me of someone. Still, I’m curious why a pop idol is carrying one in the first place.”

“I’m the CEO’s daughter, so I’ve had my own fair share.”

“This world really isn’t fair if an idol like you needs to be proficient with a gun.”

“Gross. What are you, some sort of therapist, too?” She sharply remarked as she placed her elbows on the couch, lowering her head to her palms.

The luggage let out a loud click as Felix rummaged through his stuff. He pulled out a black-suit, a bullet-proof vest, ammunition, a small bottle of anesthetic, all in order to find a pistol, and his energy gun, Ion. He examined his gear under the stream moonlight that split the room in half, all while Natsumi quietly watched from over his shoulder.

Minutes passed, and the room grew darker as the light shifted and faded. Yet as he rummaged through deeper, he found that on the other side of luggage was a pale mask, metallic and without any detail other than the dark eyes that contrasted to its ghostly white color.

Felix smirked softly to himself as he looked at it.

Natsumi inched her way closer from behind him, giving a curious stare, “A mask? Is that part of your gimmick?”

“Uh, yeah...”

She reached for the mask, and Felix reluctantly gave it to her. In her arms, though, she placed it against his head. Uneasy, Felix asked, “Hm? What are you doing?”

“Staring into the abyss.”

He awkwardly grunted. “Ah-mhm.”

Natsumi chuckled and commented “Apparently, the abyss gets flustered the longer I stare at it.”

“Some pop idol you are.”

“An amazing pop idol I am.” She cheerfully responded.

He returned the mask into the case and looked at her, “What do you want?”

“I want lots of things.”

Felix let out a deep, guttural groan at her response.

With his dismay in full view, Natsumi nervously added, “Well then, you mind telling me why your right eye glows in the dark? Is that like your superpower or something?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Come on, tell me what you’re thinking, I wanna—”   Suddenly, a soft growl escapes Natsumi’s stomach.

“Your friend has other plans...” Felix replied in a deadpan tone.

Her tone immediately changed into a more demanding one as she wrapped her hair into a side ponytail. “Accompany me to the restaurant outside.”

“You just finished cooking, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, but the scent of gunpowder is kinda making me sick, so…”

“Right… Whose fault is that?”

“Mine, and?”

“Right, and you’re going to have to deal with that.”

“C’mon, it’ll be fun!” She spoke nonchalantly, averting her eyes.

“Why don’t you go with those other girls from earlier?”

“They’re probably already out in the city, and there’s somewhere else, and you’re my bodyguard so…” Natsumi mumbled as she put her on a large, loose black hoodie.

“You’ve got food right here, and my mission technically doesn’t start until midnight. So whatever happens before then...” Felix bluffed as he returned his attention to polishing his guns.

She pouted, “Wow, and here I heard you were gunning for number one... I’m going.”

The door shut with a loud thump, yet Felix continued to gaze at his mask with a faint smile. He took in a deep breath and exhaled heavily, placing the mask on the table.

He laid his head down against the furniture and stared at the ceiling.

“I hesitated… If that was a real gun, and I hesitated… would I have been able to stop the bullets?” He contemplated in a weak voice. He wiped his face with his palm and stretched, “Doesn’t matter, I’ve dealt with real guns before. So there’s no point in thinking about it now.”

“The problem is… I hesitated. At point blank range… I don’t think I can afford to hesitate again. Arhg! What a drag!”

He reached for his phone to distract himself from the uncomfortable thought.

“Those girls, huh?” He thought to himself as he sent the photo he took earlier to Maria.

Less than a minute later, a message returned that read, “Lmao, you into idols now?”

He went through his contacts to reply. Though his expression changed when he accidentally pressed the wrong number.

‘Why does technology hate me?’ He mumbled in disbelief.

“Felix?  Is there something wrong?” From the other end, a scruffy old voice asked with a worried tone.

“Nothing much, professor… I just accidentally um… yeah, um, about the gear you sent me.” He glanced over to the white mask.

“I take it you’ve seen the mask, is it to your liking?”

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“Eh, it’s not the worst thing you’ve made. I just… um… needed to ask if there’s anything I should know about it.”

“Hmm, well, it’s made with an alloy we’ve been developing called “Aestrellium”, roughly three times stronger than titanium, with only half the weight, and the development team are working on your new guns as we speak.” The man prided himself with his creation to an inattentive Felix.

“Mhm, anything else?”

“I am a geneticist, not a weapon’s designer. Nothing I can explain to you in greater detail. Though they are the test models for your next ones.”

“Right. That’s all I—”

“There is a story about it that I’d like to tell you—” Professor Tetsuya answered in a proud tone.

“Thanks. But, perhaps another time. That’s all I needed.” He replied before he hung up and placed the phone next to his mask.

 Stronger than titanium, huh?

Felix picked up the gun and swung it up and down to aim, but put it down as soon as he noticed a pen from the corner of his eye, which he picked up and began to click on it incessantly.

The moonlight crossed over the half of the apartment, and the flickering sound of the lamp was all that could be heard along with his constant clicking.  The dish Natsumi prepared had cooled down, and the mixed scent of stew and gunpowder faded.

When Felix finally put down the pen, he reached to his chest and pulled out his pendant and stared longingly as it swayed back and forth, his iris letting out a soft light glow, like a flower in full bloom, shining against the half-lit room.

As the necklace dangled in front of him, he recollected the soft words spoken by his beloved mentor, “You’re a good, kind person, aren’t you?”

Swallowing his own stubbornness, he closed the suitcase and reluctantly stood up, “Haaa, fine…”

He steadily opened the door, letting out a creaking sound.

“You sure took your time, didn’t you?” Natsumi complained, leaned against the wall while staring at her phone.

With his hand still on the handle, Felix looked at her with an awkward expression. “You were waiting for me?”

“A frail, famous girl like me going out in the public alone at night? I might get attacked out there.”

“I get it. I’ll come with you.”

“I knew you’d come around. You’re about to go on a date with the Yumiko Sakurai, after all, so be grateful!” She smugly declared.

“Maybe I’d be more grateful if you didn’t do your little stunt.”

“Get rid of the sass.”

“Yeah, yeah. Give me a minute…”

“And turn the lights off!”

 

 

It was the evening before the concert, and the personnel were in chaos. There was a thick tension in the atmosphere.  There were a number of staff members yelling, and a number of lifters struggled to find where the remaining stage props were supposed to go, while some relaxed and relieved stress with cigarettes hidden in the back.

In the back, Felix leaned against the walls, dressed in a black vest over a white polo. His mismatched eyes concealed behind a pair of sunglasses. From afar, he watched as Natsumi conversed with a black suited man with a clipboard in hand.

“Good to see everything’s going smoothly, Producer-san!” Natsumi smiled.

“Alright, see you tomorrow, Yumiko-chan.”

Natsumi waved as she walked over to where Felix was waiting, “Why with the long face?”

“We’re here because?” Felix expressed his dismay.

“I want to see if papa’s investments are being handled properly. Don’t worry, after this it’ll just be you and me and a night on the town.”

“How lucky am I.”

“Speak your mind, what do you think?”

“Looks like a pretty big event.”

“Think so? It should be. Anyway, I’m just gonna go to Yoko-san for a bit for the financing.”

As she walked away to talk to the black-haired lady on the stage, Felix was left alone for a brief period. He pulled out the smartphone in his pocket and read through the documents.

Now, would the sniper attack before, after, or during the performance? It doesn’t even make any sense why they would attack during the concert. In any case, I should keep my guard up.

“You’re an unfamiliar face, who are you supposed to be?” An unfamiliar man with a speaker on his shoulder walked up to Felix. With tanned skin and messy, and pale blond hair.

“I’m—” The tanned man gestured Felix to stop before he could say another word.

“No, no. Let me guess, you’re Yumiko’s new bodyguard?” He smiled widely, putting the speaker down. It was clear at a glance that he had a well-toned physique.

“…That’s right.”

“So what’s your name, bro?”

“Do I have to tell you?” Felix indifferently replied.

“Eh, as one bodyguard to another, I thought we could make a little chit chat.”

“Isn’t it customary here to give your own name first before asking for another’s?”

“Eh, you got me there, bro. I’m Asahi. Asahi Yamamoto, at your service.” The tanned man raised both his hands in defeat.

Felix let out a small sigh as he introduced himself. “It’s… Haruki. Nice to meet you.”

“Ah, it’s nice to meet you, Haruki!” Asahi extended his hand.

“Likewise… So Asahi…-san. Who are you supposed to be bodyguarding?”

“I was hired recently to protect the Sweethearts.”

“Then why aren’t you accompanying them right now?”

“They asked me to leave… and there should be someone else watching over them at the moment, but Yumiko really does have her own personal bodyguard, doesn’t she? Damn, I’m so jealous of you.”

“Really, why?”

“I heard that there were a lot of people out to get her, so she tests her bodyguards to see if they’re worthy of her, whatever that means.”

 ”So that’s what it was?” Felix blurted out under his breath to pique the man’s interest.

“Why, what happened, bro? Did she test you?”

“Yeah… I guess I “passed.”“

“How? What kind of test was it? What did she do? What did she ask?”

“It’s not exactly the most pleasant of tests.” He dryly answered with the slightest smirk.

“Eh? Now I’m curious!”

“I’d rather not talk about it.”

“I see… still, to have a bodyguard all to herself… It’s a shame I couldn’t get close to her.”

“Hm? Why’s that?”

“…I wanna be close to all of them! They’re cute and everything, and since she’s… well, aren’t you interested in them?”

Felix eyebrows lowered.

With documents in hand, Natsumi returned, accompanied by a tall, black-haired office lady wearing black-rimmed glasses. The tanned bodyguard averted his eyes to the side as they approached.

“Hey! I’d like you to meet the financial manager of Starry Sweethearts, Yoko Takahashi. She said she wanted to meet you. Yoko-san, this is my new body—”

Felix quickly reached out for a handshake. “I’m Haruki, Haruki Saionji. I’m Yumiko’s new bodyguard. It’s nice to meet you, Miss Yoko.”

“Ah, eh? R-right, Haruki.” Natsumi blurted out.

Asahi’s eyes narrowed as he watched Natsumi’s startled response.

“Pleasures all mine, Haruki-dono. I do hope that you will fulfill your duty without any issue. I have high expectations of the both of you.”

“Whoa, Yoko-san! I think that’s putting a lot of pressure on the both of—” Asahi commented.

“Without question.” Felix replied without a hint of hesitation.

There was a sudden stop as Miss Yoko stared sternly at Felix as she pushed her glasses up, shaking his hand. The sharp-eyed office lady then pulled Natsumi to her side, dragging her away from the two bodyguards. Felix’s eyebrows lower in contrast to Asahi’s eyes widening.

“Yumiko.” Kyoko whispered in her ear.

“Y-yes, Yoko-san?” Natsumi responded nervously.

Yoko pushes her glasses upward, “I like him.”

“Ah, oh… he’s funny, isn’t he?” She smiled.

The two bodyguards were left behind by the two women, left with only each other’s company, Asahi tried to strike a conversation

“Bro, what do you think they’re talking about?”

“Who knows?”

“You know you’re really hard to talk to, bro.”

“So I’ve been told.” Felix answered before the conversation fell into silence.

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