Chapter 133: The Diplomat's Perfect Rhetoric
"I think I'm pretty normal."
Hearing Asagiri say that, Iwanaga Kotoko smiled and shook her head.
"A normal person wouldn't be talking about this while still having the appetite to keep eating eel rice."
"I'm eating to prepare for the battle tonight."
Kotoko nodded as if that explained everything.
"Fair point. I can't be completely sure how strong that Banshee is, so it's better to face it with as much energy as possible…"
"Banshee? No, no, no."
Asagiri waved a hand, cutting her off with a smile.
"A mere Banshee doesn't matter to me at all. I'm talking about the battle later tonight."
Kotoko understood immediately. A blush bloomed on her cheeks as she turned her face away and whispered.
"You're way too direct…"
The shyness lasted only a moment.
Then she peeked back at him, eyes shining, and her lips curved.
"Still… I really like that side of you."
…
Late that night, on the streets of Kawasaki City.
Compared to Tokyo, where office towers pierced the skyline, lights never truly dimmed, and crowds flowed endlessly through every district, Kawasaki felt quieter. You could spot a few high rises here and there, but most of what lined the streets were two or three story shops and detached houses.
There was an old saying in Japan: there were only two kinds of places, Tokyo and everything else.
And right now, Iwanaga Kotoko, the Green Light Rider, was walking beside Asagiri after polishing off two servings of eel rice and a bowl of miso soup. Her heart was a mess of excitement and conflict.
It was not that she was nervous about spending the night with him.
If anything, the idea of finishing the job, checking into a hotel suite, and being alone together under the same roof made her chest tighten with anticipation. Maybe something intimate would happen. Maybe she would finally get the zero distance contact she had joked about so many times.
What made her nervous was something else.
Should she call Yuuki Asuna first and tell her?
And if she did, what was she even supposed to say?
Hey, Asuna, I'm going to sleep with Asagiri tonight, and I might do something fun that will hurt, so I'm letting you know?
No matter how she phrased it, it sounded like provocation. Like she was deliberately showing off.
"Uh…"
Kotoko couldn't help poking Asagiri's arm. She did not poke his shoulder, mostly because the height difference was too cruel, and raising her hand deliberately would ruin the elegant young lady image she was maintaining in her western style dress.
"That… does Asuna know you want to…?"
"Of course she knows."
Asagiri shrugged, tone casual.
"Did you forget? This afternoon, when you suggested we come to Kanagawa together, Asuna was the one who said she had special training with Kei Kato and couldn't come. That's one of those things where the people involved understand without saying it out loud."
"Really?"
Kotoko's expression grew complicated, half believing, half suspicious.
"With Asuna's personality, how could she possibly…"
"Because what we've gone through is abnormal to begin with."
Asagiri looked past the pedestrians ahead, walking in pairs and small groups, and spoke calmly.
"People like us, chosen to become Players, already live in a different world from them. We've cleared dangerous Dungeons ordinary people could never even imagine. We've gained strength that's far beyond what normal people can understand."
"The four of us are teammates. I've said it many times. In this kind of game, a team only works if the members have absolute trust."
He paused, voice steady.
"Jealousy wars and faction fights do nothing but tear the team apart."
Asagiri's gaze sharpened slightly, as if he were stating a rule of survival.
"In the end, what we have now goes beyond simple labels like friends or lovers. It's not just me and Asuna, or me and you. You and Asuna are the same."
"We've entrusted our backs to each other too many times. A bond like that, something you can truly rely on, shouldn't shatter over this."
He shook his head, each word landing with quiet force.
"No. Absolutely not."
Kotoko stared at him, stunned.
It took her a few seconds to recover, and when she did, she could only exhale in disbelief.
"No wonder… no wonder your special profession is Diplomat. You're unbelievable…"
Was what he said unreasonable?
No. It was terrifyingly reasonable.
So reasonable that it felt like he had reached into her chest and pulled out her own hidden thoughts, then spoken them with perfect clarity.
The experiences the four of them had shared, and the things they would face later, were not something ordinary people could understand.
If that was true, then why cling to ordinary rules?
Wouldn't it be better to just do what made them happy?
As long as the four of them stayed together, that was enough.
"No, wait."
Kotoko suddenly snapped out of it. Something felt off.
She narrowed her eyes at Asagiri, who was smiling like he had just won a debate, and frowned.
"Why did it become four? Did you include Megumi too?"
Asagiri looked at her as if she had said something utterly unforgivable.
"Hmph. Listen to yourself."
Then he declared, righteous to the point of absurdity.
"We're all on the same team. How could you exclude Kato? Consider this a warning. If you make that mistake again, I'll send you to Mita's World to form a band."
Kotoko went quiet for a beat, then pouted and muttered.
"You're the one who dragged Megumi into it, and now you're lecturing me… tsk."
A few minutes later, they stopped at the entrance of an apartment building.
"This is where he lives," Kotoko said, voice turning businesslike. "Eighth floor, room 802. I already had the yokai check from a distance. He just got home from work. He should be getting ready to kill the sixth victim."
"Then it's time for me to appear."
"Yes. Appear in front of that victim as a Player."
Kotoko's lips curved into a sweet smile, her tone oddly gentle for the content.
"As we clear more Dungeons, more Players will end up seeing us. That's unavoidable. We can't kill every Player we run into. What we can do is plant misinformation in the real world."
"This job is perfect for it. We're eliminating a Banshee, and there's a kidnapped victim who can serve as a witness. If anyone tries to track us in the real world based on how we looked as Players, they'll assume our activity zone is Kawasaki City."
"And once we resolve this request, we'll earn the Mountain God's gratitude, along with the trust of the yokai in this area. They'll become our eyes and ears."
Kotoko's gaze sharpened.
"Players can observe the bizarre. If someone like that shows up in this city, the yokai will notice immediately and report it to me."
Her voice lowered, smooth and confident.
"That way, if we make enemies in a Dungeon and can't deal with them right away, we can still use this trap. Lure them into Kawasaki, uncover their real identities, and keep the advantage. We stay in the dark. They stay in the light."
She sighed softly, almost regretful.
"My own appearance is too distinctive, though. Even ignoring my clothes, it's mainly this staff that never leaves my side. So I should avoid showing myself as a Player in front of people whenever possible."
Asagiri nodded, smiling.
"Good. This plan is excellent."
Kotoko brightened at the praise. She stepped closer, rose onto her tiptoes, and rested her head against his chest like she had earned the right.
"Then as the Leader, reward me."
"Alright."
The next second, Asagiri lifted her up with ease, held her for a heartbeat, then gently set her back down.
"Okay. Reward complete."
Kotoko's face went red with a mix of shyness and fury.
"I don't want a reward like a father gives his daughter. I want a reward like a boyfriend gives his girlfriend!"
"You're too short. Can't kiss."
"I don't care. Then pick me up and kiss me!"
She hissed like an angry cat, adorable and indignant.
Asagiri could not hold back his smile. He bent down, and without teasing this time, he kissed her lips.
"Mmm…"
The kiss lingered for more than ten seconds.
When they separated, Kotoko's cheeks were flushed, and she instantly turned from hissing cat to obedient kitten, eyes soft and dazed.
"Hmph… your kissing is way too practiced. How many times have you kissed Asuna…"
"No White Album."
Asagiri cut her off immediately, not giving her even a chance to finish that classic line.
He pulled out his phone, opened the email account registered with the new SIM card, and pressed send.
His voice dropped to a quiet murmur.
"So, it begins."
…
Meanwhile, inside room 802.
"Wuwuwu…"
"Shh. Quiet."
A man in a suit, his face worn with exhaustion, slowly took off his jacket. He folded it neatly and placed it on the dining table in the living room. Only then did he turn toward the corner.
A woman was bound tightly at the limbs with rope and tape. A dirty rag had been stuffed into her mouth. Tears trembled in her eyes, half from pain, half from despair. Her jaw ached horribly, as if it had been forced out of place earlier.
"You won't be able to make noise for much longer," the man said, voice low. "You'll become part of something greater."
As Kōsaku Hosokawa spoke, he rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt. He picked up a blood stained cleaver from the table, one that had not been cleaned in far too long. A sharp, rotten stench clung to it.
He walked slowly toward the woman.
Then his phone chimed.
"Another work email?" Hosokawa muttered, irritation flashing across his face. "It's after hours. They won't even let people rest."
He pulled out his phone and checked the message.
The sender name was a string of random characters, like someone had mashed the keyboard. The email itself asked whether he had any travel plans recently.
"Spam. Damn annoying…"
He moved to delete it.
Then the screen flickered twice.
A moment later, something appeared on it, a girl with a cute face and an eerie smile, staring straight through the glass.
"Found you."
.....
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