As Akio awoke, he noticed he was alone once again.
No mysteriously gentle demon lying next to him, no comforting embrace engulfing him.
However, a new scent entered Akio's nostrils. It smelled like something sweet.
He slowly got up from the bed he and the cult leader shared that night and made his way out of the bedroom.
The house was built like a labyrinth. There were many rooms and the hallway was long. Akio didn't know where the scent was coming from exactly, so he just decided to walk downstairs. It was rather likely the scent came from the kitchen after all.
The sweet smell intensified quickly as Akio arrived at the lower floor. So he decided to finally make his way to the kitchen.
He passed the living room to get to the dining area. There he saw Vyko sitting at the table, listening to the news on the radio and drinking some tea. On the table there were two plates with warm omelets. One in front of Vyko and one on the other end of the table. Probably for Akio.
Vyko seemed to have noticed Akio and looked up. They had a soft smile on their face.
"Ah my dear Akio, good morning. How'd you sleep? I made you an omelet."
Akio didn't say anything.
In all honesty, he didn't really feel like eating at all. Especially not something sweet again. How can this person eat so much sweet food?
Eventually Akio muttered a small 'Morning' and sat down in front of his designated porcelain plate. Yet he didn't eat. He simply looked down at the dish.
"Are you not hungry? You should eat, you know. You're already as thin as a stick."
Akio hesitated. Though, soon enough he asked Vyko the question he'd been dreading to ask.
"Why are you doing this? Taking care of me and all after everything you've done?"
Vyko's smile didn't falter. In fact, it only grew. They didn't answer immediately. Despite the palpable tension, they stayed completely relaxed.
They kept staring at Akio for a while before turning up the volume of the radio.
Akio decided to speak up again.
"Don't ignore-"
Suddenly a voice could be heard coming from the radio.
"We recently got the news that the authorities are still investigating about the disappearances of multiple people within the port district of Viron, most of which are adolescents. They don't seem to have found any clues yet. Now onto the weather-"
Vyko turned off the radio.
Silence.
"What was that about?", Akio asked cautiously.
"Many young adults have gone missing the past few months. Do you know why?"
Akio looked confused but answered anyway.
"What? What does that have to do with my question? And no, I don't."
Vyko's grin grew even wider.
"Well, you see... You are one of these people."
Akio blinked a few times before tilting his head in confusion.
"Huh?"
Vyko let out a soft, melodic laugh.
"You really have no idea, do you?"
"It's the Hollow Hand."
Akio furrowed his eyebrows even more.
"I still don't understand."
Vyko sighed this time, feeling like a parent trying to explain something complicated to their kid.
"The Hollow Hand took you. And it did so with many other people. You see, they are the ones behind the disappearances."
Akio stayed quiet, not knowing what to say. Eventually he opened his mouth to speak.
"Okay, but is that supposed to surprise me? It was said to me from the very beginning that they're a criminal organization. So how does all that answer my question?"
Now it was Vyko's turn to stay silent.
"I see you've become more desensitized to crime."
Akio narrowed his eyes.
"Answer the question."
Vyko tapped the rim of their teacup with their finger, creating a soft clink.
"You are rather impatient this morning."
Akio didn't respond.
Vyko leaned back in their chair.
"You asked why I take care of you."
They paused, tilting their head slightly.
"Tell me, Akio... what would happen if I treated you the way everyone else has?"
Akio frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"Use you. Trade you. Break you."
Akio's fingers clenched into fists.
"Isn't that exactly what you're doing?"
Vyko chuckled softly and leaned forward slightly.
"No. If I wanted to break you, you would already be broken."
Akio said nothing.
They cut a piece of the omelet and took a bite.
"Tell me, Akio…"
"Do you trust the Hollow Hand?"
Akio hesitated.
"They saved me."
"Did they?" Vyko asked gently.
Akio opened his mouth to answer, then stopped.
Vyko smiled faintly.
"They exploited your vulnerability. They only waited for you to break. And then - when you were about to end it all - they decided to make themselves known. Make themselves look like the heroes. While in reality they only wanted to use you."
After analyzing what Vyko just told him, Akio decided to respond.
"Isn't it dumb to try making me doubt them? After all, you're currently using their well-being against me. If I stopped caring about them, you couldn't blackmail me anymore."
Vyko paused mid-sip.
Then Vyko chuckled. Not mockingly, just amused. They placed the teacup down carefully.
"I see there's still a part of you that refuses to disappear."
Akio didn't respond.
"You are correct, of course. If you stopped caring, I would lose leverage."
They tilted their head slightly.
"But that is exactly why you are interesting."
Akio looked up.
Vyko continued calmly.
"Most people would have broken by now. After seeing what you saw yesterday... They would either collapse completely or try to kill me."
Akio's fists tightened.
Vyko smiled again.
"You did neither. You simply kept thinking."
Silence stretched between them.
Akio finally spoke.
"You still haven't answered my question."
Vyko tilted their head.
"Your question?"
"Why you're taking care of me."
Vyko leaned back again.
"Oh, but I did answer."
Akio shook his head.
"No, you didn't."
Another small chuckle escaped Vyko.
"You truly don't see it, do you?"
Akio stared at them.
Vyko rested their chin on their gloved hand.
"You cannot study a candle by blowing it out immediately."
Vyko paused.
"If I want to see how long your light survives..."
"... I must make sure it keeps burning."
Akio felt a cold shiver run down his spine.
Vyko pushed the plate slightly closer to him.
"Now eat. You need the energy to keep going."
Makoto and Kaelis have been searching all night for Akio. They even exchanged numbers with Wolfgang to see if he had more luck. Yet neither had found any clues yet.
Makoto decided to call Wolfgang and he turned up the volume. When said man picked up the phone, Makoto spoke up.
"Hello. How's your investigation going so far?"
"I'm currently at the Rodd Bridge, but I still can't see the girl anywhere."
"Alright. I think it's best you come back to us, so we can search for Akio together."
Wolfgang chuckled softly on the other line.
"My, you're making demands now? Interesting. However, despite your experiences as a lie detector, you can't say for sure what I'm planning, can you? After all, if one doesn't say a thing, you can't tell what they're plotting, just by using your ability. It can't read minds. Only lies. And if they don't say a lie outright, you won't even notice what they're thinking. I'm curious, what do you think about this topic?"
Makoto hesitated, then he responded sternly.
"What I think? I think you should cooperate, since you were the one who suggested this alliance in the first place."
Then he hung up.
Wolfgang on the other end didnt seem too bothered by that. He then turned to the woman next to him with a smug smile.
"Ah my dear, I'm glad you confirmed this loophole of the boy's ability. He really didn't catch on, did he?"
Katsuko looked up at the taller man with a lit cigarette between her lips.
"I'm surprised he hasn't yet figured out that people can easily sneak past lies by not telling the whole truth..."
Wolfgang laughed, amused.
"Tell me again, my dear, why did you decide to work with me?"
Katsuko took a drag of her cigarette.
"You're with the jester, aren't you? You're the only one who has information on him and I need this information."
Wolfgang tilted his head to the side with a smirk.
"Why's that?"
Katsuko hesitated.
"Isn't it obvious? I want revenge."
Wolfgang blinked in puzzlement before laughing out loud.
"Really? That's it? I mean, I can't blame you, he did kill your dearest husband after all. But I expected something more... interesting. Something more unique."
Katsuko narrowed her eyes at him.
"This isn't a book where I'm a character with a lot of depth. I simply want to avenge my husband for what that clown did to him. That is hardly reprehensible."
Wolfgang put his hands up in mock surrender while continuing to have that annoying grin on his face.
"Calm down, love. I wasn't judging, I was just observing."
Katsuko turned to the blond once again.
"What I want to know is why *you* decided to help me."
Wolfgang smiled almost kindly.
"Ah that is simple. You said Vyko kept you abducted for about three days, so you must know where they are, right? And maybe something else that is worth knowing. It's basically just information exchange. You tell me what you know and I tell you what I know."
Katsuko closed her eyes in thought.
"I see. I don't trust you, but I suppose it's worth a try. Though, if it turns out you lied to me, I'll make sure to end you."
Wolfgang still kept the smile on his face.
"Sounds good."