"I won't be disappointed."
I said.
"You will. Very soon."
Jun said as she walked past me again, heading toward the back of the store, into the staff area. I was nervous, but there was no time to hesitate. This was the chance I had been given. I had no choice but to follow her.
"Gotcha~!"
"!?"
The moment I stepped inside, my body was grabbed by a large, furry beast-like hand. Both of my arms were pinned together and held down from either side so I couldn't move them at all. Each of its sharp claws was as long as a fruit knife, and just a light scrape was enough to tear my clothes.
"I heard everything~ Confessing to the boss lady? What a fearless idiot~ Oh? He's cuter than I expected~ Boss-chan? What should we do with him? Can I eat him?"
A high-pitched, carefree young woman's voice spoke as she brought her face close to mine.
"Eat or be eaten, huh..."
I muttered.
The face wasn't exactly cute like a dog's — more like a wolf's. It was terrifying enough to inspire fear, but the voice belonged to a young woman. The body was covered in black fur, walked on two legs, and was surprisingly close to human shape. There were even noticeable bulges that looked like breasts. Her tail was wagging wildly behind her.
She seemed genuinely excited.
"He's not your food, Wolfina."
"Ehh~?"
"Didn't you say you wanted more help around here?"
Jun returned wearing a white lab coat.
"We're going to remodel him."
She was also wearing black-rimmed glasses I had never seen her wear in the store. I liked this new look too. But it was obvious this wasn't the time to be thinking about that. She had just said "remodel." Could this place actually be...
"Is this store... an evil organization?"
That was all I could say.
"Are you seriously asking that? Are you stupid~?"
The wolf girl tightened her grip.
"Guah!"
"Wolfina, stop that."
Jun stood right in front of me.
"But why~? We're not bad guys, you know~?"
"We're not good guys either. We don't claim to be on the side of justice."
The moment I thought she had pulled something out from the chest of her lab coat, she stabbed it into the side of my neck. It felt like she was pushing with her thumb — probably an injection.
"We are trying to change this world into the one we desire. In the sense that we are enemies of the existing order, we don't deny that we are an evil organization."
"World Conquest Alliance?"
I said.
My body was losing strength — probably the effect of the drug.
"No, not that one."
Jun denied it.
"Big Bang Empire?"
That one was pretty famous.
"Not that either."
"New Cosmic United Front?"
That one had been in the news quite a bit recently.
"Wrong."
"Gathering of Magical Girls, Fairy Village, Yokai Survivor, Top of Another World, and um… Coleslaw Salad Society…"
"All wrong!"
Jun slapped me across the face.
"Are you doing that on purpose!? Hey! Coleslaw Salad Society!? Are you seriously comparing us to the organization that got completely destroyed by a bomb terror attack in Hokkaido last month!?"
"...There are just... so many of them."
Evil organizations pop up, cause incidents, get crushed by heroes, and the surviving members scatter and regroup. It's impossible to keep track of them all. Besides, I had no idea Jun was part of one.
"You live nearby, right? Don't you even watch the local news!? We're S.H.O.T.E.N.! One week ago, right in front of the station, we had an all-out battle with Fresh Girl!"
"...Shoten? Like the long-running comedy show?"
I had absolutely no memory of seeing anything like that on the news.
"Don't bring up the name of a famous variety show! New Koiwa Human… Ah, forget it! Wolfina! Strip all his clothes off! You don't need to restrain him anymore! The anesthetic will keep him from moving anyway!"
"Oka~y!"
The wolf girl, who had been quietly listening, immediately moved her claws with surprising dexterity and sliced my carefully chosen confession outfit into tiny shreds. It was expensive, too.
"Wow~ His dick is huge."
The wolf girl said.
"And it's all soft! Is this normal!?"
She grabbed it without hesitation and shook it.
"Such a weak body, yet this uselessly big thing..."
Jun looked at me like I was something filthy.
"Strip him completely!"
It's not like I asked to be this big.
"He fell in love with me and confessed. He even admitted he might become a stalker. In that case, there's a chance he could expose our identities. So we'll remodel him and work him to death. Got it?"
Her cold, ruthless decision was announced.
"What if I report you to the heroes?"
I said.
Logically speaking, that was the correct response.
There was no way I could cooperate with an evil organization. I was enjoying the peace that heroes protected while going to university, and I was grateful for it. As a normal Japanese person.
"Was it a lie when you said you liked me?"
"...Ugh."
But when Jun stared at me like that, I realized I couldn't do it. It was wrong. It wasn't right. But I didn't want her to hate me. No matter what.
"I can't be disappointed in you."
Even in this situation.
"How admirable~"
The wolf girl teased in a light tone.
"Even though Boss-chan is actually a pretty shitty woman~"
"Wolfina."
Jun was now holding some kind of machine. It looked like a round ball with glowing jellyfish-like tentacles hanging from it, sparking with electricity at the tips.
"We don't have brainwashing technology. But this is a classic old-fashioned betrayal prevention device that I can detonate remotely. Riku, if you work for me, I'll pay you properly."
"..."
My body wouldn't move, and now drowsiness was starting to overwhelm me.
"Sleep well. When you wake up, you'll be one of our combat soldiers..."
My consciousness faded away right after that.