Chapter Text
For quite some time now, he had lost the appetite to consume simple foods. Where was the fun in simply keeping the body healthy just to undergo the same treatment for at least three times a day everyday? It was just so tiresome and boring. There was nothing fun about filling up on food.
It was rare that he ate and when he did, he did so sparingly and with food that he actually liked. It didn’t matter if he ate things like sweet jellies or simple foods that could be taken straight out of a can, he was simply subsisting from what was necessary.
He didn’t need to do more than what was essential because what his life needed— wanted, craved —it was the thrill of the game.
It was because of this logic that had stunted his growth and had kept his body quite thin and small. Despite any health concerns that those who would have claimed to be concerned for him, he didn’t care. He prized his intelligence over any physicality that he could have possibly possessed.
(Back when he had a body, he had thought that he was still young enough to go through another growth spurt… and if that didn’t happen, then it didn’t happen).
Well, finger dexterity and hand-eye coordination were probably the only areas that he had strived to perfect over the years, but other than that… It was just plain boring to him.
And so, as he gazed upon two very familiar individuals inside the Kanto supercomputer’s simulation meant to corrupt the minds of the unsuspecting, he felt something come to life within him.
A part of him, one that had been idly keeping tabs on his drone that he had gifted the Swindler, knew that they were going to come back, but he hadn’t expected the Swindler to come back with the Courier of all people. Last he had checked, Courier was known to be motivated by base desires such as monetary compensation. To see that Courier accompanied Swindler… it was interesting and if he had a background in psychology, perhaps he would have been more invested in such a development in their relationship, but he brushed it aside.
When both of his fellow Akudama had entered the goddess of Kansai, they had fallen unconscious. It was laughable to see that those two, with capabilities and abilities that far outweighed the average bystander, could be overcome into being processed into the simulation, but it was understandable.
Had he still a physical being, perhaps he, too, would have been tricked— perhaps swindled? —into becoming one with the program. As it was, though, he still had his mental faculties about him and his aforementioned dexterity with his hands.
Getting them to wake up…
That would be fun, right?
Challenging even—at least, to a certain extent.
Honestly, he was more willing to take Swindler out of the simulation (he was not as close to Courier), but something told him that she would be… somewhat irritated with him if he had neglected to try for Courier.
It was child’s play to take a glance into their lives and what sort of connections could be made.
He scoffed as he input a series of commands and intricate codes, all at the behest of his nimble fingers and his lightning quick thinking.
Huh, a coin.
Really? Such a trivial little thing, but one that held a lot of significance to the both of them.
For Swindler, it represented a part of her that resembled that of a regular, kindhearted civilian… very unlike that of the Akudama if he were being honest.
For Courier… He’s not a naturally empathic person—he will definitely be the first to admit that—but even he knows what loss feels like. That coin… it must be very important to him if he shaped some sort of baseless superstition onto such an object.
(Then again, many of the Kansai region believed that the Shinkansen was a deity, so perhaps it was more of a cultural thing to believe in such things).
As he put two and two together and began to program the simulation again for what felt like the dozenth time, his fingers stilled and his brow twitched. It was just… It was too easy.
A coin of all things?
To anyone else, such a connection would have been impossible to make, especially since their shared mission had only occurred a few days ago, but to him… It only took a split second of memory of Swindler saying that she had met Courier at a takoyaki stand in such a bewildered tone of voice that could have meant that they had met only moments prior to their meeting at Cutthroat’s execution.
Logic dictated that he rewind to their brief interaction.
It was puzzling at first, but he paid it no mind.
He had gotten what he had came for, but… This game that Kanto had set up for him… It was far too easy.
A coin?
Wouldn’t it be… much more fun if he were to get Courier and Swindler out of the simulation individually? Courier would definitely be easier seeing that he already had a hint of his past misdeeds and memories that he had happened to glance at.
(There was also that one time a couple years ago, when out of curiosity, he had managed to hack into the Executioner’s database and managed to find information on many Akudama. He even managed to find Courier’s real name).
Swindler was another story entirely.
Would it not be far more rewarding to see who she really was underneath that admittedly cute and innocent facade that she put up? Never mind the fact that he had the slightest inkling that her acting was genuine , which was simply unheard of in the world of Akudama.
Regardless, it would make for a more interesting game.
And he loved games.
His fingers began to fly over the keyboard that floated above the heads of his drones.
This… this better be fun.
Working at the Seal Center was rewarding, yet draining at the same time. She had been working for hours covering for one of her friends and with only half an hour on the clock, she was hoping to get home on time.
Thoughts about what to make for dinner idly crossed her mind as she began processing a request for a replacement seal for an elderly woman. Much to her surprise, the processing of the form went quicker than anticipated, which satisfied the client and filled her with contentment. Although her job was droll at times, there were circumstances where the young woman found that she was still doing her best to provide for her fellow citizens.
As she waved the elderly woman goodbye, the young woman glanced at the clock and frowned. While time had definitely passed, there was still a little over twenty minutes to spare. Already, the occupants within the Seal Center were disembarking. Civilians were becoming a rarer sight and her fellow employees were either playing on their phones or staring listlessly into space.
As for the young woman, she merely drummed her fingers up and down her assigned desk. She beat out a rhythm that only she knew—it was a tune from an old broadcast meant for children. It went off air several years ago and her memory of the lyrics were fuzzy at best, but the melody remained the same.
One.
Two.
A beat.
And a rapid thrumming.
After she finished through what she assumed to be the first verse of the song, she glanced up at the clock and felt her entire body diminish at the sight. Geeze, she couldn’t help but sigh to herself. It seemed like time was stretching out into a meaningless, expanding plane of existence. There was no reason why time couldn’t go faster, could it?
If her math was correct, she still had at least eighteen more minutes left and that was if another client didn’t come in at the last minute and demanded to get serviced. She shuddered at the thought. Those who came in the earliest or the latest were always the people she found either the pushiest or the most annoying. Her fingers began to pick up a new beat upon her desk, this time from a random song that had been picking up traction on a few radio stations.
So focused she was on trying to imitate the sound of an insane guitar riff, she didn’t quite notice that the window in front of her desk was occupied by what appeared to be a young teenage boy. He was fairly short, possibly shorter than her, and he was dressed all in blue. Atop his head of blond curls, a blue cap rested and there was some sort of cybernetic embellishment over his left eye.
He looked familiar, but the young woman didn’t know how that was possible. His features were particularly distinct… His ice blue eyes beheld a look of mild curiosity and disinterest while his lips curved up into a slight smirk as he looked at her. The more the young woman stared, the more she realized that it seemed like he was appraising her…
As if he knew her.
Was he a client?
With such a distinct appearance, she would have thought that she would have been able to recognize him, but… There was something more to this sudden appearance of this person.
But what was it?
“Hello, how may I help you?” Despite her misgivings, she managed to deliver her line without so much as a stutter. Inwardly congratulating herself for such an accomplishment, she found herself somewhat nonplussed when the boy from the other side of the glass chuckled.
“You know, I would assume that being such a good swindler would make you more adept at dealing with foreign circumstances. Then again—“ His ice blue eyes bore deep into her own, a sudden stab of something slid deep into her soul and she suddenly felt… threatened. “—you were never too good at keeping your emotions level.” The boy shrugged. “Then again, for all I know, you could just be a really good actress who happens to play the role of a kind hearted civilian.”
The young woman, not sure how to respond, glanced nervously back at the clock and then back to her unusual client. His words sparked something deep underneath the surface of her consciousness—a something that told her, no, urged her, not to delve into. At the mercy of such thoughts, the young woman merely squared her shoulders and began to recite one of the lines force fed to her in the case of a client becoming rowdy.
“Look, if you’re not here to request a replacement for a new seal, terminate an account, or—“
The boy waved his hand, his face betraying a look of disdain. The young woman felt like this expression on his face was somewhat natural, expected even. However, that didn’t stop the faint flush of anger to rise upon her dainty, fair skin. After spending a fair amount of time at the Seal Center, she had become more than accustomed to dealing with wayward customers.
She could handle this like a professional.
“Yes?” She began, a little unsure when she realized that the young teenager hadn’t said a thing yet. He was still staring at her with those cold blue eyes of his, something flickering before quickly sputtering out before he leaned in towards the glass, as if trying to get a better read on her.
He hummed, a finger tapping at his chin before a crooked grin settled onto his face. That expression, while somewhat better than his previous expression of cold disdain, did little to comfort the woman.
This time, it felt like she had done something to grab his attention. That was in and of itself bad, but why?
“I think I know why you’re a swindler now. Your acting skills are really quite good.” He took in her golden uniform, of the way her hands grasped at the hem. Something clicked and she realized that maybe she was wrong.
Perhaps she didn’t know him.
But he obviously knew her.
“A-acting? What do you mean by that? I’m just a normal everyday worker here at the—“ Just as she was about to finish, one of her coworkers patted her on the shoulder, a sympathetic look on her face. “S-sorry for being too noisy! Is there…”
Her fellow worker cast a sympathetic glance at what she could only assume was an unruly client before pointing at the clock. The digital reading announced that it was a few minutes past the ending of her shift—a fact that made the young woman breathe out a sigh of relief.
She was wondering when her schedule was about to come to an end. With a nod to the other woman, she faced the client again and began to explain that if he wanted, she could get someone to service his needs, but he declined.
“I’m only interested in information coming from you.”
Even if the young boy didn’t mean to make it sound like a flirtatious comment, the young woman couldn’t help but bring her hands to her cheeks.
“Y-you… You can’t just say things like that!”
That little smirk of his returned upon his face.
It felt… familiar. Friendly, almost.
It irked her to know that this stranger had this sort of effect on her even though she was pretty sure that this was the first time they had met.
No matter.
It wasn’t like she was going to meet up with that guy again. He seemed a bit too blunt and weird for her taste.
As she finally made her way out of the Seal Center, she found herself glancing at her phone, an easygoing smile on her face.
“A little bit past five!” She pumped her fist into the air and hummed gently to herself. “If I can manage to get out this early again for the rest of my life, I’ll be set! Now, what should I get for dinner?” Just as images of piping hot meals filled her mind, she began all too aware of a presence at her back.
Now, Kansai was a fairly crowded region, but being followed was something that many of the civilians would not take lightly. There was a high rate of crime always present and with the Akudamas… Well, it simply wouldn’t be something that one would brush off as a simple coincidence.
She happened to glance behind her and—
“Dinner sounds boring if I’m being honest. Why not get straight to the dessert?”
Icy blue eyes stared into her own dark violet eyes.
The young woman sucked in a deep breath.
Closed her eyes.
And then—
“Who the heck are you and why are you following me???”