~ Ayano's Pov ~
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I came out the cafe and handed him a cup of coffee to try and calm his nerves a bit...
"Alright, I think we're safe enough now... So, you mind explaining what happens there, in detail?"
He grabbed the cup, looked around himself like he was a lost soul, still likely afraid of whatever organization that did this to him, or would do to him.
"O-Okay... W-well, they had the typical things you'd see in a casino; Poker, slot machines, but they also have other odd games. Like snail racing and dart throwing... But, that's besides the point."
He paused, and sighed, "T-the games aren't the issue there. It's what they do to you if you owe them... They have this credit system in place. If you lose all your money, they can essentially offer you some sort of recompence loan; upwards of a few million yen. And you can pay them back using that money, but with a slight interest attached to it."
I rubbed my temples a little, all this ended up doing, was reminding me of my previous life... I, used to gamble, it wasn't very for long, but I did gamble, around a year at most. Almost lost my life because of it. Imagine it... Right after leaving college, then instantly throwing yourself into a casino to earn a few thousand bucks to help clear your student loans, funny isn't it?
Not my choice in my old life, but I got fortunate enough to win a little something back and dip before my addiction got too bad. But, even now. I regret doing any of it. If I could take it all back, I would do it in a heart beat...
But, I needed to ask something, "You said you could win back the money you lost with interest right...?" He quickly nodded, "Then, what happens if you lose all the money they've already loaned you?"
The moment, I finished that question, I could feel him tense up, he looked away, and started sweating even harder than before as well.
"They… they have one final game," he said, eyes dark and voice trembling like he was reliving it just by describing it. "It's still a game of chance, but it's nothing like poker or roulette."
He swallowed hard. "They set up this… contraption. Like a miniature guillotine. It's pretty much connected to five ropes, each one leading to a mechanism that can trigger the blade. Only one rope is actually live. The rest are dummies."
I leaned in slightly, listening.
"The crowd gets to choose which ropes get cut." he continued. "They take bets on it—on whether the blade will drop or not, on which rope's the real one. The more ropes that get cut without triggering it, the higher the payout for the house... It drives the excitement up. Gets people throwing money in by the handful."
"And at the end of those ropes?" he said, voice breaking just a bit. "It's not just a game piece. It's a person's hand. Or foot. Sometimes… worse. If the live rope gets chosen, the blade comes down."
He looked at me, hollowed-out. "That's the final bet. Win, and you might walk out with your debt cleared. Lose, and you don't walk or write again."
Hearing this just cemented my decision further at this point. They weren't even doing it normally either, people's limbs were at stake. A less screwed up version of gun roulette... I placed my arm on his shoulder, "Listen to me... Leave this gambling thing alone. It isn't helping your situation, at all." I reasoned with him.
He chuckled, almost darkly at me. "Then what about my mother, huh? I can't possibly work enough to get that dept paid, so how can I even stop!?" He said low, yet I could hear his frustration too. And, to be honest, I don't know exactly how I'll tell him to truly stop doing this, especially since a loved one is on the line...
Was he even the only one that's in this kind of situation?
"I'll help you, just... give me some time to think. They can't get away with this forever." In fact. I won't allow it.
Instead, he got up, and left without saying another word...
I truly felt it for the kid. And the others in his situation.
PING!
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{MAIN QUEST PART 2: Find out more about the underground casino... (Complete)
REWARD: +1 Bronze key}
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PING!
'Again?'
...
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{MAIN QUEST PART 2: Help stop the illegal activities in the Casino... The player will be given aid in this quest.
REWARD: ??????}
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...
My quest got, updated? Now it wants me to stop actually them, and it'll even aid me too...? For once, the system is actively aiding me in a quest... I wonder why. Well, regardless of it being a quest, or not. I would have went out of my way, and stopped them anyway.
'For now, It's probably best to head home...' I checked the time again, and it's almost 6 PM now. I doubt she's still there waiting.
I took a breath and started walking again, the weight of the new quest pulling at the edges of my mind like a second shadow. Stopping that casino was going to take more than good intentions. I'd need names, locations, leverage. I'd need to move carefully.
Still, I picked up the pace.
The closer I got to the house, the more aware I became of how quiet the neighborhood had become... The sun was dipping low behind the rooftops, painting everything in that warm hue that always made things feel a bit more nostalgic than they technically should be. The breeze had cooled down too, brushing along the side of my face as I turned the final corner...
I stopped. 'No... way.' That's the same black sedan, which means.
From here, I could already tell the lights were still on inside. I walked further, now past the gate. I stepped up to the door and slid it open...
Yet, there she was.
Sitting at the same table. The empty plate from earlier had been moved aside, and in front of her now was a cup—still steaming...
She looked up when I entered, and her face didn't change much. Not annoyed. Not surprised. Just... quiet, her gaze meeting mine like she expected me to show up eventually, which I had to either way. But, I could just tell; there wasn't any clock-watching with her. No sighs in sight too.
"You came back." she said plainly, eyes flicking to the door behind me before settling on my face again.
I nodded, stepping inside and sliding off my shoes. "Yeah... I wasn't sure if you'd still be here though, if I'm being completely honest."
"I had nowhere more important to be." She said that like it was a fact, not a favor. "Besides, we had stopped working on the project just a few minutes ago."
I didn't smile, but something in me eased hearing that. And, another part of me was curious too.
"Well, I'm sorry I took longer than I said I would..." I added, rubbing the back of my neck. "Got a little... sidetracked." It's best if I kept what happened today to myself.
She tilted her head just a little, sipping from her cup. "You met someone, didn't you?"
She's a sharp one... "Yeah." I admitted after a slight pause, stepping into the kitchen and opening a few cupboards automatically. "Just a random guy I met on the way from my friend's house. He's in trouble, but I'm helping him sort it out."
She didn't pry into it like earlier, didn't ask more, but I got the feeling that her silence wasn't indifferent. She was waiting, if I chose to keep talking. And maybe I would. But first—
"…You hungry?" I asked, already pulling out ingredients. "Plus, I still sort of owe you a proper meal."
She didn't answer me right away, but I caught the absolute faintest motion—a small, almost imperceptible nod.
I smiled to myself while I turned on the stove.
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I was focused—not just on the meal, but on the rhythm of it. Chop, stir, flip. Add a dash of this. A bit of that. It was easy to fall into. Soothing. Like muscle memory from a life that didn't ask anything too big of me.
She hadn't moved much, still sitting at the table, watching without really watching. Her hands were loosely cupped around her mug. Still steaming. That meant she hadn't taken many sips. Maybe she was waiting. Or maybe she was just being polite.
"What kind of food do you normally like?" I asked, breaking the silence in a way that didn't feel heavy.
She blinked, like the question had reached her from somewhere far off. "I don't really have a favorite." she said softly. "But I like things with balance. Not too sweet. Not too salty either."
I let out a quiet hum, flicking the fish in the pan. "So basically, I've got a one-in-a-million shot of getting it right tonight."
Her lips twitched at that. Just barely, but it was definitely there.
"I never said it was impossible."
By the time I plated the food—a simple but clean miso-glazed cod over lightly seasoned rice, with sautéed greens on the side—the sun had completely dipped past the horizon now.... The kitchen lights were casting warmth over everything, golden, gentle.
I set the plate in front of her and took the seat across the table.
There was a short silence before she picked up her chopsticks. She didn't say anything either. She just took a bite. Then another.
Then she paused.
"You... You used yuzu, didn't you?" she asked suddenly, eyes on the rice now.
I blinked at the question at first, but nodded. "Only a little... Not too much. Still, you caught that?"
She nodded once. "It's, good... The citrus cuts the richness wonderfully. Smart."
I scratched the back of my neck, letting out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding. "Well, I'm glad you think so."
I don't know why, but... I felt like she was sort of like a child, in an weird sense... I didn't break the quiet. At least, not right away. I just let the moment settle for her.
Eventually, I asked, "Do you always wait around like that? For people?"
Her answer was calm. "Only when I think it matters."
Well, I guess it's as simple as that...
"Anyways, I'm gonna head out again... I might as well get some training in, right?" I wanted to to test some of my new abilities; Specifically the booster skill. The others essentially required targets to use properly, and normal humans don't really qualify for that kind of thing.
She didn't stop me, just gave me a small nod.
With that said and done, I headed out, and went towards the woods...
As bad of an idea this was to test with my new level of speed. It was equally good too, since ending up in one of these trees will teach me to be more careful. I stopped just beyond the clearing where the grass dipped into a slope. This was good enough. If I messed up, I wouldn't break anything important. Hopefully.
'Alright then, let's get this started...' I focused in my mind, activating the skill...
And just like that, the world instantly felt clearer, or slower...?
A surge of pressure in my limbs—like my entire body had been shot full of pure adrenaline. My muscles didn't just feel stronger—they felt hungry. Every movement demanded release, demanded motion. I launched forward and—
Crack!
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'The sound barrier? I can actually see it!' But, just as I admired it, it vanished and my body shot forwards, and I only barelymissed a tree because of my lack of concentration.
"I think I almost had my head caved in..." I sighed.
'Okay then, I definitely need to get control over this level of speed.' The thought was more than obvious—it was practically screaming in my skull. I'd been moving with a kind of velocity that felt less like running and more like ripping through reality. Well over twice my normal speed, at least. Maybe more. And with how the world blurred and snapped around me, I might as well have been teleporting.
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Fwish~
Fwish~
After a few dozen more tries, I continued practicing, and in this small amount of time, I think I've already gotten my movement down in general. I didn't really know why either; but, I wasn't even smashing the sound barrier anymore, but my speed hadn't dropped since I've practiced. In fact...
'I feel like I'm faster...'
I was messing around at first, and I wanted to move more efficiently, and something had clicked... However, I was still making relatively loud sounds of powerful winds rushing past, but compared to what it was before, I guess this was a massive improvement in and of itself, and I felt oddly satisfied too.
Like that entire training had yielded great results!
Actually... Now that I'm really recalling it, didn't I get that new passive called training mastery? Maybe that was the real cause of the sudden improvement boost...? Regardless, I feel like more than half my energy's been used up. But I guess that's more than good enough, I checked the time again...
"Sheesh... It's already over 8 PM?"
My booster's already out too... Maybe I can pull a passive that extends the duration, or reduces the cooldown one of these days. Either way, with my level of speed, I got to my house, pretty much instantly.
When I looked outside past my gate, I realized that the black sedan, it was still there. I shook my head. 'There's no chance, right?'
I quickly opened my door and walked into my home, only to see her, sleeping...?
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END