Chapter 23: The Professionals
On the seventh floor of the building, in a dark corner, the four of them were temporarily hiding and recovering.
Shiraki Kei was still in contact with Kure Fusu.
"Those four mercs popped smoke and have pulled back from the roof into the eighth floor. I can't see them from my position right now."
"Anyway, Shiraki-chin—or should I call you 'Boss' now? I'll let you know if there's any movement. You be careful, too!"
"..."
Shiraki Kei tapped his earpiece twice to show he understood.
Even with Kure Fusu providing support from outside, their situation was not good.
The building was filled with traps—steel wires, caltrops, and the like. The only relatively safe area was the stairwell between floors eight and five.
If they just tried to flee, a blind rush down the stairs would inevitably get them slowed down by the traps on floors five down to one.
By that time, the four mercenaries would catch up from behind, armed with SMGs and holding the high ground. It would be a death trap.
—Even Kaji Takaomi could figure that part out, let alone the other three.
Just "escaping" wasn't an option. They had to find a way to "win."
After a brief moment of thought, the four left the seventh floor and moved down to the sixth, beginning to clear out its wire traps.
As they worked, Madarame Baku, scheming something, looked at Shiraki Kei and grinned. "Y'know, Kei-kun's pretty popular, isn't he!"
Kaji Takaomi, beside him, was confused. "Baku-san, why do you say that?"
"Think about it," Baku explained. "On our way to this building, Kei-kun was on the phone, saying he was getting a job for his sister's classmate's relative, right?"
"I just didn't expect that 'relative' to be from the Kure Clan! What an amazing connection! Hahaha..."
Baku had learned from their brief exchange that Shiraki Kei's support was a Kure, which truly surprised him.
He was well aware of the Kure Clan's infamous reputation in the underground.
He had even tried to plot a way to use the Kure's "force" for himself once, but he'd quickly given up. The Kure Clan was a solid monolith, only accepting external contracts. They couldn't be "controlled" by any individual.
And if they ever discovered someone was plotting against the "family," they would face the Kure's unified, ferocious retaliation. Baku didn't need that kind of trouble right now.
"As an ally, the Kure Clan is incredibly reassuring."
Baku paused, his tone shifting. "But... that's all they are..."
This gamble was being refereed by Kakerou. The fact that Kakerou was allowing "support" at all was the biggest concession, and that was only because Q-Taro had cheated on the number of participants first.
But even with that concession, the sniper named "Kure Fusu" couldn't enter the building. She could only provide cover from the outside.
So the situation was still grim. The threat was far from just those four mercenaries. The real problem was the "Masked Man" still at Q-Taro's side.
What's the next move...
"Let's just... go downstairs?" Kaji Takaomi suddenly suggested.
When a normal person is in a crisis, they tend to cling to a single lifeline, their reason blurring. Kaji Takaomi was a perfect example.
He analyzed, his voice trembling, "Since we have sniper cover, why don't we just... carefully head down? There are only five of them... or six, counting Q-Taro. We just have to escape, right?"
It was clear Kaji Takaomi's nerve was broken, and he was beginning to doubt himself.
"We can win this... right? We can, can't we?"
"..."
"Heh. Of course. We'll leave here in one piece."
The one who answered was the man named Akagi Shigeru.
To avoid giving away their position, he wasn't smoking, his hands shoved in his pockets, his expression as calm as ever.
"Gambles exist to be won. We have a chance. Don't just look at what we have; look at our 'opponent'."
"That Q-Taro is a 'hobbyist killer.' That's the most important part."
Akagi's voice was deep. "From what we saw, it's clear Q-Taro doesn't just kill. He prefers to torture them to death slowly. He enjoys that feeling."
"Even a killer doesn't start out that way. They start with a quick kill. But as they do it more, they get bolder, more methodical..."
"Eventually, Q-Taro started acting purely on his desires. His behavior became more extreme, and therefore, very predictable."
"..."
Seeing Kaji Takaomi's confusion, Madarame Baku added, "The gamble was supposed to start one minute after we left. But Q-Taro waited much longer than that to send his men. He wanted to give us time to run, to satisfy his sick hobby."
"From his methods, I'd say he's killed 10, maybe 20 people. That guy is the worst kind of 'heretic'."
"But because he's that kind of person, that just makes him... more valuable 'prey'!"
Madarame Baku wiped the corner of his smiling mouth. "Q-Taro isn't trying to 'win the gamble' right now; he's prioritizing his 'desire.' He's seeking pleasure, which means he'll have plenty of openings."
"To me, that old man is just... an 'appetizer'..."
At this point, Baku's tone changed, and he looked at Akagi Shigeru, confused.
"Speaking of, Kaji-kun came with me, and Kei-kun was commissioned by a company... so what about you, Akagi-san? Why did you join this death game?"
"..."
Akagi Shigeru thought for a moment. "I don't know. I've never thought about it."
Madarame Baku: "..."
Madarame Baku: "Ha?"
"Is that strange?" Akagi shook his head. "People die in gambles. That's just how it is. As long as I get to chase the win, nothing else matters."
"Haha, I see." Baku gave a dry laugh, noncommittal about the answer.
Kaji Takaomi, witnessing this, had a strange feeling, but he couldn't put it into words.
Shiraki Kei reminded him from the side, "They're both gamblers, just... different 'types'."
Hearing this evaluation, Akagi Shigeru just smiled, but Madarame Baku suddenly got close to Shiraki Kei, grinning. "Right? Right? I'm the cooler one, obviously! I even have several cool plans!"
He seemed to be getting strangely jealous.
Shiraki Kei sighed, exasperated. He was about to ask what "plans" when Kure Fusu's voice came through his earpiece.
"Shiraki-chin, they're on the move. The four mercs are on the seventh floor, heading to the sixth, where you are."
...
...
On the street next to the Kokonoe Building, there was another abandoned, unfinished high-rise.
On its roof, Kure Fusu had her sniper's nest.
She was lying prone, rifle braced, observing the Kokonoe Building's every move through her scope.
"Ah, they went from the eighth to the seventh floor. They're heading to the sixth now."
"Be careful, Shiraki-chin. The mercs seem to know where you are. They might have trackers or surveillance..."
As she spoke, she grabbed a juice box from a plastic bag next to her, poked a straw in, and took a sip.
"Those mercs are pros. They're doing their best to stay out of my firing angles."
"Besides knives, pistols, and SMGs, they've got night-vision goggles and smoke grenades. They're fully kitted out. Probably have gas masks, too."
"The badly injured one is patched up... only has one working hand. He looks really pissed..."
"..."
Kure Fusu muttered, feeding every piece of intel to Shiraki Kei.
When she was done, her eyes remained fixed on the scope, but she gestured to the two men in black suits standing behind her.
"Ah, you two from Kakerou. It was a long climb up here. There are drinks in the bag. Help yourselves."
The two men were Kakerou staff, responsible for maintaining order around the gamble. But they were in a bind.
This short-haired girl—this Kure sniper—had been hired by a participant. Did that make her a participant, too?
Helpless, the two staff members could only defer to their temporary supervisor, the referee of this gamble—Yako Hikoichi.
The call connected. Kure Fusu was now speaking directly to Yako.
"Good evening," Yako's voice was polite, as if negotiating. "Our club member, Master Kokonoe, requests that the Kure Clan not interfere in this gamble. Is that... possible?"
"Nope."
Kure Fusu smiled. "When you take a contract, you're supposed to see it through. It doesn't matter if it's a 'gamble' or not."
"...Bitch!"
A faint shout of rage—Q-Taro's—could be heard from the phone. Yako must have had him on speaker.
Kure Fusu didn't bother to respond. "It's simple. Just think of me as a 'natural disaster.' A real gambler wouldn't stop playing just because of an earthquake, right?"
"Or... maybe..."
Kure Fusu licked her lips, her voice a pure taunt aimed at Q-Taro. "Maybe you're not a real gambler, old man?"