20) Kawagoe V

At the New Faith Order's Castle

Victor laid rested on a bed with an IV fluid drip attached to his forearm. His eyes, barely open. His only source of entertainment, the cold brick walls and the beeping of the monitor.

Victor sighed and closed his eyes. He was still recovering from his fight with Megumi and Sora. He contemplated his acts that led him to perform poorly in his mission.

"I shouldn't have had taken them both lightly... I should have handled them with seriousness," Victor thought to himself in his mind.

The room's door creaked and Victor's eyes perked open.

It was Nakamura. Standing there oddly.

Nakamura took a few steps, his long coat following behind him till he came besides Victor's bed.

"Oh... Hey, Nakamura...", Victor mumbled sadly.

Nakamura didn't immediately respond and took his time, inhaling and exhaling.

"How are you feeling?", Nakamura asked. The tone in his voice seemed unable to be recognised if he was being caring or nonchalant about it.

Victor raised his eyebrows and gave a light smile.

Victor replied with confidence, "Much better, Nakamura. I'm ready to come back into action".

Nakamura nodded.

Nakamura then began looking out the window in the room, the only place where the moonlight came and illuminated the room.

Nakamura then bluntly discloses, "Vlad has been promoted to No. 2".

Victor's face turned into shock and slight annoyance.

"What the hell do you mean by that?", Victor yelled in annoyance.

"I mean what I mean, Victor. Your carelessness and laziness brings the Order down. I find Vlad a much better replacement for you. Don't worry, you're only No. 3", Nakamura replied in a booming voice.

"No! That's not what I mean! I mean I'm pissed you demoted me, but Vlad? Seriously? Have you gone senile? Do you even realise what kind of person he is?", Victor yelled again but this time sitting up straight on his bed.

Nakamura looked back at Victor.

"I'm well aware what kind of person he is and it is Her Majesty's choice. Hence, deal with it accordingly", Nakamura replied nonchalantly as he started walking out of the room. The door shutting behind him.

Rage instilled inside of Victor. He gets out of his bed and punches the air, a loud thunder and bright flash is heard from outside.

He bit his lip, trying to breathe in and out heavily to control his anger.

Meanwhile, back at Kawagoe, Tokyo

It's around 4 AM, at the crisp of dawn. Harushi paced around the bedroom thinking thoughtfully.

Hikaru looked outside the window keeping an eye out if something happens and Ren stood still trying to understand what's going on.

Ren then broke the silence with a fearful disclosure,

"Um, guys, I have the black markings too... There are like 3 marks...".

Harushi looked up nervously.

Hikaru looked at his arm and pulled down his jacket's sleeve and there was also three thin black marks on his forearm.

"What the fuck is going on in Kawagoe!", Harushi yells as he kicks a nearby pot.

Hikaru shakes his head and reached out and arm saying,

"Harushi, chill out okay-"

"Chill out? CHILL OUT? Do you even realise what we're up against? This shit is not for our paygrade! There should be a Special Agent here!", Harushi complained as he slapped Hikaru's arm away.

Hikaru held his hand in worry for Harushi.

Ren sighed and suggested, "Guys, please, let's just take a rest and find out how to approach this early in the morning. We all are extremely tired".

Both Harushi and Hikaru nodded as they laid down, getting into the cold comfort of their blankets.

The night for the three of them passed with worry, nervousness and fear on what would happen in the morning.

The sun rose and the markets arose in hustle and bustle. It was a warm day for this mid day of December. No clouds nothing.

It was sometime before noon that Hikaru, Harushi and Ren awoke and stepped outside of Ren's home.

Harushi was a second out of the house premise that a cyclist rammed and crashed into Harushi, causing Harushi to fall down alongside the bicycle and the cyclist.

"God damn it! If I had enforced myself with Senzai your cycle would have been crushed!", Harushi complains as he stood up cleaning the dirt off him.

The Cyclist bowed and took the cycle away.

"Looks like the day started off badly," Hikaru commented looking up in the sky.

"H-hey! Hikaru! Over there!", Ren exclaims as he points towards a corner building of the town square where a worker falls off the second story hurting himself.

Harushi extended his left arm between Hikaru and the path that led to the man.

"It's not our job to be heroes," Harushi said in a blunt tone.

Hikaru looked at Harushi and then back at the man and just sighed in defeat.

Harushi then sighed, sat on the footsteps to the house and thought for a few good minutes.

"I suppose we should spread out in the market and find out more about this curse mark or something. That's all what we can do," Harushi said in a tired expression.

Hikaru nodded and went off in one direction to explore.

Ren looked at Hikaru running off and looked back at Harushi.

"Harushi-san, what did you see that night?", Ren asked in curiosity.

"You don't know," Harushi bluntly replies.

"I know what Senzai is, Harushi-san. I can use Senzai myself," Ren replies shaking his head at Harushi's attitude.

Harushi raised an eyebrow and gave into Ren's demand.

"Look. There are things called Eclipses and the thing is, most Eclipses are monster like but the ones that look uncannily human... they are strong. Like hella strong, and as a responsible Senior Agent I should call HQ for help, but I think... I think I can handle this with you guys...", Harushi replies explaining the situation on the table.

Ren nods in an understanding manner.

Harushi gives a small encouraging smile and pats Ren's shoulder.

Ren smiles lightly in response and runs away to another direction.

Harushi looked at him running away and sighed to himself.

"I hope this decision isn't a mistake...", Harushi grumbles to himself as he also runs away to one direction.

Hikaru had gotten himself distracted by a local Manga Store. The colourful covers were captivating. Hikaru stood outside gouging his eyes at the action panels in the manga, occasionally letting out "wows" and "so cool!".

Hikaru turned the pages and his excitement grew larger and larger.

"When I get my salary, I should buy myself some mangas! This is so fun!", Hikaru says excitedly.

Hikaru kept turning the pages, his immersiveness getting higher and higher until it's blank, but the manga is only half way through!

Hikaru held the manga upside down and sideways in confusion and started vigorously turning the manga pages.

Until an unreadable text came. It was splattered with ink, with ancient words and hieroglyphics.

"What the hell is this?", Hikaru said in a furious tone.

Suddenly the manga glowed and went out of Hikaru's hands, and Hikaru's body started floating.

"W-woah! Let me down!", Hikaru exclaimed!

Suddenly Hikaru's body got squished and compacted and stretched out. It didn't hurt, but it sure felt weird.

Then, his body started getting sucked into some mystical portal in the manga, head first and then his feet at last.

Hikaru couldn't see anything nor feel anything as his body flew through nothingness and suddenly crash landed into snow. Hikaru didn't even see what was his surroundings.

"Ow- what is this!", Hikaru said as he slowly stood up.

"W-Where am I-".

It was the Shimo Clan base... But it was... Run down? There was blood all over the houses and the paths and the snow. The sky felt uncanny and corrupted with a red hue. What on earth was going on.

Meanwhile, Ren was exploring through the town by knocking on the doors and asking people about the black mark.

Ren arrived at a house and then knocked.

"Please have an answer, please have an answer," Ren thought desperately as he awaited it to open.

The door opened and... Nothing?

It was literally nothing.

Ren looked around and took one small step.

Out of the blue, his body got sucked in and the door behind him shut closed. Not even a moment to scream.

At the same time, Harushi was tapping people on the back and asking them about the black mark in the markets.

Harushi came across a man with dark gray European attire and a hat. Harushi walked towards him and tapped on his back.

Harushi closed his eyes and smiled, saying,

"Hey, good sir, I want to ask you about- oh what the FUCK!".

The man's face was pitch black. And a gut wrenching single eye in the middle. The man smiled and his smile grew and grew until his mouth was glitching out of his face.

"Oh hell nah, what the fuck-", Harushi exclaims in fear as he's about to run away

The man's mouth opened and Harushi got sucked in without a moment to scream.

Chapter 20, end