Umbral Princess

Rachel couldn't help but find the gazes on her uncomfortable. Her pride had been shattered, she had always been praised as a martial arts prodigy and was always able to hold her own.

 Yet now she was crushed by a cute little girl with brute strength. Even her espionage skills had been seen through because the Cat boy had 'heard' her heartbeat from across the room. 

'These mad scientists must be so pleased with themselves. This is such bullshit!'

Despite her internal complaints, she flashed Leo a grateful smile before she glanced at Luna with a smile. 

"I mean no harm to you or your Lil Bro. I just wanted to scare him a little, You won't blame me for that right~? Boys gotta respect girls older than him right~?"

Luna frowned, the urge to punch this suspicious woman grew. Even though she was weaker, this pretty lady still radiated confidence and irreverence.

Horo on the other hand was struggling not to laugh. 

"So let me get this straight…You..You were hired by the government to protect our Resident Kitty Boss but you wanted to scare him for calling you 'Crazy'?" 

His lips twitched and his shoulders shook. 

"You aren't mad about him calling you a bitch though? HAHAHA" 

It finally became too much for Horo who burst out into laughter. This sneaky girl definitely had a few screws loose but her ability to snoop undetected was impressive. If what she said was true, she could be a strong ally.

The girls all glanced at Horo, their gazes brimming with scorn. He felt their judgment crawl over his skin, instantly silencing his laughter.

 He shrunk a little bit, slowly moving until he stood behind Leo, using him as a makeshift shield. Yet due to the height difference, Horo's head was sticking out. 

Leo groaned with annoyance at his male companion's antics while Lily pouted, her eyes seeming to shout: 'How dare you use my human shield'. 

'How did I end up as friends with these idiots?' 

Fighting the urge to facepalm, he focused his attention on Rachel and growled. 

"You need to elaborate. Who are you really and what is your goal here?"

"Oh? So you do have a backbone, Lil Kitty? That's kinda hot~" 

Leo felt a headache coming on, his ears flicked with irritation. But before he could speak. 

"Stop fucking around!" 

Luna growled with barely constrained rage, her clenched fists cracking at some suspicious woman flirting with her brother, especially after trying to hurt him not even five minutes ago. 

Rachel's eyes flashed with amusement as she tilted her head, her voice dropping a few octaves. 

"What~? You jealous? I would always welcome a cutie like you joining in on the fun~!" 

Luna froze, her face flushing deep red. She quickly stepped back, her stomach twisting with a mix of anger and embarrassment.

'This bitch is dangerous!'

Her eyes flicked to Leo, then back to Rachel, unsure how to respond to the teasing, which left her feeling both unsettled and strangely self-conscious.

Leo himself was both embarrassed and in awe. He wasn't used to the bold flirting of this suspicious woman nor did he ever expect that anyone could fluster and visibly embarrass his sister like this! 

Lily stepped forward, standing in front of Luna as if to protect her. 

"You stay away from her you pervert! Luna's mine. You can't have her!" 

Lily's words caused Luna to balk as she instinctively shouted:

"Lily! Phrasing!" 

Rachel was unperturbed by Lily's interjection, instead running her eyes up and down her body

"Well aren't you a lil hottie" 

"E-EEK?!" 

Lily squeaked as she used her hands to cover her chest. Horo furrowed his brow.

"Okay. That's enough sexual harassment. Answer the Question!" 

Rachel shot a glance of disappointment at Horo. 

"What a party pooper. Fine" 

Luna and Lily gave an appreciative look towards Horo as Rachel began to elaborate. 

"So my name is actually Rachel Wu. That wasn't a lie. But I am not actually a nurse.."

"No shit. No Nurse would threaten patients with scalpels!" 

Leo interjected, clearly not impressed with her stalling. 

"Fine~! FIne~! The T L D R is my family is a semi secretive organization that does contract work for certain influential families and the government. My grandfather is the head of the clan and somewhat close with your fathers…Lily and Adam" 

Both Horo's and Lily's eyes widened in shock, the revelation of her origin was something they found almost unbelievable. 

"Mind on filling us in. What is she talking about?" 

Leo felt his tail bristling beneath his hoodie as the suspicious woman seemed to have a connection with both Lily's and Horo's families. 

"If..If what she's saying is true, this is the Princess of the Umbral Moon…." 

Horo looked visibly nervous as he stared into Rachel's eyes, who had a smile on her face as she nonchalantly replied, unflinching 

"A princess? I'm not some damsel waiting for distress~"

Leo tilted his head in confusion. 

"What the hell is the Umbral Moon?" 

This time, it was Lily who responded. 

"It is a Clan that stays out of the spotlight. They have multiple businesses but the biggest three are Information, Medicine…and Assassination." 

"So she is an Assassin? All the more reason to kill her. She will try to kill Leo!" 

Luna raised her fists, eager to hit the irritating woman. 

"Unfortunately I am not one yet. My Grandpa doesn't allow me to take on such missions yet" 

Rachel seemed annoyed when she brought that up but she still decided to wink at Luna who growled in response. 

Leo frowned as he stepped forward to put his hand on Luna's shoulder to calm her down. 

He shot a suspicious gaze towards Rachel. 

"I am getting a little tired of your attempts at distraction. You have yet to fully answer my question. What. Do. You. Want!"

"Tch. This is why Smart Boys are unpopular. FIne you win." 

Rachel clicked her tongue before she crossed her arms, a faint trace of boredom in her gaze. 

"The Government has given me two tasks. Protect the most blatant case of mutation. A one Mister Leone Haronyu. 

Both Luna and Leo flinched at that remark. They both knew that Leo's survival was definitely related to this case. 

"My other task is find the makers behind the game you all play that has given you what I can only describe as super powers." 

"Huh?"

Rachel's eyes narrowed somewhat ominously

"The Company behind this game…as far as we can figure out…Doesn't exist."

Luna blinked.

 "That's impossible."

Rachel tilted her head with a complicated smile.

 "You'd think so, right? But we've searched—government records, corporate filings, digital footprints. Nothing." 

She paused, then added,

 "It's as if the game just... appeared."

The words sent a chill down Leo's spine. His mind raced, recalling the impossible abilities they had gained, 

Luna narrowed her eyes. 

"Wait… you said we. Who else is looking into this?"

Rachel grinned. 

"Oh, did I forget to mention?" 

She stretched lazily, her tone deliberately carefree. 

"I'll be sticking with you guys from now on. You wouldn't turn down an elite infiltrator and intelligence expert, would you?"

Silence. The group exchanged uneasy glances.

Rachel clapped her hands together. 

"Great! Glad we're all in agreement. Let's get along, team~!"

Leo groaned, rubbing his temples. This woman is going to be a problem.