A Deal With a Monster

WARNING: This chapter contains descriptions (NOT depictions) of enjo kosai/compensated dating.

As the girl Hana had rescued was being led out on a stretcher by several members of a cleanup crew run by the Agency, Hana herself was talking to Daisuke, who had been sent down to help investigate the death of the third magical huntress. “So Furukawa Ai was her name,” Hana said as she talked to Daisuke. “I figured she was about seventeen when I saw her. Was she a newer girl?”

“No,” Daisuke shook his head. “She moved here at the start of the school year, but she had a full three years of service before tonight.”

“A three-year veteran should have been able to take care of a Class Five like this with ease,” Hana replied.

“That’s the thing,” Daisuke told her as he pulled out a small notepad and a pen and then showed her some notes he had taken. “That was not a Class Five. Whatever beast you killed was a Class Three based on our estimates.”

Hana was confused. She had not considered the possibility of there being two magical beasts in the building. “Then who killed the Class Five that was initially reported?”

“We don’t know,” Daisuke replied as Hana read his notes. “For all we know, it could still be out there.”

“That’s scary to think about.”

“Also,” Daisuke then brought up. “When I asked Ozaki about what happened, she said that she never heard any other people inside the apartment building until she got attacked by the Class Three.”

“And given that Ozaki Ayumu is a newer magical huntress with less than three months of experience,” Hana added, the two of them referring to the girl that Hana had rescued. “She had little chance of winning by herself, especially if taken by surprise.” Hana then looked to the side to see the cleanup crew load Ai’s body into a van. “But why was Furukawa Ai here in the first place if there weren't any reports of a beast beforehand?”

“That’s the biggest mystery we have to solve.” Changing subjects briefly, he asked her, “By the way, how’s my niece doing in your group?”

“Ruka-chan is a wonderful addition to the Fox Knights,” Hana explained. “I’m glad to have someone as experienced as her on my team.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Is she getting along with everyone? I know she tends to be a bit of a loner.”

“It’s fine. Initially, she and my second-in-command didn’t see eye-to-eye at all really, but I guess you can say they’re working together better now than when she first started.”

“That boy in your group? Arikawa?”

“Correct,” Hana nodded. “I’m not particularly sure, but they haven’t always gotten along. Don’t get too worried about it, though. I’ll make sure they get along in combat. Any issues that arise are ones I can take care of.”

“Thanks,” Daisuke nodded. “Just keep her safe, okay? She’s the only living link to my older brother aside from my parents and her grandparents, and I’m sure she’s told you to some extent how we don’t fully get along with the rest of our family.”

“Absolutely,” Hana bowed. “I’ll do everything I can to keep her safe.”

…

October 3, 2023

The school was abuzz with talk about Riko and her absence following her injuries. The official story provided by the Agency was that she had been badly hurt in an accident. “I still can’t believe Ayano-san got hurt so badly,” said one of the boys in Ruka’s class as he talked to some other members of their class. “A whole arm? That sucks.”

“She was really nice,” said another girl in the class. “She didn’t deserve what happened to her at all.”

“She didn’t. It’s so messed up that something like that could happen to someone like her.”

“I guess it could happen to any of us.”

Those words in particular caught Ruka’s attention as she silently sat at her desk, still thinking about Riko. She looked over to the three students talking about her and told them, “You’re damn right, it could have been any of us.”

“Kishio-san,” said one of the girls. “I heard you were there. What did you see?”

Ruka felt a chill go up and down her body as the girl asked that question. She did not want to tell them anything about what had happened, much less the truth. “Well, I…”

“What happened to Ayano-san?”

“She got hit by a car,” Ruka lied to them. “It was really bad, too. All I can say is that I saw them load her up in an ambulance.”

“That car must have been speeding if it took out her arm,” said the boy in the conversation. “People need to slow the Hell down on the roads. When I start driving, I won’t speed like that.”

“You say that now,” Ruka pointed out. “But you never know what’ll happen to you in four years.”

Then, the class’s algebra teacher walked into the room, prompting everyone to immediately go quiet and sit back down in their seats. “Good afternoon, everyone. I’m sure you’ve all been worried about your classmate Ayano-san. Well, I have some good news about her condition. She is in stable condition, and her leg was saved. She will still be missing an arm, but from what I’ve been told, she’s grateful to still be alive.” He then began writing down several equations on a chalkboard behind him, telling the class in an amused tone, “In unrelated news, I got some brand new high-quality chalk, and I intend to use it as much as I can today, so bear with me as I show off my awesome chalk-drawing skills.”

Ruka gave a faint smile as much of the class chuckled along with the teacher, thinking to herself, “It’s good to hear that Ayano is doing better and won’t lose her leg too. Her one leg was really fucked up by that magical beast… Or should I say, ‘that car.’ I’m still amazed the Agency is able to keep the existence of magical beasts semi-secret. I wonder how long that will last, though.”

…

Meanwhile, Yoshiro was hanging out with a non-hunter friend of his, a boy named Kyosuke Furukawa, during lunch. “They haven’t seen her since she went missing last night,” said Kyosuke, who bore a resemblance to Ai, the dead magical huntress who Hana had found the night before. “My uncle’s family’s all worried about her. She doesn’t always get along with her parents, but for her to just abandon them for so long is unusual.”

“I hope they find your cousin,” Yoshiro said to him. Unbeknownst to both of them at the time, they were in fact talking about the now-deceased Ai Furukawa. “How’s your dad taking it given that she’s your niece?”

“He’s been worried sick.” Kyosuke then pulled out his phone to show a picture of his father and Ai to Yoshiro. “He’s like a second father to her, and in a way, she’s kind of like an older sister to me. She’s had a rough past few years between some breakups with boyfriends and trouble at school, and they were hoping moving back to Yokosuka would help, but instead, we got this bullshit to deal with now.”

Yoshiro felt saddened about what was going on with Kyosuke, even though he did not yet know the truth about Ai, as Hana had not told anyone in the group about her death. “That sucks. Like, really, that fucking sucks.”

Then, Kyosuke got a phone call, causing him to stop in the middle of the hallway and look around to see if any teachers were around as Yoshiro watched him. He then answered it with, “Hello?” After a brief pause, Kyosuke’s voice trembled as he said, “Wait, what? You… You gotta be joking, right? She…” After yet another pause, Kyosuke silently hung up the phone and turned to Yoshiro, a look of dread on his face.

Confused and disturbed by his expression, Yoshiro asked him, “Uh… Hey, Kyosuke-kun, what the Hell’s going on?”

“She’s dead,” Kyosuke quietly told him in a slow voice. “She’s dead… She’s dead…”

“Who’s dead? Your cousin?” Yoshiro knew immediately that something was horribly wrong, and to snap Kyosuke out of it, he put a hand on his shoulder and shook him, demanding of him, “What the Hell is going on, Kyosuke-kun?!”

“She’s dead…”

Yoshiro then felt his phone vibrate with a text and pulled it out to see that it was a group text from Hana to everyone in the Fox Knights, and that it was rather long, detailed, and formal. As he read it, he realized what had truly happened to Ai. “Oh my God…”

HANA: It is with deep regret that I must inform you all that a magical huntress from Yokosuka was killed in a battle I participated in last night. The magical huntress in question has been identified as Furukawa Ai, seventeen years old, with the badge number Yokosuka-04535. She initially got her start as Saitama-95256 in Reiwa 2/2020 before moving to our area in March. Keep her and her family in your thoughts and your prayers in this difficult time. If you are concerned about me, I am doing fine and assisting the Agency with the investigation into her death. If you have any information that could help the Agency, pass it onto me and I will deliver it to investigators. Thank you for your understanding.

Kyosuke took several deep breaths as he said repeatedly, almost as if he was in a trance, “She’s dead, she’s dead, she’s dead, she’s dead…”

“Hey, Kyosuke-kun, do you need to step out for a bit?”

“Oh my God, my cousin is dead…” Tears slowly began to fall down his face as Yoshiro walked him down the hall.

Yoshiro told him as they reached the stairs and walked down to step out of the school, “Come on, let’s go…”

…

After school, Hana and Yoshiro met up and talked about what had happened. “His parents were waiting for him outside?”

“Yeah,” Yoshiro told Hana as they walked down the street together. “They looked pretty upset, too. I don’t think any of them knew that Furukawa Ai was a magical huntress.”

“From what we’ve been able to gather,” Hana explained. “No one in her family knew at all. She kept it a secret for all three years she was one up until her death.”

“Have you guys told her parents?”

“I don’t know if they have,” Hana shook her head. “Apparently, she never told the Agency a lot about her home life.”

“From what I could gather from Kyosuke-kun,” Yoshiro replied. “It seems like she had trouble at home. She was known for being a bit of a delinquent too, especially when she and her family lived in Saitama. He said they hoped she would get better if they all moved back to Yokosuka.”

Hana then added, “We still have no idea why she was there before the Class Five sighting was reported, or how the Class Three I killed got involved.” She then felt her phone vibrate with a call, so she pulled it out and saw it was a phone call from Hideo Kawase, the Yakuza boss she and Yoshiro had met last month. “Hang on. I gotta take this.” She answered the phone call with, “Hello?”

“I heard what happened to that Furukawa girl,” Hideo told her. “And I have some information about it.”

“You do?”

“I sure as Hell do.”

Hana sighed, somewhat annoyed he had called her instead of the Agency. “Why did you call me instead of the Agency?”

“Because what I’m gonna tell you can’t get back to them from me,” Hideo replied. “And if you want those new weapons, you’ll do as I say. Got it?”

“I understand.” Hana was again annoyed by his behavior, but knew she could not voice her disapproval if she wanted to get money and weapons from him. “When do you want to talk?”

“We’ll meet on Saturday,” Hideo proposed. “How about that? Go to my apartment around noon.”

“Alright. I’ll see you on Saturday at noon.”

“Goodbye, Miyashita-san.”

Hana then hung up with Hideo and told Yoshiro, “I just got off the phone with Kawase-san. I have to meet him on Saturday.”

“Are you sure about this? You know his reputation, right?”

“Yoshiro-kun,” Hana then assured him with a pat on the shoulder. “You don’t have to be so worried about me. I can hold my own if he tries anything funny. You’ve seen me fight plenty of times. I won’t let him do anything to me.”

Still uneasy, Yoshiro replied to her, “Well, if you say so, but… You know I can’t help it, Hana-senpai.”

“I know.” Hana then gave him a warm smile. “Trust me, Yoshiro-kun. I’ll be fine.” The two then heard the roar of a jet engine overhead, and as they looked, they both saw a distant American F/A-18 Super Hornet flying overhead. It was not an unheard-of sight in Yokosuka given that the US Navy and the JMSDF had major bases in the city. This time, however, Hana sighed as her smile faded from her face.

Yoshiro asked her, “Are you okay?”

“Oh,” Hana replied as she turned to Yoshiro and gave him a smile once again, although this time, the smile was a bit more forced. “I’m fine, Yoshiro-kun.”

…

October 4, 2023

Ruka had just arrived at her apartment and was about to unlock her apartment when she heard someone call her name from down the hallway. “Kishio. Hey, Kishio.”

Ruka turned her head and saw Yoshiro standing down the hallway. Surprised, she asked him in a somewhat defensive tone, “Wait, how the Hell do you know where I live?”

“I asked the others,” Yoshiro explained as he walked over. “I need to talk to you.”

Annoyed, Ruka asked him, “Dude, what do you wa-?” She stopped when she saw that Yoshiro looked rather worried, as if something was very wrong. “Okay, what’s going on? Come on in.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yeah,” Ruka replied, no longer annoyed. As the two of them walked into her apartment, she thought to herself, “This is unusual for him. Something must be off.”

As Yoshiro looked around the apartment, he was amazed by how well-furnished it was. “Woah… This is all yours?”

“Yeah,” Ruka replied as the two of them walked into the kitchen together. “I’ve lived alone for a while. Take a seat.”

As Yoshiro sat down at a mahogany kitchen table, he told Ruka, “I can’t believe I’m going to you for this. The only reason I’m doing any of this shit is because I know Hana-senpai trusts you a lot.”

“This is about her?”

“Yeah.” Yoshiro sighed as he began to explain to Ruka what was going on with Hideo. “Look, so, me and Hana-senpai have been talking to a Yakuza boss, and we haven’t told anyone else about this.”

Ruka, surprised, replied with a somewhat amused tone, “Someone like her talking to a known criminal? Hmmm…”

“Come on,” Yoshiro replied. “Take this shit seriously, okay? I’m really worried about her.”

“Okay, okay.”

“We’ve been negotiating with him to get more money and new weapons for the Fox Knights,” Yoshiro explained to her. “But it hasn’t been easy. Additionally, he has info on that magical huntress that died two days ago.”

“Are the negotiations hard? Is he threatening you guys?”

“No, it’s not that.”

“Who is this guy anyway?”

“Kawase Hideo,” Yoshiro answered, to which Ruka immediately stopped talking upon hearing his name. “I assume you know who he is?”

“Yeah. You guys went to him of all people?”

“It was Hana-senpai’s idea, okay?”

Ruka was horrified. “You know what kind of reputation that guy has, right? He’s in his forties and he likes to fuck girls half his age, and allegedly, even some younger than that. The dude’s a creep.

“Yeah, trust me, I know. When we met him at his penthouse apartment, he was with a few girls, and I swear, one or two of them were high schoolers.”

Ruka sighed. “Holy fucking shit… So, what’s Hana planning now?”

“She’s gonna meet up with him at his apartment on Saturday,” Yoshiro explained.

Flabbergasted at how reckless Hana was being, Ruka exclaimed, “What the fuck?! Why does she think that’s a good idea?!”

Yoshiro cautioned her, “Are you really gonna doubt her that much? She can hold him back in a fight, you know!”

“If you’re not worried about that pedophile forcing himself on her,” Ruka replied. “Then why are you so worried about this meeting?”

“Because…”

“Because what?”

“Because I’m afraid she’ll try to offer herself up to him,” Yoshiro finally spat out. “There, I said it.”

Ruka’s eyes widened with shock at the idea of Hana doing such a thing. “No… No way! She wouldn’t do something like that! No God damn way!”

“You haven’t known her as long as I have.” Yoshiro looked down at the table as he further explained his reasoning for his fears. “She hasn’t done it before, just to get that out of the way. Even so…”

“Even so what?”

“She’ll tell you otherwise, but she was deeply affected by that boy’s death. We were looking up at the sky today when we were walking back from school, and we saw a fighter jet from the American Navy flying overhead. She got sad, as if she was thinking about how that boy wanted to be a pilot when he was older.” Yoshiro looked at Ruka as he told her, “I’m afraid she’ll do anything to improve our capabilities if it means she won’t have to see another young child get killed by a magical beast, even if it means sacrificing her dignity.”

Ruka realized at that moment how serious this belief was. She sat down at the table across from Yoshiro and asked him, “So, what do you want to do? I’m listening, Arikawa.”

“I want you to follow Hana-senpai secretly while she visits him,” Yoshiro explained. “I can’t do it that day due to some prior commitments, but I figured that if you’re available, you can.”

“I can do it,” Ruka nodded. “Just tell me where to go and when to get there.”

Yoshiro gave her a faint smile. “Thanks. You know, I know we don’t really get along, but I actually really appreciate you doing this for me.”

Ruka replied, “It’s nothing personal. I got my reasons for agreeing to this.”

“Like what?”

“That’s something I can’t share.”

“I see. Sorry,” Yoshiro apologized. “That’s your business. It’s more than enough for me that you agreed to help.”

…

Later that night, before heading to bed, Ruka was doing her homework in her bedroom while sitting at a dresser when she looked up at the clock and sighed. She said to herself, “It’s that time on that day, isn’t it?” She then shook her head and went back to her work, but even though she tried to focus solely on her academics, something in her head kept slowing her work down, eventually forcing her to stop just as she finished filling out the answer to a question. “Fuck, why now?”

She reached for her phone and opened the music app, selecting a song and then looking up at the ceiling from her chair in silence as it played throughout the room. In her mind, she kept thinking about the date and the time, which was rather important to her. However, it was not important to her for a good reason. In fact, it was important to her for a reason that had negatively affected her deeply for quite some time.

As the song in the background continued, Ruka thought to herself, “It happened four years ago, but I can still recall it all like it happened yesterday, no matter how much I try to bury it. October 4, 2019 was the day I lost whatever innocence I had left, the end of a process that began in 2017.”