Ch.003 – Lo, the fool obeyeth thine errands – 04

Renji gave up the idea to write quickly as he snapped the notebook shut and tossed it onto the passenger seat. With a sigh, he checked his phone.

Never mind… but…

“Damn. An hour’s a long wait…”

His eyes scanned the screen, then stopped on an old file—a movie he’d downloaded months ago. ‘Outerstellar’

A quiet smile tugged at his lips. One of his favorites. A space-themed epic he’d rewatched a dozen times to kill long hours like this.

This is a nice chance.

Intrusive thoughts won over him, he synced the device to the car’s entertainment system through a cable. A soft chime echoed, and the dashboard screen flickered to life. The opening shot—a lone astronaut drifting before a massive black hole—filled the display, mirroring from his dull phone screen.

“Whoa… Nice O-led panel…”

Then came the music. Orchestral, deep, and immersive. Surround sound flooded around him.

“…Damn, nice bass… Feels like my own private theater.” he muttered, grinning like a boy with a new toy.

He reclined the seat a bit. Outside, snow continued to fall, dusting the windshield edges in frost. The world beyond the windows was muted and far away. Inside, it was dark and quiet.

…Maybe not such a bad gig after all.

For a little while, the rest of the world faded. Just him, one of his favorite movies, and a sound system better than anything he’d ever touched in his life.

--------

An hour slipped by before Renji noticed.

He was immersed in the movie he replayed for practically countless times now, half-lulled by the low bass vibrations of the luxury car speakers, half-drifting off into sleep. The screen in front of him gave out shifting glow of distant planets and slow-moving space debris. The temperature inside the car was perfect too. His eyelids drooped, barely resisting the comfort. Then—

BAM BAM BAM!

A loud pounding against the driver’s side window jolted him upright from his mini-theater set up. Through the tinted glass—Shira, her face just inches away, looking in with a gaze that dripped pure disdain. Her mouth didn’t move, but her glare said everything.

Shit—!

Renji eyes darted at the dashboard clock. It was well past the hour Reika and Shira had said they’d be back.

“Damn it!” He scrambled for the door controls, nearly fumbling the lock. Popping open the handle, he literally fell out of the car into the cold air. Shira’s heels already tapping in judgment; while Reika stare with quiet indifference.

“S-sorry… didn’t notice the time…” he muttered, standing awkwardly by the rear passenger door like an overeager valet. Neither woman replied as they entered the car, he heard one of them clicking their tongue, but Renji already knows whose it is from.

Back inside after closing the door, the hum of the engine greeted him along with—

“For humanity’s future… I must go alone.”

—the still-playing movie. The orchestral score swelled dramatically through the surround system just as he sank into the seat.

Crap!

He yanked the cable from his phone with a quick tug, killing the sound immediately.

“Y-you know… this car’s bass is amazing, so I thought—hey, why not enjoy a good movie? Haha… haha… ha…”

Behind him, silence stretched. Then Shira spoke with one could describe a pure disappointment.

“Enjoying your movie?”

He winced, eyes darting to the rearview. Reika was busy with her phone again. Shira looked like she was trying to decide between slapping him or something worse

“Let it slide, Shira,” Reika said suddenly, her tone velvety, but laced with something too refined to be kind. “It seems this is his first time working with subtle rules.”

Renji blinked, missing the sarcasm entirely. “Sorry…”

Then a few blocks passed before he realized he was driving aimlessly for a while now.

“So, uh… where to now?”

“Back to the mansion,” Reika said, folding her arms, gaze unfocused outside of the window.

“...So… where’s this mansion…?” he asked sheepishly.

“It’s written in the documents,” Shira groaned slowly, clearly regretting her life choices.

“...It seems I skimmed that part.”

“Unbelievable…” she muttered, then added the address. “Setagaya, Higashigaoka. You’ll see the gate.”

Renji nodded, already inputting the destination to the maps on his phone.

Setagaya…? Of course. Big shots and old money. Classic elite…

Then his eyes flicked to the rearview again—only to catch Reika’s faint smirk. Their gazes locked for half a second.

“Eyes on the road.”

“Y-yes, ma’am…”

The drive continued in silence, broken only by the occasional turn signal. The snowfall had thickened, but the city lights made the flakes glow faintly gold as they passed under lampposts.

“You’re not used to driving,” Reika said suddenly.

“...Actually, this is only my second time behind the wheel of a car. Well… minivan was my first.”

“Food delivery again?”

“No, just some part-time laundry deliveries...”

“You do have a proper license, right?”

“Relax. I got one,” he answered, tapping the steering wheel. “They made me get it for the job.”

“I see,” she said simply. She didn’t push further.

They arrived about fifteen minutes later.

The mansion sat behind tall black gates and stone walls blanketed with snow. The driveway alone was wide enough to fit four cars side-by-side. The house—no, the estate—loomed with sharp angles and clean, classic lines: part modern luxury, part old-school Japanese aesthetic. Traditional pine trees flanked the entrance, pruned perfectly, like still sculptures.

Renji slowed to a stop as the gate opened by the securities. He’s in awe under his breath.

Damn… that’s a mansion mansion…

“You can go home after this.” Reika didn’t wait for commentary. She stepped out the moment the door opened, her coat fluttering slightly in the wind as she made her way inside.

“Yes, Miss Reika.” He tried to bow politely at her back.

“Don’t forget to try on the suit when you get back,” Shira said, retrieving the signed contract from Renji’s hand.

“Wow. Didn’t think you’d be the type to get excited about a gift you gave someone else.” Renji gave out a teasing smirk.

She narrowed her eyes. “It’s not measured. If you wear it like a damn hobo, it’ll embarrass me, and Miss Reika.”

“…Okay, okay… Just kidding…”

By the time he finished speaking, Reika was already gone. Shira rubbed her forehead with a sigh, brushing a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. Her fingers moved to her phone, tapping quickly.

Renji’s own phone buzzed a second later. He checked it.

“That's my number, save it.”

“Yes ma’am…”

“Tomorrow. 6 pm. Be at the address I send you.”

He squinted at the different address on his phone screen. “Oh… not KHX?”

“Just go where you’re told. That’s your job—” She walked into the mansion too, her tone biting, even colder than the weather outside. “—Now get lost.”

Renji gave a half-hearted, awkward salute. “…Okie dokie…”

The gates closed behind him. The mansion disappearing behind thick snowfall. As Renji drove away and merged back onto the road, the warm cabin’s interior no longer felt quite so relaxing.