Chapter 3:

An Angelic Heart With A Demonic Visage

Lead Me To Death


'Why is there a dearth of glibness? Am I perhaps dead? Am I still breathing? I don't know... All I can see is a barren land full of fruitless creatures, misery, and adversity. It doesn't really matter now. I've always failed to deify the visage of defeat itself. I've let go of those wondrous fairy tales that exhibit severity and sadism for people who live in this society. A society is not impeccable. It's far from that, so far that even the spells chanted by fairies or clairvoyants won't be able to find peace ever. Ever. Ever. Eve-'

"Why are you so quiet, miss? I asked if you know someone named Zen?"

Stuttering and stumbling, Yuki looked into the cold sea-blue eyes, the color representing that of Zen's, that presented themselves before her. Under those captivating yet embittering eyes rested red eye bags, he looked handsome to Yuki anyway. 

"Huh? Oh. Uhm yes, I know him."

"Ah, I see. That's right. You know him. You know Zen..." His eyes widened a little.

"A-ah yes I do. He's the one who brought me here."

"Oh, so that's just it. That's so like him. Ordering around such a pretty lady and leading her into an alleyway which is darker than night even during the daytime," He chuckled with a peculiar aura surrounding him.

"Haha..." 'What's the deal with this man? He's so weird.'

"So? Where is he?"

"He took my sister somewhere and left me here. He walked straight through here," Yuki pointed in the specific direction.

"Ah, is your sister perhaps Sayuri?"

"Y-yeah." 'How does he know about my sister?'

"I see. Thank you so much, Miss Yukihara." His thin lips curved in an ominous smile and his eyes closed in a fake-friendly manner. 

"You are most welcome." Yuki returned the favor with just as fake a grin and the man walked away, into the duskiness of the pitch-black scenery behind her.

Yuki might have not realized it, but her calves almost gave her up. She dropped to her knees, eyes widened and hands trembling. The anonymous man's eyes dug a chasm in her heart, she couldn't forget the menacing look in his eyes. He was like the sinister edition of the reticent Zen.

"Stop thinking about it." She assured her mind by speaking these words out loud. Her mind then got overclouded by emptiness. The vacancy almost made her remember her traumatic childhood.

Yuki sat against the wall in the alleyway with an empty mind for not more than an hour. 

"Oi. Wake up, will you?"

Yuki heard a high-pitched voice call out. Maybe for her? Yuki's eyelids opened and she yawned a little. 

She lazily gazed over to her side and saw a girl with a slender figure clad in a black full-sleeve shirt and a black pencil skirt and knee-high black heel boots. Her enticing face comprised shrunken and shallow azure blue eyes and thick, plump pink lips. A small nose and sharp cheekbones defined her facial features. She had smooth and satiny black hair. The only thing that stood out in the dark was her enchanting blue pair of eyes.

"So pretty..." Yuki incoherently mumbled.

The beautiful woman turned and took a step. She turned behind and asked with an enticing yet unwelcoming voice, "Follow me, or do I have to drag you?"

"Uh, yes. I mean, no." Yuki stood up with coral-shaded cheeks. 'She's rather rude,' thought Yuki as she followed the lady.

Yuki obeyed and followed the beauty farther into the deep, dark alleyway. Yuki swore she could hear the intriguing suspense music playing in the back of her mind. After coming before a coarse and obsolete wall, the stunner stopped and put her right hand on the wall, Yuki wasn't able to look at whatever the lady was doing. Suddenly the wall started coming apart, which astonished Yuki. It revealed a polished black door with a golden doorknob.

"Don't speak anything after entering the room, unless you are asked to," warned the lady while inserting a majestic golden key in the similar doorknob. She grasped the doorknob and gradually pushed the door open. Yuki's eyelids shut down because of the sudden appearance of radiant white light. 

"Father, I've brought the girl as you asked me to," behaved the so-called rude pretty lady. "Thank you, Zyla. You may leave now." Yuki heard a brittle yet soft male voice coming from the center of the room. She opened her eyes and checked the room out. The room had pure white walls with red dragon wallpapers all around the bottom part of the wall. The floor was carpeted with a red floor mat and there positioned white and black sofas and couches in two corners of the room. She looked towards the center and saw a wooden desk with an old man, well-built, with grey hair and tapering and rough blue eyes, sitting behind the chair.

'He looks pretty intimidating, is he the leader of this mafia? Wait, didn't the girl from before call him Father? Is he a church priest or literally her fathe-'

Yuki's thoughts came to a full stop when the old man coughed and she gazed over to him.

"Uhm, what is your name?" The man questioned with a stern vox.

"Y-Yukihara Yuki."

"So, is this your sister?" He queried while pointing his index finger covered with a black glove towards one of the sofas in the other corner of the room. There Yuki caught a dreadful sight. It was her sister bawling without making a sound. "Onee-san-" Yuki blurted out without hesitance.

"So, she is your sister after all," the old geezer deeply sighed. "What should I do now?"

Yuki tried to advance towards her helpless sister but was stopped by no one other than the guy from before, with the cold and shallow blue eyes. He said with a mawkish grin once again, "I apologize, but I can't let you go any further."

"Zack, can I leave this girl to you?" 

"Of course, Father!" The pale and weird guy beamed and started to drag Yuki along with him.

"W-wait! What are you going to do with my sister?" Yuki cowardly breathed out.

"It's fine, it's fine. I'm sure Father won't give her a cruel punishment."

"P-punishment? Am I going to get a punishment too?"

"No, you're not going to get punished. Something much worse than that awaits you..." He mumbled the last part under his breath so Yuki was not able to hear him.

"Really? That's a relief. Can I take my sister home then?"

"Your sister is going nowhere. And neither are you."

"T-then where will you take me?"

"To another home." He smiled creepily.

"Really?"

"Really."

That's where their small talk came to an end and Zack continued to drag Yuki outside of the alley. Once they reached the end of the alley, Yuki once again saw her kidnapper, her self-proclaimed love with divine admiral eyes that shimmered with the sunlight, casting a spell on her. She caught his gaze in hers, they stared at each other for eighty milliseconds, almost as if unfolding each other's secrets hidden in the abyss of each of their hearts. The weird handsome guy then disturbed their silent talk by coughing.

"What are you doing here, brother? I am not involved in any of this now," Zen spoke with a petulant tone.

"I know, I know. But Father has the last job for you."

"I believe that I have already completed that one job."

"There's one more."

"I am not doing it."

"So you wanna do this for two years more?"

"Tch. What is it?"

"Keep this girl with you." 

Yuki and Zen's mouths dropped to the ground.

"Huh? She's not a pet. Just dump her back at her house," Zen argued.

"She's fifteen."

'How does this dude know my age? He seems creepier now,' Yuki pondered.

"It's not as if you have done a good deed in life. Just commit another sin, what's the point?" Zack slightly chuckled after Zen 

"Same goes for you Zen. But this girl might open her mouth to the police."

"I don't have any connection to that now. I have already left the Mafia."

"Zen, stop throwing tantrums. You are already eighteen."

"Yes, that's why I shouldn't wander around with an underage girl."

"Does it really matter? You are still a criminal in the country's eyes. No one would ever forget the face of the little boy who committed homicide when he was 10. You will remain this way, Zen. You have no choice... Accept your fate."

"Tch."

"You are cute but it's your job to obey Boss's order."

"Okay, I'll deal with this girl."

"Don't leave her at her house."

"Hm. Farewell." Zen murmured as he hastily gripped the girl's lower arm.

"Bye-bye, Mirai. You can have that car, okay?"

"Thank you, Zack." 

'Mirai? Mirai... MIRAI? No no, it's not possible. What am I thinking?' Yuki almost bit off the nails of her free hand as she started brainstorming.

"W-where are you taking me?" Yuki hesitantly spoke.

"To my house."

"HUH?"

"I am not going to do anything to you, don't worry."

"How am I supposed to trust you?"

"Do you have any other choice right now?"

Yuki sighed and so did Zen, each for a different reason.

※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※

"Nee, wasn't your room in that house much fancier than this?" Yuki enquired with a flabbergasted face.

"That was a hotel, idiot," Zen sighed.

'This dude took a cute girl like me to a hotel and says that he wouldn't commit a crime against me. What the fuck? How am I supposed to trust him?'

The room in front of Yuki was a 'little' shabby. Okay, maybe it was more than that. The walls were dusty and full of cracks. The wooden floor even had a hole in it. The ceiling was inhabited by bugs and spiders. But somehow there was no furniture? 

'Did he live here without a bed or lights?'

"It's been a while since I have returned here. I'll clean my place a little. Please step outside."

"May I help you? This is too much-"

"I will manage."

"Okay..."

Yuki submitted to his orders in a second because she knew that arguing won't do anything. She reluctantly yet deliberately stepped outside and stood on the snow-covered streets. The vicinity was quite tranquil. But what Yuki felt was terror because of such peace. 'Why is his house in such a silent area? There are basically no shops around or any other occupied houses, I think so.' Even with the drilling and hammering sounds coming from the room, the peace seemed impeccable. Whilst pondering, Yuki felt a cold hand on her shoulder. She shuddered and reacted by turning behind almost in a millisecond.

"I have cleaned your room." The guy with sharp and beautiful eyes said.

"THAT WAS FAST." Yuki literally screamed.

"Stop yelling. You are just slow when it comes to chores."

"That's not true. A normal person would take at least twenty minutes to clean that nasty room."

"Whatever."

'Wait a second, didn't he say MY room?'

Yuki's jaw dropped to the ground when she saw the cleanliness of the room. 

"DID YOU JUST DO THIS IN LESS THAN FIFTEEN MINUTES?"

"Again, stop yelling. Yes, I did, like I said, you are fucking slow."

"Language mister."

"This is my house."

"Am I going to live here now?"

"I can't dump you in the garbage can. That's a shame but I don't really have a choice."

"Couldn't you just kill me?" 'Why am I considering my death?'

"I can't do that just because."

"Okay okay. But if I live here I would need my clothes, diary, lotions, make-up, my special pillow, my penguin plushie and my cat-."

"Shut up. I'll take you to your house for once. Take everything you need."

"I still don't trust you but thanks. You're pretty nice."

"Hmph. I am going to sleep."

"IT'S STILL ONE P.M. THOUGH."

"Stop yelling. I am sleepy."

With hat, Zen walked off out of the room into another room. 'Aren't all the other rooms are supposed to be dirty too? Where is he going to sleep? Meh. Not my problem.'

Yuki smiled and locked the door of her room and sat in the corner of the room, sighing.

"He's fucking suspicious," Yuki murmured and closed her eyes gently dreaming of her peaceful land amidst the peaceful air of that peaceful house.

※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※

RexxDrink
icon-reaction-1