The Tokyo Conference

Yuan Fu was the ambassador of China to Japan. At forty years old, he was an intelligent man who was devoted to his nation. However, in addition to having a bit of an ego, he had another issue…

He had a tendency to fraternize with the locals.

While some of it was harmless, oftentimes it wasn’t, and sooner rather than later, he would find himself in trouble.

It ended up being sooner.

“Order whatever you’d like, and don’t worry about the price.” Fu had taken a woman he met at a club to the suite of a love hotel he frequented.

“All right…” His guest, a beautiful Japanese woman, pretended to look through the menu.

But Fu’s attention was quickly diverted away, something coming up on his phone.

“Is something wrong?” she asked curiously.

“Nothing… Just a work thing… Give me a minute…” Fu started tapping away on his phone.

The slightest smirk crossed the woman’s face. Silently, she stood up and stalked towards him.

She turned on her phone and opened Helel, a shadowy, incorporeal human figure appearing behind her.

But Fu was yet to notice, his brow furrowed as he took care of his business. “Damn it…” he muttered to himself.

As the woman took her final step, she whispered, “Doppelganger…”

Before Fu even had time to register what was happening, the demon grabbed him. He sunk into its dark form, the life completely draining from his body within seconds.

But as the color and moisture evaporated from his skin, the woman began to change. Within only seconds, she grew taller, her face changed shape, her body fattened, even her sex swapped…

She became an exact copy of Yuan Fu.

And not just his body, even his memories started flooding in.

The new Yuan Fu stretched his neck and shook his arms. This body left quite a bit to be desired.

After he got used to it, he quickly picked up Fu’s dropped phone, finishing the message in a second and sending it out.

After putting Fu’s phone away, he took out his own phone. “This is Rei. I’ve made the transfer.”

He waited a second for the person on the other line to respond, eying the dead body on the ground. “Yes, send in the cleaners right away.”

“The plan’s proceeding without issues. We should be more than prepared.” The new Fu smirked. “Commence Operation VIVI.”

***

It was a truly beautiful day in Tokyo, and an even more beautiful day at the Grand Heiwa Hotel.

This is where history would be made. Jian Wei, the Chinese minister of foreign affairs, would soon be arriving to meet with Junichiro Akayama, the deputy prime minister of Japan. After a welcoming ceremony, the two would share a state dinner before entering the Imperial Lounge to begin negotiations.

Many had high hopes for this conference, but for Naoki, he’d be satisfied if the event concluded without incident.

Currently, he was stationed with Yoji near the entrance of the hotel. They were both dressed up in nice suits and were to await the arrival of the VIPs before joining the security detail.

Yoji was even more concerned than Naoki, but he had mostly resigned himself by this point.

He’d do his best, but whatever happened happened.

Thankfully, it wasn’t too long until the VIPs began to arrive.

First came the Japanese diplomats. In addition to Junichiro Akayama, there was also Eiji Aoki, the minister of foreign affairs.

It was a bit surreal seeing Akayama in such a serious setting. Naoki had known him long before he became deputy prime minister, but he didn’t at all fit the role, being short, gangly, balding, and just lacking the kind of bite you’d expect from a world leader.

Not long after, the Chinese diplomats arrived. Jian Wei had come directly from the airport, but Yuan Fu, the ambassador, had already been in the country for some time.

Jian Wei was exactly what you’d expect from a Chinese minister of foreign affairs, and Yuan Fu seemed like a reliable ambassador.

But something was off…

As Fu walked past Naoki, he gave him the slightest side-eye.

It was natural for a teenager like him to be viewed with some skepticism by an adult, but that wasn’t what that was…

It was the kind of look he received from a Ghost during battle…

Or perhaps from any demon summoner…

But Naoki pushed those feelings aside. Above anything else, he had to watch out for Ghosts. If something went wrong, it could mean total war between China and Japan.

With both parties fully present, the welcoming ceremony began. The ceremony itself wasn’t particularly noteworthy. It was what was expected of such an event. Some handshakes and speeches, that sort of thing.

But another thing started gnawing at Naoki.

Would Akemi show up?

And if yes then what would he do?

After the ceremony was the dinner. It was a feast befitting of royalty, leagues more luxurious than what even Naoki had ever had.

The two parties made some small talk here, and as Naoki was close enough, he was able to overhear some of it.

Wei had a surprising amount of charisma, even eliciting laughs from Akayama and Aoki. Aoki had some good banter too, although Akayama was slightly awkward but spirited.

The odd man out, however, was Fu.

Naoki had never met Yuan Fu in his entire life, but it seemed unlikely that one could become an ambassador without being sociable.

Unless he was specifically trying not to draw attention to himself…

After the dinner finished, it was time for the main meat of this event.

The conference.

Naoki, Yoji, and the security detail escorted the VIPs to the Imperial Lounge.

This is where the negotiations would happen, and the one place that Naoki and Yoji would not be allowed to follow them.

Once those doors closed, their safety against the Ghosts would be left in fate’s hands.

Naoki was able to catch a glimpse of the room just as the diplomats entered. Its opulence simply couldn’t be understated, but Naoki couldn’t shake the bad feeling he had.

The feeling that they were walking into a trap.

As the doors shut, he thought back to what Akemi had told him.

If the government really was trying to start a war by sabotaging negotiations somehow…

Then it was already game over.

***

Akemi watched as night fell on the Grand Heiwa Hotel. The historic meeting between Japan and China would be starting at any moment.

But he knew that this day would go down in infamy.

Unless he did something, of course.

He picked up his phone and opened a custom program.

Akemi was never one for grand plans or risky operations. He only ever did what he had to.

As he took one last look at the hotel, it shining almost like a Christmas tree in the night, he said to himself, “It’s now or never.”

With a confident press, he activated the program.