Chapter 47

Hikari sat upright and fixed her posture as the two agency members took their own seats. The woman had long blue hair in a ponytail with sleepy green eyes. She wore large, rimmed glasses and her suit and shirt were messy and untucked. The man had short blonde hair and blue eyes. He was prim and proper in his mannerisms, making me guess he had a military background in another country.

“Hello, Hikari, was it? I am agent K. This here is Agent L.” The woman agency member said as she flipped open the case to a tablet as she started to type on it. “If I am correct in my understanding, you are willing to cooperate with us, so I will move right along. Now, please, explain who you are and your relationship to the Bishop known as Theseus and your role within the Secular.”

“Oh, and don’t try to hide anything or lie. Dragon boy here is like a human lie detector.”

“Easy there, Agent L. You don’t get to call me that. And she already knows how to get around that ability.”

The man glared at me and I glared back at him. After a moment, he cracked a smile and let out a chuckle. “Hah, I like you, Ryuki.”

“Don’t even attempt it, L.” Agent K said in a hushed tone. I didn’t even bother asking what she meant as we were already wasting time. “Hikari, if you would.”

Hikari nodded as she started to answer.

“I am Hikari, an Apostle of the Japanese branch of the Secular.”

“Just to make clear, you’re confirming that each branch is separate?” Agent L interrupted.

“Yes. While they are all part of the same ‘society’ you can imagine each one as their own country. If you would let me, I can explain it all when it becomes relevant in what I want to tell you.”

“That works. Sorry to stop you. Continue.” Agent L said, leaning back in the chair.

“I am an Apostle, and as I assume you all know, that is the third rank in the hierarchy. Below me are Officers, Knights, Mages, and the talented. Above me are two ranks, Second Rank Bishops and First Rank Elders.”

We all nodded knowingly at her exposition. Knights and Officers seemed interchangeable to me, but that wasn’t the point to her entire story.

“The gap from Officer to Apostle is large, and the gap from Apostle to Bishop is even larger. And as you can guess, Bishop to Elder is astronomical.”

“Hikari, I don’t understand the reason to telling us this.” Agent K interrupted.

“It will. Just want to make sure you know the gaps in power. As I was saying; these are the ranks and hierarchy in the Secular, but it isn’t just a classification of power. It’s a ruling caste system. At least, that’s what it turned into. Over the last decade there has been a major change to the Japan branch of the Secular. The new Elder rose up quickly from a young age and killed the 5 seated Elders in a show of power. This Elder is Kirin. And he looks exactly like you, Ryuki.”

The two agents turned and looked at me, their faces filled with concern and anguish. They were probably silently scorning all of us for not disclosing the information we learned about me. I could tell they were on to us knowing about it as none of us were surprised at Hikari’s revelation. She then continued.

“Kirin is rude, abusive, and cruel. Bishops he was kinder with, but Apostles and lower, he used his power to cattle us. From the moment he took power, he chose me to be a personal gofer for him. I have been tasked with watching you ever since you made your initial appearance when you attacked Officer Kurosawa. Every time I lost your whereabouts, he would punish me.” Hikari said, lightly touching the scar on her face. “But that is also when Theseus and I met. One day, when I went to report to Kirin, Theseus was in there being briefed on a mission Kirin had for him. I reported my findings on you, warning him about how you were planning to attack the jail compound and free the Tsukumo. Or rather, Tsuki as you call her.”

“Don’t call me that again! Tsuki, it’s Tsuki!” Tsuki shouted, crossing her arms to pout.

“You knew about our plan on the compound before we attacked?” I asked, half impressed and half afraid of her capability.

“I did. I’m not particularly strong in offensive spells, but I excel in surveillance and other such tactics. I was promoted to Apostle because of that, but that also came with heavy scrutiny. Scrutiny that Theseus saw firsthand that day. When I told Kirin that, he called me a liar, berated me, and punished me again. Theseus stepped in, shielding me and berating Kirin, telling him he should have been able to tell that I was telling the truth and that he was using his position to hurt those he wanted.”

“Were you lying?” Marie asked.

“No. But he could tell I was hiding what I knew about you. No one had reported that Ryuki was the replica of him. But I knew that the moment I started watching you. Of course, since only a few others at my rank or lower were able to talk to him and meet him in person, he couldn’t have known.”

“Why didn’t you tell him?” Agent K asked.

Hikari looked over at Theseus and her eyes started to moisten with tears. “Whenever I thought of telling him, I had this premonition of sorts, screaming at me from within that if I told him, he would kill me on the spot. And I convinced myself then and there that being abused, tortured, burned, beaten, cut, whatever, was better than dying. So, I never told him. I instead ended up telling Theseus, explaining my fears to him. Theseus ended up being my shield from Kirin about the sensitive information about you all. We became close.”

“When did you decide to betray the Secular?” Agent L asked; his voice was less imposing than it was previously.

“When I told him about your plan to be in Shibuya, he was indifferent to it, like he didn’t care. But then he also forced me into the attack wave, hoping for me to redeem myself or die trying. And that’s when Theseus volunteered to go in place of the other Bishop that was ordered to go.” Hikari then turned and stared at me. “I was afraid you would kill him, like you killed Kyosuke. I knew your plan to capture a Bishop, but I also knew you were the replica of Kirin. I’ve seen your rage and it is like his. You can be cruel like him. You brutalize when you’re allowed to.”

I stared into her eyes. She was honest. And I couldn’t find a fault with what she was saying. I felt this rage she spoke of overtake me multiple times. It feels like my blood boils, and nothing soothes it except to kill whatever caused it. I glanced over at Marie who was gripping the cushion of her seat tightly, fighting herself not to attack Hikari. She then glanced over at me, and I slightly shook my head. She instantly calmed herself, understanding my silent gesture.

“But you have something he doesn’t: love.”

Marie’s face went red at the word Hikari said.

“You have people you love, people who love you, and people you loved. You had a family, lost them, and now have a new one. Kirin never had any of that. All he has ever known is power and the idea of a lesser evil. The Secular is not a family.”

Ichiro’s eyes fell to the ground at Hikari's words. He was good at hiding it and even assured me he was fine, but he lost people he considered family and saw their demented versions walking in their corpses. He then looked up and saw me looking at him and put on a small smile.

“After I came to that realization, I knew I couldn’t stay with the Secular anymore. So, I know that was a lot to say, but all of that is why I decided to help you. Theseus is a good man. And I don’t want to be afraid anymore. I want us to be happy together, out of the Secular. And the only way we can be free from it is if you destroy the Japanese branch.”

Hikari then paused for a short moment before letting out a deep breath.

“I will tell you where the main Japan Secular compound is. In exchange for letting Theseus and me leave and live on our own once you succeed in killing Kirin and destroy the Secular branch.”