"Welcome to the team!"
With a beaming smile and arms spread wide, Kyoko looked every bit like a proud leader presenting her troops. Behind her, the so-called "troops" didn't exactly inspire confidence. Toto and Ezzo exchanged uneasy glances, their expressions shifting between disbelief and resignation as they took in the ragtag gathering before them.
"We've got a gremlin thief who tries to kill everyone—Felt!" Kyoko declared, pointing to the petite blonde perched on a barrel, twirling a dagger with one hand and munching on an apple with the other.
"Oi! Don't make it sound like I go around stabbing people for fun." Felt scowled, waving her knife for emphasis, "I only kill people who've got cash worth stealing, alright? Get it straight."
Kyoko ignored her objection and gestured grandly to the enormous man standing nearby, "And her emotional support uncle, Rom!"
"HEY! LISTEN TO ME WHEN I'M TALKING!" Felt barked, but Rom didn't bat an eye.
"Nice to meet you," Rom said in his deep, rumbling voice, giving Toto and Ezzo a polite nod. His massive frame loomed over them like a mountain, making both newcomers instinctively straighten their backs. Even so, the man didn't seem offended by Kyoko's nickname for him.
BZZZZZTTTTTTT!!!
A deafening metallic screech split the air like a saw slicing through steel. Toto and Ezzo clapped their hands over their ears as they whipped toward the source. Sparks danced in the corner of the camp where a boy their age was crouched over a strange contraption, wielding an angle grinder with reckless abandon.
"And our adorable magician-slash-mad scientist, Castor!" Kyoko announced proudly, unbothered by the shrieking noise.
Castor didn't even look up. He was fully geared in a heavy leather apron, gloves, and a visor, a thick cloud of smoke and sparks rising around him as he worked. At least he was using proper safety gear, which was more than Kyoko could say for herself on most days.
"CASTOR! CASTOR!! CASTOR!!!" Kyoko cupped her hands over her mouth, trying to yell over the sound.
The grinder abruptly stopped with a sharp click. Castor lifted his mask and peered over his shoulder, his golden eyes glinting like molten metal, "What!?"
"We've got new members! Reinhard picked them up off the street!" Kyoko called back.
"Excuse me!?" Toto sputtered, his face turning red, "We are NOT strays you just pick up! We're—"
"Hmm. Okay." Castor shrugged and flipped his mask back down, "I'm busy."
The grinder screamed to life again, and sparks flew.
Kyoko clapped her hands together and said, "Anyway! Now that you're officially my subordinates…"
Toto's eye twitched, "We didn't agree to this."
"—Let's discuss our next movement—"
"Bitch, did you hear me or not?"
*
*
*
"Okay, now. We're going to enter The Balance's casino and hunt down this little bastard named… what's his name again?"
Kyoko asked, leaning back in her chair with her legs crossed and a playful glint in her eyes. Her fingers drummed against the armrest, as though she were plotting the downfall of an empire rather than discussing a simple infiltration.
"Manfred Madison," Toto answered crisply, her arms folded tight across her chest. Her sharp tone suggested she had repeated that name enough times already, yet Kyoko's lack of attention didn't surprise her in the least.
"Ah, right. Manfred Madison. He's the slimy rat sitting on the throne of the Gambling Quarter like it's his personal playground."
Kyoko snapped her fingers as if that settled everything, though her camp members didn't seem entirely convinced, "He's also the one most likely clutching my precious phone like a dragon hoarding gold. Which means tonight, we're going to slip into his den, rake in as much of his money as we can, and if we play our cards right, waltz straight into his private chambers to steal back what's mine."
Felt, sprawled upside-down on the sofa with a dagger spinning between her fingers, raised an eyebrow, "And what if the rat doesn't take the bait? You know people like that don't exactly invite strangers to tea."
"Ah, but that's where you're wrong," Kyoko leaned forward dramatically, placing her hands flat on the table, "Ton, Chin, and Kan already have us covered. I sent them to The Balance weeks ago. Of course, I technically sold them as slaves to make it believable—don't look at me like that, Reinhard, they volunteered—but in reality, they're my adorable little spies. They've been cozying up to the staff, and as of last night, they secured us a set of reserved seats right next to the high rollers' tables."
Rom frowned deeply, his massive arms crossed as his brow furrowed. "So your grand plan is to waltz in and hope those three idiots didn't get themselves caught playing spy?"
"They're not idiots. They're resourceful." Kyoko smirked, though a faint trace of doubt flickered in her golden eyes before vanishing again, "Besides, I made it very clear to them that if they fail me, I'll haunt them from beyond the grave and welcome them into hell along with the Grim Reaper."
Ezzo raised a brow, "Are you… Planning to kill him or rob him? You know that destroying the Balance could cause several damages to Flanders' economy."
"Both, if necessary," Kyoko replied cheerfully, "But let's keep the murder option as Plan C. Plan A is infiltration, and Plan B is stealing everything he owns until he's crying into his champagne. Our target is this bastard named Mango Mango—"
"Manfred Madison."
"—Manfred Madison. So, if all of our plans are nothing but useless worms, we're going to use plan D: Castor."
"What the hell, this weirdo became plan... D?" Felt asked, pointing to the mentioned person.
"He's walking nuke. Well, basically, his final option is to clean up the mess. That's his job."
"I agree," Castor answered shortly.
Reinhard sighed. "Kyoko… you said you wanted this to be subtle."
"Subtle for me is not blowing up an entire building," Kyoko shot back. "Be proud. I'm growing as a person."
Felt snorted and twirled her knife. "So what's the plan, oh great leader? Sneak in and gamble our way to him?"
"Yup, you got that right, miss gremlin."
"No way....."
"Why do I get the feeling I won't like my role in this 'chaos'?" Reinhard asked, already dreading her answer. Don't know why, but his divine protection is telling him something bad is going to happen.
"Because you're smart, Darling Reinhard." Kyoko shot him a finger gun and winked. "You, my dear knight, are going to be our golden goose. With your absurd luck, you'll dominate every gambling table we sit at until Manfred Madison has no choice but to take notice and invite us into his inner circle."
"And let me guess, " Toto interjected dryly. "He's not going to notice the six of us strutting into his casino like we own the place?"
Kyoko's grin widened. "That's why we're dressing up. Reinhard will be in disguise as my beautiful, mysterious wife. Felt will be my spoiled younger sister. Rom's my loyal bodyguard, as always. And you and Ezzo will pose as my business partners—people wealthy and dangerous enough that Madison wants to court us. If all else fails, Castor sets off one of his pretty little inventions, and we run like hell."
There we go. The bad feeling from Reinhard. He asked confusedly, "Dressing up again? Is it really necessary for me to be a girl in this plan, milady? I don't see any of—"
"Nope, it's not important, but I want to see you in a girl's dress."
"But, don't you already see it—"
"Reinhard, my dear, if a charming man with incredible luck happens to enter the casino and collects all those chips, it might draw some unwanted attention. That's going to lead us to a real bad bad bad situation." Her words sound like mindful but her tone isn't, Reinhard can't help but feel his lady become more like persuasive.
"You may be strong, the strongest man I know, but still, one wrong movement could kill everyone around you."
Her words landed with a quiet finality that even silenced the background chatter of the camp. Reinhard, who so often carried himself like a knight of unshakable resolve, felt his chest tighten beneath the weight of her honesty. His hands, capable of saving countless lives, were also weapons that could shatter fragile things without meaning to.
He remained silent, his blue eyes lowered in thought. He had always accepted his role as the Sword Saint, the one others depended on, but Kyoko's words forced him to confront the fear he kept buried. What if, in a moment of carelessness, he truly did destroy the very people he wanted to protect? Was his strength really a blessing—or was it a curse waiting for the wrong opportunity?
"Anyway, let's follow the plan—"
"I disagree with the roles." Felt raised her hands, both of her hands, not one.
"What's it, gremlin?"
"Let's reconsider the roles for better. We don't need to stick each other. I prefer we spliting so our work done faster."
"Ha, that's a my gremlin. Let's hear you plan, my dear."
*
*
*