-----
-----
"Woof… woof!"
On the edge of collapse, Yukiko finally gave in.
What an adorable little dog.
A satisfied smile spread across Steven's face, but he had no intention of ending the punishment there.
Since it had already started, it had to be finished.
Stopping halfway only meant suffering later.
An hour later.
The punishment finally ended. Yukiko had endured unimaginable torment, her face pale as snow.
Steven glanced at her like she was trash, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it.
Perfect.
Just then, the sound of a door opening came from outside.
"Oh no, it must be Chris. If she sees this…"
Yukiko jolted in fright, scrambling up and quickly fixing her disguise, trying her best not to look completely wrecked.
She no longer dared to hope for the videotape back. She was afraid that angering Steven would drag her best friend into this mess.
"Um… could you help me cover this up in a moment?"
"Oh?"
Steven turned his head and saw a trace of pleading in Yukiko's eyes.
"If Chris asks, I'll say I came to ask you about flower arranging. Please don't expose me, okay?"
Pressed for time, that was the best excuse Yukiko could come up with.
Back when they were chatting at the club, Steven had mentioned he was good at flower arranging. It worked perfectly now.
"No problem."
The words had barely left his mouth when the door was pushed open.
"Yukiko, what happened to you…"
Her hair was a mess, her face deathly pale, and there was some unknown residue at the corner of her lips. Something was clearly off.
Vermouth, stepping into the room, was taken aback and had already guessed what had happened.
The dented sofa cushions and pillows scattered on the floor made it obvious the "battle" had been intense.
"I came to ask Steven about flower arrangement techniques. We're basically done, and I'm heading home to try things out myself."
Guilty as she was, Yukiko avoided Vermouth's gaze.
"Is that so?"
Vermouth clearly didn't believe her.
Flower arranging?
Who knew what kind of flowers were really being arranged.
"I'll head off first. Let's go shopping together next time."
Under Vermouth's stare, Yukiko's scalp tingled. She grabbed her bag from the floor and fled the villa as if running for her life.
After watching Yukiko leave, Vermouth turned her attention to Steven, who was smoking leisurely.
"Did you enjoy your flower arranging?"
"Yeah. It was alright."
Steven stubbed out the cigarette and licked his lips.
Soft, sweet, and worth savoring.
"Messing around with other women behind my back is one thing, but you even brought her home and trashed the living room. Do you think I'm that easygoing?"
As she spoke, Vermouth pulled out the small pistol she carried and chambered a round, aiming straight at Steven's manhood.
"Isn't Yukiko your best friend? Besides, what we have is purely transactional. There's no feelings involved."
Steven wasn't the least bit flustered.
After being remodeled by the bio-demon ability, his body was now immune to gunfire.
"Heh. So what?"
"If you dare bring another woman home behind my back, be careful my gun goes off by accident. One slip and that ugly thing of yours is gone."
Bang!
Vermouth fired a shot into the ceiling.
"Isn't that a bit much? I just made the kind of mistake every man makes. And don't forget, you were the one who set things up the other night. Now you're regretting it already?"
"Losing a part wouldn't bother me much. But have you thought about your own future happiness?"
Steven joked casually, grinning shamelessly.
"Outside that door, do whatever you want. I don't care. But once you step inside, this is my territory. I won't allow any other woman to defile it."
"Fine, I'll be more careful from now on."
Steven grabbed Vermouth's gun hand and pulled her hard into his arms.
"A girl like you shouldn't be playing with guns. Put it away. Big brother's got something better for you to play with."
…
Time flies.
In the blink of an eye, it was the day before the ten-billion-yen heist.
Late at night, on the outskirts of Beika Town, at a desolate burial ground.
"Boss, that kid didn't scam us, did he? He said he'd pick up the goods at midnight, but there's still no sign of him. Are we really just going to keep waiting?"
"Relax. We already got a deposit. Whether he shows up or not, we're not losing anything. Wait another twenty minutes. If he doesn't come, we take the goods and find another buyer."
"Trading in a place like this is creepy as hell. Third, share some of that booze. I need a drink for courage."
"…"
Three men sat on the ground chatting. Behind them was a wooden crate that looked more like a coffin at first glance, just big enough to fit a person.
Crack.
The sound of a dry branch snapping made all three tense up instantly.
They looked up. Under the bright moonlight, a white figure appeared not far ahead.
"Boss, doesn't that look like a ghost?"
"Ghost my ass. Learn from Third and calm down."
The leader shot the second man a glare and stood up, flashing a flashlight twice in quick succession.
If it was the buyer, he'd recognize the agreed signal.
Sure enough, after seeing the flashes, the figure quickened its pace and walked toward them.
"Man, we've been waiting forever for you!"
Once they saw his face clearly, the three men couldn't hide their excitement.
"Sorry about that. Ran into a bit of trouble and kept you waiting."
"So where's the goods?"
The buyer was none other than Steven, disguised as a young guy.
His intense session with Vermouth had nearly made him miss the deal and almost ruined everything.
"The goods are right here."
"Second, Third, open it up and let the buyer inspect."
Clatter.
The two men opened the crate. Inside lay a corpse. Judging by the livor mortis, death had occurred less than forty-eight hours ago.
The Beika stage never lacks talent.
These three specialized in trafficking corpses, and Steven had gone through quite some effort, using Hua Lao's connections, to reach them.
"Is the source clean?"
The body was female. Her looks were unremarkable, but her build closely matched Miyano Akemi's, perfectly fitting Steven's needs.
"Our reputation in the business is rock solid. The source is absolutely safe. She was a homeless streetwalker with a terminal illness. She'd been used as an experimental subject in a hospital for half a year and passed away yesterday evening."
"I've got people inside the hospital. Her background was checked long ago. No trouble will come back to you."
What a conscientious little team.
Steven wasn't really afraid of trouble. He was worried that even a small slip-up might draw the attention of the police or the Organization and ruin his entire plan.
"Deal."
Steven took out an envelope containing the remaining payment.
After taking the money, the three men closed the crate, shut the truck, and, following Steven's directions, delivered the goods to the designated destination.
"....."