explaining about those who had let her into the factory grounds.
She could just say that she snuck in, but Masaomi would come to the conclusion that she couldn’t have climbed over the walls on her own.As a matter of fact, she could do it with the extra help of Saika, but again, that would reveal her abnormality to him.
Why…why did it come to this?
She just didn’t want things to be ruined.
If Masaomi learned about the secret of Saika, he might tell Mikado, too.
Perhaps he would listen to her if she begged him not to tell anyone, but she wasn’t in any position to make such a demand.
Please let the night pass without anyone spotting me
, she wished to no one but the rain. No sooner had the wish come to her than a voice from nearby crushed it without remorse.
“Hey! Don’t you think someone could hide in here?”
They had found the crack in the piled-up junk that she used to slip back to her spot. She was hidden farther back, but if they started looking into the crevice, they would find her momentarily.
“Shit! It’s too narrow for me to fit!” growled a deep voice.
A different voice hit Anri’s eardrums, cutting him off.
“I’ll go.”
!
Even in the rain, there was no mistaking it.
That was Masaomi’s voice.
Masaomi circled around the factory from the opposite side to narrow down the search, but no intruder appeared.
He searched through the scrapped material and vehicles one by one, assuming that she had to be hiding somewhere. Eventually he reached the largest pile of scrap, which a number of boys were gathered before.
It was a mountain of rust and rubble, junked cars and metal, so large that it made him wonder if the factory was treating industrial waste. Or maybe this had served as shelter for some homeless for a while, and they’d added to the pile.
Being somewhat smaller than average, Masaomi offered to lead. He moved to squeeze into the narrow crevice. There were plenty of members skinnier than him, but he didn’t want them thrashing the pile and potentially endangering the life of the woman hiding inside.
If he was going to settle this peacefully, he needed to go in himself and make it clear that he meant her no harm.
But only if she doesn’t mean harm herself.
“Sh-Shogun!” yelped a frightened voice, stopping him in the process of squeezing into the crack.
“Told you to call me Masaomi. What is it?”
“Uh, over there…”
Masaomi spotted a shadow in the direction they were looking.
Something even darker than the rain-soaked darkness.
So dark that it seemed to absorb that very rain…
A figure of pure, deep black.
Amid the tense silence, the cell phone clutched in Anri’s hand vibrated and glowed.
“!”
When she saw the message on the screen, she immediately began to type a response.
Her fingers were clumsy, unfamiliar with the buttons.
The message to her was short and simple.
“I’m at the factory. Where are you?”
There was only one thing Anri could do, trapped as she was.
She asked for help through the cell phone she’d just recently purchased.
From another person who wasn’t supposed to exist, either in public or in secret…
“The Black…Rider…?”
Masaomi’s eyes went wide. It was the very person they’d just been talking about moments ago, an urban legend often seen around the neighborhood.
Anyone who lived in Ikebukuro long enough was familiar with therider, but when facing the legendary figure with potential
personal business
on top of that, it was a much more imposing presence.
The other boys began to murmur among themselves.
“Uh…are you saying…
that
was the intruder?”
“N-no way! I’d have recognized that freak right away!” shrieked one of the boys, clearly terrified of their dark visitor. Masaomi turned around and saw that someone must have alerted the others, as the rest of the boys from inside the factory were now on their way, walking toward them as a crowd. Some of them were even running, and the tension was
She could just say that she snuck in, but Masaomi would come to the conclusion that she couldn’t have climbed over the walls on her own.As a matter of fact, she could do it with the extra help of Saika, but again, that would reveal her abnormality to him.
Why…why did it come to this?
She just didn’t want things to be ruined.
If Masaomi learned about the secret of Saika, he might tell Mikado, too.
Perhaps he would listen to her if she begged him not to tell anyone, but she wasn’t in any position to make such a demand.
Please let the night pass without anyone spotting me
, she wished to no one but the rain. No sooner had the wish come to her than a voice from nearby crushed it without remorse.
“Hey! Don’t you think someone could hide in here?”
They had found the crack in the piled-up junk that she used to slip back to her spot. She was hidden farther back, but if they started looking into the crevice, they would find her momentarily.
“Shit! It’s too narrow for me to fit!” growled a deep voice.
A different voice hit Anri’s eardrums, cutting him off.
“I’ll go.”
!
Even in the rain, there was no mistaking it.
That was Masaomi’s voice.
Masaomi circled around the factory from the opposite side to narrow down the search, but no intruder appeared.
He searched through the scrapped material and vehicles one by one, assuming that she had to be hiding somewhere. Eventually he reached the largest pile of scrap, which a number of boys were gathered before.
It was a mountain of rust and rubble, junked cars and metal, so large that it made him wonder if the factory was treating industrial waste. Or maybe this had served as shelter for some homeless for a while, and they’d added to the pile.
Being somewhat smaller than average, Masaomi offered to lead. He moved to squeeze into the narrow crevice. There were plenty of members skinnier than him, but he didn’t want them thrashing the pile and potentially endangering the life of the woman hiding inside.
If he was going to settle this peacefully, he needed to go in himself and make it clear that he meant her no harm.
But only if she doesn’t mean harm herself.
“Sh-Shogun!” yelped a frightened voice, stopping him in the process of squeezing into the crack.
“Told you to call me Masaomi. What is it?”
“Uh, over there…”
Masaomi spotted a shadow in the direction they were looking.
Something even darker than the rain-soaked darkness.
So dark that it seemed to absorb that very rain…
A figure of pure, deep black.
Amid the tense silence, the cell phone clutched in Anri’s hand vibrated and glowed.
“!”
When she saw the message on the screen, she immediately began to type a response.
Her fingers were clumsy, unfamiliar with the buttons.
The message to her was short and simple.
“I’m at the factory. Where are you?”
There was only one thing Anri could do, trapped as she was.
She asked for help through the cell phone she’d just recently purchased.
From another person who wasn’t supposed to exist, either in public or in secret…
“The Black…Rider…?”
Masaomi’s eyes went wide. It was the very person they’d just been talking about moments ago, an urban legend often seen around the neighborhood.
Anyone who lived in Ikebukuro long enough was familiar with therider, but when facing the legendary figure with potential
personal business
on top of that, it was a much more imposing presence.
The other boys began to murmur among themselves.
“Uh…are you saying…
that
was the intruder?”
“N-no way! I’d have recognized that freak right away!” shrieked one of the boys, clearly terrified of their dark visitor. Masaomi turned around and saw that someone must have alerted the others, as the rest of the boys from inside the factory were now on their way, walking toward them as a crowd. Some of them were even running, and the tension was
Similar Books
