Leave it to me, Partner (3)

Lyon POV:

Jasmine wrapped her arms around me, waking me up from my meditation in the process. She had stopped interrupting me for the most part, instead only choosing to bother me when I was near the end of a session.

She pointed to the chair in front and I took a seat on it. Her dark blond hair swayed gently above her shoulders, complimenting her soft facial contours while she took out a long strip of cloth from her pocket.

"Clothes aren't a reliable way to hide the Mark of a Pantheon. It's better no one else knows about your connection to Zane."

"You're right."

She tied her hair back into two separate buns and started wrapping the cloth around my hand. Jasmine worked quickly, showcasing the dexterity of her fingers that allowed her to be both precise and accurate with her preferred wrapping method.

Once my hand was finished, she continued up my arm, stopping only once she had completely covered most of the deltoid muscle.

"Ha, you look like a badass~"

Her face flushed slightly as she examined her work. I had adopted a similar clothing style to her; wearing black tracksuit bottoms with a sleeveless dark blue hoodie and a white top underneath.

I got to my feet while moving my arm around; there was no strain or difficulty in any motion. My lips curved into a satisfied smile as I looked Jasmine in the eyes.

"Thank you."

She nodded her head while flushing deeply. It had been one month since we heard any news from Ness and it had been over a month since I had seen Len or Marina.

I needed to make a move soon.

"Leo~"

Jasmine's hazel eyes glowed faintly as she bit her lip and stretched out her hands towards me. I ignored the cold shiver that ran down my neck and quickly began helping with her stretches. It had only been a few minutes when I suddenly heard someone rushing down the stairs.

Ness was the only other person who had come down here since I started living with Jasmine, so I assumed it was her. I just couldn't figure out why she was in such a rush.

Sure enough, her face soon came into view as she charged into the room.

'!'

She looked extremely troubled and her eyes darted around the room as if she was looking for something. Beads of sweat formed on her brow while she struggled to make eye contact with me.

"Uh, Sis? What's going on?"

"Ness, is everything alright?"

I walked up to her, but she bit her lip and looked down. It was strange for Ness to express such... vibrant emotions clearly—it was something I had never seen before.

She gripped her arm tightly to help control her obvious distress while her lips parted.

"Len and Marina have gone missing."

"What...?"

I stared at her in disbelief. Ness never made any jokes, but I questioned whether she was making one now.

How could Len and Marina go missing when they were staying in Comfort? When they were under constant protection? It didn't make sense. What reason would they even have to leave here in the first place?

Jasmine placed her hand on my shoulder and stepped forward. Her eyes narrowed while she moved to question Ness.

"Sis, what happened?"

"I... I don't know. I checked on them this morning like I usually do, and though they were concerned about Lyon; they were still cheerful.

I left to stock up on supplies for the kitchen since we were running low, but when I went to check on them before dinner time... They were gone."

Her eyes trembled slightly as she explained the situation thoroughly. Jasmine popped a lollipop in her mouth and comforted her sister. There was nothing odd about her explanation—it was the same as most days, so how did this happen?

"Lyon, I'm truly sorry..."

I held her shaking hand lightly and consoled her. I could see just how much it was eating her up inside. Her usual emotionless face was stricken with worry and guilt. She had formed a bond with the two of them, so it only made the pain much worse.

"No, it's not your fault, Ness. You did everything you could to keep them safe for the past 2 months."

A short smile appeared on her face while she nodded her head. The possibility of Len and Marina being targets was still high, so if they really were to leave, then there must have been an important reason behind it.

"How long do you think they've been missing for?"

"Assuming they weren't there when I came back from shopping, then it's only been around two hours."

"Thanks, Ness. Don't blame yourself anymore than you already have. We'll handle this."

She nodded her head while looking away sadly. Jasmine hugged her sister and took to the stairs ahead of me.

"Jasmine."

She turned her head and her gaze met mine. I knew she understood what I was trying to tell her. Her body spun around and she bent down, kissing my forehead lightly before continuing on.

"Leave it to me, partner."

Her words were more of a whisper, but I could hear the seriousness in her voice. I smiled to myself as we reached the basement door. We bolted out of Comfort and parted ways to cover more ground.

***

Jasmine POV:

I replayed the scene of Leo calling out my name as I jumped from roof to roof, examining the streets below.

I could see it.

The intensity in his eyes was overflowing. That was a look you'd only give to someone you completely trust; he didn't need to say another word for me to understand what he meant.

'Do everything in your power to bring them back safely. If it's you, I won't need to worry.'

That's what he told me during that moment. Depending on the situation, we might need to put our lives on the line.

I felt my face become hot as I saw Leo looking at me with those eyes. My eyes curved upwards and I licked my lips.

"Oh gosh~ Why is he so damn hot?~"

It looked like my plan had been a huge success. Living together would undoubtedly create an attraction between us, and this was made evident by the fact that Leo began to let me hug him for longer; this was progress.

Physical contact between a man and a woman elevates the feeling of wanting to connect on a more... intimate level.

All I needed to do now was somehow solidify our relationship. And just like that, Len and Marina would no longer be able to get in my way.

'Tch. So much competition.'

That aside, I truly hoped the two of them were fine. I clicked my tongue while I scanned the surrounding area and thought over the current situation again.

I suspected that there was foul play going on here. After all, why would they leave the very place Leo wanted them to be in?

I adjusted my cap as I crouched down on the ledge of a building. I twirled the lollipop around in my mouth, maximizing the amount of flavour I could get from it.

'Not here either.'

I had searched the west side of District 4 and was currently heading north. The worst case scenario was that they've been captured, while the best case scenario would be that the two sisters just wanted some fresh air.

I sped up as a darted across the rooftops. I was reaching the end of my search on the north side of District 4 when something caught my eye.

There was a low-level goon at the end of an alleyway looking around suspiciously before heading inside.

I followed him from above as he made a variety of twists and turns before coming to an abrupt halt. He looked around once more and then... suddenly disappeared into the shadows.

'...'

I narrowed my eyes as I focused on reading the currents of the wind around his last position. I noticed slight abnormalities in the flow of the wind.

I quickly pursued this irregular flow, encountering more similar disturbances in the air before it became too hard to tell which way was correct.

'Something is definitely going on here.'

If I chose to continue searching this area from above, it would be easy to miss certain streets or alleyways due to the tight network of interconnections, which was far more evident in the north of District 4.

It had already taken me a substantial amount of time to properly search the west side because of this reason too. Alternatively, I could just trust my gut feeling.

I had to make a decision: move on or search.

'Len and Marina's lives are on the line. I can't be careless.'

I closed my eyes briefly before spinning the lollipop around in my mouth. I was going to have to take a leap of faith here.

***

Lyon POV:

'Still no sign of them.'

I had searched the east side thoroughly, but nothing stood out. I remembered that Len's goal was to take Marina out of Outer Astril, but it was still too careless to make a move like that right now. Len's number one priority was Marina's safety; she would never act recklessly because of what she had to protect.

'...'

I darted across the rooftops as I ordered the information away in my head calmly. The reason for them not visiting us in the basement was simple enough; we were still being watched.

Taking into consideration the strength of Brunaulf and the fact that Vices were of a higher rank than he was, there was a high chance that they had been captured by now.

If that was the case, then they were most likely already inside of some building and locating them would prove to be an incredibly difficult task for me.

If Copycat only got involved when someone on Mr Cruiser's level made a move, then I could rule him out. In the end, I was banking on the fact that Len would be able to hold out until at least one of us reached her.

I crouched down on the ledge of a tall estate building. I hadn't brought my mask with me, but it didn't matter. After tonight, there'd be no need for me to hide my face anymore.

I examined the streets below and felt relieved that I wasn't alone—I could depend on Jasmine. She might be eccentric, but she could get the job done.

It was also comfortable living together with Jasmine. Though she had somewhat of an obsession with physical contact, it wasn't too bad. I tried to be a little more tolerant since I was aware of her feelings, though I didn't understand them.

The more time I spent with her, the more she grew on me. It was a shame that we would have to part ways one day.

I moved locations when something caught my eye—a person; standing alone in the middle of a street. He had his black hood up and wore a mask covering the bottom of his face. I could barely make out that dark green hair under the hood.

'...Brunaulf!'

I activated the Mark of a Pantheon and jumped immediately. I hit the ground with a loud bang as I raised my head and glared at him. His eyes curved upwards as he started giggling to himself.

"Kehehe, helllooooo~"