Was it truly a coincidence?

At the Holy Knights Headquarters.

Unfortunately she had to cut her date with Toh short. After seeing the girl in that state, she accompanied her to the Holy Knights medical center, only to receive very disturbing news. The wounds on the girls body weren't normal bruises, they were infected wounds that had been caused by drugs. Currently one of the medics was explaining to her how this was a new drug related disease.

But all she could focus on the news that there were other victims. That this isn't the first time they have had somebody rushed in here under such conditions.

"What do you mean this has been happening frequently?" Sumire exclaimed.

"Uh that is-" Cynthia trails off.

Cynthia Lang, is a chinese medical student who joined not too long ago. Normally they do not accept students amongst their ranks. It is rare for them to do so. But due to her skills, Aki accepted her.

"Riri, instead of shouting maybe you should decrease your tone."

Sumire angrily turned to look at Aki who just entered the room. "Explain. Explain this to me right now. How come I didn't know about this?"

"That's because I diverted your attention elsewhere."

So in other words he bribed Jack so she could focus on other jobs.

"You can't be serious, the areas where these girls are being attacked are under my jurisdiction. Do you know what that means? This is my responsibility."

"It's not like I planned to keep it from you, your right this is under your jurisdiction. Normally I would have informed you the minute something went wrong in your area. However, I didn't want to risk you catching whatever disease this was."

Sumire laughed. "Of course it's that again. Your doing this for my sake, to keep me safe." She listed the reasons he normally gave her when he hid something. "But, are you forgetting something Aki-san? We shouldn't play games with human lives. If there is a deadly disease going on right now, if girls are being kidnapped and abused. We have to save them, we have the power to do so. Do not decide to take away that responsibility just to keep one life save over millions."

She is sick and fed up of this guy's strange methods to protect her. He will truly do anything, even if it means risking others.

"Cynthia, leave us."

The girl was more than happy to leave and she was out of the doors in seconds. The minute she left, Aki approached her from the back and hugged her. Sumire tried to break free but he wouldn't let her go.

"Listen, I do not care if I am a bad guy in your eyes. I do not care if you think I am a villain. But, from the very beginning of our deal. Your safety was always the most important and I made that clear to you didn't I?"

Sumire bit her lip. She wanted to scream, kick up a fuss and tell him he is being stupid. How can he place so much value on her life? It makes no sense.

"You did, but this-" Sumire looked behind the glass screen. On the other side was the woman from earlier laying down, all sorts of wires and machines stuck to her arms. "-is too terrible. You have to let me take over this case. I have no doubt that you assigned it to someone who is capable. But, they clear haven't been achieving good results."

"Of course not, she did just return to the country."

Sumire immediately understood what Aki meant. Her eyes widened horrified. If she wasn't disgusted with him before, she was now.

"Are you saying, you gave Futaba this case?"

"That's right."

Sumire swiftly turned around and slapped him. She was beyond furious. How could he ask Futaba to do this type of job?

"She was more than happy to oblige. I didn't force her."

Of course he didn't, but telling her about it is enough to sign of a death warrant. Futaba would do anything to protect her, and her friend understood that she would have to take care of this since this was under her jurisdiction.

"You can't keep doing this." Sumire mumbled. "You have to make use of my strength. You can't keep me locked away, you know that very well."

"I know." Aki said sadly. "But, it doesn't stop me from trying."

Sumire couldn't say anymore. She didn't want to overstep the invisible boundary between them. As clueless as she is, she already knew why he was going so far for her. But she refuses to accept the reason. It's not possible for somebody to do so much for her sake, to treasure her and not see her as a monster.

"Tell me about this disease." Sumire swiftly changed the topic.

"According to the information we have gathered so far, there is black spots on their bodies, and soon they start to emit a foul odour. There are rashes and signs of hemoptysis."

At the last part Ru's face appears in her mind. But she frantically shakes her head. Ru has something completely different, this is not related to this case.

Sumire placed her hand on her forehead. "The drugs we confiscated have something to do with it, but it will take a while before the components are analysed properly. Before then, I think interviewing the victims to see if they have anything in common other than their ages and gender." She trails off.

Interviewing victims is very difficult, due to the trauma they received from the accident. But she still manages to find a way to speak to them. However abused victims are on a different scale. They have not only been broken emotionally but physically too. Their hearts are in a delicate state right now. She isn't confident that she will be able to speak to them without hurting their feelings.

"Can I make use of Toh?" Sumire mumbled.

Although Toh offered to help her in the mansion case, a lot has been happening recently so they still haven't gone. She still hasn't seen his abilities in action.

Aki chuckled. "Don't you already know the answer to that?"

Indeed she certainly did. "I will make use of Toh. However," She trailed off. "Ask Masaru-senpai to be in the adjacent room."

"Oh? This is surprising. I thought you trusted your new boyfriend."

"Trust and me dating him have nothing to do with each other. He is still suspicious." Sumire admitted.

She has been holding back from admitting this out loud. But, ever since she met Toh, all sorts of accidents have been happening around her. Moreover the way they met, was it truly a coincidence?

*Unedited*