Chapter 49

Sam was still in his apartment. He'd received a huge sum of money in advance for kidnapping himself.

'Man, scamming people again. I'm glad that I'm back,' he thought as he made himself some strawberry cake. 'Now what to do? I didn't think this far. She surely has the power to force someone to pay me 10 million dollars.'

'Usually, I would have just kicked her butt and let things go.'

'But she did seem genuine about paying me more in case I kidnapped Sam.'

Sam started eating. He needed sugar for his brain to work.

The ideas were storming with each bite.

'How about this scenario? I contact Himeno with Sam being tied up, and then I say that she won't get him until I get more money.'

He then rested his head on the table. 'But how would it be possible…'

'This isn't Baki. The power of imagination wouldn't work.'

'Wouldn't it?' Sam walked to a closet and grabbed a camera. 'But the time frame is about 30 frames per second. It wouldn't be as fast as a trained fighter's eye.' If I move so fast, I can create an afterimage to switch my location. But still, I need someone to help fill the gaps in the plan.

Was he crazy for thinking so?

But there was so much money on the line.

'Usually, when I crush on a girl, I try to steal her cherry. This time, I'm aiming for her money.'

'Crushes come and go. But money is eternal.'

Sam thought of a plan, and he needed a partner.

He picked up the phone.

'This way, we spend time with Himeno and do my job.'

-x-X-x-

Facing Sam was Himeno. She tilted her eyebrow, utter confusion on her face.

In front of her was a camera.

And on the chair was Sam, tied up, with some bruises on his face. And on his neck, there was a sword, held by a thread.

Himeno sighed. "So, what's the purpose of this?"

Sam smiled. "I'm pranking a friend."

"You, do pranks!" Himeno shook her head, remembering the time he'd pranked her two subordinates, only to say, 'It's just a prank, bro.'

When it comes to pranks, Sam could be an asshole and mean.

But she still couldn't understand what he was doing.

Anyway, she was just happy that he was alive… so happy that he'd been spared from a long shouting session.

"Anyway, take the picture." Sam lowered his head, looked at the ground, and furrowed his eyebrows. His eyes seemed lifeless and blank.

She took the shot.

Sam's face became normal all of a sudden. He vanished and appeared next to her at a speed that almost made her heart skip a beat. But she didn't want to show it, because he was Sam, and he would definitely tease her for that.

Sam looked at the camera and scrolled through the pictures, his other hand running down her back and grabbing her butt playfully.

She smiled. 'This man didn't change an ounce.'

"So. The friend that you are pranking. Is it me?"

"Don't you trust me?"

"Who would?"

His hand's grip turned from soft to harsh, pinching her.

"Ouch," she said, shaking her hip.

"That's how your words made my heart feel," he replied with his usual sarcasm.

"As if words affect you," she said, pinching his chest.

"You saw through me. How about I make it up to you?"

"And how are you willing to do that?" she smiled.

"Let me think… watch a movie, cuddle… eat snacks."

That sounded like a sweet evening that would relieve her stress from hunting devils. It was almost like a date between spouses. But the difference was that they were just friends with extra benefits, which was more than fine since that lifted a huge weight from her shoulders.

-x-X-x-

Reze was hiding in some apartment. After her failed attempt to take down the chainsaw man-thirsty fiend, she had changed her identity to a fake one and gone into hiding.

She had received information that Makima was in charge of Public Safety, which put Reze in an unsafe position.

The control devil was not someone to mess with. Well… that was in the past. Now that someone made her fall for him, there was a chance.

People who never knew love, when they finally experienced it, would hold tight to it as if it's the most important thing.

The less you have of something, the more you appreciate it.

'Unlike her, I don't have anything to lose.' Reze thought. For a child soldier, she had little to no emotions other than being amused, high, hungry, and angry.

And now, as she was hiding, she was waiting for the perfect chance.

'He better pay off… I invested a lot of money in that boy.' Reze touched her chest, remembering how the so-called Immortal Tony had pulled her buttons without her realizing. She had faith that he would be capable in his mission. After all, he was known as the best in Kyoto.

Her phone rang. It was a message. She read it.

There was Sam, exactly as he was described, tied to a chair. He was covered in blood. His eyes, nose, and face shape were like Tony's. The only difference was Tony looked angry, while Sam looked gentle and naive.

'Something fishy is happening here.'

Another message arrived.

[I've got Sam.]

Reze replied. [Bring him over.]

[Not until you hand over the money first.]

The hunch that something was wrong grew stronger.

As an assassin and someone who had risen in a country full of wars, she'd developed this hunch.

[What assures me that you got the right person] she typed.

Replying to her, Tony said. [Sorry. That's how we do business. You can make a video call to me in an Internet cafe. You'll see me and Sam at the same time.]

[I have a computer with me. Let's chat.]

He then sent her a link and a program to download.

When she did, she contacted Tony's ID.

The cam moved. It was quite blurry. But sure enough, Sam was tied to a chair.

"Hope this would ease your heart," came Tony's voice behind the camera.

[Now. How can you prove to me that this is the real deal?] Reze typed on the keyboard.

The camera slowly turned.

"I knew you would say that," Tony's voice came. "But first, how can you prove to me that you're you."

[You kept one of my blouse buttons with you.]

-x-X-x-

Himeno was sitting behind the camera, holding a recorder that had Sam's voice prerecorded and now she was playing it. On the table, there were many recorders. And each had a logical answer to a logical question. There was a price negotiation section, except for the last sentence.

Himeno gave Sam a suspecting gaze. What did this woman mean by saying her blouse buttons were with Sam?

She slowly turned the camera, as she didn't have a record to answer that.

At the same time, Sam stood up from the chair. In a blinding speed, he appeared next to Himeno with his hair already styled.

He took the camera from her hand and looked at it. "You're damn right. Now. You know me, I know you. Let's talk business. I've got you, Sam. And you know what that means."

He then looked at the screen.

[It means that you deliver him to me as fast as possible.]

Sam replied. "See. That's why we have pre-payments."

[Tony. It's not time to mess with me. I need to get him!]

"That's not how we do business under the table. I have no guarantee that you'll stay alive after getting him. So, you've got to give me some pre-payment before the final delivery."

[Let's negotiate the price.]