XXXVIII – Wine
In the morning, Light returned to school and Caterina remained in the apartment. She made a list of her father's greatest enemies who could very well be hers now and stuck it on the wall with scotch tape. There were three major ones who had competed with her father when he was alive. Then, there were forty-eight associates who had been hunting for opportunities lately and who she knew from her father that he did not trust. But most dangerously… they were beginning to scatter around, polarizing around the three remaining dominant figures. These were Ivan "Frost" from Russia, Vitto from Sicily, and Rod Ross from California.
She also tried to identify their signatures and their preferences. The Russian would often torture the victims, then leave them outside until they would slowly freeze to death. He was renowned for his successful hit-men, hackers, and guns and weapons sold worldwide. It was probably where the hacker who betrayed her father went for protection and a decent pay.
Vitto, after making an obsession over the character of an American writer, began draining his victims of their blood. Many times, he would mumble Catholic prayers and ask for angels to assist him. He specialized in questioning and anything related to art – models, copies, originals, fakes, stealth and illegal transactions. He also seemed interested by ancient artifacts.
Lastly, Ross was the typical one. He dealt with the classic bullet to the head and was involved in many things, especially drug trafficking and prostitution. He seemed very aggressive, and had greater interest in trying to overcome Caterina than any of them. One could say it was almost personal. After all, Caterina and her father got rid of many of his men, including their butler Vincent, and most recently, his right-hand man – the Snake.
The Italian went through her father's emails and tried to piece things together. Everything was coded and most of the emails were just formalities. Managers and directors would ask if they should do one thing or another, or send payment confirmations, reminders and so on. However, there were several threats sent by someone immediately prior to the whole incident at the Green Snake bar.
For the moment, she decided to keep Vitto under observation, just in case he would suddenly receive some offer from either Frost or Ross. She immediately thought of her father's money – she could be making such an offer, if only she had access to a larger piece of the man's fortune. But that could only be achieved in a year – time she feared she did not have.
After a couple of hours, she sat up from the computer, rubbed her eyes and sighed. "…I'm so sick of this," she mumbled to herself. "I should get a cat…" Instead though, she decided to make herself some coffee, dump some vanilla ice cream in it and top it up with melted chocolate. She stood on the balcony, resting with her elbows against the rail way and breathing in the cold air. She needed money… Badly.
On the other hand, Light seemed to be doing well. He had just won at tennis yet again – by now, it was no surprise for anyone. At most, it was a consolation for those who lost. Yagami was impossible to beat at high scores or tennis. But even though he had won the game, he still felt odd. He was now aware of his stalker, who he saw everywhere.
As he was changing back into his uniform after the game, Ryuk drew his attention again.
'Do you have a second?' it asked with a wider grin than usual.
"I can't talk to you in public…" Light mumbled into his closet as he unfolded his uniform.
'Fine, then. I talk, you listen. If you don't want to hear it, you can plug your ears or something,' it began. 'Light, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. What makes a shinigami and a human who has a Death Note different?' Ryuk asked, only to answer himself. 'Well, there are two things. And why do shinigamis have to write the name of the humans they kill in their Death Notes? Do you have any ideas?'
Light sighed. How on earth would he know that? …Ryuk sure was talkative that day. He buttoned up his shirt and tightened the tie around his neck.
'It's because we are able to take human lifespan for ourselves.'
He frowned. "What do you mean?" Light mumbled, aware the shinigami would hear him.
'Let's say you have a human who is due to live until the age of sixty, and a god of death who wrote that this person would die at forty. Sixty minus forty equals twenty – now those twenty years taken from someone in the human world are added to that god of death's lifespan. So, it means that as long as we don't slack off, even if someone was to shoot us in the head or stab us in the heart with a knife, a god of death cannot die. On the other hand, no matter how many names you write in your Death Note, your lifespan will not increase. That is the first difference between gods of death and humans who possess a Death Note.'
When it was done explaining, Light was all finished packing his sports equipment. He chuckled. "That's interesting…" he admitted in a low voice.
Pleased with his reaction, the shinigami went on. 'The second difference between us will probably be of even greater interest to you, though this has less to do with lengthening life and more to do with cutting it short. Shinigamis can tell what a person's name is just by looking at their face – we know instantly. And do you have any idea why?' it asked again, leaning in towards Light so much that he almost fell backwards. 'Because through a shinigami's eyes, a human's name can be seen above their head. Not only that – we see their lifespan as well. In fact, I can see yours right now. If I convert that to human time, I can tell you exactly how many years you've got left, but there's no way I'd ever tell you that.' Ryuk laughed. 'Shinigamis never have to worry that they won't be able to kill a person just because they don't know their name; and every time we do take a life, we know exactly how many years we're going to receive. Our eyes just aren't the same – and that is the difference between you and I. Do you want me to go on?'
Light walked out of the changing room and through the school yard. That was an interesting difference… He threw a glance over his shoulder and saw the same man following him. He was outside the school's main gate, pretending to be reading a book on a bench. It made Light smirk a little. So, he was going to wait there the entire day. Of course, the paper wasn't going to be believable enough for such a long interval.
Once Light nodded, Ryuk continued. It was already getting excited about what it was about to say – this was the best part. 'If a shinigami drops the notebook and a human picks it up, he can grant that human the eyes of a shinigami, but only if a deal is made – one that's been with us since ancient times… Does it interest you?'
Kira's eyes widened for a moment, as he quickly took a calming breath and looked around himself. Nobody seemed to had noticed the change. "What is it?" he mumbled as he pretended to be yawning.
'The price for having the shinigami eyes is half of that person's remaining lifespan. That's all it is,' Ryuk concluded, as if it would have been the price of a coffee cup.
"Half…?" Kira repeated, shocked. At first, he thought he did not hear correctly.
'In other words, if you are supposed to live another fifty years, it would be twenty-five. If it was one more year, then six months.'
A sly grin spread over his face. He could understand the situation perfectly and it was a very delicate one. The presence of a spy nearby could mean trouble for him on all levels – his identity as Kira, his clarity of mind, as well as Caterina and the money he expected from her, but not only. On the other hand, Ryuk made it very clear he was only there for entertainment. To him, it was a game, something to pass time. Certainly, it would be amusing to watch Light stressing over an empire that would never have the time to grow and develop, dying way too soon to make a durable change. As he was walking to his next class – economic studies – he couldn't help but feel that Ryuk was trying to take advantage of him.
'I'll say it once more,' the shinigami grinned. 'Give me half of your lifespan, and I'll give you the shinigami eyes. So… what will it be, Light? Is it a deal?'
Kira took his usual seat. He didn't notice anyone else there – he was too lost in his own thoughts. Should he make the deal? Was it worth such a high price? Half of his remaining lifespan… considering he did not know it. If he knew he was going to die as a very old man, say in his 80's or older, then he could probably make the deal for about twenty-thirty years. The shinigami eyes would prove to be a very valuable weapon. He would no longer need to bother with finding the names of those who threatened him, his purpose or even Caterina – their face would be enough. In another twenty years, he will be about thirty-eight though… in other words, still pretty young.
According to many psychologists and sociologists, it was between the age of thirty-five and fifty when a man was most capable in all fields of his life, but especially from a professional perspective. It was when men would jump from one promotion to another, or establish their own business and climb the social ladder. With twenty years left, it meant he would only get about three years of glory out of fifteen possible. It meant throwing away four fifths of a man's professional climax. Also counting that he was considered brilliant at only eighteen, it only made the choice look more like a waste.
"…Can you tell me if I have another sixty-four years left?" Light mumbled under his breath. "Will I live to be eighty-two or older?" he asked again after a moment, but the shinigami only laughed. "…Damn you."
Light had thought for a moment that living until the age of fifty would be enough to see the world changed, his enemies finally realizing it is better for everyone to work together, and… well, a family to carry on his mission. He would have enough time to set everything in order. However… Ryuk's words echoed in his mind again. 'If it was one more year, then six months.'
He carefully took out his phone and texted Caterina. He needed to calm down in order to find a rational solution, some way through which he could have everything he needed to rule the world and change it for the better. 'Any luck so far?'
Caterina walked back inside the only room of the apartment and sat on the wide windowsill. She set her cup down and looked at her phone once it beeped. 'Narrowed down to 2. The 3rd could be lured to our side, but I don't have enough.'
Light pretended to be copying the teacher's explanations from the board. 'Not even with the plan?'
'It's an investment that takes over ¾ of what we have, minimum costs and all. K won't help, he doesn't trust you. We need something else,' he read from the screen as he set the phone down and began calculating. It didn't take him long to see Caterina was right – they were too broke for anything major.
'I have some set aside. We can live off of that while we make the investment. How long does it take to the first pay?' he asked, trying to plan in advance.
Caterina looked at the details emailed to her by the King. '1 and half or more. 3 months at most and anything in between. Can we manage?'
An idea crossed his mind. Could he make Caterina agree to the exchange? But as soon as he thought it, he labeled the thought as unrealistic. Someone who has seen premature, violent deaths all her life was more than likely to value her own life. But then, how can he obtain the eyes without paying such an enormous price?
'Probably, if we stop spending on unnecessary things,' he eventually typed back. When Caterina received the message, she sighed.
'I hate 'probably' and you know it. Probably, possibly, perhaps, maybe, are all useless. They reveal nothing. I want certainty.'
'It depends,' Light sent back as he held a sigh in his chest. 'The most certain way is to make a budget per month, per week and per day. Anything left will go to an emergency fund for when the budget is not enough, but only for what's important, like bills or a sudden need for something. YKWIM.' The last word was short for 'you know what I mean'.
Sighing, she ran a hand through her auburn curls. Living on a budget was the last thing she wanted, but Caterina could easily understand why they needed that. Soon enough, she received another text from Light. 'Any progress on what I asked you to do?'
Caterina had to send back a negative response. She couldn't find anything other than what they already knew regarding the twelve FBI agents. 'However, I found something interesting regarding the dead. You should see ASAP.'
Light was asked to go and solve a problem at the board, given as an example for the upcoming test. As usual, he solved it flawlessly – it was basic economy with very little math required. What he had been calculating for Caterina and himself was a little more complicated because the numbers were real and far from the idealized data of theoretical problems. The value didn't divide exactly, there were different currencies that he had to transform and he had to estimate the value of those currencies for the following year. In order for everyone to have a fair chance at passing the class, the teacher would spare them all of those little inconveniences of real life – it was a piece of cake.
When he returned to his seat, he picked up the phone again. The teacher was already making sure that the other students had understood that type of problem, repeating the explanation again. Light was looking towards the board, but thought elsewhere. 'Urgent?' he typed.
'Yes. 22514-316-237,' Caterina sent him and then threw her phone on the bed. She went to take a shower, thinking about Light and the constant threat of their messages being read by a third party.
Ryuk read the numbers twice. 'Hey, Light? What's with those numbers?' he asked after the bell rang and Light sat up.
The student was heading towards the bathroom – it was one of the few places where he could talk to Ryuk and make it look ordinary. He closed the door and looked around. There was nobody else there, so he began explaining.
"It's a simple code. The first numbers are letters, while the last represent an hour. It's a simple way to hide the meeting place and date." Light took out a piece of paper and began to copy the numbers. "Look. I will start with the second part because there are fewer possibilities. There are 26 letters in the alphabet, which leaves 3.1.6 and 3.16, or CAF and CP – it could be a café, or the central park. As for the second, it could be .4, 22.5.14, 22.5.14, or That's BBEAD, VEAD, VEN, or BBEN. The only one that makes sense is VEN." Kira smirked. "I know where to find her."
Ryuk looked at him, surprised. 'I don't remember you making any code.'
"It's a leftover from back when her father and her were on the run. She would tell me if they were alright and where they've been before every few months through a long code. Several times, the rule was slightly different – for every second or third letter, the count had to be done backwards. She always sent the key right in the middle, if that was the case." Light walked out of the bathroom and checked the time. It was already 12:58 PM, so he rushed to his next class. From a window, he saw the agent still waiting for him to be done with his classes.
Caterina got dressed and left the house. She had the laptop fully charged and a memory stick with her and had caught her hair in a full ponytail. She loved her hair and cared about her physical appearance, but the teenager was already stressed by too many things to stand her hair constantly falling over her face. Caterina went to a small café on the corner of an alley in the central park, overshadowed by an old willow tree and calling themselves L'Etage. She had been there with Light once before – it was recently open and with a very European flair about it. The last time they sat there, she had showed Light a painting of Venice, right above one of the tables in the back.
As soon as she stepped inside, Caterina found herself smiling. It smelled of fresh coffee, cinnamon, and cloves. It played soft music and it seemed every table was in theme with the late 1800's. Tens and tens of candles were used for light and the tables were metallic, with a glass top, adorned with iron roses, veins and leaves – just like the chairs. It was dark, intimate, and very stylish. Even the waiter was incredibly stylish and in theme with everything – he wore his hair a little over his shoulders, tied back in a low ponytail. His vest shined in the low light with vintage swirls and curls in flowery patterns and he smiled like an old-fashioned butler.
"Good afternoon, miss. How can I be of service?" he bowed.
"Hi," she smiled, "I want the table by the Venice painting, please."
Although the café was quite small in comparison to others, the waiter still led her to the required table and pulled her chair for her. "Would you like to order anything? Please, if you don't mind me, have you been here before?"
Caterina chuckled, unsuspecting the true identity of the man. "Just once. Can you bring me a menu? I'll call you when I make up my mind, thank you."
"If you will allow me, miss, you are as beautiful as a nymph. I would like you to be my muse in creating something new," the man spoke softly, almost singing his words to the slow, jazzy instrumental in the background.
Caterina looked up for a moment. Why she did that exactly, she couldn't believe, but in a way, the man reminded her of some fantasy character, of a demon or maybe a vampire that had just walked out of some red hard cover book and jumped off the shelves of a library. Quickly labeling the thought as foolish and impossible, she nodded slowly. "…Alright, you have my permission."
As soon as the waiter left, Light was just walking into the café. He looked all around, skimming the paintings in golden frames and trying to recognize each. There were Barcelona, Paris, Dresden, Glasgow, Rome, Vienna, Monaco, and far in the back, Venice. He saw someone at the table, alone.
'Well, who would've thought? You were right…' the shinigami grinned behind Light as he followed him to the table.
Kira smiled when he could recognize auburn curls falling over her back. "I thought I didn't place my bet right when I first walked in."
She chuckled. "It's one of the reasons I wanted this table. By the way, the reason I wanted us to meet as soon as your last class was over…" She turned on the laptop and accessed a file from the memory stick. "These are threat emails he received right before the whole… incident."
Light nodded as he read through the few saved emails. "He knew several months before that phone call… That's strange. Each comes from a different address, but if we search these up, they've all been deactivated a few hours after…"
"Yes… So, do you think you can find out who managed these addresses?" she asked him after a moment. "I bet they will lead to either this guy… or this one," she said as she showed him the pictures of two men, both over forty but not really old yet. It made Light remember his conclusion from before, that he would be at the top of his game during the golden fifteen years.
"So, they are the two who are the most likely to…" he mumbled and waited for Caterina to nod in understanding. "I will try, but I can't promise you much. I don't remember them being publicly accused of anything. Chances are, these names have nothing in common with their real ones and there are no available files on them – alias or not, for the American." As soon as he noticed the waiter approaching their table, he immediately shut the laptop. He looked at Caterina in confusion – he didn't recognize what he saw on the tray, but her sly grin and the gleam of excitement in her eyes reassured him. Kira had no idea what it was that she had ordered, but it looked good.
"Poison apple and flaming dragon, signorina," the waiter grinned as he set the cups on the table.
Caterina suddenly paled. She reached for her gun, but several men walked out from behind the bar, from behind curtains or even from the bathroom. They all loaded their guns as she found herself lowering hers. Kira was equally as panicked, looking all around for a way out.
"…Who do you work for?" she asked. Usually, men younger than forty had no chance of working for themselves and the waiter didn't look older than perhaps… his late twenties? Thirty, at most.
Smiling, he shrugged casually and the armed men withdrew back into their hiding spots. "I thought you would have guessed already," he spoke in the same relaxed voice he had used before. "That frown looks terrible on your face. You could pass for a marble statue with your ghostly pale, my darling, which considering I haven't tasted you yet, is rather disturbing to witness."
Light was confused beyond words. In his eyes, the man was nuts – he must have lost his last drop of sanity in order to speak that way. "She asked who you work for," he repeated, trying to impose his authority.
"He doesn't…" Caterina mumbled. "That's what he just said. He's the third…"
The man gestured towards the cups he had set before them. "Please, enjoy yourselves. Consider this the first taste of an eternal collaboration. You are both my guests, as I had hoped when I saw such a radiant young lady sitting alone. I will be waiting for you in the back afterwards," the man spoke just as softly and with a clear Italian accent. He was fluent in English, but he had a way of pronouncing every word that one could have swore he spoke a dialect of Italian.
Light frowned. "How do we know for certain this is not poison?"
The waiter stopped for a moment, looking honestly surprised. When he did come around, he chuckled and raised his both eyebrows. "You don't. That's the most fun."
Caterina sighed. "It's not his style to use poison. Besides, we're both dead if we try to leave before the talk, which won't happen unless we eat. He has no reason to poison us," she mumbled as she breathed towards the flames burning the sugar on the surface of her dessert.
Light looked at his dessert – a ball covered in red sauce the same shade as blood. He didn't trust that it was safe, but he cut it with his fork anyway, if only for curiosity. Its interior was a creamy white that smelled like apples, so he decided to try it.
Trying to get over the inappropriate names of the desserts, Caterina tasted hers. It was a fresh, very light mousse with dragon fruit. Actually, it was almost like a fruity reinterpretation of tiramisu, which she used to love as a child. It was how she would judge a restaurant when first going there with her father. For a moment, she closed her eyes and felt tears threatening to spill and a headache haunting her. She had this same dessert in a small cafeteria somewhere in the countryside, but she couldn't remember where. She knew she had asked her father what flavor it was and he told her about the fruit that looked like the scales of a dragon.
On the other hand, Light just tasted the cake and sighed. It was a weird, spicy-sweet combination that he wasn't such a fan of. It was kind of like eating apples, chocolate and hot sauce in one strange combination. "Caterina… I don't know your rules and whatnot, but please tell me I don't have to finish this. It's disgusting."
She shook her head and blinked away a few tears. "…Mine tastes like a memory. How cruel can a man be, to serve me this! Of all things, he had to make this!" Breathing in, she tried to calm down. "Light… Let's see if we can talk to him. If we're enemies, it's good to know. If he's on our side…"
"Then you might have a guardian angel, after all," the waiter chuckled behind her as he appeared from between some curtains. "Would you be so kind to follow me?"
Looking at each other, the two agreed on doing as they were told. Kira wrapped an arm around her waist, as she tightened her grip around the gun she held at the belt of her jeans. They were descending into a basement, down some stairs cut directly into stone – or at least, into some material replicating it perfectly – and through a very dark passage way. They both hoped the stairs would have the same pace until the last one, because they couldn't see what they were stepping on.
Eventually, they stepped on a carpet so thick it felt like their feet were sinking into it. There was light coming from a couple wall lamps mimicking candle sticks and a chandelier in the middle of the room. It was no larger than the café, with stone walls and wooden floor and some magnificent carpets with intricate patterns. Caterina looked at a couch as she walked past it. She could recognize real damask by touch, then ran her fingers over the swirls of wood framing its back. He had many paintings on the walls, all absolutely gorgeous and as realistic as digital pictures. There was a fireplace across the room, apparently useless, but the contradiction intrigued her. It could hide another passage way, a safe, or maybe an arsenal.
All this time, Light was just standing there. He was looking for possible threats. There were apparently useless curtains hanging from the ceiling to the floor in a dark, deep red that didn't allow him to see through them. It seemed the only way out was through the stairway that was now guarded by at least one man, standing a couple stairs behind him. Carefully, he stepped in.
'How are you getting out of this, Light?' Ryuk mocked him again. He was obviously amused with the scene before him.
Vitto sat down on one of the two couches and crossed his legs. He looked more alike to some nobleman in a painting than to a human being from the 21st century. He gestured towards the two armchairs and the couch in front of him and nodded. "Please."
Caterina walked around the couch she was looking at. She tried to relax, leaning against the arm of the couch as Light joined her by her side. "What is the purpose of this?" he asked first, trying to ignore Ryuk's laughter.
"You see, I never forget what someone of importance orders. In this world, the only fortune of most value is the mind – good thinking and an exceptional memory were the fortune your dearest Padre had received from our Lord," the man began, as his hands moved almost as much as his mouth. Light looked at them as they pointed up towards the man's head, mimicked the holding of something, or the clock mechanism of the mind, he supposed. It was almost tiring to keep watching his hands. "Our Lord had also been wonderfully generous with me, and I've no doubt that He's been watching over you as well. Let me say, it is remarkable how you could escape the Snake on several occasions. Have you thanked Him yet?" he continued to talk about intelligence and god.
Caterina threw Light a look that said she was close to considering the idea. After all, she had been held captive and Light had been poisoned – they were both one step away from death. "I'm afraid I've lost my faith in him a long time ago. Padre did many horrible things, yet he got away so many times with it."
The man nodded in agreement. "Of course, but the price he paid… What was the price?" he asked, rubbing his index and thumb together. "And I can assure you, he is only now paying for everything he's done, depending on His judgment. Who knows?" he shrugged, "Perhaps God will be kind to him, for punishing those sinful men for so long. However, there was innocent blood he had spilled, which is perhaps the worst way in which a man can sin."
Light, already annoyed, cough in order to get the other's attention. "I doubt the involvement of this god of yours and I also doubt his existence. Another thing I doubt is the reason why you're brought us here. I am almost certain the Dragon's life is not what you wish to discuss."
"Ah, he could pass for a Latin if it wasn't for that stiff face of his," he addressed Caterina. "An interesting choice, indeed. But as I was saying, your gifts are what eventually caught my eye. Your intelligence, your courage and your beauty – and make no mistake, I am talking of you both. You truly are a beautiful couple."
"What do you want?" Light asked, impatient and obviously stressed. "We've been talking for five minutes and getting nowhere."
The man shrugged with a faint smile. He reached for a glass on a little round table on the side and spun it around a couple of times. It seemed thicker than wine, but his guests didn't seem to notice at first. After feeling the aroma, Vitto sipped from his drink. "If it's business you prefer, we can talk about that as well, but your situation is so delicate, we can only be serious about it." His smile faded and he almost looked tragic in the way he kept staring into the dark red of his drink. "So sad… You are about to be crushed by Rod Ross, even with the help of Mr. Ooi."
"Are you on our side, or his?" Light was quick to judge as he leaned forward.
"Ivan Frost offered me 30% of the Dragon's wealth," Vitto pointed out the fact casually. "Rod Ross, after he heard about the offer, promised me 35%, then 40% and you, my lady. Even so, I wish to hear your part in all this. Let me just warn you first – the world, right now, is in a very unstable state, if you will. On the verge of war, if you allow the expression. It's happened every time one of the poles of power fell – changes had to be made quickly, in order to avoid a global conflict. Such a rotten apple of Discordia it is, wouldn't you agree…? Power struggles will bring us nothing but the Apocalypse."
Caterina felt the sky falling down over her. Her father's empire was going to be torn to shreds unless she would willingly give up half of it… But that would make Vitto more powerful than Frost and possibly at the same level as Ross, if not a little more influential. The King also expected something from her for the help offered during this single year of vulnerability.
"Caterina…" Light mumbled. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and leaned back against the couch. "We need all the help we can get…"
"We'll be insignificant if we give up half," she mumbled back. "Unless… Would you kill for me, love?" she asked as she kept her eyes on the man in front of them. His drink left a strange red color on the glass whenever he drank from it and there seemed to be dark lumps at the bottom. Was his drink… coagulating?
Instead of an answer, Light sat up. "We offer you half of the fortune, sir."
Vitto grinned softly as he pressed his thin lips together, gathering a drop of wine. "Only that…? Now, please excuse my rudeness, but I have to ask an indecent question. Is your lady included, young man?"
Caterina sat up as well, barely holding back her anger. She wanted to slap his head backwards, but couldn't risk it with so many guards around. "You disgusting freak!"
"Then, 60%. That is my price," he smiled as he drank some more from his glass. "Can she deliver another one?" he asked one of the guards. "Please, that would be lovely." The man took his glass and disappeared between the curtains.
Author's Notes:
Let me first apologize for not updating for so long. College is eating up most, if not all of my times. In the real world, getting close to Light's school performance can be quite exhausting - I have no idea how he managed to deal with everything on his plate and still be the best student in his school. What the author of this story and Kira do share, among some philosophical views, is a crave for the first place and a slightly self-destructing perfectionism. So now that I've explained my absence, here's another chapter proofread by AbandonedSock, as always. The next one is on the way, and I promise to write as much as I can during this one week off.
I'd also like to thank everyone for your support and your very kind words. It brightens up my day every time I see a new review, and I'm overjoyed to see new reviewers. I hope you're still out there and reading, because I'm still writing and there will be a new character stepping in soon. I'm not sure yet if this character will have a major impact, but they will be present during the next few chapters.
By the way, what do you think of Vitto? I had fun creating his character, just like I had fun creating the Snake. For some reason, villains are more entertaining to write than good characters - that's why I'm still writing at this story when my other few are still on pause. I don't think there are any really positive characters or heroes in this story.
