During midnight, Jeff, Eli, Maki, and Umi were in the basement, watching the footage that was recorded earlier by Maki. Even though Jimmy didn't reveal the location of the headquarters because he dozed off due to the alcohol, they were pretty satisfied he had confessed to working for Regis.
"Jimmy's surely out of the league now." Umi grinned, "One person down."
"We're left with Anthony Garcia, Venus, and then that son of a bitch." Eli added on, "Once he's reported to the police, he's toast."
"Hey, hey, we're making some progress!" Jeff exclaimed happily before looking at Maki, "Why the frown, Maki? Cheer up. This is a celebration. We moved forward in our quest to bring down the crime syndicate."
"Yeah, we moved forward because of me." She crossed her arms, "You made me wear such a skimpy dress in front of a pervert! You made me look as though I was offering myself to that man! It was so embarrassing!"
"Aw, be that as it may, you looked pretty sexy and gorgeous in it." Jeff teased her. She made a 'tch' sound upon hearing that.
"Don't remind me of that sickening bastard." She uttered, "Men are weird sometimes. Anyways, I'll go and make a police report now." She then got up from her seat and left the room. Eli and Umi looked at Jeff.
"What? Did I say something wrong?" Jeff asked.
"No." Eli said, "It's just that she kinda had the same reaction surprisingly when I complimented her on the way to Jimmy's hotel. It seems like she really hates that dress."
"I could understand her." Umi voiced out, "After all, you made her wear such a shameless dress in front of a creepy asshole. She had to watch out for herself, you know?"
"Well, I get it, but that's the only way to bait a perverted playboy like Jimmy out." He sighed, "And like I said earlier, Maki's the only one who's not wanted by the police, so she's safe from the law. I hope she understands that I'm doing this not because I want to embarrass her or put her in danger, but to bring this crime syndicate down." Umi and Eli nodded their heads and called it a day.
The next morning, Maki was in the living room, video-calling Honoka on the phone and filling her in on the incident that happened last night. She also complained about the dress and talked about the compliments she received from Eli and Jeff about it, even though she didn't really appreciate it.
"Why though, Maki-chan?" Honoka asked, "Your friends were praising you because of your beauty. Isn't that a good thing?"
"It's just the situation that I was in that didn't make me feel grateful for the compliments I've received." Maki replied, "Anyways, let's not talk about that. Everything going smoothly on your side?"
Honoka nodded her head in response, "I've started working at the sweets shop, and so far it has been quite a good experience. I'm still learning how to make different types of manjuu though. I kinda suck at those...hehe."
"It's okay, Honoka. Practice makes perfect. Keep practising, and in no time, I'm sure you'll be an expert in making manjuu that the customers will enjoy. You always managed to accomplish many things even when they seemed impossible, so I'm pretty certain you are able to do this."
"Really? Well, if you believe I could do it, then I will try my best to make the greatest manjuu in Tokyo so that I won't disappoint you! When that happens, I hope you can return home and try it out. I want you to be the first person to taste it!"
"I definitely will, Honoka." Maki grinned, "I promise."
"Maki-chan, I'm actually quite curious about something." Honoka fidgeted with her fingers, "You told me about how your friends complimented you when you wore that red dress. I was wondering if...you could...let me...see you...in that dress."
"I'm sorry, Honoka. I won't do it." Maki shook her head, "I already told you I don't like the dress, and I don't wanna wear it again."
"But I wanna see it." Honoka pouted, "Everyone else has seen how beautiful you are, but not me. I'm your girlfriend! I'm supposed to be the first one to see how pretty you are!"
"Honoka, I already told you n…"
"Please, Maki-chan? Pretty, pretty please?" Honoka pleaded with puppy eyes. Maki couldn't resist those eyes. If it was anyone else, she would've stood her ground and adamantly said no. However, whenever it comes to Honoka, Maki just couldn't bear to refuse any of her requests. She doesn't have the strength to do so. With a defeated sigh, Maki agreed to wear the dress. Honoka's eyes lit up with joy.
Eli was training herself in her room. She did some push ups and jumping jacks. She proceeded to lift two ten-kilogram dumbbells vertically up to her collar bone before lowering it. As she was about to bring it up again, she heard someone knocking on her door. The blonde woman turned around and saw Maki.
Maki asked if Eli could come to the former's room for a short while. Eli nodded her head, and the two went to Maki's room. Afterwards, Maki handed her phone to Eli and told her to hold it for a while. Maki then took a paper bag in her wardrobe and went into the toilet before closing the door. Eli was baffled as she didn't know what was going on or what Maki wanted her to do.
"Oh, you must be Ms Eli Ayase." Eli heard a voice coming from the phone. She looked at the phone and saw Honoka's curious face. That was when she realized there was a video call ongoing. She was surprised and shocked at the same time.
"Uh, hello?" Honoka looked at Eli with a concerned face, "Are you okay, Ayase-san?"
"May I know exactly who you are?" Eli questioned with a cautious tone, "And how do you know me?"
"Oh, my name is Honoka, and I'm Maki-chan's girlfriend!" Honoka beamed, "Also, I've heard about you on the news, and from Maki-chan of course. You women are doing a very good job out there stopping evil! Keep it up!"
"Uhh...thanks?"
"No worries, I'm not a bad guy or anything, if that's what you're thinking." The orange-haired woman nervously laughed, "I can swear to you, Ayase-san. I, Honoka Kosaka, swear that if I am a bad guy, I will be forbidden to eat delicious, tasty, yummy food for a whole week! That'll kill me, you know."
"Alright, I get it." Eli giggled, "You're pretty hilarious, Miss Honoka."
"Hehe, I'm just a normal citizen who works in a sweets shop and loves her girlfriend very much." Honoka continued, "We do all sorts of things couples do: cuddle together under the cold weather, going on dates, kissing each other, stargazing, and so on." Out of the blue, her smile turned into a frown, and tears appeared in her eyes. Eli was taken aback. Did she say something wrong to Honoka?
"With that said, please help me look after Maki-chan. Make sure she's safe." Honoka wept, "I don't want to lose her. I can't bear to lose her. I still want to spend time with her. I still want to feel her affectionate hugs and kisses. I still want her by my side for the rest of our lives. If I lose her, then I...I…"
"I will. Don't you worry, Honoka." Eli replied, "I'll take good care of her."
"Thank you." Honoka cried softly. She sobbed for a few seconds before wiping her tears away.
"Ayase-san, may I ask a favor from you?" Honoka asked, "Can you please not tell Maki-chan I cried? I don't want her to worry about me. It'll definitely affect her while you girls are fighting against the baddies. That won't be good for her and you."
"Understood." Eli grinned. Just then, Maki stepped out of the toilet, donning the strapless scarlet red mini dress and red stilettos. She walked towards the wardrobe and stopped a few meters away from the phone.
"Eli, change to the back-facing camera, and then face the phone towards me." Maki said. Eli nodded her head and did what she was told to do. When Honoka saw Maki, she squealed in delight and her eyes sparkled brightly.
"Maki-chan!" She screamed, "You look so gorgeous and sexy in this dress! Suteki! "
She blushed wildly at that unexpected compliment, "I...imi wakannai!"
"It is true though!" Honoka exclaimed, "The dress and the shoes really suit you, Maki-chan! They make you look so, so, SO pretty and stunning. The color red is great on you too! It brings out your eyes. You truly are beautiful in this outfit! I'm so mes...mes...what's that word again? Ah! I'm so mes-me-rized by your beauty, Maki-chan!"
"R...really?" Maki looked away shyly.
"Mhm!" Honoka responded, "I will never lie about my girlfriend and her attractive looks!"
"T...thanks, Honoka." Maki muttered as her face turned as red as a tomato, "I...I'm glad you find me beautiful." Eli stared at her in incredulity, utter disbelief plastered on her face. She was stupefied and astounded.
"There wasn't a 'grr' or 'tch' at all?" Eli thought, "When we compliment Maki, we get a scowl, but when Honoka does it, she blushes and thanks her for it? What the hell is this biasness?!" She still couldn't believe it.
"Ayase-san, can you help me take a picture of Maki-chan, please?" Honoka asked, "And Maki-chan, can you pose for me? I wanna have some pictures of you in this dress, so that I can look at these everyday and admire you."
"You heard her, Maki." Eli said. Maki nodded her head and did some poses. Eli snapped some photos before passing the phone back to Maki.
"I'll send it to you once I change out of this, alright?" Maki told Honoka.
"Okay!" Honoka replied, "I can't wait to see them! You're so gorgeous, Maki-chan."
"Alright, I get it." Maki chuckled, "You're very pretty too…" Eli stared at them while the couple were complimenting each other.
"Girlfriends, huh…" Eli was reminded of one of the times she had spent with her ex.
In her ex's bedroom, she wore a strapless crystal blue dress with a purple ribbon tied around her waist. She also donned an embroidered tulle bolero cape with snowflakes over the top of the dress. Eli's eyes glittered at the sight of it and started singing praises about her ex's outfit.
Thinking back about it, Eli did miss the times she was with her ex, but it was all in the past. She snickered at the memory and walked out of Maki's room. She whipped her phone out from her pocket to check if there was any news.
To her surprise, it was reported that Jimmy Natas was arrested in the wee hours of the morning for his involvement with the crime syndicate and scamming people. However, he was just bailed out a few minutes ago, and his trial was expected to start a week later.
"Hopefully he gets his rightful punishment." Eli thought to herself, "Now, onto the others…"
In an office room, Regis ordered his men to beat Jimmy up, who had his hands chained to the wall. Jimmy kept yelling in pain as his stomach and face were getting punched, to a point that he started spitting out blood.
"So much for talking shit about me behind my back and wanting to murder me." Regis bellowed, "And here I am, bailing your ass out of prison. Life works strangely sometimes, don't you think, Mr Natas?"
"Ugh…" Jimmy huffed, "How on Earth did you get the video? I thought only the pretty lady had it. Did you get it from her?"
"It doesn't matter, Jimmy." Regis walked towards him and jabbed him in the face, "What matters is that you dared to badmouth me, undermine my efforts, and then stupidly expose one of our BIGGEST operations. You are one idiotic moron. Give me a reason why I shouldn't kill you."
"If you do, the traces lead back to you." Jimmy growled, "After all, you sent your man to bail me. The police have recorded his name down, and I'm sure even if I'm dead, they'll track him down, and from there, they'll track you down."
"Oh right, you reminded me." Regis snapped his fingers, "I did that man a service. You see, he took the trouble of bailing you out under his name, knowing fully the consequences if something were to happen to you, so obviously, I rewarded him handsomely."
"With money? Do you think that'll shut his mouth when he's endangered?"
"No, it's something even better." Regis proceeded to go near Jimmy's ear and whispered, "It's a family reunion." Jimmy looked at him with confusion. He didn't know what Regis had meant by that, but it sounded stupid to him.
"Ah, I see you must've not understood the situation, so let me start from the beginning." Regis strolled around the room, "He lost his parents two years ago due to a car crash, and he has been quite sad and lonely since then. I did feel bad for him, having no family. Since he helped me with something this dangerous and risky, I thought, why not reward him with something that's valuable to him to repay his bravery and wonderful efforts? That's why I reunited him with his parents. I'm such a nice boss. I've created a family reunion. Ain't that heartwarming?"
At that moment, Jimmy was filled with dread, because he realized what Regis had done to that man. He was scared and frightened that he might be next. The worst part was that he couldn't escape from this unknown place, and no one would ever save him.
"Please spare me, Boss." He begged, "I've said all that bullshit in my drunken stupor. You know I wouldn't think well when I drink. I'll reflect on my mistakes and do better next time. Please forgive me, I'll definitely repent!"
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't drunk people usually say their true feelings?" Regis squatted in front of him, "So that means your hatred towards me...is real. You just hide it deep down your heart and let no one know about it. Poor you. You had to suffer all alone. I'm sorry I couldn't help or change myself to your liking."
"It's okay, Boss." Jimmy uttered, "I think you're already good enough. You don't need to change a single thing…" Regis then stood up, took out a pistol from his pocket, and shot Jimmy on the right leg. The latter yelled in pain.
"You still got the guts to lie to me." Regis glared at him before aiming the gun at his head, "You are one fucking asshole, Jimmy Natas. You talk all that crap behind my back, and then act nice in front of me. You boldly claimed credit for making the crime syndicate successful, even though it was because of me and my efforts. You even thought of killing me and taking over the crime syndicate my father painstakingly built up from the ground. You have a death wish?"
"I'm sorry, Boss!" Jimmy cried, "I promise not to lie again! Please spare me, Boss!"
"Then tell me this." Regis said, "Who is this girl that recorded the video, and what does she look like? This woman must be so alluring to you. She could make you drink even though you know you can't handle the aftereffects."
"She's a red-haired girl who speaks very elegantly and cutely." Jimmy replied, "She wore a very sexy dress, and she has very big t…" Before he could finish, Regis pulled the trigger of his gun and shot Jimmy in the head, which killed him immediately.
"Once a degenerate, always a degenerate." Regis muttered as he shook his head in disappointment. He turned towards Venus, who was standing behind him.
"芬尼思, 請你幫我打電話給Kimberly, 問她现在是否有空 (Venus, help me call Kimberly and ask her whether she's free now)." He told her, "我要跟她谈一些東西 (I want to discuss some things with her)."
"是的, 老板 (Yes, Boss)." Venus bowed down before going out of the room to make the call. Regis ordered his men to dismember Jimmy's body and scatter each of the parts in different forests. They nodded their heads and started cutting the chains off Jimmy's hands with saws.
Before Regis walked out of the room, he took one last look at a dead Jimmy. Afterwards, he went off.