Thank you, Good Intentions for your advice and opinion. :) Hope you all will enjoy this new chap!
Chapter 5
Kahoko Hino merrily skipped out of the inn, satchel in hand. The 'deal' had gone as smoothly as she hoped, although the hole made was unexpected. Nevertheless, she completed her senior's task and was rewarded quite handsomely. The only thing she frowned upon was that her lovely forest green gown had a tear. It would cost quite a few sums to get it fix, but she will worry about that later.
'Now, to head back to the mansion,' Kahoko thought glumly. Pulling the hood up to shield her face, she turned a corner into a deserted alley. Unexpectedly, a strong force pushed her against the wall of the dark alleyway. Her hands were caged above her head and the satchel fell with a thud onto the muddy ground. Grunting in annoyance, Kahoko grimaced. She didn't anticipate an attack like this. In that moment, the feel of her silver blade against her hip was reassuring.
'At least, I didn't drop it. Man, this guy's quite good, I never expected this. Well, play time's over,'
Without any hesitation, Kahoko forced her weight on her assailant. Aiming a swift kick at the other party's shin, her attacker grunted and loosen his grip on her. He clutched his abdomen as he fell. She clicked her tongue upon realizing her miscalculation. Deciding to escape instead of killing him, she quickly snatched her reward and broke into a run. However, her right foot was caught by her attacker. The assassin slipped and fell, landing in the mud. Her beautiful gown was now officially ruined.
She saw red.
Howling in wrath, Kahoko drew her blade and stalked over to the assailant. Her soon-to-be victim was still too busy to notice his predator closing in on him. Only when the cold blade was pressed against his neck did he realized she hadn't escaped. One thought went through his mind as Kahoko slowly added pressure onto her weapon:
'I'm so dead.'
Closing his eyes in defeat, Len prepared himself for the pain and whatever 'after death' sort of scenarios to happen. When he didn't feel anything, the prince slowly opened his eyes and was greeted by a pair of smoldering amber orbs.
'Eva, she's beautiful,'
Len quickly shooed the thought away. Now wasn't a good time to muse over the killer woman's features. Kahoko grabbed a hold of his collar and pressed the silver blade against his heart. In a grim tone, she asked:
"Who are you and what did you assault me for?"
A bit surprised, Len hastily touched his face and heaved a sigh of relief. Thank Eva that his mask was still intact. No wonder she couldn't recognize him.
"Stop sighing there and answer my question!" Kahoko added more pressure.
"Alright, fine. Name's Tsuki and I did not assault you. I was merely trying to get your attention," Len explained to the feisty woman in front of him.
Kahoko snorted, "Get my attention? I bet the ladies swoon over you for that wall banging you did. Sorry to disappoint you, mister, I'm unlike them. Now, get out of my sight before I change my mind on sparing you,"
Nimbly, Kahoko sheathed her blade and picked up her satchel. Dusting herself off, she turned away. Before she could leave, Len grabbed her bare hand. A sudden jolt rocketed throughout her body and she swiftly pulled away. It was nothing like she ever felt before. Hiding her shock, she glanced suspiciously at Len and cornered him against the wall. Their faces were so close that anyone would think that they were amorously kissing.
"What was that?" she questioned, sizing him up. Although no one could see it due to his mask, he was shaken by the contact. He thought he was the only one but it seemed that she felt it too. The distance between them was so close that Len was feeling a tad bit awkward with their current position. Kahoko noticed the discomfort too and leaned away, but never took her eyes off him.
'Well, at least, I'm not the only one feeling weird,' Len thought.
"I have no idea what it was and I'm not here to talk about that. I want to hire your services," Len steeled his voice.
Kahoko blinked once, twice and giggled. Len was bewildered at her reaction. He didn't say anything weird, did he? Not that he knows of anyway. Annoyed, Len grabbed her arm, careful to avoid her bare hands.
"What's so funny? You make deliveries, don't you?" he asked seriously.
Kahoko grinned and shook her head, causing the hood to fall off. Her scarlet hair shone in the pale moonlight. Catching himself before his mind could venture any further, he asked again:
"I have heard about you. They called you the Deadly Melody. I have no idea why but all I want now is that you get something for me."
Bemused, Kahoko chuckled, "You know of me but you have no idea what my real profession is? Listen here, Tsuki, you're obviously new to this. My clients always send their requests to my mentor who will assign me to their missions. I don't go around taking assignments that pop out of nowhere, like yours. So, if you want my services, meet him then,"
Kahoko shrugged away Len's hand. But, before she could walk away, again, Len caught her. Groaning in irritation, she pushed him away.
"Didn't you hear a single word I said just now?" Kahoko berated.
"I heard you perfectly. Just that...," Len trailed off.
Pissed, Kahoko snapped, "Spit it out already!"
"I don't know who the heck your mentor is. As you said, I'm new to this anyway. So, mind telling me what your occupation is?"
Smirking, she said:
"An assassin."
One hour ago...
Hihara swung open the oak door at the top of the stairs. The stone-walled room was dimly lit, the only source of light coming from the four candles on a candle stand. The room was completely bare, except for a round table and an occupied chair stationed at the center of the room. The candles' flame flickered for a moment as both of them entered and returned back to its still state. Hihara closed the door softly, turning the lock with a click. He pocketed the key and went to a dark corner, observing the other two occupants of the room.
The man removed his hood, revealing bloodshot eyes and messy auburn hair. The bearded man was huge. He was literally twice the size of Kahoko. Her hood was drawn up, shadowing her face. Silence enveloped the room heavily like a threat. Neither party in the room spoke up to break the increasingly straining stillness of the room.
Grunting, the man stood and threw a satchel onto the table. It gave a soft thud upon contact. In a gruff and blunt voice, the bearded man said:
"Here's the potion you ordered from Gellert. Had to knock the heck out of em' merchants before they surrendered it. Bit trouble there. Now, where's my fee?" The man leaned forward, staring daggers at Kahoko.
Mutely, Kahoko opened the satchel. Taking out the slim vial, she examined it closely. Giving it a shake, the swirling dull black liquid gave a soft bluish glow. Satisfied, she put the vial back into the satchel. Digging into her pocket, she pulled out a blood-red pouch and threw it to the burly man who caught it swiftly.
Kahoko turned to leave but the man hauled her up. She let out a small gasp as he slammed her against the table. Hihara immediately raced over to her aid but was sent crashing against the stone wall. He was immediately knocked out. Kahoko struggled under the man's hold. He had her pinned against the table with his body. His crushing weight disabling her movements.
"There's no need to struggle, dearie," the man grinned, flashing his yellow teeth at her.
Kahoko snarled, "What's the meaning of this? We had a deal." She continued to struggle but it was to no avail.
"Indeed, we do. But, someone else has offered me a greater deal than yours for that same potion. I have no idea what that means to you but I don't care. I'm taking both my payment and the elixir with me,"
In a flash, he grasped the satchel and pouch. He ripped open the door forcefully despite it being locked. However, a blade had lodged itself in his right leg. Staggering due to the pain, he hung onto the door to regain his balance. An invisible force sent him crashing back into the room and atop the table. The door slammed shut, the spoiled lock miraculously clicking back in place.
The dealer tried to get up but could not. It felt like something heavy was sitting on top of his chest even though there was nothing. He was gasping for air and clawed at his throat as if that could help him gain some oxygen back into his lungs.
"There's no need to struggle, Felix," Hihara said. A silver trumpet glittered in the candles' glow. He had stored it in this room, just in case, something like this came up. Kahoko stood beside him, her hood shadowing her twisted smile. She made her way slowly to Felix who laid hopelessly on top of the table. His face was coated in sweat, his eyes darting wildly.
"What... What did you do to me?" He choked and gasped. Chuckling, Kahoko answered:
"It wasn't me. You should ask the other presence in this room,"
"Hi... Hihara?" Felix gasped. His eyes dilated and rolled to the back of his head. White foam started to form and spill out of his mouth.
"Sorry, man. But, your actions leave me no choice. It was good doing business with you. Bea and Kaho-chan, won't you both do the honors?"
A small twinkling sound rang beside Felix's ear. To the untrained ears, it might sound like a small chime. But, with it being so close to him, he was sure it was something else entirely. There was no doubt about it.
It was a fairy.
His eyes widen upon realization. Before he could say anything more, he was sent sprawling on the floor. Kahoko slammed her foot into his face and crushed him to the ground. She lifted her foot and went for it again. This time, a small figure with silver hair and violet eyes floated beside her. With the raise of her tiny hand, an excruciating force knocked him against the ground as Kahoko's foot made contact with his chest. The floorboard cracked, and both of them fell through the floor.
"A... Assassin?" Len repeated.
Kahoko rolled her eyes and answered, "Yes, Mr. Obvious."
"But... why do you do deliveries then?"
"It's not every day I get an assignment to end some pathetic fool's life. Those deliveries always involve a bit of my... specialties which I have no interest to elaborate."
"Alright. Whatever. I don't want to know anyway. So, can you just take on my request? Treat it like a personal favor. Although we don't know each other much and we pretty much got off the wrong foot, please consider taking it on. I will pay whatever price you name. It will just be a clean cut mission, hopefully, there won't be blood involved," Len mumbled the last part.
Kahoko sighed, " You won't stop pestering me unless I take your favor on, right?" She rubbed the bridge of her nose. Len smirked and nodded.
"All I want is for you to head over to Gellert and get me a potion from a merchant named Usui. He won't be hard to track, seeing as he's quite famous there. The potion is black in color, but given a little swirl, it should give a bluish glow. It's quite simple and easy, isn't it?"
When Kahoko didn't answer him, Len stepped closer to her. It might seem as if she was considering his request when in actual fact she wasn't. She was actually stunned by it.
"Miss Melody?"
'No, it couldn't be. He can't be one of us too. The only person I haven't met face to face is...,' Kahoko thought wearily. She reached into her satchel and pulled out the vial she had just obtained. His eyes widen in surprise at the sight. She held it out in front of him and pressed her unsheathed blade against his throat. In a tight voice, she drawled:
"Is this it?... Prince Tsukimori,"
