The Perfect Hunter

"Hey there. We've met before, haven't we?"

Beatrice offered the greeting with a light little wave.

I took a reflexive step back and fixed her with a glare. It was the only reasonable reaction. An obvious enemy had appeared in front of me at the most vulnerable moment imaginable.

"Was this your doing?"

"Nope. It was already like this by the time I got here. Jumping straight to suspicion? That hurts, you know."

She made a show of dabbing at an imaginary tear. I watched her in silence — and that was when my phone buzzed in my hand.

A text from my father. The sentence was short and spare, but the will behind it was carved in stone. Talking my way back inside was looking less and less likely. What a mess.

"I apologize for the suspicion. Given the circumstances, I—"

At any rate, the fact that Genma had bothered to send the message himself suggested that Beatrice, at least, hadn't had a direct hand in tonight's disaster. That she'd been lying in wait for the right moment was another matter entirely. I offered a slight bow.

"I get it. Getting thrown out of your own house isn't exactly a pleasant experience. I can sympathize as many times as you need."

That didn't mean I was about to drop my guard. She may not have been involved in this particular incident, but that didn't change the fact that she was dangerous.

"So what business do you have with me? As you can see, my situation isn't ideal. I don't have the luxury of a long conversation."

"If I said I just came to see your face… would you believe me?"

I gave her nothing. There was no point in reacting and handing her a weakness to work with. I had to be careful. She looked like an endlessly lovely girl — a fragile little doll — but in truth, of everyone I had met in this life, she was the most dangerous person I had encountered aside from Genma himself.

"You're on high alert, huh. I'm not going to eat you."

"……"

"Well, enough of this bland little probing match. Let's get to the point."

Beatrice tipped her head in a small, almost formal nod.

"A brief introduction, then. Beatrice. I hold a fairly important position in Nexus's Academy City branch."

"…"

I was more than a little thrown. I hadn't expected her to peel her own identity off and drop it in my face like that.

"Curious why I'd do that?"

"…Honestly, I don't quite follow."

She gave a light shrug.

"You're already watching me like a hawk. If I tried to play the innocent and sidle up to you, you wouldn't buy it anyway. So I figured being upfront would at least take the edge off that suspicion of yours. Even a little."

I understood what she was driving at. I could even admit the logic was sound. But there was one thing she had failed to account for. I already knew exactly who she was. A handful of candid sentences wasn't going to make me lower my guard.

"And what is your purpose in approaching me?"

"I got stuck with a tedious assignment. Seduce the young master of Ryuzaki-kai and bring him over. That's why I came up to you yesterday. Though I have to say, I never imagined I'd get shut down quite that hard."

From first to last, it matched the hypothesis I had built yesterday with almost insulting precision.

"Are you sure you should be telling your target all of that so freely? It would seem to get in the way of the mission."

"Doesn't matter."

The corner of Beatrice's mouth curved up, just slightly.

If it had been anyone else, I would have written it off as simple bravado. But this was Beatrice. The odds were high that this wasn't empty swagger — that she had the goods to back it up.

"Still, you two really went at it, huh? Getting thrown out this messily isn't exactly common."

"…We had a minor difference of opinion."

"Any more 'minor' and someone would've ended up dead."

Beatrice leaned her back against the wall and let out a short, amused breath.

"So. You're in a tight spot."

"I am."

"Hmm…"

She folded her arms and gazed off into the middle distance, turning something over behind those red eyes. After a moment of silent calculation she seemed to arrive at a small conclusion, and nodded to herself.

"Want to come to my place? It's plenty big. And I've been living alone, so I was getting bored anyway."

"……"

I am not exaggerating when I say that if I'd had anything in my mouth, I would have sprayed it across the pavement.

"…I appreciate the thought. I'll have to decline."

"Why?"

"You said it yourself. You're after me."

I shifted my grip on the box holding Hayang-i and went on.

"Only an idiot would follow you. What if you decided to do something unpleasant?"

Beatrice nodded, looking distinctly satisfied.

"Good. That's the answer I wanted. If you'd jumped at the offer just now, I would've been genuinely disappointed. Lucky for me, my Target isn't a monkey."

She took a step closer.

"Relax. What I want is your heart — not your body."

"And I'm supposed to take your word for that?"

"If I tried anything stupid — kidnapping, threats, whatever — and something happened to you, do you really think Genma would sit still? The whole reason I'm approaching you is to stay out of that man's way. Doing something like that would defeat the entire purpose."

That… was, unfortunately, a fair point. If my person had been the actual objective, there would have been no reason for this back-and-forth at all. She could have simply called in a pack of subordinates, beaten me into the ground, and hauled me off.

She wouldn't even have needed the subordinates. If it came down to a one-on-one fight with Beatrice right here, I couldn't have guaranteed a win. The girl standing in front of me was that strong.

"And honestly? You're not exactly in a position to be picky."

She had driven the point straight into the bullseye.

"You don't even have a place to sleep tonight. You think you can just tough it out on the street indefinitely?"

"Ahem."

"Think it through."

Her crimson eyes caught the light.

"I get you in my debt. You put out the fire right in front of you. A deal where neither of us loses anything, don't you think?"

I looked at her and said nothing. Ryuzaki's body was average in most respects, but its instincts were razor-sharp. And I, for my part, had spent my entire previous life reading people — so I liked to think I had a decent eye for them. But from the Beatrice standing in front of me, I couldn't sense even a shred of hostility.

Honestly, it's a pretty attractive offer.

I had some money saved, but calling it comfortable would have been generous, and finding a new place to live with nowhere to sleep tonight was not going to be simple. If I bounced from motel to motel until I found something, the savings I'd scraped together would evaporate in no time. Sleeping on the street wasn't an option either. That was far more dangerous than staying at her place.

And here she was, offering me a roof. I couldn't see what she stood to gain by lying to me just to reel me in. Looking at the situation in front of me, and nothing else — practically speaking, taking the deal was the correct move.

That said.

"…You live alone. You can't just let a man move in like that."

Beatrice blinked at me. Then a small laugh slipped out of her.

"Why? You gonna jump me?"

"……"

We had been talking for a few minutes and already ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my head was spinning. The idea of living under the same roof as this person… ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I wasn't sure my sanity would survive it.

…It'll have to.

I wasn't in any position to be choosy. And besides — if I thought about it, the reason Beatrice wanted me in her house was ultimately to seduce me. In other words, as long as I didn't fall for it, everything would be fine. Free room and board and a safe place to sleep, just for weathering a little temptation? There's no reason not to.

The calculation was done. She intended to use me. I would simply use her right back.

"The moment anything seems off, I'm leaving."

"Sure. Smart choice."

A look of deep satisfaction spread across Beatrice's face.

"I look forward to living with you."

Their footsteps fell side by side — his a steady trudge, hers a crisp click of heels on pavement. The bags in Beatrice's hands were far from light, and yet, strangely, they didn't feel heavy at all. She was strong, of course. But the real reason they weighed nothing might have been the giddiness bubbling in her chest.

Lucky break.

Things were unfolding far better than she had expected. A few hours ago, when she'd first arrived at his house, the mountain of luggage piled in front of the entrance had caught her genuinely off guard. But in the end, that very disaster had handed her a far more advantageous position than anything she'd originally planned.

And why wouldn't it? This was cohabitation. Cohabitation between high schoolers, at an age when interest in the opposite sex was at its peak.

No matter how perfect that mask of his is, he won't last.

The Target still hadn't let his guard down around her. That was fine. Time would pass, days would stack on days, and that wariness would dull on its own. And once a mark's suspicion had gone soft, reeling them in was easier than breathing.

Which approach would work best?

Dozens of options flickered through her mind. She could close the distance boldly, late at night. Or she could play the innocent, adorable girl and work her way into the cracks, inch by inch. It didn't matter which she chose. He would fall, one way or another.

She was the finest hunter there was. She had never once let a mark slip away.

…This is going to be fun.

What kind of face would the Target make once that mask was torn away? She could hardly wait for the moment that would prove her judgment had been right all along.

They walked, and walked, and at last they arrived.

"……"

She glanced at him. His eyes had gone noticeably wide. Startled by the imposing mansion, apparently. She didn't preen about it. That wouldn't have been professional.

"Here. Take this."

Beatrice set the bags down for a moment and held out a key.

"You're going to be coming and going a lot. Might as well open the door yourself the first time, don't you think?"

"That's very considerate of you. Thank you."

The Target was still wearing that innocent mask, still playing his part with perfect composure. It didn't matter. The moment that door opened, he would never find his way out from under her again — and that carefully constructed mask of his would be torn to shreds.

He slid the key into the lock. It turned with a click.

…

…

Wait.

When was the last time she had cleaned this place?

…

……

………W-wait—!

She lunged for the door. Too late.

It swung wide open.

And beyond it: clothes and underwear flung in every direction. Socks lying inside-out where they'd been kicked off. Empty snack bags scattered like fallen leaves. Manga volumes left half-open. And the dust — the fine, democratic dust that tied every last piece of it together into a single, unified masterpiece.

It was, by any conceivable standard, a perfect garbage dump.

"…"

"…"

Beatrice kicked the door shut on pure reflex. It let out a wretched scream as it slammed home.

"…"

"…You saw that?"

She clenched her teeth and looked away. The tips of her ears had gone scarlet.

"It would have been difficult not to."

"…Forget it."

"That may not be easy. It was a rather vivid impression."

"I said forget it."

"I'll do my best."

For the first time in a long while, she wanted to die.