“Are you sure…?” Takashi asked, as if he sensed something.

  “Look at it one more time.”

  He pushed the photo closer to Sota.

  “I already told you” Sota replied coldly. “Why should I look again?”

  He didn’t want to.

  He was afraid he wouldn’t have the strength to lie a second time.

  And he didn’t want Takashi to know the truth.

  Takashi had been overprotective lately.

  If he heard the truth… he might back away from everything.

  And in some way, Takashi knew something had happened during those two days.

  He felt it. In the pauses. In the way Sota avoided his eyes.

  But just as Sota had lied, Takashi chose not to ask again.

  Because, just like Sota had once told him, some truths are dangerous.

  Only now did he truly understand what that meant.

  “Do you want some coffee?” Takashi asked, standing up and walking toward the kitchen.

  “I was about to make one for myself before you came.”

  “That would be great.” Sota replied, leaning back against the sofa.

  For a moment, he allowed his shoulders to relax.

  It seemed he was relieved that Takashi had stopped asking questions.

  They were silent for a long moment, both lost in their thoughts.

  “I’ll call Kenta.” Takashi said quietly, placing the coffee on the table.

  “Help yourself.”

  He set the cup in front of Sota, then turned and walked toward the bedroom, closing the door halfway behind him.

  Sota's boss’s words still echoed in his head.

  That detective has to disappear.

  Sota knew.

  He knew exactly why he had been the one chosen.

  And that was precisely why Kawara had to fall.

  That was the last move they had left before everything collapsed.

  The only one that might buy them time.

  He just hoped it would be enough.

  “We’re making a move in the morning.” Takashi said as he stepped back into the room.

  Sota flinched slightly.

  He hadn’t heard him come in.

  For a moment, he had been somewhere else entirely.

  “That’s great.” Sota exhaled quietly.

  It won’t be long until morning, he thought.

  “You should stay here tonight.” Takashi said, moving a little closer. “Don’t go anywhere until this is over.”

  Silence settled between them.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Takashi had felt tension before. Anger. Fear. Even distance.

  But this was different.

  Sota wasn’t just quiet.

  He was somewhere else.

  “I’ll stay.”

  No hesitation. No warmth. No resistance.

  Just agreement.

  Takashi swallowed.

  For the first time, obedience felt worse than defiance.

  “You should go to sleep.” Sota said, standing up.

  Takashi lifted his head and looked straight into his eyes, searching for answers in the deep black silence there… but they were empty.

  And he knew Sota well. From the moment they met, he had understood one thing, if Sota didn’t want to talk, there was no point in asking.

  “You’re right.” Takashi nodded instead of questioning him.

  He stood and stepped closer.

  “Don’t go back there tomorrow. Stay here until I come back.”

  His fingers closed gently around Sota’s arm.

  “Can you promise me that?”

  For a moment, Sota didn’t answer.

  “I’ll wait for you here.” he said at last.

  And that was enough for Takashi.

  Enough to steady the frantic beat in his chest.

  He told himself it was just responsibility.

  Just strategy.

  Just timing.

  But it wasn’t.

  Sota had been nothing more than a means to an end.

  Somewhere along the way, that had stopped being true.

  Revenge had driven him for ten years.

  Now it felt distant.

  Irrelevant.

  Because if it meant losing Sota,

  it wasn’t worth it.

  And that frightened him more than anything else.

  He couldn’t let him go.

  And for the first time, he wasn’t sure he could protect him.

  He hated the unease that had followed him back from Tokyo.

  As he spread a blanket over the sofa, he glanced toward the closed bedroom door.

  What had happened in Shirogawa during those two days?

  Sota hadn’t changed loudly.

  He had changed quietly.

  And that was worse.

  At least he was here. Safe. For now.

  Takashi lay back, staring at the ceiling.

  Sleep had become a stranger these past weeks. His body was exhausted, but his mind refused to slow down.

  He had stepped into the dark years ago.

  Now he could feel it tightening around him, and around anyone who stood too close.

  If Kawara fell tomorrow, it would be a victory.

  He repeated it silently.

  A victory.

  As if saying it enough times would make it true.

  From tomorrow, nothing would be the same.

  Just as Sota was hiding something, Takashi was hiding something too.

  He hadn’t told him about the suspension.

  Without his badge, without his authority, he was just a man.

  And a man might not be enough.

  And then there was Kenta.

  Kenta, who had never left his side.

  The only family he had left.

  Takashi closed his eyes for a moment.

  None of this had been part of the plan.

  They had stepped into something far larger than they had imagined.

  Tomorrow, they would strike back.

  Hard enough to make them feel it.

  At least… that was what Takashi told himself.

  Everything’s going to be fine, he told himself, staring at the ceiling.

  Sleep wouldn’t come.

  Sota’s voice echoed in his head.

  If this goes well, we’re winning the war.

  Winning.

  The word felt fragile.

  He turned onto his side, staring into the darkness.

  He wouldn’t let him go back there again.

  No matter what it cost.

  Sota heard when Takashi left the apartment, but he didn’t leave his room. He couldn’t bear to see him off.

  He couldn’t bear the silence either.

  If he had stepped out that morning, he would have told him to run. To disappear. Because if Sota didn’t make him vanish from their world, someone else would.

  And at this point, they were both already living dead.

  So he stayed sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting to hear the front door close.

  He knew how important this was to Takashi. How deeply he wanted his revenge.

  And he let him go, let him believe they were winning.

  Knowing there were no winners in this world.

  He remained sitting on the edge of the bed long after the apartment had fallen silent.

  He had known Takashi long before they ever met.

  Hiroto had once shown him a photograph, a young man standing in front of a half-finished building, sleeves rolled up, eyes stubborn and bright.

  He had listened to the stories carefully. Memorized them.

  Sometimes it felt as if he had been waiting for Takashi long before that rainy night when they finally stood face to face.

  The idea of something happening to him made his chest tighten.

  Takashi was never meant to belong to this world.

  He was supposed to be somewhere in Tokyo, arguing over blueprints, living a quiet life that had nothing to do with blood or revenge.

  But the world didn’t care about what was supposed to be.

  And neither did fate.

  The phone rang on the table, breaking the silence.

  Sota leaned forward to pick it up.

  For a moment, he hesitated, almost afraid to answer.

  Then finally

  “Yes?”

  “Turn on the news.” Takashi’s voice echoed with excitement.

  Sota reached for the remote.

  “Are you still at my place?” Takashi asked quickly.

  “I’m here. Is everything all right?”

  Sota turned on the TV.

  “Everything’s fine. I’ll be home soon. Just wait for me.”

  Sota remained silent for a long moment, staring at the screen. A reporter stood in front of Kawara Medical Distribution, speaking while police officers moved in the background.

  “Are you there?” Takashi asked again.

  Sota slowly sat down on the sofa.

  “Did you see it? We made it, Sota.”

  “Yes” he said quietly.

  “I saw it.”

  “We’re celebrating tonight. Dress nicely. Take something from my closet, I’m taking you out.”

  Takashi was so excited he didn’t notice Sota’s silence.

  “I just need to finish some paperwork. I’ll be home soon.”

  Sota didn’t answer.

  The line went quiet.

  For the first time in his life, he had a place someone called home. Someone who wanted to return to him. Someone who wanted to share happiness… and sadness.

  And now he realized something that frightened him more than anything else,

  he couldn’t bear to lose that.

  And for the first time, he understood exactly what it meant to be afraid.