Chapter 271 - I will set the stage for you to perform

Tezuka Kohei marches toward his car and punches the hood of the car. The pain in his hand is nothing compares to the humiliation in the restaurant. Why did Iori come to see him? He would be a fool if he still believes the excuse that she had given him. She must have wanted something from him. If that's the case, he should find out and use it against her. Maybe she will come to him on her own if he agrees to give it to her. 

That Kamiyama Takeshi! Why does the Consortium want to --

The parking lot becomes dark. 

"What the f.u.c.k!" Tezuka Kohei lifts his head. Why did he come here? He should have stopped coming to this restaurant after the incident last year. But this place was bought by someone who is linked to the Consortium, just like him. If he wanted a woman for a night, it was only a matter of a request. Something could be mixed in the food or the drink. 

He searches for his phone in his coat's pocket, muttering curses under his breath. He should have done it to Iori. Fine then! If she meets him again, he's going to take her to the hotel. The man doesn't notice a figure standing right behind him. Tezuka Kohei takes his phone out. He should make a complaint to the owner. The phone slips out of his hand. He furrows his brows and stares at the broken screen of the phone near his feet. "Why…"

Is he tired? He rubs his eyes to clear away the haziness. It must be because of fo the stress at work. Bending his waist, he reaches for the phone. 

His legs become numb; his body propels forward, dropping on the hard ground. The corner of his left eye twitches rapidly. The tips of his fingers are losing his feeling. His heart is slowing down. He opens his mouth, inhales the air; however, the pressure in his lungs isn't vanishing. 

He is dying. But why? Who poisoned him?

"Ingenious." The man bends down on his one knee. The cat mask on his face is tilted slightly. He presses the tip of the knife on the artery of Tezuka Kohei's neck. "His body is collapsing at the exact time she mentioned. How does she know the exact dose that his body needed?"

Tezuka Kohei has stopped breathing. 

"It's not fun to kill him like this, but there's barely any time." The man turns Tezuka Kohei's body and stabs both eyes; poisons are not his style. Black blood oozes out of the dead man's eyes, trickling down on the concrete. The man stares at him, feeling no excitement -- he takes a deep breath. 

Around six months ago, the girl appeared at his house and told him that he would get killed by the police if he went for his next target. 

Why didn't he kill her back then? She was only six or seven. A twist of her neck and she would have died instantly.

It was the look in her eyes. Those predatory and hypnotic storm grey eyes didn't belong to a child. It was that smile on her lips. So bloodthirsty and dominating that rooted his feet on the spot. Ah! That cub is quite amusing. She told him that he could go if he didn't believe her. And he did go. It turned out to be a trap and he did nearly get killed. If she hadn't helped him hide that day, he would have been caught or killed by the police.

She had said these words to him: "Why don't you become my servant? I will set the stage and you can perform." 

He admits that she is way smarter than him. They have killed twelve people to this day. But the police had no idea. She would find people for him to kill. All of them had an unusual background. Sometimes, it took weeks to approach them. 

Who is she? Where she's from? What is her name? Who are her parents? How does she know so much about deadly arts? Why is she killing these people? 

Those are forbidden questions.

"Died already?"

His heart jumps. 

The girl emerges from the darkness. Her skin is pale and smooth with a faint illumination that can only be seen in utter darkness. 

Her sudden appearance always startles him. The man takes a breath. He should be used to this by now. "What took you so long?"

"Had to deal with a situation." She takes a long glance at the bloodless face of the dead man. "Stab his brain too."

"Brain?" He raises his brows. Weren't they supposed to copy the serial killer whom they caught and killed last week? That serial killer's signature is poison and stabbed eyes. If they change the signature, the police might be doubtful about the killer.

"Here." She taps the space between her brows. Her tone is low, uninviting of any more questions or doubt. "Do you have enough strength to pierce the skull? If not, give it to me. We don't have much time."

This is strange. 

Their eyes meet. The pressure from her gaze weighs him down. He lowers his head. His throat is dry. He rubs his clammy hands on his t.h.i.g.hs.  

"Don't worry about the police." She presses her foot on Tezuka Kohei's eyes. "It would make them question things. But they are lazy and dumb. They won't look deeper. It's easy for them if it's the old serial killer."

Why does this kid… He releases his breath. But she's right. They don't have much time either. The creases on his forehead are smoothened out. She pulls back her foot from Tezuka Kohei's eyes. The knife pierces through the glabella. 

That should be enough. The girl turns around and walks away from the dead, the man following right behind her. The LED lights on the ceilings flicker for a few times before completely dispelling the darkness in the parking lot.

After twenty-minutes, screams echo through the vicinity. The police are called. Tezuka Kohei's body is found.