Chapter 196 – Reunion

Yuna stared at the mirror in front of her. A woman stared back. Her eyes were lightly lined with a greyish blue. A light grey eyeshadow complimented it and together brought out her sky blue eyes. The woman wore a pure white dress that hung off one shoulder. It had a long skirt that went down to her feet. It was quiet, yet brilliant. And Yuna didn’t quite know what to think about it.

‘This doesn’t really look like me.’

But at the same time, it was undoubtedly her. It was the same eyes, the same hair, the same skin. There was something there, though, that wasn’t there before. A certain feeling. A certain aura. Yuna remembered something Yuki had said to her. Beauty is power.

‘I can see what he meant. But it still doesn’t feel like me.’

The person staring back at her from the mirror seemed so much older, so much more mature. Her mind and her appearance didn’t match. And yet it did. As she continued to stare her thoughts began to wander. 

‘I wonder if she’ll like it.’ She shook her head. ‘Ugh. I’m getting a headache. Let’s think about something else.’

She turned away from the mirror and the woman in it. Her eyes landed onto her bed. She was inside the guild base, so it wasn’t her normal bed. On it was a fancy bag emblazoned with the logo of the store that she went shopping in with Yuki. Erica had handed it to her when she came by to help Yuna with her makeup and hair. 

“It’s a gift from Yuki,” Erica had said as she laid it on top of the bed. “She said to enjoy and make sure to take care of it.”

“What is it?” Yuna had asked.

Erica shrugged and replied that she didn’t check since it wasn’t her gift. Yuna hadn’t opened it yet because Erica was keeping her busy with her fussing over Yuna’s appearance. When they were finished, Erica’s eyes had an odd gleam before she left.

‘I wonder what’s in it.’

Lifting the bag, Yuna weighed it. It wasn’t heavy which was expected from a clothing store. The inside of the bag was covered with a sheet of tissue paper. She pinched the paper with two fingers and removed it to reveal neatly folded clothes underneath. As she slowly unfolded the clothes, she immediately recognized them.

‘These are the ones that I said I liked.’

Every single piece that Yuna had felt attracted to while Yuki was cycling through clothing was there. There weren’t many, just a few shirts and pants. But she didn’t know that Yuki was keeping track. With how fast he was changing outfits, she thought he simply was completely zoned out and focused. A smile spread across her face as her heart welled up with something foreign.

‘How do I thank him?’

She thought over it with nothing coming to mind. This was something she also didn’t have experience. The basics of gift giving was simple enough. But she wasn’t sure what to give in return. 

‘It has to be something close in value right?’

“Hmm,” she mumbled as she tapped her chin. 

A knock at the door distracted her from her thoughts. Checking the time, she realised just how much time had passed. It was time for the operation to start. She went to the door and twisted the handle to pull it open. Akira was behind it, her fist raised as she was about to knock again. She froze and then promptly stared at Yuna.

“Are we late?” Yuna asked. Akira didn’t respond.

Then Yuna noticed what Akira was wearing. She was clad in a tight black jumpsuit that had pieces of flexible armor attached to it at vital places. Though not its purpose, it also had the side effect of highlighting Akira’s entire body and its various parts. 

“Um, you two?” Erica’s voice said beside them. Akira blinked and Yuna jerked her head to the side only to see Erica wearing the same attire. Erica grinned. “We have work to do.”

“What did you do to Yuna?” Akira asked.

“Yuki’s recommendations,” Erica shrugged. “I’m just following what I was told to do.”

“She looks stunning,” Akira replied bluntly. Yuna blinked then rapidly felt herself heat up. 

“I know right? But anyway, we really need to go so follow me.”

She took the lead with Akira following though not before giving Yuna one last look. Yuna watch them walked past her, her eyes being dragged downward before she caught herself and hurried to catch up. 

‘Clear your head, Yuna,’ she thought. ‘Focus on the mission.’

The three of them quickly made their way to the transportation station Zoe was waiting for them. They stood patiently in front of her and she inspected them before waving them off with a farewell. Then a few minutes later they were in Junction. Before leaving the small hidden room of the Hangout, Akira produced hooded jackets which she gave to Erica and Yuna. They put them on and then went out.

“The place is in the outskirts of Junction, right?” Erica asked as they went into the main room of the Hangout. “The rich area?”

“Yes,” Akira nodded. She craned her neck searching for someone before her eyes lit up. “And there’s our help.”

Yuna followed her gaze and alighted upon a woman leaning against the bar as she chatted with the barkeeper. Though her clothes were completely different and her hair had changed colors, Yuna recognized who it was almost immediately. Her chest tightened curiously.

‘Zero.’

Ever since their first interactions, Yuna couldn’t ever forget her. Every time without fail, her thoughts would turn towards her. Whenever she had free time, she would reminisce about the mission. It seemed such a long time ago even though it was only a few days ago. 

“Zero~,” Erica called out to the woman. The woman turned her head towards them and a smile promptly bloomed across her face. 

“Hey there~,” Zero waved. “How are you all feeling today? Excited? Worried?”

“We’ll see when we get there,” Akira replied. 

“Of course. Hi Yuna,” Zero greeted, staring right at her. Her eyes were brown today, a color similar to Akira’s. “How about you?”

“I’m good right now,” Yuna said with a smile. 

“That’s good to here.” Zero grabbed a glass on the bartop and downed it in a single swing. “Ah. I take it that it’s time to head out?”

“Yup. You know the directions?” Erica asked.

“Mhm,” Zero nodded. “Let’s go shall we?”

She did a little hop off her seat and stretched for a bit. Then she waved to the barkeeper before gesturing to Yuna and the others to follow her. As she walked to the door of the Hangout, Yuna realised that she wasn’t wearing a dress. Rather, she had suit pants on.

‘That’s interesting. It looks nice on her.’

They group with each other and followed Zero as she led them down the streets of Junction to the residential area of the city. Yuna braced herself for the inevitable attention their attire would draw from the people around them, but was surprised when many just walked right past them without a second thought. 

“Worried about something?” Zero asked, looking back. 

“No,” Yuna replied. “Just a bit confused.”

“About?”

“We’re not really attracting attention.”

“Of course. We’re in Junction. They’ve seen weirder things. If anything, we’re fairly normal since we’re heading towards the residential part of the city.”

“That makes sense.”

They kept walking quietly. As the traversed the city streets, Yuna noticed that the area slowly began to change. The buildings became less dense and were considerably shorter. Their designs were less modern and more and more old fashioned. Zero turned into a park where she stopped.

“Here we split up,” she said. She turned back and looked right Akira. “Ready?”

“Mhm,” Akira nodded. “Let’s hope the plan goes well.”

“You know it won’t,” Zero laughed. “Go. Hopefully we’ll meet up in an hour so. But you know that’s probably not going to happen.”

“I know,” Akira smiled. “Make sure to stay in touch now.”

“I know.”

She turned and quietly went into the park, blending into the scenery. Erica followed her after a quick wave goodbye. Zero watched them leave before walking the other way. Yuna went with her.

“Yuna, you understand your part?” Zero asked as they walked slowly. 

“I do,” she replied.

“Perfect. Then we’re ready,” Zero nodded. She stopped in front of an open gate. “Ready Diana?”

“Yes.”