BABOOSHKA , BSD

⁽¹⁵⁾ BELLADONNA

"no," [name] firmly stated. she readied her pocketknife, precisely pointing it in the direction of koyo's neck. its metal glinted with the light of the blazing sun. "i'm done with all of that, and so is kyoka. you will be dragging our corpses to headquarters if you want us back so badly."

koyo smirked, unfazed by the sharp weapon. "you say that whilst pointing your knife at me? if i didn't know any better, i would think you're reverting back to your old roots, my dear."

the detective rolled her eyes. "it's self defense, big sis. you're trying to kidnap me and my coworker."

atsushi had finally garnered enough stamina and energy to activate his ability, shifting his limbs into that of a white tiger.

"the place where they belong is the agency!"

—

using the enhanced strength of his reinforced legs, atsushi leapt from the ground, and pounced in koyo's direction. his sharpened claws were drawn back, ready to embed themselves into the mafioso's pale skin.

however, his midair position left him vulnerable to koyo's own ability. her golden demon had drawn its sword out in an instantaneous motion, impaling atsushi's abdomen.

"too slow," koyo spoke smoothly.

before the weretiger could crash into the brick pillar, [name] jumped up to catch him, peering at golden demon from the corner of her eye. the outstretched blade had grazed her back, lodging deep enough to spill a considerable amount of blood. it was still a far better option than watching atsushi receive a fatal stab wound.

even with the blood seeping through her shirt, [name] gracefully landed on her feet with her subordinate in her arms.

"oh, my precious [name] ... how disappointing. maybe i'll finish my job first after all."

golden demon hovered behind [name]'s figure, holding the sword's tip against her back. the agent was not bothered by the blatant threat. instead, she kept her focus on atsushi. he was losing more blood with every passing moment.

kyoka broke her silence, fiercely glaring at the older woman. "no!"

"ogai wishes all agency operatives to be eradicated. however, i pleaded for your life to be spared. had he known where [name] was after all this time, i am sure he would have made an exception, as well."

koyo's scarlet eyes were narrowed at the two ex-assassins whom she had been ever so fond of.

"you have lied and killed in the service of liars and killers. you pretend to be separate, to have your own code — something that makes up for the horrors, but they are a part of you, and they will never go away. you are flowers of darkness. you will only be at ease in the darkness."