N. Chuuya X Fem! Reader: The Territory of Gravity

10.3 - The Dark Era

"...Ha-ha! Just kidding!" Dazai abruptly added in a cheery tone. Hirotsu stared back at him, confused. "The reason you have so many people following you is that you don't turn your back on them. I'll leave things in your hands. I won't tell the boss."

He patted Hirotsu on the shoulder and smiled. Hirotsu unconsciously rubbed his throat while he nodded. He must have been tense.

Dazai, the youngest executive in the Mafia's history, was a living legend within the syndicate. Nothing got past him, be it from an enemy on the outside or a scandal from within the group. More importantly, nobody had even an inkling of Dazai's desires or dislikes, or what he supported or was opposed to. Not even Hirotsu, who'd been in the Mafia for longer than most, could figure him out. No one would have been surprised if Dazai had "disposed" of Hirotsu just then.

"All right, let's get back on topic. Is there any footage of the attackers?" You asked with a snap of your fingers.

Just as Dazai was the youngest executive in the Mafia's history, you were the youngest and only advisor to the boss in the Mafia's history. The two of you were dealt with as two halves of the same whole, with many realising that you were similar types of people. However, people knew a few more personal details about you than they did about Dazai. Still, even with that information, only two people could figure you out. One was your boyfriend, and the other was your best friend.

At Hirotsu's signal, a man in a black suit brought over a total of five pictures from the security camera. You took them from him and began to study them, while Dazai leaned over your shoulder and peered at the evidence. The stills showed several men sneaking into the warehouse and stealing the Port Mafia's firearms. The thieves were wearing worn-out sacks over their heads and dingy cloaks instead of overcoats. On the surface, they didn't look any different than your average back-alley thug. However...

"Those are soldiers." Dazai's lips slightly curled the moment he laid eyes on the photos. "Seasoned ones, at that."

He looked over the dim figures of the raggedy men several times, asking you to tilt the photos this way and that until you gave up and handed the pictures to him.

"They look like your run-of-the-mill ruffians at first glance, but they're moving in a diamond formation to cover their blind spots. Hirotsu-San, you know what kind of gun this is?" You pointed at the pistol on the waist of one of the attackers.

"It is an old model, very old. It appears to be even older than me. From the gray body and narrow muzzle, I would say it's an old-fashioned European pistol known as a grau geist," Hirotsu explained.

"I saw this gun yesterday." Dazai's eyes narrowed. "That means the men who robbed the armory attacked us immediately beforehand...which means that was just a diversion. Heh. Now things are getting interesting. These guys are even more fun than I imagined."

With the pictures still in hand, Dazai spun around, turning his back to the others before starting to walk off. He placed a thumb on his lip, muttering to himself as he paced back and forth.

"So they purposely leaked intel that they were going to attack us in the middle of our next business transaction. That way, we'd focus our manpower in one location, leaving only a few guards at the armory. Then they stole the weapons—a lot of them. But why? To resell? No, it wouldn't need to be weapons if that were the case. I see. This is..." Dazai rambled, lost deep in thought. All the others could do was wait for him in silence.

"......"

Hirotsu's subordinates stood stock-still as they waited for the much-younger executive to gather his thoughts.