Hearing the system's cold voice, Heiji froze. Who is Ito? And why is Shiratori Ninzaburo being mentioned?
"So it was you two bastards."
At that moment, Ito vaulted over the railing and strode toward them, his face full of arrogance.
Heiji frowned and sat up, replying without much emotion. "Do I know you?"
Sato Miwako looked the man over coolly, her brows knitting. "Heiji, you can tell at a glance this guy's just a thug."
"Oh? Didn't expect a beauty to have such a sharp eye," Ito said with a smirk. "That's right—I am a thug. And I'm in a bad mood today. So you two better apologize nicely, or I won't mind getting rough."
Ito stared at them, swaggering as if he owned the place.
Heiji raised a hand to stop Sato from snapping back. He studied Ito, thinking about the system's mission.
"Even if you want us to make amends, you should at least tell us who you are, right? Otherwise, I'm not exactly inclined to cooperate."
Ito stared at Heiji, contempt plain in his eyes. "You really are a piece of trash."
Heiji only smiled faintly and didn't rise to it.
"Listen carefully. My name is Ito Kazuki…"
"You're Ito?"
Heiji couldn't help nodding to himself. So the system wasn't issuing a mission for nothing. This is him.
"So you'd better hand over that chick next to you—"
Smack!
The crisp slap cut Ito off mid-sentence. A tremendous force sent him flying. He rolled down the slope and splashed straight into the river.
Watching Ito flounder in the water, Sato Miwako didn't show the slightest pity.
First, the man could swim—he didn't need saving. Second, he was so obnoxious that she conveniently "forgot" her responsibilities as a police officer.
Heiji grabbed Sato's hand and left immediately.
Heiji parked at the entrance of Sato's home.
"Heiji, come in and sit for a bit." Sato walked up to the driver's side, her beautiful eyes full of expectation.
Heiji checked the time and shook his head slightly. "It's almost six-thirty. I'll pick you up tomorrow."
Sato, who had been a little disappointed, immediately brightened. She nodded eagerly. "Drive carefully."
She leaned into the car, kissed Heiji quickly on the lips, then straightened and headed back inside.
Heiji smiled faintly, stepped on the gas, and drove off.
Behind him, a pair of eyes followed the car, filled with deep affection.
The car Heiji was driving was Sato Miwako's—a red Mazda cruising down the road.
[Kill Ito, frame Shiratori Ninzaburo. Is this system helping me vent my anger?]
All along the way, Heiji was thinking about how to complete the mission.
Given Shiratori Ninzaburo's earlier attitude and behavior, Heiji had no intention of letting things slide. He just hadn't expected that before he even made a move, the system would hand him a mission like this.
Heiji drove to another location, switched to a different car, and then headed toward the river embankment.
"There's only one road here. Ito Kazuki is walking in from one side. Judging by his tone earlier, he's probably on his way home."
Heiji looked up. The road's far end opened into a lively downtown area.
He shook his head slightly. Hope I can find that guy without trouble.
Ito Kazuki had been having a miserable day. First, he'd been intimidated by a police officer. Then he'd been dumped by his girlfriend. After that, he'd been slapped into the river by some terrifying bastard. His face was still swollen.
"Ito, weren't you going out with Reina today? Why're you back so early?" someone jeered. "Don't tell me you can't get it up—ha!"
"Get what up? I heard Reina dumped him."
"A guy who's good for nothing. Of course she dumped him."
Mocking laughter echoed around him. Ito's face darkened as he clenched his fists, forcing himself to swallow his anger.
"Still angry about it?"
A strange voice suddenly spoke right beside his ear.
Ito jerked his head up. A man in a flat cap had appeared next to him.
"Who the hell are you?"
Not being able to see the man's face made Ito even more irritated.
"Who I am doesn't matter," the flat-cap man said. "I want you to do something. If you pull it off, I'll pay you one million yen."
"One million yen?"
Ito's eyes widened. He clicked his tongue, shocked at the number.
"Well? Are you in or not?" The man sounded impatient.
"What do you want me to do—rob a bank?" Ito asked warily.
"No need. Just be a thief for once."
"A thief?" Ito's heart skipped. Stealing is literally what I do… but how does this guy know that?
"Yeah," the man said. "Go steal something from someone."
He tossed a photo onto the table.
"This is a police officer. I need you to go to his house and steal a watch. Remember—don't let him catch you."
"It's him?"
The moment Ito saw the face in the photo, he blurted it out in surprise.
"You know him?" The flat-cap man sounded genuinely taken aback.
"Of course. We're good friends," Ito snapped. "And you want me to steal a good friend's property? Bastard."
Even as he shouted, the cunning gleam in his eyes gave him away completely.
"This is one hundred thousand yen," the man said, tossing a thick stack of bills onto the table. "Consider it a deposit."
Ito's eyes lit up. Without hesitation, he scooped the money into his arms.
"No problem. I'll get it done."
"You'd better not try anything," the man warned coolly.
He placed a palm on the table.
The table split apart and collapsed instantly.
Ito stared at the wreckage, stunned. A flash of fear crossed his eyes.
"It's seven-thirty," the man said. "At eight o'clock, I expect to see that watch."
Then he turned and left.
"One million yen… I'm going all in," Ito muttered, grinning. "Ha. Finally, I've got money."
The man in the flat cap was, of course, Heiji.
What he needed was simple: lure Ito Kazuki to the vicinity of Officer Shiratori, create a conflict, and complete the mission.
He didn't go far. Instead, he headed to Officer Shiratori's house ahead of time.
Tonight, a good show was about to begin.