In the small park with a fountain and playground somewhere in the CSL under the morning light, Rika could be seen slumped onto a bench beneath a tree near the fountain, the leather of her jacket creaking softly with every movement against the backrest.
Rika seemed to be in deep thought as she tilted her head back, sunglasses hiding her red eyes as she absentmindedly watched fluffy clouds drift slowly in the blue sky with the faint lingering scent of damp grass and wet soil in the air, which probably came from the little sprinklers around the park. Her fingers drummed slowly against her knee as various thoughts floated around in her head, but then somehow her thoughts always ended up turning back around to the dream she had this morning despite trying otherwise.
"Tsk, get a grip, Rika... it's just a dream..."
Rika clicked her tongue as she grumbled to herself in annoyance. She can't seem to get over the embarrassing incident this morning like she wants, and the hope for the park's tranquility to help distract her from that dream is also not very effective. She feels helpless with no viable solution coming to mind. The thought of touching herself crosses her mind, but she feels it is too embarrassing to masturbate to her friend's boyfriend, no matter how hot he is...
"Hah~"
Rika sighed before she pulled her sunglasses down just enough for her to rub the bridge of her nose; the choker collar also started to feel tight and constricting around her neck. She will definitely hold a grudge against Shizuka and Zeno for making her feel like this even though it's not them who actually did anything directly to her; well, most of the fault probably came from Shizuka's gossip, to be honest.
When Rika was brooding by her lonesome, suddenly she felt the presence of another person, the man of her dreams, currently sitting next to her out of nowhere.
"Huh...?"
Rika was dumbfounded, as there was no warning, no crunch of gravel, or shift in the wind; she didn't even notice anything, and she even thought it was her mind playing a trick on her at first, as one moment the bench beside her was empty; the next thing she knew, Zeno magically appeared and occupied it with his legs crossed over one another, posture relaxed as if he'd been sitting there for hours. In his hand, there is a double-scoop ice cream cone of vanilla and chocolate as the wind carries the ice cream's sweet scent to her nose.
As for why Zeno is here, isn't it obvious? If the prey is vulnerable, the predator will come, since Rika was not going to escape the constant surveillance of the spy drones with the certain lewd voyeur who was snooping around for naughty activities.
"Good weather innit?"
Acting like he just noticed her existence as well, Zeno turned his face towards the bewildered Rika as he said something in English and in a British accent, amusement evident on his face. Then he just looks at her as he takes a slow, deliberate lick of the ice cream in his right hand while he locks eyes with the woman.
"…!"
Rika stiffened, her heart rate spiking. The phantom sensation between her thighs also stirred once again like a curse after seeing his licking gesture.
It's because of that stupid dream! she thought in embarrassment and frustration, as that slow, deliberate lick that she saw felt like a physical touch on her skin, which coincidentally enough reminded Rika of the stories she heard from Shizuka of her lewd sessions with Zeno when he going down on her.
Rika couldn't help but subconsciously imagine Zeno going down between her legs as well but managed to shake the image out of her head in time as she almost imagined his tongue running down her navel to her delicate part. She was now trapped somewhere between outrage and a shameful, unwelcome throb of arousal.
"Wha-why the hell are you here...?!"
Rika's stuttering voice came out more high-pitched than she intended as she jerked her sunglasses back up, a flimsy shield against that amused icy blue gaze. Zeno's action was really unexpected and caught her completely by surprise as she lost her cool for a moment.
The way he licked the ice cream and looked at her also seemed strangely suggestive, as it made her flush in annoyance and embarrassment. She wants to hit him and call him less than a good name, but the same oppressive presence of him that always makes her wary suddenly appears and stops both her action and her mouth from moving once again. Rika can confirm it now that this mysterious oppressiveness is definitely caused by this guy!
"Why am I here? What a silly question..."
Zeno chuckled before he responded with a deep and calm voice that caused Rika's heart to beat quicker. Rika gulps dryly as she sees Zeno take another slow lick of his ice cream, with the tip of his tongue catching a stray drip of vanilla before it could fall to his hand. The action was so annoyingly deliberate, making Rika think that this guy is trying to provoke her, and it's working, damn it!
"Well, I saw you brooding alone in the park like some sort of a typical below-average protagonist, so I decided to come check up on my girlfriend's… friend a little to see if she's doing alright~"
Zeno said with an invasive gaze that was barely hidden behind his flimsy concern facade as his gaze slid down on Rika's body—lingering very obviously on her toned stomach above her belt buckle and the curve of her thigh and that perky butt underneath the jeans she is wearing. He is checking her out so blatantly that it causes Rika to instinctively protect her exposed midriff from his rude gaze with her arm, with a glare… and a blush.
"What are you looking at, disgusting…!"
Rika's flush deepened as she managed to speak, feeling self-conscious by Zeno's blatant gaze on her body as his blue eyes reminded her of that Zeno in her dream. Those same icy blue eyes, that smirk, the oppressiveness. Just from thinking about it, making Rika's thighs clench together involuntarily.
"Stop being a fucking creep and go away…!"
Rika spat out as she quickly stood up, trying to escape from Zeno before he made her symptoms get worse. Seeing his prey about to escape from him, Zeno smirked and activated his secret weapon.
"Heh, the girl who 'wet' herself said what now?"
"Wah…?!"
Zeno's words struck like a physical blow, making Rika freeze in place, feeling her blood cold in her veins. The park sounds vanished—birdsong and the rustle of leaves—all swallowed by the static in her ears. Her mind was blank as she turned her head robotically towards Zeno with a disbelieving expression.
How?? How could you possibly know?! Rika is screaming in her mind as she sees the blonde currently smirking at her on the bench. The thought that this guy might actually know about the damp bedsheet discreetly hanging on her balcony and who knows what else is causing her to feel the burning shame she has never experienced before in her life.
"H-How did you…?"
Rika whispered a question as she balled her fists and could only stare at Zeno while frozen in her place, her sunglasses doing absolutely nothing to hide the sheer, naked shock twisting her features and the reddened cheeks of shame as the man just chuckles with a mischievous gleam in his blue eyes.
"The answer to your question is quite simple, actually…"
Zeno said as he stood up slowly from the bench and walked towards Rika while he continued to speak.
"Why I know of your little incident this morning is simply because... I see and hear everything that happens here in this city—EVERYTHING."
Zeno smirks as he is about to reveal a secret of the spy drones to Rika. He stepped in front and towered over her as he stared down into her red eyes behind the sunglasses with his icy blue one, but unbeknownst to him, the dramatic scene he intended to create was not as dramatic as he hoped, as the ice cream cone forgotten in his hand actually reduced the seriousness by a level from the third-person perspective.
"Heh, there are cameras, Rika-san. Tiny little micro cameras in every place imaginable, even in the private space of your home and... bedroom~"
He revealed his spy drone's existence to Rika with an amused chuckle, letting the implication hang thick in the air as the woman processed the revelation in her chaotic mind before she slowly widened her eyes in horror and realization.
"Saw the whole thing this morning. The tossing, the turning... the little gasp when you woke up soaked. Quite the performance~"
He chuckled with a lewd smirk as he recalled back to an hour ago when Louise suddenly texted him and sent her "tribute" video clip of Rika and even the pic of her own cleavage as a bonus, which Zeno appreciated. The LewdEmperor then rightfully earned her pardon from monitor duty with this "contribution" after that, but she is not going to stop going to the surveillance room to peep on other people's naughty activities from time to time, though!
"Had to rewind the ending part a few times. It was very... memorizable."
Rika felt the world tilt beneath her feet. The park, the trees, the distant sounds of the city—everything dissolved into a nauseating swirl. The reveal of her weakest moment was observed. It's like a searing brand of humiliation, hot and painful, was stamped upon her body. Her breath hitched, a strangled sound escaping her lips. The choker now felt like a noose.
"Y-You... bastard...!" Y-you perverted…! I'll kill you…!"
She choked out, her voice trembling with a mixture of raw fury and utter humiliation. Her hand instinctively flew to Zeno's collar, fingers digging into his brown coat as if she wanted to rip it. She tried to pull him down to her level, but he didn't budge no matter how much she pulled, as Zeno just looked down at the angry woman with a rising eyebrow.
"You spied on me! In my home, in my bedroom?!"
Rika ignores the failed attempt and keeps yelling to him. Such betrayal, such a violation of privacy—it's natural for her to be mad, but Rika was forgetting that she is also not that innocent either since she is the JSDF spy after all, so Zeno didn't really feel bad about spying on her in return.
"Isn't that quite ironic, coming from a cute little spy such as yourself?"
Zeno's smirking malevolently like a predator savoring the tremble of cornered prey. He leaned closer to Rika's surprised face, like she wanted him to previously, the sugary scent of vanilla and chocolate clashing with the aura of apex predator radiating from him as her heart dropped from what he just said.
÷×÷×÷
(((PLEASE READ!! THIS IS IMPORTANT!!)))
Bad news, my readers: it seems like the curse of fanfic authors is starting to catch up to me as my family begins to pressure me to actually write my own original novel to make money. I might have to put this story on hiatus and focus on writing my original book instead in the near future. It's likely going to be after the HOTD arc ends since I find it the appropriate place to put this book on hiatus. Sorry for not being able to finish this fanfic like I promised, and I hope you can continue to support me on my next work. Zillion thanks to you all in advance!