[YUZUKI]
"What the fucking hell was that about? And who the hell are you? And don't give me shit about some dumbass servant from Kurayami and her friend because I'm not buying that shit. I should have flagged you the moment we saw you at the border.
"... but there is no getting out of this now. Start talking," a pissed Kujo Saori said as she stared at the trio that was huddled over.
Ayami was tending to Yuzuki's wounds while Rinko's sword was now on the ground, something that was strange as fuck because the word itself was clearly for Yamashita.
And there was no way to say that this woman, this mastery of the art of swords, was not just something that was all in their heads, but at the same time, warriors were always partial to their swords.
Picking up some other sword for defense was always stupid because most of the time the weights were different, and they could be slower. Yet Rinko hadn't even been slower, even with the sword that wasn't hers.
She had been faster than all the hostiles. She had ripped through them like they were dessert, and she didn't even seem to have any regret right now. Perhaps that was what was pissing Kujo off even more, because these two were like normal servants.
They didn't have anything special about them other than the fact that one was apparently dumb and the other was a little less dumb and good at swords.
What the hell was this?
"You don't want the answer to that, Kujo. You really don't want me to answer that, because you and I both know that giving you that answer will go a lot of things up. Your psycho king will start poking holes to get to the bottom of this.
"And if that happens, this little love story your best friend has with you will be gone forever. Who knows what she will do, but I know for a fact that if that happens, you will never see her again, and Ayami will definitely hate you for it.
"If you think I'm lying or bluffing, look at her. We gave her every reason not to trust us, and yet her focus is on the woman on the ground; like anything that harms Yuzu is everything she hates and doesn't want to deal with.
"You're welcome to try talking sense into her, but I assume you failed, which is why she was here before you when Yuzu was attacked," Rinko said, like she was not scared of what they would do to her.
Yuzuki was stuck between being proud of her warrior servant and worrying about their fate here.
Granted, she could easily create a portal and leave, but that would only raise more questions because even Queen Kuramitsu of Kurayami was never known to create any portals.
She was always crazy and shit, but so much had changed, most of which was only ever visible to Rinko alone.
Perhaps that was why Rinko was confident.
Or was she angry that Yuzuki had gotten hurt, and she hadn't been there to protect her queen, who was so insane and could probably decide to hurt her family to teach her a lesson?
Then again, Queen Kurayami was always known for her cruelty, nonetheless.
"I need answers, not whatever the fuck you're insinuating. What the hell are you?" Kujo insisted, and Rinko sighed, like this was not the time for this. She knew that she would have to answer those questions eventually, but today wasn't the best time for this.
"I'm a Kurayami wolf. You know damn well the kind of wolves that are permitted to mate. If you want your answers, ask your enforcer. On the other hand, I will take my friend and leave for the mating ball.
"If you want to follow us, you'd better have a good reason. As for whatever the hell Yuzu was doing to her, ask your friend. I know my best friend doesn't have money, but it seems like Yamashita has some kind of thing in the air.
"If you will excuse me, I shall take my leave," Rinko said as she turned to Yuzuki, who was staring at Ayami like there was gold in the woman's existence. She looked so damn smitten it was sticking, and sort of Rinko hopped that this was just a game.
Just something that Yuzu was playing at to keep her cover, because if it was otherwise, Rinko wasn't sure what protocol would demand of her. The woman was the most powerful woman in the realm, and even hell knew not to mess with her.
But what the hell was Rinko supposed to do at this point?
Nothing was making sense to her.
How she wished Yuzuki were someone she could read with ease, but the woman was a master manipulator. There was nothing that even she was sure of when it came to the woman's despair, being a servant for years and years.
Perhaps it was the drowning incident that had messed with her, right? Maybe that was an excuse to convince Rinko that this was the only way out, but what were the odds that shit would hit the fan eventually then? Who would answer for this?
"Rinko… we can't leave. She is our way out of here, if we are not to be harmed. You are strong, but she is a stranger. Both of them. Besides, who's to say the people who came after me won't come after both of us?
"We are now here, and there is nothing we can do about that at the moment. Please, let us stay a while," Yuzuki said calmly, like this was not the time for them to be running away from the mess that had found them along the way.
If Rinko didn't know her queen well, she could have sworn the queen had changed completely. Hell, the poor servant could have sworn her queen had gone bonkers to the point that it was not making sense anymore.
This was not part of the plan, and her arched brow was everything that Kujo needed to know that this was pure madness. No one would willingly want to be in this kind of chaos, and yet these two had stumbled in the worst of ways and still didn't leave.
"You can't be serious, Yuzuki. This is not the time to be the damsel in distress. Need I remind you that the woman who's holding you is the most lethal enforcer in the realm? Who's to say she is not encouraging you just so she can kill you herself?" Rinko asked in confusion.
Ayami growled at the queen's closest servant. It was almost like this was not the time for them to be discussing this kind of shit, and honestly, there was no telling what would happen. At the end of the day, this in itself was the most confusing of things.
"You can't seriously be growling at me for reminding Yuzu that you are the bastard of bastards, are you?" Rinko asked in disbelief, like this was the moment they needed to have a sit-down in the worst of spaces.
Kujo sighed exaggeratedly this time, like she couldn't believe that Ayami had shifted sides. This was not how things were supposed to be, and honestly, it was sticking to an extent. Maybe once this was done, they would be okay, right?
"We're going to my home. Come along or stay here; your choice," Ayami said as she carried Yuzu away.