Chapter 13: The Night the Hunters Found Us
If you ever want to feel your blood turn into ice water, here's my advice:Have a world-famous vampire idol whisper "They're hunters" in your ear while someone with a knife follows you through Shibuya.
We were back in the side alley, my spine pressed against the cold brick wall, Riku blocking me from view.From the outside, I bet we looked like a couple having an intimate moment.
From the inside, my brain was screaming:RUN. RUN NOW.
The man with the hood stepped into the alley, but this time, he wasn't alone.Two more followed.
All of them masked.All of them holding something that glinted under the streetlights—Knives. Stakes. One had a crossbow.
"Seriously?!" I squeaked. "Who even uses a crossbow in 2025?!"
"Shut up," Riku murmured without looking back. His voice was calm, but I could feel the tension radiating from him.
"Step away from the human, Kurosawa," the leader said, voice muffled under his mask. "We're here for you, not him."
"Then you're already making mistakes," Riku replied smoothly, straightening to his full height.
I saw it then—how his posture changed. The lazy, smug idol vibe was gone.This was… different.Predatory.
One of the hunters lunged.
I didn't even have time to scream before Riku moved—A blur of black coat and silver hair.
The hunter slammed into the wall hard enough to crack brick, his knife clattering to the ground.
Another charged from the side, swinging a stake.Riku caught his wrist mid-strike, twisted, and sent the weapon flying.
His voice was low, dangerous. "You think you can touch what's mine?"
It was terrifying.And yet—I couldn't look away.
His eyes were glowing now, deep crimson that caught the faint neon light like molten metal.For a second, I understood why fans called him "the king."
The last hunter raised the crossbow.Riku was fast—but not fast enough to block a silver bolt aimed straight at my chest.
And without thinking—I grabbed the nearest trash can lid and threw it like a budget Captain America.
It actually worked.The bolt ricocheted off, clanging against the pavement.
"Ha! Take that, you—"
"Haruto, MOVE!"
Riku was in front of me again, faster than my eyes could track. He grabbed the crossbow by the barrel, snapped it like it was made of plastic, and slammed the hunter against the wall.
"I should kill you for that," he said, voice low and cold enough to freeze bone. "But I don't like wasting good warnings."
He let them go.All three stumbled back, disappearing into the crowd as quickly as they'd come.
The alley was suddenly silent.My knees were jelly.
Riku turned to me, eyes fading back to their normal deep red."You okay?" he asked quietly.
I opened my mouth to say "yes."Instead, what came out was:"…Are you going to tell me what the hell that was?!"
He looked at me for a long moment, then sighed."You wanted to know what you signed up for," he said softly. "Now you do."
Somewhere in the distance, Shibuya Crossing's giant screens kept flashing his face, smiling like the perfect idol.But the man in front of me wasn't smiling.
And for the first time, I realized—Fake boyfriend or not, I was really in danger.
TO BE CONTINUED…