"So, the moment you're cornered, you just take him with you?"
"Yep," Yuki answered with a smile.
Jin Hee sighed. She had rushed over when Juliette called her about an emergency. She had expected that one of the team members would cause trouble. Who would've thought that their team leader would do the same?
"I told you, this girl is nuts!" Billy shouted in excitement. He was immediately shut down with a single punch to the top of his head by Juliette.
"Anyway..." Jin Hee turned back towards her leader. She massaged the bridge of her nose for a bit before continuing. "You've met Billy and Juliette." Jin Hee introduced. Yuki looked over Jin Hee's shoulder, where three figures stood.
Wait, three? "Who's that?" Yuki asked, pointing towards the darkest part of the room.
A faint chuckle was heard from the shadow. A figure stepped out. Their figure was a bit obscure and the shadows seemed to wrap themselves around their head, making their appearance vague. Compared to everyone else, they wore a much more casual outfit: a dark-colored plain shirt and jeans.
No striking feature at all, as if they were just a stranger passing by.
"You're here, Raven?" Jin Hee asked.
"I just wanted to see our new leader." Raven paused, analyzing Yuki. And then, it was as if you could see a faint smile form under the shade. "She's interesting."
An awkward silence filled the room.
"Anyway, I'm gonna go back. Can't miss my good night's sleep." Raven said, stretching to loosen stiff muscles.
"Bye." Raven waved, and in an instant, their figure dissolved into faint black mist.
The presence in the room lessened. All four of them seemed more relaxed now.
"Tch— I can never get that guy, suddenly appearing out of nowhere. Makes my nerves tingle." Billy said, breaking the silence.
Jin Hee sighed.
"That one there is Raven. They're our recon. Their recollection allows them to go undetected," Jin Hee explained. "They're a bit of a weirdo, and nobody has ever seen their face. It seems that even the system is unable to detect it."
Yuki nodded.
Suddenly, Billy began to walk towards her. He sneered as Yuki stared back.
Yuki carefully studied the man in front of her. Billy was lanky; he wasn't particularly muscular, but fighting with him had shown that appearance alone wasn't the judge of strength. Her hand was still throbbing in pain.
Billy wore the same suit as her, though in a much messier manner. His shirt was untucked, and he wore a massive, creepy grin on his face. His skin was a pale brown, and crowning his head was spiky red hair whose dye was already fading away, revealing black roots.
"You." Billy spat, his finger pointing at Yuki. "I like you."
He grinned.
"I don't," Yuki scowled. Billy chuckled.
"Yeah, I approve. You're fit to be my leader." Billy laughed, slapping Yuki on the back a couple of times. "Raven's right, you are interesting."
After bantering for quite a bit, Billy went out of the office, still laughing.
Jin Hee sighed. "He's our team healer. He can be quite... annoying, but he's probably our best asset on a mission," she explained. "Just put up with him if you can. Fortunately, you pulled the long end of the stick; if he finds you boring, he can be much, much worse. That's the reason most leaders don't stay longer than a week after a mission."
As soon as Jin Hee finished, a golden flash flew towards Yuki. Juliette clasped her hands and smiled, her face coming close to Yuki's.
"A- Angel?" Yuki blurted.
"Ahaha. I'm not an angel, silly. My name's Juliette!" Juliette introduced herself.
Juliette's outfit was unmistakably Victorian, a long black dress tailored close to her waist before cascading into layered ruffles that whispered with every movement. Her features were accentuated beautifully. She had glowing golden hair that contrasted her outfit. She had fair skin with no blemishes. She looked like a dame pulled from an old portrait.
Her angelic image came from the way she flew. She didn't float, nor were there any wings flapping. She seemed to instead be in a state of perpetual falling, yet it was graceful. The fabric of her dress fluttered slowly; her hair seemed to defy gravity in the way it flowed.
And then her eyes—
"Leader?" Jin Hee's voice brought Yuki back to reality. She finally realized she had been staring at the ange— woman in front of her for several minutes by now.
Even Juliette seemed embarrassed at how intensely she was being stared at. Yuki immediately apologized. Juliette reintroduced herself.
"I'm Juliette. I'm a regular Soul Reaper. As you can see, my recollection allows me to float in the air." Juliette smiled.
"Anyway—" The angel's hands gripped her shoulders. Then, without warning, she shook Yuki's poor body violently.
"Why did you do that?" Juliette shouted. "What would you do if you die? You can't die with this cute face, ya know?" Juliette couldn't help but pinch Yuki's cheeks with both hands.
It was only after Jin Hee broke them apart that she finally stopped. Yuki's head spun a little.
"Ah, sorry. But, we can't die in this city, no?" Yuki said, a smile filling her face. Both Juliette and Jin Hee looked at each other.
"How'd you know?" Juliette questioned.
"Oh, I just saw an advertisement on how this is a safe space." Yuki pointed towards the billboard on the streets. All three women looked outside the now-repaired window.
[Welcome to Night City! The only Safe Zone in Death Realm! If you somehow die, please refer to this number below for compensation!]
The billboard read.
"Ah~ haha, you're right! Good observation, I like it." Juliette cheered, smiling at Yuki, her hand resting on Yuki's shoulder.
Jin Hee, as if already familiar with the sight, quickly pulled Yuki away.
"Aren't you done here, J? How about you leave now?" Jin Hee said, an annoyed smile carved onto her face.
"Fu fu, it seems you called dibs on her first, eh?"
"Do you think I'm you?" Jin Hee scowled. Juliette just blurted out a chuckle at her response.
Annoyed, Jin Hee quickly pushed the floating figure of Juliette out of the room and slammed the door shut.
A huge sigh escaped her.
"What was that about?" Yuki asked, which prompted Jin Hee to turn her head towards her. She quickly walked fast towards Yuki and got her face close. Her hands gripped Yuki's shoulders.
'She looks a bit scary now,' Yuki's mind quipped. Jin Hee took a couple of looks at her before sighing.
"I reached out to that guy. After tearing his eardrums, he initially agreed to let you leave for another team. But no one wanted you," Jin Hee explained.
"What?"
"Well, it looks like you're a reject, too, now." Jin Hee let out a teasing smile.
"Welcome to the team, Leader. We'll be in your care."