"Done…" Akio Hirata breathed, wiping the sweat from his brow. He surveyed his handiwork with a bizarre pride.
Today, his target had been Bando Suzume a coworker form another department. He had spent the entire morning thinking about nothing but her sweet, innocent face.
Now, in the silence of the empty locker room, he had finally satisfied his daily "urge"—directly on her gym clothes. An arrogant grin spread across his face.
"Target… eliminated."
Hastegid, but precise, he pulled off his latex gloves.
He placed the soiled clothes back in the locker and locked it with the key he had stolen from her during recess. Akio couldn't afford to get caught… that would be the end.
After all, he led an extreme double life: On one hand, he was Hirata Akio, the quiet outsider with no friends. On the other hand, he was the most feared villain in the company—known as the "Masterbaiter."
Because of him, the girl in the company lived in constant fear of his next attack.
Even the police had been called in, but no one had the slightest clue as to the mysterious perpetrator's identity.
"I'm a genius..." Akio murmured, meticulously cleaning the crime scene. Not a hair, not a fingerprint.
Everything was perfect.
Since his boss had already assigned him to cleaning duty in the locker rooms, he had the perfect alibi.
With a smug smile, he left the room and strode down the empty hallway.
"Hey, Akio-kun."
A voice echoed through the corridor.
Akio froze.
His heart skipped a beat.
He slowly turned around, his face as pale as snow. About five meters away stood Matsuura Makoto with one arm raised.
His department head; a clever employee with calculating eyes.
Akio managed to mask his nervousness with a casual smile.
"Hey Makoto, whatcha doing here?"
Matsuura Makoto scratched the back of his head and laughed.
"Well, I'm here to bring an end to the Masterbaiter."
Akio grinned and tilted his head to the side.
"What? The Masterbaiter? You mean that crazy gooner?"
Makotos face falls.
"Don't play dumb, I caught you in 4K ultra."
"Hmm? Don't accuse me of something I'm clearly not! I was assigend to clean up the lockers! You can even ask the boss.", Akio stepped back involuntarily.
'Damn it.. he's not believing my alibi!'
"Just admit it. You fell into my trap." Makoto answered in a flat voice.
Akio gritted his teeth. "A trap-?"
"Yes, remember when you secretly picked up Bando Suzumes locker key when she accidentally dropped it to the ground? I was the one who instructed her to do that."
"No.. no.. way...", Aiko was frozen in place. Heart pumping in his chest.
'Damn it... I was careless... this whole situation went to my head and I was inattentive.'
"Tomorrow.. when she is going to open her locker and finds your work of art onto her gym clothes. Everyone knows who it was... and you will get fired." Makoto smiled devilishly.
'Son of a bitch... I can't lose my j*b! I was already unemployed for the last four years!'
But instead of begging for mercy, Akio clutched his hair and began to laugh hysterically.
"Hmmm... haha... HAHAHAAHA!"
The laugh echoed through the hallway.
Confusion.
He smiled: "Sō, da boku ga Masterbaiterda" (That's right, I'm Masterbaiter.)
"Y-You... are not Light Yagami from Death Note!" Makoto pointed at him, his voice cracking.
"A-and you are ain't no L from Death Note! You no detective!" Akio pointed back.
Without a second thought, Akio turned around and ran. He had just exposed himself as a lunatic and that was the only thing that came to his mind.
Makoto followed closely, clearly picking up to him.
Akios mind raced, he had to escape somehow, what came after was a problem for the future.
Scanning the hallway, Akio spotted an open window.
'Jackpot! We are in the first floor... .'
Akio dashed to the side and took a sharp right turn and slide through the open window with an elegant jump into the courtyard.
Nonetheless, Makoto jumped right after him picking up speed moment for moment.
'Damn.. why is he so fast?! How can someone be a mogger, athletic and smart at the same time?! I bet he could even pull my step-mom!'
Gazing forward, Akio saw at the end of the courtyard a busy street where the buses and cars pass by... if he manages to cross it... then there's a chance that he might escape!
A chance for survival!
Reaching the street he stopped. The traffic light was red.
Many cars speed over the street, crossing it would be impossible.
He couldn't care less...
Risking his life, Akio waited for a car to pass by... and ran.
A car rushing towards him emergency stops.
Too late.
The car was too fast.
'Jump!'
Akio jumped in the last moment... and to his surprise he dodged it.
He rolled onto the sidewalk and gasped for air.
A breathless laugh escaped his lips: "I almost got reincarnated..."
He slowly sat up and looked to the street to see Makotos dumbfounded face.. but instead he saw a truck flying right at him.
'Please tell me the truck is AI'
Because the car had to brake so suddenly, it caused a chain reaction in all the traffic. A truck driving directly behind the car had to swerve to avoid crashing into the car in front of it; this truck flew directly towards Akio and processed him into minced meat.
Just like that Akio had died.
'Fuck, it wasn't AI... wait how am I still alive?'
"Seriously?" a voice echoed through the emptiness.
"You urgently asked if the truck was AI while it was turning you into mincemeat? That's the most embarrassing thing I've ever seen—and I reincarnated the guy who got killed by a vending machine."
Akio blinked.
He was no longer aware of himself on the hard asphalt, surrounded by exhaust fumes and the burnt smell of rubber. Instead, he was floating in an endless, neon-purple space that looked suspiciously like a gaming room from 2030.
A young woman sat in front of him on a floating gaming chair. She wore oversized cat-ear headphones and stared at a hologram showing a slow-motion replay of Akio's unfortunate demise.
"'Please tell me the truck is AI'? Those were your last words? Not 'Mother' or 'Forgive me'? No, you're afraid of generated pixels while three tons of real metal turned you into lasagna."
Akio stared at her, his mouth agape.
'Am.. I dreaming?'
"I'm Seraphina by the way. And I'm responsible for placing the absolutely hopeless cases like you somewhere where they won't cause any harm in the real universe" ,she explained, typing listlessly on a floating keyboard.
"I usually send people who get hit by trucks to become heroes in a fantasy world. But with you… ugh."
She looked at Akio's file. "Masterbaiter'? Seriously? Your browsing history melted my antivirus, kid."
Akio sat up proudly. "It was art! Makoto was only mogging me because he got born with genetic advantages!"
Seraphina rubbed her temples. "Shut up! I'm going to give you your magical ability now... ."
"Will I receive a sacred sword?" Akio asked, his eyes shining. "Or a harem guild?"
"You're getting the Gooning Magic," Seraphina said with a devilish grin. "You can copy other people's magic. But the trigger for that is… well, you know. You have to maintain your old 'passion' from the office. The more you focus on someone… the stronger your copy will become."
Akio grinned broadly.
"Damn... that's OP!"
"Shut the hell up," Seraphina interrupted, pressing a large, red button on her chair. "And try not to die after five minutes this time. That would be bad for my stats. Have fun in Puritana, you creep."
Suddenly, a pixelated hole opened beneath Akio.
"Wait!" he yelled as he plummeted into the depths.
"Is this at least 4K?!"
"720p at best!" Seraphina shouted after him before the portal closed with a soft pop.