[1st POV]
"Welcome to Crossroads Cafe!!"
Reze greeted me cheerfully the moment I opened the door.
It was like she knew I was coming here. Of course, she did, hybrids were sensitive to smell, especially that of a devil.
"I'll have black coffee bitter enough to scare the overworked salaryman," I ordered immediately when I entered the cafe.
The place was empty, unlike on weekdays. So I picked the seat I wanted and sat down behind the biggest table.
There was something about sitting at the biggest table that scratched a greedy itch of mine.
My coffee came only a minute later.
"Here's your coffee," Reze said and served me the cup.
I took a sip and basked in the insane bitterness. It was absolutely distasteful, but it was why I ordered it. I was in a constant state of hunger that could never be satisfied. So forcing myself to do these disgusting things helped more with my hunger than stuffing my face full of good food.
"Would you sit down with me?" I asked.
Not exactly because I wanted to, but she just stood there in front of me and watched me drink my coffee. It was a very obvious and silent way to force me to invite her.
"Okay," she said fast and sat down next to me with a smile.
At this point, I was quite sure that she had received an order from the Soviets about me. Although I doubt it was to assassinate me, as they did with Denji. I was not like Chainsawman, who was already famous among the devils.
Maybe it was along the lines of: get close to the Pig Devil and get information. At least that was my guess from how she behaved so far.
"You didn't come yesterday. I was expecting you," she said.
"I had a mission," I said while forcing down the coffee. It was so bitter it made my mouth numb and cured my hunger just for a bit.
"A mission?"
"Yup, I'm a devil hunter."
She acted surprised.
"What? You couldn't tell before from my uniform?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I can, but you're so young I didn't believe it," she said. "I thought you were a wannabe Devil Hunter, like the club members of the Devil Hunter club from my school."
"Your school has a club like that?"
"Yes," she said.
What a bunch of idiots. Who the fuck actually wants to be a Devil Hunter? Don't they read? The Devil Hunting job has the highest casualty rate of any profession. Yes, even more than the military.
"Say, do you have powers or something like that?" she asked in innocent curiosity. That only added to my speculation that she was here to get information from me.
"I do," I admitted.
"Really?! What kind of power?"
"I can summon things," I nod.
"Like what?"
"Pretty girls like you," I said, intentionally making a corny joke.
"???" She looked at me, confused.
"I summoned you too, didn't I?"
Her eyes sparkled widely, and then she laughed.
"You don't have to laugh, it wasn't even funny," I said and drank my coffee.
"Sorry, sorry," she said and waved her hand, "It was precisely because it wasn't funny that I laughed. That was really corny and hard to hear."
I take back what I said. It was pretty funny when looking from that perspective. It even made me cringe.
"Say, Reze," I asked after a while, "Why are you so interested in me?"
"Am I?"
"I doubt you'd treat everyone like you treat me. Or do you sit down next to every bastard that asks?" I said.
She became quiet. A blush appeared on her cheeks, which made her absolutely adorable. People blush, but it was a completely different thing when she did. Hers could steal hearts.
"You called me pretty... but you don't look bad yourself," she finally said while twirling a strand of hair. She didn't meet my eyes.
"You are interested in me because you think I'm handsome?" I asked doubtfully. Then she finally met my eyes and gave a nod.
We both became quiet and locked eyes.
Then out of nowhere, I changed my face to take the slight appearance of a pig. I grew my nose, pulled out my jaw in an ugly way and made a face.
I oinked at her.
She was caught completely by surprise, thinking we were sharing a moment. She flinched back, but I noticed immediately how her hand went to her neck and the collar tied around it that hid her pin.
Reze had a pin on her neck like a grenade, and she could transform into her devil form by pulling that pin.
"...."
"...."
We continued to stare at each other for a few seconds before finally, she burst out in laughter. This time, it was a genuine laugh, not something acted or practiced.
She was not as elegant when she actually laughed. Her mouth opened wide, her eyes closed and she leaned forward while holding her stomach. But I'd say her real laugh was much sweeter.
"Oh my god, you scared me," she said and wiped away her tears.
I finally turned my face back to normal and stared.
"You still think I'm handsome?" I asked.
She shook her head rapidly, still giggling.
"Thought so," I said with a winning grin and drank my coffee.
"You're still endearing though," she said, and I spat out my coffee.
How the fuck did she even come up with that compliment? She couldn't say I was handsome or cute because both are flat-out lies.
But endearing? That was a strangely perfect way to describe it.
I turned to her in disbelief. She smiled.
"Are you hungry? I'll buy you breakfast," I asked finally.
"Really?"
I nod, "I earned a sweet paycheck on my last mission."
Her face lit up, and she turned to the counter with a raised hand.
"Boss!! Can I get a French Toast and Strawberry Cake!!" she yelled joyously. "And black coffee too!!"
"You like black coffee?"
She turned to me with a nod, "Yes. I know it's bitter, but it's comforting and makes the cake sweeter."
...
You know what, I'm sold.
My first instinct was to avoid her, and I know she was only baiting, but sure, Reze.
I'll bite.
..
////////////////////
(Makima's office)
"What the fuck is this?" I asked while looking through the stacks of files in my hand.
"Those are the members of your division," Makima said while crossing her legs, "You are the captain now, so you need to know the people working under you."
"You want me to read through all this?"
"I want you to try," she said.
I briefly read through the names and titles of members. "Beam, Shark Fiend. Galgali, Violence Fiend. Kobeni Higashiyama. Princi, Spider Devil. Aki Hayakawa. Power, Blood Fiend. Madoka Nigaman.… what a bunch of weirdos."
Makima showed a smile, "That's the whole point of the fourth division. Some of the fiends are currently under supervision and wouldn't be able to take missions for a while. But don't worry, I'll help you oversee everything."
That made me worry even more, to be honest.
I stopped when I saw another familiar face besides Aki. "Himeno is in here? I thought she was from the first division."
"You know her?" Makima asked, her tone nearly cracking, and that tells me she didn't really like the human.
"Met her this morning," I said.
"She requested to join the division when it was properly established. I accepted," she said. Himeno probably did it because Aki is in the division.
"So when can I meet my members?" I asked.
"You will do so one at a time, especially the fiends," she said, "Among them, who do you want to meet first?"
"Beam," I said without missing a beat. The shark fiend was the best boy in the entire series. Seriously, he was the MVP of the movie when I watched it in my past life.
"I guessed you'd say that, considering he is an animal devil much like you," she said.
"Power too," I said, "The audacity to name yourself Power."
Makima chuckled, seemingly fond of her already.
"Take the files with you and read everything. You need to know the background and the personality of each member before you meet them," she said.
"Will do," I said.
One thing I realised when I saw all these familiar names in the division:
The canon is about to start.
Denji, Chainsawman.
I know only tragedies would follow you when you arrive, but I can't help but want to meet you.
...
"Can you kiss me again?" I said, completely out of the blue and catching Makima off guard.
"What?" she blinked owlishly.
"In the cheek. But this time, I want to take a picture," I said and took out my phone. It was an old model compared to the smartphone in my previous life, but it still had a camera.
Makima stared at me in silence for a while.
"Is this to annoy Aki?" she asked after a while.
I nod.
A sly grin spread across her face and she got up from her seat. She made a slow walk towards me as I waited in anticipation.
She stood in front of me, just like when she kissed me yesterday. She leaned close, and this time I reciprocated and leaned towards her too. My head tilted to the side to show my cheek.
But then she put her hands in her coat pocket and took out a purse. She took out the few hundred yen she had in her purse and handed it to me.
I was dumbfounded, but her sly smile only widened.
"You can go now, Jin."
She turned and walked back to her seat.
I really shouldn't have made that comment, huh.
"Fair enough," I said and pocketed the cash before leaving her office.
I went down the building and made my way to the storage office once more. Yuito told me to come to him the next day, yesterday, right after I was done with my Cannibal Devil mission.
"Yo," I greeted him while leaning on his counter.
"What's up? You said you wanted to see me," I said.
"Yes, I have something to give you. Wait a second," he said and went to the back. He returned with a small cloth in his right hand and a suitcase in his left.
He handed me both items.
I first held the cloth in my hands and spread it. It was a small piece of cloth, a boxer to be exact. I turned to Yuito with confused eyes.
"What do you think?"
"Is this for me?" I asked, and he nodded.
"It's too small for me, but it's okay, I guess," I said.
"Small?"
"I have a big shlong," I said with a smirk.
"You wish," he said, "That's a prototype we made yesterday. You see, the staff and I came up with a strategy to reduce the waste of uniform on you."
"And how is a boxer going to help?"
"So here's what we are thinking. You see this suitcase, right? Before you go to battle, you will take off your uniform and put it in the suitcase. You mentioned something about your clothes getting dirty, even if you bring a spare, so this suitcase is sturdy and completely waterproof. You will wear these boxers and after you are done with the battle, you will retrieve the suitcase and wear your uniform again," he said seriously, like it was a great plan.
"....." I deadpanned at him.
"What do you think?" he asked.
"Let me get this straight," I said while rubbing my eyes, "You want me to strip down naked before every battle?"
"....that's the idea,"
"Are you fucking serious?! I am not doing that," I said, almost screamed. "You really want me to strip down naked before every battle I have?"
"Battles that require you to transform," he corrected.
"I don't give a fuck," I said. "Okay, imagine this scenario. Imagine the Rat Devil is on a rampage, right? And that too because of your silly fear, okay? Now this Devil is killing civilians left and right. And I'm talking about precious civilians. A bright student who is going to grow up to be a great man, cure cancer and end world hunger. But he died, killed by the Rat Devil before he could fulfil this destiny. Why? BECAUSE I WAS TOO BUSY GETTING NAKED!!"
"...when you put it that way,"
"That's the only way to put it. I don't have time to get naked when battle suddenly arrives. And cut me some slack, I'm saving people here! You're acting like the Public Safety Commission is not supported by the government and doesn't have an unlimited budget," I said.
"It's not about the money, it's about the waste that could be avoided," he insisted.
"I am not putting on your stupid boxer that is obviously too small for me," I said with a huff.
I turned to look at the other employee in the neighbouring counter, "Can you believe this guy?"
"Actually, part of it was my idea."
"Fuck you too then."
"Okay, I understand if you don't like it, but it was worth a try," Yuito said with a sigh. He pulled out an overcoat from under him and pushed it towards me.
"And here, the coat you requested," he said.
"Finally, something unstupid," I said sarcastically.
"Thank you," I said and immediately left.
"Try to last that at least a full day!!" Yuito yelled after me.
...
...
[IMAGE]
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Author : Next extra chapter after reaching 600 stones.