126. Interesting

(Beardy POV)

***

'That was... interesting?'

Beardy was still trying to come to terms with the chaotic mess that had just unfolded in the office, but despite the rollercoaster of a 'conversation' Reiji's friends had with the Boss, it ended quite positively.

".....What a waste of some good whiskey. That wouldn't have even created a decent fire," Daichi muttered, staring at the large puddle on the carpeted floor with desolate eyes.

"Boss, were you serious about that agreement? What about the syndicate?" Beardy asked grimly.

"Hmmm, you know I'm a man of my word. But like I told them, this doesn't mean he can disregard his succession."

Beardy breathed a sigh of relief.

'That's good, Boss has to be the one to take over! Everything will go to shit otherwise.....'

"I'm just surprised you didn't cut a few fingers off, thankfully!" Baldy laughed at the side.

*SMACK!*

"OW!"

"Don't give the Boss any ideas, you moron!" Beardy hissed in his ear while Baldy massaged his smooth head for the second time today.

"Oh, please. Do you really think that little of me? Was I supposed to genuinely get offended by what some ignorant kids were saying?" Daichi rolled his eyes.

"Of course not! But.....was it because they were kids, or because they were friends with the Young Boss?"

The lion of a man smiled slightly at those words.

".....What are you two just standing there for? Clean up this mess and get me a new ice pick. That girl took mine with her," he ordered, ignoring the question.

"Ah, right! Raiden, you go get the ice pick from the storage, I'll handle this!" Beardy signaled, moving to the small closet to get some cleaning equipment.

"Okay!"

The egghead left quickly, leaving the two of them alone.

There was a minute of silence while Daichi looked over a few documents as Beardy cleaned up the spilled whiskey with an exasperated smile.

"Boss?" he spoke up.

"Hm?"

"What'd you think of those two girls?"

Daichi put the papers down and leaned back in his chair with a calm smile.

"They were..... interesting. The blonde is quite smart, but what stood out is the fact that she was able to force herself to overcome her nervousness. As for the redhead.... She's crazy. But what would I expect from someone raised by that man?"

"Pfft!"

Beardy let out a chuckle, agreeing with his impressions.

"She's certainly spunky, but I'm not sure if that's a good thing. It could get her into trouble if she becomes overconfident," he commented.

Daichi shook his head.

"No, that'll be difficult. Of course, it's not impossible to offend the wrong person, especially if they don't know her background, but that girl is freakishly strong."

"Huh?"

"In fact, I think she might even be almost as good as you," Daichi raised an eyebrow.

"Wait, really??"

"Her posture, lean muscles, demeanor, and instincts all suggest that she can fight. But yes, she does need to tone down her attitude. I hope she isn't going around constantly acting like this..... Regardless of anything else, they're both a little foolish."

Beardy's eyes widened in shock because there was a genuine hint of worry in his voice, an emotion he thought was only reserved for Reiji and his first wife!

'Wait..... I guess it's because she knows the Young Boss, and if she got hurt, so would he.'

"I'm just happy the Young Boss has made such caring friends!" Beardy sighed. "He used to be so.....problematic? And that's putting it nicely."

Daichi nodded, straightening his beard in deep thought with a frown that made Beardy stop cleaning up the floor for a second.

"Takeda, Reiji said he would be busy with the midterms, right? Is that over?"

"Yes, Boss."

"Alright, tell him to come to my office tomorrow after school. And call over our best doctor to give him a checkup when he arrives."

"Alright, I'll do that," Beardy smiled wryly.

'I hope he explains everything to the Young Boss soon... I can't bear this much longer.'

***

(Haruna POV)

"That went much better than I was expecting! No blood was shed!" Yui cheered, raising her fists to the roof as the elevator descended.

".....You threatened to make Reiji's Dad a eunuch. I'm surprised that no blood was shed!" Haruna snapped, looking at the redhead like she was insane.

"He had it coming, and maybe he got scared, and that's why he agreed to a compromise?"

"Suuuuuure! A super-powerful Yakuza Boss backed down because a high school girl pressured him with an ice pick! That's definitely why he agreed!" Haruna jabbed sarcastically. "He had no intention of hurting us in the first place, which was good because you seriously almost screwed us over!"

Yui glared at her fiercely.

"Hey, I said nothing but the truth in there! If he can't handle it, that's his fau-"

"Senpai!" Haruna interrupted loudly. "If you aren't willing to reflect on this for yourself, or even me, think about how sad Reiji-tan would be if he found out you got into trouble as a result! Let alone in the future, if it happened today, wouldn't he start blaming himself if anything happened to us?"

Yui pursed her lips, her scowl softening instantly at the harsh reprimand.

She looked down at her feet, her face covered in guilt.

"That..... Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm sorry," she whispered.

Haruna breathed a sigh of relief, seeing that she understood.

"I know your family must be powerful with how he reacted, but that doesn't mean you can just be reckless. Since it turned out okay, I guess it's fine. But please be careful in the future because I have the feeling that you actually might get into trouble one of these days, which would make both me and Reiji-tan sad."

"O-Okay...."

Yui's cheeks flushed red, though Haruna wasn't sure if it was out of embarrassment or something else.

*DING*

The elevator doors slid open, and they stepped out together, heading straight for the exit without looking back.

Now that their job was done, for now at least, Haruna wanted to get to school quickly because she didn't want to miss the rest of her classes.

'Looking at the time, I've already missed the first two periods, and will definitely miss the third because of the return journey. But I'll make it back before the break ends after that.'

Yui, seeing the fast pace at which Haruna was moving, tilted her head quizzically as she jogged to catch up.

"What're you in such a hurry for? Do you think they might send some thugs after us?"

"What? No, I just want to get back to school so that I don't miss any more classes!"

"Oh god, you're such a goody-two-shoes!" Yui retched with a disgusted pout.

Haruna smiled indifferently.

"You're coming with me."

"What? Nah, it's already so late, what's the point? Might as well take a short 'vacation' and relax for a bit!"

"Absolutely not! I couldn't stop you from skipping some classes, but I damn well won't allow you to bunk the entire day!"

".....What the fuck is this? I'm the Senpai here, not you! Why am I being scolded?" Yui mumbled deliriously.

"Seniority doesn't decide what's right and wrong," Haruna smirked, pulling her along towards the main road to book a taxi.

Yui opened her mouth to retort, but couldn't muster up the courage for some reason as she let herself be guided away from the building.

But when they stepped out and walked towards the entry gate, they saw someone leaning against one of the pillars.

It was the same boy whom they'd met outside Daichi's office, and he licked his lips when he spotted them, straightening up his posture to wave casually.

Yui switched modes, tightening the grip on Haruna's hand as she reversed their positions to cover her from the front.

She also took out the ice pick from the office.

'.....She took it with her??' Haruna groaned internally.

"Oh my, why do I feel like a villain with how you're treating me?" the man chuckled, raising his arms in the air when he saw that. "I mean no harm!"

"Because you give me the creeps," Yui sneered.

"Man, you really don't let up with the jabs, do you?"

"Is it really a jab if I'm speaking the truth?"

The boy's face hardened slightly, but he forced back his smile and crossed his arms.

"I just want to get to know you two, is that so bad?" he asked.

"Your intentions are so clear, so I can't tell if you're a bad actor or just plain stupid," Yui mocked with a raised brow.

"There's a limit to how much you can keep yapping with no consequences, don't forget we're still on my turf," he growled, a vein finally throbbing on his forehead to show that he'd had enough.

"Who even are you?" Haruna piped up from the back.

The man smiled, his green eyes lighting up at the question as he ran his fingers through his hair to smooth it back.

"My name is Yagami Yuusuke, the son of Yagami Daichi. Now do you understand that befriending me will only help you?" he replied confidently.

Haruna and Yui turned to each other, stunned at the revelation.

"Wait, so you're Reiji-tan's brother?"

Yuusuke's smile froze on his face, and his lips twisted into a snarl instead.

"You know my pathetic little bro- OOMPH!"

Yui's leg shot out, aimed right at his gut with frightening power, before he even managed to complete his sentence, but Yuusuke reacted instantly and managed to barely block it with the back of his palms.

He still stumbled back multiple steps while holding onto his hands in pain.

"What the actual fuck is wrong with this family?? How the hell did Reiji manage to grow up so properly in such a household?" Yui exclaimed in extreme frustration.

"S-Senpai, are you sure that was a good idea?"

"Hmph, I don't care who it is, that's what they'll get if they badmouth Reiji!"

Yui glared at Yuusuke one more time and pulled Haruna along towards the taxi that they'd booked, which had pulled up to the gate.

Haruna glanced back to see if they would be followed, especially after he was attacked here of all places.

The silver-haired man was staring at them with a mix of rage, humiliation, and surprise.

But he didn't stop them from leaving.

And as one of the guards rushed towards him, he waved his hand to make him leave, a slow smirk growing once again while he still nursed his hands.

"Now this....this is a little interesting."