ASAHI NO NISHISEI - Rising Sun Goes West (2)

To the Dark Auction

It's going to be a simple, clear-cut, good-guy/punishment thing, and I'm laughing at myself something like that.

- Bokutotsu Zen'u

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8 years ago

Tokyo Bay Area

Downpouring rain beats against the concrete of the wharf, it is dark outside, and even the sound of cars is muffled by the rain. The rainwater has caused Tokyo Bay to swell, bringing the sea level to just below land level. A wave warning had been issued, and no one was supposed to be in the Port of Tokyo. However, in an abandoned warehouse located in the middle of the bay, three people were found.

"Ungh...!!"

Two men were about to attack a girl whose arms and legs were bound with a vile expression on their faces. The girl's mouth was covered and she could not even speak. An obvious crisis was unfolding on the spot.

'That dream... again...?'

The scene projected in her mind's eye, though vaguely, was a continuation of the "dream" she had had two days earlier. It was a reliving of the past that had cast a dark shadow in her memory.

'.........'

She knew why she had this dream after all these years. It was because of the incident in the Ephoroi Republic where she and her employer, Blauer, were kidnapped. That incident became a relive and awakened the abominable memories that should have been lying dormant in the depths of her mind.

"Hehehe...!!"

A disgusting laugh can be heard coming from the throats of the two kidnappers. The man who grabbed the kidnapped girl by the chest with both hands tried with all his might to tear the cutter shirt of the uniform she was wearing.

"Ngg!!"

Immediately afterward, the girl's bosom was exposed to the men with the sound of small buttons popping off. The girl's face turned unbearably red and she turned away from the shame of having her underwear seen by these men, who looked at her with contempt.

"Hehe... nobody's coming. The policemen are too busy taking care of the storm and the refugees!"

The men hurled words of warning at the girl as her despair faded away. Just then, the man who had ripped her shirt open reached out with his filthy hands to touch her.

'No... it's useless.'

A single tear flowed from the corner of the girl's right eye. She had stopped all resistance and was about to give up on her fate. And then...

"What the hell are you doing!?"

"!?"

A voice echoed through the abandoned warehouse, loud enough to be heard amidst the sound of the rain. The two men and the girl turned toward the voice and saw a young man standing at the entrance of the warehouse.

'...!'

The girl's despair and fear were broken when she saw the familiar dark blue uniform of a police officer, and she cried tears of relief, which were different from the tears of despair she had cried earlier.

"This is ████! I found the girl who was the victim of the kidnapping and the two men who are believed to be the kidnappers! The location is—"

The police officer held his gun in his right hand and held the microphone from the radio attached to his waist close to his mouth to inform his fellow officers of the discovery of the kidnapper and the victim, as well as his current location. He then hung up the radio and, with the gun aimed, slowly moved toward where the two men and the girl are. The police officer warned the two kidnappers, who are clearly shaken up by the sudden situation.