『Gazing through crystal eyes』
Internships are supposed to be a taste of what a Hero was expected to take on after graduation. After struggling to get his provisional license and being a step behind his classmates, Akihiko Mochizuki finally has the o...
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This chapter does have a bit of violence in a portion toward the end. I did tone it down from my original draft, but I'm still giving a warning anyway.
❯──｢✾｣──❮
A limping leg was not the best thing to have when trying to sneak around, but Briar made do with what she had. And there was only so much one could do with a struggling body that could not keep up with your will. So all the woman did was clench her teeth and make her way down an endless corridor.
Her fingers drummed against her thigh, each one counting every second that had passed. Her gaze stayed firm in front of her, inspecting every little detail that managed to pass through her vision. Nothing dangerous or suspicious crossed her line of sight; however, that did not mean that she should put her guard down. A simple distraction could be fatal.
A part of her wanted to glance over her shoulder as she swallowed the concern down her throat. She knew Akihiko was intelligent and someone whom she could rely on. Those facts alone were why she told him to go the opposite way. But that did not mean she was not worried. He was sixteen and already forced into a more dangerous situation than she would have wanted. Yoshino was supposed to be a town with little to no crime. Too bad that was not the case.
The sound of glass shattering made her head perk up in an instant. Narrowing her eyes, she firmly pressed her back against the wall. Muck stained her hands, and the urge to wipe it off was strong, but she knew that was not what was necessary. A sliver of bright light peeked out from the crack left by a slightly open door beyond her.
Pressing her lips together, the woman crept closer to the door as best as she could with a numbed ankle that felt stiff. Luckily, she still managed to stay as silent as she would have been if she was not injured. At least that proved that experience does come in handy after being a Hero for so long.
Nearing her face toward the crack, she squinted a bit because of the sudden light change. Even staring at Akihiko's crystalline hair for a few days was not enough for her to get used to such brightness. She had been in the darkness too long now. Briar blinked a few times and pressed her lips together. Once her eyesight adjusted, she glanced over what she could see through the thin line.
A shadow flittered through the gap, shifting how the light hit her face. She blinked a few times before her gaze hardened. A makeshift lab was what she chalked the place up to be. Gloved fingers picked up the remnants of what used to be a test tube. The crimson liquid lying inside splattered across the concrete and stained the soles of his bulky black shoes. A slight grumble could be heard from the plague mask but not loud enough for the Hero to distinguish what he was saying.
As Remi slowly cleaned the mess he created, Briar could not help but bite down on her bottom lip. The metallic taste was refreshing, something to rid herself of the guilt knocking against her sternum. All of this, everything single thing happened right underneath her nose, and she could not stop it beforehand. Had she paid a bit more attention, scoured the town and woods a bit deeper, and even conversed more with the citizens, could she have prevented this?
