The next morning…
“Seriously, those guys really couldn’t read the room,” Kazami spat, running water through his hair in the shower.
He had gone out of his way to be polite and accommodating, but that was the attitude he got in return. Did they have no heart?
He snorted, imagining they were probably disliked in their everyday lives, and stepped in front of the mirror, naked.
“Alright. I’m looking good today too.”
…I hope that zombie smell from yesterday isn’t still lingering.
Fighting gross monsters like zombies was no good. It dirtied his sword and armor.
The best cost-performance move was to play dumb and leave it to someone else.
I’m so smart!
But what the hell were those guys anyway?
Flamethrowers and crazy protective suits. Even regular Cleaners didn’t have gear like that, and more than anything, their vibe was off…
“…Whatever, breakfast, breakfast.”
He made a salad, toast, and fried egg, added coffee, and took a photo with his Smartphone.
Just as he was about to upload it to Instagram with the caption “Today’s breakfast!”, his alarm went off.
“Crap, I promised Michiko I’d meet her today.”
Michiko was number three on his list, but she was a convenient woman to keep around. Flatter her a little, and she’d fall for anything. Plus, a sexually frustrated housewife was hot and exciting.
The fact that her husband knew nothing about it gave him a supreme sense of superiority…
Ding-dong. The apartment buzzer rang. “Huh?”
He opened the door to find a small box.
“What’s this?”
Inside was an assortment of cookies like you’d find at a souvenir shop.
What the hell?
…Was it a woman?
As Kazami tilted his head in confusion, his Smartphone vibrated again. It was an unknown number.
“Hey, who’s this?”
“Excuse me for calling so suddenly. My name is Kageichi Futsuu… We met the other day.”
“Yo! Good work, bro!”
Crap! He greeted him in a panic.
This was a secret he couldn’t let anyone find out, but Kazami had to get along with this man for a certain reason in the future.
Frankly, it was a pain in the ass, and he preferred dealing with women, but it was a promise.
…Wait, did he figure out who I am?
Nah, there’s no way he could know.
I’m good, I’m good.
As long as I don’t slip up, there’s no way that weird Suit Man would figure out who I am, idiot.
…I know something you don’t know…
“By the way, Kazami-san. I thought you were an independent streamer, but it seems you’re affiliated with an agency. Re:Retryz, is it?”
“Guh!?”
“If my memory serves me correctly, that’s the same agency as the former streaming group called ‘The Numbers’… Is there some kind of connection?”
Crap, he knows…
Wait, how did he find out?
I haven’t even debuted from the agency yet, and my name isn’t listed anywhere, right?
Come to think of it, how did he get my phone number…?
“Is something the matter, Kazami-san… Kazamidori Auchi-san?”
“!?!”
“Age 22, occupation: freeter. Previous job: one week at a convenience store before being fired for unexcused absences. Father, mother, and older brother at home… And I hear your family has a cute dog.”
“Y-you… You know a lot, don’t you…?”
“A French Bulldog, was it? I’m mostly a cat person, but dogs are cute too. Ah, that’s right, it was last year when I took on a certain request. The client had a dog. And that dog barked at me quite a bit. Along with its owner, yipping and yapping.”
“…W-what are you talking about…?”
“Since it was barking so much, I thought it wanted to be friends, so I fed it. I considered the nutritional balance and chopped up some leeks and chives into a doggy hamburger. It seemed very happy. I’m sure it’s getting along with its owner over there now.”
“Oh, and on another matter…”
“…It seems you have quite a bit of debt?”
“H-how do you know that…?”
“You shouldn’t have friends who are too loose-lipped. So? What’s your purpose in approaching me?”
W-what the hell is this guy?
I don’t know what’s going on, but this guy is… dangerous!!!
My instincts were screaming at me. Getting involved with this guy was definitely bad news.
Wait, this is straight-up blackmail, right?
He knows my address and my family, so he wants me to spill the information I know…
…But, but wait.
The fact that he’s asking questions means he doesn’t know my objective yet.
Okay…
Time for my specialty: playing dumb!
“N-no, sorry, bro. I have no idea what you’re talking about. …I’m definitely with the agency, but meeting you was just a coincidence.”
“Is that so?”
Behind him.
A beep echoed, and the table suddenly exploded, sending Kazami flying with a scream of “Hiii!?”
!?!?!
What was that just now? Huh? Huh?
An explosion!?
Why? Why why why!? What just exploded?
Kazami, dripping with sweat, was completely bewildered.
In his ear, the man whispered again.
“I’ll ask you one more time. What is your objective?”
“…I… well…”
“If you provide me with the correct information, I might be willing to let you off the hook, under certain conditions.”
“Huh? What does that…”
There was no reply.
Only a silent pressure was conveyed through the Smartphone, and Kazami intuitively knew that this was bad.
After agonizing and thinking harder than he ever had in his life, he confessed everything in five seconds.
“I-I’m sorry! I’m actually a Spy from the agency!”
※ Announcement from the author
Thank you for reading this work.
Regarding the future, the scheduled posts for the completion of the second chapter of Psychopath Uncle have been completed. If everything goes according to plan, there will be daily updates at 12:00 PM until February 22nd, with a total of 116 episodes.
After the completion of the second chapter, I plan to take a break for a while.
Thank you for your continued support of this work.