February 28, 1976 (Present Day)
The City of Cheshire
(Yamir's POV)
"So, thanks to Loki's efforts, we now know that Asara is going to be holed up somewhere here in Cheshire for a while. And, while the reason why is unknown, it does give us a chance to finally corner our target once and for all."
"Precisely. However, we also have to take into account how elusive Asara can be." Naoto replied.
Of course. After all, being able to stay one step ahead of our company for four years straight is no achievement we should scoff at.
"If you think about it, this whole ordeal has pretty much become a game of hide and seek." Via said.
"Yeah, I suppose you can look at it like that."
"Well, if you want to view it like that, then you could almost say that the "stage" itself has been set."
"And if we play our cards right, we can put an end to this hunt~....." Loki replied devilishly.
Yeah, but….
….that's only "if" you play your cards correctly.
The stage may be set, but the time for the curtains to fall certainly has not.
"Again though. I do need everyone here to properly understand Asara's capabilities." Naoto said again.
"She is extremely strong and agile. And, she is cunning for her looks as well. If she even suspects that we are on to her, she won't waste any time erasing her tail and escape."
…I can't help but get this feeling that he's speaking from personal experience.
"I see. So that's why you wanted us to enlist in Cerulean. In a sense, this is a way of blending into the crowd, right?" Via commented.
"Yes. Didn't I explain this to you two earlier?"
Well, can you really blame her?
Back then, we didn't have that much context about the situation compared to right now, so that plan pretty much went over our heads for a second.
In any case, to put simply, the situation so far is this.
Thanks to Loki's added help, we finally figured out the general pattern of our "target"'s movements.
However, upon realizing something suspicious about her, we eventually realized that she was intentionally circling around the city of Cheshire.
The reason why is unknown, but it's safe to assume that there must be something, somewhere in this city, that kept her wanting to stay close by.
Regardless, it is clear to see that our target must have also set up camp somewhere here in this city and is probably blending in amongst the populus.
And, as always, the overall goal is to find our target and hand them over to the company.
In other words, it's a literal game of hide and seek.
And everyone else is here to play…
*Sigh*...
The thing is, none of us can afford to be sloppy. If we truly want to find and apprehend our target, we need to blend in. Hence the reason why Naoto is going to such lengths to cover all possible bases.
"So with all that said Yamir, are you convinced yet? Or are you still against this idea?…" Loki asked.
"Yes, I still am, actually." I replied.
"I see.…"
Don't get me wrong. When it comes to blending in and establishing a cover story, I can see the benefits of becoming a student in Cerulean Academy.
But despite all that, I still have my own reasons as to why I'm against "this" plan in particular..
The most important reason why is that this idea….
…would exploit a certain "weakness" of mine.
Whether or not they are aware of that, that fact alone is more than enough reason as to why I simply cannot allow something like that to come to pass.
Ever.
.
.
.
But, I guess, in the end, such efforts were made futile in the face of a certain person.
"I gotta say though…."
"I find it rather odd how you are so insistent on refusing this mission." That "person" said.
"Why's that?"
"Well, you, of all people, should know how important fake identities and background information are. Especially when it comes to hunting down targets…."
"As such, missions regarding such identities is not something you can easily neglect without proper reason." That person continued to elaborate.
"Because of that, it makes me wonder…. If there is something else you're focused on. Something you deem more important than the mission itself~..."
"What exactly are you trying to imply?" I asked.
"Nothing really. This is all pure speculation, of course." That person replied in jest.
"I'm just saying that if you were to, by some chance, happen to misplace your attention, despite being aware of your master's wishes, that alone could, in a way, be considered as…. insubordination."
"Isn't that right, Naoto~...."
The moment "that person" casted attention towards him, I noticed that he was glancing harshly at me. His glasses emphasized the daggers he sent my way.
Naoto did not respond, but his glance was more than enough to help prove the point "they" made.
"Something that would distract Yamir from the task at hand, huh. Well regardless of what it is, the company still has rules to follow." Via replied.
"Let's see, if I remember correctly, "All Weapons must coordinate with their respective Masters and inform them of any and all actions taken regarding future activity." I believe that's a rule stated in the Employee Policy, isn't it?"
"Oof, a violation of that level wouldn't be taken so lightly~…." Kenji said.
"That's putting it mildly. Acts of insubordination are usually punishable by death." Freed interjected.
"Yes, but that's only in the scenario that Yamir has other ulterior motives. You know, like plans that would involve her striking out on her own~..."
"That's a pretty heavy scenario to randomly be throwing in the air." I casually replied.
"Well, I'm only speaking about a certain possibility. I never said anything about being worried that it may be true. Because, I know in the end…you would never betray your beloved masters, right?~..."
…..This bastard.
Since the moment Naoto told us about this plan, I had hoped to avoid this situation if possible. But it seems like that won't be happening any time soon.
*Sigh*.
Out of the seven people who were sitting in this room right now, there was one particular person who was smart enough to force my hand like this.
And, unfortunately, with a perceptive crowd like this, this isn't a situation I can talk myself out of…
"Fine, fine. I get it already. I'll play along with you guys and see this through." I replied, surrendering.
"Now that's a good little girl~...."
I dared not to roll my eyes at that person.
In any case, as much as I hate to admit it, so long as the situation stands like this, I really have no other choice but to cooperate…
Ugh, it's unfortunate, but I'll just have to deal with it.
At the very least, not all is lost, yet.
No, if anything, we're just getting started.