The duo exchanged steadfast gazes, both seemingly unwilling to be the first to avert their eyes. 'I-' Arisu began to say, taking a sharp breath before his words were abruptly interrupted by a forceful voice. 'So you were in here?' the man continued, his rifle swiveling toward the blond his manner exuding a palpable hint of distaste as his eyes took in the other occupants of the room.
'Hatter has been on my ass he wants us and some dude called Arisu for a meeting in 5 minutes make sure he is there,' the man pressed on, and Arisu found some amusement in the man's annoyance as his eyes scanned the other people in the room.
"Tsk", The man left the room not forgetting to slam the door close before leaving . Arisu and Chishiya following behind him neither of them looking at each other as they trudged down through the dim lit halls .
The two trekked further and further into the tight, cramped hallway, neither willing to break the tense atmosphere that was quickly becoming all-encompassing. Suddenly, Arisu spoke up,"I would sacrifice myself" piquing the blonds interest "Figured ". "Then why ask if you knew?" the raven haired questioned with a slightly skeptical tone, to which Chishiya simply smirked entering the meeting room leaving Arisu dazed and confused.
Oh Arisu ", Ann waved at him with a stoic face "Ann!", Arisu waved back with a small smile taking a seat right in front of the lady. "Where's your friend", Another voice chimed in grasping Arisu's attention from Ann to a bulky guy. "Oh!", The raven haired's face lit up in recognition "Your the cool guy from the game of tag!". "Aguni", The man drily replied ."Now your friend did he survive ."Karube? mh he did survive". "Barely", Chisiya thought to himself recalling Karube's wounds."Enough chit chatting let the meeting begin", Hatter chimed in taking a seat the end of the long table .
"The two of Spades, the Six of Spades, the Four of Diamonds and the Two of Clubs. So far, no Face Cards have been identified," a warm voice chimed in from a woman with a playful expression, the tone taking a more teasing vibe as she leaned back in her seat next to Hatter.
"If there are no Face Cards , that means only the 10 of Hearts remains missing," Hatter spoke up, maintaining a calm and collected gaze as he looked over the deck of cards spread out before him.
"If the 10 of Hearts hasn't been spotted," Ann spoke up, her voice taking on a more serious tone as she addressed Hatter and the room in general, "then it's possible that it simply wasn't brought into Tokyo."
"No game has been reported outside the 23 districts," the man with glasses retorted with a small scoff as the man looked up at Ann."That only means we've not searched far enough," Ann retorted, her glare growing more focused on the man as she spoke. The woman's words carrying confidence with them, as if she knew of the reality that was hiding beyond the district boundaries.
Ann's gaze remained steadfast on the man through the entire exchange, her expression taking on a stern severity that conveyed her belief in her words. She knew that the game they were searching for couldn't simply be overlooked, and her confidence in the matter made it all the more apparent. Meanwhile, the man's expression softened every so slightly, his eyes casting a subtle glance toward Ann as he seemed to consider her words. Although no definite conclusion was reached, a seed of uncertainty was planted in the man's mind, his thoughts running deep as he contemplated Ann's words.
'We are not changing the plan.'
Hatter let out a tired sigh as he slammed his drink onto the table, 'The search for games in Tokyo will continue. Keep an eye out on visa expiring and let's patiently wait for the 10 of Hearts to appear.'
This announcement appeared to take Ann by surprise, as she opened her mouth to respond but was quickly silenced by Hatter's stern gaze. 'If that's it, meeting is adjourned.' Hatter announced, dismissing the others as he stood up from his seat.
