DECEPTION (Female Reader) [SAKAMOTO DAYS]

14: "My New Show"

Uzuki's POV:

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"Gah! This is bad!" Kindaka's panicked voice broke through the silence. "There may not be enough antidote for me and Uzuki!"

"Maybe the poison guy has more." Sakamoto suggested calmly, ever unbothered by the chaos around him.

I sighed quietly and stood up from beside them. "I'll go look."

"No! You're still poisoned! No moving around!" Akao called out, her voice filled with worry.

"I'm fine." I insisted, already making my way toward the enemy's corpse.

"Well, don't run then, okay!?" She added urgently.

Just then, 'Puppet' appeared beside me, having already taken the antidote. With a playful tap on my shoulder, she flashed me a deceptively sweet smile. "Let me come with you." she said smoothly. "You're still not cured, so at least let me tag along."

Akao's expression darkened, and it was obvious she wanted to lunge at the 'Puppet.' Noticing this, 'Puppet' raised a brow and gave her a teasing look. "Don't worry, Rion... Remember, I signed up to watch over him for you, right?"

Akao grit her teeth, barely containing her irritation. "I never said yes, so leave Uzuki alone."

With a wave of her hand, 'Puppet' brushed her off, her voice playful but laced with amusement. "Now, now, no need to get frustrated." She then turned her (e/c) eyes toward me, her gaze piercing. "After all... I'm the only one who knows his little secret."

"So you know something about Uzuki?" Sakamoto asked, glancing at us with a curious look.

Before I could say something, the 'Puppet' grabbed my arm and began dragging me away from the group. She threw a sly smile over her shoulder and replied, "That's for you all to figure out... It's not like everything I say is a lie, right? Though, to be fair... I'm not exactly known for my honesty~" Her teasing tone left an air of mystery, and I could feel the others watching us, their curiosity likely growing.

As we both climbed down into the hole, the 'Puppet' wasted no time, rushing toward the corpse and digging through his pockets. With a smug grin, she pulled out another vial of antidote and tossed it to me. I caught it, nodding in acknowledgment. "Oh, good, there's more." I muttered.

But when I glanced at her, her playful demeanor was gone. She stared back at me with an unsettling intensity that made the hairs on the back of my neck rise. I was about to tell her to head back to the others, but before I could, my phone rang.

I already knew she had figured me out, so there was no point in hiding it. I answered the call. "Asaki, what do you want?" I said, knowing full well that the 'Puppet' was listening in.

As I spoke, she stepped closer, her hand sliding onto my shoulder. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the glint of a needle filled with sedative. Her once playful grin had vanished, replaced by a cold, detached expression. It was as if she had become someone entirely different-a hollow, nihilistic shadow of herself.

"No, it's me." My eyes widened at the familiar voice on the other end of the line. "Yo, Kei. This butthead's making you do something you don't like, huh?"

"Gaku!" I blurted out, caught off guard.

"Butthead? That's not very nice. You really have no manners." Asaki's cold voice came through the speaker, his irritation barely masked.