EX-istential Crisis

Chapter 34: The Dark Meeting

Nelly woke up to the morning sunlight filtering into the room, glancing down at Mira, who was nestled peacefully beside him. He brushed a gentle kiss across her forehead, watching her as she slept. He felt a rush of warmth, but as he looked out the window, a wave of unease settled over him. Standing across the street was a group of well-suited men, all with their gaze fixed directly on his house.

A small, sleepy voice broke his concentration. "Morning, sweetie," Mira murmured, stretching and wrapping her arms around him. With a teasing glint in her eyes, she whispered, "Round two?" Nelly chuckled, pulling her close. "You sweet babyy~ come here," he murmured, before their laughter was lost in a brief, playful moment of love.

As they finished and showered together, Nelly's mind lingered on the feeling that something ominous was around the corner. This wasn't just paranoia—he'd felt this before. Back in high school, he had experienced an event so dark it was etched permanently in his memory. That day, Ainslein, Amadeus, and Hiroto had been left battered and bloody, hospitalized by a group that thought they could intimidate Nelly and his friends. But instead, Nelly had snapped, single-handedly bringing the group down in a bloodbath that still haunted him. In the end, he'd taken their leader by the collar in a blaze of fury as flames consumed the building behind him. He had spat the words, "All injustice ends with me. Not when I saw the three of them...like that..."

"Nelly? Sweetie?" Mira's voice pulled him back, her concerned gaze meeting his. He hugged her tightly, vowing in his heart, "I'll protect you, no matter what."

Later, as they walked to university, Nelly spotted more men in suits, dressed exactly like the ones from earlier, watching them from the corners of streets. Casually, he took out his phone, calling up Ero, his AI assistant. "Ero, can you do a background check on these people? I'll pull up my cam." Pretending to browse a local shop, As they strolled through the busy streets near the university, Nelly's sharp gaze locked onto a few men in dark suits stationed inconspicuously at corners and storefronts. Their steady, focused gazes followed him and Mira, but she remained blissfully unaware, wrapped up in the energy of the bustling district. Nelly decided to use this to his advantage, activating Ero on his phone to initiate a discreet background check.

"Hey, Mira! Look, it's a croquette shop!" he exclaimed, pointing across the street with exaggerated excitement. Mira grinned, nodding, and he positioned his phone as if capturing the delicious display. He snapped a photo, casually capturing one of the men in the background, trying to look like he was just browsing his phone.

A little farther along, he tugged at Mira's sleeve, acting as if he'd found another fascinating sight. "Whoa, Mira, check out that antique store! I think I see something straight out of an old kung-fu movie!" He feigned awe, lifting his phone as if zooming in on a dusty relic in the window while taking a picture of another suited man, who quickly averted his eyes but wasn't fast enough.

Continuing down the road, Nelly caught sight of a third suspicious figure across the street, barely visible in the shadows near a boutique clothing store. "Wait, is that the scarf we saw online? Looks just like it!" he said, gesturing at a mannequin in the window. Mira laughed, "A scarf? Really, Nelly?" He shrugged playfully. "Just in case it's the one!" He snapped a shot, this time capturing the man's silhouette reflected in the glass.

Further along, they passed a bakery. "Mira, are those fresh mochi? I think they're on sale!" Mira's eyes sparkled at the mention of mochi, so he took the opportunity to zoom in on the shop while also catching another spy leaning casually against a lamppost in the background.

Finally, he pointed to a street performer with a crowd around them. "Mira, check out that dancer! They're amazing!" Mira clapped her hands in delight. He snapped a photo of the scene, making sure the last man, who was standing awkwardly on the edge of the crowd, was in frame.