QUARTET ALLIANCE: LEND A HAND (Wild Duty & Judgement)

Chapter 70: Hiccup

⋘ ──── ∗ ⋅◈⋅ ∗ ──── ⋙

12:10 A.M

–D.I.M 1–

"There is no way  Veldra's the good guy."

"Yes, no way."

"It has to be a joke."

"Has to be a joke."

"Rehan, stop!" Kazuo turned around abruptly and looked at the ash blond with disbelief. The boy had been echoing his voice as if it was the funniest thing ever.

Kazuo was standing near the window, arms crossed as he stared out at the darkened sky. Complaining and refusing to believe the turn of events.

"Don't make him more stressed," Michael whispered to Rehan before he  leaned back in his chair, arms crossed and a calm expression on his face. "But, like, Kazuo, it does make sense if you think about it. All the moves he's made... they're too calculated to be purely evil, y'know? I believe everyone has a good side."

"It's not about what you believe, Michael," Kazuo shook his head. "That man has been a menace since day one."

Rehan nodded in agreement, sprawled out on a nearby couch with one leg thrown over the armrest. "Oh, sure. Let's all suddenly believe Mr. 'You filthy peasant and rawr world domination' Veldra is secretly a misunderstood hero. What's next? Zen writing love poetry to Omi or something?"

Omi blinked and fixed his glasses.

Michael shot Rehan a look, but his tone remained even. "I'm just saying, it's possible."

Omi hesitated, glancing between them before finally speaking up. "I... I've worked for Veldra before. I know what he's like."

The room fell into silence. 

Rehan slowly sat up, his expression a mix of confusion and disbelief. One that screamed 'really?'

Kazuo stopped pacing, turning to glare at Omi with a deadpan expression. Like he wasn't even going to believe the words that will come out of his mouth. Michael raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"......And?" Rehan asked, his voice dripping with skepticism.

Omi fidgeted, adjusting his glasses. "Well, he didn't seem like a bad person."

Rehan snorted, and Kazuo's deadpan turned into an outright glare. 

"Didn't seem like a bad person?" Kazuo repeated, his voice flat.

Under the weight of their stares, Omi coughed awkwardly. "I mean... yeah, okay, he was bad. But—"

"But what?" Kazuo interrupted, throwing his hands up. "This is another trap, I'm telling you. I'm sick and tired of traitors."

Rehan leaned forward, his grin sly. "What if Cicero's trolling us?"

Michael shook his head firmly. "That's impossible. Chouko doesn't play games like that."

They all turned to Kazuo, who sighed heavily but nodded in agreement. 

"True. If this is real, we need confirmation. Solid evidence." 

"What kind of solid evidence?" Michael asked.

"A picture. A selfie. Cicero, Zen, and Veldra, all together." Kazuo said, like it was some word changing revelation.

Rehan clapped his hands, his face lighting up. "Genius! Because there's no way they'd be able to pull that off unless Veldra was actually cool with them. And if I remember right, Veldra would smack the living crap out of anyone who so much as looked at him wrong."