contractual bond 🔏

Chapter 1

Airi extended her hand, standing outside the large doubled door. She was cautious at first, unsure if she was up to the challenge. Because of this man, she has been humiliated. Was she willing to go through it all over again? She said she'd never work with him again, but here she was, in front of his office. This was never going to work out, but who was she thinking about? It was Seto Kaiba, that's who.

She didn't know how else to characterize him if he wasn't the devil himself. He was the source of her depression and the reason she had never loved anybody else. Her arms got goosebumps just thinking about the past. She shook her head and pushed open the door. As she entered his gigantic office, she let out a trembling sigh.

The room was very cold, and the only sounds she heard were his fingers tapping on the keyboard. It was deafeningly quiet, and Kaiba was acutely aware of her presence. He paused in his typing and raised his eyes to a face he had not seen in years. Airi Otogi, the girl he'd thoroughly damaged. What was she doing in this place? What was her motivation for returning to Tokyo?

"Well if it isn't Airi Otogi. What is it that has brought you to this part of town?" Airi felt herself pounding her head against the door as he flashed his typical shite-eating grin. He's putting her to the test, and it's only been a minute. "Good morning, Kaiba; glad to see you're doing well." She smiled innocently, and he immediately recognized how phony it was. "How in the world did you get past my secretary and security?" He got to his feet and prepared to march over.

She sneered.

"Kaiba, please have a seat; we need to chat. Furthermore, none of this is important. What matters most is that my ass came over here to see your face." Kaiba returned the scowl and sat down. "I mean, no one asked you to do it, right?" Airi took a seat across from him in a leather chair. "What draws you back to this place now? I believe I warned you not to come in front of me again."

"Look, as much as I don't want to be here, it's necessary for my grade." She twirls her dress hems and bites her lower lip to avert his gaze.

"Grade? You give me a good laugh."

"I was given the task of writing a report on Japan's most eligible bachelor, which unfortunately is you. This is my last report, and if I fail it, I will not be able to graduate on time." She lifts her head slightly to see him roll his eyes. 'And I'm expected to care?'" He turns back to his computer screen after shaking his head. "I'm a busy guy, Otogi, and I think you should leave before I call security and have you kicked out for trespassing."

"Kaiba, please! Just give me a chance to explain myself; I'm in desperate need of your assistance!" Kaiba doesn't give her a second glance; he just sits there. "That is, once again, not my problem." Airi remained motionless in her seat, and Kaiba was acutely aware of the situation. A tiny buzz was detected when he pressed a button on the intercom.

"My office has been invaded by an uninvited guest. Please come and escort her out right away." There was another buzz, and two large men barged into the room, snatching Airi by the arms. "Please, Kaiba, I'll do anything! Anything!" The guards took her out, and Kaiba smirked as he glanced at the door.

"Anything eh?"

~~~~~~~~~~

She was thrown out of the building by the suited men. She could feel the gazes of the wealthy, as well as the murmurs of contempt and shame. She was paralyzed as she sat there. Her mind was filled with flashbacks, and it all felt too familiar. She felt humiliated just like that one time in high school.

She regained her composure and rose to her feet, deciding to return home. She sighed as she got into her car. She'd never be able to persuade Seto Kaiba to give in. When her phone rang, she answered it and put it in speaker mode. "Hey, Anzu, what's up?"

"How's the report coming along?" Anzu Mazaki was the person on the other end of the call. She attended the same high school as Airi, but two grades ahead of her. "Terrible. I'm not even going to bring it up. Do you realize how humiliating it was? I wanted to crawl into a hole and die." Airi could already hear Anzu on the other end of the line shaking her head.

"We're talking about Kaiba here. A lot of meaningless shit has been done to you, and he needs to learn where he belongs in this world." She nods but remains silent. "It's just that he pushed my brother out of business, and I'm not going to forgive him. In high school, he humiliated me and made my life a living hell." She pulls into her driveway and turns off the car. "It'll be all right, I promise. Remember, friendship triumphs overall!"

"Anzu, you're the worst. Please don't give that speech again, or I'll have to resort to harsh measures." On the opposite side, Anzu laughed, and Airi entered her house. "I'm back, Ryuji!" She yelled her brother's name. When she didn't get a response, she shifted her gaze to her phone.

"Okay, Anzu, I'll call you later. Bye." Airi hung up before Anzu could even react. She detected a strange smell in the air as she stepped farther inside the house. Was her brother in the kitchen? When she entered the kitchen, Justin Timberlake's song "Sexy Back" was playing and her brother, dressed in an apron, was dancing while cooking.

"You aren't Justin Timberlake, once again, big bro. So put down that tune and get to work on dinner; I'm hungry!" Ryuji jumped and dropped his spoon. "I didn't notice you there, baby sis. Dinner will be ready in no time!" He washes the spoon after picking it up. After that, he gets down to the business of finishing the meal. Airi cleans up after herself and joins her brother in the kitchen, where they are both munching on a snack.

"Oh, yeah, dungeon dice monsters should be back up and running in a couple of weeks." He remarked this as he handed her a platter.

"What if Kaiba tries to take it down once more? Like the last time?" She murmured this as she dug into her meal. "Look, pride makes a man respectable, and I'm not going to let him damage my business. I've got my sources, and I'm not going to let them go to waste. I now have to provide for you because our deadbeat father doesn't give a damn about us."

Airi felt tears welling up in her eyes as he ruffled her hair. She wraps her arms around her older brother and he wraps his arms around her as well. Their age difference was only two years. Their mother passed away a few years ago, and their father remarried. He put a lot of pressure on Ryuji to succeed as a businessman and to defeat Seto Kaiba. Airi's stepmother was violent to her and often pushed her around the house, forcing her to do everything.

When Ryuji lost the company, he fired both of them because their father was being thoroughly controlled by that woman. Fortunately, their friends came to their aid, and they were able to relocate. Airi and Ryuji were both employed and earning a respectable wage. "How's that report coming along?"

"I don't even want to think about it."

"Kaiba isn't doing it, is he?"

With a shake of her head, Airi expressed her dissatisfaction with the situation. "He's still a jerk, and he had me kicked out by security." Ryuji let out a sigh and took her hand in his.

"Even if you succeed, don't get emotionally involved with him like you did the last time, okay?" Airi nods, and they complete their meal. Airi returns to her room after cleaning up the mess. She discovers that Jonouchi Katsuya is having a party tomorrow while scrolling through her Facebook account.

She adds a comment beneath the status, indicating that she will be present. In high school, Jonouchi was in the same class as her brother and Anzu, which is how they met. The doorbell rang, but she didn't answer it. Her brother enters her room after a few seconds. "I think you should look at this, Airi."

Airi stares at him suspiciously and rises from her seat. She snatched the envelope from his grip and examined the left-hand corner. Seto Kaiba had sent it.

~~~~~~~

Ryugi Otogi - Duke Devlin

Anzu Mazaki - Tea Gardner

Jonouchi Katsuya - Joey Wheeler