Chapter 15: Quiet Signals 

Morning settled slowly.

Kiritatsu stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the collar of his shirt, fingers precise, movements calm—but his eyes carried something sharper.

His phone rang.

He glanced once, then answered.

“Yeah?”

A familiar voice came through, relaxed… yet heavy.

“How’s it going, Tatsuyoshi?”

Salvador D’Arx spoke with a faint chuckle.

“My ears caught a little flying news… something about a ‘problem.’”

Kiritatsu exhaled softly, almost amused.

“Huh… nah, papi—” he paused, correcting himself, “—Dad. I’m handling it pretty well.”

A short silence followed.

“Mind telling me who caused it?”

“Kabanes.”

“…Really?” Salvador sounded surprised. “Didn’t expect that.”

Kiritatsu smirked faintly.

“Yeah. You don’t stress yourself. Leave some things to the don, alright?”

Another quiet chuckle.

“Alright.”

The call ended.

Kiritatsu lowered the phone, expression unreadable.

Far away, Salvador stared at his own screen for a moment.

Kiritatsu had strength.

But without control…

…it became recklessness.

“…I’ll have to see this myself,” he muttered.

Morning moved on.

Unikawa looked at the message again.

Short. Clear.

From Silvano.

He exhaled, then stood.

“I’m going for a walk,” he said simply before leaving.

They met near a public mall.

Crowded, but not chaotic.

A place where conversations could disappear.

Silvano sat with his guards standing at a respectful distance.

Unikawa approached, wearing a mask, blending in.

They sat.

No greetings.

Silvano spoke first.

“The problem was solved.”

Unikawa’s eyebrow lifted, disbelief mixing with relief.

“…Solved?”

Silvano turned his tablet toward him.

“Look.”

Unikawa leaned in, scanning the details carefully.

Routes.

Adjustments.

Layered improvements.

“…This is good,” he said quietly.

Silvano nodded.

“It’s more stable than what we had before.”

A pause.

“I approved it.”

Unikawa nodded again.

Then Silvano continued—

“But Kiritatsu rejected it.”

Unikawa looked up immediately.

“…Why?”

Silvano leaned back slightly.

“He thinks negotiation isn’t the way to take revenge.”

“He wants retaliation.”

Unikawa clicked his tongue softly.

“He’s… tsk.”

A brief pause.

“You two should’ve been one.”

Silvano almost smirked at that.

“He said if Kabane wanted negotiation, they wouldn’t have attacked us in the first place.”

“They would’ve talked.”

Unikawa shook his head slightly.

“That’s not logic. That’s pride.”

Silvano looked down at the screen again.

“There’s something else.”

Unikawa leaned forward.

Silvano zoomed into the route.

“I checked everything.”

“The destination didn’t change.”

“…but the path did.”

Unikawa took the tablet now, studying it more closely.

His expression slowly shifted.

“…Wait.”

He tapped on the map.

“This route…”

His voice lowered.

“…we used this twenty years ago.”

Silvano’s eyes narrowed.

“You’re sure?”

“My father was handling routes back then.”

Unikawa zoomed further.

“This isn’t random.”

“Someone didn’t just change the route…”

“…they brought back an old one.”

Silvano’s tone turned serious.

“But who would even know about that route?”

Unikawa leaned back slightly, thinking.

“…Very few.”

“You. Me. Your father. Kiritatsu.”

A pause.

“…and maybe some older members.”

Silvano opened another file.

“A list of senior access holders.”

He handed it over.

Unikawa scanned through the names calmly—

Until his finger stopped.

“…Fred Berat.”

Silvano noticed.

“You know him?”

Unikawa didn’t answer immediately.

His eyes stayed on the name.

“…I think I’ve seen this name somewhere.”

Silvano spoke,

“He has access to our system.”

“High-level clearance.”

Unikawa finally looked up.

“We can’t accuse anyone without solid proof.”

A pause.

“…but keep an eye on him.”

Silvano nodded.

“Yeah.”

“And if you find anything else—call me.”

Unikawa gave a small nod.

They both stood.

No unnecessary words.

They walked in opposite directions.

Silvano stepped into his car.

His phone buzzed.

Unknown number.

He opened the message.

An image loaded.

A car.

Glass shattered.

Bullet marks across it.

Kabane’s.

Below it—

A message:

We expected negotiation.

Now nothing will be tolerated.

Brace yourself.

Silvano’s jaw tightened.

“…Kiritatsu.”

His grip on the phone hardened.

“You’re ruining everything.”

Meanwhile—

Unikawa walked steadily.

His mind still processing the meeting.

Then—

a feeling.

Subtle.

But there.

He slowed slightly.

Turned.

Nothing.

Just people.

Normal movement.

He mumbled quietly. 

“…maybe I’m overthinking.”

He exhaled.

“…Paranoia.”

He continued walking.

Behind him—

a man spoke low into his phone.

“He’s moving.”

Unikawa reached his home.

At the same time, Wakasa was arriving.

They met at the door.

“You’re back early,” Wakasa said.

“Just went for a walk,” Unikawa replied.

They entered together.

From a distance—

the man watching them remained hidden.

His eyes followed Wakasa now.

He spoke again.

“Two good pieces of news.”

A pause.

“I found his place…”

His gaze sharpened slightly.

“…and a member of his family.”

A faint, cold tone followed—

“Let’s see how he wins now.”

Inside the house—

warmth.

The smell of curry rice filled the air.

Wakasa went to take a shower first.

When he returned, Liz walked up to him with an envelope.

“Hey… I got this for you. Someone sent it.”

Wakasa raised an eyebrow, taking it.

“…For me?”

She nodded.

They sat down at the table.

Ren leaned forward immediately.

“Aye, Wakasa—did you make any friends at that huge building thing?”

Wakasa looked at him.

He didn’t like socializing.

But he didn’t want to make it obvious.

“…Yeah. I did.”

Ren smirked.

“Wow. Miracles happen.”

Liz leaned in.

“Is there any cool guy working there too?”

Ren turned to her.

“Who?”

Liz paused.

Her expression shifted for a second.

She remembered.

The karaoke.

That man.

Her father.

She stopped herself.

“…Nothing. Forget it.”

Then quickly changed topic—

“Let’s ask Wakasa about his boss.”

Ren grinned.

“Yeah—does he have thick eyebrows? Does he drink? Is he single?”

Wakasa stared at him like he had lost his mind.

“…Focus on your food.”

Then he added casually—

“…but yeah. He’s kinda amazing.”

Liz blinked.

“Oh?”

Wakasa leaned back slightly.

“I don’t think he’s much older than me.”

Ren whistled softly.

“Damn.”

Wakasa continued—

“That place is cool… but weird.”

They looked at him.

“The manager hired his own daughter.”

He scoffed lightly.

“Is that a company or a family business?”

Unikawa stayed quiet.

Because unknowingly—

Wakasa was already part of something far bigger than he understood.

Laughter returned.

Small jokes. 

Their mom asked about their study. The results were upcoming. 

Normal life.

But outside—

someone had already marked their home.

And inside—

no one knew yet.

End of Chapter 15