The Eighth King | K Project Fanfiction

Chapter 28

"Guess what, Lieutenant... My sister left us behind something amazing..." The yellowed and wrinkled sheets of paper feel heavy in my arms. "They dug these out from the shelter next to my old lab, several years later... after we went separate ways. The papers were donated to a library in a box and then they were found by Mr. Kusanagi, the Red Clan's second-in-command." My fingers slide the papers between my fingers and I see how a picture of the Slate turns to a sketch and so on.

"I think my sister knew... that you wouldn't stop from making your dream come to life... and now I've stumbled upon it, when it came too big." A picture flies out and glides to the carpet. Picking it up, I see myself laughing with my sister as Daikaku is embarrassed, a mouse sitting on his head. A smile curls up on my lips and then my eyes take in the German writing on it.

My eyes close in sadness as I mumble the words. I breathe in the scent of old paper and wood with a hint of lilac in the air. My eyes snap open. Lilac? Then I feel another familiar person in the room and I turn my head to see. My amber meets blue-green and purple.

"Umeko..." I greet her and she steps closer, her bare feet gliding over the room, before she takes a seat next to me, the scent of lilac pillowing me now. Her mismatched eyes scan the papers before turning to look at the picture in the frame. 

"So this is where he lived..." I nod and she lets out a sigh, before setting her delicate hand onto my shoulder. I can see the hesitation in the gesture, but a nod of thanks from me
makes her relax her tense shoulders. 

We sit there for a while, her presence calming, both staying quiet. 

"Why did you come?" Her eyes meet mine and I realise how offending the sentence sounded. "Ugh- I mean...not to be rude or anything!" I quickly wave my hands and she... just stares. Maybe she feels like I insulted her and didn't want her here! Gosh... I offended her-

"Why should I be offended?" How did she- I smack my face. Mindreading... How can I be so forgetful... I sigh and I hear her chuckle quietly. A noise so light and airy. My lips curl into a smile  as I take in her twinkling eyes.

"I wanted to talk to you." Her expression turns from cheerful to severe and sombre. My happiness from seeing her and hearing her laugh is wiped away as I can see that the talk that is about to happen is opposite of cheery.

Her eyes narrow at the corner of the room. "I managed to find out some disturbing details. The JUNGLE, they want to take control over the Slate... and now that Reisi Munakata has stepped up as the controller, the time for them is right." She turns towards me. "The Blue King's sword is already cracking, Adolf..." My eyes widen.

"He hasn't seen the Slate yet..."  She nods, her purple locks swaying with the movement.

"And adding it to his ever growing list of burdens..." Umeko trails off and makes a hand gesture with a small 'poof'. I almost laugh at it, but realise the situation. 

"The Green King knows that the Slate's protection is weak... and the Blue King unstable." 

"Affirmative. The Fifth King is only saving his strength... And there is more... something is hiding with the Green King... I was thrown out, before I found out what, but it was and is strong. What's worse, that power is blocking me out, meaning that I can't see the JUNGLE's and their King's next move." 

3rd pov

The talk with the Eighth King left the First King restless. Even now, the thought of maybe she got it all wrong scraped his mind, yet he knew that it is impossible. Still, he would need some evidence, that the Green Clan plans using the Slate before he gathers the clans again. For him, Umeko's findings are enough, but to others...