﹥FANFICTION PLOT WRITTEN BY
﹥THE SONG "SCALE BLASTER" IS WRITTEN
BY YUNOSUKE AND GYUUNIKU.
THE COVER OF THE SONG IS SUNG BY HATSUNE MIKU.
﹥THE SONG "ACTOR REACTOR"
IS WRITTEN BY HEAVENZ.
THE COVER OF THE SONG IS SUNG BY MEGATERA ZERO.
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♫ OPENING SONG ♫
(1.15 speed recommended)
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Three days ago, Keito and Riona went to Snoozing Nights to fool around and stay for the night.
At midnight, the two laid in a queen-sized bed together. Their naked bodies covered by a velvet-red blanket, they embraced each other while they passionately gazed into each other's eyes.
Riona fondly smiled, "I'm glad to be with you, Keito."
"I'm glad to be with you too, Riona," expressed Keito.
"Since you came to my life, I felt something. Something that I was unable to grasp before. I feel like I'm dreaming."
Her side guy assured, "You're not."
"Yet, it feels like I am, and I don't want to wake up. I don't want to go back home and put up with him," her forest eyes narrowed when she was reminded of her husband.
Her paramour affectionately stroked her cheek, "You don't need to. You have me. I'm willing to give you of what that guy is unable to give."
She muttered, "If only he was as romantic as you, he'd put a bit more effort in our marriage."
"Riona," Keito called to her, "Forget him. You don't need him. I'm all you need."
"...You're right," she smirked before her and her paramour began to kiss again.
The next morning, the two lovers woke up. They sat up and greeted each other with the same affectionate gazes. Once they did, the lovers went to the bathroom to freshen up and get ready for the day.
Thirty minutes later, they came out of the bathroom. Keito wore a light green dress shirt, a pair of khaki pants, and a pair of brown dress shoes. Riona wore a light red halter dress and a pair of white kitten heel sandals.
Utage's wife picked up her white purse from the love seat before she and her side-guy left the hotel room.
The lovers entered the main lobby and approached the reception desk. Keito informed the receptionist, "We are leaving the hotel today. We enjoyed our stay."
"I'm happy that it's your liking. Now, if you pay the bill, you are able to leave the hotel," the worker gave Keito the bill.
The man's eyes dilate in shock. He gasped, "What the hell...!? This much to stay for one night!?"
Riona, her arms around her paramour's arm, looked at the bill. She became distraught toward the price, "How's that even possible for someone to pay that much yen!?"
Keito grabbed his wallet from the right pocket of his pants. He opened the wallet to find only coins. He frowned, "Damn..."
"Don't worry. Leave this to me!" Riona insisted. She grabbed her credit card from her purse and handed it to the receptionist.
The employee took the credit card and scanned it. However, that resulted in a buzz. He glanced at the screen that read, "Authorization error. Credit card canceled."
"This card is canceled," he informed.
The woman was in disbelief, "But that's my only credit card!"
"That's not my problem. If you are unable to pay your bill, you are not allowed to leave."
"W-Wait! I... uh... I remember now!" Riona exclaimed, "I have another credit card! It's still in my purse!"
"Be right back!" she hurriedly left the main lobby to go back to her hotel room.
Keito raised his eyebrow, wondering why she left in a hurry.
In the hotel room, Riona deeply sighed before she pulled out her smartphone from her purse. She turned the electronic device on. She dialed the number to call the person she reluctantly wished to talk to.
Once she pressed the call icon, she waited for the call to be picked up.
"Hello," Utage greeted.
Riona forced a smile and greeted back, "Hi there, sweetie! We hadn't talked since yesterday morning!"
"Indeed. We haven't," he responded indifferently.
'...Just do it,' she encouraged herself. Riona attempted to apologize, "I see. You're angry, and I am sorry. I should have not cheated on you. It was my mistake to make you feel bad and have an affair with another man."
"Right now," she swallowed her pride before she voiced, "I need your help."
"Help?" Utage repeated the last word.
His wife nodded, "Yes. I need your help of paying a bill at the hotel I'm staying at."
He queried, "Why are you staying at a hotel? You have your room at home.
Not wishing to risk of telling the truth, Riona told him, "Someone got lost, and I offered to assist them. We went to Snoozing Nights, the hotel I'm talking about, and stayed there. Right now, we have this bill to pay, and I do not have enough money to cover the cost of our stay."
"So, can you send me a picture of your credit card number?" she timidly asked.
It took seven seconds for her to wait until Utage answered with a sarcastic tone, "Riona, out of the romantic gestures you made to me, this is your biggest one. I congratulate you for having the idea to call me and make me pay a bill for a love hotel. I give you a round of applause for having the guts to continue your fling with your side guy. I'm very much impressed of what you're capable of doing behind my back. No wonder why my mother approves of you so much."
Riona became provoked by his words, "Utage, honey, I do not like to be angry with you. You are the light of my life, and I wish to not disrespect you further by repeating yesterday morning. So, please, help me. I do not have any money. I need you."
"If you don't have any money, get a job. If you still have that side guy with you, have him help you find a job," the call ended.
The fumed woman threw her phone on the bed. She stomped her feet in rage, "That good-for-nothing jackass! He has no right to order me around! Getting a job is a death sentence to me! I rather stay in this hotel than to get a job to pay for this shitty place!"
Keito entered the room. He cautiously approached her. He reached his hand toward her shoulder. He spoke, "Riona."
The inflamed woman sharply turned toward her paramour and shouted, "What!?"
The man tried to calm her down, "Calm down. No need to get angry."
Riona breathed in and breathed out. She agreed, "You're right. We don't need him. We can just tell them that we will pay the bill by the end of week."
"We can't. According to the receptionist, we need to pay the bill and then we are able to leave," that further soured the woman's mood.
She yelled, "So we're stuck here!?"
"Hey. You got me. We have each other. We need to think of a way to earn enough money to pay the bill and leave," Keito suggested, "It's better than to sit around and do nothing."
He added, "While we do that, we can stay here a little longer and make the most of it!"
"...Fine," she relctantly agreed.
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Throughout the whole day, Riona and Keito searched for any job openings with higher pay that were suitable for them. They surfed through the internet and looked into postings from the main lobby of the hotel.
Sadly, most of the jobs offered little pay, and a select few that offered higher salary had very specific requirements that the lovers didn't meet. As for the job openings in the hotel, there were none.
However, it did not stop the lovers from trying to make the most of their circumstances. Keito snuck into the hotel's kitchen to make breakfast and lunch meals for him and Riona. He was careful to not be caught.
In the night, Keito arrived back into the hotel room. In his hands were plates of steak with baked potato. At the table, Riona was on her phone, blogging on her website.
Keito set the dinner on the table. He announced, "Dinner time!"
"Huh? Oh yeah," Riona put down her phone and began eating her food.
The lovers ate quitely. Whereas the paramour ate his food joyfully, Riona only ate bits of her food before she put her fork down. She stood up from her chair and grabbed her phone. She hopped onto the bed and laid down to continue blogging.
"Riona, you need to finish your dinner. It'll get cold," Keito told her.
The latter's response was, "Meh."
That saddened Keito a little. He looked back at his dinner and continued eating.
The next day, Keito entered back in the hotel room to find Riona talking to Utage again on the phone, "But that doesn't matter...! I love you, and I'm truly sorry for breaking your heart!"
However, he stood in shock when he heard her say, "I'll dump Keito and get a job! I'll even stop looking at other men! That's how much I want to see you again!"
"Can you forgive your silly wife?" she softly begged.
Unfortunately, her begging didn't work. The call ended with those words, "Once you come back here, we're getting divorced."
Riona's grasp on her phone loosened, causing the phone to drop. Even then, it did not break, thanks to the durable phone case and screen protector.
She was incredibly mute. There was no rage in her eyes nor in her heart. She felt nothing.
Keito stepped out of the room to give her space.
Another day arrived. The male woke up find the spot next to him to be empty. He sat up and went to the bathroom to take a shower and get ready for the day.
When he came out of the bathroom with his casual attire. He heard Riona shout, "That ungrateful bastard! Why should I care about his problems!? What about mine!? Doesn't he understand I'm in a pinch here!? I can't stay here forever!"
"Ugh! I'm going to get some fresh air!" the angry female shouted before she stormed out of the hotel room, leaving her phone on the table.
Keito glanced at the device. He wondered, 'What kind of guy is her husband...? What is his problem? Doesn't he see that he needs his wife?'
He thought, '...If he won't listen to Riona, maybe he'll listen to me.'
'It takes a while for Riona to calm down, so I got time,' he snatched the phone and turned it on. Luckily for him, there was no lock to unlock Riona's phone. He searched for Utage's contact and pressed the call button.
The line picked up. He winced when Utage angrily shouted, "What?!"
Keito calmed down the husband, "Hey. Take it easy."
"It's Keito. I'm not here to annoy you. I want to talk to you. Have a decent conversation as civilized people. I swear," he convinced.
He waited for a minute until Utage asked, "What is it?"
The paramour didn't beat around the bush, "Is it true that you'll be divorcing Riona?"
"Yes. I'm going to divorce her, and she'll be all yours," the lavender-eyed male confirmed.
"But why? Why divorce Riona if you knew the infidelity for years?"
The husband answered honestly, "You're not wrong to question that. However, before I answer that, you ough to know something. I would've divorced her on the spot when our marriage soured. However, I couldn't. I was scared to do it. Because the person who suggested this marriage..."
"Actually, suggest is not the right word. More like forced. I was forced into the marriage by this person, and that, if I went against their wishes, they would cut me off," that surprised Keito.
The dark-haired man thought, 'An arranged marriage? Riona didn't tell me about that.'
Keito continued to listen to Utage's perspective of his rocky marriage. Hearing the husband's side of the marriage caused the paramour to slowly feel bad for the former.
At that point, Utage brought up, "The both of us were on a date. We were eating at this one restaurant she liked. I tried to make conversation with her, but she brushed me off, saying that she was on the phone with someone."
Keito flinched. The silver-haired man continued, "When we got our meals, she didn't touch her food. She assumed that it was mine and shoved her food onto my plate. I paid the bill for our meal. After we left, Riona blamed me for eating her food, despite the fact that the food was hers and that she didn't give a fuck about her meal. She accused me of 'ruining' our date."
The dark-haired man was unable to fathom of the damage Riona caused onto her own spouse.
Utage admitted, "I was mad, but... I was also relieved."
"Relieved...?" Keito became bewildered.
"Yeah. I was relieved that Riona wouldn't bother me as much as she would anymore. In the moments she was with you were the moments I had some freedom. I used the times she went to see you, so I can have all the freedom to myself," the husband revealed. He next pointed out, "However, a couple weeks ago, I had noticed that the food I made for my meals were eaten, and the dishes were dirty. I figured out that you and Riona had been in the apartment, and that she ate my meals. So, of course, you sould be able to figure out the rest."
Keito was unable to reply. He realized, 'So... I'm in his place!?'
"Oh yeah. I forgot to answer your question. Why I didn't divorce Riona when I already knew the things she did behind my back, was it?" Utage added, "Similar to the answer why I didn't divorce her on the spot. The difference was myself. I didn't have the guts to act on such a thing."
The tone of his voice became firm, "Now, I do. I'm going to divorce Riona, and you can have her all you want."
Keito panicked, "But...! But I don't want to marry her! I only wanted her because she looked hot!"
"Good to know. I'll remind her if she asks about having a serious relationship with you," smirked Utage.
"Can you at least give us money, so her and I can head back to the City?!"
Keito waited in anticipation, hoping that Riona's husband would help the former.
Utage proposed an idea, "I'll give you money. In exchange, you record of the exact words you told me throughout the call. Not only that, if Riona were to try anything with the money, you'll tell her that I won't be giving her any more money unless she gets a job. Got it?"
"...Deal! Thank you!" Keito thanked.
"And one more thing, you don't get involved with crap like this again. A mere mention of you, and I'll press charges," the husband threatened.
The paramour didn't hesitate to agree, "Got it!"
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In the present, during the evening, Keito was in his red SUV with Riona. The latter was concerned of the man's silent demeanor. The uneasy Riona stared down at her feet, and the silent Keito was focused on driving. The drive was abnormally quiet. No words or glances were exchanged between the two like they used to.
In front of the Tops, Keito pulled over.
Riona nervously glanced up at the male, "Keito? Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I will be," he answered. However, he didn't look her way when he verbalized, "Once you get out of my face and my car."
"...Huh?" Riona felt her heart break.
He asserted, "We're done. Over. I want nothing to do with you."
"Don't contact me again," he shifted gears of his car and drove away from the area, leaving the woman to fall to her knees and cry.
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░▒▓█ INTERMISSION █▓▒░
(This is an intermission. If you would like to take a break from this chapter, feel free to do so. Otherwise, enjoy this random short skit.)
Utage and Saiga: *watches Jin and Yusei duel*
Yanagi: *looks over his shoulder at an empty spot next to him*
Saiga: What's wrong?
Yanagi: *turns his head toward Saiga* I feel like something is missing.
Utage: What makes you think that?
Yanagi: I don't know. I just feel that way, you know.
Saiga: Hm...
Utage: Let's not think too much about it.
Saiga: You're right.
Yanagi: Okay... *takes one last glance before turning his attention to the duel*
░▒▓█ UNLIKELY HEROINE █▓▒░
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Nighttime arrived. In Utage's apartment, the owner himself heard a soft knock from his door. He moved toward the door and opened it, only to be startled by a pair of arms wrapping around his waist.
The silver-haired man glanced down to be greeted with a heartbroken Riona hugging him.
She sobbed, "Utage, I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm a horrible wife! I'm so stupid! I should've treated you better! I shouldn't have taken you for granted!"
"Riona...," Utage mouthed.
The crying wife gazed up at her husband. She begged, "I'm really sorry for everything that I've done to you! Everything! Can you please forgive me? I promise that I'll be a better wife! I promise to never betray you again...!"
The husband was silent until he patted her head, "You're back home. That's what matters. Just... go and eat. I made dinner for you."
"Thank you, sweetie! Thank you!" she grinned. She happily kissed the left cheek on her husband's face; after, she ran to the kitchen to eat.
Utage walked toward the window wall. He glanced up at the night sky. He then shifted his eyes down to the front of the building. A certain man with a red earring standing outside caught the silver-haired man's attention. He wondered, '...Who is he?'
Ryo's eyes glanced up at the windows of the Tops. That small action greatly startled Utage. The silver-haired man felt immsense pressure from the slender man's stare, notably the color of his eyes. The mentioned pressure caused Utage's heart to race out of anxiety. His hands clutched into fists at his sides when he stepped back.
Out of instinct, the agitated Utage grabbed the curtains and closed the curtains, covering the window wall. His hands didn't let go of the curtains whilst he panted.
Utage took a slow, deep breath before he gradually exhaled to compose himself. Had regained his cool, he let go of the curtains.
The male walked into the kitchen to eat dinner with his wife without uttering another word.
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At Satellite's black market district, the driver parked the SUV. He looked over his shoulder and advised, "Mr. Saiga, I'd advise you to be on the lookout for Security."
"Yeah, I know," nodded Saiga.
The dealer exited the vehicle with his hat and bag. He walked past the district and entered into another area.
Saiga pulled out an electronic tracer and turned it on. He entered coordinates to the device; after, a marked location was displayed on the map of the tracer. The broker started walking, following the map from the tracer.
Minutes later, he looked away from the trace and glanced up at where he stopped. It was an abandoned subway station.
Once he got to the abandoned station, the dealer pointed his flashlight ahead. He searched around while he called, "Rally, Blitz, Nerve, Taka!"
He added, "You can trust me! I was sent here by Yusei!"
Unfortunately, there was no one.
Saiga turned to his left and pointed his flashlight, flashing the tool at a room that was cluttered. The dealer walked deeper into that room. He faced toward another room that seemed to be an office. He pointed his flashlight, only to be distraught of what he found.
In that room, broken items were scattered on the floor and the furniture was knocked over.
The broker wondered, "Did something... happen here?"
At the same time, Yusei and Luca were still searching for Lua. The protagonist drove on his D-Wheel as he searched around the corner of other streets. Luca ran on the sidewalk to look for any signs of her missing twin brother.
At one point, the two reconvened in the same street (Reader) and Ryo walked on.
Yusei parked his D-Wheel and took his helmet off. Luca ran up to him.
The hero asked, "Find him?"
"Uh-uh, no sign," the young girl shook her head.
"Same here. I searched from the venue all the way here, but..." before he could finish his sentence, Yusei heard a ringing sound from the screen of his vehicle, showing an incoming call.
The protagonist pressed the button to answer the call. When he did, Saiga appeared on the screen. The male duelist recognized, "Saiga..."
"Yusei, I just got to your hideout in Satellite," the dealer informed.
The hero became surprised, "Is everyone okay?"
The broker shook his head, "Hate to break this, but they're not here."
"What did you say? Did something happen!?"
"I don't know, but...," replied Saiga, "I broke into their network, and yet there's no record of them being caught by Security so far. I'll keep up my search for them on this side."
The screen started to glitch a bit. Saiga mouthed, "Uh-oh. Can't keep control for much longer."
"I'll contact you as soon as I learn anything," he noted.
"Yeah, please," he responded.
The video call ended.
Luca noticed the worried look on Yusei's face. She questioned, "Your friends are missing too, Yusei?"
"Yeah," he nodded. He mentally voiced in worry, 'Guys, be all right.'
Luca was about to turn around, "I'm going to look for any signs of Lua one more time."
Yusei halted, "No. You need to rest, Luca. I understand how you feel, but I don't want you to strain yourself further."
Had found that he made a fair point, the reluctant Luca agreed, "...Okay."
"Once I take you home, I'll look for him one more time. I'll be sure to bring him back home safely," he assured.
Luca nodded.
At the parking lot of the Tops, the young girl and her tall friend arrived. Yusei noticed that Luca was asleep. He got off his vehicle and picked up her. He carried her inside the building, so they would go to the apartment.
At Lua's and Luca's apartment, Yusei entered. He became surprised to find Bommer standing beside the couch.
The hero was about to ask, "How did you..."
"I'll explain later. He's not injured. He's sleeping right now in his room," the duelist assassin interjected.
Once Yusei placed Luca on the couch and covered her with a blanket, the two men decided to head toward outside the apartment.
"How did you find him?" Yusei asked.
Bommer answered, "He was sleeping inside my garage."
"Your garage?"
"It appears the security system was enabled, and he was locked inside. I'd conjecture that he came to find my D-Wheel."
The protagonist commented, "Figures as much."
"I cannot blame him," the duelist assassin's reply confused Yusei as the former elaborated, "I know that you didn't instruct him to do it. You're not someone as underhanded enough to do that."
"He's fond of you. He was only thinking of you. When I look at those two, I remember my little brother and sister back in my hometown," Bommer remarked.
The hero queried, "You have siblings?"
"I do. They're about the same age as them," the bulky man answered.
Boomer took a few steps forward and gazed up at the sky, "There are no stars in this city, huh?"
Yusei glanced at the sky and noticed that, indeed, there were no stars in the sky.
It was Bommer's turn to ask, "Yusei, what are you fighting for?"
The hero stared at Bommer and answered, "I'm fighting for my hometown."
"I see," the latter understood, "Then, it would appear we're out from the same cloth."
"You're fighting for your hometown as well?" the former inquired.
Boomer nodded in confirmation. He spoke, "I come from the opposite side of the world. My tribe is descendants of those who served the People of the Stars, whose tale is known amongst the Incas."
"Then, you know the story behind the Crimson Dragon?"
"I do. Much time has passed, and now, the Crimson Dragon is attempting to resurface. Director Godwin is planning to use that power to lead the world into the right direction."
"And you believe that?" the protagonist became skeptical.
The duelist assassin was silent before he responded, "Yusei, you would know about poor hometowns. My village has been constantly plighted with poverty and discrimination."
"But the director promised. He said that he would restore my home village if I were to lend my assistance," he believed.
Yusei warned, "Bommer, don't trust him."
Had come to see that his upcoming opponent had different views, the duelist assassin stated, "We're both cut from the same cloth, but it seems we're in different positions. Neither of us can compromise our beliefs!"
"This duel goes toward that," the hero affirmed.
"Exactly. Let's settle this match between us," he declared. He started to walk away. Before he could leave, he told his enemy, "I'm glad that I learned that you're a proud duelist..., but don't forget. I will win."
"That is my mission," Bommer walked further away from Yusei and exited the Tops.
The protagonist sighed. He thought with an exasperated face, 'Tonight was... a long night. I should head back inside and sleep for the night.'
He entered back inside Lua's and Luca's apartment. He picked up Luca from the couch and carried her to her shared bedroom with her sleeping twin brother.
Once he returned to the living room, he took off his jacket, boots, and gloves and laid down on the couch.
He glanced at the surroundings of the dark living room. The atmosphere of the room was quieter, and it was also empty. Normally, Yusei would not mind that kind of air.
However, an unknown glint in his eyes suggested otherwise. He mouthed, "Weird... Tonight doesn't feel right."
"It's like I'm missing something. Something... important," he muttered. He pondered carefully of what it was missing; sadly, he found nothing.
He shook his head. He told himself, "I shouldn't think too much. I need to sleep."
He closed his eyes and fell asleep, so he would save his energy for the second day of the Fortune Cup.
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♫ ENDING SONG ♫
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END "act 6 - found".
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BEGIN "act 7 - cognizance"!