Akiko and Gengyo were able to eat together regularly now that there was no need to hide their relationship. Though, those mealtimes felt short. He seemed to always be in her father's study, doing something or other. And when she came in to talk to him, it was like she wasn't there at all.
She hid her dissatisfaction, for she understood his behaviour – mostly. There was odd eccentricities that she found hard to deal with, such as how he had come home, two days in a row, in completely sodden clothing.
But in the few days hence, he seemed to have calmed down a little, as there were no other instances like that. In fact, he rarely went outside at all.
"What are you thinking?"
She asked him, as he picked at his food quietly, a faraway look in his eye.
"Ah, sorry…"
He said guilty, only just realizing what he was doing.
"It's fine, but if you tell me the problem, then I can try and help solve it, you know?"
What she wanted was not his apologies, it was to know a little more of what was going on inside his head. She had felt as if they had truly broken down their barriers just days before, but still he seemed unwilling to share what he was working on.
He ran a finger down the small scar that had developed along his jawline. It seemed to have become a habit of his, as she'd seen him do it more than once before.
"Mm, I know you would, Akiko. But when I am with you, I do not want to think about solving problems. I just want to enjoy your company."
"And yet you still drift away."
She pointed out sharply.
He smiled playfully at her provocation.
"Aye, I need the help of a swan, so that I might still this mind of mine."
He moved to sit next to her, abandoning his food so that he might tease her some more.
"Are you ever going to stop calling me that?"
She asked, pretending to be annoyed.
"Not until I die."
She raised an eyebrow at that.
"What makes you think I'll put up with you that long?"
"This."
He moved in to kiss her.
"Master Miu-" Shibata slid the door open, before hastily closing it again.
"Forgive me, I should have knocked."
She said from outside the door.
Catching sight of Akiko's deep red face, he let out a laugh.
"Haha, its fine Shibata, come on in."
"Yes, Miura-san."
She slid open the door and bowed, avoiding making eye contact.
"A woman is waiting for you outside. I have not seen her before, but she said her name was Ishiberra."
"Isabella, is it?"
He mused, smiling at Akiko as she shot him a questioning glance.
"Send her into the office, I'll be there in a few minutes."
"As you say, Miura-san."
She bowed once more, before leaving, sliding the door closed behind her.
"Hm?"
He asked in response to the look Akiko was giving him.
"Who's Ishiberra?"
She asked suspiciously.
"A women of one of the worst sorts, you'd do well not to get involved with her."
"And yet it's fine for you to meet with her?"
"Whilst as a person, she is remarkably floored, I have need of her talents."
"Her talents?"
She asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Indeed."
"Can I meet her too, then?"
Noticing the anxietly on her face, he realized what the sudden barrage of questions was about, and cupped her chin in his hand.
"It's okay, Akiko. It's strictly business."
"I would feel better if I was there too…"
"I would not. I do not want you to be involved in this side of things."
"What side of things?"
She questioned, a little heatedly.
"You will find out in a few days, but for now, just trust me, okay?"
He made his way out of the door before she even had time to respond. She let out a sigh as she watched his back disappear.
'Is there really any need for so many secrets?'
As he ascended the stairs he could already smell Isabella's perfume, which was so frighteningly strong that he had to physically stop himself from gagging.
She stood in the office, with a self-satisfied smile covering her face, whilst Shibata stood by the door, making sure she did not do anything untoward.
"Thank you, Shibata. You can leave us now."
She bowed, and quietly closed the door behind them.
"Here I am."
Isabella said proudly, as though she knew he would be excited to see her."
"That I see."
But he merely acknowledged her presence without a hint of surprise, as he threaded an arm behind his back.
"..? Ahem… you said there would be work for me?"
Her reassured behaviour started to falter, as she sort confirmation.
"I did, and there is, though you're a day later than expected."
She frowned deeply at that, seemingly to take offence.
"What do you mean a day later than expected? You didn't tell me to arrive at a certain time!"
He exhaled deeply through his nose, as he met her gaze, unflinching, with his arm still firmly positioned behind his back.
"Correct."
Was all he said in response to her outburst.
Her eyebrow twitched in annoyance at his attitude, before she understood the meaning behind his words.
"Wait… you mean, you expected me to come so quickly?"
All that confidence that she had entered with faded. She thought she would be surprising him by appearing out of nowhere. He probably never expected her to come back in the first place. She had 100 gold, after all. She was set for life. Though, perhaps a rather dull life.
He merely continued to look her in the eye in response to her question, which was confirmation enough. She suddenly felt immensely irritated. It was not a pleasant feeling to have your actions predicted by someone else, and she resisted the urge to simply walk out.
"Sit down, Isabella."
He ordered, interrupting her whirling thoughts as she grew more and more worked up. To her disgust, she did exactly as he said.
"I did not lie when I said there is work for you. Are you still interested in hearing it?"
"Hmph! You may tell me, and if I like it, then I'll tell you my decision."
She tried to gain a little bit of authority back from the measly amount of rope that he had thrown her. But he did not engage her in that battle of pettiness, and merely ignored the tone she took.
"I want you to gather information."
"Information? Again?"
She said, a little irritated at the prospect. She had hoped this job would atleast be slightly different from the last.
"Yes. I want you to go to Toyokawa. There is a jeweller who owns a permanent stall there. I want you to watch as he takes down his stall for the evening, and I want you to find out where he puts his goods."
She stared at his emotionless face, looking deeply into his eyes. They were startling in their intensity and in their colour. They were – instead of a normal brown – a light golden, with each fleck definable. The way his eyebrow folded over the top of them highlighted their ferocity, drawing ever more attention to them.
He was deadly serious.
"By the gods… you intend to carry out a robbery?"
He turned to walk over to the window as he glanced out of it.
"There are ways to justify such a crime, by calling it a liberation, or something similar. But I care not for the use of those. Indeed, I intend to rob a man."
"…But why?"
She was deeply shocked by his suggestion, and how freely he wielded the word. Did he not care what others thought of him?
"I have my reasons, Isabella. Those are mine alone. I've offered you a job. Will you take it?"
He said coldly, cutting off her line of questioning. She was not family. Nor were they close. They were merely business partners, and so he did not waste time in altering his words so that they might be less harsh on her.
Her breath was caught in her throat. She thought, at the very least, he was an honourable man. Clearly, something had happened, because that older gentleman was no longer present, and the maid referred to him as master.
He had asked her to perform acts of sabotage, but that was merely to ensure victory in battle – it was strategy. But this was outright stealing. A crime.
But the more she thought about it, the more this excited her. He made no effort to pretend. He did not try to convince her that it was for a good cause. He merely told her it straight. She had no debt that she owed to humanity – in fact, she despised people in general. This was a job that she could carry out easily, without a stain to her conscience. Even if he had asked her to kill, she would have been able to do it.
"…I'll take it. But we need to first speak of coin."
"Of course. 75 gold is fair is it not?"
"75? You gave me 100 last time. Are you growing cheap?"
"If anything, this is better than before. This is merely a day's work. The other job required a considerable amount of time more, did it not?"
She chuckled. It was as though when he spoke, he did so armed. Whatever irrationalities were presented to him, he seemed to cut it down with that sword of his, and pierced toward the truth.
"Quite true."
She agreed, unable to get one up on him.
'Robbery, eh?'
She pondered, staring at his back, as he looked out of the window.
'It seems I made the right choice, coming to see this man. It should prove interesting.'
In the few days prior, she had not known what to do with herself. Indeed, she had wandered aimlessly, unable to move quite as she wished without a goal in mind. She had pondered upon visiting a tavern, but she knew, within mere moments of being there, trouble would be afoot, because men were not likely to ignore her beauty.
She decided, in those days spent wandering, that she needed enough money to raise a group of guards that would protect her wherever she might go, so that she could do as she wished, without the fear of a man's l.u.s.t getting the better of them. She did not wish to have to always cover her face.
And so, she had decided upon coming to pay this man a visit. She had him pegged as the servant of a samurai lord – though one that wielded a good amount of wealth. And yet here she had come, only to find out that he himself was the master now.
She held a great amount of curiosity toward the circ.u.mstances that lead to such a promotion, but she dared not ask. The weight of his gaze when they simply spoke normally was enough. If she were to make him angry… She did not want to face that.
"Miura, hm…"
He glanced in her direction at the mention of his name.
"What is it?"
"Well, it's just, before all this, I'd never heard of you before."
"You were locked inside a room – that does not seem surprising."
"Mm, perhaps. But-"
"Stop, Isabella."
He said sharply, aware of what she was trying to do. It was unnecessary for her to know about his past. More than being unnecessary, it could actually prove dangerous in the future.
She flinched at his words, surprised to have angered him so quickly. She had not even mentioned anything sensitive. It was quite a harmless question.
'But perhaps…'
She supposed.
'Perhaps he could see where that conversation was likely to go?'
Her opinion of him kept increasing, merely by him acting as he normally would. Though it would not be inaccurate to suggest that she likely valued him too highly.