Chapter 6

A few days later, a mysterious box sits on my bed when I exit the bathroom. Squeezing my hair with the towel, I toss it beside the item and cautiously look around. My bedroom door remains closed.

Flicking my ears back, I concentrate on the noises in my living room. The demons continue to scratch the walls from time to time during their movements and I let out a relieved breath. If this package passed them, it must mean it's from Ryuu. I don't think he would let anyone else break into my house besides himself.

Curiosity eats away at me the longer I stare at it. "Ugh. Fine," I groan, hating the way I find a spark of joy from receiving a gift from the fool.

Taking off the top, my eyes narrow in suspicion when I'm met with sparkling silver and black fabric. "What is he up to now?"

Lifting it, my jaw drops. It's a tight, scantily clad dress with a slit up to my hip. The back? There is no back. The fabric continues from just above where my ass would be.

"If he thinks?—"

A knock comes at my bedroom door and my hairs stand.

"Don't hesitate to ask for help, little fox."

My ears flatten and I curl my lip, mentally sending daggers in his direction. "Go sit yourself next to your goons. I'm fully capable of dressing myself," I snap.

His chuckle floats through the barrier between us, irritating me.

With a few graceless acrobatic moves and growls, I get the dress on and doubt myself. I'm not comfortable in something that doesn't allow me to hide weapons. Stepping in front of my broken mirror, I twist and turn, scrutinizing my reflection.

I'm going to have to keep my hair down to feel some sort of semblance of coverage. My bare body parts make me feel naked and vulnerable. Without a second thought I turn and rummage through my dresser, spontaneously grab a few things and put them on.

The fishnets cover my exposed thigh while the knee high boots provide enough space for a blade. As a hacker, I don't usually need to arm myself like this but the thought of being around the filthy rich made my skin crawl. The room's temperature rises with my agitation as the circuits in my arm crackle. Shaking my head, I grabbed one of my cropped hoodies and put it on, adding my trusty goggles for comfort.

"There." With a hand on my hip, I smirk at the finished product.

After adding a touch of rouge to my lips and cheeks, I open the bedroom door to find Ryuu standing in front of me, one arm above the door frame, his eyes scanning me from head to toe.

"I guess it was too much to hope for," he mumbles.

"Not in this life. Get out of my way. I thought you said we needed to be there soon," I deflect, once again, uncomfortable with the way he makes me feel with his presence and his words.

His Demon guards have all but disappeared from my home as I look into the various rooms. I choose not to ask about them in case Ryuu thinks I enjoyed their presence—another gift in his eyes, I'm sure. With his large, warm hand on my lower back, I shiver before he escorts us both out.

Travel to the Onyx building filled me with disgust. The stark change from dilapidated neighborhoods to smoothed, green lawns and state of the art technology surrounding the area made for an obvious contrast to how each group of people lived.

How can the rich be devoid of consciousness that they are able to live as if nothing is wrong with the world around them?

"Keep your thoughts to yourself and your expression schooled, little fox. We needn't add any more suspicion as to why we are at the meeting."

I jerk my head toward him. "How did we even get invited in the first place?"

As much as I tried to ignore the proximity between us in this hovercraft, I couldn't deny that whatever was brewing between us was messing with my wires.

He slowly turns his head toward me without a care in the world, face devoid of any emotion. "Just follow my lead."

With that, I find myself trailing behind his broadly suited back as we're led into a massive, intimidating black skyscraper made of purely outer glass with technology that camouflages everything that happens within.

The Onyx building was built amidst the metal fields of technological advancement on the west and is a true modern curiosity. Its appearance is matched by the backdrop of a long inactive volcano that sits on the outskirts of the city's perimeter which has helped shape this place to what it is today.

Fortune City's skyline, from an outsider's standpoint, can be seen as elegant with these dual skyscrapers until reality hits them in the face. Despite the sufferable existence of the majority of the population driven to poverty because of corporations like these, technology is thriving on this side of the city—and apparently it's attracted the attention of overseas competitors despite our ongoing political feuds.

As I look over the building's engineering and architecture, it's evident that many different cultures have left their mark not just on Fortune City's history, but also upon the city's identity. What historically was a city of no variation has grown into an integration of differences since the established universal laws that allow humans and monsters to coexist. Though over the centuries, the human genetic pool has slowly been thinned to the population we have today.

Keeping my hood up, I quietly watch my steps as we're brought into a spacious conference room half filled with high society members as well as a few holographic attendees, all in various suits and expensive attire from different regions.

The temperature in the room is chilling, as if it was akin to a morgue and I begin to wonder if everyone in front of me is the walking dead to be able to tolerate it. Judging by their eyes flicking in my direction, I quelled the thought. Everyone eventually takes their seats around the long conference table, facing the wall where another hologram appears.

A few large, feline men stand by the wall behind their dark shades, hands clasped in front of them. Why would guards be needed at a meeting like this? Surely these men weren't about to get into a brawl to need such reinforcements? It would dirty their suits.

"Now that we're all here, let's get on with the meeting. A representative from Sparktec Omnicorp was gracious enough to travel from overseas to provide us a comprehensive tour on the newest model of the Sur3050 beta testing group. By the end of this presentation, those of you who wish to participate in the beta testing of these models will be provided with a contract to sign and return. Now, let's give the floor to Castro Westnov."

I watch with fascination as another gentleman's hologram appears while the first man leaves. With a harsh accent known to be from the eastern lands, he proceeds to showcase a sleek female model and list what she is capable of. The AI integrated into the body suit allows them to easily learn on the job training as needed, whatever the needs are for the client. It didn't escape my notice that the beta testing models will all be in various female forms.

Mumbles go around the room as the men begin to chuckle over the various ways they would use the metal suit that houses the AI intelligence they are eager to get their hands on. I keep my disgust underwraps as I cross my legs and casually lean back in my chair.

Filled with both captivating and shudder worthy information, the meeting adjourns and the clients stand from their seats to stretch their legs.

A few of them mingle with one another as drinks and hors d'oeuvres are served by the men I originally thought to be guards. The hairs on the back of my neck stand when one of the old, filthy rich men come sniffing in our direction. The tentacles on his face wriggle with interest.

"Quite an opportunity that's fallen into our laps, wouldn't you say? What will you be using your ‘Molly' prototype for?" I cringe at the blatant nickname these men have given the model. The man's lustful eyes flick my way and I pretend to not notice. "Seems you already have the companion position filled with your pet here. A virile man like you wouldn't be of short supply for that kind of entertainment despite your obvious position in society. Will you be using your ‘Molly' strictly for your business ventures or more of a service within your home?"

My ears flick back beneath my hood and I'm glad it's hidden. I grind my molars to prevent myself from letting out a response that will give our position away.

A hard, confident hand pulls me by the waist against his side. I look up at Ryuu as he keeps his sights on the man and rumbles in answer. "I have yet to decide how this ‘Molly', as Omnicorp labels it, will benefit my future needs. But it's always good to have your ears to the ground on the latest information on what's being developed in the market so that one is always a step ahead of the game before competitors."

I'm in awe of how smoothly he delivers his speech as if he's done this before. But most of my thoughts scatter as Ryuu rhythmically runs his thumb at my waist while continuing to converse with the wretched man in front of us. I can't believe he could insinuate my presence here as a slave rather than a business partner.

My thoughts churn. Perhaps that's why Ryuu gave me the seductive dress… only to have me almost sabotage his efforts in having us play the part of the immoral rich.

It's too late now and I'm not about to strip down for their benefit. I look at the side of Ryuu's face, partially playing the devoted ‘pet'. Come to think of it, why didn't he fight me on my additions if he knew this was a possibility?

Ryuu proves to be more of an enigma the longer I work beside him—and I'm a sucker for unraveling a challenge.