Chapter Text
“What am I going to have for dinner?,” you wondered, wandering around the busy streets of the red district.
The night was still young, so people were heading to the bright and extravagant restaurants to dine and drink alcohol until the sun dictated. Your eyes darted quickly through the people as you walked among them like a stealthy ghost. Your feet moved smoothly against the floor, first lowering your heel and then shifting your weight gently on your toes so as not to make a sound. That was your best skill, which, ironically, made you stand out as a thief.
Taking advantage of the large crowd, you pulled out a pocket knife and cut a couple of pockets to get some coins to buy yourself a nice dinner. You made sure your victims didn't react to the act and quickened your pace to get lost in the endless sea of heads. Inhaling as much you could to control your breathing after that small dose of adrenaline, the different scents of the surrounding shiny businesses reached your nose. After counting the coins, you had enough for a decent udon soup. You pocketed your earnings and quickly went to that damn place.
The Last Drop was a grotty tavern, but it brought you nostalgia, as it was where you got your first and last unethical job as a dishwasher, cook, and servant. You hated working there all your childhood, but it was either that or work as an escort.
Despite being a small space, the tavern was always full of drunk men because the sake and food are extremely cheap for a place in the heart of the red district. The cooped up feeling was in the air, but it was something you were already used to. You took off the black scarf around your head and started looking for a table. Without warning, someone was about to grab your shoulder, but you were quicker to grab the wrist that was about to touch you.
“You got better, Y/n,” The man with the now familiar hand greeted you.
It was Mr. Matsuda, the man in charge of administering the big hauls among thieves and an old friend of yours. He was a somewhat gray-haired man with a straggly beard and a large figure.
“I knew I could recognize that unique hair of yours anywhere,” he said, stumbling over his own words from how drunk he was.
To be a good thief you need three things: patience, skill and knowing how not to draw attention to yourself. You were good at the first two, but the third was complicated by having shiny hair and lovely face. You had to cut your hair constantly so as not to draw attention to it, and it could be easy to maintain. You hated having that bizarre hair color because you became an easily identifiable woman.
“It's good to see you again,” you greeted, putting your scarf like a hood.
Mr. Matsuda pointed to the table he was at, and you followed him. The man offered you a drink, which you gladly accepted. You toasted to the good times and began chatting amicably. With drinks and food on the table on a beautiful night, life couldn't get any better. As you ate, he brought up the topic of conversation you hated most in the world.
“A girl as young and as pretty as you shouldn't be in this kind of place.”
You rolled your eyes before taking another drink to get ready to have the same old discussion.
“I like my life, I can do what I want when I want, what more can I ask for?” You asked before taking another bite of the udon.
“You know very well that you could easily get a rich husband to support you, and then you wouldn't have to worry about anything.”
You felt scolded, and all you could do was look at your slimy reflection in the bowl of udon. Your striking eyes looked back at you through the broth.
“But do you know what I would have to give in return? My freedom. You know very well that I have worked my ass off to get it.”
Mr. Matsuda rolled his eyes and took another drink in despair.
“You call this freedom? Do you want to spend the rest of your life stealing, kid?”
You just watched him, unable to believe what he was telling you.
“It's a great life! Besides, I don't know what you're mad about if you're the one who taught me how to steal, to be stealthy and to be one with the victim,” you replied proudly.
The man flicked your forehead, making you wobble in your seat. You shouted at him, offended, and threatened him with your chopsticks as if it were a knife.
“Because you are on time, silly! I am already buried in this profession, you are just germinating, and I will be the one to pull you out like a bad weed.”
You snorted at the bold words of the man you considered your mentor.
“One bad weed cannot pull out another,” you scoffed.
“Now, tell me, what are you doing here? Tell me you are looking for a good man.” You could only smile, not believing what the old man was telling you.
“If I had found a good man, I would have stolen his heart by now,” you joked before drinking the remaining udon broth. “I came to visit my favorite mentor, obviously…” You said trying to give him the nicest side.
Mr. Matsuda, despite being a drunk, was a bright man and knew you better than you knew yourself. He was very observant, so he knew how to read your facial expressions perfectly. Just by looking at your tender eyes and fake smile, he knew that was not the absolute truth of this case.
“…and I also came to see if you could give me a job.” You finally said.
The old man sighed before pulling out an envelope and shoving it in your face. You tried to take it from him, but he was quicker and took it. You glared at him for the tantrum.
“This will be the last assignment I will give you.”
Mr. Matsuda was the one who gave the assignments with the highest values in the county. If you lost this supplier, you would be in trouble financially and would have to find someone else to continue to maintain the traveling lifestyle you had, which was going to be a hassle.
“Why?!” You yelled, unable to believe what you were hearing.
“I do it for your own good, child. You are like a daughter to me, I don't want to see you in these places. After this spoil, I will find you a good husband, someone who will let you go out as much as you want and can live adventures.”
Mr. Matsuda handed you the envelope across the table, but you didn't even feel like taking it. If you took it, your lifestyle would be at risk. You looked at the man and debated for a second whether to accept his offer.
“According to my contacts, it's a very good haul. It will give you a lot of money, and you can go on one more trip before you have a husband, it's a good offer, girl,” he told you seriously.
It was the first time you heard him talk that way. You looked at the man and then at the envelope. Was it really such a good loot that it had that condition?
“What estimate are we talking about?” You asked.
“A once in a lifetime opportunity,” he stipulated before taking another sip of sake.
Your eyes opened wide at that statement, as it was the first time Mr. Matsuda had said something like that to her. “Then it must be too good of a haul to pass up.”
“What if I accept the job, I go on a trip and never come back?” You asked.
“Well, consider this dinner as our farewell,” he said, before raising his small glass, you took yours sadly and clinked it against his. “To your future.” He enunciated as he dinged the glasses.
You smiled sadly. “To my future” you could only think.
｡ ˚ ︶︶✩︶︶ ₊ ˚ ︶︶✩︶︶ ｡˚
It was another summer night. Warm winds brushed against your arms. The violet trees swayed gracefully against the currents. You infiltrated the strange estate among the violet leafy trees until you reached the armor of the land. You arrived at a traditional wooden house where the lights were still on despite the hour. The place was huge and spacious, surely it had many things of high value inside.
According to the information Mr. Matsuda had given you, the sick leader of the demon slayer corps lived here. That detail alone made you feel insecure to enter the place.
“He is blind and dying. Also, his guards are common women. If you infiltrate as I taught you, you'll be fine,” the old drunk assured.
What you hadn't anticipated was that the blind and dying man would have visitors that night. “Looks like I'll have to wait until the visitor leaves or goes to sleep,” you planned in your mind before sitting comfortably in the tree you just climbed. Your hands arranged the scarf over your hair to cover it completely so that your eyes were the only ones uncovered.
Hours passed, and the visitor never left, but the lights went out. All you could pick up was that there were two adults in the area and several who appeared to be children. “A family?” you thought, not quite sure of your hypothesis.
You waited another hour, going deeper into the night, and decided to strike. The entire house was free of locks or fences, it was an open place. The only thing there were paper doors everywhere.
You crept into the place and your first impression was bad, the living room had no furniture. There was only a table with a tea set on top and comfortable cushions. The walls were bare, nothing decorative in sight, and there was no hint of luxuries. “Did that old man set me up?” you thought annoyed, but you couldn't give up so easily, you had to dig deeper.
With the gait of a cat, you went through the other rooms and there was nothing at all. You passed by the guest room and saw the visitor who hadn't left. A ridiculously strong man, with long white hair, large in height, and yet he slept like a baby. You had never seen a man with such proportions. Mr. Matsuda was tall, but he was not an albino beast like the one in front of you. His back was to you as he slept, so you couldn't see if he was wearing anything of value.
You refocused on your task and moved on, you passed into another room where the owner of the compound was sleeping peacefully. There wasn't much there, except for a magnificently displayed katana. “That screams money,” you thought happily at the discovery.
You crept up to grab it from both ends, the second the metal squeaked you felt a draft rush towards it at tremendous speed. You didn't think twice and unsheathed the katana.
The metals clashed in a duel.
When you blinked, you saw that the burly guest in pajamas was in front of you with a katana two centimeters away from your face. The only thing stopping him from slashing your face was the katana you had drawn.
Your arms began to tremble from the force he was applying. You looked at the deep fuchsia eye he had uncovered to try to decipher his next move, his other eye was covered with a diamond-studded patch. How did you get into this situation? Everything all happened too fast for your liking.
Finally, the man decided to push his katana against “yours”, causing you to fall sitting down and drop your blade. The white-haired man pointed his sword at your unfamiliar face.
“Human or demon?” He asked directly.
Then a candlelight flickered behind you and a couple of girls entered the room, panicking.
“What's going on?” The boss said, getting up hardly from his bed.
That's when you realized that the old man was not only blind, but seriously ill. He had a rather grotesque mark covering his eyes. The chillingly similar girls quickly arrived to assist him. The hulking man's katana resounded again, causing you to turn your attention back to the nearly six-foot man before you.
“I asked you a question!”
“Fuck, it's true, they are demon slayers,” you thought, quickly pulling the scarf off your face and raised your hands in surrender.
“I'm human, I swear!” You exclaimed in fright.
The man stared at you, not knowing exactly what to do. He analyzed you from head to toe. Your body was too small compared to his, but your face and hair shone on their own in the middle of the dark night. Your pink and full lips, your ruddy cheeks, and your adorable button like nose. Your hair was perfectly cut and vibrantly colored.
He had never seen a face as unique as yours. You were like the personification of the very sun that warmed him in summer. The white-haired man felt his heart race at the mere sight of you. His eyes widened at this, as he was not used to a woman making him in such a type of way, plus he had to be faithful to his 3 wives at home.
“Ah, a thief. How impressive. I didn't even hear her come in, you are very skilled.” The old man mentioned in a strangely positive manner as the twins made sure he was okay. “I guess it took you a while to hear her too, didn't she, Tengen?” The man asked curiously.
You looked at the man and etched his name in your mind. Tengen just looked at his former employer and nodded.
“Yes, she is very quiet,” he admitted before removing the blade from your face.
You crawled backwards to keep the greatest distance from the stranger to finally stand up without taking your eyes off him in case he wanted to do something else. Tengen turned her gaze back to you and realized that you were also watching him with utmost attention.
You couldn't take your eyes off the fuchsia eye studying you, you could tell he was someone really strong. You looked down and noticed that he was carrying two katanas connected with a large chain, one of them was under his incomplete arm. “He has a bandaged arm, and yet he is so strong?”, you thought in disbelief. You tried to regulate your breathing because of the adrenaline, but it was not the right time to relax.
“Unfortunately, I don't have anything of value here, unless you want to take that rusty katana with you,” the old man mentioned.
You turned to see the katana lying on the ground and indeed, it was completely rusted, it was worthless in that state. “Mr. Matsuda, that son of a bitch!,” you thought annoyed. You had to escape, and fast.
“One of you go get the police,” Tengen ordered one of the girls.
“Oh, come on. I didn't steal anything, I can just leave,” you tried to negotiate by faking the most innocent smile you could crack. Tengen just nodded that one of the girls should leave, and so she did. One of them bowed and left the room. “We don't have to go to these extremes, I was just leaving.”
“You broke into private property, and now you want to leave? You must be crazy,” Tengen laughed.
You sighed in defeat, so you had only one option left: Running away. You ran to the nearest window so you could jump out of the house, launching yourself. You prepared to fall on the grass skillfully, but a strong arm caught you before you planned.
Tengen swung and carried you as if you were a newborn. It took you a while to process what had happened, until you saw Tengen's face so close to yours. He had such a face card, with well-defined features and a healthy cut peeking out from underneath an extravagant patch. Any woman would fall in their knees before that face, but you had other priorities.
“Let go of me!” You grumbled between kicks and weak blows because of the position you were in, which didn’t affect Tengen in the least.
Upon closer inspection, he realized that you were prettier than he already thought you were. Your skin was gleaming, and your eyes shone brightly under the moonlight. His heart pounded like crazy at the sight of the extravagant woman in his hands. You were mesmerizing and fiery, like an immortal fire.
“What are you looking at, asshole!,” you shouted before spitting in his face.
Tengen smiled in annoyance at your audacity. He placed you over his shoulder to wipe the spit off his face. You continued to slap his back and kick his abdomen, with no signs of giving up anytime soon.
“You sure are a bad girl!” He told her with a mischievous grin before giving you a spank that echoed throughout the grounds. You howled in pain and started rubbing the injured area. “Finally you shut up, now let's wait for the police,” Tengen started to head to the entrance of the residence.
“I didn’t steal anything! I promise I'll leave, and I won't show up again in your life!” The man stopped dead in his tracks at that.
You were right in a way. “If the police come for her, I'll probably never see her again,” he thought. Tengen knew he wanted you for himself. He had never felt that way about anyone. You were what he was waiting for. Of course, he loved his wives, but there was something about this thief that was different. Your beauty, agility or explosive personality… whatever it was, Tengen didn't plan to let you go easily.
“I'll make you a deal.”
“Great. Another deal…” you thought sarcastic, rolling your eyes. You gave up and let your body go slack because you couldn't beat the man since you were trapped in his strong arms.
“I'll tell the police it was all a joke, and you won't face any consequences under the condition that you marry me,” he said seriously.
Your eyes almost popped out of your skull. “Is this some twisted plan of Mr. Matsuda's to force me to marry!” you thought in disbelief, imagining the old drunk making fun of you.
It was true that the man seemed like a good catch, as he looked your age and was extremely attractive. Any girl with that offer would say yes without a second thought, but unfortunately you were not one of them. Getting married was not in your near plans.
“Hand me over to the police.” You gave up.
You knew you had a better chance escaping from jail than from the demon slayer, who still had his hand on your ass. Tengen put you back in front of him as if you were a cat and was checking if you were a male or female.
“Are you stupid? It's the best deal ever! I'm incredibly attractive, I have a big estate, lots, and lots of money, and a great personality. What more could you ask for from a husband?” He exclaimed, extremely offended.
“Lots and lots of money, that's it!”, you thought as you saw Tengen as the real treasure in that empty house. You pretended to think about the deal, as if money didn't matter to you in the least.
“A great personality, you say?” You asked innocently. Tengen let her bright smile shine. A confident smile that brought out his eccentric personality.
“Of course. I'm funny, smart, and an excellent protector!” He said with the confidence of a thousand men, thinking you were super into him already. That was the effect he had on women.
“Well, I'll marry you, Mr. Tengen.” He opened his eyes when he heard you say his name.
A tingle appeared in his stomach, causing him to let out an involuntary smile. The white-haired man set you down and the difference in height was really evident. You were taller than his wives by a few inches, but you still looked small next to him.
“Perfect, you'll make a great wife, miss…”
Tengen could not believe that he had proposed to a woman he did not even know her name, but there was something about you that he felt belonged to him. Maybe it was fate, as the master had told him. You would be Tengen´s and no one else’s.
“Y/n.”
“Even her name is pretty” he thought, unable to take his eyes off you.
“I'll definitely steal every penny from this himbo,” you thought, still faking interest.