The Black Swan Behind

59 Hell Gate Group

The man put the paper from inside his jacket on the table. Then, he slid it forward for Roger to see, “I’ll explain this map when I get the full payment.”

Roger quickly nodded and took out a white envelope and handed it to the man with a polite gesture. The man immediately took the envelope and opened it. The white object contained a sum of money which he immediately counted deftly.

“Here, I’ll explain,” He leaned back after stuffing the envelope into the inside pocket of his jacket, after making sure the amount of money was following the agreement.

Roger nodded and listened intently. In front of him was a fairly large piece of paper folded into four parts. It was a map of a six-story building. Yes, it was a map of the Hell Gate’s headquarters building.

The man was a former Hell Gate member who had worked there for three years and had already been kicked out for a petty mistake. Previously, he was beaten very, very badly, causing lacerations to his cheeks and deformities in one of his legs muscles which left him with a permanent limp.

He also became a homeless man because when he previously decided to follow Hell Gate, he had to leave his family and everything he had, and tattooed the Hell Gate symbol in order to serve that damn group. Now, there’s no workplace was willing to accept him as a worker because they saw the tattoos and scars on his face.

“This is the ground floor. This is the top floor. You understand?” The man slid his finger from the far left of the paper to the far right. Roger nodded.

“As I said before, the server position is on the sixth floor. The rooms are here. On the fifth floor, there are three rooms. The first is the room of the Hell Gate leader, Ron Smith, the most powerful man in the group. Second, the vice leader’s room, Kei Matsumoto, his strength is unknown because he has never fought. The third is.. the room belonging to the main guards of Hell Gate, the twins Gozu and Mezu, they are very strong. They are always guarding the vice leader, and also are the pillars of Hell Gate’s defence. Of all the people in this group, those two are the ones you should avoid the most. They could break your spine in just one throw.”

Roger gulped with difficulty hearing what kind of monsters were living in the building. Maybe, he would already lose his life just by getting to the ground floor, “Okay. Then, what else?” asked Roger with cold sweat running down his back.

.....

The man nodded, “The fourth floor only contains ordinary office workers. They are generally not good fighters and they don’t live in the base. Therefore at night, the fourth floor will be empty. On the third floor, is the floor containing studio rooms for photoshoots and dorm rooms for film performers. The second and first floors were filled with Hell Gate group members’ rooms, bathrooms, and other non-essential rooms. On the second floor, there is also a dining and meeting room. Here’s the position,” He slid his finger across the box-shaped pictures which he had previously written the names of each room in the building.

“In this headquarters building, there are at least a hundred Hell Gate members staying at night. Just like me, they all don’t have homes, so they live in the headquarters dorm. The good news is, I will give you an important key. On Saturday, Ron, the leader, will be leaving with fifty of his members to do battle with another group in the southern area. Therefore, the guard will be weaker than usual. This is your only chance to infiltrate inside. I’ve drawn the dots to mark the point where the CCTV cameras are that I know of. At the main door, there are four guards. The back door has three guards.” The man explained in detail.

“I see. Thanks for the explanation,” said Roger. Then, he looked at the man in front of him with a bit of doubt, “But.. the information you gave is correct, right? Sorry, I mean, you didn’t set me up, did you?”

The man laughed, “Who are you that I want to frame you? I have a big grudge against that damn group. Since you want to pay me, then I’m helping you. This is an advantageous situation for me. But.. you may remember this shit. If you ever say my name in your action, then i will kill you by myself.” He smirked.

“I-I won’t mention your name. I promise.” Roger answered.

“All right, kid. Then, what else do you want to ask? While I’m still being kind.” Asked the man as greedily finishing the fried squid on the table. Then, he took a quick sip of his drink.

Roger thought for a moment, “The room on the sixth floor.. Is there a guard too?”

“Hm..” The man folded his arms in front of his chest as he leaned back, “Usually, only one ordinary guard sits in front of it. Besides, you only have to worry about it if you can make it to the fifth floor alive. And..” he chuckled, “don’t expect you could make it through the fifth floor with your both legs still able to walk.”

Suddenly, the shop door opened, indicating another guest had arrived. A tall man walked in and walked slowly towards the counter.

The man sitting with Roger turned to the newcomer and immediately pulled his tattooed hands under the table when his eyes collided with his. His face looked frightened. Them, he hurriedly stood up, “Okay. I think that’s all. Bye.”

“Oh.. O-ok. Thank you,” Roger replied confused. Then, he got up from his chair and walked over to the counter, where a tall man with a long grey coat and a plaid scarf of the same colour tone around his neck was standing there.

The tavern owner’s granny came out from behind and smiled broadly at the tall man who was perched on the counter, “Ah.. You’re coming?” she walked closer to him.

“Serve the customer first, Grandma.” The man said softly.

The granny smiled and nodded. Then, assist Roger’s payment. Once they finished, Roger immediately left after saying thank you.

Emma was still sitting with her head lowered. She had heard all of Roger’s conversations with the earlier man who actually was a former member of Hell Gate. Emma was happy that she finally had such valuable information. After knowing what Roger would do later, then she just had to wait for Roger’s next step, as well as spying a little on Poppy. But unfortunately, now she felt a bit confused.

Emma glanced again at the counter. The man who had been standing there had already stepped into the table where Roger had been sitting before. He sat in the chair that had been occupied by the man with Roger, where he could see Emma clearly.

“Shit.. Why is PB even here?” She muttered. Her appearance now was not like her usual self. She hoped he wouldn’t recognize her.

Emma didn’t want to deal with that man anymore. But if she thought about it, this situation possible happened because this was the same street as the location of the chicken tavern that Emma went to with Kathy that night. At that time, they also met with PB. It seemed that the man was wandering this street very often.

“How are you? Have you been eating well lately?” The tavern owner’s granny approached PB with a tray of crab soup and several small bowls of side dishes, all of which were still steaming hot with a delicious smell.

“Of course, I eat well, Grandma. I never forget what you said.” Answered PB. Then, he took the spoon beside the main big bowl, “Wow.. it smells so good. I really miss my grandma’s cooking. Can I eat now?” He looked at the old woman with the eyes of a child.

The old woman nodded, “Eat a lot, my dear..”

“Oh, Grandma, I brought your favourite candied peach. Have a try,” PB took out a clear plastic bag from the bigger plastic bag he had previously placed in the corner of the table and opened it.

The granny laughed happily, “You don’t have to bother like this. I’m already happy just to see you coming here. Thank you, sweetheart, ” She caressed the boy’s cheek affectionately with her fragile fingers.

‘Ah.. Did she turn out to be his grandmother? No wonder his grandmother’s clothes are beautiful. PB must have dressed her.’ Emma thought with a smile to think that the man could act so sweet in front of his grandmother. Well.. all grandchildren were like that anyway.

Emma immediately stopped her thoughts, then hurriedly finished the remaining half of her food. Then, she stood up before taking a quick sip of her drink. She approached the counter with her back to PB as best she could.

“Where are you going?” asked the granny when she saw her grandson suddenly stand up.

“There’s a customer who wants to pay. You just sit here, Grandma. I’ve finished eating. Let me go to the cashier,” The guy said because he saw his grandmother was solemnly enjoying candied fruit. Even though it wasn’t even five minutes, the crab soup bowl was empty. PB really liked his grandmother’s cooking which he couldn’t eat every day.

Emma looked down for a moment as the guy stood opposite her behind the counter.

‘Why do you have to assist me, anyway?’ The girl cried in her heart.

Emma immediately took out some money from her purse when PB gave the receipt. But it seems that the man was already suspicious of the girl with the messy style in front of him. He continued to watch Emma without blinking.

“Thank you,” Emma said quickly by placing the money on the counter. Then, she immediately ran away from there, even before the cashier finished replying ‘You’re welcome’.

Emma walked with hasty steps. Even she almost slipped a few times on the slippery path. Roger was already gone. After all, Emma also had enough information for her plan. So, she decided to end the stalking today.

BUGH! CRACK!