Reiji gently nudged Haruto, signalling for him to run. Just as Haruto ran off, Kurogane closed the distance and threw a punch at Reiji's face.
Reiji managed to step back just in time. He kept moving backward, his arms way too weak to counter.
As Kurogane threw a right direct, Reiji ducked under and jumped up, the top of his head striking Kurogane's chin.
Kurogane stumbled back a few steps. "Agh!" After a moment Kurogane started laughing. "Damn, you hit hard, darling."
Reiji deadpanned. "I'll kill you, scar-face," he said in a flat yet threatening tone. Reiji then roundhouse kicked Kurogane, but Kurogane managed to block it. He then moved towards Reiji and threw a few more punches.
Reiji dodged the punches but couldn't return any of them. Damn that general. Now this is happening because of her!
"Come on, Kurozuma! Why are you fighting me? You know that I'll get my hands on you eventually and use you as my own pleasure toy before killing you!"
Kurogane's rambling caused him to lose focus and Reiji's kick slipped through, hitting his right knee with brutal force. This caused Kurogane to stumble backward again. It was clear to Reiji that he couldn't put his weight on that leg.
He closed the distance and headbutted Kurogane. Kurogane fell to the floor with a bloody nose and knocked-out teeth.
"My, my. It seems the poor muscle head was too full of himself. I, on the other hand, know my limits." Reina pointed her knife at Reiji.
"Do your worst, woman."
She ran at Reiji and slashed a couple of times. Her knife skills were very impressive and she even managed to slice his right ear, causing Reiji to hiss in pain and jump back a good distance.
They had moved so far from their rooms that Reiji's back was against a door that was locked. As Reina rushed forward, he kicked it open and used all the strength in his arms to restrain the hand holding the knife.
The force caused Reiji to fall over. He was now laying on the floor of the dark room with Reina on top of him and her knife inching closer to his face.
He pushed against her wrist and moved his head in the opposite direction. It stabbed into the carpet and Reiji delivered a weak elbow strike to her chin, making an opening for him to switch positions with her.
She managed to free the knife before he pinned her wrists down with his legs and sat down on her thighs. "This is no way to treat a lady, you know?"
"You're a bitch, first of all. A proper lady would ask if she could kill me."
"Huh? What?" Reina snapped out of her confusion when she heard footsteps.
"I'm glad you're ok, Mister Kurozuma." Haruto's butler spoke out. He walked over to Reina and took her knife away.
"Haruto told me that you were in trouble. I'm surprised you were able to do this even after the general's rigorous training."
"It's all in the legs. Plus, I've faced worse and won. I got to say, bitch, you're good with knives."
Reina clicked her tongue. "Bitch? How harsh. You really don't know how to talk to a woman."
"You've probably been called worse, so don't whine." Reiji looked up at the butler. "Where's Haruto?"
The butler's eyes widened. "I think I ran off too fast. He's probably lost," he spoke in a sheepish tone.
"Can you handle her?" "Of course I can." Reiji stood up and started walking away.
"I'll go find Haruto. Also, you should probably clean that room, each breath fills me with dust."
"Ugh, you don't ever shut up, do you, Kurozuma?" Reina commented, still laying on the dusty carpet of the dark room. The light that came from the hall shone directly at her.
Reiji didn't respond and just walked away. After a few minutes he heard soft sobs coming from one of the rooms. He walked in and saw Haruto sitting on a couch.
"You shouldn't cry, Haruto." Haruto looked up at Reiji and relief was written all over his face. He ran towards Reiji and hugged his legs. "Mangi!"
"I'm starting to think you do this on purpose." Reiji patted his back. "Everything is fine now."
After a moment Reiji placed Haruto on his shoulders and started walking back to their room. He had to bend his knees a bit and Haruto had to watch out for his head so as not to hit door frames.
"So, Haruto. Do you know how to get back?" "Are we lost?" Haruto asked Reiji.
"Not at all. Think of this as another tour of the mansion." Reiji walked down the halls, randomly turning left or right. We're so lost. My sense of direction is horrible.
After some time, Haruto started talking. "I'll be going with Mister Butler into the city tomorrow morning."
"City? Where and how far is it from here?" "I don't know but my butler will take me there. He told me it's a big and beautiful city and that they're going to be launching fireworks tonight!"
"Oh, right. It's almost New Year's Eve. Will you be in the city or at the mansion during that time?" Reiji's question was met with silence and after a moment Reiji spoke. "Hello?"
"...I kind of wasn't listening when he was talking about it." Reiji wasn't exactly surprised by this. Haruto was a child after all. "Have you been treating your butler well?" Reiji asked.
"Well… I try not to be too demanding of him. I am kind of scared to ask in the first place…" Reiji smiled to himself. He's just like me when I was a kid.
After a few more minutes of walking Reiji turned left and saw Lord Fujioka and Haruto's butler standing behind him. Fujioka was scolding Reina and Kurogane. Reiji finally wandered his way back.
He walked toward Lord Fujioka. "Honestly, are you children? Do you fight and stab whoever you don't like and then cry when you have no friends?"
His attention was caught by Reiji and Haruto. "Ah, there you are." He took in how Haruto was sitting on Reiji's shoulder and gripping his hair. "You two look just like father and son or brothers."
"Out of the two, I prefer brothers," Reiji told Fujioka. His attention turned to Reina and Kurogane. "You two need to learn a lot of manners. I'll request that the general be extra thorough with you two."
"Hmph, like I care, Oldy," Reina commented. "Oh, you will, bitch," Reiji told her, to which she responded by turning to him, eyes filled with fury. "I should've sliced your throat and not your ear, Kurozuma!"
"Enough, you two. Reina and Kurogane, you two won't be sleeping next to Reiji and Haruto because I have no doubt that you'll try something. As for Reiji, please, stop with the name calling."
"Got it, Oldy." Lord Fujioka sighed and started walking away. He spoke to the butler as he walked past. "Show the two of them to their new room. The reserve room, if you remember."
"Of course I remember," the butler answered. Reiji looked at Reina. "Oh, and one more thing. The nickname Oldy can only be used by me or the people I respect."
Reina didn't respond, but it was clear she wasn't happy with Reiji. She and Kurogane stood up and followed Haruto's butler down the hall.
Reiji walked into room one and went straight to the bathroom, cleaning his sliced right ear. After a moment Haruto walked in. "Hey, what does bitch mean?" Reiji deadpanned once again. Me and my big mouth.
"It means… uh. Just when I point to a woman and say, 'call her the bad word,' then you'll say it." "Bad word? Bitch?"
"Yes, and don't ever say it unless I tell you to." "I got it!"