My Atomic System

Chapter 9: A Strange Attribute

‘Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!’

Haruto cursed silently. He was definitely in trouble now. Beads of sweat had long formed on his forehead in insane quantities. He furiously looked around, looking for someone to save him but no one interfered. Instead, they all avoided his awkward situation like a plague.

Looking at him with irritation and malice, the towering man said in a deep voice:

“I don't like being kept waiting”

‘Damn it!’ Haruto gritted his teeth in regret.

‘What’s with me and making wrong choices? Why did I come here at night? Just why? Damn it!!’

Taking Haruto's silence to depict making him look like a fool amidst his kin, the towering man suddenly stood upright and smiled.

“You leave me no choice kid, you should blame yourself for loitering around at a late time like this,”

Haruto watched the man reach out to grab his shoulders. He cursed continuously in his mind.

‘Why am I so weak? Just why? Can't I just punch this asshole on his face and send his great wall of a body reeling? How beautiful that would be. But, I'm weak! I'm so weak’

Haruto gritted his teeth, and with a mixed feeling of regret and anger, accepted his fate. He'd probably be sold to some rich Japanese folk. Considering his looks, he reckoned he'd sell for a good price. He tried to look for a good reason for the behemoth to capture him but he found none. This was the dregs after all!. He knew he'd have no trouble escaping the clutches of the fools that would purchase him. But, just how much time did he have left? He knew he was already stupid enough to linger up till now before going to the TSCF. Now though, he'd probably get killed. He….

Just as the man's hand was about to seize his shoulder, a voice cut through the tension.

"That’s enough."

Haruto’s breath hitched. Someone had stepped into his nightmare.

‘Oh, thank the gods!’

He turned quickly, desperate for salvation—but his hope flickered the moment he got a good look at the newcomer.

The man was pale. Too pale. His curly blond hair and sharp features made him look completely out of place in the filth of the dregs. He was delicate, almost fragile-looking, yet he moved with the ease of someone who had no reason to fear this place. And then Haruto saw it.

The apron.

His expression darkened.

‘A bartender? Seriously? My savior is some random bartender?’

Before he could process his disappointment, the towering man straightened and let out an irritated sigh.

"Gizen, this doesn’t concern you," he growled.

Haruto’s pulse spiked.

‘They know each other?’

This was his chance. Without thinking, he turned sharply, ready to bolt. But before he could take a single step, an iron grip clamped down on his shoulder.

"Where do you think you're going, brat?"

Haruto’s stomach twisted.

‘Curses!’

The bartender—Gizen—ignored the failed escape attempt and smiled. It was a lazy, confident expression, completely unfazed by the situation.

"You know the rituals," Gizen said casually.

The towering man sneered but relented with a scoff. "Fine. But if he fails, he's mine."

"Absolutely," Gizen replied smoothly before turning to Haruto.

Haruto's stomach sank.

‘Wait… what?’

He barely had time to process what they were talking about before Gizen locked eyes with him and asked,

"What's your name?"

Everything inside Haruto screamed at him to stay silent. But then, it began.

A slow, creeping agony bloomed in his chest, spreading like poison through his veins. His jaw clenched as the pain intensified, searing into his bones like white-hot fire. His breath hitched. His body trembled.

And then, he couldn't take it anymore.

"Gensei Haruto!!!" he bellowed, voice hoarse with frustration and pain.

The moment the words left his mouth, the pain vanished.

Haruto staggered, gasping for breath.

‘Damnation! That wasn’t what I wanted to say!’

Realization hit him almost instantly, the strange power he'd noticed since he got here affected people differently. It gave them different attributes. Like with Nagisa, he had the power to control the mind, which was an exceptionally dangerous ability if mastered properly. But the blonde!. He was even trickier. His attribute forced one to say the truth. It didn't matter if you wanted to lie…you would just not be able to. If you chose to say nothing, the pain would slowly eat you up until it became absolutely unbearable.

His blood ran cold.

‘Scary. Really scary. And his name is Gizen? As in Lies?’

The blonde let out a humid laugh. He sounded so gay— so Haruto thought.

“And what are you looking for in this part of Tokyo so late?”

‘Crap!’

The question hit him like a train at high speed. Only the fact that he had absolutely no information about the TSCF showed that they were very secretive in their dealings. And absolutely no random passerby should know of them — So Haruto thought.

Haruto gritted his teeth.

‘Mr Kentaro had entrusted him with such an important secret. Why?! Just why?! Damn it!’

He felt both mad and enraged. But….the pain. It wasn't going easy on him. All the while, both his adversaries just watch him suffer the pain. In the end, he gave in and screamed in frustration.

“Tokyo Secret Combat Force!!!”

Haruto desperately gasped for air. All the strength previously concentrated on his knee had left. And now, he could barely stand.

Contrary to his expectations, the blonde wasn't surprised at all. He turned to the towering man and said nothing. After a while, the man gritted his teeth.

“Fine!!!”

Haruto stumbled forward from a rough shove, crashing into the blonde's unwelcomed embrace.

‘Eww’

The blonde chuckled. Then he let go of Haruto and gestured for him to follow suit. Haruto hesitated. He really didn't need the help of anybody at this point. No one was to be trusted according to him. After all, he was but a stranger in this strange world. But then he looked back and sighed. He had no choice. He followed.

He gritted his teeth in anger. He was truly embarrassed, his pride torn through.

‘I’m going to kill that bastard someday for making me look weak!!’

But as he walked, unease gnawed at him.

‘Did the blonde know of the Tokyo Secret Combat Force? How was it a Secret Combat Force then if a random stranger knew about it? Even the towering man reacted as though he was…afraid? Why was everybody's attribute even different? Where did these strange powers come from? What was the identity of this casino really?’

Haruto felt his head start to hurt. He grimaced and let out a pained sigh.

‘Crap! So many questions! But, some things are better left unknown’