48 Abracadabra!
Chapter 48 Abracadabra!
Months before.
In an elegant office located inside a busy nightclub, the famous information broker Giran sits in his comfortable chair with recent gold inlays on it. All this while he lights an expensive cigarette with the help of his new and eccentric blaster-shaped lighter in front of one of the best thieves in all of Japan. Sako Atsuhiro also known as Mr. Compress.
"And good? Did you complete the job?" Giran asks professionally, holding his cigarette in his mouth and watching intently as Mr. Compress spins some marbles in his hands.
"It's a basic habit of magic." Mr. Compress whispers, tossing the marbles into the air under Giran's watchful eye. "When you show something, it's because there's something you don't want them to see." He says with a small smile behind his mask before snapping his fingers. "Abracadabra!" He exclaims extending his arms dramatically to his sides causing all the marbles in the air to explode and spray confetti all over Giran's office before a huge diamond appears just above his right hand causing Giran's eyes to lightly sparkle.
"Nobody saw me go in and nobody saw me go out. The job is done." He says as he places the diamond on Giran's desk with an enigmatic smile on his face.
Giran smiles triumphantly, crushing out his cigarette in a nearby ashtray. "That's what I wanted to hear." Giran nods verifying the authenticity of the diamond before opening a small safe located on his desk and taking out a small wad of high-denomination bills which he delivers to Mr. Compress, thus finalizing a typical transaction between them.
Then the atmosphere in the small office tenses, as Giran closes the safe with a clank and lights another expensive cigarette. "Have you considered the offer I made you over the phone a few days ago?" Giran asks with a seriousness that cuts like a knife. "The leader of Hydra has a strange interest in you and he tasked me with convincing you to arrange a meeting with him." He says with a serious and direct tone.
At this, Mr. Compress remains silent contemplatively. The tension is palpable as if the very air is charged with electricity. All this while Giran waits with an expectant look.
The silence lasted for a few moments until Giran smiled his characteristic businessman's smile, immediately dissipating some of the accumulated tension. "You're smarter than the rest so I'll give you some free advice." Giran says pulling out his shiny phone and unlocking it deftly. After a few seconds of searching, he finds what he was looking for, starting to play a peculiar video, causing Mr. Compress's eyes to widen in surprise when he read the title of the video.
"In my vast experience in this shady world of business, I can know a good opportunity when it's right in front of me and let me tell you…" He says with a sly smile.
"Hydra is the Big Business."
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POV Mr. Compress
As a descendant of the legendary thief Oji Harima, I feel it is my mission and family duty to continue my great-great-grandfather's legacy and carry out his mission to fight against the corrupt hero system and expose the injustices that exist in society.
That's what I thought when I started in this criminal world and yet I haven't done anything remarkable to try to change this society other than perform incredible eccentric robberies using my showman skills along with my quirk.
I wonder what my great-great-grandfather would think of me right now…
The fall of Endeavor at the hands of Hydra a few weeks ago may be a step towards the transformation of this society, but there are many rumors circulating in the underworld about Hydra and especially about Child Emperor, who is a key figure in this organization.
It's hard to know which rumors are true and which aren't, but if there's one thing I'm sure of as a showman, it's that there's always more than meets the eye...
"Hey, Giran... what can you tell me about the leader of Hydra?" I ask with interest, but also with a mocking tone in my voice after finishing watching the strange video of Hydra which turned out to be just an elaborate and interesting blurb. Change society? Eliminate inequality? A grateful world? It's too good to be real.
"I can't reveal information about my clients that they don't want to be known." Giran answers enigmatically, with a smile that makes me feel uncomfortable. "But I assure you that you will be surprised... or terrified." He says letting out a puff of smoke keeping that creepy smile.
I eye Giran suspiciously before making a decision. "I will agree to meet him, but if the great and enigmatic leader of Hydra really wants the help of the great Mr. Compress to change this society... He will have to surprise me!" I exclaim extending my arms dramatically. "And let me tell you something, I'm not easy to impress." I whisper, leaning forward a little with an air of defiance fixing my eyes on Giran with intensity.
"If the leader of Hydra is bold enough to accept my challenge, then perhaps we have a chance to work together to make this world a better place. Sure, as long as I can be sure that his intentions are genuine." I say crossing my arms with a small laugh.
After all, I'm not interested in being part of a movement that only seeks to deceive people with false promises. If Hydra really wants me involved, they'll have to show that their ideals go beyond cheap propaganda.
"Well well. That's good enough for me. I'll make some calls and set up a meeting with him as soon as possible…" Giran snorts with a small victorious smile before his eyes light up slightly.
"...But first, I have a job that's perfect for your abilities, with many benefits for both of us, and I highly doubt you'll turn it down." He says with his characteristic businessman smile with a tone that I know very well placing some images on his desk.
The time has come for the magnificent Mr. Compress to perform one of his master robberies!
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Hours later.
After Endeavor's fall, his former hero agency was partially damaged and shut down until the building was sold to an enigmatic transnational company called Millennium who remodeled the building in record time into Millennium's Japan headquarters.
And this time my goal is in that building, precisely inside a safe located in Endeavor's old office. According to Giran, what is contained inside the safe is capable of destabilizing an entire country in a short time, so I must be doubly careful.
At this, a defiant smile spreads across my face as I adjust my top hat before beginning to sneak up on the massive building that now belongs to Millennium in the dead of night.
First I compressed one of the service doors accessing undetected in the building, once inside the building I quickly realized the absence of security guards causing me to frown. However, that was not all as the motion sensors and security cameras were not working making the whole situation more suspicious.
An internationally recognized company like Millennium should not take its security lightly unless this company is just a front… Millennium certainly has many secrets. However, it's none of my business since my goal here is something else… I have a show to perform.
The corridors were desolate, giving a gloomy atmosphere to this entire building that was once filled with 24-hour professional heroes… I didn't find any kind of inconvenience and after a few minutes, I carefully entered the huge office that once belonged to Endeavor.
Upon entering, I realized that all the windows were sealed, so the entire room was in complete darkness until numerous reflectors gradually turned on throughout the room, making my heart begin to beat rapidly as I realized the situation.
My suspicions turned out to be correct… It was a trap.
However, my curiosity reached its peak when in the distance not far from me, I observed a huge and magnificent safe with some thick chains covering it and being illuminated by various reflectors throughout the center of the large room.
In front of the huge safe two beautiful and extravagant female figures dance with each other, with slow and synchronized movements with a slight background mechanical noise. It's almost like they're assistants on a big stage before a big show… where I'm the audience.
In all my years as a showman, this is the first time I've been puzzled and intrigued at the same time, which is why I'm even more eager to find out what's hidden inside that safe.
The magnificent Mr. Compress is ready for the show!
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To Be Continued...
In the next chapter! Chapter 49: Abracadabra! Part 2!
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*Mister. Compress has entered the group chat.
*The admin has changed the nickname from Mr. Compress to Kaito...
*Mister. Compress has left the group.
