“Such things are a waste of time. Don't you think so too, Mr. Zhac?” The woman said while holding a gun, pointing the end of it at the man in front of her.

“I-I'm so s-sorry. R-Really. I'll pay you back. I-I p-promise, *sob* so please...”, the man said whimpering and sobbing. The woman scoffed while looking down at the man begging below her.

The room was dim. The one lamp that glowed emitted red light. A woman at the center sat on a chair. She wore a black suit with black vest, her long hair dancing freely. Despite the pitch black room, her beauty was undeniable. In front of her was a man in brown suit, with desperate eyes. Behind her was two men all in black not caring about the disturbing scene. And beside her was a man with glasses, quietly observing.

“That won't do. In this type of business, you ought to be careful. You'll never know who it was that you've messed with. Fortunately for you, it's me.” Her deep, chilling voice echoed through the room.

She stayed silent while playing with her revolver. Her slender hands behind a black gloves outlining the whole exterior of the gun.

A sudden ringing was heard.

It was the woman's phone. The four men around her made no noise, they simply waited. The woman looked at her phone, a light flashed at her eyes. She smiled as she answered the phone. “Yes, Kieya?” her voice was not like before, it changed into a sweet loving tone.

Seeing it as an opportunity, the man in front of her spoke again. Begging for mercy. The man beside her grabbed his neck and smack his head to the floor.

“Oh, no it was nothing. Yeah, I'll be there in a minute, bye!” After ending the call her smile faded. Her face wore an irritated look. She signaled the man holding the other to step back. She stood up and kick the man on the floor, making a loud thud.

“Idiots! Don't even know how to stay silent.” She said. She pointed her gun at him and fired.

One...Two...Three...

She brushed her hair away from her face and glared at the helpless man in front of her. “The car is ready.” The guy in glasses said. After another glance at the man in front, she sighed. She gave the gun to the man beside her and turned around.

“Take care of it”, she said before walking away. The three men bowed as she walked outside the room.

She went inside the car and drove away.

After stopping in front of a coffee shop, she calmed herself before going inside. “So, is it a new recipe?” she asked the girl at the counter. The girl in front of her was delighted at her presence.

“Serene! I'm glad you made it. I thought you were busy?” the girl said.

“I'll always have time for you. Let's see the new menu, you're talking about.” the woman said in a sweet voice.

“Okay!”

One year ago...

“That is the most absurd idea you've ever made during your entire life!”, That was Aki, shouting at Serene while fixing his glasses.

“No need to shout, I'm just seeing things. Don't worry”, Serene said with her hands on her ears.

Aki Twaive, he is Serene's secretary. He grew up with her, the one that you'd call a childhood friend. After her mother died, a maid working for Serene's family, he took on the job of taking care of Serene. He was her best friend, childhood friend, secretary, and a brother. Going along with her childish whims and plans was part of his job. But he can't help but yell at her ideas.

After taking a deep breath, he glared at her. Serene flinched and stood up as an act of defense. She coughed for a few times before speaking, “you know that I never fail when it comes to executing my ideas, right?”

Aki sighed, “that cannot be more true, but that is why I'm angry. Well, none of it matters as long as you do it perfectly.” He said, he placed a brown envelope at her table, pulled the door and bowed before disappearing.

After confirming Aki's departure, Serene sighed. “Seriously, that Aki. When the two of us are alone he would always be like that. He would always forget that I'm his boss, and would scold me. Can you hear me, Aunt Hilde? He's getting cocky!” After ranting for a few more minutes, she glanced at the brown envelope. She opened it and read the contents. Her eyes darkened. She tossed the papers back to the table and looked outside, “that Aki, he complains every time but would end up doing it anyway.”

“Serene is really here, yo!” It was a senior from another department. “I told you so”, another senior said. It was indeed a rare occurrence having her here. Serene hates crowded places despite being a model. She would always decline every invitation she gets.

For three whole years of studying in this university, this is probably the first time she will attend a drinking party. The only thing she could do was smile and nod. “That glasses guy is not with you, that's rare!”, A guy said. “Yes, he had some business”, Serene said after confirming that the glasses guy that he was talking about was Aki.

Various departments were at the drinking party. Juniors, Seniors, Sophomores, and Freshmen all gathered in one place. Serene decided to come on a whim.

After a few hours of drinking and talking to her seniors and some freshmen, she decided to call it a night. She was about to dial Aki when she heard a crash in one alley.

It piqued her interest. She was shocked to see a woman lying at the floor and was about to call for an ambulance when the woman extended her hand and with a voice like a zombie she uttered, “water”.

It took Serene off guard. She went beside the body, and tapped it, a few times. After confirming her pulse she carried her and guided her to sit on a bench of a park near the alley. She gave her water to drink.

The woman chugged the water. “\*pwuahh\*...I thought I was gonna die. Thanks, Miss Beautiful Good Samaritan!” She said after regaining her energy. “Ah, yes”, Serene said with a nod.

The light from the lamp post illuminated the face of the woman. “Oh, right. I haven't introduced my name”, it gave Serene a shock as she saw the woman. She placed her hand in front as a gesture to shake hands and smiled brightly saying, “I'm a third year Culinary arts student, Kieya Achil, it's nice to meet you!”

“Hell~o”, it snapped Serene back to reality. She quickly flashed her business smile at the woman and took her hand. “Nice to meet you, I'm Serene Farrhen, a second year Fine Arts student.”

The woman stared at her. After a few moments she put her hands at Serene's forehead, “are you alright? You smiled oddly, so I thought...”

Serene was taken aback. She wanted to yell that it was the other woman who is not alright, right now. “Yeah, I'm fine”, she said.

After a minute of silence the woman spoke again, “uhmm... aren't you going to ask me what happened that made me like that?” She said awkwardly. “Do you want me to ask?”, Serene said.

The woman's eyes sparkled. “Oh, not really. But that happened due to me drinking uncontrollably. I forgot my limit so that was it. I was about to go home when I suddenly felt dizzy, hehe”, the woman said while putting a hand behind her head and playfully sticking her tongue out. Serene's face screamed, 'what's with the hehe?!'

“I'm really thankful.” She stood up and found something in her bag. “Here! For you!” she said as she handed a red rose to Serene. “I'll treat you to a meal next time. I grew this flower in my coffee shop, oh, and take this too!” she said while giving a card with an address, logo, and a number. “That's my coffee shop, visit me if you have time, I'll bake you a cake as thanks. Ah! Look at the time? I need to go, bye!”, she said as she dashed away from the park.

Serene could only blink thrice and glance at the red rose given to her. She also read the card, “ K Café”.

“Didn't even give me a chance to talk”, she said while smiling at the card.

“What time do you think it is?”, it was Aki's piercing voice. Serene panicked while wondering how Aki sensed that she was home when she went inside the house without a sound. “Are you an Esper? Or do you have powers that I don't know?”, Serene said. “I don't know what you're talking about, but you clearly didn't call me on purpose when you realized how late it is? Am I wrong?” Serene could feel the pressure in his gaze and was overwhelmed by it. After a few minutes of staring contest, she lost. “I'm really doubting our boss and secretary relationship, right now!”, Serene screamed while sitting at the floor with both her hands in the air. With a swish of his pointer rod, Aki glaringly said, “Did you say something?” Serene simply said, “no, sir!” while shaking her head.

Serene sat on her office chair, in front of her was a stack of paper works by none other than, Aki Twaive, her secretary. She sighed at the sight and stared at a single red rose in her vase, remembering her encounter last night.