Challenge: The Fool with the Surname Okayamine

Chapter 26: The English Chapter - "The Snake and the Inscription"

After stepping outside, I casually flagged down a taxi in English and asked the driver to take me to the very bottom of the clock tower before getting out of the car.

"Huh? Is this the iconic Clock Tower of London? It's quite magnificent." Ming, who had just gotten off the bus, exclaimed, hugging the huge central tower in front of him.

He pretended to casually glance around at the surrounding buildings, but found nothing for the time being.

And so, Ming began aimlessly asking around for directions to the SSS headquarters, but to no avail.

Because in the original Date A Live manga, apart from DEM's company being explicitly mentioned, the relationships between the other described units, such as the Elf Forces, AST, or SSS, are not specifically described, Ming could only search like a headless fly.

But how could a normal person know about such an organization? The only thing he was involved with the SSS was that a portion of the taxes they paid would become the research funds for this unit.

“Hello, sir. Do you know how to get to SSS?” Ming asked the umpteenth pedestrian he had encountered.

"What are you talking about? I've never heard of it. Ask someone else. I have something to do. Goodbye," the pedestrian replied, puzzled, and turned to leave without looking back.

...The Crimson King! Time skips again, it's now 9:10 in the UK.

By this time, Ming had already traveled all over the streets and alleys of London, but still hadn't found anything.

Ming walked along the streets of London, his face showing exhaustion and weariness. He looked up at the sun in the sky, the sunlight stinging his eyes and feeling somewhat blinding.

"Sigh, just as I expected, the idea was great, but reality is not so good. I've been searching for almost an hour and haven't found anything. Damn it!"

Just as Ming was thinking this, a familiar mournful cry that he could always hear, no matter where he was, rang out.

"Ah! I'm sorry, please let me go! I'll give you as much as you want when I get home!" The woman's voice was hoarse and desperate. Upon hearing this, Ming subconsciously walked over, saying:

"Heh, I can see this everywhere. This familiar alleyway scene, I finally understand why Kurumi was able to take care of so many thugs in the future. If it really happens like this, I'll get used to it." Ming's tone was somewhat helpless.

The sound of wailing came from the alleyway.

"It's no use, Lady Angelica. Your sister wants us to get rid of you. Sorry, close your eyes." Two men in neat black suits pointed a pistol at the white-haired girl who looked to be only about fourteen years old.

One of the men in black was about to pull the trigger without hesitation. At that critical moment, a pebble flew towards the pistol with unimaginable force, knocking it to the ground.

"What's going on? Who is it!" the man in black exclaimed in surprise. Then, the two black men looked in surprise toward the alley exit at the light.

"Hey, two strong, burly men, bullying an innocent, unarmed girl, how can you be so shameless?" Ming's emotionless voice came from the exit, his back to the light making him look like a righteous hero from a comic book.

Hearing the voice, the white-haired girl, who had long since given up hope, looked towards the light in surprise and pleaded in a trembling voice, "Please... sir... please save me!"

Upon seeing Ming, the men in black laughed instead, and said:

"Haha, I thought he was someone important. Turns out he's just a chuunibyou. Don't get your hopes up, Lady Angelica. How could he possibly beat someone like us who has professional assassin training?"

Just as they finished speaking, Ming rushed forward, stood close to him, and said in an icy tone:

"Good question. I'm also looking for answers to your question about whether I can beat you. Let's give it a try."

Then, Ming suddenly raised his foot and kicked hard, sending the man flying far away like a kite with a broken string, before he crashed heavily to the ground.

Seeing the situation was turning against him, the other man quickly raised his gun and aimed it at Ming. However, Ming reacted very quickly; just as the other man fired, he swiftly dodged to the side, skillfully avoiding the fatal bullet.

At the same time, he leaped into the air and kicked the other man's wrist hard. With a crisp "crack," the man's wrist snapped, and the pistol fell to the ground. Ming reacted quickly, catching the falling pistol and then pointing it at the two men without hesitation.

"Please...please, let me go, okay?" The situation changed, and the man in black who had been holding the gun was now lying on the ground in fear, begging Ming in a low voice for mercy.

Ming remained silent. Seeing that Ming did not take any further action, the other man in black, who was not lying down, slightly revealed a dagger from his sleeve, preparing to launch a surprise attack.

Just as the man in black was about to fully draw his dagger, Ming spoke coldly:

"Since you've pointed a gun at others, don't you realize you're the one being pointed at? So I'm saying, what do people like you value life for?"

At this moment, Ming's eyes were incredibly sharp, revealing a powerful aura unique to a king, looking down on the two people in front of him, completely unconcerned about the actions of his hands.

"Wait... what did you say! Stop! Do you know who's behind me?" the man in black, lying on the ground, said, trembling.

"Who cares who it is? You've already destroyed all the security cameras here anyway. As long as I don't let you off the hook, who will know?" Ming replied fearlessly. He then pulled the trigger.

"Bang! Bang!" Two gunshots rang out from the alley. Blood splattered on Ming's face, devoid of any emotion. Despite it being his first time pulling the trigger, due to the influence of [cruelty], he felt no guilt, even a slight physical pleasure. Thinking of this, Ming looked up and sighed:

"You really didn't feel anything? Looks like I'm not far from becoming a monster." With that, Ming touched his face, wiping away the blood splattered on it, and turned to the panicked white-haired girl.

Ming's eyes were as cold as ice as he approached the panicked white-haired girl step by step.

"Ah... what are you going to do? Could it be... you're here to deal with me too?" the white-haired girl said in fear. She had initially hoped for Ming's return, but seeing how he and the group of black men were doing, she began to tremble with terror.

She watched as Ming slowly reached out his hand towards her, and the despair in her eyes deepened.

"Are you... alright?" Ming asked calmly, but the girl didn't answer. Instead, the fear in her eyes only increased. Ming, who wasn't good with words, tried to comfort her:

"Uh... don't be afraid, I'm not a bad person... I think so." Ming explained uncertainly, but after the girl believed a few words, no one knew anything more.

Seeing this situation, Ming was also helpless. He stood still, neither retreating nor advancing. After thinking for a moment, he suddenly remembered that he still needed to find the location of SSS, so he took a few steps back and asked the girl again:

"Okay, if you don't believe me, there's nothing I can do. So, how do I get to the SSS headquarters? It's that... the Magician's place, you should know it, right?"

Seeing that Ming took a few steps back and did not continue forward, the girl hesitated for a moment, then pointed in a direction. Ming thanked her and turned to leave.

Watching Ming's departing figure, the girl was incredulous, but she still called out to him.

"Wait!" Hearing the sudden voice of obstruction, Ming turned his head in confusion.

"Is there anything else?"

The girl bit her lip, then mustered her courage and asked:

"Sir, may I ask your name? Thank you! I would like to repay you in the future."

“Oh, okay, my name is Gang…” Ming paused before saying his name, then continued, “Just call me Mr. Blackie. As for repayment, I don’t need it. I have other things to do. Goodbye.”

After saying that, Ming turned and left without hesitation. Regardless of whether he was a blockhead or not, Ming was not interested in money or girls. He had plenty of money, and as for people, only Shahe was in his heart.

"Mr. Black...? So...cool!" The girl's eyes lit up as she looked in the direction Ming had left, saying gratefully. She had completely forgotten about Ming firing the gun.

...Tick-tock transition sound effect~

Following the directions given by the white-haired girl, Ming arrived at a four-story building.

Looking at the building, which seemed inconspicuous compared to other buildings, Ming narrowed his eyes for a moment before walking inside.

Upon entering the lobby, Ming found it extremely quiet, without a sound. He walked to the front desk and saw a middle-aged man wearing glasses reading a newspaper.

Seeing this, Ming stepped forward, showed his ID, and said in fluent English, "I want to join the British SSS anti-elf force!"

Hearing the sound, the man put the newspaper aside, glanced at Ming in front of him, and asked coldly:

"From the military? I don't recall receiving any news about new recruits today? Oh, I guess it's some folk magician or..."

“Well, I guess you could say it’s something from the common people,” Ming replied.

Hearing Ming's answer, the man's expression grew even colder. He glanced at Ming's file, casually moved the computer mouse on the table to search for information proving Ming's identity, and finally said coldly:

"Oh, no matter who you are, you're not welcome here. Go away."

"Why!" Ming demanded loudly.

"It's very simple. First, you have no backing or anyone to recommend you. Second, you don't have any magic talent. Third, you've never actually been harmed by a spatial quake, right? At most, you've just used the cliché of wanting revenge because you've lost some friends. Fourth, you're a Japanese citizen."

The man pushed up his glasses and continued speaking coldly, his eyes filled with prejudice against Ming.

"Bang!" Ming slammed his hand heavily on the wooden table at the front desk, his brows furrowed as he retorted:

"Is that all? Can't you do it without connections? You didn't even test my magic aptitude! And why can you call my friend's death worthless?!"

Ming's crimson sheep-like pupils, visible through the eyepatch over his left eye, suddenly contracted, as if he could move his body at any moment to finish off this person.

"Okay, I won't talk about how worthless you are or how your aptitude hasn't been tested yet. I'll just talk about your two remaining shortcomings. Are you a chuunibyou? Why are you wearing an eye mask? Humph, someone like you who thinks about avenging their friends just by watching TV should just wash their eyes and go back to sleep."

"And look closely, you're just a boy who only graduated from junior high school. What are you doing here trying to become a magician? Come on, come back when you're as old as me."

The man's words grew increasingly sharp, suggesting that the visitor was extremely hostile, and the atmosphere in the hall became tense.

Just then, the lights in the stairwell in the center of the hall suddenly turned on, and a woman with long green hair wearing a white coat walked out.

As soon as the green-haired woman came out, her snake-like eyes met Ming's.

When Ming saw the person who came, his body skipped a beat, and he was thinking: 'Huh? Why is she here!' Then Ming slightly raised his left hand.

"You! Why..." Before Ming could finish speaking, the receptionist, who had been so arrogant, immediately became respectful and asked her in a humble and concerned manner:

"Wow, after half an hour, Investigator Möbius is still as beautiful and radiant as ever. So, how are the discussions going with the structural specifications of the new display device we're collaborating on with SSS?"

The receptionist was very obsequious, like a treacherous official from the Qing Dynasty, which made Ming, who was still standing in front of him, feel disgusted.

The woman named Möbius, hearing the flattery from the receptionist, didn't speak. She simply smiled at Ming standing in front of her, but her eyes held the gaze of a predator eyeing its prey. She even mouthed something in a low voice:

"We meet again, little guinea pig~" Ming, understanding her words, froze slightly, ready to launch an attack at any moment.

Seeing that Möbius's gaze was drawn to Ming, the receptionist quickly said to her:

"Investigator, don't worry about him. This guy is just an ordinary person with no talent or background. He dares to dream of becoming a magician here. You wait, I'll take him out right away!"

After the man at the front desk finished speaking, he prepared to walk out and kick Ming out. Ming, on the other hand, prepared to take action, trying to eliminate the two of them without using the power of the elves to silence them.

As for Möbius, she glanced at Ming's information on the front desk, then stared at Ming, who was about to deal with the receptionist, for a moment before adjusting her expression and feigning excitement as she shouted:

"Klein!" Möbius exclaimed excitedly, then pulled the still-dazed Ming into his arms. "So you're here! Didn't you tell me you were coming to join the SSS team? I was wondering why I hadn't seen you. Turns out you were here!"

Ming was taken aback by the hug, while the receptionist was speechless with astonishment. Then, the two of them exclaimed in unison:

"what?!"

"Huh? What the heck!"