Page 50

CHAPTER FORTY-NINE

AKIKO

Kenji held my arms tight in his grip as he maneuvered me ahead like a wobbling shopping cart he was determined to control. His fingers dug into my skin, a bruising reminder of his strength. In front of us, the masked men, those silent, faceless enforcers, had Jiro restrained. Their movements were methodical as they shoved him forward like he was nothing more than cargo.

Reina was at the head of the procession. Her chin held high, her back ramrod straight, exuding an air of triumph. But this time, she wasn’t trailing Chef Sakamoto like the obedient wife she pretended to be. No, she led the way, and the once-revered master followed behind her, his shoulders slumped, his steps hesitant, as her guards prodded him along. He looked like a broken man who had finally realized the empire he thought was his had been a facade.

“I can’t believe you’re working for Reina, Kenji,” I said, twisting my head to look at him. “What happened to you?”

“Nothing,” he replied, his voice cold and robotic. “It’s just my time. I’ll take over where Chef Sakamoto left off.”

“Do you honestly believe that?”

“Tell me you’re not falling for Jiro’s explanations,” he snapped. “He tried to outsmart Reina and got his ass handed to him.”

“I don’t believe anybody anymore,” I said, my voice rising. “You’re all nuts as far as I’m concerned. And I still don’t understand why we must go through this. I already deferred to you! What if you make a mistake and end up getting injured or worse? Why chance it?”

“I’m not worried about that because I know the challenge. I know how it works.”

“Then why do it? Why do I have to risk my life? Do you really want that?”

“It’s the rules. You agreed to it when you came here.” A cruel smile spread across Kenji’s face. “Akiko, you had your chance. I tried to be with you, but you blew me off for your ex, only to find out he’s been lying to you this entire time. You deserve what’s coming.”

Fear gripped me tighter as his words sank in. This wasn’t the Kenji I grew up with, the boy who used to make me laugh when I was sad or stand up for me when others tried to push me around. That Kenji was gone, replaced by someone unrecognizable.

I could kick myself for ever letting him into my room earlier, for believing even for a second that the bond we once had might still exist. He’d used everything he knew about me, every weakness, every vulnerability to manipulate me. And I’d fallen for it.

“Where are you taking me, anyway?” I asked, trying to mask my fear. We weren’t heading to the training kitchen or the area where our last challenge took place.

“Someplace special,” Kenji said with a smirk. “The Sakamoto residence.”

The Sakamoto mansion—or monstrosity, as I had come to think of it—was a two-story colonial home with six massive columns out front, each like a marble sentinel guarding the entrance. Windows lined the facade, too many to count. It resembled a government building or a museum more than it did a home.

Reina led the way up the gleaming white marble steps, her heels clicking sharply against the surface. Chef Sakamoto followed behind her like a scolded dog. I couldn’t help but feel pity for him, even now.

Inside, the mansion was just as grand and cold as its exterior. The foyer was a gluttony of marble and gold, with twin staircases curving up to the second floor. Every detail, from the ornate moldings to the polished wood railings, screamed wealth and power.

We didn’t linger in the grandeur for long. Reina directed us to a small stairwell that led down one floor. The shift in the atmosphere was immediate. The opulence gave way to a stark, sterile basement, industrial in its design. The walls were lined with heavy-duty steel panels, like those found in a commercial kitchen, and the floor was smooth white concrete. The air smelled faintly of disinfectant, like I imagined a morgue would. There were eight round tables scattered across the space, each with two chairs. Dim spotlights in the ceiling cast a muted yellow glow on each tabletop, giving the room cheap-cocktail-lounge vibes.

Reina turned to face us, her voice rising above the tension. “In this challenge, the final remaining apprentices, Kenji Sanada and Akiko Ono, will battle as servers.” Her smile was so grand that the corners reached her eyes. “Waiting tables in a restaurant can be chaotic. Unexpected obstacles can thwart your path at any moment. The objective is simple: Fulfill your orders.”

She gestured to a long table off to the side, where trays laden with dishes and drinks were neatly arranged. “Each table is assigned an order. Whoever has the fastest time serving their tables wins. Kenji will go first.”

Kenji released me, his smirk widening as he walked toward the trays, a noticeable bounce in his step. He picked one up, balancing it with ease and giving me a playful lift of his eyebrows before turning his attention forward.

Reina raised an air horn and let it blare. Kenji moved along the floor with deliberate precision, but instead of heading straight to a table, his steps looked as if he were tracing an invisible map. Four steps forward, stop. Turn right, two more steps, turn left. Suddenly, a large flame erupted from the floor exactly where he turned left, nearly engulfing him.

The twist in the challenge had revealed itself.

Timed bursts of fire shot out of the floor like it was a splash pad in a park. Only this wasn’t a theatrical dance of water. The explosions were violent, powerful, and the heat stung even from where I stood. Kenji had learned how to navigate a maze of fire. His steps were confident and deliberate as he avoided the timed fiery blasts.

“Akiko, he’s counting!” Jiro’s voice broke through the haze of my panic. “It’s a pattern. Remember it!”

I watched Kenji place the first tray down and retrace his steps, narrowly avoiding the fiery eruption. The realization hit me like a freight train. This was a death trap, one for which Kenji had been preparing for who knew how long. One misstep or slight hesitation could mean being burned alive. How could I possibly navigate this maze?

When Kenji finished delivering all his orders, Reina clapped gleefully like a proud parent watching her child sing off-key during a school play. She turned to me. “Akiko, take your position.”

My legs refused to move, weighed down by the daunting reality I faced. “I can’t do this,” I whispered, barely audible.

“Akiko!” Reina barked. “Take your position!”

The room spun, and my breaths grew shallow. My heart pounded violently, each beat reverberating in my ears like a drum.

“Stop!” Jiro’s voice cracked.

I turned to him, his eyes glassy and face tight with desperation, as he struggled against the men holding him.

“Take me instead!” He turned to Reina. “Sacrifice me, not her. Please. I beg you.”

Reina tilted her head, amusement flickering in her eyes. “And why should I spare her?”

“Because I love her.” His eyes flicked to mine. “I’ve always loved you, Akiko. I’d gladly live a thousand lifetimes of suffering if it meant you’d have one without pain. Please, Reina, let me face the dance of fire instead.”

His words hit me like a tidal wave, crashing into me with years of emotion I hadn’t allowed myself to feel. My body stiffened, and my breath caught in my throat as I stared at him, the man who would throw everything away for me. Tears streamed down his face, and I felt something deep and aching awaken inside me. Memories of his arms around me, his warmth at night, his love, which had once made me feel safe in a way no one else ever had.

I realized then that Jiro had truly risked his life coming here to protect me. If he understood the dangers ahead, knowing his father’s power ended at the gates…only someone driven by true love would willingly do something so reckless, so foolish.

Jiro hadn’t been right for me the first time. But the tears in his eyes, the broken desperation in his voice…they told me he was now. And I wanted that chance, that life with him. A life we never finished. A life we never truly started. But how could I let him do this? How could I ask him to die for me?

I took a step toward the table.

“No, Akiko. Stop!” Jiro pleaded. He fought to free himself from the men holding him, his body jerking and twisting as he tried to reach me. “You don’t have to do this! Let me be the one!”

I steadied my head, refusing to look back, and I forced my legs to carry me forward. My hands gripped the table’s edge, braced myself; then I picked up a tray.

“You can be something great, Akiko!” Jiro frantically cried out. “You have the most to gain! Let me do the challenge! Please, just let me!”

The sharp blare of the air horn cut Jiro off, and I stepped onto the floor. My heart thundered in my chest as I tried to remember Kenji’s pattern, knowing deep down it was hopeless. The first flame shot up beside me, the heat scorching my skin, and I turned sharply, barely avoiding another burst. Each step felt like it could be my last, the air thick with smoke and the acrid stench of burning fuel.

“Akiko!” Jiro’s cries echoed behind me, but I couldn’t look back. I couldn’t lose focus. My life depended on it.

A roar erupted, followed by a deafening crash. I turned just in time to see Jiro break free, throwing one of the masked men into a burst of flame. The fire engulfed the man instantly, his screams cutting through the chaos. I staggered back as another flame erupted before me, blocking my path. Panic took over, freezing me in place.

Jiro wrestled the remaining man to the ground, and their bodies rolled across the floor. Then the flames erupted, engulfing them both, and I screamed as they disappeared in the inferno. The masked man’s body bore the brunt of the blast, allowing Jiro to leap away, his clothes singed.

“Akiko, you can’t stay still!” he shouted. “Move! Now!”

I took a shaky step, and a burst of fire erupted where I’d just been standing. My heart pounded, my breaths shallow as I tried to find a path forward. But I was clueless.

“Don’t just stand there. Kill him!” Reina commanded Kenji as she pointed at Jiro, her eyes filled with hate. “Kill him now!”

Kenji moved like a predator, lunging toward Jiro and tackling him to the ground. I watched as they grappled, their bodies rolling dangerously close to another burst of flames. They popped up to their feet, exchanging punishing blows, each one landing with brutal precision.

Wild eyed, Kenji lifted Jiro and slammed him into the concrete floor. Jiro’s agonized scream pierced the flames. Kenji pounced, his hands wrapping tightly around Jiro’s throat, as he leaned in, using his weight to crush Jiro’s throat. The life was draining out of him, and his flailing arms were slowing with each passing second.

“No!” I screamed, running toward them, but a wall of flames erupted in front of me, cutting off my path. I tried another direction, but fire blocked me at every turn. “Fight back, Jiro!” I screamed. “Fight for us!” Fight for me!

Just when I thought I would lose him, Jiro managed to land a solid punch to the side of Kenji’s head. The impact disoriented him, and his grip loosened. Jiro bucked him off with a burst of strength and rolled away, narrowly avoiding a surge of flames that erupted where he had just been lying.

I pushed forward, ignoring the heat searing my skin. Reaching Jiro, I patted at the flames on his pants, extinguishing them. I grabbed his arm and tried to pull him to his feet. His burned legs buckled beneath him, and he was too heavy for me to lift alone.

“Come on, Jiro,” I pleaded, my voice struggling. “We need to move!”

“You can’t help him,” Reina taunted from somewhere beyond the flames. “You’re weak, Akiko. Just like your father.”

Her words stung, but I refused to let her break me. My eyes flicked to Kenji, and my blood turned to ice. He had one of the flamethrowers from the first challenge in his hands, its nozzle pointed directly at us. A manic grin spread across his face as he adjusted the fuel canister.

“I’m going to roast you two alive,” he roared.

Adrenaline surged through me, giving me the strength to move Jiro to my other side. I flipped a table over and pulled him down behind it just as a stream of fire shot toward us. The table deflected the flames, but the heat was unbearable. My skin prickled with pain, and the wood began to char beneath the relentless assault.

The flames stopped momentarily, and I risked a glance over the table. Kenji was adjusting a valve on the canister, preparing for another attack. My heart pounded as I realized the table wouldn’t survive another blast.

Then, out of nowhere, Chef Sakamoto had somehow managed to free himself from his captors and was charging across the room with an ear-piercing warrior cry. He slammed into Kenji, tackling him to the ground. The flamethrower hit the floor, and the canister ruptured, spilling fuel across the concrete. A massive fireball erupted, engulfing them both.

“Kenji!” Reina’s scream pierced the air, but there was nothing anyone could do. Kenji’s body was a blur of flames as he thrashed wildly, his screams echoing through the inferno.

The fire spread rapidly, licking at the walls and igniting the floor where the other canisters were lined up along the room’s edges. The basement had become a ticking time bomb.

“Jiro,” I said. “We need to get out. Now!”

I hooked my arm under his and helped him to his feet. Each step was agonizing for him; with his burned legs, he could barely support his weight. We were close to the stairs when Reina appeared, blocking our path, teeth bared. Before I could react, she punched me hard in the face.

My knees buckled, sending me to the floor, dazed. Reina was on me instantly, her hands clawing at my throat. “You can’t escape!” she shrieked, her voice wild with rage. “I forbid it!”

Fueled by panic and rage, I swung my fist, hitting her square in the jaw. She fell off me to the side but kept a firm grip on my uniform. I hit her again and again, pouring my fury into every blow. The flames around us crept closer, the heat singeing my hair, but I couldn’t stop, even when she let go of me. I began to hack from the thick smoke that gathered, but I continued to strike her.

A strong hand gripped the back of my uniform and yanked me away. “Akiko!” Jiro’s voice broke through my rage.

He pulled me to my feet, and together, we stumbled toward the stairs. Just as we reached them, a deafening explosion rocked the basement. The blast wave knocked us down, but Jiro pushed me forward, shielding me with his body as debris rained down around us.

Somehow, he managed to get us up the stairs, each step a battle against the rising smoke. We burst through the door into the foyer, but the fire followed us, spitting out and consuming everything around us. We made our way to the front door and burst into the cool night.

We collapsed on the front steps of the mansion, gasping for air. Behind us, the entire house erupted in a massive explosion, the force igniting the nearby library and pagoda. The flames reached skyward, a hellish beacon against the night.

“The whole compound will be in flames,” Jiro said, coughing as he pulled me to my feet. “We need to get out of here.”

We ran toward the bridge that spanned the moat, the twin steel doors ahead our only escape from the burning hell consuming the compound. Sparks shot through the air like frenzied fireflies, igniting everything they touched. The fire surged, leaping from one cherry tree to the next with terrifying speed.

We hurried over the bridge, and Jiro slammed into the doors, pushing, but they wouldn’t budge. No, no, no. This can’t be happening. I joined him, throwing my weight against the door, straining against the immovable steel.

The dorm roof suddenly caught fire, flames climbing higher by the second. The crackle of burning wood and choking smoke surrounded us. Heat clawed at my skin. If we didn’t escape now, the inferno would consume us.

I shoved my shoulder against the door with everything I had, and suddenly, I wasn’t in the compound anymore. I was a little girl at the pier, desperate to follow my father into a building he had just entered. His voice echoed in my memory: Push, Akiko. Good things await on the other side.

Hearing his words fueled me. I wanted so much to reunite with him, to tell him that I had survived the impossible.

The steel door groaned and shifted. Jiro and I pushed harder, moving it inch by inch until it finally swung open just enough for us to slip through. As we stumbled outside, explosions echoed from the mansion. I glanced back over my shoulder. Through the roaring flames and billowing smoke, I swore I saw a figure standing in the doorway of the burning mansion. But it was impossible to tell if it was real.