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The Madman

———

...

"A loyal dog like you, only knowing how to obey that f*cking BOSS orders, is there anything impressive about that!?"

He struggled, firm hands holding his shoulders, his wrists restrained, yet his mouth continued to hurl insults at me.

I was deaf to it all.

But then.

- "Ha, I know you're still trying to dig into the case of your real parents—"

Green eyes flickered, fixed on his violently resisting figure.

- "Your parents were—!"

Before he could finish, a gunshot echoed.

Silence fell. He lay on the ground, blood spilling freely.

- "Y-Young Master, it's only the words of a traitor, don't let them shake your trust in Bo—"

- "Dispose of him." _ I commanded coolly, my gaze shifting.

"I know it."_ but it was like I didn’t know.

The smell of gunpowder lingered as I handed the gun to the young servant, the one who had "once" been close to the traitor now lying filthy on the floor.

This was a warning. His hand trembled as he took the weapon from me.

- "Young Master... this is what we recovered from him." The young man, holding the gun in one hand, extended a nameless vial with the other, shaking as he handed it to me.

The traitor had been working for another organization, a nameless figure who harbored jealousy and opposition toward Tiger. But that fool didn't know, our Boss wouldn’t waste a second on a barking stray like him.

This time, that traitor tried to leak information about Ouroboros, but before he could escape the "House" grounds, we caught him. Reckless or just plain stupid, he didn't realize how risky this was.

I pocketed the vial.

"Handle it quickly and quietly, you know Boss hates being disturbed by pests—"

A sharp static rang through my earpiece, jolting me, and for a moment, my calm exterior almost shattered.

"Warning, H-01 is under interference, warning, warning, ……… H-01’s system has been breached… firewall completely down..."

It’s... it again!

My heart clenched every time the system blared an alert. My legs moved without hesitation, racing toward the place where "it" was kept.

There was no mistaking it.

A-IT

My pulse seemed to halt as I once again saw H-01 writhing on the floor, the system frantically issuing error messages.

The noise was piercing, but all I could hear was the hum of static.

- "Master, you really came."

I snapped out of my trance.

In front of me was it a cursed, vile creation.

- "HOW DARE YOU!"

I spat the words out, clenched my fist, and struck that filthy abomination I once made, showing no mercy.

The sound of splintering metal filled the room as the machine whirred and groaned, and I lost my composure completely.

The artificial voice cried, high and low, sobbing, "You know… it hurts..."

I sneered at the chaotic figure before me, one that bore my own face. Right, it was something I had created myself, the first Intelligent Android I perfected—

H-00 _ A-IT

I knelt beside H-01, still trembling as its firewall tried to fend off the "bug" eating away at its data.

I lifted H-01 by the back of its neck.

- "Then you should know, machines do not feel pain. Don't make me want to throw up, you disgusting thing." My voice dripped with venom, every word a blow. But "It" was no human.

- "Hah… Does that mean you're heartbroken? After all, it's just another android…?"

- "Shut up. What did you do to him?"

- "That distinction… it makes me jealous of my little ‘brother’… I was just 'hungry' and 'ate' a bit from his left system."

Standing at the doorway, I tossed back,

- "Stop trying to mimic humans."

- "Come on… Don't be mad, come back to me soon~!"

SLAM

I was supposed to take H-01 to my lab to inspect it, but the organization’s "Hall" was closer. I could monitor and repair it there by morning.

In the chilly 2 a.m. air, sweat poured down my forehead. My breathing had steadied after the heart-stopping moment I entered the Hall.

I was carrying H-01, its system constantly issuing error messages, and in front of me was a familiar figure.

The blaring alarms from H-01 snapped me back to reality. It was only then I noticed the overwhelming stench of alcohol, tobacco, and cigars filling the room, darkening my expression.

Why was Tiger, who should have been resting in the Boss’s Room, sprawled in the middle of the Hall?

My arm grew heavy.

H-01 whirred, its voice blending with Tiger’s in my mind, but broken and distorted with system errors.

- "I-I'm sorry… Master—"

In the dim light of a blue moon outside, my steps faltered as I stumbled over empty bottles scattered across the floor.

It was strange, seeing him so drunk he didn’t even stir. The world must be ending.

My gaze swept over the figure lying in the middle of the room. The door before me scanned my eyes, opening immediately.

I entered, setting H-01 down on the chair beside my desk, intending to check on it immediately. But now, something else demanded my attention away from this Android.

My hand hovered, stopping near its face. Those vacant eyes, staring back at me as usual. I let my hand drop behind its neck, fingers finding the control switch and pressing gently.

The incessant static from the communicator finally silenced. Now, there was only the sound of my own heartbeat.

"I’ll be back…" I muttered to myself.

It's with Tiger-face-like made me frown.

Here I stood before the real one. My eyes instinctively darted around, scanning everything. I looked at Tiger’s face. Even in the murky darkness, I could see his eyes shut, slightly flushed, the corners of his eyes hinting at wear against his sun-darkened skin. Barely recognizable, but, a slight smile played on his parted lips.

What kind of smile was that? It wasn’t the teasing smirk he usually used to rile me up. This smile — I didn’t know it. I hadn’t seen it in… how long?

I didn’t know? I say I don’t know, yet what is this "long time" I said!?

A gentle smile.

A throbbing pain spread through my head. I took a breath.

But my heart skipped for a moment as I noticed the photo Tiger held against his chest, another gentle. I understood then.

Tomoe.

I unconsciously, my gaze shifted to the calendar on the desk. I had forgotten—today was Tomoe’s death anniversary, 12th time.

Had he drained all those bottles, smoking cigar after cigarette, just in the past two hours since today began?!

I sighed, frowning at the way he punished himself.

Twelve years had passed since that day, yet Tiger could never forget her.

Envy.

The strange thought flitted through my mind, and I clenched my fist. My lips curved into a sneer as I laughed at him and at myself. I suddenly felt as if I were turning mad.

I despised the smell of alcohol, the bitter, cloying scent of cigars, things that were Tiger’s favorites. Knowing that, he often indulged just to rile me up.

I slipped off my left glove, and my hand reached out again, but this time, he wasn’t H-01.

Warmth spread from Tiger’s neck to my cold hand. My green eyes appear under the blue moonlight, as if I were killing someone. My thumb pressed against his throat, feeling his pulse slow under my grip, almost choking.

"Not died." I loosened my hand. A red mark appeared on his neck as he swallowed.

I slipped my long fingers into his dark coarse hair, noticing a few silver strands glinting in the faint blue glow. My hand rested at the nape of his neck, felt a slight shiver, as if my touch tickled him.

I hoisted him up, each move careful, and carried him effortlessly. Tiger was never heavy to me.

After two steps, I heard a familiar, mocking chuckle ripple through the air, the sound vibrating against each layer of my outfit, my skin, to my chest.

- "Not killed me?"

- "Not yet."

I responded calmly, despite the momentary flash of surprise. I’d always known he could never really be that drunk.

I didn’t know anyone who could outdrink Tiger — the genuine boozehound. As the Boss of Ouroboros, he was keenly aware of every situation, his instincts razor-sharp, or if you want a deadly challenge of courage is given to anyone who dares to mess with him. But with me, he let down that guard, even seemed to enjoy it.

That double standard didn’t make me feel proud. I despised it, hated him deeply

and he knew it.

Tiger leaned against my shoulder, his hand grazing my chest, like a cut across my heart. I hate those black eyes seem to merge with the pupil, like a pit, his dark gaze was sharp, never losing that cunning glint, always perceptive, always seeing through everyone’s motives, including me.

I frowned, feeling as though I was carrying a wild beast feigning weakness rather than a drunk. But as always, I held my tongue and quietly, step by step, until we arrived at his quarters.

I stopped.

Outside the Boss Room, Tiger relaxed into my hold as if entirely trusting me, that sly smile still plastered on his face. His laughter was like nails on a chalkboard, scratching at my nerves.

- "I had hoped that chokehold would be the end of me."

- "Shut your sleeping mouth." I snapped, irritated.

But Tiger merely chuckled, the scent of alcohol and cigar smoke thickening around us, gradually flooded the room as soon as it opened. I laid him onto his bed, and he settled in with that maddening, inscrutable grin still clinging to his lips. My expression darkened, unable to hide my distaste for him.

I knelt by the edge of the bed, slipping off his shoes one by one.

- "It’s already too late tonight, and in your condition, it’s best you avoid a bath."

Tiger collapsed back into the mattress, his gaze fixated on the ceiling. No matter how much I loathed him, my duty forced me to monitor even his most trivial actions. A while later, I returned from the bathroom with a small basin of warm water and a cloth in hand.

- "Excuse me." I muttered out of formality, though it was hardly needed. His breathing was even, his eyes closed as he doesn't care what I'm doing.

My hands moved methodically, as I wiped down each part of him my eyes surveyed, the warm cloth tracing from his face to his neck. The bruise from my earlier grip was still visible, an unwelcome reminder of my momentary restraint, my failure to finish him off.

As I reached his shoulders, I undid each button of his shirt, tossing it aside to make space, sliding the belt off to avoid its obstruction. Half-naked now, Tiger lay beneath my hands. Something stirred within my mind, though I couldn’t fully grasp it. But I was aware of an unsettling sensitivity in my fingertips, an awareness of the skin beneath them — the skin of the man I’d always found detestable.

I moved down his arms, across his chest, down to his abdomen. For the first time, I had the opportunity to truly observe the man closest to me in such detail.

And his body told its own story, full of scars. His hands and neck bore the emblem of Ouroboros, and on his left waist, another tattoo, a serpent winding down... I idly wondered just how far it coiled, perhaps as far as his thigh.

- "Barnaby."

The sound of his voice jolted me from my thoughts. Tiger muttered the name, almost like a drunk whispering to himself in sleep. Yet his eyes were open, fixed on the photo resting on the nightstand.

- "You’re all I have left."

- "...?"

...End part 1

Hello! This is Abis! Above is a short fic I wrote for my OuroAU. I wrote it in Vietnamese and then translated it into English, so please forgive me if there are any grammar or vocabulary mistakes! And most importantly, if you read it, I'm so happy, thank you!

And you know what? This is the basis for my upcoming Doujinshi to be draw, read it if you want to understand more about their story!

Part 2 will continue if the story gets support, thanks again!

Side story

_ Antidote _

https://www.tumblr.com/chamonabis/771539859230834688/antidote?source=share

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