RH Chapter 8

Chapter 8 – A Beautiful Man

Resonance 1, Part 4

Novel Title: 共鳴発情 オメガバース (Resonance Heat: Omegaverse)

Author：岩本薫 (Iwamoto Kaoru)

Illustrator: 蓮川愛 (Hasukawa Ai)

Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)

Protagonists: 本浄天音 (Honjou Amane) & 苅谷煌騎 (Kariya Kouki) / 首藤煌騎 (Shutou Kouki)

*Please read at Novels Space.space, the original site of translation. TQ*

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As he pushed the door open, he was immediately pierced by the bright sunlight. So he instinctively covered his eyes with his arm.

After a moment, he slowly lowered his arm. In front of him stretched a rooftop surrounded by an iron fence. He stepped out of the tower building onto the concrete rooftop. Above him was a sky as blue as a painting, dotted with fluffy white clouds.

Crossing the open space with nothing overhead, he reached the iron fence.

Perhaps because the D-East Police Station building was on slightly higher ground, he could see the entire neighbourhood under its jurisdiction.

The Upper Hills area where Kouki was born and raised had wide streets, well-organised districts, and an abundance of greenery, including parks. Each home sat on a spacious plot of land and was meticulously maintained by residents who cared about aesthetics. He had never seen litter on the streets in all his life.

In contrast, the downtown area below him was a chaotic mess of tightly packed buildings, with narrow, winding streets snaking between them like a beehive.

There was no regard for uniformity or aesthetics. The buildings were constructed however the owners saw fit, with little concern for building codes. There was scant greenery or parks. The commercial district was a chaotic flood of bright colours, and the slums were nothing short of chaos.

Yet, this was his battlefield from today onward.

When he was assigned to the D-East Police Station, his peers on social media had all pitied him, saying, “Of all places, you got stuck in downtown east? That’s unlucky.” Working at a police station in a crime-ridden downtown area was dangerous and busy. It left little time to study for promotion exams, making it difficult to advance in rank. Their consensus was that it was a ‘losing’ assignment.

Some of his peers were even outraged, saying it was unfair that someone like him, who graduated at the top of his class, was sent to such a backwater.

However, for Kouki, it was an assignment he had hoped for. After all, ‘that person’ was also a detective at a downtown police station. There was a chance they might meet again. If that happened, he could finally express the gratitude he couldn’t at the time.

Besides, Kouki was the type who thrived on challenges. The tougher the opponent, the more satisfying it was to overcome them.

A high crime rate meant that there were more citizens in distress. His mission and goal were to save as many of them as possible.

To do that, he needed to get out in the field as soon as possible, hone his skills, and become a detective like ‘that person’.

The feeling that his childhood dream was finally coming true made his whole body flush with warmth. The path he had taken to get here had been arduous, making the emotions welling up inside him all the more powerful. As he gripped the iron fence tightly, still riding the wave of exhilaration…

Piririririri.

His smartphone began ringing in his trouser pocket. Kouki frowned as he pulled it out to check the home screen. Even as he hesitated over whether to ignore it, the ringtone kept playing.

Piririririri. Piririririri.

It seemed like it wouldn’t stop until he answered. With a sigh, he tapped the answer button.

“…Hello, Mizuki?”

The caller was his ex-girlfriend, a popular actress active in dramas, movies, and commercials. When Kouki enrolled in the police academy, he had initiated the breakup to focus on his new life. But she seemed to still have lingering feelings. Every now and then, she would reach out to him unexpectedly, ignoring the context.

“What is it? …If it’s not important, can we talk later? I’m working right now… I’m hanging up.”

He intentionally used a curt tone to end the conversation somewhat forcibly. As soon as he pressed the end call button and moved the phone away from his ear, it began ringing again.

The name ‘Mizuki’ appeared on the home screen. She was probably calling back to complain about being brushed off so coldly. Since she had never been rejected before, she had been reluctant to accept the breakup at the time.

Should he pick up again and clearly tell her not to contact him anymore?

As he pondered this, a sudden shout came from behind him.

“So noisy!”

“……!”

The voice completely caught him off guard, as he had thought he was alone.

He turned around abruptly, looking toward the source of the voice. A figure that had been lying on top of the tower building was now sitting up.

“Piripiripiripi, shut the hell up! Waking me up when I’m trying to sleep!”

The voice, gruff and annoyed, sounded like it came from a man. But his face was obscured by the backlight, making it impossible to tell for sure.

As the shock of being caught off guard faded, Kouki felt irritation slowly bubbling up inside him. While it was unfortunate that he had woken the man up, he hadn’t expected anyone to be sleeping on the rooftop during work hours. And this was a public space. There was no rule against making phone calls here, so he didn’t deserve to be yelled at.

“…Who the hell are you?”

Already feeling disgruntled, Kouki was further irked when questioned unexpectedly.

Isn’t it proper manners to introduce yourself first when asking someone else’s name?

He swallowed down the protest that had risen to his throat, suppressing it with effort.

Here, he was a newcomer. And the other person was likely a senior.

Kouki, who had quietly returned his now silent smartphone to his pocket, retraced his steps to stop just short of the tower building. There, he looked up at the man silhouetted against the light.

“Sorry for disturbing you during your rest,” he apologised, conceding a hundred steps.

“I’ve just been assigned to the Downtown East Police Station as of today. My name is Kariya Kouki.”

The man’s reaction to his introduction was entirely unexpected.

He simply let out a huge yawn.

“Damn, that really woke me up,” the man cursed in a low voice, rummaging through the pockets of his jacket before pulling out a cigarette and a lighter. He lit the cigarette with a click and placed it between his lips.

(Isn’t smoking prohibited in the station?)

Kouki himself didn’t smoke. But during his earlier exploration of the precinct, he had noticed smoking rooms on each floor and seen ‘No Smoking in the Premises’ signs posted in key areas. Even though this was the rooftop, it was still part of the station.

As Kouki hesitated, wondering whether he should warn the man about smoking, the man, who had been leisurely puffing on his cigarette, suddenly stood up with it still in his mouth. Using the railing next to the tower building’s door, he descended smoothly.

He landed softly on the rooftop, turned around, and walked toward Kouki.

The man’s gaze was about ten centimetres below Kouki’s, making him approximately 178 centimetres tall. Though slender overall, his physique was well-toned, evident even through his clothing. He wore a white cut-and-sew shirt with a noticeably stretched neckline, black skinny bottoms, and sneakers. Over these, he had a moss green mod coat with a hood.

At close range, Kouki couldn’t help but stare at the man’s face in awe.

The man was extraordinarily beautiful. It was at a level Kouki had never seen before. His skin was like white porcelain, with eyebrows that seemed drawn with a brush. His eyes were almond-shaped and long, with wet-looking black pupils. His nose was straight and narrow, his lips tinged with a hint of red, and several piercings dotted his left ear. His sleek, glossy black hair covered half of his face, which was almost a shame.

Kouki gulped. He had dated Omega actresses and models in the past, but this man’s beauty was several notches above theirs. Not only was his face stunning. But he also had a unique, striking aura. It wasn’t a dazzling, radiant aura, but rather a slightly dark, ominous one.

Who is this person…?

As Kouki found himself mesmerised by the man’s seductive beauty, the man’s fair face drew close. He exhaled a puff of smoke at him.

“……”

Kouki swatted away the smoke clinging to his face and glared at the man in front of him. The man wore a faint smirk, making it clear that the smoke was blown deliberately.

Even if this man was a senior or someone as strikingly beautiful as Kouki had never seen before, there was no way he could stay silent after having cigarette smoke blown in his face on purpose.

“Isn’t smoking prohibited in the premises?”

The man was entirely unfazed by Kouki’s complaint, muttering, “I haven’t seen your face around here before,” and then, noticing Kouki’s badge, asked, “A rookie?” Though unsure how to handle this rude man’s question, Kouki reluctantly responded since he sensed that the man was, at least, trying to communicate.

“…I’ve been assigned to the Criminal Investigation Department.”

“Hmm… Criminal Investigation, ehh…”

The man’s almond-shaped eyes scrutinised Kouki without restraint. His gaze swept him up and down from head to toe twice. Then, he abruptly pulled the cigarette from his lips and declared, “Three days.”

“Three days?”

“I said, you won’t last more than three days. That shirt looks expensive, and you’re wearing a high-end brand tie, an order-made three-piece suit, and handmade leather shoes polished to a shine. Your body’s well-balanced and toned under the guidance of a personal trainer. Your complexion is good, with smooth skin without a single scar. Your hair is glossy and well-nourished, and your teeth are perfectly straight and white. You’re oozing with the air of someone well-bred.”

The man rattled off his observations in a single breath and Kouki was taken aback. What surprised him most was that nearly all the man’s remarks were spot on. The shirt was indeed tailored, the tie was a high-end brand, the suit was order-made, and the shoes were handmade. It was true that he worked out three times a week with a personal trainer. And his meals were prepared by a nutritionist.

Feeling as if he’d been stripped naked in less than ten seconds, Kouki stood there, stunned.

“A pampered boy like you won’t last here.”

But the man’s final assumption hit a nerve.

Kouki glared at the man, who was about ten centimetres shorter as he firmly denied it.

“I’ve finally achieved my childhood dream. I won’t quit so easily.”

At Kouki’s firm declaration, the man raised an eyebrow.

“Childhood dream?”

He parroted the word back, then sneered.

“That’s exactly the problem—your dream and all that naive crap.”

As he said ‘the problem’, the man lightly poked Kouki in the chest. In that instant, an electric current seemed to shoot through the spot where the man’s fingertip touched.

“……”

For a moment, Kouki’s breath was caught.

It was just a light poke. But it felt as if he’d been electrocuted. Instinctively, he looked down at his chest. But there was no obvious sign of anything unusual.

As Kouki slowly exhaled and raised his gaze, the man who had poked him was staring intently at his own finger. His almond-shaped eyes were wide open. He looked at his fingertip with a puzzled expression for a while, then twisted his lips as if mocking himself.

Still wearing that faint smile, the man flicked the shortened cigarette butt with his fingers. The lit butt dropped onto the concrete floor with a small thud.

“Hey… Don’t litter!”

Reacting instinctively, Kouki bent down to pick up the cigarette, only to exclaim, “Ouch…!” as he dropped it. He then stomped out the burning cigarette with his shoe.

By the time Kouki had extinguished the cigarette and looked up, the man had already disappeared.

Creak… Slam!

The tower building door slammed shut with a loud noise that echoed across the rooftop.

First, the man was napping on the rooftop during working hours, then he suddenly yelled, “Shut the hell up!” at Kouki, smoked in a no-smoking premises, blew smoke in Kouki’s face, and even littered his cigarette butt. Despite asking, “Who the hell are you?” and hearing Kouki introduce himself, he didn’t reveal his own name. He even called Kouki a “pampered boy,” and sneered that he wouldn’t last three days, ridiculed Kouki’s dream, and poked him in the chest. This man was all in blatant disregard for manners, morals, or courtesy. Staring at the door the man had disappeared through, Kouki muttered in disbelief.

“What the hell… Who is that guy?”

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*Translator’s Note: Okay. Allow me to talk about Japanese culture. Normally, discipline is deeply embedded among Japanese people. So littering, smoking at a no-smoking zone, clocking in late to work, sleeping during work hours, being disrespectful to superiors, directly blowing smoke to someone’s face… Well, these are not common for Japanese people to do. These are considered rude. So, Honjou-san is an outlier. In fact, he’s almost acting like a delinquent. For me, it’s kinda amusing and refreshing to see. But for normal Japanese people, this is frowned upon. 🤣

Kouki: What the hell… Who is that guy? 

Me: He’s your future honey, dear… 

-K

Illustration 3:

Next update: 2024.11.26

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