Lisa Kuraki

Lisa Kuraki (倉木 リサ Kuraki Rissa), also known as Clarissa (クラリッサ Kurarissa), is a mediator and bartender who runs Youtoukorou: a legal bar-cum-illegal freelance agency that operates in Shinjuku.

Appearance
Clarissa is a voluptuous woman with tied-back blonde hair, a mole on her right jaw. and blue eyes, over the left of which she wears a monocle. Her custom bartender's outfit consists of a black vest and skirt, a white short-sleeved shirt, and a red bow-tie, and black shoes with 16 centimetre gold heels.

Personality
Clarissa is level-headed and sharp-minded, a natural leader to whom people naturally gravitate. She claims that she does not like to make enemies without cause, but is bold and firm when it comes to protecting the interests of herself and the agency. Both pseudo-admirers and disdainers alike have summarized her as 'wily', for her craftiness and her ability to subtly manipulate a situation make her a particularly guileful ally and foe.

Her subordinates suspect she has a soft spot for children, though this fondness is not something she admits freely.

Past
As the granddaughter of wealthy industrialist Luis Kuraki, Clarissa comes into her inheritance when her parents disappear. The news does not escape unscrupulous notice, and she is subsequently abducted while in high school. A certain individual named Miyabi Hosorogi rescues her before she is killed, though this detail is not mentioned in the contemporary Weekly Dry article that covers the story at the time. This event takes place before Hosorogi becomes a police inspector.

Either before or after her kidnapping—during the period her left eye is covered with a medical eye-patch—the teenage Clarissa visits a certain orphanage and makes the acquaintance of Misaki Sakimiya, the would-be heiress to Sakimiya Steel who was recently orphaned when her parents were murdered. The bond the two ex-heiresses form will lead to Misaki working for Clarissa at Youtoukorou, Clarissa's freelance agency that fronts as a bar. When Clarissa founds Youtoukorou is unclear, as is when Takumi Kuruya starts assisting her agency.

Clarissa and Hosorogi are lovers for a period of time leading up to Horosogi's death five years prior to the start of the series. Hosorogi's assassination is to some extent overseen by Habaki, who plans to frame Lisa for Hosorogi's death. However, Clarissa, aware of this plot, preemptively seizes Hosorogi's corpse from the Torture Building's basement and makes it 'disappear' via one of the Building's myriad corpse disposal methods.

Present
Five years after Hosorogi's death, Clarissa orders the death of the man who killed Misaki's parents, justifying his death as necessary given his recent habit of killing too many innocents. Misaki does this with relish.
 * The Polka Shinoyama Hit

Around the same time, One of Clarissa's clients requests the murder of Polka Shinoyama, a mere sixteen-year-old who happens to be one of the heirs to the Shinoyama Group, a wealthy conglomerate led by Polka's father Rozan Shinoyama. When Misaki reads over Polka's profile while at Youtoukorou, she volunteers to take on the job, much to Clarissa's surprise. Clarissa reminds Misaki that Polka is only a child, but Misaki seems to take this as a challenge rather than a deterrent.

The job goes awry in preternatural fashion: Takumi reports to Clarissa that Polka not only survived being killed, but somehow killed Misaki at the Torture Building with inexplicable means—it is implied he sent her footage of Misaki being impaled by a skeletal finger. With Urai and others following, Clarissa immediately travels to the Torture Building with the intention of claiming Misaki's contract and avenging her death; upon arriving, the group discovers Misaki dead from a massive hole in her torso.

Beside her kneels 'Polka', alive despite the blood from his throat wound coating his neck. Clarissa's cohorts aim their weapons at 'Polka'—in actuality, possessed by the Corpse God—who announces he will 'fix' Misaki for them by first repairing her body and then bringing her back to live with resurrection magic. Clarissa questions his claim of magic, calmly explaining she has never heard of the empire he mentions; her composure slips, however, when he summons large swords out of thin air—and then, when one of Clarissa's men prepares to fire, slam that man to the ground with a large skeletal hand.

Clarissa requests a moment to think, which, unexpectedly, Corpse God grants. At the sound of sirens in the distance, Takumi remotely confirms the incident source is a fire blazing at Shakuzawa Building. An aide hands Clarissa a tablet displaying live footage of the incident, with children's faces visible through the smoke. Corpse God demands to know what is going on, and, when Clarissa explains the building houses an unauthorized daycare center, indicates he wishes to rescue the children.

After a moment's hesitation, Clarissa relents and instructs Takumi to guide him to the incident via one of his drones. Corpse God and the drone take off, leaving Clarissa and the others behind with Misaki's corpse. Upon returning, he resurrects Misaki as promised. Clarissa confirms Misaki is dead with a grin' while Misaki's friends frisk Misaki, Clarissa asks about Corpse God's dreams of power and peace and offers her help, introducing herself and the others as belonging to a freelance agency she runs.

Clarissa's offered help is generous. Not only does she offer to act as Corpse God's intermediary, she invites him to live in the Torture Building—which she owns—and volunteers Misaki and Takumi to acclimatize him to life on Earth. Later, at some point between now and Corpse God moving in, they discuss the problem of the Shinoyama Family and Clarissa suggests he send them postcards. Furthermore, in exchange for the rent, she expects he respect her confidentiality with regard to who ordered his host dead.

The next day, the incident Comps-3 will label "the Human Knot(s) Incident" takes place. Takumi reports to Clarissa what took place in the aftermath, detailing how Misaki and Corpse God tackled a group of lowlifes who wanted revenge on Misaki for killing their boss; since this group happens to be full of people who lately no longer listen to Clarissa, she is hardly dismayed by the news. Takumi brings up the issue of hits on Polka, but, when Clarissa insists she has renounced the job, returns to the subject of the disbanded group; he expresses concerns over the straggling survivors. Clarissa blithely presumes one of the group's many enemies will pick the survivors off.

That night, Clarissa receives a telephone call while she is having sexual intercourse with one of her subordinates, a second subordinate looking on. The caller is someone with whom she spoke the day before, implied to be the client who ordered the hit on Polka; in response to something the caller says, Clarissa retorts that Polka is no 'ordinary high-schooler', a lie that cost one of her star members her life. She states she is putting a moratorium on "communications with your people" for the time being before ending the call. Cheerful, Clarissa enjoys a bottle of expensive wine with her lovers before her midnight bartending shift starts.

By late afternoon of the next day, before the sun sets, Clarissa and Urai are manning the bar at Youtoukorou when Inspector Tsubaki Iwanome waltzes indoors and greets Clarissa, glad to have finally caught up to her. He says he wants to discuss her spike in activity before and after the Shakuzawwa fire incident, especially since one of her intel drones was seen in the fire's vicinity; moreover, the boss of the injured people in the human knots incident was Jinba, Clarissa's protégé. What Iwanome wants to know is, how involved is Clarissa's group in this latest incident?
 * The Lemmings Incident

Clarissa slyly offers Iwanome on the house a glass of liquor that would normally cost sixty thousand yen. Iwanome accepts 'just the one' glass. Half an hour later, he is camped out at a booth with food, drinks, and the company of two 'bunny' waitresses, and acting for all the world a rambunctious drunk. As Clarissa sees it, Iwanome, in lieu of a warrant, only has the power to interview her crew right now.

On cue, Iwanome loudly brings up Clarissa's suspected involvement with troublemakers—not Lemmings, but the 'Grim Reaper', not to mention the potential new troublemaker who debuted at the Shakuzawa fire. Clarissa ignores his baiting. Seconds later, Misaki and Corpse God barge into the bar and begin perusing its menu, though Iwanome swiftly invites them for age-appropriate drinks at his table.

Soon enough, Iwanome's partner Kōzaburō Arase enters the bar with several policemen at his heels. The two bouncers stop them, but Clarissa says to let the men through; the leader already has a friend (Iwanome) present. Arase joins Iwanome at the booth; just as Iwanome prepares to ask Misaki some proper questions, the power in the bar switches off.

Clarissa immediately disavows responsibility for the outage; its cause must be external, as none of the staff deliberately caused it. She wonders whether 'Polka' and Misaki have escaped under the cover of darkness, herself busy rummaging for candles in one of her shelves; placing three on the bar counter, she lights them.

Moments later, the urban legend Lemmings drops from the chandelier onto one of the bar tables. Clarissa's blonde lover reaches over the counter for her katana, but Clarissa orders her to wait; similarly she pats the cheek of her brunette lover—eyeing her handgun—and tells her to settle down as well, pointing out that Lemmings would have already killed someone if murder was his aim.

Arase, meanwhile, aims to neutralize Lemmings; he attacks, with his men following suit, but Lemmings easily counters their blows despite the lack of light. Clarissa is alerted to the moment when Lemmings snatches Misaki when Iwanome shouts as much, though it becomes difficult to track Lemmings' movements when he carries Misaki up to the bar's second level. Once Corpse God springs into action and begins using his Necromancy against Lemmings, Iwanome starts at the strange shapes he can make out in the gloom and asks Clarissa if she spotted something strange; she suggests he had too much to drink.

Corpse God's skeletal monster is ultimately successful in fending off Lemmings whilst keeping Misaki in safe hands. When the lights flicker back on, neither Lemmings nor the skeletal monster are in sight—but the extensive collateral damage the skeletal monster did to Youtoukorou is illuminated in all its ravished glory. Arase and Iwanome mutually agree they will have to come armed to Youtoukorou next time, now that they know Lemmings has met his match.

Over the next few days, Misaki and Takumi assist Corpse God in opening and running a fortunetelling shop in the Torture Building while Youtoukorou undergoes renovations in the wake of Lemmings' visit. About two weeks after the Lemmings incident, two major incidents occur on the same day: an arson attack is carried out on the Shinoyama estate; and troublemaker Phantom Solitaire escapes from prison, declaring he will have a comeback performance in a week's time.

The night (est.) after the Shinoyama estate fire finds Clarissa enjoying another night with her lovers outside and inside a hot hub. Business is mixed with pleasure as the three discuss the Shinoyama Group's ties to assassin guilds like the Heilei clan. When Youtoukorou opens in the afternoon, with Clarissa and Urai tending the bar, it is not long before Arase and Iwanome arrive as early clients.

Iwanome is far more 'business' than 'pleasure' compared to his previous visits, taking a seat at the bar to bluntly ask Clarissa "why were you hiding it?" Remarking that there was "no way that guy would die so easily," Iwanome insinuates that Clarissa must have been erasing all traces of 'him' for the past five years; moreover, Clarissa must have purposefully put himself (Iwanome) into contact with Polka Shinoyama. Having had his fortune told by Polka earlier that day, Iwanome clarifies that Polka drew something only Iwanome and 'that person' should have known about.

For once clueless, Clarissa asks to whom Iwanome is referring. Iwanome's answer is simple: Clarissa's 'senpai' Hosorogi. Clarissa says she has not heard that name in a long time. Nevertheless, Iwanome has complaints to make on top of what he perceives to be Clarissa's deception: he recalls Hosorogi had a policy of not ensnaring children or entangling them in police affairs, saying their duty was to protect children—and yet, a child like Polka has somehow become involved in present affairs. Clarissa denies involving Polka in their dispute, and, when Iwanome brings up the fact she is renting Polka a living space, claims she is using Polka as an 'in' with the Shinoyama Group.

Though Iwanome accepts this claim, he insists that Polka and Misaki are in the sort of danger that sent Hosorogi into hiding; his reference to Hosorogi as if he were alive does not escape Clarissa's wry notice. With Arase following, Iwanome leaves Youtoukorou with a promise to "drain the pus" out of the police force. Once the two detectives are gone, Clarissa's lovers express worry for Polka and Misaki's safety. However, Clarissa smiles faintly and muses, "It's fine. I'm sure...that person's more concerned with money than he is with me."

One week after Solitaire escapes from prison, he delivers a comeback performance as promised. His 'performance' encompasses a fleet of dirigibles that he has deployed in Shinjuku airspace. On the sides of each dirigible is painted a modified version of the simplified mark of the Byandy Empire. Fifty-eight minutes after the dirigibles are deployed, a sniper attempts and fails to shoot Solitaire dead.
 * Nishida's Vanishing

In the early hours of the second day post-dirigible stunt, police stir at reports of an incident taking place on the rooftop of the Torture Building; the incident, which involves Solitaire, Lemmings, and Xiaoyu Lei, culminates in Corpse God attempting to catch Lemmings with a flock of gigantic invisible-turned-visible hands. One of Clarissa's bouncers mentions to Clarissa that police appear to be on the move when she (the bouncer) returns from an outing.

By concrete morning hours, a crowd of rubberneckers and policemen alike have already flocked to the Torture Building. Meanwhile, in a back room of Youtoukorou, Clarissa is greeting new visitors: the snipers Rinne and Hiiro Horojima, culprits of the earlier failed assassination attempt of Solitaire. The siblings explain Mister Darn referred them to Youtoukorou, and that the Shinjuku 'mediators' are famous among hitmen like them.

Clarissa identifies both siblings by name and reputation, much to Hiiro's consternation—neither sibling had given their name up until this point After teasing them, Clarissa says she is always open to new hirers, especially since it looks like they will be busy for the immediate future.

Presumably the same day, one of Youtoukorou's bartenders—Nishida—abandons his shift without notice, leaving Urai to tend the bar solo during their busiest hours. Once Urai's shift is up, he slumps over the bar counter and laments Urai's absence. Clarissa promises him a bonus and offers him a drink on the house; then, she enters Youtoukorou's half basement and asks if a group of two or three people can check on Nishida's apartment for her.

The bunnies report upon returning that Nishida did arrive at this building to change into his work uniform, and that camera footage shows him leaving his shift early while still in work attire, without telling anyone. Clarissa cannot rule out the possibility that Nishida's "dark and shady" past has caught up with him, but she is nevertheless concerned that this crisis is happening at the same time as the 'flock of hands' incident. Her brunette lover wonders whether Nishida has been kidnapped for information on Polka, but Clarissa says the only bartender who knows "Polka's" secret is Nishida.

Not long afterwards, a third bunny arrives with additional information on Nishida, information that she whispers in Clarissa's ear. One of the blonde bunnies opens the door with news that the police have arrived; Clarissa correctly guesses they are here to confirm Nishida's employee status, though his work history should be well-obfuscated. Grimly, she concludes, "This is just like...what happened with Hosorogi-san five years ago."

At some point before eventide, Clarissa attempts and fails to reach Takumi's cell phone as she anticipated might happen. She questions whether she was right to send Misaki after him. At some point before nightfall, or early into nighttime at latest, Clarissa orders the Horojima siblings to stake out a certain rooftop at a distance, and, if Habaki appears to shoot him dead; she frames this task as a 'test of their skills'. It is well into the night when Clarissa and her brunette companion change into streetwear and leave for the Torture Building, braving the outside downpour.

Clarissa knocks before entering Corpse God's living room once she arrives, telling him without preamble that there is someone she "desperately want[s] to ask a question of," and that she needs his powers to do so. Upon noticing Sayo Shinoyama, whom she has never met before, she recognizes Sayo as a member of Polka's family; Corpse God quickly explains that Sayo and Rozan are aware of his powers and his situation, unlike the rest of the family. Clarissa warns Corpse God to be careful; if whoever wants Polka dead finds out about his circumstances, he will surely be in trouble.

With advice thus issued, Clarissa formally requests Corpse God accompany her on this 'job'. Corpse God expresses reluctance at leaving Sayo alone, but Clarissa brushes off this concern and leads him outside the apartment, where her companion is waiting. When the three pass by Taipei, one of Takeru Shinoyama's men, Clarissa stops and informs the 'open air' that Sayo has been left alone and must be guarded at all costs—essentially forcing Taipei to stay behind rather than follow Clarissa's group at a distance.

Clarissa and her guard escort Polka to the rooftop upon which Habaki had been successfully shot dead; although Habaki's corpse has been cleared away by people and rain both, Corpse God can sense his presence—the presence of someone recently deceased—and asks if Clarissa wants to speak with this spirit. She confirms she does, and accepts Corpse God's offer to make the spirit visible to all present.

Habaki's spirit thus emerges into view, phantom blood dripping from his pierced brain stem. Clarissa gloats that she has finally caught up with "Chief Superintendent Habaki," who remembers her as the person who made Hosorogi's corpse disappear. Clarissa does not deny this, commenting that the Torture Building was full of equipment perfect for such a task; she is further unmoved when Habaki calls her a deviant, perfectly content to be deviating from the likes of him.

Finally, Clarissa poses her question: who was it who issued the order to have Hosorogi killed?

Habaki is disinclined to answer, so Corpse God makes him much more compliant with Clarissa's permission via a spell that draws upon Habaki's already abundant ego. This leads to Habaki extolling his many personal sacrifices for the sake of the Bastard Children of Sabaramond, a name which elicits a discernable reaction from Corpse God. It dawns on Habaki that Corpse God is the sorcerer from the "other side of the sky" whom he's been searching for; ecstatic at his 'discovery', Habaki crows that "that great man" will finally accept him, and his 'foolish daughter' will be set to rights. The daughter, he says, who should be grateful to have died for the organization.

Clarissa and her companion draw close together at the sensation of magic, the netherworld, or something otherwise supernatural warping the air around them. Corpse God informs Clarissa he is "still composed," that he is aware he should try to extract more information from Habaki, but he nonetheless requests permission to do as he pleases. Pointing out that Corpse God is the sole person who can carry out the Grim Reaper's duties in this world, she permits Corpse God to do as he wishes.

Corpse God restrains Habaki's wrists and ankles with chains, eyeballs and skeletal arms writhing about as thirteen levitating stakes encircle Habaki's body. Corpse God contracts his hand into a fist, and the stakes pierce Habaki's form as one.

Etymology

 * Lisa's surname Kuraki means "warehouse, storehouse, barn, treasury, granary, cellar, magazine, godown, depository, elevator, storage place, repository, supply shed, grain elevator, stockpile, arsenal" (倉) (kura) and "tree, wood" (木) (ki).