Published: January 22, 2026
“…………Hey, didn’t I say I have something to do from now on? Why are you following me?”
I asked Fuuka, who had been trailing behind me.
“Just felt like it. Don’t worry about me.”
No way I wouldn’t worry about that...
Still, no matter what I said, she seemed determined to tag along, and chasing her off would probably take a lot of effort.
Besides, I couldn’t predict what would happen next. If I could make use of Fuuka’s supernatural ability, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.
…Although I’m not sure if she’ll actually help.
“Sigh… fine. But whatever we see or hear from now on stays strictly between us. If you can swear to that, then I’ll let you come along.”
“Yeah, I understand. I swear.”
“Swear on what?”
“On… what? …Then, on my sword.”
As she said that, she drew out a curved blade she had sheathed.
Fuuka’s sword is called a katana, a type of blade popular in the East, specialized for cutting.
The katana Fuuka carries exudes such an indescribable, unique aura that you can tell it’s a masterwork even without looking at the blade itself.
Many swordsmen consider their blades as valuable as their lives, and I’ve heard the people of Kyokutō especially have customs of treasuring their belongings.
I don’t know if Fuuka fits that mold, but I think I can trust this oath.
Why does she want to keep what’s about to happen a secret to such lengths?
Because what I’m going to do now is generally considered wrong by society.
If word gets out that I did something like this, it might cause trouble for the silver rabbits of the night sky.
But if Fuuka stays silent, it’s unlikely this story will spread.
â—‡
The one I’d marked with [target marking] wasn’t the thief from earlier.
That theft was staged to divert attention from the real target.
Before the theft, the thief was glancing around nervously, fixating on certain spots.
And right before the crime, the female victim was also looking in the same direction.
At that location, while the theft took place, other culprits were kidnapping a child.
I had activated [target marking] on those kidnappers.
Following the signal from [target marking], we arrived, unsurprisingly, at the main store of the Flockhart trading company.
“I really hoped I was mistaken… but now it’s certain.”
“You have business with the Flockhart trading company?”
“Yeah.”
Flockhart trading company is one of the top five largest trading firms headquartered within the Nohitant Kingdom.
They undoubtedly hold the largest market share in Tsutolairu.
It’s also the family home of Luna, who belongs to the hero party.
Following the kidnappers’ route, we came to the back entrance of the store.
Well, there’s no way they’d enter head-on carrying a sack with a child inside.
I tried the back door’s doorknob on a whim, and surprisingly, it wasn’t locked—it opened smoothly.
(Were they in such a hurry? Committing a huge crime like kidnapping, yet so careless…)
“Try to keep noise to a minimum from here on.”
After closing the door, I told Fuuka.
Once she nodded, I reopened the door and entered the building.
(It’s my first time entering this building from the back.)
Right inside was a staircase leading down to the basement.
It seemed the kidnappers had gone straight downstairs.
As I descended, I heard male voices.
“—Anyway, well done. As always, those caught will be released through the Marquis’ arrangements.”
“Yeah, thanks. But haven’t there been a lot of kidnap requests lately? We get paid handsomely, so no complaints here though.”
“The Marquis requested it. I don’t know the details either.”
“You don’t know? At least try to understand the reasons.”
Listening to them, I couldn’t help but interject.
Seriously, they’re involved in such crimes yet clueless about their purpose? That’s just shocking.
There were five men in the room, and one girl who seemed to have been kidnapped.
One of them was someone I knew well—Pascal Flockhart.
He’s the head of this trading company and Luna’s stepfather.