“Do you really believe that a man like him should be left to his own devices?” Monica asked.
“Unfortunately, there are no shackles in this world that can restrain him,” Myuhi said.
Though Myuhi said that it would be difficult to restrain him, she was basically agreeing with Monica that it was a problem leaving him to run loose.
“What’s the point of saying something so obvious?”
“Whose fault do you think this is?”
“You’re responsible for your own actions, so who knows?”
“So you’re not a fox but a tanuki then.”
“I’m currently a cat right now, though, nyaa.”
The two laughed with each other, but their eyes weren’t laughing.
Monica glared at Myuhi, wondering what she was up to, while Myuhi openly questioned her motives.
The situation had yet to reach a point where sparks erupted, but it was by no means a friendly conversation.
Two girls, who resembled each other in everything except skin color, facing each other painted for a pretty but scary picture due to their contrasting features. Shinichi could hear them, but he just kept eating as though it were none of his business.
“Did you become conscious of him because your foster parent recommended him for marriage?”
“Unfortunately, there’s no way a child like this— A child?”
“Hmm?”
“Oh, I get it now! But of course! He kept pulling all sorts of stunts, so I’d forgotten, but he’s a child!”
Monica said in excitement while pointing at him, while Myuhi just looked troubled and asked for an explanation.
“Elaborate.”
“Kids like him come to our place from time to time! They’re terrible at socializing, and they tend to go overboard! Of course, there’s no one who could go to lengths as crazy as this guy, but…”
──As if I’d tolerate children like him being mass produced!
Or so cried a voice from within Myuhi, but she suppressed it before asking Monica to be more specific.
“They’re bad at dealing with others, so they tend to work on their own.”
“Hmm?”
“They tend to do things that seem outrageous to others because the logic checks out in their head.”
“Oh?”
“They struggle to react to anything that doesn’t interest them.”
“Ah.”
“But they don’t hate others, and they just prefer to keep others at a distance while watching over them.”
“Oh!”
Myuhi could picture that so clearly and found herself laughing.
As someone who had been observing him for about a month and a half, she had nothing but admiration for Monica’s input.
Though what really made her laugh was the way she categorized Shinichi’s absurdity under the label of ‘child’.
“Well, excuse me, for being a troublesome kid.”
As expected, it became too much to ignore when he became the topic of their conversation, and he found himself grumble as he casually tossed a bite-sized croissant into his mouth. Monica chuckled at that.
“I never said you were troublesome, though… Ufufu, a lot of those kids also have a low opinion of themselves,” Monica said.
“Well, that’s true,” Myuhi said.
“What is, damn it!” Shinichi said.
Monica spoke with satisfaction, while Myuhi nodded, and Shinichi looked sour, though that was mostly because he couldn’t deny it.
“In his case, he has an innate talent for certain things, and he’s good at watching over others, so I can’t judge him with just that, but— Oh, I see, so that’s why she wanted me to look after him.”
Because his troublesome personality also meant that there was no way to know what he would do next.
Because she’s already used to people like him because of the kids she’s watched over.
In that sense, it certainly made it right for her to watch over him.
“─────Is that really all?” Shinichi asked.
“Huh?” Monica said.
Shinichi asked with a stern voice. He asked it so flatly too, without a hint of that pouting behavior he showed earlier, to the point that it actually sounded like an interrogation.
Monica found herself turning to him, and the sight of him looking at her with a piercing gaze made her wonder if that was really all there was to it.
“…”
In the end, she couldn’t say anything.
Not only could she neither confirm nor affirm his words, she couldn’t even say that she didn’t understand what he was getting at.
That surprised her the most, and as she became speechless, she found herself covering her mouth with a shaking hand.
In the end, the color that surfaced on her was a color that only she understood.
“Huh…?”
“Can’t tell if she’s actually aware or not…”
For a moment, Shinichi wondered what to say net, but then his foster rang.
“Nu?”
“…At least put it in silent.”
Upon hearing her astonished voice as she deduced that the sound was coming from his foster, Shinichi calmly shook his head.
“I did. It just rang on its own.”
When Shinichi took out the foster from his pocket, and Myuhi took a peek at the screen. Before even Shinichi could read it, Myuhi read it aloud.
“Number withheld?” Myuhi said.
“Oh, it’s better not to answer calls like those,” Monica said.
Myuhi found it suspicious, while Monica gave a piece of good common sense, but Shinichi didn’t even hesitate to pick it up.
“What do you need, Takeshi?”
Myuhi and Monica were surprised, while Shinichi clearly heard a whistle from the other end.
『Wow, how did you figure out it was me?』
“The only one who’d contact me at a time like this with a number like this is you.”
『Ah, yes, that completely incomprehensible intuition of yours. It’s creepy how accurate it is.』
“When did you lose your balls to be scared of something on that level? I’m busy, so talk already.”
At that, Takeshi stopped messing around and spoke solemnly.
『First of all, congratulations for laying a hand on the songstress too and making progress with your hare—』
“I’m hanging up.”
『Wait!』
Takeshi raised his voice in a tone that was more serious than anything Shinichi expected from him. It sounded as though he would really be in trouble if he were to cut the call. Takeshi sighed then stated his business.
『It’s just a report. As instructed, I removed all the dangerous items. From now on, even if something happens in those three cities, I have absolutely no involvement.』
“For now, what about the next time?”
That was Shinichi telling him that he wouldn’t trust him unconditionally just because of that, and that he wouldn’t call simply for that reason. Takeshi laughed.
『As expected, you won’t bite, huh. Actually, I was just thinking about how I might have taken you lightly.』
“Hah?”
『I can’t believe you actually encountered those guys just a few hours after I told you to be careful. It’s as if you have a flag constitution or something! You’re just like a protagonist! Ha ha!!』
Apparently, Takeshi called so he could make fun of Shinichi, and he laughed without the slightest reservation. That seemed to strike a nerve with Shinichi, perhaps because it was Takeshi doing it.
“The one who triggered the flag was you! Apologize, you bastard!”
Shinichi yelled angrily enough to make the girls behind him twitch, but Takeshi just perfunctorily apologized.
『Ahaha, sorry, sorry. So you took out those snake guys, huh. I guess that means you’re stronger than that weapon then. Isn’t that amazing?』
Takeshi seemed fully intent on mocking him, but Shinichi just warned him with a solemn tone.
“Takeshi, I’m warning you. Don’t mess with that thing. Because if you do, I’ll have to erase you.”
『Geh, your voice is way too serious. Those guys laid their hands on something like that?』
“That’s not a technology or a concept that humans should get their hands on.”
『That makes me curious as a scientist, but I neither want to fight with you nor become your trauma, so okay, I won’t mess with it.』
Takeshi agreed just like that. Shinichi looked bitter, but it wasn’t because of his attitude.
“If you’re going to be that considerate, then you might as well have been considerate with everything. So, what else did you call for?”
Shinichi knew it was pointless but he couldn’t keep himself from grumbling. Meanwhile, Takeshi too seemed to run out of material to tease him with, so he started talking seriously too and brought up why he called this childhood friend of his in the first place.
『I found something that was moving differently from normal. When I investigated it, I found out that it’s going to pass right above the venue of the concert there. 』
“What is it?”
Shinichi found himself looking up, then Takeshi revealed the answer in an amused tone.
『────────A laser attack satellite.』
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