Master Thief

"Okay... I'll pass it on to my friend. Thank you, Suzuki."

Ichinose smiled, though it was somewhat forced.

It seemed she hadn't gotten the answer she wanted.

"Actually, there's another way."

"This one's much simpler."

"Huh? What way?" The girl's eyes immediately lit up as she eagerly pressed for more.

"It's simple. Your friend just needs to get a boyfriend."

With Ichinose's personality, she definitely wouldn't be willing to directly reject Shiranami Chihiro.

If a nonexistent boyfriend suddenly appeared at a time like this, Chihiro would know when to back off.

"A boyfriend... how could I possibly find one that quickly?"

Ichinose's heart raced like a startled deer. She often imagined what her future partner might be like, but in such a rush... how could she possibly find someone right away?

"Well, you don't actually need to find one. You just need to put on an act for that girl."

So that was an option too? Ichinose suddenly saw the light.

"Thank you, Suzuki! I'll tell my friend."

Ichinose thanked him with a smile. This method really was easier than directly rejecting Chihiro. The only issue was finding someone to act the part. A classmate from her own class definitely wouldn't work, and she wasn't familiar with students from the other classes.

Seeing Ichinose lost in thought, Suzuki Tsubame had no choice but to leave.

Come to think of it, why didn't she ask me? Was she too embarrassed to admit that she herself was that friend?

Suzuki Tsubame couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he thought.

He arrived at the Supermarket's beverage section.

The school explicitly prohibited students from buying beer, yet it was still sitting in the refrigerated cases at the school Supermarket. That was a problem.

A purple-haired girl stood before one of the cases. With her back to the Supermarket's cameras, she had hidden herself in a blind spot.

With a flick of her wrist and a light curl of her fingers, she accurately tossed a can of beer into her shoulder bag.

"Yo!"

A flippant male voice came from behind her, startling her.

"Isn't this Princess Sakayanagi's subordinate, the Master Thief?"

[Kamuro Masumi]

[Appearance: 9.5]

[Constitution: 8]

[Intelligence: 7]

Without changing her posture, Kamuro Masumi swiftly returned the beer from her bag to its original place while remaining in the camera's blind spot.

Then she slowly turned around and looked at Suzuki Tsubame.

After a moment of silence, the girl cautiously asked, "Classmate, you are...?"

Suzuki Tsubame looked puzzled.

"The Master Thief follows me around every day, yet she doesn't know my name?"

From beneath her slanted purple bangs, the girl's eyes subtly swept over Suzuki Tsubame's hands. After determining that he didn't seem to be recording anything, she said coldly,

"Though I'd like to correct your wording... forget it."

"If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."

Having finally run into the Master Thief, Suzuki Tsubame wasn't about to let her leave so easily.

"Don't be in such a hurry. Rather than doing trivial errands for Sakayanagi, why not work with me?"

"Kamuro, would you consider becoming a double agent?"

Suzuki Tsubame pulled his phone from his pocket and waved it in front of Kamuro Masumi.

Pretending that he had recorded a video.

In truth, he hadn't even had time to take out his phone. Kamuro Masumi had moved too quickly; almost the instant he saw her, she had already finished.

She was definitely a repeat offender.

The Master Thief most likely wouldn't risk it.

Theft was a serious crime in this country. Even for a single can of beer, she could face a short detention and a fine.

And that was only from a legal standpoint. If her classmates found out, she would absolutely be isolated.

From then on, whenever anything went wrong in class, the thief would be the first person suspected. After all, people like that had poor moral character.

Kamuro clicked her tongue softly.

Frowning, Kamuro couldn't tell how long Suzuki Tsubame had been standing there watching.

"Kamuro, do you like beer that much?"

Suzuki Tsubame asked curiously. Why did Kamuro specifically choose to steal beer?

Because school rules explicitly prohibited students from buying beer. If the rules prohibited orange juice instead, she would have stolen orange juice.

"What does that have to do with you?"

Kamuro Masumi replied irritably. She wasn't particularly afraid of being exposed anyway. She didn't fear expulsion at all; whether she attended school or not meant nothing to her.

Kamuro Masumi's background had never been clearly stated in the original work, but a few things could be inferred.

She most likely came from a moderately well-off family. Her parents might have run a small business, or perhaps they were highly educated professionals such as professors.

Her parents probably had a strong desire to control her, which was also why she chose to apply to Advanced Nurturing.

This place was free enough, without restraints or nagging.

That was easy enough to see. Kamuro Masumi was calm and composed when faced with trouble, and stealing was merely her hobby. The most likely reason she chose to obey Sakayanagi was also to satisfy that interest.

Kamuro Masumi looked utterly indifferent. It seemed his personal charm was completely inferior to Sakayanagi Arisu's.

Suzuki Tsubame chuckled inwardly. Sakayanagi's presence truly was powerful; in the original work, almost no one could match her.

Her innate air of nobility was something Horikita Manabu could never learn, even if he remained silent for a lifetime.

Unfortunately, her presence was completely useless against Kuroya Keisaku.

"Kamuro, perhaps we should find somewhere quiet and talk alone?"

Since his personal charm couldn't compare, Suzuki Tsubame could only rely on persuasion to convince her.

Kamuro frowned slightly but did not refuse.

Seeing that she had no objections, Suzuki Tsubame led the way. The two left the Supermarket one after the other.

As for the drinks, he could buy them tomorrow. Tomorrow, he would have a personal maid to run errands for him.

They returned to the Artificial Lake near the Dormitory.

Ripples shimmered across the water, and the lingering glow of the setting sun draped it in a brilliant golden cloak.

Compared with the vast sea, Suzuki Tsubame still preferred this place.

Sparse woods encircled the lake. Even when fierce sea winds swept through, what remained would be softened by their branches and leaves.

The thin woods held the sea's vast sentiment, scattering it into gentle whispers upon the wind.

"Sit."

Suzuki Tsubame sat on one side of the bench and pointed to the other.

Kamuro Masumi looked thoughtfully at the seat beneath him.

Oh, come on!

Wasn't this where he and Sakayanagi had sat before?

Kamuro wore the expression of an old man on the subway and stood there for a long while.

The thought made her want to laugh. Sakayanagi, who always looked down on everyone, had actually acted like a little girl.

What kind of magic did this guy have? It was simply unimaginable.

In truth, once one knew Sakayanagi's backstory, it was easy enough to understand.

In the original work, aside from losing one move to Ayanokoji, she had never suffered a defeat in chess.

Take note: before facing Ayanokoji, she actually had little interest in chess. It was only after losing that she became interested and began learning it.

Though Ayanokoji looked as though he had used only ten percent of his strength, defeating Sakayanagi was absolutely not as easy as he made it seem.

Ayanokoji's father had primarily trained him for the political world. What kind of place was politics? Calling it a place that devoured people whole without even spitting out the bones would be putting it mildly.

Even when they were on the verge of death, with only a breath left in them, those great figures would still look as though everything were effortless.

Besides, after Sakayanagi Arisu lost, she still dared to declare that she would bury an artificial genius.

That showed she could actually tell how capable her opponent was.

Sakayanagi lost because of their different upbringings. Sakayanagi Narimori had spoiled her beyond measure, shaping her into someone who appeared gentle, elegant, and kind, while inwardly she was deeply calculating and supremely rational.

But at the same time, she was extremely arrogant and extraordinarily fragile.

When she heard Ayanokoji say that he didn't remember her at all and didn't want to compete with her, she completely broke down and ran away.

There was another reason she ran. At this school, Kamuro was the only person she could truly call a friend. Once Kamuro left, Sakayanagi could clearly see that everyone else was merely paying lip service.

And besides, there was truly nothing left for her to learn at this school. If not for Ayanokoji's arrival, she would not even have bothered attending her own school.

"I won't sit. If you have something to say, say it quickly."

Kamuro Masumi looked calmly at the lake, her expression cold.

Although she had spent little time with Sakayanagi, their meeting had been quite turbulent, and Sakayanagi was always ordering her around, Kamuro could tell that Sakayanagi was lonely too.

Sakayanagi was like a little sister who needed looking after.

She couldn't betray her.

Suzuki Tsubame chuckled, rose to his feet, and walked toward the railing by the lake.

The two stood side by side.

They talked about many things: Sakayanagi, Katsuragi, Class A's situation. Naturally, they also talked about Kamuro Masumi herself.

In the end, after exchanging contact information, Kamuro Masumi left without another word.

Suzuki Tsubame leaned against the railing and looked into the distance. The girl's tall, slender figure gradually shrank, disappearing into the dusk.

Sakayanagi Arisu.

I hope you like this gift.