The Search

"Master, should we go over and take a look?" Seeing the boy's expression, as if he'd expected this, Kushida couldn't help asking.

"Sure~ I've been looking forward to seeing their methods again."

"Hehe~"

As they spoke, Rinya, looking thoughtful, had already led Kushida to a corner where they could see Chabashira's office from a distance.

"Um~ Master, shouldn't we get closer and listen?" Kushida asked, puzzled.

"No. If we get close, we lose~" Rinya's gaze shifted.

"Is that so..."

Seeing Kushida looking confused but too embarrassed to ask, Rinya couldn't help laughing and explaining.

"Think about it. After I disrupted the hypnotist's last riot plan, do you think he'd still act so brazenly?"

"So you mean..." The girl seemed to understand a little and couldn't help asking curiously.

"He's just testing us right now." A hint of amusement appeared on Rinya's face.

Seeing that the girl beside him still seemed only half to understand, Rinya smiled and didn't mind.

Since he had some free time today, he wanted to put on a little show for the other party, deliberately walking into the trap while knowing exactly what it was.

"I wonder how he'll react when I let him know I really came. I'm just a tiny bit excited."

So, after making a quick, quiet phone call, a boy who seemed not to have woken up yet soon appeared in the corridor on the other side. Yawning and looking completely bewildered, he headed toward Chabashira's office.

"Um, isn't that Kitatori? Why is he here?" Kushida looked puzzled.

"Maybe he's curious, just like us~" Rinya's eyes lit up.

Meanwhile, Kitatori, who had received the call but still had no idea what was going on, shuffled along with unsteady steps. Before long, he reached the door to Chabashira's office.

But as soon as he crouched down and started eavesdropping, he couldn't help cursing inwardly.

"That damn bastard ruined my wonderful nap just to get me to help him eavesdrop."

"He doesn't even dare come himself for something this trivial. What a coward, always threatening people."

But despite his complaints, Kitatori had no idea that shortly after he crouched down, continuous alarm bells suddenly rang throughout the entire second-floor cabin.

When Kitatori realized what was happening and tried to make a quick escape, he found that the only two routes out had already been blocked by security guards rushing in from both sides.

Their speed, their clear purpose—at a glance, it all seemed as if it had been arranged in advance.

Unfortunately, Kitatori, surrounded by the guards, didn't notice any of that.

As the guards on either side closed in, their faces cold, Kitatori stared at them in confusion. "Wait, what's going on?"

"Student, what are you doing here?" The tall, thin man at the front didn't answer. Instead, he stepped forward and asked sternly.

"Uh..."

Overwhelmed by the pressure of the guards surrounding him, Kitatori, who was already timid and afraid of trouble, hurriedly tried to explain with a smile.

"Hehe, well, I... I was just passing by."

"Yeah, I just happened to stop here to tie my shoelace. What's the problem?"

Noticing that his shoelace had come undone, Kitatori felt as if he'd been granted a reprieve. He hurriedly seized on the excuse and started making things up...

But the tall, thin man at the front clearly didn't believe him.

"Hmph. I'd say you had bad intentions."

"Take him to the security office on the first floor. We'll keep an eye on him for a few days."

As he spoke, he waved his hand, ready to have his men take Kitatori away.

"Hey, wait, wait."

"Do you people even have any sense of fairness?"

Seeing that the guards were serious, Kitatori couldn't help feeling aggrieved.

"I told you so much, and you're still arresting me."

"Come on, even if I really was eavesdropping, you didn't have to go this far."

The tall, thin man waved his hand, still ordering his men to seize Kitatori. Only then did he reply, "You're right. It's normal for students to get curious and eavesdrop now and then. But you..."

After a pause, the man's voice suddenly turned cold. "Why didn't you admit you were eavesdropping from the start? You deliberately tried to hide it. I knew you had bad intentions. I was right, wasn't I? Take him away!"

"Damn it, are you kidding me? Are you guards crazy?"

"Insulting the police. That makes it even worse."

"Crap."

As he was dragged farther and farther away, Kitatori might finally have understood why Rinya hadn't come himself. He'd been using him to spring the trap.

But there was no point thinking about it now.

"I'm going to file a complaint against you! Just you wait!"

"Master, Kitatori..." Watching all of this, Kushida was shocked and couldn't help feeling sorry for him.

"It's fine. They might let him go soon." Though he said that, Rinya kept his eyes fixed on Chabashira's office.

"Is that so? That's wonderful~" Kushida was still puzzled, but she trusted her master's judgment.

"Glug~"

"That's the sound of tea..."

Just then, Rinya suddenly murmured to himself.

Kushida still didn't understand what he meant. Feeling more and more useless, she began to see one streak after another of pathological, violent intent rise in her eyes.

Of course, she didn't notice...

A little while later, Rinya calmly looked away, then spoke with a faintly amused smile. "Heh~ Let's go. There's no point staying here anymore."

"Did you figure something out, Master?"

"Of course~"

"This so-called lecture is just a performance. The person controlling Chabashira is using her to make polite conversation with them on purpose."

"Is he doing that just to cover his tracks?" Kushida's voice suddenly grew brisk.

Noticing something odd in her tone, Rinya gave her a closer look but didn't dwell on it. He replied with a faint smile, "Maybe we'll know the answer tonight~"

"You mean he'll make his move tonight." Kushida's eyes turned cold.

Rinya replied meaningfully, "Truly clever people never choose to wait and react."

"So, do you think he went to all the trouble of arranging a test with a specific purpose without also laying the groundwork for something else?"

"You... You mean that guy will show up tonight in the rooms of the people from each class who were called in today?" Kushida suddenly realized that this was possible.

"Maybe."

"But let's be clear. We're only going to watch. Don't interfere with him, okay?"

"Otherwise..." Rinya suddenly looked at Kushida, the warning in his eyes plain.

"Tch, I was just asking. It's not like I'm interested." The girl crossed her arms and turned her head away.