The middle-aged officer paid no heed to the young man's words or actions. He forcefully shook off the young man's grip and strode over to the three of them.
As the officer approached, Rita frowned. Her expression remained calm, but who knew what she was thinking.
"You..."
The middle-aged officer stared at the collar around Mashiro Shiina's neck, and his expression grew even uglier.
"What are you doing?!"
"Um... sorry. We were just cosplaying... role-playing for fun."
Rita hurriedly removed the collar from Mashiro Shiina's neck and explained with a hint of embarrassment in her voice.
"Role-playing? Having fun? Do you know how much of an impact doing something like this in a place like this has?"
He looked Rita over a few times. If Rita had been male, he might have already hauled her in for a lesson. But... she was such a beautiful girl, so he was more inclined to believe her.
Still, believing her did not mean he could skip the verbal reprimand.
"Sorry..."
Knowing she was in the wrong, Rita's apology was extremely sincere.
"Are you high school students or middle school students?"
The middle-aged officer took out his notebook and continued questioning the three of them.
"We're college students..."
"High school students."
Before Rita could finish, Mashiro spoke lazily. Her expression was calm, without the slightest embarrassment over selling out her teammate.
"..."
"What is your relationship? Ordinary classmates, or sisters?" The middle-aged officer glanced at Rita and Mashiro Shiina, without asking Higokumaru beside them.
"We're best friends... uh..."
Once again... just as Rita opened her mouth, Mashiro Shiina suddenly added another sentence.
"Rita is my owner."
Mashiro's tone remained utterly flat, yet it was as though a blizzard had swept through the increasingly chilly air.
The middle-aged officer's expression turned serious.
"Wait a moment,