Kidnapping Plan and an Unexpected Witness

A cool sea breeze blew in from the Pacific Ocean, its faintly salty moisture carrying away the heat. On the soft beach, a little boy in a straw hat was teasing a white cat with a cat wand.

"Meow~~~"

The white cat suddenly hissed, bared its claws, and pounced on the cat wand. The little boy let out a miserable scream, clutched his crotch, and rolled around on the sand.

"Hehehehe..."

Xiao Miao withdrew his gaze from the straw-hatted boy and looked once more at the pure white building in the distance.

Tokonosu City Marine Science Research Institute!

He and Alice had spent two days flying from New York to sweltering Tokyo, then taken a train to Tokonosu City and located the Marine Science Research Institute precisely.

The moment he saw the institute, Xiao Miao knew he had come to the right place. After all, what normal person built a research institute like a fortress?

The institute backed onto the sea, with only one main road for entry and exit. Its guard posts resembled machine-gun bunkers, and numerous armed personnel patrolled back and forth.

Xiao Miao and Alice were indeed physically superior to ordinary people, but they were still no match for firearms. With no weapons on their side, a direct assault was far from the best option.

They had to outsmart them!

Of course, Xiao Miao could have gone all in on Alice's Fate value and prayed for a character card suited to the current situation. But the strong possessed luck without relying on it. He intended to try breaking the deadlock on his own first.

A trace of fragrance mingled with the salty tang of the sea breeze. Xiao Miao turned his head and saw Alice returning from scouting the other side.

Alice wore a pure white dress today, straw-woven flip-flops, and a sun hat, looking every bit like a young tourist.

Xiao Miao wore sunglasses and beach shorts. Together with Alice, he posed as a young couple on vacation without the slightest sense of incongruity.

If there was anything discordant about it, it was that white women looked older. Xiao Miao had only just turned eighteen in this life and was handsome enough that many girls who came to flirt with him secretly said Alice was an old cow eating young grass, utterly shameless.

Alice sat down across from Xiao Miao, picked up the cold drink on the table, and gulped down a mouthful. Looking toward the screaming boy on the beach, she asked, "What happened to him?"

"A young pilot tried to explore uncharted territory and crashed."

Alice only half understood, but quickly skipped over the subject. "Things don't look good. The institute's external defenses are strong, and we don't have the building plans. A direct assault would be too difficult."

Xiao Miao nodded. "So, we need to find someone relevant and learn more about the situation."

"You mean Ichiro Shido? But he's an important member of Congress. His whereabouts are strictly confidential, and we couldn't even find information about his family."

Xiao Miao gave a mysterious smile. "Relax. I know where his eldest son works. We'll act this afternoon."

Alice froze. "How do you know that? Wait, is this some special ability of you Travelers of All Heavens?"

The identity of Travelers of All Heavens was no secret. Alice was no fool, and the two of them would need to work closely together later, so Xiao Miao had simply found an opportunity to reveal his identity.

Alice had been a little angry at the time. Thinking back to when they had first met, she had felt like an idiot, so she turned her anger into motivation and drained Xiao Miao dry twice.

"You can understand it that way." Xiao Miao nodded. "No time to lose. Let's get moving."

At three thirty in the afternoon, a crisp bell rang throughout the campus. The security guard at Fujimi Academy pushed open the steel gates, and high school students carrying schoolbags streamed out one after another.

School was over!

Hot wind swept through the streets and formed an upward current at the school entrance. The girls' skirts were lifted by the airflow, revealing an indescribable mysterious realm, prompting shrieks and the boys' sighs of admiration.

At the street corner, an ordinary Toyota Corolla was parked by the roadside. Xiao Miao and Alice sat inside, silently watching the crowd pour through the gates.

Alice waved a hand before Xiao Miao's eyes. "What are you looking at? Your eyes are practically popping out."

"My lost youth."

"?"

More than ten minutes later, Xiao Miao's eyes lit up.

"Attention. The target has appeared!"

Alice perked up and followed Xiao Miao's gaze. A black Crown slowly drove out of the campus. In the driver's seat sat a lean man with a slicked-back Japanese businessman's hairstyle. It was Koichi Shido.

The Crown drove ahead at a leisurely speed, while Xiao Miao followed behind in the car, silently searching for an opportunity to make his move.

The goddess of luck seemed to have secretly lifted her skirt, and the opportunity quickly arrived. The Crown turned a corner and drove into a narrow alley.

The walls on both sides of the alley appeared to be the outer walls of a swordsmanship dojo, with no surveillance cameras installed. The alley was practically the perfect stretch for murder, robbery, or playing the creep.

Xiao Miao slammed the accelerator to the floor. The cheap Corolla immediately let out a roar and viciously rammed the rear of the Crown, which was worth three times as much.

Bang!

Inside the Crown, Koichi Shido felt a powerful force slam him backward, pinning him hard against his seat.

At the same time, in the dojo next door, a purple-haired high school girl who had just arrived home suddenly raised her head. "What was that sound?"

The noise had sounded very close. After a moment of hesitation, Saeko Busujima picked up a wooden sword and followed the sound.

He had been rear-ended!

Koichi Shido's face twisted in fury, his heart bleeding.

Ever since he had fallen out with his father a few years ago, this car had become his most valuable asset. At his current official salary, he simply could not afford the repairs!

Seeing the Corolla that had hit him through the rearview mirror, a cold glint flashed through Koichi Shido's eyes. He swore he would make the other party pay until they went bankrupt.

Koichi Shido pushed open the door and got out, only to see a sexy beauty walking gracefully toward him. The furious expression on his face instantly vanished, replaced by a practiced fake smile.

The beauty even seemed to be European or American. If he could get his hands on her...

Shido's imagination ran wild in an instant. Then he saw the beauty draw closer and suddenly pull out a white handkerchief, pressing it over his face.

Shido: "!!!"

With his frail physique, he had no chance of reacting to Alice's sudden attack. The drugged handkerchief covered his nose and mouth. After struggling twice, his eyes rolled back, and he passed out.

Xiao Miao stepped forward and helped Alice carry Shido into the car. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the Fate Dice at the end of the alley.

[Story Character: Saeko Busujima]

[Current Bond: Level 1 (Stranger)]

[Draw Cost: 50 Fate Value]

"Who's there? Come out," Xiao Miao shouted.

Saeko Busujima slowly emerged from behind the wall, one hand gripping her wooden sword tightly and the other holding her phone.

"Who are you? Let go of Teacher Shido now, or I'll call the police!"

Although Saeko Busujima disliked Koichi Shido, she still bravely stepped forward. It had nothing to do with any other factor; she merely wanted to uphold the justice she believed in, or perhaps atone for the bloody secret buried deep within her heart.

Xiao Miao smiled and flashed his driver's license. "Hello, miss. Don't be nervous. We aren't good... Ahem, we aren't bad people."

"Actually, we're secret police from America. You know, the FBI that often appears at the beginning of movies. Koichi Shido is our target."

Beside him, Alice secretly rolled her eyes.

This guy was fooling another pretty girl again. Who knew how many women would fall for that silver tongue of his?