Miwa Chisei was still mulling over the secret behind "whoosh, swish, smack" when she received a call from Mei Mei.
"Little Qianxing, are you at Jujutsu High?"
Mei Mei sounded quite cheerful. She certainly hadn't called Chisei just to chat; this was probably business involving "information."
"I'm on my way back to the dorm."
"Good. I'll come see you in a bit. We've got a job."
Chisei had to marvel at how dedicated Mei Mei was to business. It had only been a day, after all.
When Mei Mei came to see Chisei at the dorm, she wasn't wearing her Jujutsu High uniform, but an ordinary light gray women's suit.
The fitted cut accentuated her fine figure, and she had pinned up all her hair, giving her the air of a young office worker.
"Were you out talking business, Mei Mei?"
Mei Mei accepted the tea Chisei had just brewed, then nodded with a smile.
"Does dressing like this make you seem more approachable in business meetings?"
Chisei had taken off her sunglasses by then. Her scarlet eyes held a composure that didn't suit her age.
But the girls at Jujutsu High weren't ordinary high school girls, and their minds weren't occupied with romance.
Shoko Ieiri also had a world-weary, languid air about her.
"I might not be able to get all the information this client wants on my own."
It was rare to hear Mei Mei say something like that, and Chisei grew curious.
"What is it about?"
Mei Mei rested her cheek on her hand, smiling gently.
"The Zenin Clan, one of the Three Great Families."
Just hearing the name was enough to give Chisei a headache. Mei Mei found the girl's expression amusing, so she continued.
"They're looking into someone named Toji Zenin. Or, more precisely, they want to investigate his offspring?"
That surprised Chisei. Given the Zenin Clan's resources, something like this should have been easy to investigate, unless they had a reason they couldn't do it openly.
"Who is he?"
But Chisei's knowledge of the Three Great Families was limited.
Mei Mei fell silent for a few seconds, then gave a meaningful smile.
"A man from the Zenin Clan with no cursed energy, but who possesses a Heavenly Restriction. After leaving the clan, he wandered around on his own."
Chisei's pupils constricted at the news. She remembered someone she had suspected of having the Zenin Clan's Heavenly Restriction.
The man who had beaten her half to death. He was absurdly strong.
Chisei pressed a hand to her forehead and sighed.
"Would he happen to be a muscular, black-haired man in his thirties?"
Mei Mei let out a surprised sound, which soon dissolved into laughter.
"You know him, little Qianxing?"
She more than knew him. From a certain perspective, they had quite a history.
"Mei Mei, gathering this information could put my life in danger."
"Hmm?"
"He's after the bounty on my head."
Mei Mei went quiet for a moment, looking Chisei up and down with a regretful expression.
"What a coincidence. All the crows I sent out were killed, so I thought it might be easier for you, little Qianxing."
If it was that man, detecting Mei Mei's surveillance wouldn't be difficult.
Chisei wasn't particularly eager to deal with someone so dangerous.
"No wonder they're paying ten million yen for a single piece of information. So he's dangerous."
"How much?"
The corners of Mei Mei's mouth curled upward as she repeated herself.
"Ten million yen."
Chisei began to agonize. If they split it thirty-seventy, wouldn't that mean she could get three million yen...? It was a sum she couldn't even imagine.
"The information they want is about his offspring, not the man himself?"
Mei Mei nodded, rubbing her fingers against the teacup decorated with bamboo.
"They seem to want to know the child's future potential as a jujutsu sorcerer."
That might be difficult for others to assess, requiring a long period of observation, but for Chisei, it was a much simpler task than she had imagined.
If possible, she only needed to approach the child, not that terrifying man.
"Mei Mei, I need your help."
At Chisei's words, Mei Mei readily nodded.
"Whatever I can do."
She had known Chisei wouldn't be able to refuse once she named the price. She hadn't intended to put a student in danger, but Chisei seemed to have something else in mind.
"I need to meet that child for about ten minutes."
Mei Mei promptly made an OK sign.
"No problem. They seem to be a blended family. Toji Zenin brought his child with him when he married into a woman's household. The stepmother usually does more of the childcare."
What a complicated family situation.
Chisei frowned. She only hoped she wouldn't run into that man.
"On weekends, the boy goes shopping with his older sister and stepmother."
Chisei nodded. "How old?"
"They both look about three or four." Mei Mei tilted her head, thinking for a moment. "But they both act like little adults."
Three or four should be easy enough to coax. That shouldn't be a problem.
Chisei thought of that absurdly powerful man. With a personality like his, she couldn't imagine him having a child.
Still, those two children probably didn't know their father was something akin to a murderer.
Chisei sighed. She had no right to interfere in another family's affairs. All she needed to do was determine the child's potential to become a jujutsu sorcerer.
She wasn't a warmhearted person. Any sympathy or emotion would remain inside her.
Early the next morning, Mei Mei's call woke Chisei from her sleep, and they drove to Saitama Prefecture.
With her extensive connections, Mei Mei arranged for Chisei to pose as a sales promoter. Her silver hair was hidden beneath a standard supermarket cap, and she wore a gaudy pair of sunglasses that made her look quite suited to a promotional event.
After telling her to look for "a deadpan little boy with black, spiky hair," Mei Mei patted Chisei on the shoulder and cheerfully went to wait in the parking lot.
Compared with the energetic sales promoters in the supermarket, Chisei looked very stiff.
She held up a ginger-shaped promotional sign without saying a word, her attention entirely focused on watching the customers.
"Megumi, the ginger you like is on sale. Let's buy some to keep at home."
A little girl's soft voice reached her, and Chisei saw a pretty, fashionably dressed woman in her thirties holding two children by the hand.
The woman stroked the little girl's cheek and gave a languid smile.
"Tsumiki, take little Megumi over to have a look. Mommy's going to grab the eggs on special."
"Okay, Mommy. I'll take good care of little Megumi."
Tsumiki Fushiguro took Megumi Fushiguro's hand, and the two walked over to Chisei on their short little legs.
Chisei's gaze met that of the "deadpan little boy with black, spiky hair," so she waggled her sign, trying to look as unsuspicious as possible.
"Ginger's on sale. Want two bags, kiddo?"
Megumi Fushiguro stared expressionlessly at the sales promoter in front of him.
She looked suspicious no matter how he looked at her.
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