The next morning.
Kaim watched the sunrise from the Gym leader's office, sipping his coffee.
"Whew."
"Good morning, Mr. Kaim."
The manager called out from behind him. The manager had gone home last night and was now arriving for work.
"Oh, good morning."
"...How are things?"
"Not good."
"Is it the girl who solved the problem last time?"
Kaim turned around, bringing the cup to his lips with a wry smile.
"I've called her over. Hopefully, we can settle this today."
Kaim said so himself, but he doubted it would happen. Before, there had been only one boy; now, there were many people. It was hard to imagine Hikari could handle this alone.
"When is that girl arriving?"
"Around noon, apparently."
"Then please get some proper rest until then."
Kaim had been on the move almost constantly since starting work. There was too much to do-protecting new victims, confirming their identities, and coordinating with public agencies-and almost no time to rest. Things had finally settled down in the early hours, so he had taken a break.
"I've been up all night."
"Then please get some rest."
"Yeah. But before that, there's something else I need to do."
Kaim finished his coffee and set the cup on the desk. The manager tilted their head, not understanding what he meant. Seeing this, Kaim answered with his usual expressionless face.
"If you're prepared, there's no need to worry."
Hearing Kaim's words, the manager still tilted their head in bewilderment.
After returning home, I took a nap. When I woke up, the sun was almost at its peak. I had slept longer than expected, but thanks to that, I felt almost perfectly healthy.
When I got dressed and left the bedroom, I heard voices downstairs. I descended the stairs and entered the living room