Chapter 16: Digging
12:45 PM (Philippines Time), Monday October the 24th…
"… Aibou? News."
"Hmmm? Did you find something?"
"I managed to uncover one of their sleepers."
"Where?"
"Sapporo police…"
"Sapporo police… What rank?"
"Lowest rank. But good at computers."
"I see. An insider to infiltrate the police network and figure out what they actually know about them."
"I tipped them off with the evidence and they've arrested the man. They're interrogating him."
"Fine."
Eisei stepped into the throne room to report to Kuroban, who wasn't too surprised by the news but he didn't seem interested in the first place.
He was impatiently tapping the right armrest with his fingers as well and his mood didn't seem to be the best.
"D-did something happen?"
"Slur called me. That Void rascal has made the move we were expecting the man to do at last…" He grumbled.
"The report…?"
"Sent a photocopy to Hikari's place in a package by post along with a printed threat… If he and Rock Man get in the way of their plans, he's going to send it to the media. Typical of a damned coward." He fumed.
"T-that's…" Eisei began to argue.
"Chut!" Kuroban scolded.
Eisei gulped and shut up while Kuroban paid attention but the only sounds were those of the waves and the seagulls.
"The walls might have ears." He whispered.
"Devil."
"I've got Ernst and another 2 searching every nook and cranny in the inside and the outside. If needed I'm going to take my robot apart to make sure they haven't built one inside of it."
"But how they install those without us noticing?"
"Maybe they sent a stealth Navi to do the job for them."
"Then it makes sense."
"Anyway. Keep on digging. Take care of the small fry. I'm saving my energies for the big fishes."
"O-okay."
"And remember… Don't bother others. I have eyes on you the whole time so it's useless to try to play the "coincidence" card. If you don't want me to get further pissed off than this then… Behave."
"R-roger! L-later!"
Eisei ran off as if fearing to be the target of Kuroban's annoyance, who sighed and sat back on the chair while tapping the armrest.
Not like it has too much of a consequence. Hikari and Rock Man can intervene using that trump card! Hmpf… Why bother to threaten them if they quit the Cyber CID years ago? The fool must lack info. Must think they're still "heroes"… Wrong! Focusing on that, though, will make you lower the guard. We have more than enough power to crush you and whatever plots you're up to!
"Prince? It's me, Umisama."
"Come in."
"Yes, sir. I finished my underwater inspection. Our sensors are working and I found no anomalies in them. I did go over their coding as well. There was nothing extra or abnormal." Umisama reported.
"Good. Did you find anything out of place?"
"Nothing, sir."
"Alright. Good work. You're dismissed."
"With your leave, sir."
Umisama bowed and stepped out of the room while Kuroban rubbed his chin.
"Let's wait for the other 2 reports."
"Sir? It's me, Kisei."
"Come in."
Kisei came in and next and saluted, but Kuroban indicated that he needn't so he lowered the arm.
"I searched the beach and dug around but found nothing. I escalated the walls and checked all possible spots but found nothing. I also kept an eye on the seagulls but all of them were real and had no weird attachments to them." Kisei reported.
"What about the palm trees?"
"Checked them as well but there was nothing odd."
"Good. Was there anything that appealed as odd? Anything?"
"Not really, sir."
"Alright. You can leave."
"Roger, sir."
"And this isn't the military. Don't bother with that salute." Kuroban added.
"Understood, sir."
Kisei also left and Ernst came in next, so Kuroban climbed down from the throne to speak with him.
"So, Ernst… Any luck?"
"I found a Spark Bee flying in the central tube but it self-deleted when I tried to come closer. I found nothing else in there and did check the robot as well but it had nothing. I found no outgoing signals either."
"So they used a Virus to listen in. I was right that we were being listened. Now that we've found that out they'll either give up or try with another means." Kuroban guessed.
"I see. Should I do anything else?"
"Check the aerial space over the base and the surroundings as well! You never know."
"Roger, sir. Immediately, sir."
"Good. If you find anything then, if possible, try to capture it for analysis and if you can't then don't blame yourself."
"Understood, sir."
Ernst began to head for the doorway when he ducked as a bang rang out and a bullet hit the wall.
Kuroban rushed to the door and found Spiral there with a Makarov gun on the right hand.
He'd put on an IR scope and was now aiming for Kuroban's forehead, so he dashed forward as the Aristeros Shield formed in front of him.
Spiral unloaded his whole clip against the shield, but all rounds bounced off its surface.
Kuroban tackled the man and had him crash against the opposite wall, where he held him there by force as he formed the Dexia Sword and sliced the gun in half.
Ernst was still frozen in that position, his face contracted into angst.
He managed to recover as he directed a hatred-filled glare at Spiral who seemed to gulp, even.
"T-this thing…! It's my enemy…!" He began to hiss.
"… Ernst! Discipline!" Kuroban ordered.
"Y-yes, sir!" He snapped out of it.
"W-what's with that kid?" Spiral gasped.
"Nothing of your filthy business, Red Grant wannabe."
"Don't put me in that same boat as that deranged idiot!" Spiral grumbled.
"Why not? KGB and SMERSH were buddy-buddy."
"Damn!"
"Very daring of you to try to kill one of my men in front of my eyes! Did Void think that'd be enough to stop us?"
"Of course! Else I wouldn't have come!"
"Hmpf. Then that man is stupider than I thought."
"His Grace is a genius!"
"No. Just a copycat."
"Copycat! His Grace! Damn you, you brat!"
"I'm 26. I'm an adult wherever I go to." Kuroban drily replied.
"You filthy lot deserve something worse than Hell…" Ernst icily muttered as if to himself.
"Ernst! Behave!" Kuroban ordered.
"… Yes, sir."
"I can handle this. Go ring the alarm. Tell all members to be in DH form and be on their toes. Maybe that Seed woman's come as well to try to kill one of us. Use Dream Aura or any other Barrier-type Battle Card to shield from guns!" Kuroban ordered.
"Roger, sir!"
Ernst ran off towards the right while Kuroban aimed his Dexia Sword to make it touch Spiral's neck.
"So. Spoiled KGB man. Is that all you can do? You weakling." He taunted.
"S-spoiled! Me!"
"I read your KGB file. The whole of it."
"Should've been burnt up when the KGB died! Damned fools! SEED!"
"I heard you already." Seed sighed over the radio.
There was the blinding flash followed by a burst of noise and Spiral was warped out of the place, so Kuroban lowered his weapons.
"Hmpf. If you want war then we'll give it to you. Throw your best at me, Void. I'm going to crush it with my arts." He icily muttered.
I guess what happened to Ernst… That gun stole his mother's life years ago! It was going to steal his! No wonder his hatred surged out like that… Ernst… Don't lose hold of yourself. I won't let these bastards make fun of your disgraces… I swear! I'm going to destroy them!
"We're ready, Prince!"
End Angel ran in followed by Ruthless Vine and Blue Wave.
"The enemy fled. Keep searching. Just in case it's a feint and that they're lurking elsewhere. Ernst. You stay here at my side. Make a deep breath. And slowly exhale."
End Angel shivered and grimaced as parts of his form began to self-delete.
"Ernst… I know what it means to you but… We can't change the past."
"I knew that! Prince! But! Seeing that in front of my eyes…!"
Ernst collapsed into his knees and began to cry while Kuroban crouched next to him and sighed.
Damn. How can I console him? No words will… Damned cowards!
17:01 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Another day ends."
"Sure."
"Today was intense."
"I know… I need strawberry milk!"
"I'd rather have water."
"It's only begun…! What horror!"
"Oh come on. Dekao. It's just having patience."
"Forget it, Netto – kun. He's never had it."
"Good point."
The Akihara High 1 – A class group were chatting as they prepared to leave after the day's classes.
Netto and Saito were calm, Meiru was a bit tired, Yaito sighed from tiredness, Hikawa was muttering aloud and Dekao looked terrified at the difficulty level.
"So, Roll? Did anything happen?"
"Not really. Nothing." Roll replied.
"Nothing, desu."
"I have heard of no happenings." Glyde reported.
"Guts, guts! Guts Man met Number Man! Got Rare Chip! De guts!"
"Really? Show it to me!" Dekao eagerly ordered.
"Guts, guts. It's a Mini Bomb, de guts."
"MINI BOMB?" He gasped.
"I think Guts Man got the idea that it's a Rare Chip! I don't see Number Man as the type to scam like that." Roll guessed.
"I thought that Number Man's Chips were all Rare Chips, de guts."
"They aren't. Mini Bomb is a common Chip." Roll sighed.
"Sorry, Roll – chan! De guts!" He apologized.
"Don't worry." Roll shrugged.
"Speaking of which… There was a poster saying that they sold "Digging Chips" but I am not sure what they were." Glyde recalled.
"Maybe it's a rip-off from Pokémon." Hikawa shrugged.
"Surely." Netto wasn't surprised.
"By the way… Did the fellows drop by with the 6:66 PM express from Yucatán?" Meiru asked with a grin.
"Not Alfred again…" Netto groaned.
"Is there a point to it, Meiru – chan?" Saito asked.
"Who knows?"
"Cha do." Roll sighed.
"Let's not end up like the other day."
"I don't intend do."
"Pride alone doesn't guarantee victory." Yaito warned.
"I know! It's just that…! I feel frustrated." She admitted.
"We all do. But we don't take it out on others as if they were to blame for that." Hikawa told her.
"Guess you've got a point. Maybe it's just this heavy air on the classroom. Some fresh air will do well. Let's go."
The group exited the classroom, walked down the corridor, down the stairs and into the hall where they changed their shoes.
"OK. We're now going to meet up with Raito so… See you tomorrow morning!"
"Bye!"
Both of them headed in the direction of the middle school and soon met up with Raito on the usual spot.
"Sorry. Did we keep you waiting?" Netto asked.
"Not really. I've just arrived as well." Raito admitted.
Saito frowned when he noticed a figure wearing a trench coat, hat and sunglasses leaning on the wall next to a light post and reading the newspapers.
Netto – kun. Be on your toes. There's a suspicious man.
I know. I noticed.
Let's not call it to Raito – kun's attention. So that he doesn't get afraid.
OK.
"Let's go."
The three of them began to head for their houses as the man began to follow them without bothering to hide in the first place.
Netto began to talk about something with Raito while Saito kept watch from time to time.
"… and if you build up energy you can deliver further damage using the bat: it's one of the sure-kill moves!" He was telling him with energy.
"I noticed, yes."
Oriol. Do you hear me?
What's up, Saito?
We've got a stalker.
What! A stalker!?
Not sure who they are. Or what their game is. Can you send Legato to stalk the man and try to figure out who they are?
Sure. The stalker gets stalked.
Talk about irony. It's like "the hunter got hunted"… Or "the hunter gets hunted"…
Sure thing. Wait a couple minutes.
Alright.
Saito heard a familiar sound and although no – one was visible he could perceive Legato trailing the man from behind them.
Gotcha, ugly.
"Captain Falcon always challenges you with his "show me your moves!"… It means that he wants you to show what you've got."
"I see. I was wondering what it meant, yes." Raito admitted with a smile.
What do you make out of it, Legato?
Doesn't seem to hold a weapon of any kind. Maybe it's a proxy who's here to see if that threat is having any effect on you guys' morale or not. Maybe he'll use this guy's observations as basis to increase the threat or come up with a new one. Legato suggested.
What do you say about it, Oriol?
Let's not involve Raito – kun or you 2. Legato! Wait until they all get to their homes and then discreetly handle the matter. Even if this man's a proxy he should have some means to report to the next man in the command chain. Maybe it's WhatsApp.
Roger that, sir.
"So then! See you tomorrow."
"Thank you very much."
"You needn't!"
They parted ways with Raito and headed for their home, where Netto unlocked the door and they stepped in.
"We're home!"
"Welcome back!" Haruka greeted back.
They calmly took off their shoes and put on the slippers before heading to their room.
They took out the materiel and Netto began to work with in on the desk while Saito used a small table set on the center of the room to work.
Alright. Legato! Time for some action.
Saito grabbed his PET (colored green and white) and turned it on.
"Let's see Legato in action."
FPS (first person view) of the man's back appeared and a Neo Variable Sword could be seen pressed against the back.
"Chut."
"Yikes!" The man gasped in a hush.
"Who are you?" Legato questioned.
"M-m-m-me~?"
"Shadow Nova? Answer me or I'm going to have you buy a new coat because I'll turn it into lil pieces here and now." Legato threatened.
"YIKES! Yes, I am!"
"A proxy."
"Y-yes! A proxy!"
"Who's your boss?"
"M-magnum!"
"Contact means?"
"T-that's… I write it on paper and leave it on a dead mailbox… A small cavity in the NE corner of the nearby 7-Eleven…! I don't know anything else…! I check that place every 3 days to find a paper with orders…!"
"Fine. Flee and don't ever come back. I'm the Grim Reaper!"
"HELP ME~!"
The man fled while tossing the newspaper and Legato turned invisible again.
"Going to check it out, sir." He told Kuroshiro.
"Go for it. We've got a lead. Small one but will do." Kuroshiro chuckled.
"Magnum? Talk about an original codename." Netto snickered.
"Sure thing. They felt inspired by Alfred." Saito laughed.
"And Uncle Moran." Kuroshiro laughed next.
"What happened?" Haruka asked.
"Some mister saw a wild cat and thought it had the rabies."
"Or maybe he was allergic to them and fears them."
"I see. Allergies are a bad thing indeed. Luckily I don't think I ever had any particular allergy." Haruka distractedly muttered.
She headed off the room and the twins shrugged as they began to get ready to work on the homework.
"This looks like it could take some time." Netto muttered.
"Don't worry. Let's just focus on it and we'll soon have it done."
"Of course."
"By the way… Do you know of something named "Digging Chips", guys?"
"Probably that scammer's newest scam."
"Thought as much. OK. I'll tell Zero to toss it into the spam folder."
"You know the drill. Crash, mix, burn."
"Sure. Drebin is gonna handle it like a pro."
"And the monkey will dance to celebrate victory!"
19:46 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Man. I'd never guessed you were that much of a masochist, Atarasei. To the point that you wanted to do it with me."
"I wanted something different for once in a while."
"That outfit must've cost a small fortune!"
"I bought it on secret. I actually used some money from the Seraphs that I once hacked time ago."
"You thought they deserved it!"
"Sure…"
"What about that dead mailbox?"
"We've placed a fake report there. Nobody's come to pick it up yet but maybe they come when the store closes."
"Makes sense."
Enzan was having sex with Ataresei on his apartment's bedroom bed and they were talking in the meanwhile.
Atarasei had put on a black leather outfit consisting on a thick collar, a short torso-length vest with holes to expose the nipples, lines running down the rest of his upper body while forming a diamond shape, a circular band tightening the base of his cock, long gloves and boots.
He currently had his hands behind his back immobilized with a few slabs of chains having a padlock tying them together.
Enzan was beneath him, stuffing his cock into Atarasei's ass (above him) while teasing his nipples with the hands.
"By the way, Ijuuin… Did you properly broom the place? We don't want those bastards to blackmail us next, right?" Atarasei asked.
"Blues and I spent the whole afternoon going over every nook and cranny and found nothing. We searched outside the apartment and into the space between walls too. Nothing at all."
"Alright. Let's not talk about important stuff aloud just in case. You never know." Atarasei warned.
"OK."
"We already said that of the dead mailbox."
"True. We should've thought of it before."
"Guess that…"
"What did you do with Alex?"
"He stayed at Purgatory. He wanted to work out at the gym for a while!"
"I see. I sent Blues to inspect the surroundings and when he's done he'll go stake out that dead mailbox."
"OK. We sent Cosmo Man."
"Let's hope Blues doesn't get in the mood over what happened in the past with the guy."
"True. Maybe we should send Tom or Victor instead?"
"Guess that. He's never interacted with them so…"
"But you know… Hikari's taking it pretty well despite that threat from those rascals…"
"Hikari's not the type to be easily intimidated."
"Interesting."
"Do you know anything we don't know?"
"According to Slur – sama… That Spiral guy showed up at the Shunoros HQ and almost managed to kill one of them but the Prince easily beat the guy and made a run for it. Talk about close." Atarasei explained with a sigh.
"Devil. They're getting dangerous. Resorting to killing, even."
"Maybe it's a sign that they're desperate to stall for more time and achieve their goal, whatever it is."
"Classical!"
"Or to renew their public image after the shame that the failed Bangkok attack brought with it."
"Guess that. Proxies are indeed proxies! Cowards, morons, and easily handled. If we can manage to figure out the chain of command then we could get a clue to their whereabouts." Enzan muttered.
"Sure."
"By the way… You've never felt jealous of that guy?"
"No. At all. Unlike that guy, I never felt any real attachment! Guess Dullahan's to blame for that. Wanted to make sure I would be merciless on them. I was. I knew from the start that I was no more than a pawn to see if it was possible to absorb Forte's power and once I could the rascal was surely intending to backstab me and get that power for his useless hide. That's why I turned the tables instead!" Atarasei replied.
"Damn it. I can't shake off the feeling that we're being either watched or listened."
"Say… Maybe we should recall Blues and tell the guy to patrol the apartment once again… Maybe it's not something set on a fixed spot: maybe it's a Virus somewhere else that's listening in… Maybe beyond that door, even!" He looked at the bedroom's door.
"Luckily, I left my PET just right here… Blues! Do you copy?" He called out.
"Yes, Enzan – sama."
"Come back to the apartment and sweep it again. I can't shake off this feeling unless you're here to reassure me there's nothing spying on us!"
"Roger that, sir."
"Start by the corridor outside the bedroom."
"Understood, sir."
"And don't come in unless I tell you to do so."
"Roger, sir."
Enzan grabbed the PET, which he'd left to his right and issued some orders before leaving it on its place and continuing to play with Atarasei.
Enzan released inside of the guy so he took his cock out and grabbed a dildo, which he stuffed into Atarasei's ass to then turn it on at the lowest speed.
"Teasing me, Ijuuin?"
"Sure thing. Now you'll do me a neat blowjob."
"Sure. I missed those. Go ahead, Danna – sama~…"
Enzan placed his knees to the sides of Atarasei's neck and gripped his head from behind to have him begin to suck his cock.
He set the pace and Atarasei closed his eyes as he followed him, while Enzan saw how Atarasei's cock was getting hard again.
"The dildo's taking effect!"
Atarasei shrugged while Enzan kept on setting the pace before he and released while filling up his mouth.
Enzan rubbed Atarasei's cock to harden it and then placed his body over it.
"I'm going to have a ride!"
"OK!"
He slid it inside of his own ass and began to move up and down while he increased the dildo's speed with a remote, skipping the middle speed, and jumping to the fastest speed all of a sudden.
Atarasei groaned and shuddered as his cock got harder and Enzan rode on it while rubbing his own cock.
"Get ready to be showered! Shower time!"
Enzan released and some spurts landed on Atarasei's face, and his own released tightened Atarasei's cock and he released as well.
Enzan pulled it out and then gripped Atarasei to rub his nipples against each other, so both groaned as their cocks rubbed against each other too.
"Too good, man!"
Enzan began to kiss Atarasei who replied.
They let the passion guide them as they kissed and soon released.
"Not bad." Enzan chuckled.
"I was right on choosing ya, Ijuuin. You're the hard type."
"Hard type? What about Legato?"
"Legato's quite the active guy but doesn't go too hard. Guess he saves his energies for Saito instead."
"Obviously. Blues! Status report."
"Yes, Enzan – sama. I checked the wi-fi and the phone carrier signals."
"And found no weird data mixed in with the outgoing signals?"
"Nothing, sir. I scanned everything with IR and X-Ray. Save the bedroom and the bathroom, that is."
"Good point. Maybe there's something under the bed. I'm going to check it out myself. You go over the firewall configuration and make sure nothing's out of place and that there aren't any weird exceptions in the exception list." Enzan ordered.
"Acknowledged, sir."
"I feel so good, man. Your dick's not that bad either. But Legato's a bit thicker, even." He chuckled.
"No wonder. I'm going to unlock that."
Enzan unlocked the padlock so Atarasei stretched his arms and got to his feet while Enzan sat on the bed's edge.
He pulled out the already stopped dildo and brought it with him to the adjacent bathroom to cleanse it.
He hummed a tune as he did so while Enzan put on his black pajamas and slippers.
"OK. I'm gonna dress up. Wait a couple minutes." He told Enzan as he headed for the bathroom.
"Fine."
Atarasei locked the bathroom door as he dressed up again while Enzan hummed a tune and turned on the lights.
He checked the underside of the bed with the PET and found nothing odd so he began to scan the walls and the ceiling where there was nothing either.
"OK! All done. Could you keep custody of this? I don't want Alex to get the wrong idea about it."
He handed Enzan a brown suitcase, which had the stuff inside of it.
"Sure thing. Come back anytime, stranger."
"Bio 4? Well then. See ya around, Ijuuin!"
"Of course, Atarasei. See you soon"
Atarasei opened the door and exited into the flat's corridor, where Blues was calmly looking around.
"Hiya, Blues! Did ya get rid of some useless weaklings?"
"Sure. They didn't even last 3 seconds." He dully replied.
"That's the spirit. Blues musou!"
"Musou? Peerless? Why not. Like the games." He got amused.
"I'm going hiking into the rolling climbing!" He made up a tongue-twister.
"Not bad. Patent it."
"Sure thing! Ciao! Hasta la vista!"
"Go bust them!"
23:23 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Chut! Someone's coming…"
"It must be our man."
"You're faster than me. Go seize them. I'll set up a Dream Aura around you just in case there's a sniper or an accomplice."
"Alright."
Blues and Cosmo Man had been staking out a closed down 7-Eleven store while hiding using stealth camouflage.
They noticed a figure walking towards the store and they whispered to each other about the course to take.
Blues swiftly and silently ran towards there and approached the figure as they stopped in the SE corner and slid the right hand inside of a small cavity.
Blues gripped the man's neck and brusquely pulled his left arm backwards.
"Silence. Speak. You're Magnum, no?"
"T-that's right…!" He nervously admitted.
"Who's your Boss?"
"Lord Spiral…!"
"Already? Talk about a short chain. Fine. Contact means?"
"Can't say it!"
"I've got someone with me who set up a Dream Aura. No sniper and no gunman can hit you now. Speak." Blues replied.
"But I'll be killed nevertheless!"
"Not if we pretend to be you."
"The post…! A letter addressed to the Russian Embassy in Stockholm… Someone there receives it and then sends it to Lord Spiral…!"
"What's that man's name?"
"Name's Vladimir Apostrov…!" He whispered in a rush.
"And how do Spiral's orders reach you?"
"A letter is sent to the Russian Consulate in Kyoto! I must go collect it every Monday…!"
"They ID you?"
"No! The gateman is one of the org! Places it on a nearby Family Mart's dead mailbox! And that's where I must go collect it while leaving behind a paper with the words "OK" to acknowledge I got it…"
"I see. Spiral must use his position as former KGB to influence there and there. Fine. We're taking you under custody and we'll replace you for a while… Bring the car!" He called out.
Superintendent Oda and a couple of officers stepped down from a black Toyota with the lights off that had been parked nearby.
"By Merton! This is a golden chance. We're not going to let it escape! Did you make sure the perimeter is safe?" He asked.
"I did. There are no humans, Navis, Viruses or machines in a 500 meters radius. I called for Shade Man to inspect the skies as well while Freeze Man is inspecting the sewers as well. They've got no reason to suspect this." Cosmo Man became visible and talked to them.
"Roger. The car's got bullet-proof windows too. Let's go."
They cuffed Magnum and had him sit down on the rear seat with both officers taking custody.
Oda grabbed the fake report with a handkerchief to make sure Magnum's fingerprints remained on it while Blues entered the car's Cyber World and began to keep watch as the car drove off.
Cosmo Man stayed behind and scanned the area again.
"Shade Man? What's the status? Over."
"Nothing in the air." Shade Man calmly replied.
"Nothing here either." Freeze Man added.
"Alright. I'll follow the car just in case there's something at some point along the route. You should do the same."
"Roger." Both replied.
Cosmo Man hovered and began to follow the car as it drove across the silent night city.
Nothing happened at all and, after a while, it reached the Net Police HQ safely, so the passengers stepped down and the officers escorted Magnum elsewhere while Oda walked towards Meijin and Enzan, who were there.
"Blues told you already. We've got a golden chance here."
"This must be compartmentalized." Blues warned.
"I agree. We'll tell Slur – sama. No – one else should be told. Make sure that the officers don't say a word about it either. If someone asks, say that you've caught a thief in a location totally unrelated. No – one will bother if it was a petty thief." Cosmo Man suggested.
"Good idea. I'll take care of that. You guys should bring this to the post and dispatch it. Then send someone to go watch over that Russian fellow. To see how he makes that report reach Spiral. Maybe Spiral comes over at the embassy with total impunity and just retrieves it. Maybe the Ambassador is in league, too."
"True. We're going to mobilize immediately. This is our best chance."
We're getting closer…! We're going to turn you into DUST! Enzan inwardly muttered.
"By the way… Ijuuin – kun. Come to my office. There's something I wanted to talk with you. Meijin – kun, you can go rest already."
"Thank you, sir. I don't think I'll be able to with this tension. It's too high and I feel it making my skin tingle." Meijin admitted with a sigh as he barely held back a yawn.
"The letter will take at least 1 or 2 days to be delivered. So we'll have to wait nevertheless. We can tip off the Sapporo police and they investigate the gateman themselves… Let's leave that Russian in hands of Golden Star too… So go have some rest." Oda told him.
"Roger, sir. Good night, sir."
"See ya!" Punk replied.
"Follow me, Ijuuin – kun."
They climbed into the elevator and headed into Oda's office.
Enzan shut the door while Oda opened a drawer and drew a device to check the room.
"It's a mike detector. Looks like we're safe. Just in case I'll use this jamming device to block all incoming and outgoing signals. This way we'll make sure to be able to freely talk without being overheard. Tell Blues to stand watch on the entrance just in case. And to check the adjacent spaces as well." He ordered.
"Roger, sir. Blues."
"Acknowledged, Enzan – sama."
Blues left the PET and Oda drew the jammer, turned it on and then leant forward.
"Ijuuin – kun. I think you know something you haven't told me. Involving Hikari – kun." He began.
"…By the way, sir… Did Uncle Melon bless us?"
"Uncle Merton sure did." He seemingly realized what Enzan meant.
"I'm sorry, sir. I just wanted to make sure you were the real one. That of the Greek guys has still left paranoia on me."
"No wonder. You took part in the final battle against that behemoth, right?" Oda asked him next.
"No, I didn't. I felt like it was beyond my power, for once."
"Good. That confirms you're the real one. No – one but you or Hikari – kun apart from me would know that. It's not recorded either."
"As you suspected, sir… I knew it… That Hikari is Kage. He doesn't need to worry about the threat because he can oppose them as Golden Star's Kage and be unrelated to Hikari. Maybe they'll think Kage is doing it for Hikari's sake but since it'd be his initiative then their threat can't take effect there." Enzan explained.
"I see. The "Kage" who was his classmate years ago… That was Kuroshiro – kun, right? I realized because after that incident with the Latvian some months ago, he called Hikari – hakase and I was witness to it… He talked about him as if he knew him well… And I realized."
"Kuroshiro and he made up a plan years ago so that Hikari could recover from his depression following the incident that the fools who wrote that damned report staged. He staying as a classmate for a whole year would help establish that Kage and Hikari were separate persons. There was a whole class and a whole school who could confirm that. After Kuroshiro staged his "disappearance", that was when Hikari began to assume that other ID of himself…"
"I see. If it helped him recover from that tragic incident and gave him new allies and the motivation to keep fighting for those he cared about then I don't have anything to complain about. He needed a confident who could support him. He's managed to find a reasonable balance between his work at Golden Star and his studies which is very commendable as well. That's all I wanted to ask of you. You may go rest, Ijuuin – kun. Busy days ahead of us."
"Indeed, sir. Well, Blues?"
"Nothing odd happened and I found nothing odd either."
"Maybe they realize we would expect them to spy on us and didn't bother to set up anything." Oda shrugged.
"Alright. I'll be going back home. Good evening, sir."
"Good evening. I'll call you once we've got any news."
"Understood, sir."
"Good evening, sir." Blues added.
"Have proper rest. Things are about to turn hectic. I've got that hunch and my hunch tends to be correct most of the time."
Enzan nodded in understanding and left while Oda sighed and turned off the jammer to check the PC and made sure that it was still off.
I pulled out the power wire and the Ethernet wire too. There's cello tape all around the edges so that it can't be opened without taking it out. Even if they replaced it with new one, there'd be traces of it. We have a powerful lead. It's about time we finish this pointless battle. Before civilians are harmed… Hikari – kun. Do your best! Don't let your emotions cloud your judgment either… You must be rational… I believe in your potential! I never stopped believing on it… Go for it!
"Superintendent?"
"What is it, Meijin - kun?"
"It's odd."
"What is?" He gasped.
"That Magnum had a Rolex."
"You're telling me it has GPS, a bug, or…?"
"Insofar doesn't seem to be the case. But the odd part is…"
"What is?"
"That it's got Russian written underneath it. Punk translated it and it reads "I'm an idiot"…"
"Oh come on. That must be some joke Spiral came up with."
"Good point. Guess that proves the man IS arrogant."
"Of course. Don't worry about it. We're about to close on them, at last!"
Once we deal with them, I'll be a step closer to find the "spy"…!