Chapter 9 – Missing Sister
It takes some minutes for Makoto to finally get up and sit down at his desk.
The woman's gaze never stops following him.
"Ahem." Kyoko coughs to get the woman's attention, but she still doesn't stop staring at her partner. "So, you need our help?"
The black-haired woman nods. "Yes." She pulls something out of her pocket and puts it on Makoto's desk. "I need help finding my little sister." It's a picture of a black-haired woman with her arms around the shoulders of a redhead girl.
Makoto's previous scared expression changes to one of surprise. "So you wanted our services?" He asks and the woman nods. "Haha!" The brunette laughs in relief. "Why did you say so earlier?" Makoto smiles to her, before grabbing the picture. "Of course we'll-" Before he can finish, Kyoko snatches the picture out of his hand.
"Sorry, but we can't help you on this one." The lavender-haired woman says with her eyes closed. "We only deal with murders on this agency."
The brunette man blinks, before his smile disappears and he nods. "Oh yeah, I forgot about that."
"I'm truly sorry, but you'll have to find another agency to take care of your problem." The detective handles the picture back to the woman. "I can recommend one if you wa-" Kyoko is interrupted by the woman throwing herself at the floor and bowing.
"Please, I beg of you!" She exclaims with despair I'm her voice. "She's the only family I have!"
Kyoko sighs. "Look, we really-"
"Kirigiri-san?" Makoto interrupts her. "Can I take the case?"
The detective arches a eyebrow. "Naegi-kun?"
He look at her with a determined expression. "She's desperate and clearly needs our help." Looking at the bowing woman, the brunette offers her a hand. "You don't have to involve yourself at the case, I'll handle it alone, so please-" The woman looks at his hand, before grabbing it with her gloved one. "-let me help her?" Makoto helps the woman up and she mutters a soft 'thank you'.
The lavender-haired detective bites her lower lip and blushes, she loved when he looked at her with that determined expression. "Fine, but don't take too long." Her blush deepens when Makoto smiles back at her.
"Thank you very much, Kirigiri-san!" Smiling, he turns to the freckled woman and asks. "What's your name?"
Looking into his determined eyes, the woman can't help but blush a little. "Ikusaba-" She nods. "-Mukuro."
"Then Ikusaba-san, please tell me the details of the case." Makoto smiles and Mukuro nods.
Kyoko watches as Makoto and Mukuro get out of the door and into the elevator.
The case seems to be very simple, Mukuro had lost her younger sister closer to the forest, so they just need to help her find it.
Still, Kyoko had her suspicions, so after Makoto and the black-haired woman walked out, the detective closed the agency and hopped into her car.
First thing she thought was weird: Why did Mukuro went into a private detective instead of the police?
Second thing she thought it was weird: Mukuro's and her sister's different surnames. Ikusaba Mukuro and Otonashi Ryoko, why are they different?
Of course, that could be explained rather easily, but something just wasn't right with it.
Third thing she thought was weird: The name Ikusaba Mukuro.
Kyoko could swear she heard that name somewhere before, she just couldn't pinpoint where.
And lastly: Her smell or lack thereof.
Which to most normal people may seem weird, but not to Kyoko.
You see, succubi outside of their magic capabilities have very advanced senses, like hearing, smelling and eyesight.
Half-Succubi like Kyoko can't use their magic abilities that well, but their senses are way better than human's.
Which is why the detective is capable of distinguishing people from far away, just by their smell.
But this woman, Ikusaba Mukuro, doesn't have any.
Now, now, after years using her sense of smell, Kyoko knew that there are ways for people to hide their smells, even neutralize them.
By simply using a specific combination of perfumes, one can easily change or cut their smell entirely.
It shouldn't be impossible that Mukuro just happened to use that specific combination of perfumes.
That's where deducing skills start to question the black-haired woman.
Mukuro didn't seem like the type to wear any type of perfumes, and yes, there is a possibility that Kyoko is simply judging her based on how she's dressing and acting, but Kyoko's detective mind tends to not miss on those small details.
The lavender-haired woman stops her car in front of a old-looking building.
"Ikusaba Mukuro." Kyoko whispers herself while getting off her car. "Where have I seen that name?"
Makoto and Mukuro stop by the entrance to a trail into the forest. "So, you last saw your younger sister here?" He asks, making the black-haired woman nod.
"Yes, we are walking by here when she ran off into the forest." Mukuro replies with a neutral tone, her gaze never leaving the young man's face.
Strangely enough, Makoto was starting to not feel as uncomfortable as before when it came to her just staring at him.
"Well, no time to waste!" The brunette man starts walking into the trail, Mukuro walking just behind him.
"Ryoko-chan!" Makoto yells, his voice echoing for a bit before disappearing in the dark woods. "Is there any other clue you have that can help us find her?" He turns to face the black-haired woman.
"Ryoko-chan always liked to play by the river." She replies, staring at his eyes. "Maybe she has gone up there?"
"It's worth a shot." The brunette nods and they start walking towards the river.
"Say, Naegi-kun?" Mukuro calls from behind him.
"Yes?" Makoto replies throwing a side glance towards her.
"Why did you decide to help me?" The freckled woman asks, slight confusion in her voice. "Even though it was against your boss's order?"
Makoto stops and turns around with a smile. "Honestly? I don't really know." Looking towards the leaves gently falling off the trees, his smile turns soft. "Maybe it's because I too have a younger sister, so I just felt I had to help."
For the first time in this conversation, Mukuro's eyes change expression, to one of surprise. "You have a sister?"
The brunette nods. "Yeah, her name's Komaru." He turns around and they get back to walking. "She can be kind of annoying sometimes, but I don't know how I'll react if something like this ever happened to her."
"I see." Mukuro replies softly, before silence falls as the two keep walking.
It doesn't take too long after that exchange, for them to reach the river.
After some minutes of looking around and yelling, Makoto's phone starts vibrating. "Oh." He pulls it out of his pocket and looks at the screen. "It's Kirigiri-san." Looking back towards Mukuro, the brunette man smiles again. "I'll be right back." Walking a little bit to the side, he finally answers the call. "Yes? Kirigiri-san?"
While Makoto is distracted taking the phone call, Mukuro starts looking around, her eyes fall right into a particularly sharp rock.
The woman walks up to it and picks it up, her gaze going straight into the brunette's back.
Holding onto the rock, Mukuro starts walking towards the young man, her eyes focused on the back of his head.
Meanwhile, Makoto's eyes widen with what he just heard from Kyoko.
' Ikusaba Mukuro has been dead for over a decade now.' The detective's voice comes through the phone in a haunting way.
Ikusaba Mukuro… is dead?
Huh?
Another chapter without any smut?
Yep, but don't worry, next one is gonna have some, it might be a bit weird though.
Anyways, hope ya'll liked it and see you around!