Chapter Text
Kurane was not normally one to believe in signs… Not from some omnipotent god somewhere out there. Kanai Ward was a cesspool of corruption and darkness, where if hope ever did spring up… well. It was quickly shattered into a million, atom-sized pieces.
That’s what happened to Aiko. Aiko, who was Kurane’s ray of light in this gloomy town. She was gone, and she was never coming back. The vile witch that snuffed out her life would never face judgement for her crimes through proper channels… So Kurane had resigned herself to plotting out a murder with her ‘rivals’, Waruna and Yoshiko. Homicide seemed like the only path left open to them, if they wished to avenge Aiko’s death…
But now? Half a year after Aiko passed from this world? There were rumors of detectives snooping around Kanai Ward. Stirring up trouble for the Peacekeepers. As a realist, Kurane disregarded such rumors at first because if something was too good to be true, then it probably was fake news. Kurane would have been elated at the prospect of the ‘keepers of law and order’ in this city getting their just desserts… It’s just, there’s no way that was true. Hope did not exist in Kanai Ward, and if it did, that hope was quickly obliterated. That’s the very nature of this hellhole.
… A few days passed, and the rumors were increasing. The girls at the academy kept talking about the various detectives making waves around the city. Issue is, these were teenage girls gossiping. They tended to embellish a lot when something, or more accurately someone struck their fancy. Kurane kept ignoring the rumors, despite how pervasive they were at the academy by now.
Kurane absolutely refused to let herself dare to dream again. The last time she made that mistake, Yoshiko dug up evidence on the truth behind Aiko’s death, and they were powerless to make the Peacekeepers change their minds. Nothing would ever change in Kanai Ward. All she could do was prepare for the upcoming performance… Waruna and Yoshiko were in a similar state of mind. None of them breached the topic of the rumors floating around school because there was no point. Hope did not exist in Kanai Ward.
Yet in spite of Kurane’s tenacity in this matter, her world was flipped on its head. Several days after the rumors began circulating, Kurane caught a glimpse of the detectives with her own two eyes. At that point, she could no longer ignore the rumors, because she saw the evidence for herself. Witnessed a schoolmate that personally met two of those… detectives.
It’s a day that Kurane will remember for the rest of her life. The day when hope returned to Kanai Ward, no matter how ‘trivial’ their help seemed in the grand scheme of things… Because these detectives stood up to the Peacekeepers. Freed her schoolmate from getting hauled in by that Captain Seth Burroughs… proved her innocence…
They were risking their very lives, sticking their necks out like this. Yet they made a stand against the corruption infesting this city… Yes. Kurane will never forget this day until she dies. That sounds dramatic, over-the-top…
But Kurane was a thespian, after all.
~*~
Yuma liked to think that he was learning a lot, now that his days had hit a sort of… groove. Even setting aside that he was talking to plenty of townspeople, some of them even regularly, every day was like a new adventure because of who he might be paired up with. By now, he’d interacted with every member of the Nocturnal Detective Agency at least once…
This did not mean every day involved solving cases. Certainly not like the Amaterasu Express or the Nail Man Killings. Those were special cases, and Yuma can’t say that he’s had another case quite like them in several days.
Still… Days were lazy and easygoing with Vivia and Chief Yakou. Fubuki was bright, bubbly, innocent, and fun. Melami was bright and bubbly, too… though maybe not, err… “innocent.” She’d taken Yuma out clothes shopping a few times by now… and that was an experience… Aphex was always butting heads with Peacekeepers or pickpockets and assailants. Desuhiko was dismissive of Yuma, at best he treated the lilac-haired man like a lost puppy… Which he probably was, considering his amnesia… Halara was always business, so he rarely got to team up with her because she never needed help solving random cases around the city; but at least Yuma definitely had her respect. Pucci was the friendliest with him, and Yuma was glad for the days when they paired up to explore the city together…
Today, however, Yuma met up with Zange at the hotel. Yakou had decided they’d be working together this week, so there was little point to the older gentleman coming to pick Yuma up at the sub. Yuma wasn’t a child.
… Even if Shinigami said he had babyface.
“So you’re back for more…” Zange chuckled to himself, sitting in the hotel’s restaurant watching over the others as they chatted and Yuma approached. Despite how at ease the old man appeared, Yuma knew he was raring to go. “We’re still getting a lay of the land, but I think it would be prudent to give our feet a rest for one day.”
The lilac-haired young man stroked his chin while furrowing his brow at the old gentleman’s words.
“… Oh… I think I get it. You want to ride around on public transportation to get a view of the city that way. Maybe get a sense of where the bus routes take us, how long it takes to get from various points to other ones… Things like that?” He mused, frowning thoughtfully as he voiced his perceptions of Zange’s gameplan for the day.
The veteran detective’s eye twinkled with delight at how sharp the trainee was.
“Indeed!” The old man smirked wistfully, peering out at the young detectives making their own plans for the day; Yuma noticed that, as usual, Halara and Aphex were already gone… But Vivia had come in to eat alongside Melami, Pucci, Desuhiko, and Fubuki. “Gathering intelligence on your own two feet is important, But you should never underestimate the other ways that you can view the city from and glean new understandings. Yakou took us to that rooftop the day we arrived, and it has become a favorite spot of mine to reflect and meditate after a long day. Hence why I have secured bus passes for everyone through the WDO’s deep pockets. Here’s yours, take care not to lose it.”
Zange passed over a laminated card, which the amnesiac young man gratefully accepted. It’d be convenient to not have to travel between Kamasaki and Ginma Districts on foot, or any of the other Districts throughout Kanai Ward. Who knew where their next investigation would take them…?
Yuma hummed curiously, however, as he pocked the bus pass.
“… By the way, Zange… I’ve been meaning to ask, but how do you know Chief Yakou? You two seem… acquainted? Sort of…?” He rubbed the back of his neck bashfully at voicing a personal question such as that.
If it’s any consolation, Zange did not seem to mind the inquiry as a far-off look entered his remaining eye.
“I’ve known for a while that Yakou was assigned to Kanai Ward. But there was a time that man trained at the WDO, as you well know. Every member of the organization must undergo training for a minimum of two years with no exceptions. As it so happens… I was one of Yakou’s instructors when he was starting out.”
Yuma’s eyes widened in shock as he took a step back.
“R-Really!? You were an instructor at HQ?” The lilac-haired man couldn’t believe it… Zange really did get around.
… In hindsight, Yuma supposed he should have seen this coming. Zange must have been around the block several times given his age and experience.
The old man nodded assuredly as his expression remained serious, leaning on his cane leisurely.
“My classes focused on intelligence-gathering, reviewing the evidence, and counter-espionage, amongst other disciplines. Yakou wasn’t in every one of my classes; we did have other instructors covering the same material to provide a varied educational experience, but I can say that Yakou was one of the best students. Not because of his grades – though he did phenomenally well understanding and applying the fundamentals… Rather, it was his tenacity that impressed me.”
Sensing Yuma’s confusion, Zange elaborated a little more.
“The man never did develop a Forte, same as a number of his classmates… He was one of the few to stick it out to the end without a Forte manifesting. That said, as I watched over him during his studies, I always had suspicions that he had the potential to possess a Forte. It’s merely an unfortunate truth that the WDO chain of command does not always pick up on every trainee’s true potential. We have so many applicants and not everyone pass the final tests. Some abilities are so subtle that the trainee can’t help but feel average and inconsequential in comparison to their peers. Another possibility is that Yakou’s ability hasn’t had a reason to reveal itself; some Fortes require intense circumstances to activate for the first time… But once you have experienced the power and know roughly what triggers it, the WDO can help you master that ability.”
Winding down his lecture, Zange heaved a small, wistful sigh.
“… It’s truly a shame Yakou couldn’t find that spark. But it’s not as if he needs a Forte. As he says, mastering the fundamentals is just as important as any supernatural abilities we wield. So I don’t pity him – I know Yakou is a fine detective in his own right. Some habits of his simply need to be shaken off for the rest of you to see the diamond in the rough that is Yakou Furio.”
Yuma nodded with a nervous energy as he drank in all of these revelations. If Zange was one of Yakou’s teachers, and could see the potential in someone the WDO didn’t think much of… Maybe there was hope for him, too! Shinigami might be providing most of the power with the Mystery Labyrinths and Coalescence, but he could still manifest an ability that was his, right?
… Right?
~*~
“H-Hey, Kurane… That death metal choir is practicing this afternoon! D-Did you wanna come with me…? I… I’ve wanted to ask you about some stuff that’s been on my mind…”
Kurane gritted her teeth as she nearly slammed the door to the theater hall behind her. That costume assistant, Mei… She was one of the few people that wanted anything to do with Kurane outside of the club. Kurane truly treasured the few times that Mei asked her to hang out…
And Kurane hated that she had to turn Mei down today. She felt like such dogshit seeing the disappointment as Mei shuffled away this morning… Those sad eyes, those drooped shoulders…
But there’s nothing she could do about it. The final recital was inn one week, and that meant Yoshiko and Waruna were on her ass more than usual. And it’s not like Kurane didn’t understand that she needed to commit to all the practices…!!!
It’s just… Kurane hated blowing Mei off so much. The two of them were in the same boat with how everyone else ignored their presence, and were treated like ghosts or pariahs… It was the worst feeling in the world. To have all those constant whispers, and knowing that people were assuming the worst of you, sometimes gossiping while right in front of you just because they forgot you were there…!!!!!
Kurane pinched the bridge of her nose as she took some deep breaths and tried to keep the tears from falling again as she stumbled away from the doors to the theater hall.
“Ugh… Yoshiko, why…?” The gloomy girl moaned pitifully as she took a moment to lean on a wall with one hand while doing her utmost to regain her composure.
Apparently today’s practice wasn’t good enough. So like they’d had to do a few times by now, they’d have to sneak into the school after the gates were closed and even the janitor went home for the night. It sucked, but this theater hall was the only proper place to get this right. They couldn’t just have a makeshift stage at Yoshiko’s house or something. Their parents would pick up on how “obsessed” they were with getting this play right… And moreover, Yoshiko had classmates buzzing around her up until 9pm; that’s the restriction the honors students invoked on her fanclub…
The point, however… If a practice session like this went abysmally like it just did, then Yoshiko forced her and Waruna to come to the school after midnight and practice until it was perfect… Which could honestly take a couple of hours, since they’d be sleepy and even crankier with each other…
This freaking sucked. Kurane blew Mei off for no reason, and now she’d have another long night ahead of her because Yoshiko and Waruna were such perfectionists…!!! And Kurane understood Waruna’s life was at stake. She got that, alright!? It’s not like Kurane failed to keep an eye on the poisoned glass on purpose!!!!! Waruna was stressed the hell out cuz her life was on the line, but did she think Kurane was any better off!? That she was ‘killing’ Waruna on purpose during these practice runs?
It’s not like Kurane was the only one flubbing up. Yoshiko stood in for Karen, and pointed out to Waruna every time she wasn’t careful enough in swapping the glasses out. That part of the process was really important, too… If Karen had any inkling that Waruna was up to something, she’d hardcore stop the recital and demand answers. This needed to go perfectly…
Even Yoshiko didn’t like how long she took to run from the chem lab to the theater hall, and would start them from the top again, especially if a teacher or classmate who stayed late saw her running through the halls…
Put simply: Nighttime was the best time to sneak out and properly practice. … But even if the time was ideal, everything else about it wasn’t. Kanai Ward was dangerous at night, and if their parents caught them sneaking out of the house, they’d have to postpone the practice.
Did Yoshiko care? Nope. And Waruna was right behind her, insisting she’d call the whole thing off if she couldn’t reasonably expect this assassination to work out. Waruna treated this plan like she was the one making all the sacrifices and that only her life mattered… And it just grated on Kurane’s nerves how self-centered her friend was being. Yes, Kurane understood Waruna’s life was at stake, and it was a big deal…
But it was a big deal for all of them. Not just any one person. And as much as Yoshiko preached about them all being in this together, Kurane was always the one to receive the harshest criticisms because her part was the home stretch and that made her an easy target to vent frustrations. Yoshiko preached collaboration, accountability, harmony, and all that other namby-pamby crap… Yet Yoshiko and Waruna got a slap on the wrist by comparison to what Kurane had been enduring for months…
So this last failure of a practice had been the final straw for Kurane. Against her friends’ objections, she stormed out of there knowing she’d get chewed out tonight, anyway. Yoshiko always came to drag her out of her house if she tried to skip out on practice… Kurane was just so sick and tired of being taken for granted. The closer they got to the final recital, the more on edge they all were. Yoshiko knew this. Waruna knew this. … And yet who got shitted on the most…? That’s right, Kurane.
The gloomy girl huffed miserably and rubbed at her arm vulnerably, walking out into the rain with her umbrella. It’s not like Kurane didn’t understand where her friends were coming from, or that they were never nice and complimentary when practices went perfect… But Kurane was used to getting treated like shit by everyone else. She really didn’t need her only remaining best friends to join the rest of the school on that front.
“… Maybe I can make it in time to catch the tail end…” Kurane mumbled as she stared down at her watch guiltily.
5pm. That nun’s death metal choir practice usually ran until 5:30 at latest; more normally she ended things by 5:15. It sucked, but Kurane really needed to bask in Mei’s calming presence… All this aggravation towards Yoshiko and Waruna was messing with her head. She was still loyal to the plan. To avenging Aiko.
… Was it too much to ask to be treated like a human being, though…? Not the universe’s punching bag???
The bus ride to the church was uneventful, and highly predictable. Kurane barely flagged down the bus that was leaving around 5pm, and it took twenty minutes to ride to the church. As cheap as it was to catch and ride the bus, it did have a prescribed route, and it’s not as if Kurane could take priority over the other passengers…
Just as predictably, choir practice was over and the Nun had told her fans to scram so she could carry on with her other duties. To Kurane’s dismay, there was no trace of Mei or where she might have gone. Of course, Kurane had some ideas where Mei could have gone after watching practice… Mei liked the meat buns that were sold in Kamasaki, and if she wasn’t there then she could’ve gone to the Golden Path Café in Ginma District.
Since it was closest, and Kurane didn’t want to wait for the next bus, she journeyed down to Kamasaki District.
… Of course Mei wasn’t there, had never stopped by today.
“If she’s not at the café, then she went home…” Kurane mumbled as she rubbed her arm vulnerably again, catching the bus in Kamasaki to ride to Ginma.
The unfortunate thing is that in all the years they’d known each other, Kurane never once asked Mei where she lived. It honestly made her feel worse, the more she stewed on it. The gloomy girl knew tons about Aiko when she was alive, ranging from where she lived to what she liked for breakfast… But her friendship with Mei, while it was pleasant to Kurane, felt a lot more like a fledgling relationship. They were barely more than acquaintances. And Kurane just allowed things to stay that way, even though both of them were stuck in the same situation of being ignored and unappreciated… of being reviled by their schoolmates…
In other words, if Kurane struck out at the café here, she’d only have a long night to ‘look forward to.’ … And Kurane just needed a bright spot in her life right now, damnit!!
Her whole world froze as she got off at the bus stop in Ginma District. A larger crowd than normal was gathered outside, but the most jarring detail Kurane picked up on immediately were the Peacekeeper thugs stationed at the café’s entrance, keeping onlookers out.
“Hmm…? Oh, you must’ve just got here.” A woman muttered as the gloomy girl approached to ask what was going on. “The Peacekeepers were called in about a serial pickpocket. The girl was brazen enough to steal over a dozen people’s possessions just like that… Despicable! Just despicable.”
Kurane bit her lower lip, eyes trailing around the crowd, trying to see if she could catch a glimpse of Mei somewhere in this madhouse. To no avail.
“Y-You said… a girl got charged… D-Do you know who she is?” Her stomach was tying in knots from worry and guilt. But there’s no way it was the worst scenario, right…? A ‘girl’ could be a young woman…!
The stranger tilted her head as she thought over it.
“I got here not too long ago myself, but I heard it was a student from Aetheria Academy. Section chief Seth Burroughs is in the middle of interrogating her, and no one’s allowed inside until further notice…”
Kurane felt like her whole world shattered from just those few words. Wasting no more time talking to someone so utterly ignorant of the case at hand, the gloomy girl pushed her way into the throng of onlookers and possible victims of the… mass pickpocketing. If it was an Aetheria student… then… then…
Then there was a chance Mei was here. Kurane tried keeping calm, telling herself this was just a misunderstanding. Mei was fine, and this was just another unlucky schoolmate getting indicted with a bogus charge… She was fine. She was fine.
Kurane got close enough to peer into the café, and it was if her shattered world was grinded into the finest powder imaginable. Sitting there on one of the stools with her head bowed in shame and fear, and Seth hovering over her while mumbling questions that Kurane couldn’t hear… that was Mei. Kurane would know her from anywhere.
“Hey, watch it!!!” An onlooker elbowed Kurane gruffly, everyone trying to look around her to watch the ‘interrogation’… And Kurane allowed herself to get pushed around, because her mind was spiraling into a deep, dark place.
The Peacekeepers had Mei. They were accusing her of being a pickpocket… and it looked like some of the loot was sitting on the counter next to her – presumably from when the Peacekeepers searched her.
“Stand back! No entry for anyone!!” A Peacekeeper shouted in Kurane’s face when she stumbled too close to the entrance and got shoved back. She didn’t even feel that rude gesture.
Kurane’s body didn’t feel like her own. Everything was numb, and she was falling, falling, falling…! But where? Where was she falling, and how long would this overwhelming despair last…?
The Peacekeepers had Mei.
They did a shit job with the investigation into Aiko’s death, covered for her murderer… And now they were arresting another poor girl that probably had nothing to do with the incident…! Kurane would wager her life savings that Mei was just here at the wrong time. And she got framed.
… But the Peacekeepers wouldn’t listen to her. They never did. Not about Aiko. Not about that bitch Karen… The Peacekeepers did whatever they damned well pleased, and who knew what kind of punishment they’d force onto poor Mei? They couldn’t… they couldn’t do something too drastic if it was just a pickpocketing case…? Right!?
“P-Please…! Let me in!!!” Kurane sobbed as she pleaded with the Peacekeepers, making a plea just this once to be let in…
Of course they shoved her away more harshly. Of course the spectators around her treated Kurane like a damn nuisance, an inconvenience to this new source of entertainment… Kurane just felt sick from realizing that’s all Mei was to these freaking vultures!!! They weren’t concerned about a high school girl getting interrogated by the Peacekeepers. She was just the newest piece of rumor mill fodder. Kanai Ward was going to twist this way out of proportion, and Mei was going to get branded with a criminal record…!
Kurane’s heart convulsed the more the implications sank in for her. She felt completely numb to the world around her… All she could do was watch Mei even as onlookers dragged her back into the crowd so they could get a clear view. This was absolutely disgusting… Hell on earth… Was Kanai cursed? Was she cursed…?
Kurane sobbed again as her stomach sank at the suggestion Mei’s misfortune was her fault… It wasn’t just cosmic bullshit. If Kurane had skipped out on freaking practice, she could’ve stopped this…!!! But now because she was the worst friend in the world, Mei was going to get hauled in for God knows how long… and her reputation at school was gonna tank so hard… Would Mei ever get to walk anywhere again without ridicule or suspicion???
First Aiko. Now Mei. Why was she so powerless!?!?!? Why couldn’t she be there for her friends when it truly mattered…?
Amidst the crowd, Kurane crumpled to her knees, uncaring about the never-ending rain pouring down onto her head and mixing with the tears flowing down her face. She knew she was pitiful. She didn’t have Waruna’s pride in keeping a perfect image… How could Kurane even think about crap like that with one of her only friends getting arrested in there…? What was she supposed to do about this?
Karen’s murder was a week away. … And Kurane just couldn’t bring herself to care about that crap right now. None of that mattered…!
Kurane tensed up as there was some unexpected commotion in the crowd around her. She furrowed her brow in bewilderment as a few people pushed their way through – well, an old geezer was swinging his cane around like he was hot shit. Kurane blinked owlishly at the lilac-haired… boy? Young man…?
… Whatever he was, the guy had his hand around the wrist of some chick in a red raincoat, dragging her towards the café. Kurane tearfully watched as they barged past the guards at the entrance with the chick in tow.
“Seth!!! Please wait! Y-You have the wrong girl…!” Yuma spluttered incoherently, panting as they finally came to a stop before Mei and the section chief, who narrowed his eyes at the detectives’ presence.
“You lot again…? What do you want now?” Seth demanded in a hiss, hands clenching into fists at his sides, aggravation well apparent.
Yuma finally slowed his panting down before he stared up at the bespectacled man with determination, and gestured at the woman he just dragged here.
“This woman… boarded the bus over twenty minutes ago. She boarded here in Ginma District, and seemed like she was in a hurry. She dropped a wedding ring when she was sitting down, and that made it clear… she was a thief!! She tried running from us after getting off at the next stop, but we chased after her; and she confirmed how many people she stole from!!! She left some of her spoils on this… girl… here, but that was just to pin the blame on her!!!!!”
As Yuma gestured at Mei as well, Seth growled in annoyance as he flicked his gaze between the woman and Mei.
“… But these two look nothing alike. We have eyewitnesses that claim they saw this girl reaching into people’s pockets…” He quietly muttered, pointing accusingly at Mei, who quailed at being a primary suspect.
Yuma shook his head firmly pointing at the eyewitnesses in question, who seemed increasingly stressed out with the woman in the red raincoat being dragged in here.
“This woman here has admitted that she had accomplices… Once she had pickpocketed everyone possible, it was their job to divert attention from her and accuse someone else!!! You have the wrong girl…!” The lilac-haired man stressed, not backing down on this.
Seth’s mouth pressed into a hard thin line as he peered at the eyewitnesses, then the newly accused woman, and then back at Mei.
“… Do you even have any proof she was here at the time of the thefts…?” The section chief demanded, still not wholly convinced.
Zange shrugged as he produced his phone, which showed a 3-second clip of the woman racing out of the café, and onto the bus as it arrived.
“Admittedly, there is no timestamp… But only one other bus could have come by just recently, and this woman caught the bus prior to that one. We raced back here as soon as possible. At this time of day, buses show up here every fifteen minutes. If you’d like, I can get in touch with the company and identify the driver we were riding with at the time, and he can testify as well?”
Seth growled lowly at how readily the detectives overcame his objections. Of course they had evidence… and they were ready to call on a witness to further support their story. Detectives just had to make things a circus act around here…!
“… Very well. You there. Search the woman to confirm what she has on her.” He glared at a Peacekeeper helplessly standing there, eager to throw the detectives out…
Alas, the woman had too many valuable possessions on her to own all of that by herself. Rings, bracelets, wallets, and so much more. When it was all piled up on the counter, it made Mei’s money look like chump change by comparison. … Which meant the detectives probably got the story straight. Again…!
“Arrest the eyewitnesses and this woman.” Seth pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation as Peacekeepers clambered to do that, and he stared down at the stunned Mei with a withering glare. “We will still need your testimony… But you will be allowed to go home after. Ap… Apologies for wrongfully accusing you.”
The bespectacled man seemed like he just swallowed a pile of ash down his throat with how bitter and defeated he sounded. Peacekeepers never had to apologize for doing their jobs… This was not how things were supposed to go.
… But to be fair… Even if Seth was irritated at the interference, it was just a pickpocketing case. Yomi wouldn’t even spare the report a second glance with how much else was going on in Kanai Ward. In this case… allowing the truth to come to light wasn’t so bad. This con artist group wouldn’t be making repeat performances anytime soon… which meant they could pursue other more important cases.
Seth… would let the detectives have this one for free. Even if this concession felt so wrong…
“Th-Thank you!!! Thank you so much…!” Mei ran up to Yuma and Zange once questioning was over, shaking Yuma’s hand anxiously while her eyes were still bloodshot from dried up tears.
“Y-You’re very welcome…!” Yuma chuckled sheepishly as he let the girl continue shaking his hand awkwardly. That case did fall into their lap… But it felt good to save another innocent person.
“You’d best run along home now, as Burroughs suggested.” Zange advised in a firm, yet gentle tone. “The incident may be over, but we wouldn’t want you caught up in something else.”
Mei nodded shakily as she smiled weakly.
“Y… Yeah… I can’t even find the words to express… J-Just… thank you so much…”
The crowd had long since dispersed, but Kurane remained behind. Awestruck at what she’d just witnessed. In the blink of an eye, Mei had been cleared of all wrongdoing, and the slimy bastards hauled off the real perps… It was too good to be true. Yet Kurane saw it with her own two eyes, numbly listened to the exchange and the aftermath…
And despite what she’d come here to do… even though Kurane wanted to stop Mei on her way out, to say how sorry she was about the costume assistant getting cornered by Peacekeepers… Mei was important to Kurane, and she wanted to make up for all this suffering that Mei didn’t deserve a lick of…
Kurane just couldn’t support her friend. Not… not right this moment… Because something more important came up. Her eyes were glued to Yuma and Zange in the café as they chatted for a while longer.
Hope. Hope had descended on Kanai Ward…
It was just a pickpocketing case. Just one girl out of countless victims that was spared the Peacekeepers’ wrath…
Kurane shouldn’t feel anything about these two. It was too late to turn back on the murder plot; Karen needed to pay… Dragging in outsiders would just piss Yoshiko off. And Waruna.
… But hope had descended on Kanai Ward. Kurane couldn’t help echoing that thought over and over. It was foreign. Alien to her…
This…
…
Kurane’s shoulders slumped miserably as she kept watching them, not taking her eyes off them for even a second.
This wasn’t good enough.
Even Kurane, who wanted to believe they could derail the need to murder Karen… that they could bring Karen to justice without bloodshed… Kurane could not just blindly trust some outsiders. If Yoshiko’s family’s connections could dig up the truth about Aiko’s death, and they couldn’t use it to get the Peacekeepers to arrest Karen because of who her scummy dad was in Amaterasu Corp… Why should Kurane believe some outsiders could do a better job?
… Even so. Kurane narrowed her eyes at Yuma in particular. A plan began to form itself in her mind.
If she couldn’t just believe these detectives could pull off a miracle… Then maybe they should be tested. Maybe Yuma should be tested… Cuz he looked young enough to investigate at Aetheria without drawing suspicion.
Yoshiko was going to have a hernia. Waruna was gonna murder her. … But Kurane had to try. They’d explored every avenue before settling on the murder plot… So what was one more attempt at a non-violent option?
Kurane gripped her closed umbrella as the rain continued showering down on her relentlessly. She kept her narrowed eyes trained on Yuma.
She had no reason to believe these outsiders would just help them out of the goodness of their hearts… Yeah, they helped Mei, but who’s to say they wouldn’t talk to that bastard Burroughs later about some incentive for helping catch the right perp…? Kurane, deep down, was disgusted at herself for being so suspicious and doubtful of others… But the murder was a week away. They were out of time.
If Kurane was going to drag Yuma into this shitstorm at the academy…
She couldn’t play nice.