As soon as Guru stepped into the stall, the hamster transford into a child.
Veilach, now wearing a human face, imdiately snatched the bell from her hand.
“Bayi, what’s wong?”
“There’s the sll of that potato bastard here.”
“Da potato guy?”
“The one we t during the athletics event.”
“Ah...”
It sounded like he ant the Tato Friend Guru had shared a lunchbox with in the potato field.
And now... the high-profile criminal Guru was about to sell out!
“Den Tato Fwiend’s here?”
“Most likely. I had a feeling sothing was off. But I didn’t expect he’d use a ghost item like this.”
“Ghost item?”
“A cursed relic. This one’s a fox tracker.”
Veilach spread his hand wide, and from the bell erged the tiny, translucent face of a fox.
“They’ve been feeding foxes to bells for hundreds of years. You don’t use this kind of cursed relic unless it’s really necessary to find soone.”
“Hundweds of yeaws?!”
It had looked super old... Guru shook the bell, but it made no sound.
Daddychann didn’t seem to hear it ring either...
So maybe it only chid when it found the person it was looking for.
“Den... da Tato Fwiend was twyin’ ta find Gwuu with da beww?”
“Could’ve been looking for . I am right next to you, after all.”
“But Bayi pwomised to keep your secwet...”
It didn’t seem like a lie.
“Well, maybe he changed his mind.”
Veilach still looked uneasy, a crease forming on his brow.
Then phisto chid in, almost like he was singing.
“Bip-bip-beep—bip—bip—”
“Say whaaat?”
“If he needed a bell like this to track them...”
While Guru tilted her head, Veilach translated for him.
“...he must’ve been searching for soone whose identity he didn’t know.”
Soone he didn’t know?
But they had t. And he’d even left her the gift of SSPED.
He couldn’t possibly not know who she was. There’s no way he didn’t know where she was either.
But if the person he was desperately searching for using a centuries-old cursed bell was Guru—
A sudden spark flashed through her brain.
And Veilach, too, must’ve realized it. Their eyes t, and they said it at the sa ti.
“The one he’s looking for is...”
“Jjapso.”
Guru gasped.
“W-W-WHY?!”
Why would a dangerous criminal be searching for Jjapso?
“Can’t be for a good reason, if he’s using sothing like this.”
“Bip-bip!”
At Veilach’s words, phisto nodded repeatedly.
“...Can’t Gwuu just bweak da beww?”
“No. You ss with sothing like this and you’ll get cursed.”
“...!”
Veilach paused for a mont, then whispered—
“...Should we kill him?”
Eh??
Guru whipped her head up in alarm—
“Bip.”
phisto nodded as if in agreent.
“W-Wait! Nooo!”
Guru threw herself between them.
“Why not? If we leave it be, it’ll co back to bite us.”
“Bip-bip!”
phisto flared his wings, ready to attack.
“M-Mowe dan dat... Gwuu’s got a good idea.”
Guru whispered her plan, and both Veilach and phisto frowned.
“Denied.”
“Bip—”
“Bof of you shaddup, we’ah goin’ to da toy aisle.”
Pouting, Guru led Veilach out of the bathroom stall.
Right then, a mother and daughter entered the restroom—only to freeze upon spotting a little boy in the girls’ bathroom.
Ack!
Guru rolled her eyes fast.
The mom’s expression was turning fierce—this could be very bad.
This could trigger a dreaded parental summon event!
Guru had to act fast—she dusted off Veilach’s pants and improvised on the spot.
“You gotta go pee by yohsewf now, Bayi.”
“...?”
“Next ti, noona won’t co witchoo, so you gotta do it yohsewf, okay?”
“Huh?!”
Veilach’s face turned bright red in panic.
Thankfully, the mom’s tense face softened, and she guided her daughter into a stall.
“I didn’t! I didn’t pee myself!!”
Veilach protested desperately, but Guru just dragged him away toward the toy section.
***
Having just been handed a al kit by Reiji, Jurim tilted his head.
“This one’s better?”
“See for yourself. The expiration date is longer, isn’t it?”
“You’ve gotten better at Korean.”
“I’ve always had a passion for learning. Though, to be fair, more than half of this is thanks to my translator.”
Reiji tapped the earpiece in his ear.
[“I can turn it on and off in real ti.”]
As he said, most of Reiji’s speech was being translated on the fly thanks to the device.
He hadn’t actually gotten better at Korean—just that technology had improved.
Jurim checked the ti on his watch.
“I’ll give you five seconds.”
“Oh, how generous.”
“Explain yourself while I’m feeling generous.”
Calming his churning emotions with effort, Jurim clenched his left hand tightly. Reiji smiled coolly.
“I heard you were looking for . Seems like there’s a misunderstanding. As you can see, I’m not fluent in Korean. I simply asked a friend to write a letter for .”
“So this friend—whoever they are—just happened to be trying to screw over? That doesn’t sound like you.”
“I’ve got no reason to be hostile to you. Unfortunately, you have plenty of people who aren’t fond of you. Besides, if I’d ant to make trouble and run, I wouldn’t have co to face you in person, would I? Don’t you think that explains it well enough? The eggs?”
“Ten-pack.”
Reiji picked out the most expensive animal welfare eggs and dropped them into the cart.
“And, I have no hobby of teasing the guardian of my son.”
“You do kill people, though?”
Jurim referred to the relatives who’d abused Kazuki—and Reiji smiled faintly.
“They had it coming. Are you planning to do the sa?”
“I’m the one getting harassed by Kazuki, honestly.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“Let’s cut the small talk. What do you want? Say it now and disappear before my daughter shows up.”
“You’re not going to ask who that friend was?”
“Would you even tell ?”
“No.”
The way he avoided straight answers and {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} seed to enjoy ssing with people—it was just like Kazuki.
“...I don’t plan to dig. I’ve got my own circumstances.”
Jurim opened and closed his left hand repeatedly.
The master of the 99th floor, who had once tried to consu him from within, had quieted down lately.
If he traced the timing, it started from when he told Guru the real reason he’d been going out at night.
He thought he understood now.
The master of the 99th had responded to Guru’s emotions—her worry, her anxiety about what might happen to him.
Like he was her protector or sothing.
To keep that peace, there was no point provoking emotionally volatile opponents.
Even just now, it was dangerous.
anwhile, Reiji glanced aningfully at Jurim’s left hand before smiling faintly.
“Seems like I’m not here for you after all.”
“Not here for ?”
Jurim tilted his head.
Drrrrrr—
Guru and Veilach ca running.
“Guru, no running in the store.”
Jurim’s voice was stern, and Guru skidded to a stop.
Once he confird she was walking, he cast a glance at Reiji.
Reiji’s expression was sowhere between delighted and puzzled as he watched Guru.
Jurim hadn’t told Guru about Reiji.
He didn’t want her to worry unnecessarily.
Just in case, he had checked the sports day footage captured by one of Suhyeong’s agents.
Reiji hadn’t tried to harm Guru—in fact, they couldn’t even understand each other, but had ended up making promises and playing house like idiots.
So, Jurim had decided to let Guru rember it as a fun ti with a friend.
Which is why—there shouldn’t have been anything like this.
“Y-You’ah undah ahwest!”
“...?”
Jurim’s mouth fell open.
In Reiji’s hand were toy handcuffs. Price tag still dangling.
Apparently just picked up from the toy aisle.
“Looks like I’ve been caught.”
Reiji smiled warmly, and Guru, having cuffed his left wrist, wiped sweat from her brow.
“Phew, one case sowved.”
“....”
Jurim looked utterly dumbfounded.
The internationally wanted criminal Amakusa Reiji, who had evaded joint investigations across entire nations...
...had just been arrested by plastic handcuffs picked up in the toy aisle.
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