"Akiya, what did you have the White Qilin do?"
"I told him to teach someone how to write."
"Another one of your spur-of-the-moment ideas? Do you really think that will improve his personality?"
"I have no idea."
On the night before his business trip, Asou Akiya was attending a lesson at Bankoudou Hall, where Natsume Souseki was personally instructing him in the skills a leader ought to possess. Hearing the question, Akiya flashed a smug grin.
"But I think that if he manages to complete the assignment I gave him, he'll definitely grow a lot from the experience."
Natsume Souseki looked genuinely intrigued.
"You're that confident?"
Teaching someone how to write was a tedious task, and it could easily provoke resistance from the student. Even so, the White Qilin would most likely approach it patiently, guiding them step by step until the assignment was finished.
"Sensei, why don't we wait and see?"
"Very well."
After finishing the day's lesson on the blackboard with a piece of chalk, Natsume Souseki had Akiya memorize everything before bringing the lesson to an end.
Akiya then said, "I'm leaving for Tokyo on a business trip tomorrow. After that, I'll probably be traveling around the rest of Japan as well. We'll have to keep in touch remotely, Sensei."
Natsume Souseki replied flatly, "Are you sure this isn't just an excuse to avoid your classical martial arts lessons?"
"Of course not!" Akiya declared righteously. "I'm counting on those martial arts lessons to improve my physical fitness. My happiness depends on them!"
Natsume Souseki: I wish I don't understand what you mean by that.
"What a hopeless disciple!"
The short stub of chalk in Natsume Souseki's hand finally found a purpose as he flicked it straight at Akiya's head. Akiya raised his notebook just in time to block it.
"While I'm away, don't miss me too much, Sensei. Go take a walk around Yokohama and scout a few more promising youngsters. I'll bring you some delicious dried sardines back as a local specialty!"
"I don't eat dried sardines!"
Natsume Souseki's booming roar echoed through Bankoudou Hall with full force.
Asou Akiya fled without looking back.
Over at the Port Mafia headquarters, the Boss had been unwilling to let Akiya leave the main office. The man was simply too weak; if he ventured outside, there was every chance he would be kidnapped by an enemy or even killed outright.
Faced with the Boss's refusal, however, Asou Akiya offered a compelling reason.
"I'm an analyst, Boss. I can gather intelligence on ability users and doctors while I'm away. And I'll make sure Kimura Seimei dies without leaving so much as a corpse behind."
The Port Mafia Boss had failed to execute Kimura Seimei for far too long. His crimson eyes fixed on Akiya.
"You can kill an ability user?"
"I can't," Akiya admitted. "But with Randou's help, I can."
"Randou..."
"He's a spatial ability user. His ability can suppress and restrict the movements of other ability users through spatial manipulation. Kimura Seimei's ability is 'Explosion,' but explosions can't break through spatial restraints. With my mind and Randou's ability working together, we'll be able to capture him."
"Kill him... Kill him! I want to see his head! Capture him! Then bring me that doctor! If you can do it, I'll give you anything you want!"
"Yes, sir."
Asou Akiya bowed with impeccable elegance.
Kimura Seimei, your working hours have officially entered their final countdown.
—May you refrain from abusing your ability in your next life.
Leaving behind the suffocating atmosphere surrounding the Boss, Akiya walked through headquarters and began completing the necessary handover procedures with the other departments.
Before becoming a Sub-Executive, he had always worked in close cooperation with the Finance Department. They focused on making money together, never pried into one another's private affairs, and never did anything that would undermine the other.
Compared to all the killing and bloodshed, wasn't everyone better off making money and trading stocks together?
Port Mafia Finance Department: Asou Akiya, you're our lucky cat! We'll always be friends!
Asou Akiya spent the entire day wrapping up his affairs before drafting a rough itinerary for the road trip—or rather, the "business trip".
"Done."
Asou Akiya clapped his hands together with satisfaction, unable to hide his excitement. He could hardly wait to leave on this business trip with Randou.
"I should let Kouyou-kun know as well. While I'm away, tell her to be careful."
A moment later, he suddenly caught himself and realized just how absurd those words had sounded.
"I was actually planning to tell an assassination-type ability user to be careful."
Pushing back his chair, he rose to his feet and looked around his spacious, brightly lit office.
The room was decorated in a European style, with polished hardwood floors and a clear separation between the work area and the lounge.
The only thing it lacked was a few paintings or pieces of calligraphy to adorn the walls.
"Everything has changed."
The black-haired young man stood there in a daze.
Time had flowed on, and before he knew it, he had risen to the position of Sub-Executive.
At this point in time, Ozaki Kouyou was still just a little girl. Mori-sensei had yet to join the Port Mafia. Dazai Osamu was still living with his family. None of the future members of the Armed Detective Agency had yet grown into the people they were destined to become.
He had walked ahead of every one of them...
Leaving them all far behind.
Unbelievable. I can hardly believe I've come this far.
Filled with emotions he could scarcely put into words, he walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window. Spreading his fingers, he rested his palm against the cool glass.
Beyond it lay Yokohama at dusk.
Only now did he finally have the peace of mind to truly look upon this world.
Bathed in the orange-red glow of the setting sun, Asou Akiya grew quiet.
"Yokohama..."
The tension in his brow eased, his eyes overflowing with indescribable emotion.
"It wasn't in vain, coming here..."
This life had not been lived in vain.
Standing at such a height, gazing out over the scenery below—
It was truly beautiful.
A phone call quickly snapped him out of his detached reverie, ruthlessly dragging the soul of a transmigrator back down to earth—
His wife is calling.
Asou Akiya scrambled to answer the phone.
"Randou, I'm getting off work right away! Everything's settled for tomorrow—we're going on the business trip together!"
There was a saying he had lived by in both his previous life and this one: no matter how vast the world was, nothing came before his wife.
"All right, I'll come find you right away."
"Hurry."
In the Black Lizard unit, Randou sat quietly in a corner, listening to the voice on the other end of the line. A sweet smile unconsciously spread across his lips, and before he realized it, he had completely forgotten to hide the fact that he was happily in love.
"It's time to get off work. You can all leave now. Stop hanging around here eavesdropping on someone else's phone call."
Hirotsu Ryurou rubbed his aching temples before stepping in to drive everyone else away.
Squad Leader Ii Masabe left with a heart full of bitterness. Before departing, he stole one last glance at Randou, who was bundled up from head to toe. Even a thick, fleece-lined overcoat couldn't conceal the elegant curve of his waist. His legs, honed through martial arts training, had developed firm, well-defined muscles.
He had once thought this French rose had yet to be plucked.
Who would have guessed that someone had claimed him long ago—and had lovingly cultivated him for years?
What frustrated Ii Masabe the most was that every morning, when they arrived at work, Randou's lips were always flushed a healthy red, tempting him to look. Whenever Randou noticed someone staring, he would shyly hide the lower half of his face behind his scarf, making him seem all the more innocent...
So that was the truth.
Those lips had already been thoroughly cherished before he had even stepped out of the car.
The farther Ii Masabe walked, the wilder his imagination became, until it suddenly gave way to regret.
He made up his mind.
Next time, he was going to ask that brat Akiya what it was like to sleep with such a beautiful French lover. How many times did they do it in one night? Instead of torturing himself by yearning after beauty he could only admire from afar, he might as well go find himself a French lover too.
The following day, Asou Akiya and Randou smoothly left Yokohama on their "self-driving trip."
In reality, it was a business trip.
The two children at home officially entered foster-care mode.
Nakahara Chuuya was entrusted to Tsurumi-sensei at school, who was responsible for supervising his homework and making sure he ate breakfast and lunch. As for Edogawa Ranpo, he was entrusted to the professional babysitter bodyguard—Fukuzawa Yukichi!
The formidable bodyguard had mastered every skill required to look after children and had successfully changed careers into a full-fledged nanny.
Before leaving, Asou Akiya made use of the information he had learned from Nakahara Chuuya to have a private conversation with Fukuzawa Yukichi, explaining what kind of Ability he possessed.
"Fukuzawa-san, Chuuya told me that whenever he's around you, his ability becomes much more docile, and he feels considerably better as well. As you know, his Ability is so powerful and violent that it can easily injure others. Because of that, I once sealed his hands in the hope that he would rely on it less often."
"Based on that, I believe your Ability is the type that supports those you acknowledge as subordinates and helps other Ability users properly control their powers."
Worried that Fukuzawa Yukichi might be disappointed to learn that his was a support-type ability, Akiya spoke gently.
"When you establish your own agency in the future, you should recruit more ability users to work under you. You can use your ability to help far more people. Many ability users lack proper guidance and are unable to control their powers. Just as it was said in that angel stage play... Abilities can also bring misfortune to those who possess them."
"Yes. Thank you very much for telling me, Akiya-san."
From the revelation about his own Ability, Fukuzawa Yukichi found the purpose that would guide the rest of his life.
It is to save others!
Even his Ability was helping him walk that path.
Once they had left Yokohama and entered the Tokyo area, Asou Akiya kept his head lowered as he continued sending text messages. Seeing how busy he was, Randou, who was driving, couldn't help sneaking a glance at him.
"Akiya, you're awfully busy."
"I didn't realize I had this many loose ends to tie up."
After sending his final message, Akiya put away his phone and rested a hand on Randou's thigh.
It wasn't as soft as it had been in the past, but it had a pleasant firmness to it, the muscles beneath taut with strength.
"My dear bodyguard, my safety while we're away is entirely in your hands."
"My dear Akiya, if you keep touching me, I'm going to drive this car straight into the river."
"...Please don't. We only bought this car not long ago."
"Mm!"
Randou lowered the sun visor to shield them from view. While they were waiting at a red light, he leaned over and enthusiastically kissed Akiya on the lips, leaving behind his own unmistakable mark.
From today onward, this trip belonged to the two of them alone.
As for killing Kimura Seimei and returning to claim the credit...
That could wait until later.
At the Shibusawa estate, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko had spent the past two days reading books on teaching and writing. He had finally developed a rough plan and was simply waiting for Asou Akiya to send him the information on the child he was supposed to teach.
He speculated about the child's background and personality. If the assignment proved difficult, the challenge would probably lie there. He was genuinely curious about what kind of person could make Akiya-san believe this task would temper him.
He was fully prepared to use the shortest amount of time and the most efficient methods possible to "guide" the child onto the right path and have them produce a ten-thousand-word novel.
Then the message arrived.
Shibusawa Tatsuhiko's eyes darkened, as though he were looking at prey waiting to be slaughtered.
"The sixth-ranked child of the Tsushima family?"
"Tsushima... Shuuji."
The Tsushima family...
He seemed to have heard the name before. They possessed at least some influence in political circles.
"Investigate the Tsushima family for me. I want their background and detailed information on every member of the household."
Leaving his study, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko summoned the family butler and instructed him to uncover everything there was to know about the family.
The enormous influence of the Shibusawa conglomerate began moving once more.
In a society where wealth and influence reigned supreme, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko had never truly suffered hardship. A mere flick of his finger was enough to make countless people scramble to curry his favor.
The only people who had ever made him suffer were Asou Akiya and his family.
Now that he had left Yokohama to meet someone else...
Surely not everyone in the world was an Edogawa Ranpo.
Aomori Prefecture.
The Tsushima family, whose fortunes had declined after the end of the war, received an unexpected visitor.
"Someone from the Shibusawa family has come to see me?"
The head of the Tsushima family stepped outside. Upon hearing the servant's report, he immediately asked,
"Which Shibusawa? The Shibusawa financial conglomerate in Tokyo? The visitor is a direct grandson of Shibusawa Eiichi-sama? Oh... Shibusawa Tatsuhiko. That sounds like the name of someone from a branch family."
The surprise and anticipation on Tsushima Gen'emon's face quickly faded.
He was a practical man through and through. Everything he did was for the revival of the Tsushima family, and he was always looking for opportunities to rebuild ties with the influential figures of the past.
Is it really necessary for me to personally receive someone from a branch of the Shibusawa family? he wondered.
But times had changed.
In the end, he decided to meet the visitor and find out what he wanted.
Perhaps... this could be a turning point.
Shibusawa Tatsuhiko left all matters of etiquette and social niceties to the family butler. As far as he was concerned, the less he had to see or deal with, the better. He followed the proper formalities and had no intention of abducting an eleven-year-old child.
If his family could solve the problem with ease, why waste unnecessary effort?
That was his way of thinking.
Until someone corrected the White Qilin's incurable laziness, he continued doing exactly as he pleased. Once granted permission to enter, he strolled straight into the traditional Japanese estate, paying no attention whatsoever to the carefully cultivated bonsai and ornamental plants competing for attention in the garden.
He loved flowers.
But what he loved was the symbolism they carried—not plants rooted in a place that felt so utterly devoid of life.
In the reception room, Tsushima Gen'emon finally met his visitor.
The young man before him was remarkably youthful for a member of the Shibusawa family. He was handsome enough, but bore little resemblance to Shibusawa Eiichi.
"What business brings someone from the Shibusawa family here?"
As Tsushima Gen'emon quietly assessed him, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko saw through most of what was running through the older man's mind.
I knew this was how it would be, he thought with weary indifference.
The great families all clung to their own peculiar logic. Even ideas that had become obsolete a century ago were still treated as absolute truth, as though they alone were enough to preserve an exclusive circle that kept outsiders at bay.
Having his status quietly looked down upon, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko said nothing. He absentmindedly twirled a lock of his hair around his finger.
His thoughts drifted to his hairstyle.
Next time, I'll braid it into something prettier.
The Shibusawa family butler spoke on his behalf.
"Tsushima-san, when Tatsuhiko-sama acts outside the family, he does so as a representative of the main house. Eiichi-sama has always regarded Young Master Tatsuhiko as though he were his own grandson."
Tsushima Gen'emon suppressed the irritation rising in his chest. The one who ought to be speaking was Shibusawa Tatsuhiko, not his butler. Didn't the Shibusawa family understand even the most basic rules of etiquette?
The Shibusawa Butler: My apologies, but my young master truly doesn't care about etiquette... He earned perfect marks in every one of his lessons, yet once he's outside, he's an entirely different person.
Naturally, he couldn't actually say something so blunt.
After making the introduction, the butler fell silent and resumed his place, kneeling diagonally behind Shibusawa Tatsuhiko.
Fixing the white-haired youth with an imposing stare, Tsushima Gen'emon waited for him to speak.
Remembering the requirements of his apprenticeship assignment, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko finally opened his mouth at an unhurried pace.
"I've recently taken up writing. There's a saying that by meeting more people, one gains more experience and insight. Since I came to Aomori Prefecture on a trip, my first thought was to visit the most distinguished family in the area and broaden my horizons."
All of a sudden, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko became astonishingly eloquent.
The butler couldn't help lifting his head, staring at him with an expression that practically asked, Tatsuhiko-bocchan... have you changed your personality?
Under the steady stream of Shibusawa Tatsuhiko's praise, Tsushima Gen'emon quickly overlooked the earlier breach of etiquette.
For a brief moment, it felt as though he had returned to the glory days when the Tsushima family stood at the height of its prosperity. Looking at the young man before him with growing warmth, he found the white-haired youth more pleasing the longer he looked.
Not bad.
A proper young heir from a great family who knows how to conduct himself.
"Would you like to tour the Tsushima estate? Certainly. I'll have a servant show you around."
"Thank you."
Without the slightest difficulty, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko blended into the Tsushima household, never once mentioning the real purpose of his visit.
As Tsushima Gen'emon rose to leave, he suddenly added, "While you're touring the estate, I'd appreciate it if you avoided the residential quarters. There are young children in the family. They're still quite young and rather afraid of strangers."
"I'll keep that in mind."
Afraid of strangers?
Had Shibusawa Tatsuhiko not already seen the man's overwhelming desire for control and obsessive devotion to the Tsushima family, he might actually have believed him.
Led by a servant from the Tsushima household, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko wandered leisurely through the estate with his butler following a step behind.
Every movement appeared casual, as though he were simply sightseeing. Even when he inadvertently strayed from the designated route, the servants thought little of it, merely reminding him,
"You're not allowed to go that way."
Shibusawa Tatsuhiko turned to them.
"And why not?"
The servant's gaze wavered. Looking somewhat embarrassed, he replied, "The young master often spends his time over there."
Reaching out, Shibusawa Tatsuhiko ran his fingers along a branch before gently snapping off a flowering twig.
"So the children of your family don't attend school outside the estate? It seems you're like my family and have private tutors instead."
The servant nodded proudly.
"That's right. The Tsushima family has hired the finest teachers for the young master."
Shibusawa Tatsuhiko dismissed the claim inwardly.
The finest teachers?
He had met countless people bearing the title of teacher. None of them amounted to much.
The only person worthy of that title was the "Analyst," Asou Akiya.
Interesting.
A child who isn't even allowed to leave the house?
According to the information he had gathered, Tsushima Gen'emon had six sons and four daughters. The eldest and second sons had died young. Tsushima Shuuji was the sixth son, with three older brothers and four older sisters ahead of him.
No matter how he looked at it, something was off.
Has the family pinned all of its hopes on the youngest child?
"He's very intelligent, isn't he?"
The question came so abruptly that the servant hesitated before answering.
"Well... of course. The young master is exceptionally gifted."
Shibusawa Tatsuhiko casually tossed aside the broken flower branch and walked away, ignoring the servant as he headed toward the source of a faint sound in the distance.
The farther he went, the more panicked the servant became.
The butler stepped in to stop the man, smiling politely as he held him back.
"Tatsuhiko-sama is merely curious."
Unable to break free from the butler's grip, the servant cried out anxiously,
"The master gave strict orders! Outsiders aren't allowed anywhere near the young master! You'll corrupt him!"
"Corrupt him?"
As Shibusawa Tatsuhiko walked forward, he spoke calmly as he pushed aside the overhanging branches, revealing the courtyard beyond.
"I don't think so."
The one this family had imprisoned was simply the target of his assignment.
Standing quietly in the distance was a child who had been raised like a canary in a gilded cage. His long eyelashes fluttered gently. With porcelain-white skin, exquisitely delicate features, and an air of fragile elegance, he looked both precious and painfully vulnerable.
A pair of dark amber eyes fixed steadily upon the approaching visitor.
Then, without a sound, the child smiled.
"Hello, stranger."
...
That face looked astonishingly familiar.
His youthful features were irresistibly adorable, the sort that stirred in adults an instinct either to protect him or to destroy something so delicate. There was no doubt that, once he grew up, he would become the kind of man effortlessly adored by women.
Shibusawa Tatsuhiko came to an abrupt halt, genuine surprise flickering across his face.
Akiya-san, are you related to the Tsushima family by blood? Is this child your younger brother, or perhaps your illegitimate son raised outside the family?
Are you entrusting him to me?
Rest assured.
I'll make certain he's properly "educated."
Across the face that seemed to have already seen through every ugliness the world had to offer—The White Qilin spread a cool, breathtakingly beautiful smile.
The three destined figures of the Dead Apple trio from another future—
The "Evil Queen," who offered others red apples,
And the frail, beautiful "Snow White"—
had met far earlier than fate intended.
From that moment onward, the course of both their destinies veered completely off track, hurtling toward a future stranger than anyone could have imagined.