"The situation's a bit complicated."
Zane, still in his pajamas, sat down beside Qingyi, let out a yawn, and began to explain.
After listening to him, Qingyi's brows furrowed slightly.
"Tyce… I don't really know much about this person."
Of course, Qingyi's information database contained files on Tyce, but they were all surface-level data. She'd never interacted with him directly, so she couldn't really claim to understand him.
"It's normal that you don't, Senior. Honestly, I don't know much about him either. He hid himself too well. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed he had such deep connections to all this."
Zane let out a quiet sigh. During the initial investigation and screening process, a few people who seemed unlikely suspects hadn't been drawn into later incidents.
Without a doubt, Tyce was one of them. His suspiciousness hadn't been high at the time—or rather, there had simply been too many others who looked more suspicious, which made him seem relatively harmless.
"Do you want me to look into it for you?"
After thinking for a moment, Qingyi spoke softly. She'd be more than willing to help if she could.
But Zane shook his head instead of agreeing. His gaze drifted toward Qingyi as he said,
"Senior, that moving Hollow was most likely his doing. I didn't interact with him long, but even then, I could tell—he's dangerous."
As soon as he finished, he turned his head, already anticipating what Qingyi was about to say. He raised a hand to stop her.
"Master, I told you about this just like I promised. Now you have to promise me—don't put yourself in danger."
Lowering his hand, he looked at the speechless Qingyi and smiled faintly.
"Don't worry. Leave it to me."
"Your disciple's quite capable, you know."
Hearing his confident tone, Qingyi swallowed the words at the tip of her tongue. After a brief silence, she sighed helplessly.
"Alright, alright, I get it. You're amazing now, and your poor master's too weak to help. I'll just end up being a burden, huh…"
As she spoke, Qingyi puffed her cheeks in self-reproach.
Seeing her expression, Zane tilted his head slightly, his smile not fading. His voice came out light and teasing.
"But if I remember right, Senior, you've never really been much help from the start…"
It was clearly just a joke.
Qingyi turned sharply toward him, staring for a few seconds before the corner of her mouth lifted into a faint smile.
"Oh? So the things I taught you weren't useful at all? Maybe I should remind you just how practical those techniques really are."
Her smile turned dangerously sweet as she swung a leg over and straddled Zane's lap, her eyes gleaming with mischief.
"Ahem, Senior, let's not be hasty."
"Actually, you've helped me plenty. What you taught was… very practical. Especially that last time, in the depths of memory—"
Zane raised both hands in surrender. Since she seemed unhappy, he had to smooth things over somehow. But halfway through his words, he realized he'd said too much and cut himself off.
"Hmm? Depths of memory?"
Qingyi raised an eyebrow. The "pressure" in her expression faded as curiosity replaced it. She straightened up slightly.
"I don't recall anything like that."
"I meant the last time we worked together, Senior. You must've misheard. Even advanced investigative Automatons need part replacements sometimes, right…"
Zane spoke calmly, naturally covering his slip. It wasn't that Qingyi couldn't know—just that he didn't know what might happen if she did. She'd lost a small fragment of memory, but she was fine otherwise. If remembering that caused a shock or instability, it wouldn't be worth it.
Qingyi's expression showed a trace of doubt, but she didn't press him. Given their relationship, she didn't believe Zane would hide something from her with bad intentions.
"Um, Senior…"
"Think you could get up now? It's starting to feel a little uncomfortable…"
His words pulled Qingyi back from her thoughts. One of his raised hands dropped, and he pointed meaningfully toward her legs.
"Hmm? Are you rejecting me?"
"What kind of thing is that to say…"
Zane sighed softly. Though she was a highly advanced investigative Automaton, Qingyi's model wasn't built for comfort.
So no—she wasn't exactly the "soft and fragrant little master."
Fragrant, maybe.
Just… not soft.
Qingyi caught the subtle change in his expression, and a dangerous spark flickered in her eyes.
...
While Qingyi was "settling accounts" with Zane at the Tanuki House, over at the Hoshimi residence…
"Phew, today wasn't any better. I have no idea what those people are thinking. The municipal trial's long over, and now they're clashing again. Can't they let anyone have a peaceful day?"
Hoshimi Souichiro set down his coat and sighed helplessly, unsure what else to say about the chaos outside.
"The municipal election's already begun. It's a crucial phase right now. They're probably fighting over that."
A woman's voice came from nearby. She picked up Souichiro's coat and spoke softly.
"Usually, election tactics are more discreet. But with tensions this high… it all feels strange."
Souichiro shook his head. He had the sense that the election wasn't really the main objective. None of their actions had any clear purpose—it was as if they were using something as cover, deliberately stirring up the waters.
"Alright, enough of that. We finally have some peace at home. Not the place to talk politics. Where's Miyabi?"
He looked toward the woman beside him, his eyes softening as he smiled.
"By the way, I heard something about Miyabi today. Apparently, not long after that moving Hollow appeared, it disappeared again—they say it was her doing."
"Haha, it was handled so quickly that I didn't even get the report at first. It wasn't under my jurisdiction. Only after they mentioned Miyabi did I realize what had happened."
He laughed, pride shining through his voice. Because of Hoshimi Miyabi, he truly shared in her honor—and felt proud to have such a daughter.
"Miyabi should be in the training room right now."