At 8 p.m., Haruno Yukinoshita sat in front of her computer, opening the surveillance feed right on time.
She wanted to see if, as she suspected, Hoshimi would come to Yukino's apartment at eight.
The surveillance footage showed Yukino sitting by her bed in pajamas, staring blankly, while Hoshimi had not yet appeared.
Haruno wasn't in a hurry. She got up, made a pot of tea, and brought some snacks back to her computer to observe a bit longer.
"Ah? He really did come."
Haruno raised an eyebrow as she sipped her hot tea and watched with interest the footage of Yukino and Hoshimi talking in the living room.
She wasn't worried about anything happening between Hoshimi and Yukino. After all, Iwanaga Kotoko, who had an inappropriate relationship with Hoshimi, had just appeared today.
Even Yukino, no matter how clueless she might be, wouldn't let Hoshimi take advantage of her at this moment, right?
Hoshimi's visit to Yukino's apartment at this time was most likely to explain about Iwanaga Kotoko.
Unfortunately, the pinhole camera in Yukino's apartment didn't have audio capabilities, so Haruno couldn't hear their conversation, only observing their expressions and actions to piece together fragmented information.
At first, Yukino sat on the farthest sofa from Hoshimi with a cold face, arms crossed, not even glancing at him.
Hoshimi could only sit properly on the other side, helplessly explaining something.
This was the correct approach, and Haruno eagerly anticipated how Yukino would drive Hoshimi away.
"Slurp~~ Slurp~~"
Haruno enjoyed her tea and snacks, watching the surveillance footage with ease.
Gradually, Haruno's expression began to shift...
Ten minutes later.
"Bang!"
The tea cup slipped from Haruno's hand and shattered.
In disbelief, Haruno pressed her hands on the edge of the desk, leaning forward, almost wanting to bury her head in the computer screen.
"DAMN IT! Why?!" Haruno screamed inwardly as she witnessed everything.
...
A short while later, as Hoshimi had just taken a seat on the living room sofa.
"..." Yukino glanced at Hoshimi and chose the sofa farthest from him.
With her arms crossed, she stared ahead, not looking at Hoshimi or speaking, waiting for him to start explaining.
"Yukinoshita, can you give me that compliment first?" Hoshimi asked, blinking his eyes.
"Explain what your explosive power was this afternoon first. Once that's clear, I will naturally give my compliment," Yukino said, staring straight ahead as if speaking to the air.
"Alright then."
Since he had promised to explain the explosive power, he had to keep his word.
It was a bit regrettable not to have heard Yukino's compliment first.
"Hmm~" Hoshimi exhaled, contemplating how to explain his explosive ability.
To be honest, he didn't want too many people to know about it.
Firstly, because of the troublesome nature of the little girl's identity, and secondly, because he had been advised not to disclose it easily.
It was good that it was "not to be disclosed easily" rather than "absolutely not to be revealed," leaving some room for maneuvering. Otherwise, he wouldn't have had a good excuse to be here now.
As for the "compliment" excuse? It was just a pretext. The "explosive power secret" was the real reason for his visit.
Besides, sharing secrets was a great way to build rapport.
Moreover, he could use the "secret" to divert Yukino's attention, making her forget a certain loli who had been provocative from the start.
A multi-purpose use, maximizing the effect of a secret; even he admired his own ingenuity.
"Hmm~" Hoshimi took a deep breath and looked at Yukino with a serious expression, "Yukinoshita, can you guarantee not to leak the secret?"
"I'll think about it." Yukino continued speaking as if to the air.
"Yukinoshita, it's not a matter of thinking; it's a must!" Hoshimi explained helplessly, "This secret involves a prominent underground assassination family. If leaked, it could bring about serious consequences for me."
"Hmm?" Yukino looked at Hoshimi in shock and, after hesitating for a moment, asked in a lower voice, "Is it that serious?"
"Otherwise?" Hoshimi shrugged his shoulders helplessly.
Yukino fell silent. She suddenly felt that she didn't want to hear Hoshimi's secret...
Not because she was afraid she couldn't keep it, but because she had the feeling that knowing this secret would make it hard for her to escape from Hoshimi later.
Sometimes, knowing too much was not a good thing...
Yukino hesitated, contemplating and weighing her thoughts.
But Hoshimi didn't give her much time. He asked directly, "Yukinoshita, do you know about the 'Kure Clan'?"
Yukino instinctively shook her head.
Hoshimi lowered his voice, speaking very seriously.
"The 'Kure Clan' is a renowned assassination family in the underground world, known for their unique technique 'Removal.'"
"Since the Asuka period, for over 1300 years, the 'Kure Clan,' which lives for combat, has occasionally married famous martial artists' children and sometimes acquired excellent 'seeds' from outside."
"This 'breed improvement' and technological absorption has continued for 1300 years, resulting in the 'Kure Clan' evolving into a 'specialized combat-capable race' through generations."
"That's the 'Kure Clan.' Their most distinctive feature is black irises and white pupils."
Yukino's pupils constricted. She recalled that she had seen someone with black irises and white pupils before.
During her first year of high school, while visiting Disneyland alone, she had seen a woman around thirty with such eyes.
Because these eyes were so rare, she had looked at the woman a few more times, and the woman had even turned around and smiled warmly at her, leaving a deep impression.
According to Hoshimi, that seemingly gentle woman might have been an assassin?
Had she brushed shoulders with an assassin? And the person had even smiled warmly?
Thinking of this, Yukino felt a chill running down her spine.
"Yukinoshita, have you ever met someone from the 'Kure Clan'?" Hoshimi asked suspiciously upon seeing Yukino's stiff expression.
"Hmm..." Yukino nodded with an unsettled expression.
"Lucky you..." Hoshimi remarked, then explained, "Yukinoshita, don't worry. The 'Kure Clan' has many members, and only a small group with certain qualifications are involved in combat and assassination."
"Most of the rest are responsible for logistics or are just ordinary people, merely ensuring genetic diversity to avoid the drawbacks of inbreeding."
"That person you encountered might just be an ordinary member of the 'Kure Clan.'"
"Hmm~" Yukino sighed with relief, her body relaxing involuntarily.
After a moment of thought, she looked at Hoshimi and asked with curiosity, "What exactly is the 'certain qualification' you mentioned?"
"Remember the unique technique 'Removal' I mentioned about the 'Kure Clan'?"
Yukino nodded.
Hoshimi continued, "To explain the technique 'Removal,' we must first discuss a concept."
===
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