[Advancing step by step, the legion of hell...]
[Targeting the shadows in our darkness...]
[To protect the peace of the world...]
As Kotomi Izumi slept soundly, she was abruptly awakened by the blaring sound of her phone's ringtone. At first, she furrowed her brow, thinking it was her alarm signaling the start of a school day. Then she remembered—it was the weekend, so it must be a call.
Groggily, she reached for the phone on her bedside table.
Why had she mistaken the ringtone for her alarm? Because both her phone ringtone and alarm were set to the original theme song of Kamen Rider.
Though she rarely went to karaoke, whenever she did, this was one of her must-sing songs.
As a child, whenever she went to karaoke with her family, she would mimic Kamen Rider 1's transformation pose after singing. And her younger sister, Aimi, would often be "enthusiastically" dragged in to imitate Kamen Rider 2's pose alongside her.
"Ugh… it's only four in the morning?! Who's calling at this hour?"
Still half-asleep, Kotomi glanced at the caller ID. But when she saw the name, she immediately perked up—any lingering drowsiness vanishing in an instant.
It was Officer Hidari.
Kotomi quickly answered the call.
"Officer Hidari, is something wrong?"
On the other end, Officer Hidari's voice came through, steady but tinged with urgency. The sound of heavy rain could be heard in the background.
"Did you hear anything unusual while you were sleeping last night? Like a loud thud—something heavy crashing to the ground?"
"A loud noise? Hmm… no, I didn't. I'm a deep sleeper."
Kotomi had gone to bed early last night, still shaken by the events of being followed. But surprisingly, she didn't have any nightmares. Instead, she'd had a sweet dream about living in a candy castle and woke up feeling completely refreshed, as though she'd enjoyed a night of golden slumber embraced by Kazumi.
If Officer Hidari hadn't called, she probably would have slept until late morning.
"I see… Do you have some time now? I'd like to show you something—it's related to your safety. After all, you were likely the last person to interact with the suspect last night."
Hearing this, a chill ran down Kotomi's spine, and the memories of her narrow escape came rushing back.
"Of course I have time. After what you just said, I don't think I'll be able to sleep anymore."
"Apologies for the early call. I'll come pick you up. It's pouring out, and I wouldn't feel right asking you to come out on your own. Could you share your address with me?"
"Officer Hidari, are you in Chiba City already?"
"Yes. After I received your message last night, Officer Yukki and I brought a team here. We didn't expect to make such a major breakthrough. Though… the scene is rather horrifying," Hidari admitted with a bitter laugh.
Kotomi thought to herself, Why are you telling me this? I'm just an ordinary high school girl.
After giving Officer Hidari her address, she heard a surprised response: "Ah, that's close by."
Before ending the call, Hidari reminded her to bring an umbrella.
Kotomi tossed aside her blanket and hastily threw on some casual clothes. She grabbed her red-and-black baseball jacket from the closet and made her way to the entryway. After putting on her shoes, she picked up a large black umbrella.
The umbrella had been an expensive add-on when she bought her computer, costing an extra 6,754 yen.
Though pricey, its crimson "Eye of Faith" design was simply too cool to resist. She had bought it in a moment of weakness.
The torrential rain outside had started the previous evening, reportedly caused by a typhoon. It had shown no signs of letting up since. Though the typhoon had passed, the weather was expected to remain rainy for the rest of the day and possibly into tomorrow.
When Kotomi opened the door, she was greeted by the sight of a red sedan parked outside. Standing in the rain with a black folding umbrella, Officer Hidari, dressed in a sharp, form-fitting suit, had clearly been waiting for some time.
Officer Hidari really has a surprisingly feminine figure, Kotomi thought silently to herself.
Upon seeing Kotomi step outside, Hidari strode forward, her slender legs making confident steps, and held the umbrella over Kotomi's head.
"Let's go. I'll explain everything once we're in the car."
"Alright."
Kotomi closed the door to her house behind her.
Hidari opened the passenger-side door for Kotomi, then returned to the driver's seat. The car's engine purred to life, and they drove off, leaving the Izumi household behind.
Meanwhile, though Kotomi had slept soundly the previous night, her younger sister, Aimi Izumi, hadn't slept a wink. She had spent the entire night sitting on her bed, a laptop balanced on her knees, engrossed in a galgame she'd discovered on her D drive—left behind by her sister and not thoroughly deleted.
The game that had captivated her the most was FLOWERS.
In just a few weeks, she had played through Spring, Summer, and Autumn chapters, and now she was pulling an all-nighter with Winter.
Everyone new to galgames eventually reaches the point of staying up all night to progress.
Since returning to her room last night, Aimi had been glued to her screen, pushing through the game from 10 PM until 4 AM. By the time she realized, she was startled by her own recklessness.
I've been up all night! I spent the entire night "learning new things"!
She hastily saved her progress, shut down her laptop, and prepared to finally catch up on sleep.
However, just as she was about to doze off, she heard faint noises coming from her sister's room, followed a few minutes later by the sound of the front door opening.
"Is Onee-chan awake? Impossible! She sleeps more soundly than a hibernating tortoise at this hour."
Mumbling to herself, Aimi listened carefully. When she heard footsteps heading downstairs, she became uneasy and crept out of her room. She tiptoed to the second-floor landing just in time to see Kotomi putting on her shoes and grabbing an umbrella, clearly about to leave the house.
When Kotomi opened the door, Aimi's initial thought was that her sister might be sleepwalking. She was just about to rush over to stop her when she saw a composed, professional-looking woman standing outside with an umbrella. Behind her was a luxury sedan.
Aimi froze, watching as Kotomi climbed into the car. Her mind was struck by a sudden, devastating realization—like a bolt of lightning splitting the clear blue sky.
Could it be…? Onee-chan has been secretly making "arrangements" with that woman—doing "whatever for money" deals?!
Within moments, Aimi's imagination spiraled into creating a tragic narrative: My beloved sister is being kept by a sophisticated older woman!
The more she thought about it, the more real it seemed. She became utterly convinced that this was the truth.
Still in her pajamas, Aimi fell to her knees in the hallway, tears streaming down her cheeks like rain.
"Why… why?! My sister has been taken! Who gets picked up so early in the morning for something innocent?! That woman is a beast in disguise! Waaahhh!"
Her dramatic sobbing was like the sound of a tin can being twisted in a violent storm. Crystal-clear teardrops fell to the floor as she knelt, her small form trembling with despair.
After several minutes, she reached for her phone and made a call—to Iroha Isshiki.
"Hello…? Aimi? What's going on? It's the middle of the night—why are you calling? I'm still not fully awake."
"Ahhh!"
The moment Aimi heard Iroha's groggy voice, she was flooded with memories of the couple-like photos Kotomi and Iroha had taken together. Then, even worse, she thought of the scheming Kato Megumi.
Aimi wailed into the phone: "IROHA! I'VE BEEN BETRAYED! WHY ARE ALL OF YOU SO HEARTLESS?!"
And so, Iroha, now fully awake and swaddled in her blanket, sat bewildered on her bed while Aimi sobbed and ranted for a full thirty minutes. Most of the tirade seemed to involve scathing remarks about someone named Kato Megumi.
Back in the car…
After driving for a short distance, Officer Hidari glanced at Kotomi and offered a relieved smile.
"This might not be the best way to say it, but I'm not sure how else to put it. Congratulations—you're safe now. You don't have to live in fear anymore."
"Huh?"
Kotomi turned to look at Hidari, her face a picture of confusion.
Could it be…? Had the suspect been caught in Chiba City?
Wow… waking up to good news really is the best!
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