Glitch Street (6)
In a lucid dream, I met Seia.
Seia had forewarned of the impending despair,
but I refused to compromise with despair.
Because of me, the story would change.
“Umm...”
I woke up from the dream.
The pristine white ceiling of the hospital room came into view.
“...Makocchi?”
Then, Aru’s voice came from beside me, slightly tinged with tears.
It seemed Aru had been nursing me all this time.
“I’m so glad! Makocchi, the bleeding was severe, it was a big problem! I thought maybe you wouldn’t wake up...”
Aru sniffled with relief on her face. She must have been under a lot of stress.
Aru, who had forgotten her hardboiled persona and revealed her gentle heart.
“I’m sorry for worrying you.”
“Ah, no! It’s not like Makocchi should apologize. If there’s anyone to blame, it’s me.”
Aru lowered her head dejectedly.
The request was a failure due to a misjudgment, and the client almost lost their life... I have no face as a Problem Solver.
Aru couldn’t hide her pained expression.
“No, that’s the opposite.”
But I comforted Aru’s disappointment.
The mission I hired you for wasn’t protection. It’s mostly my fault for not properly guarding my own body.
I was the naive one.
I never imagined I’d be ambushed by Saori.
“But...”
“Minor mistakes don’t matter. The important thing is that you saved me.”
If it weren’t for Aru, I would definitely have died. That’s certain.
“Thank you, Aru.”
That’s why I expressed my gratitude to Aru.
But Aru looked bewildered by the sudden thanks.
“You really are the best Problem Solver in Kivotos. My eyes are sharp.”
Then, I added praise to the thanks. I elevated Aru even more.
“Right! I’m a professional who rules this underworld with skill alone!”
Aru’s spirit quickly revived. The gloomy atmosphere disappeared.
Aru is at her most charming when she’s confident.
“There’s no need for tears in paradise.”
I sat up from the hospital bed.
“Ouch.”
My body moved, and the wound in my abdomen throbbed.
I couldn’t move much, but my physical abilities had significantly dropped.
I couldn’t expect peak combat power.
“First, I need to contact Manma-eon. Iroha is scary, so contact Makoto...”
I took out my phone.
“Ah.”
The phone was completely destroyed.
It was ruined by Saori’s gunshot. A cracked phone won’t work.
For now, let’s postpone the contact.
“Aru, is it okay to check the Kronos broadcast channel?”
“U-uh? Wait a sec.”
I checked the Kronos news on Aru’s phone.
【Eden Treaty】 Preview remaining in about 30 minutes.
“Not even the signing, the missile might fall in an hour or two.”
The time was urgent.
If things went as planned, Makoto would head to the Ancient Cathedral of Communion soon.
But as Makoto’s unofficial proxy, I was missing. Manma-eon didn’t know my location.
“Will Makoto move? ...Lately, her belly has been coming back, so the uniform won’t fit. It’ll be tough.”
It’s unlikely Makoto will appear personally.
“If she does, she might be troubled by Kronos’ malicious news catching her.”
Makoto won’t escape the office due to the belly issue.
In that case, the priority to act as Makoto is with me.
“I can’t just leave Saori like this.”
The wound from Saori’s attack was painful. I had to pay back in kind. Stop Arius’s plan.
“Inform Manma-eon of my whereabouts and delay the signing. To do that, I need a variable.”
I looked at Aru. I needed the help of Problem Solver 68.
“Aru, this is sudden, but I have a request for you. A job.”
“Great, leave it to me. This time, I’ll definitely show the face of a professional Problem Solver!”
Aru had fully recovered her confidence. I opened my mouth to Aru.
“Kidnapping.”
“...Kidnapping? Who?”
Aru asked the target with a bewildered face.
I pointed at myself with my thumb.
“From now on, Problem Solver 68 will kidnap me.”
“Eh? E, eeek? Wha-what-!?”
Aru shouted as if about to faint.
Aru trembled with a horrified face.
“It’s truly fitting for a cold-blooded outlaw.”
Kidnapping the highest authority of Gehenna. It’s a terrorist act that even a weak coward can’t dream of.
It’s impossible for a hardboiled like Aru.
“Right! Until just now, I was employed by Makocchi, right? That doesn’t sit well with me...”
“Calling the employer a traitor is truly an uncontrollable outlaw. A hardboiled who isn’t bound by anything.”
I encouraged the hesitant Aru.
It feels like a demon tempting a good Aru to do bad things.
“Let’s turn the entire Gehenna against us. What do you think?”
Aru’s face turned pale.
Aru was at a loss as the villain level skyrocketed in an instant.
“Oops. The overpacking was too much. Need to correct it.”
“...Well, it’s just a setting that I was kidnapped.”
The media loves sensational material.
The kidnapping incident would be reported across Kivotos in no time.
This way, Manma-eon would confirm my survival. Iroha would relax too.
If Makoto doesn’t attend the signing, the 【Eden Treaty】 would be in trouble.
“Interfering with Arius’s plan in an unexpected way.”
It’s not the normal way, but so what.
Hanuma Makoto is an unmanageable villainous president.
At the temporary hideout in the Gehenna Slums.
Problem Solver 68 is waiting here for negotiations while kidnapping me.
For now, that’s the setting.
“...”
In the dimly lit room, surrounded by the Problem Solver members and me.
Kayoko turned her head to me after looking away from the television.
“Haa... What do you plan to do with this farce, President Makoto?”
Kayoko, the brain of Problem Solver 68, asked cynically.
“Do you know about the concept of designated survivors?”
“Well, roughly.”
Designated survivors.
A safety measure to prepare successors for high-ranking officials in case of incapacitation, in safe houses.
“I hope you think of something similar.”
“What? That’s it.”
Kayoko’s expression became flustered at my explanation. A face of not understanding.
“Anyway, the story is that if major figures gather at the Ancient Cathedral of Communion, it’s dangerous.”
Having passed Kayoko’s questioning, I shifted my gaze to the phone.
Soon, it was time for a call from Manma-eon.
Ring. Eventually, the phone rang with a dull bell sound.
“...Yes, this is Rikuhachima Aru of Problem Solver 68.”
Aru picked up the phone.
Then answered with the Problem Solver’s professional tone. It didn’t sound like a terrorist who kidnapped the president of Manma-eon.
A harsh voice came from beyond the phone.
“Hey... Makocchi?”
After a few seconds, Aru’s expression changed.
“If you don’t return Makocchi, I’ll immediately drive a tank and blow all the halos away, what should I do?”
The person on the other end of the phone was Iroha. And she was extremely agitated.