I Thought So, and Sure Enough
I Thought So, and Sure Enough
Meanwhile, upon confirming that their boss Nickel was dead, the mafia members descended into complete chaos.
After a bout of commotion, they soon got down to seriously discussing 'who' had killed the boss.
In the midst of this, a member claiming to be an eyewitness came forward.
The eyewitness's name was Baldron Mekkalana.
At the time, Baldron had been smoking a cigarette with the second-floor window open when he saw a woman jump from the third floor where the boss was.
At first, Baldron thought he had been mistaken, but after hearing that the boss was found dead inside the room, he was certain the woman was the assassin.
Baldron told the other members what he had seen, and the enraged members banded together, resolved to find the woman and avenge their boss.
And now.
Baldron, who had been observing the restaurant's fifth-floor window through a folding telescope, furrowed his brow.
'Brown hair, wearing a pure white knit. A chestnut coat draped over her knees, a plain shoulder bag set beside her chair. Black flat shoes on her feet. And tall for a woman....'
Aside from the sunglasses, her appearance matched the woman who had killed the boss perfectly.
After scouring the nearby streets, they had finally succeeded in locating the woman who had assassinated the boss.
'That wretched bitch....'
Baldron lowered the telescope and ground his teeth.
That she dared to kill the boss and then enjoy a luxurious meal at a restaurant was unforgivable.
It was as if she were mocking his entire organization, wasn't it?
Baldron, barely quelling his seething rage, folded the telescope and tucked it into his coat, then pulled out his radio.
Glaring at the woman slicing steak on the restaurant's fifth floor, Baldron pressed the transmit button.
"I've found the woman who killed the boss. Location: 22 Laybern Street, Das Abendlicht Restaurant. She looks like she'll finish her meal soon, so all members are requested to converge on this location."
*
When they finished their meal and stepped outside the restaurant, Kartman bowed his head deeply.
"I have committed a grave discourtesy toward the young lady. Even if I had ten mouths, I would have nothing to say. I offer my sincerest apologies once again."
As Lucy remained silent, Daniel answered in her stead.
"There's no need to apologize repeatedly. Miss Mairin fully understands. Isn't that right, Miss Mairin?"
When Daniel gave her a look, Lucy reluctantly nodded.
Seeing that, Daniel smiled with his eyes and spoke.
"Then we shall take our leave now."
"Ah. Please do. It was an honor to be able to speak with you, Captain."
"It was also a great honor in my life to have spoken with a Chief Inspector who always devotes himself to the Empire. Farewell."
Daniel bowed his head and turned away with Lucy, walking off.
After they had gone some distance, he glanced back to see Kartman, stroking his chin a few times, turn and walk in the opposite direction.
Daniel, thinking he could finally relax a little, let out a sigh of relief.
"You may speak now."
Lucy, having regained her freedom of speech, paused for a moment before speaking.
"......You treated me like a fool."
"I didn't treat you like a fool. I treated you like a mute. And I should have told you, I only stepped in to save you from the Security Bureau police."
It wasn't a lie.
Without Daniel's help, Lucy would have taken Kartman's suspicions head-on.
Lucy's pride was wounded by receiving help from an enemy, but she had to acknowledge the truth.
"I will repay this debt someday."
At Lucy's quiet whisper, Daniel broke into a cold sweat without realizing it.
Because he couldn't tell whether 'repaying the debt' meant 'I'll help you' or 'I'll kill you.'
Since there was no way to read Lucy's mind, Daniel nodded awkwardly.
"......I'm grateful for the sentiment, but there's no need to repay it. More importantly, how about we each go our separate ways now?"
If they delayed any longer, the dessert shop would close.
Daniel wanted to heal with dessert even now, but Lucy shook her head.
"I'm sorry, but that won't be possible."
What was she talking about? Daniel, who felt vaguely uneasy, was blinking quietly when Lucy glanced around and spoke.
"Listen as we walk. We're being tailed. Not only behind us, but across the main road and one block ahead on the street, there are people watching us."
Tailed? Daniel immediately sharpened his gaze and scanned the pedestrians walking along the street.
As Lucy had said, some suit-clad individuals could be seen moving suspiciously.
A few of them had their hands inside their coats, looking ready to draw guns at any moment.
Their movements were too clumsy for intelligence operatives.
But they were clearly organized. That meant a private organization.
If members of a private organization were walking around with guns, there was only one answer.
'Mafia members.'
They were obviously targeting Lucy, so Daniel felt a headache coming on and furrowed his brow.
"......Miss? What on earth have you been up to that mafia members are following you?"
But Lucy didn't answer.
With her characteristically sharp gaze, she rapidly assessed the situation and simply grabbed Daniel's hand tightly.
Her grip was cold but soft.
"—Captain. I am going to run into an alleyway twenty steps from here. Since you are with me, you will become their target as well, so if you want to live, you must follow me."
She didn't particularly want to save Daniel.
But if Daniel died, the Empire would try to uncover the truth, and then Lucy, who had been with Daniel on the day of his death, would be caught in the Imperial investigation net.
She wanted to prevent at least that, so Lucy did not let go of the hand holding Daniel's.
"Just a moment, Miss. If you have a plan, let's discuss it together......!"
When they reached twenty steps, Lucy spun around and kicked off the ground.
Daniel, too, had no choice but to run along, pulled by Lucy's hand.
"Fuck! They're running!"
"That wretched bitch noticed! After her!"
"Kill her!"
Shouts rang out behind them, and gunshots cracked.
Whiz! A stray bullet cut through the air as it flew past his ear.
Daniel instinctively ducked his head, put on a burst of speed, and glared at Lucy.
'......Just what kind of grudge did she rack up? Did she kill a mafia boss or something?'
It was bewildering, but this was no time to indulge his curiosity.
"To the left!"
Daniel followed Lucy's lead and turned the corner of the alley.
After that, as they ran about halfway through the alley, Lucy suddenly ducked behind an industrial dumpster.
Daniel, caught off guard, also hid himself and caught his breath.
"......Why are we suddenly hiding? Are you planning to take on all the members here?"
Lucy nodded and pulled out a detonation device with a red button from her shoulder bag.
She had planted bombs inside the walls on both sides of the deserted alley just in case she was chased, and she intended to use them now.
'Huh. Thoroughly prepared, I'll give her that.......'
Daniel, understanding roughly what Lucy was trying to do, held his breath and waited.
"They went into a dead end! After them!"
"Shoot as soon as you see them! Kill that bastard who was with her too!"
The members, yelling, swarmed into the alley.
But Lucy and Daniel were not visible to the members.
The members, not knowing that Lucy and Daniel were hiding behind the dumpster, moved deeper into the alley in confusion.
"What? I'm sure I saw them go in."
"Did they climb over the wall? You're telling me they climbed over that high thing?"
"Fuck. Did anyone check behind the dumpster?"
The moment the members' voices drew gradually closer.
Lucy pressed the button on the detonation device without hesitation.
Right after.
Kwahaaaaang─!
With a tremendous explosion, the walls burst apart, erupting in flames.
The shock was so strong it shook the ground, and Daniel had no choice but to squeeze his eyes shut involuntarily.
"Ugh. Damn......."
A ringing echoed in his ears.
After taking deep breaths for a few moments, Daniel slowly opened his eyes.
Having barely regained his senses, he gritted his teeth and got to his feet.
When he then looked back at where the explosion had occurred, he saw mafia members collapsed among the crumbled bricks.
Nearly thirty members were lying there, bleeding and groaning.
"Ha......."
He was so dumbfounded that he stared blankly at the scene when new footsteps began to sound from the other end of the alley.
Thinking they might be remnants, he moved his hand to his holster, but the footsteps were light and brisk.
"Explosion! Did you hear the explosion!?"
"What happened? Did a pipe burst or something?"
"I don't know, but let's go! It might be a scoop!"
Clearly, they were reporters who would rush anywhere there was an incident or accident.
Daniel, the tension leaving him, took his hand off his holster and spoke.
"Do you even know what you've just......?"
He spoke while looking for Lucy, but she was nowhere to be seen.
Had she climbed over the wall and fled the moment the explosion occurred? Over something that high?
As Daniel exhaled in dismay, the reporters rushed in.
At the same time, the reporters froze in their tracks.
Nearly thirty people lay bleeding in the alley, and a man in a military officer's uniform stood perfectly fine in front of them—the intimidation was no joke.
One reporter, frozen in bewilderment over what on earth had happened, lowered his gaze and then widened his eyes.
"Aren't these...... Nickel's underlings?"
Every one of the collapsed people had a hyena tattoo etched on their necks.
This meant they were members of Nickel's organization, one of the mafia bosses.
The other reporters, belatedly confirming that fact, lifted their heads.
Only then, having confirmed the officer's identity, did the reporters break into smiles.
They had caught the scent of a scoop.
"It's Captain Daniel Steiner!"
"......What? Good lord! It really is Captain Daniel!"
While the reporters were making a fuss, citizens who had heard the explosion also began to gather one by one.
The citizens who arrived at the alley wore the same expressions as the reporters, looking at each other and murmuring.
At this, Daniel, sensing something ominous, raised both hands and said.
"Everyone. You're misunderstanding something. This wasn't done by me—"
"Everyone gather here! Captain Daniel Steiner has once again devoted himself to the Empire! He's completely wiped out a mafia organization!"
Daniel's words were buried by the reporter's booming voice.
The citizens who believed the reporter soon erupted in cheers and began chanting Daniel's name.
When applause soon began to pour down as well, Daniel half gave up and closed his eyes.
'This is driving me crazy.......'
It wasn't even surprising anymore.