“I miss Miyuki’s face…” Izumi groaned.
“What are you talking about?” Kasumi sighed. “You just saw her this afternoon in the student council room.”
“But think about it, Kasumi,” Izumi insisted. “Wouldn’t it be much more productive to be having a cup of tea at Miyuki’s place than to be sitting here waiting?”
Tatsuya and Miyuki’s apartment and Minami’s hospital room were close enough to be considered in the same neighborhood. They weren’t exactly walking distance from each other, but it took less than five minutes via some kind of vehicle to get from one to the other. Ever since Minami mentioned this during a recent visit, Izumi had been itching to see the apartment. Kasumi’s response to her sister’s cravings had also become something of a routine.
“Count me out,” she grimaced. “It might be Miyuki’s place, but Tatsuya is there, too.”
The twins were sitting in a small restaurant right next to Chofu Aoba Hospital, where Minami was staying. Ever since the recent Ten Master Clans meeting to deal with Minoru, this restaurant had been exclusively reserved for the Saegusa family. Since it was a reservation-only establishment to begin with, it was the perfect place to use as their base.
At the Ten Master Clans meeting, the Saegusa family had been assigned the task of ambushing and capturing the now parasite Minoru Kudou. If capture proved too difficult, they had been authorized to kill him. In other words, the Ten Master Clans had determined that summoning a parasite was a crime punishable by death.
Kasumi and Izumi wanted to avoid killing Minoru at all costs, of course, but they had come to terms with the fact that it might become necessary. Tatsuya might not think the twins were suited for the life of the Master Clans, but their family had instilled them with the mentality needed in situations like these.
What concerned the Saegusa twins the most wasn’t how to avoid killing Minoru. They had already accepted this was beyond their control, and no amount of thinking on their part could change that. Their uncertainties were much more fundamental.
“I wonder if Minoru will even really come,” Kasumi mused.
“I bet he will,” Izumi said.
“I dunno…” Kasumi frowned. “Minoru isn’t dumb.”
“He is at least smarter than you,” Izumi countered.
“That’s probably true, but it’s not like you can talk!” Kasumi scowled. “Our grades aren’t that far apart.”
“Oh, does that mean I don’t have to help you with your homework anymore?” Izumi retorted.
“H-hey! No fair!” Kasumi sputtered. “Homework has nothing to do with this!”
“That’s not my problem,” Izumi huffed.
“Anyway,” Kasumi said, refusing to let her twin have the last word, “what I’m trying to say is I bet Minoru is anticipating our attack.”
Izumi chuckled at her sister’s defensiveness and decided to lay off the bullying.
“You’re probably right,” she said. “He might even know we’re lying in wait for him right now.”
“I know, right?” Kasumi grinned.
More than anything, she was relieved that her sister had given up her threats to stop helping with homework.
“Still,” Izumi persisted. “I think Minoru is going to come.”
“But why would he?” Kasumi asked quizzically.
“He has never been very attached to things,” Izumi began. “Probably because he has always been so frail.”
“You’ve got that right.” Kasumi nodded. “It used to drive me nuts that he wasn’t more selfish.”
The twins hadn’t been around Minoru all that often growing up. Compared to other children, they, too, tended to be relatively indifferent to material goods. But even so, Minoru seemed like a boy who didn’t desire much at all—whether it was objects or experiences.
“My point is,” Izumi continued, “despite that, he went so far as to abandon his humanity for Sakurai. I can’t imagine feeling that strongly about anything, but it probably means he won’t give up easily.”
“Wow, not even you know what it’s like to feel that way?” Kasumi asked in astonishment.
“I might be a romantic, but no.” Izumi shook her head sadly. “As much as I hate to admit it.”
“I mean…I don’t doubt you’re a romantic, but this situation doesn’t necessarily have that much to do with romance,” Kasumi said with a stifled laugh. “Feelings aside, the real issue is that Sakurai has the Yotsuba, Juumonji, and Saegusa families on her side. Would Minoru really dive into a lion’s den like this? Is love really that blind?”
“Kasumi, I don’t think you understand what the phrase love is blind means,” her sister countered.
Kasumi looked puzzled. “Doesn’t it mean love makes you lose all reason and common sense?”
“A dictionary might describe it that way, but losing reason refers to an inability to see the flaws in another person. Losing common sense means ignoring your or your loved one’s social status and position. I don’t think that’s what is happening here,” Izumi explained.
“Huh.”
“Besides,” Izumi added, “I don’t think Minoru has lost his ability to make rational decisions.”
“But why else would he come here?” Kasumi asked. “He has to know he’s walking into a trap.”
Izumi lowered her voice, her expression hinting at the secretive nature of what she was about to say. “I think it’s because he isn’t afraid of us.”
Kasumi lowered her voice as well. “But Minoru never came off as the overconfident type.”
“His lack of fear doesn’t mean he’s overconfident,” Izumi insisted. “He’s actually strong enough to hold his own against all of us.”
“I mean…” Kasumi hesitated. “He might be strong enough to beat the Saegusa family, but I’m not so sure about the Yotsuba and Juumonji.”
“Minoru now possesses a parasite’s strength,” Izumi reminded her twin. “On top of that, there are rumors that he absorbed the spirit of an ancient magic practitioner from China.”
“He absorbed a spirit?” Kasumi asked skeptically. “That sounds a little far-fetched.”
“Either way,” Izumi said, brushing off Kasumi’s objection without delving deeper, “I’m sure Minoru has grown stronger.”
Truth be told, she wasn’t entirely convinced that the rumors were true, either. And despite her acknowledgment of Minoru’s strength, this didn’t mean he could go unchecked. Before Kasumi could state her own opinion, a voice grabbed their attention, bringing the twins’ conversation to an end.
“Kasumi, Izumi, he’s here!”
It was Mayumi, appearing from the door of the restaurant’s kitchen. Kasumi was the first of the twins to jump to her feet.
“What about Sakurai?!”
Izumi may have worked with Minami on the student council, but Kasumi seemed to have a deeper affection for her classmate. Or maybe she was just more emotionally expressive.
“She’s fine,” Mayumi reassured her. “We caught Minoru before he snuck into the hospital.”
“You mean the Juumonji family caught him?” Izumi asked before her twin had the chance.
“No.” Mayumi shook her head. “It was the Saegusa team.”
Kasumi’s face lit up with pride. But her expression quickly darkened at Mayumi’s next statement.
“Unfortunately,” Mayumi continued, “they were defeated in less than a minute. The Juumonji family has taken over now, but they’re barely holding Minoru off. I contacted Father, but it will take at least ten minutes for him to get here. Katsuto Juumonji’s team is also on their way, but we can’t expect them in less than five minutes.”
“So until then, it’s up to us to hold Minoru back?” Izumi asked.
“Exactly.” Mayumi nodded.
This whole time, Kasumi and Izumi had not been listening passively. As they let Mayumi’s words sink in, they were busy wrapping CAD devices around their wrists, securing communication goggles over their eyes, and fastening their protective vests. Their vests not only provided protection from bullets and blades. They also absorbed all sorts of impacts.
“All set,” Kasumi announced.
“Me too,” Izumi added.
“Okay, let’s go,” Mayumi said, opening the door.
Clad in matching tactical gear, she led the way toward the site of the action. The twins followed closely behind.