Ten minutes later, a fed-up voice echoed through the high-class restaurant.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Ah-ha-ha! Oh, Ayame. I can’t believe that two-bit sob story was enough to make you spill your guts. You need to watch out, young lady. Not everything you read online is true, you know. In my pursuit for love in all its forms, I’ve come up with so many pickup lines you’ll never hear the same one twice!”
“B-bwuh?!! That was a lie???!!!”
✦ ✦ ✦
However, in exchange for the lovely story, Frey(a) agreed to help. Everything was in place for the final battle.
✦ ✦ ✦
Server Name: Gamma Orange.
Starting Location: Tokonatsu City, Mangrove Island.
Log-in credentials accepted.
Welcome to Money (Game) Master, Kaname Suou.
✦ ✦ ✦
The sun had risen to its highest point. It was now two in the afternoon, the hottest time of day. Kaname woke up in the garage of his log cabin base and immediately got an eyeful of panties. Celsa was there, standing in front of the electric fan, lifting her paper-thin negligee in order to cool off.
She turned to him, expressionless, and said, “I have recorded your face looking at my panties.”
“What are you, porn site ransomware?!”
Kaname had no time for this. He shook his head to disperse his post-log-in dizziness and called out to his partner.
“Tselika. My gun and car.”
“I have prepared them both, My Lord.”
“Where’s our enemy?”
Tselika must’ve spent some time under the car, because she was wiping engine oil from her soft cheeks with a towel.
“Ayame and the Treasure Hermit Crabs have been alternating shifts, but we haven’t seen any movement. It does make me wonder when your sister and Frey(a) became such good friends. Nevertheless, we cannot be sure if this is a trap or if the Mind is simply unaware of our schemes.”
“It’s a trap. One hundred percent.” But they would spring it anyway. That had been the plan all along. “Have you sent word to the other Dealers?” he asked.
“Yes. Though I suspect they will only add to our troubles.”
“That’s fine. Human chaos is what we need right now. It’s unpredictable.”
Their destination was an empty space hidden away among the web of subway tunnels underground. It was in a blind spot—the confusion of the subway’s unification had left the train companies unsure whose jurisdiction it fell under. That was where the final Legacies were being kept. The AI could have easily moved them elsewhere by now, but it was likely they were afraid of Kaname targeting the convoy en route.
The time for smoke and mirrors had passed. Now it was time to see who had the better hand.
“We’re off.”
“Roger that.”
Kaname and Tselika hopped into the mint-green coupe and set off for the mainland. Kaname checked the mirror to see Celsa following him in the bright yellow convertible. It seemed the lace of her eye mask was thin enough for her to see through, at least. The two cars drove along the large circular bridge, setting their sights on the heart of the financial district.
“I wonder where Uriel has gotten to?” pondered Tselika.
“…”
“And Midori, too, for that matter. If her consciousness really has been stripped from her body and trapped in Money (Game) Master, then her data should be wandering around here somewhere, like a ghost.”
The archangel Uriel. Even now, his very existence was a mystery. So much so that even Takamasa had shied away from facing him head-on.
Kaname sighed. “We never did manage to find Meiki. If only she were here to give us a hint.”
“And even after we brought her motorcycle back to the garage,” added Tselika. “She always was a fickle one. Even Midori couldn’t get her to appear half the time, so I don’t much fancy our chances.”
The upcoming battle would decide everything. If Kaname succeeded in uniting the Legacies and using them to deduce the game’s code, that would be it. Not only for the Magistelli and the Mind, but also for Uriel, who was currently bound by the same rules. The question was, did the angel understand that? Would Kaname be facing a united front, or a battle royal?
As he thought over the coming fight, they soon arrived on the mainland. As always, the streets were like the heart of a solar cooker. Chrome spires reflected the sun’s rays, focusing the midsummer heat. Kaname continued down the main road, and one after the other, his allies fell in behind him, keeping their distance. Ayame and Cindy in their highway patrol car. Lily-Kiska and Sofia in her armored limousine.
Kaname subtly checked his mirrors.
“Looks like everyone’s here.”
“Indeed. At any rate, we’ll soon be arriving at the closest subway station to our destination. I don’t know where you plan to leave my temple, but make sure you find a proper parking spot.”
“No.”
“What?! What do you mean, ‘No’?!”
It should’ve been obvious.