Chapter 8

Ngh~… You can’t move people with decency and empathy, after all—It’s all about the law and the payout. At least that’s how it is in today’s society.

And it’s way easier to stick to that. But if you obsess over that kind of thinking too much, you’ll just end up like Ecchan, so it’s hard to figure out where to stand.

I have said this before, but to be compared to Tenshouin-onii-sama is a long-cherished dream of mine.

For as long as I can remember, he has been my ideal.

…It’s a wonder that Tori-kun thinks so highly of him, considering that we are meant to be polar opposites.

—Bou!

…?! Oukawa!

I–I’ve already told you not to call me “Bou.” You are younger than me, so it’s quite arrogant of you to treat me like a child.

I dunno what to tell ya—You’re Bou, Bou.

At the very least, I would ask you to refer to me as “Suou-nii-han,” as you did for a period of time.

I was elated to hear that you loved me as your dear onii-chan.

It was as if I really did have a younger brother of my own… ♪

Hmph. I just called ya that as a joke ‘cause it was funny seein’ you all giddy. It’s not like I actually think you’re my onii-chan or nothin’.

Oh, please don’t say such sad things, Kohakun.

Don’t call me that. Pisses me off to have you treat me like a kid too much. Y’oughta treat others how you wanna be treated, yanno.

Anyway, y’all’re in a real pickle huh, Bou?

I happened upon Leo-han at the airport and he told me all about y’all’s situation. You got your secret order exposed, huh?

Huh? Why did you need to ask Leo-san about it? I would imagine it’s quite the “hot topic” in Kansai right now—

Oh, uh, y–yeah. But you can never be too sure of things ‘til ya go to the source and confirm it yourself.

That is true. It’s as you said—We are in a critical situation at the moment.

You can say that again. Y’all better make like a shovel an’ hole up someplace. If y’ain’t careful, all them other idols’ll come pick a fight with ya an’ take all your money.

We’re doing our best to avoid that scenario.

Right. Jeez, what’re Rinne-han an’ them doin’? We’re s’posed to have formed an alliance with y’all, but why’d they ignore everything until it got this bad?

They said they were tryin’ to figure out what’s goin’ on with the orders bein’ exposed, but they never even bothered with a real investigation. I’m mighty sorry, y’all, they’re all such slackers.

…I just want to confirm something—The one putting up the orders around town isn’t Crazy:B, right?

Huh? There’s no point in us doin’ that; what would we even get out of it?

I mean, our orders were exposed just as well. Why would we go an’ shoot ourselves in the foot, too?

(…That’s true. The only mystery Crazy:B has left is the secret order given to their leader, Amagi Rinne.)

(All of the other members’ orders have already been written down and put up on a poster.)

(Shiina Niki: “Don’t eat food made with flour.” HiMERU: “Don’t wear makeup.”)

(Amagi Rinne: “Don’t contact your younger brother.” And Oukawa Kohaku—)

(What was it again? I feel like it was something stupid and easy, something that wouldn’t hold him back in any way. Something you’d never go against in your daily life.)

(Like “don’t kill people” or something. As if you’d need an order that’s already prohibited by law.)

(Well, there’s no way to be sure that the orders written on the posters are actually true.)

(So even if they are lies, no one but the Administration would know the truth.)

(Besides—it’s pretty common in mystery novels for the murderer to pose as a victim. And I hate to say it, but it happens in real life all the time, too.)

Anywho, even if it’s just for show, we did form an alliance with Knights, so we’ll play nice.

I dunno where y’all’re headed, but I can take ya someplace you can hide without anyone catchin’ wind of ya.

You’ve always been quite good at that, Oukawa.

I’ve made it a habit to check for escape routes when I’m in a new place.

So if, say, the unreliable head of the family’s life’s in danger, I can make sure he gets to safety.

How very reassuring. However, your concerns are unnecessary.

We’ll be arriving at our destination—the theater we’ve rented out—soon enough, without having to rely on you.

We’ll be locking ourselves inside there until the end of the Qualifying Rounds.

Hmm…? A theater?

Yes. We’ll be there, performing a continuous live without food or drink until the end of the SS Qualifying Rounds.

—You talk too much, Suu~chan. Who cares if he’s your family; this Oukawa kid isn’t in Knights. He’s not one of us.

It’s dangerous to reveal too much about our circumstances.

If that information spreads, we’ll be in a world of trouble.

Everyone who wants to take our treasure—our SSL$—could swarm around us like bugs.

Oukawa is fine.

On what grounds?

He’s right, yanno. Not like I have any say in it, but you shouldn’t trust me too much.

And why is that? You are my relative—my family, and my old friend.

If I can’t trust someone like that, then who can I put my faith in?

That’s exactly it. You’ve always been a total softy, huh Bou. Ya don’t know squat ‘bout how the world works.

Yeah, it’s hard for us, too.

Wh–what’s with those looks?! You’re making fun of me! Did I misspeak or say something wrong?!

Ufufu, you’re just getting excited because you got to hang out with your favorite person.

But are we really in a position where we can just stand around and talk like this—Tsukasa-chan?

R–right! That’s right! You’re always so calm and dependable, Narukami-senpai!

And the prettiest to boot ♪

I’m proud of who I am, so I find it pretty upsetting when people come at me like they’re trying to throw dirt on me.

Sorry? What do you mean…?