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It’s worrying that Ame hasn’t contacted me, but I’m hesitant about contacting her as well. Why? That’s because if, by some slim chance, they actually had a good mood going on, doing so might just ruin the mood.

“Yeah, probably not.”

To be honest, I don’t even believe that there’s a 1 in a million chance of that happening. The real reason for my reluctance is because I know I’ll be roped into trouble. After all, they would never miss what would seem like an interesting happening like this.

“We left too many traces.”

Nagatsuki, who rarely comes to the cafe, suddenly started visiting everyday and I was called to the Nagatsuki family home. And these are only ones that are public knowledge. With some investigation, they can probably know the finer details.

“Someone’s finally calling, huh. It’s as expected, but I really don’t wanna answer.”

Call rejected. I’m already dead tired from the concert, so I’d rather not have more work. If I pretend not to notice it, problems won’t exist in the first place. It would be obvious from my call history, though.

“Ugeh…”

A call from a person I can’t ignore came, causing me to groan. I see, those guys are using their brains, too. This is probably just a coincidence. Maybe our security firm was the only one they could rely on.

“Hello, Akira. What is it?”
‘Take the f̲u̲c̲k̲i̲n̲g call!!’
“Don’t scream at the damn phone!!”

It was lucky that I put it on hands-free mode. If I had it next to my ear, that would have absolutely damaged my hearing. I screamed back in reply, but it seems like Akira expected it.

‘Why do I have to come to the aid of some other security company!’
“Honestly, I didn’t expect the call to be redirected to you.”

If anything, I expected a call from the Nagatsuki family. As I thought, it might be a bit difficult for them to ask the twelve families for help. It’s their employer. Like anyone would do what’s practically self-reporting their own incompetence.

‘I’m off duty! And I’ve already had a can of beer! I don’t want to do overtime like this!’
“Sounds like real desperation in your voice. Still, you’re at the usual spot, aren’t you?”
‘At this point, I’ve slept here more than I have my own home.’

My bodyguards rented a room in an apartment next to mine for monitoring me. Akira finds it bothersome to go home, so she mostly stays there. It’s originally just a work use room, but now it practically serves as her own private room, apparently.

“Returning to the topic, is it a safe assumption that some sort of problem occurred?”
‘They can’t handle the situation on their own, apparently. So they wanted to come into contact with Kotone at any cost. And if they can’t, then they want help from us.’
“It sounds like they’re desperate there.”
‘It’s abnormal enough that they decided to lean on us, a rival company. That should be enough for you to understand how pressed they are right now.’

They were present when madam Nagatsuki and I were discussing, so they might have thought that their contract would be terminated if they made any mistake here. They’re not wrong to think that. With the madam’s personality, she’d probably do it.

“Anyway, it’s probably that some other twelve family members barged into the date, or something.”
‘You expected this?’
“Of course I did. For these guys, this would make for perfect entertainment. Comedy, drama, gambling. Depending on how they see it, they can extract a lot of enjoyment out of the situation.”
‘For the other families, the Nagatsuki family’s romance is considered entertainment, huh.’
“So, did they say which particular family intervened?”
‘They didn’t say that yet. Give me a second. Which family? Eh? Multiple? Not just the usual entourage?’

Ah, sounds like she just sobered up. Moreover, there’s a hint of despair in her voice. This is presumably the first time love has happened in the Nagatsuki family history. There’s no way this wouldn’t attract attention.

“With the usual two seniors as a given, the younger ones are suspect as well. For the others, I can’t be sure.”
‘You can’t be sure… then you’re not denying that there can be more present?’
“Even without being present, the others can still have indirect involvement.”
‘Ugeh, I did not want to hear that. But if I don’t hear about it now, I can’t be prepared when needed.’
“Time wise, it was probably the seniors who caught them. Though they are under-aged, so it’s still iffy.”
‘Is there a chance of it being one of the much older members?’
“At that point, there will be nothing I can do.”

I can’t devise countermeasures against people I don’t know. Not that I can devise countermeasures against the ones I do know, anyway.They’re the type of people who would exploit and crush those same countermeasures with ease.

“Well then, I suppose I’ll contact them now.”
‘Make sure I won’t be given work, would you?’
“Sorry, the signal’s bad, I couldn’t hear what you said. Hear you later.”

I think I might have heard a scream, but I ended the call before it could get loud. Well then… I steel myself and contact Nagatsuki’s security team.

‘Finally, finally, you picked up the call!’
“So, are there any issues?”
‘Allow me to explain the course of events.’
“No need. What’s the current situation?”

If they want to explain what happened when they left the venue, I’m ignoring it. I can just directly ask Ame when she returns. What’s more important is to know the situation at the present time.

‘Hadzuki and Shimotsuki brought the two into a karaoke establishment.’
“Leave them be.”
‘Hah?’
“Leave them be. That’s your response.”

C’mon. They were so desperate to contact me, so I thought they’re in a terrible spot, but that wasn’t the case at all. If it were Akira and the others, they would have observed the situation for a while and reported only when there’s an issue. And maybe give head’s up beforehand just to be sure.

‘No, but…’
“This isn’t necessarily a risky situation. There is no chance that the two will be in danger. Rather, their safety is near assured.”

Not only are they–Nagatsuki’s security team–present, but the Hadzuki and Shimotsuki bodyguards are there as well. There’s practically no danger that can slip past them now. They’re beyond secure.

‘However, it would be a problem if we cannot confirm the ongoings within.’
“You can just ask them later, can’t you?”

Those two probably came to check their current progress, see if Nagatsuki has a chance, or observe how they can bring them together; basically to build groundwork for schemes in the future.

“Besides, it’s already too deep in the night for me to go outside and join the fray.”

There’s no way a minor like me can just walk outside when it’s past midnight. While I could pass off as an adult with my appearance, I don’t think I should get used to doing that. And in my current situation, I can’t really afford to risk causing a scandal.

“They should be released by tomorrow. If you’re still worried, then why not secure a room next door?”
‘Both neighbouring rooms are already occupied by the Hadzuki and Shimotsuki security teams.’
“Then it’s on you for having a late start.”

Experienced security teams are quick to act. Besides, if the seniors do end up going out of control, I trust that their bodyguards will come in and stop them.

“Hadzuki and Shimotsuki wouldn’t be brash enough to go outside this late in the night either, so they’ll likely stay at the karaoke establishment until morning.”
‘Then how should we…’
“Just watch over them. If something else happens, contact for assistance. I’ll be sleeping now.”
‘If an emergency situation occurs, who should we contact?’
“How would I know? Feel free to follow your own judgement.”

I don’t want to hold their hand beyond this. It’s not an issue warranting the need to stay all night anyway. Despite the heartbreak palpable from over the phone, I mercilessly end the call. If anything happens, they’ll probably contact Akira.

“If you’re too reserved in dealing with the twelve families, you won’t be able to do anything.”

Who knows how many security firms have managed to learn? For mine, they learned all because of Ani. Who would have known that there’d be an idiot who’d play tag with their own bodyguards.

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