Hikari only smiled dismissively.
Could someone like Takasaki Souichi really know he was wrong?
He only knew he was about to die.
Hikari couldn't be bothered with him.
He waved his hand.
Takasaki Souichi sped up his own slow execution.
As one cut after another appeared, blood gradually spread across the ground.
Having lost too much blood, Takasaki Souichi's eyes rolled back, and he slowly lost consciousness.
But the movements of his hands never stopped.
Finally, a few minutes later, Takasaki Souichi's hands stopped completely.
At the same time, his chest stopped rising and falling.
[Ding! The host has successfully killed Takasaki Souichi and promoted the spirit of pure love!]
[Reward obtained: Pure Love Points +100!]
Hearing the system notification, Hikari snapped his fingers.
A flame from the Corpse Incineration Technique drifted onto Takasaki Souichi's body, reducing it completely to ashes.
"Finally dealt with that guy. Besides the Pure Love Points, I also got telekinesis. Not a bad haul."
Hikari went over his gains and nodded in satisfaction.
After cleaning up the remaining traces, he walked down from the rooftop.
Before he had even left the school building, his phone rang.
He glanced at the caller ID and immediately knew what it was about.
"Hello, Sister Rika?", Hikari greeted first.
["Hikari-kun, are you done?"], As soon as the call connected, Detective Ikazuchi Rika asked directly.
"I'm done. Is the investigation about to begin?", Hikari asked.
["Yes. It's almost time. If you're finished, come to the Asakusa Police Station as soon as possible,"] Rika urged him to head over and meet up.
Hearing her urging, Hikari also knew that dealing with Takasaki Souichi had delayed him quite a bit.
"Okay, I'll be there right away."
After hanging up, Hikari prepared to head straight to the meeting place Rika had designated.
But before he could put his phone back into his pocket, the metal casing buzzed in his palm again.
He glanced at the unfamiliar number and answered while walking toward the school gate.
"Hello, who's this?", Hikari asked doubtfully.
["Hikari-kun, don't you recognize me? You called me just this morning! Changed phones and now you don't know who I am?"], A soft, sweet, adorable girl's voice came from the other end.
"Landlady Asou?", Hearing the cute mellow voice, Hikari immediately recognized the caller.
["That's right. But didn't I already tell you not to call me 'Landlady'? You can just call me Miyuri,"] Asou Miyuri said with a smile.
Thinking of the petite landlady of Asou Apartments, Hikari shook his head helplessly.
"I'll stick with Miss Asou. Why did you call all of a sudden?"
["Hmph!"], Hearing that he refused to address her the way she wanted, Asou Miyuri puffed up in annoyance and let out a few dissatisfied huffs.
Then she complained, ["You're asking why I called? Didn't you call me this morning to ask if there were any vacant rooms in Asou Apartments?"]
"Oh? Is there one available?", Hikari had indeed called her that morning to ask on behalf of the now-homeless Yoshida Saki. He hadn't expected such a quick reply.
Asou Miyuri replied, ["There is. I checked, and a tenant on the floor above you moved out a few days ago, so there's a vacant room that hasn't been rented yet. Oh, right. You were asking for a friend, weren't you?"]
"That's right. It's for a friend. Since there's a room available upstairs, I'll rent that one for her. I'll transfer the rent directly to you, Miss Asou," Hikari said.
["No! No! No!"], Instead of being happy that money was coming in, Asou Miyuri immediately refused.
She said, ["I don't like money... No, I mean, I don't like bank transfers. I prefer cash. So, Hikari-kun, just bring me the cash in person tonight when you come over to sign the contract."]
"Hm? Are you coming to the apartment today?", Hikari asked.
["Yep. Come to think of it, we haven't seen each other for a while. Hikari-kun, did you miss me?"], Asou Miyuri asked with a giggle.
"I guess it's been okay," Hikari answered calmly.
["You brat! Believe it or not, I won't rent the room to you!"], Asou Miyuri said, puffing up angrily.
"You're going to turn down money?", Hikari didn't believe her.
["I'll turn it down!"], After stubbornly saying that, she asked curiously, ["By the way, is this friend who's renting a room a guy or a girl? You're even paying the rent for her, so it's a girl, right? Don't tell me you're... keeping a mistress?"]
"Miss Landlady, you don't have the right to pry into other people's privacy. Just tell me whether you're renting it or not," Hikari said.
["Oh my, oh my. As the landlady, I can't even learn about my tenant's information? Of course I'll rent it! How could I refuse Hikari-kun?"], Asou Miyuri laughed.
Then she added, ["I'm willing to rent the room to your friend I've never met, but you have to come sign the contract with me in person today, okay?"]
Hikari explained, "Signing the contract isn't a problem, but I still have something to do today. I'll probably get back to the apartment pretty late."
["That's fine. I'll wait for you at the apartment. Just let me know when you get back,"] Asou Miyuri said.
"Okay."
["Then... see you tonight, Hi~Kari~kun~"] The landlady stretched out each syllable sweetly.
"See you tonight, Miss Landlady."
Hikari chatted with her a little longer, settled on an approximate time, and then hung up.
After putting away his phone, Hikari's expression remained calm.
———
But on the other end of the call, Asou Miyuri was overflowing with excitement.
"Hikari-kun finally needs my help again!"
"Wahaha! I've got him this time!"
"Before, I kept asking him to pay his rent with his body, and he refused."
"Now he's renting several rooms at once. As a high school student, there's no way he has that much money."
"When the time comes, I'll reluctantly let him pay with his body instead."
"He's so handsome, so cute, and his body's so good. He must be amazing. Slurp!"
Asou Miyuri wiped the corner of her mouth. After driving stick for so many years and using electric toys for so many years, she could finally ride a real thoroughbred.
Just thinking about it made her unbearably excited.
———
Meanwhile, Hikari had no idea that the landlady had already set her sights on him.
After leaving the school, he took a taxi straight to the area near the Metropolitan Police Department where Ikazuchi Rika worked.
After getting out not far from headquarters, he walked into the nearby café where they had agreed to meet.
As he pushed open the bronze door handle, the chime of the bell mixed with the rich aroma of freshly ground coffee beans and the impatient rhythm of someone tapping their fingers on the table came towards him.
"Hikari-kun!"
As soon as he entered, Rika, who had already been seated inside, spotted him and waved.
Seeing her wave, Hikari quickly walked over.
When he got closer, he noticed that someone else was sitting across from her, a young man in a neat suit.
Seeing the look in Hikari's eyes, Rika immediately stood up to introduce them.
"Hikari-kun, this is Inspector Noma, one of my most capable subordinates."
"Noma, this is Hikari-kun, the one who's provided us with so many leads and has been a tremendous help in solving our cases."
Rika introduced both of them.
Hikari looked at Noma Keiji. He had regular features and a straight, upright build, making him a fairly handsome young man.
Combined with his position in the Metropolitan Police Department, he was probably the kind of person who could easily leave people with a good impression.
But Hikari didn't feel that Noma Keiji looked like a good person.
Although he trusted his instincts, he still politely greeted Rika's colleague.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Hikari. Officer Noma."
"Hm," Faced with Hikari's greeting, Noma Keiji merely nodded. He glanced at the face that still carried the youthful look of a high school student, his attitude clearly somewhat dismissive.
Bang!
The coffee table suddenly shook violently, sending ripples across the iced Americano in the glass.
Rika slammed the table and stood up, her brows knitting together as she scolded Noma Keiji.
"Hey! Noma! Is this how I taught you to treat people? You're my subordinate!"
"Hikari-kun is someone I personally introduced, yet you're already acting so impatient. I don't even want to imagine how you treat ordinary civilians!"
Hearing his superior's words, cold sweat immediately broke out on Noma Keiji's forehead.
He hurriedly stood up and repeatedly apologized to Rika first.
"I'm sorry, Chief! I was careless. I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
Then he turned back to Hikari and introduced himself again.
"Hello, Hikari-kun. My name is Noma Keiji. You can also call me Inspector Noma. I'm currently serving under Superintendent Ikazuchi."
After Rika's outburst, Noma Keiji's attitude during his introduction was obviously much better.
Hikari simply nodded lightly, "Hm."
Hearing that this mere high school student only responded to him with a simple "Hm," Noma Keiji immediately became irritated and glared at Hikari.
Before he could say anything, Rika stepped directly to Hikari's side and glared back at Noma Keiji.
Then she said sternly, "Noma, let me tell you something. Hikari-kun didn't just provide our team with so much crucial intelligence and help us uncover countless leads about this drug trafficking organization. He's our benefactor."
"And now, he's also my sworn little brother."
"If you look down on him, you're looking down on me as his sworn older sister. Go ahead and try bullying my little brother."
Hearing Rika's words, the veins on Noma Keiji's forehead bulged.
Being scolded so harshly by his superior in front of nothing more than a high school student was humiliating for an inspector like him.
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