Mihua Grand Hotel, suite
Mary Akai—or rather, the “sister from outside the domain” who now appears as a blonde, blue-eyed little girl—is sitting in a chair that is too tall for her current size.
Her tiny body was almost completely hidden by the wide chair back, revealing only a golden head and a pair of bright blue eyes. Her two short legs, clad in children's slippers, dangled idly in the air, creating a striking and endearing contrast with her aloof expression.
The laptop screen in front of her was lit up, displaying encrypted data that had been obtained through special channels with considerable effort, as well as several somewhat blurry surveillance screenshots.
One of the enlarged photos caught her full attention.
In the photo, a girl with short brown hair and a handsome boy with black hair are shopping in a mall. The girl is carrying several shopping bags and is talking to the boy with a relaxed smile on her face.
A young girl, not a loli.
Mary Akai's azure eyes narrowed slightly, and her fingertips unconsciously tapped lightly on the table, making a soft "tap, tap" sound.
This photo was taken not long ago.
What does this represent?
Was the previous information incorrect, and that the girl named Ai Haibara wasn't actually her sister's daughter, Shiho Miyano? Or... is there some kind of antidote that can temporarily restore her body?
If it's the latter... then where will the antidote come from?
Was it provided by that boy?
How long does it last? What are the side effects?
Is it possible to completely detoxify?
A series of questions swirled in her mind.
What role does that mysterious boy play in all of this?
Protector? Collaborator? Or... controller?
Just as she was lost in thought, the door to the room was pushed open with a "click".
Sera Masumi rubbed her still slightly sore bottom and limped in, her face clearly showing her frustration. She muttered under her breath, "That's too much... They didn't give me any face at all... My bottom hurts so much..."
"How is the situation?"
Mary Akai asked without looking up, her voice youthful yet carrying her usual calm.
"Mom!"
Sera Masumi seemed to have found her pillar of support. She immediately walked angrily to the bedside, carefully sat down on one side, and began to exaggerate her grievances, "Don't even mention it! It was a disastrous start. The plan completely failed. I went to the bus to create a 'chance encounter' as planned, but I was mistaken for a pervert! And one of those perverted perverts who knows Jeet Kune Do!"
She recounted the events that occurred on the bus, embellishing the story, and focusing on how Yuzuru Nanami "rudely," "without any tenderness," and "violently" threw her directly off the bus, as well as the painful damage she suffered to her buttocks.
"...I'm a girl! He just threw me out like that, he had no manners at all, my butt almost split into four pieces."
Sera Masumi complained, feeling wronged.
Mary Akai finally looked away from the computer screen, her blue eyes glancing sideways at her daughter—her messy short hair, unisex sportswear, flat chest, and carefree sitting posture.
She paused for a few seconds before calmly stating a fact in her flat, childlike voice:
"Oh? You know you're a girl too."
The look in his eyes clearly said: With your appearance and behavior, it's already a good thing that the other person doesn't mistake you for a boy.
If the child isn't her own, she sometimes has difficulty accurately identifying the gender of her daughter just by looking at her appearance and behavior.
You can't entirely blame others for being blind.
Sera Masumi felt even more hurt by her mother's "disdainful" look. She pouted and tried to shift the blame: "I can't entirely blame myself... It's because you didn't pass on all your good genes to me, Mom... Look at you, you've shrunk..."
Her gaze unconsciously drifted with a hint of jealousy towards her mother's chest, which, even though it had shrunk, was still more voluptuous than her own, a veritable giant with a youthful face... (cough cough).
Akai Marie: "..." (╬￣subara￣)
She decided to immediately skip this dangerous topic to avoid losing her temper and enforcing family discipline, so that her troublesome daughter would know what it means to "your mother will always be your mother," even if she has shrunk in size.
"Alright, let's get down to business."
Mary Akai turned off the photos on her computer, turned to Masumi Sera, and said in a serious tone, "Get ready tonight."
"What should we prepare?"
Sera Masumi put aside her joking thoughts and asked curiously.
"Get ready for school tomorrow." Mary Akai calmly announced, "I asked a trusted old friend to transfer your student status to Teitan University. All the formalities are done, and you can go directly to Class B tomorrow."
"Teitan?!"
Sera Masumi's eyes lit up instantly. "The school that Hanyu Nana and that girl who knows karate attend?"
"Um."
Mary Akai nodded, a calculating glint in her blue eyes. "Closer contact will make it easier for you to gather information on that Nanami Hanyu and that girl named Ai Haibara. If the bus plan fails, we'll switch to a safer route."
She paused, then lowered her voice and said:
“I suspect… they may have an antidote for that drug, or at least a drug that can temporarily alleviate or even reverse its effects.”
This is the only possible good news they've received during their recent retreat and escape.
“However,” she said, her tone turning serious, “we must not reveal our identities lightly until we are completely certain whether the other party is friend or foe, or which faction they represent.”
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