Chapter 15: New Adventure Combination

But such simple childhood days weren't enjoyed for long; after solving lunch with a mediocre bento at noon, the homeroom teacher suddenly brought news of afternoon class suspension.

Most elementary students were happy to hear they didn't have classes, but a small portion of students cared about the reason for not having classes.

Rin Tohsaka was one of them; she went to the office to ask the teacher for the reason, but at the office door she heard the discussion inside — those teachers were discussing the matter of the missing children from a few days ago.

Because of King of Conquerors Iskandar's actions yesterday, Caster's Magic Workshop was destroyed, and the commotion caused during the destruction attracted outside attention; the heinous crime of slaughtering young children was thus exposed before the public.

The previously missing students of First Elementary School of Shin-Far Town were among the victims, and it was said the culprit still hadn't been caught by the police.

The culprit's range of activity was on the Fuyuki City side, and the school had quite a few students from that Fuyuki City side; for the sake of student safety, the principal of Fuzhong Elementary School, upon receiving the report of the Fuyuki City child kidnapping murderer, decided to cancel afternoon classes.

The next few days would certainly be tense with rumors; it was even possible they'd face continuous class suspension until the culprit was caught, or until the heinous influence caused by this matter faded from public memory with the passage of time.

Rin Tohsaka listened outside the office until her body trembled; she thought of her deskmate girl who hadn't come to school today — Suzune also lived on that Fuyuki City side.

Somewhat worried about her friend's situation, Rin Tohsaka went to the school's coin phone, inserted coins and called her friend's home; the phone was picked up quickly, but an anxious woman's questioning voice came through: "Is this Kanon?"

"I'm not Kanon, I'm Rin Tohsaka, Kanon's classmate; Kanon didn't come to school today, so I wanted to ask how she is."

Rin Tohsaka's answer disappointed the person on the other end.

"Kanon is missing; she's been missing since yesterday; we're looking for her too; if you have any news of her……"

After the call ended, Rin Tohsaka was somewhat absent-minded; as a mature-beyond-her-years little adult, she liked to pretend to be an adult and watch some TV news.

So she knew something about the kidnapper appearing on the Fuyuki City side; she just hadn't expected this kind of disappearance to happen to a friend right beside her.

"No classes this afternoon; let's go kick a ball on the playground together."

Back in the classroom, some kids who couldn't go home directly advocated what games to play in the afternoon; compared to those carefree ones, same-aged Rin Tohsaka was heavy-hearted.

"What's wrong?"

Broly, through the Crystal Palace, noticed the decrease in Rin Tohsaka's Happiness Value and couldn't help but ask.

"Kanon…… hmm, it's nothing."

People with worries always have an urge to confide, but if the confidant is someone they believe would only gain more worries from hearing it, then forget it.

Rin Tohsaka was even more mature in mindset; in her eyes Broly was just a little deskmate needing care; there was really no need to say things that would make the other party feel fear too.

Broly: "……"

Nothing, then why would the Happiness Value drop? You know every point of Happiness Value disappearing equals some not-yet-obtained food vanishing into thin air; how could a food-cherishing glutton not be anxious? But Rin Tohsaka really didn't want to say more, which left Broly somewhat at a loss, until the school opened its doors to let kids who could go home leave, and Rin Tohsaka left school carrying her schoolbag, only then did Broly follow after.

Rin Tohsaka decided to go to the Fuyuki City side to search for traces of her good friend; this counted as a reckless rash act, but thinking her friend beside her might die, she found it somewhat unbearable; the heavy-hearted girl didn't notice the little tail following behind her; she bought a ticket at the train station ticket window, swiped through the ticket gate, and boarded the train that had just arrived heading for Fuyuki City.

Broly had no money; he didn't buy a ticket, but using his height advantage he crawled under the ticket gate's iron bars, and wasn't discovered by the ticket checker beside him, and also boarded the same train.

After boarding the train, with more time to think calmly, Rin Tohsaka only then felt some fear; when it came down to it she was just a seven-year-old child.

Although she usually acted like a little adult, family knows family business; facing that kidnapper who took her friend, the suspected kidnapping murderer, afterwards — how could a child like her possibly……

"Eh?"

A pair of little shoes appearing at her feet made the girl raise her head involuntarily; when she looked up and saw the little deskmate appear beside her, Rin Tohsaka opened her mouth wide.

"How are you here?"

She asked directly.

"I followed you here."

Broly told the truth straightforwardly.

"Ah, why?"

Rin Tohsaka was somewhat confused.

"You're not well; I'm worried about you."

Broly spoke concisely, omitting the key element of 【Happiness Value continuing to decrease】.

Rin Tohsaka: "……"

She didn't know what to say, but the original panic and nervousness were indeed diluted somewhat by this boy suddenly appearing beside her.

Even, in front of the little deskmate needing care, she put on her reliable mature-little-adult act again, straightened her face and lectured Broly.

"Kids should go straight home after school; don't wander around outside; it's dangerous."

"Aren't you a kid too?"

Broly retorted.

"I'm different; I'm going to find a friend, and I'm pretty powerful."

Young Rin Tohsaka's face flushed red as she argued back.

"Oh."

Broly nodded, believing her statement.

But this agreeing attitude instead made Rin Tohsaka somewhat at a loss.

"Aren't you going to refute my words?"

"Then are you lying?"

"Not at all."

Rin Tohsaka puffed out her chest, but her gaze shifted guiltily.

"Where's your home? I'll send you back first."

She changed the subject.

"My home is over there."

Broly, on the train, pointed in the direction of the Fujimura home and said so.

"So, what's the specific address?"

Broly didn't answer, just looked at the girl with a blank gaze.

"Don't tell me you don't know your own home's specific address?"

"I can find my way back myself."

Broly indeed hadn't memorized the address, but he had memorized the direction.

That distance wasn't far; it wasn't even as far as the distance from his home on Nappa Star to the Vanpa Spider Cavern Nest.

"So, does this count as you being lost?"

Rin Tohsaka felt her head ache a bit; her old classmate had disappeared without a trace, and her new classmate had gotten lost on the way home following her.

"I'm not lost; I can find my way back."

Broly emphasized once again.

But regarding the boy's words, Rin Tohsaka didn't believe a single word.

What "can find his way back on his own" — it was merely the boy's stubbornness because he didn't want to lose face.

"I'm going to find my friend Kanon; after you get off, go find the police and have the police uncles help you get home."

"What are police?"

"You don't even know what police are; it's fine, after I get off I can take you to……"

Rin Tohsaka suddenly stopped; she thought of her own age — if she were seen by the police, the most probable outcome would also be being escorted back home.

"Forget it; you might as well come with me to find my friend. After I find Kanon, I'll send you home. However, you have to listen to me — if we really encounter danger and I tell you to run, you run immediately."

Bringing a little partner along on an adventure wasn't good, but in the eyes of the current young Rin Tohsaka, this was the only choice.

After all, she couldn't go to the police and walk into a trap herself, nor could she leave her new classmate — who clearly needed someone to look after him — alone in an unfamiliar place.

"Okay."

Broly nodded obediently; he had no objections to what Rin Tohsaka had instructed beforehand. Young Rin and young Broly, the combination about to embark on a grand adventure in Fuyuki City, was officially formed on the train.

After getting off the train, Rin Tohsaka brought Broly along and began searching along the route from the train station to her friend's house.

According to Suzune's mother, based on Detective Rin Tohsaka's reasoning and judgment, Rin Tohsaka believed her friend had been kidnapped on the way home.

However, she was ultimately not a real child-on-the-outside, high-schooler-on-the-inside Great Detective; faced with countless crisscrossing routes and buildings, Rin Tohsaka simply had no way to judge which area was more likely to be where the kidnapper would appear.

The girl could only conduct a screening through the comparatively stupid method of exhaustive search, and moreover a screening method using herself as bait.

Of course, there was also a Broly following behind her, tagging along to conduct the screening operation.

"Can't find her, simply can't find her……"

From early daylight to sunset, Rin Tohsaka felt the powerlessness of being a child.

"Broly?"

Just as Rin Tohsaka was preparing to continue searching blindly, she discovered the little tail following behind her had vanished.

She grew somewhat nervous; one old classmate had gone missing — was she going to lose a new classmate too, and from her own hands at that?

However, upon turning back onto the original street, she discovered the boy had merely been attracted by a takoyaki shop at the roadside, stopping at the shop entrance.

"Want to eat?"

Discovering Broly wasn't missing, Rin Tohsaka let out a breath of relief; seeing the boy's salivating look, she walked over and asked.

"Mm."

Broly nodded; the fragrance of takoyaki hooked the gluttonous worms in his belly.

"Then I'll treat you."

Rin Tohsaka took out her little wallet and bought two portions of takoyaki.

She was also a bit hungry after walking so much.

The two entered the shop, found a seat, sat down, and waited for the takoyaki to be done.

"I'm going to the toilet; don't follow me."

While waiting, Rin Tohsaka felt a sudden urge; she stood up to go to the toilet, discovered Broly still wanted to follow, and said with a red face.

Broly was very obedient and sat back down.

*Whoosh* — the sound of flushing rang out.

And just as Rin Tohsaka finished washing her hands and prepared to come out, the Magic Power compass hanging at her chest suddenly stirred.

This tool was a birthday gift her father had given her in advance; it could detect people or objects with Magic Power in the world, mainly for her to avoid some hidden dangers in the world — she hadn't expected it to react at this moment.

Following the Magic Power compass's guidance, peeking out from the takoyaki shop's back door, Rin Tohsaka just happened to see a youth passing by the nearby alley entrance, leading several wooden-expression children by the hand, bathed in the sunset, smiling brilliantly.

"Good children all come with Big Brother; Big Brother will take you to play fun games."

Ryuunosuke Uryuu wore a magecraft bracelet made by his own Heroic Spirit Lord, which had a hypnosis effect on children, and had gathered another batch of cute kids.

After meeting Lord Bluebeard, Ryuunosuke Uryuu felt his creative inspiration erupting every moment.

Due to the police manhunt, he still didn't know his artworks had already suffered destruction at Rider's hands.

The current him smiled brilliantly, thinking of the creation of his next artwork.

The Human Body Handmade Piano he had already made; that was indeed art.

So the next piece should focus on furniture — for example, a Human Body Handmade Piano Chair, the kind where sitting on it you'd hear children emit beautiful wails.

【This person is suspicious; there's a Magic Power reaction on him!】

Rin Tohsaka hesitated at the back door for a moment, then chose to follow quietly; she had no intention of calling Broly — compared to tailing a dangerous guy who might be a kidnapper-murderer, letting her new classmate stay in the takoyaki shop eating takoyaki was the responsible thing to do for her little partner.

"Your takoyaki."

Five minutes later, the takoyaki shop boss served two portions of finished takoyaki to Broly.

Broly looked at the steaming takoyaki, swallowing saliva while feeling Rin Tohsaka was so slow.

The target locked by his Qi Machine seemed to be getting farther and farther from this side; who knew when she'd return.

So……

【Eating the portion fed to me by my wife first — that shouldn't be a problem, right?】

Thinking this, Broly reached out and took the takoyaki skewered on a toothpick.

The round takoyaki entered his mouth — piping hot, fragrant.

One bite in, the octopus tentacles inside had a bouncy, springy texture.

To sum it up in one sentence: it was delicious.

Seeing how the other customers were pouring sauce, Broly followed suit.

Just as Broly was savoring the takoyaki, Rin Tohsaka was also following the suspected kidnapping murderer, carefully descending a flight of stairs.

She hid behind crates in the stairwell corner, and only after that suspected kidnapping murderer fellow went back out did she quietly slip into a somewhat dilapidated underground bar.

Rin Tohsaka spotted some kidnapped children here, and among them was her missing classmate friend.

"Suzune, Suzune..."

But no matter how she called out, the girl wore a blank, dazed expression.

"She's been hypnotized by magecraft."

After checking, Rin Tohsaka deduced her friend's condition.

"Oh my, where did this child come from?"

Just as Rin Tohsaka prepared to go find help, her path behind was blocked by Ryuunosuke Uryuu, who had returned at some unknown time.

"If not for the old man's familiar, I truly wouldn't have noticed I was being followed, but luckily the one following is such a cute child, so what are you doing here?"

"I-I just accidentally took a wrong turn."

This sudden turn of events brought cold sweat to Rin Tohsaka's forehead; the girl made excuses while trying to dart out from the side.

"Since you're here, why not play together with big brother? A party needs more people to be fun."

However, Ryuunosuke Uryuu blocked her and reached to grab her; he thought with the hypnosis bracelet, subduing a child would be effortless, but the moment he seized the girl's hand, a sensation of electric current made the unprepared him let go directly.

"You've got static electricity on you?"

Ryuunosuke Uryuu was somewhat surprised; not being a magecraft practitioner, he didn't understand this was a hypnosis magecraft on the bracelet, producing a pseudo-electric-shock effect after being instinctively resisted by the magic power inside the girl's body.

"Don't climb onto the counter; if you fall and smash your body it won't do, creative materials are better kept intact."

After a series of twists, Ryuunosuke Uryuu caught Rin Tohsaka again, but as the girl endured the magecraft attack clouding her consciousness and output her own magic power to violently destroy the bracelet, this person was blown away.

The hypnosis tool destroyed, the children in the bar woke up, and finding themselves in a strange place, children immediately began to cry.

"Rin, what's happening to me?"

"No time to explain, quickly come with me, everyone else too, all of you escape with me."

Under Rin Tohsaka's loud command, the bewildered children subconsciously obeyed her words.

And just as Rin Tohsaka opened the door preparing to escape, a sea demon descended from the sky.

"A familiar?!"

The sea demon's ferocious appearance scared the girl into paling, and she hurriedly retreated.

"Good thing I have a helper."

Ryuunosuke Uryuu climbed up from the ground saying he was glad, and pulled a small knife from his pocket.

(Chapter End)