"Miss Reina." He set his fork down. "I'd like to go outside today."
Reina raised an eyebrow. "Outside?"
"Just for a walk. Fresh air. The doctors said light activity was fine."
She studied him for a long moment. He could feel her assessing him, his posture, his pallor, the slight tension in his shoulders that he couldn't quite hide. Whatever she saw seemed to satisfy her, because she nodded slowly.
"Fine. But you're not going alone."
"I wasn't planning to." He glanced at Neila. "She's been cooped up too. We could both use the exercise."
Reina's gaze flickered between them. She didn't comment on it. "Take Sam on your little date. The rest of the bodyguard detail can stand down, there's no point in a full escort if the assassins have backed off."
"Just Sam?"
"He's enough." She turned back to the stove, flipping another pancake with unnecessary flourish. "He may look like a stupid idiot, but he's competent when he needs to be. And he knows the city. If anything happens, he'll get you if you get lost."
Neila pushed her plate away and stood, smoothing her blouse with quick, precise movements. "I'll go change into something more appropriate for walking. Give me ten minutes."
She swept out of the kitchen without waiting for a response.
Kira's hand found Hoshimi's sleeve. "Can I come too? Please? I won't get in the way. I'll stay behind you. I'll be quiet. I'll—"
"You don't have to beg, Kira." He covered her hand with his. "I already said you could stay with me today. That hasn't changed."
Her eyes welled up again, but she blinked the tears back. "Okay. Okay. Thank you. I'll-I'll get my jacket. It's cold outside. You should wear a jacket too. Your coat-the black one, if you want to, I can get it for you. I know where it is."
"Kira."
She stopped mid-ramble.
"Breathe."
She took a breath. Then another. Then nodded. "Right. Breathing. I can do that."
Lucy looked up from her pancakes, her crimson eyes meeting Hoshimi's.
The city was quieter than it had been.
The rubble from the bombings had been cleared away, the craters filled, the broken windows replaced.
Sam walked a few paces ahead, scanning the streets with casual efficiency. His tan puffer jacket was unzipped despite the cold, revealing the dark shirt beneath. His red hair caught the gray morning light, and his smile was fixed in place, that unnerving, permanent expression that never quite reached his eyes.
Neila walked beside Hoshimi, her hands in the pockets of her white coat, her blue eyes sweeping the rooftops with the same alert scrutiny she'd worn since the alley. Kira clung to Hoshimi's left arm, her fingers curled into the sleeve of his coat like she was afraid he'd dissolve if she let go.
They walked in silence for a while, past shops that were just beginning to open, past cafes where early customers sipped coffee and pretended the world was normal, past a small park where children played under the watchful eyes of parents who flinched at every loud noise.
"This is nostalgic," Neila said finally. "It's almost like we're regular people."
"How could it possibly be nostalgic? We were just walking through here a week ago."
"I used to run away from my house often and just walk through the streets."
"That's unbelievable coming from you, I thought you'd be disgusted at walking through places like this."
"Unlike this old and decrepit place, my neighborhood was full of people who were rich, so the streets were rather clean." She glanced at Sam's back, then lowered her voice. "I need to make a stop. There's a cafe on the next block. I'll just be a few minutes."
Hoshimi's eyes narrowed. "Is this—"
"Because of your continuous change of plans, this will just be a quick exchange, instead of a meeting." She met his gaze. "I'll explain when I'm done."
He studied her face for a moment, searching for deception. Whatever he found seemed to satisfy him, because he nodded. "We'll wait."
"Good." She released his arm and quickened her pace, catching up to Sam. "I need to use the restroom. Give me ten minutes."
Sam's smile didn't waver. "There's a cafe on the corner. Clean bathrooms, good coffee. I'll keep an eye on the entrance."
"Perfect."
She slipped through the cafe door without looking back.
The interior was warm and dimly lit, smelling of fresh coffee and old books. A few customers sat at scattered tables, their faces illuminated by laptops and newspapers. None of them looked up as she passed.
She walked past the counter, past the restroom door, and out the back exit into a narrow alley. The cold air hit her face, sharp and clean after the stuffiness of the cafe. She pulled her coat tighter and walked to the end of the alley, where a figure waited in the shadows.
He wore a dark hoodie, the hood pulled low over his face, hiding everything except a pale chin and thin lips. His hands were shoved in his pockets, and his posture was hunched.
"You're late," he said.
"I'm exactly on time." Neila reached into her coat and withdrew a thick envelope. "Here. Half now, half when the job is done."
The figure took the envelope without looking at it, tucking it inside his hoodie. "The information's current as of this morning. Things are moving faster than expected."
"How much faster?"
"The Patriarch is accelerating the timeline." The figure withdrew a folded note from his pocket and pressed it into her palm. "He's planning to seize the source directly. Not through proxies. Not through intermediaries. He's going to take it himself, with his personal guard. Within the next two weeks."
Neila's fingers tightened around the note. "That's sooner than I anticipated."
"He got spooked." The figure shrugged. "He's figured out there's a mole, somehow, he knows someone's working against him. He's getting paranoid." The figure stepped back, melting deeper into the shadows. "That's all I have. I'll contact you if anything changes."
"Wait." Neila's voice stopped him. "The guard detail. How many?"
"A few. But I doubt most of them are very high level, he's rather confident." He paused. "If you're planning to stop him, you'll need more than just yourself."
He disappeared before she could respond.
Neila stood alone in the alley for a long moment, staring at the note in her hand. Then she unfolded it and read the contents. Her expression didn't change.
She tucked the note into her pocket and walked back through the cafe without stopping.
"Done?" Hoshimi asked when she rejoined them.
"Done." She fell into step beside him, her voice low enough that Sam wouldn't overhear. "We need to talk. Privately."
Hoshimi glanced at Sam's back, then at Kira clinging to his arm. "Kira. Can you give us a minute?"
Her grip tightened. "I—" She stopped herself. Swallowed. "Okay. Okay. I'll—I'll walk ahead. With Sam. Just for a minute. But I'll be right there. Right there. You'll be able to see me the whole time."
"I know." He squeezed her hand. "Thank you."
She nodded and hurried forward, catching up to Sam with quick, nervous steps. Sam glanced back at Hoshimi, his smile still fixed in place, then returned his attention to the street ahead.
Neila waited until they were out of earshot. "The meeting with my insider isn't necessary anymore. I got what I needed."
"And what's that?"
"My father is planning to seize the source directly." She pulled the note from her pocket and handed it to him. "The magic tool production site. He's going to take it himself, with his personal guard, within the next two weeks."
Hoshimi scanned the note. "This is detailed. Locations. Timelines. Guard rotations."
"I pay for quality information." She took the note back and tucked it away. "The point is, my original plan, leaking the information to the other families, isn't going to work anymore. Not if he's moving this fast. By the time the other families mobilize, he'll already have control of the source. And once he has that..." She shook her head. "He'll be untouchable."
"So what's the new plan?"
Neila was quiet for a moment. The street stretched ahead of them, gray and indifferent. Somewhere in the distance, a car horn blared. The city continued its endless rhythm, oblivious to the conspiracy unfolding in its midst.
"I want to take the source myself," she said finally.
Hoshimi stopped walking. "What?"
"I want to take it before he does." She turned to face him, her blue eyes steady. "There's no purpose in me trying to use it, if I do, the other families will come after me, I'll send a note to the other families saying that I'm on their side instead of my father's, and sell it to them at a discounted price."
"That's... ambitious."
"It's practical." She crossed her arms. "The other families won't stop my father. The government won't intervene, they're too afraid of destabilizing the great families."
"Me." Her lips curved. "And you. I'll need your help."
"Why me?"
"Because I can't do it alone." Her voice dropped, losing some of its sharpness. "My father probably has some high-level witches guarding the site. I'm good, but I'm not that good. And my mana deficiency means I can't sustain a prolonged fight. I need someone who can compensate for my weaknesses. I'll need you to recharge my mana when it is low."
"Someone like me."
"Someone exactly like you." She met his eyes. You still have a lot of debts you owe me, after this, there's no need for you to repay the rest."
"That's a lot of trust."
"Unless you'd prefer to do this out of the goodness of your heart." She paused. "No? Didn't think so."
Hoshimi's eyebrow rose. "Don't you think I can be bribed?"
"I think everyone can be bribed. It's just a matter of finding the right price." Her smile returned, sharp and knowing. "But I don't think you put a lot of importance on money, you put more value on people."
"You're making me sound like you."
"There's no way I want to be compared to a puppet like you."