Chapter 176: Su Ning: Get Lost
When Haruto walked out of the cosplay specialty store, his face was as dark as a thundercloud. In the end, his curiosity had gotten the better of him, and he'd asked the clerk to open the box.
The moment he saw the few scraps of fabric nestled within, he froze. The sight was shocking enough, but it was the clerk's hesitant, almost shy gaze that truly drove the point home. In that instant, he finally understood why Kaguya had insisted he be the one to pay while she conveniently slipped out ahead of him.
"Took you long enough," a voice drawled.
Kaguya was leaning against a tree by the roadside, arms crossed, looking for all the world like she had grown roots from waiting.
"You have the nerve to say that?" Haruto's fists clenched so tightly the knuckles creaked. If they weren't in public, he would have dragged her into a Gap for a "fair and square" one-on-one duel right then and there.
A flicker of guilt crossed Kaguya's face. She quickly looked away, let out a jaunty whistle, and began walking ahead. Haruto let out a long, weary sigh. With a flick of his wrist, he tossed all the shopping boxes into a Gap before trudging after her.
Yakumo Ran had already departed, leaving the two of them to their own devices.
The shop wasn't far from Su Ning's residence. After a walk of less than half an hour, they arrived at a quiet residential area. It wasn't the detached villa one might expect, but a perfectly ordinary apartment building.
An old security guard with a receding, Mediterranean-style hairline sat dozing at the entrance. While Haruto was still pondering the most discreet way to sneak past, Kaguya had already vanished from his side and reappeared inside the complex. She casually tossed a brick from her hand and beckoned for him to hurry up. The guard, meanwhile, was now slumped over, lost in a deep, unnatural sleep.
Although Kaguya hadn't struck hard—just enough to knock him unconscious—Haruto's lingering sense of integrity pricked at him. He sighed, retrieved a small vial from his inventory, and with a precise flick, sent the Healing Potion arcing through the air. It shattered squarely on the guard's bald forehead.
A few seconds later, the guard sat bolt upright, clutching his head and muttering in a daze.
"What happened to me...?"
He whipped his head around, but the space behind him was empty. Scratching his scalp in confusion, he simply chalked it up to a strange dream and settled back into his chair.
Following the address they had on file, the pair soon found themselves standing before a plain apartment door.
Haruto leaned in first, peering through the peephole. He then opened a tiny Gap to confirm his findings—the interior was pitch-black, devoid of any light source. Clearly, no one was home.
They decided against a forceful entry, at least for now. Instead, they split up, methodically checking the usual hiding spots: the top of the doorframe, the window sills, and inside the mailbox.
After finding nothing, Kaguya took out a small, elegant wooden box. Inside, a neat array of tools lay nestled in velvet—thin wires, magnets, and tiny hooks. She selected a slender wire and began probing the lock with a practiced hand.
Click.
A crisp, satisfying sound echoed in the quiet hallway.
The door swung open. Haruto's expression was a complicated mix of awe and disbelief. He'd seen her do this once before in the old castle instance, but watching Kaguya, the esteemed Princess of Eientei, skillfully pick a lock once again still made the corner of his mouth twitch.
The house was remarkably tidy. On the living room table sat half a cup of unfinished juice—hm?
Curiosity piqued, Haruto opened the refrigerator. His eyes immediately lit up when he saw his favorite brand of grape juice. Without a shred of ceremony, he took out two bottles and tossed one to Kaguya.
A quick sweep of the living room revealed nothing out of the ordinary. The two split up to search more thoroughly and soon located Su Ning's bedroom.
The moment they stepped inside, it was like entering another world. The style was a complete departure from the minimalist decor of the rest of the apartment.
The room was an explosion of pink and blue. Bookshelves overflowed not with books, but with carefully arranged anime figurines. Even the bedsheets and duvet cover were printed with the faces of popular anime characters.
Though he had been mentally prepared for something like this, seeing it with his own eyes still made Haruto's eyelids twitch. He never would have guessed that the cold, indifferent woman he'd met had such a hobby in private. There was absolutely no hint of it in her public persona.
A wooden box sat on the desk—the very one Haruto had hired the Ghost Postman to deliver. It remained unopened, a powerful sealing talisman from Reimu pasted firmly across the lid. One would have to speak the correct password to release the seal.
Haruto turned his attention to the wardrobe and pulled it open. Sure enough, it was packed with all sorts of cosplay outfits. He took the new ones he'd just bought out of his Gap and unceremoniously stuffed them inside.
"Alright, let's go. I left a small Gap in here so we can watch her reaction later..."
Haruto closed the wardrobe door, only to find Kaguya lying on the floor, using a long stick to poke around under the bed.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Isn't it obvious?" Kaguya replied without looking back, her tone matter-of-fact. "This is how it always is in the manga. A teenager's most precious treasures are always hidden under the bed."
Haruto's mouth twitched violently. "You've been reading way too much manga. Besides, that woman is hundreds of years old. What could she possibly be hiding under her bed...?"
"Found it!" Kaguya exclaimed, her voice filled with triumphant excitement. She dragged a delicate, small box out from underneath the bedframe.
Haruto fell silent. There really was something there.
"Hm? This one needs a password, too," Kaguya noted, examining the small lock. She pulled out her set of tools again and began fiddling with it.
"Is this... really okay?" Haruto clutched his chest, feeling what little remained of his integrity throb in protest.
"What are you so scared of?" Kaguya had no such psychological burden, her movements remaining smooth and unhurried. "Have you already forgotten how arrogant she was? She scammed you out of a full million points, you know."
"...That's true."
Su Ning's haughty, dismissive expression flashed through Haruto's mind. She had not only threatened him but had also brazenly ripped him off. If he were to follow the methods his sister had taught him, his opponent would have been turned into flower fertilizer long ago.
Of course, Haruto wasn't nearly that brutal. He eventually managed to convince himself. Just a quick peek, he thought. Just one look.
The security on this small box was clearly a step up from the front door. It took Kaguya nearly two full minutes to work her magic. If it had taken any longer, she probably would have given up and just smashed it with a brick.
Thump, thump-thump—
Just as Kaguya lifted the lid a mere crack, before Haruto could even lean in for a look, a sudden knock echoed from the front door.
The two reacted with lightning speed, instantly diving into the thick bedding on the bed and pulling the duvet over themselves.
"Oh no, she's back!" Kaguya whispered frantically.
"If it were her, would she need to knock? It must be someone else."
"Then what do we do? Should I go out and knock them out?"
"Knock your fuzzy ball! Just hide. If no one answers, they'll leave on their own," Haruto snapped in a low voice. He simultaneously unfolded a tiny Gap in front of them, just large enough to see the situation outside the apartment door.
Just as he'd suspected, the person standing outside wasn't Su Ning. It was her best friend, Yu Xuexue—the very same person from whom they had pried much of their information.
The two had no choice but to remain huddled under the covers and wait.
However, events took an unexpected turn. Instead of leaving, Yu Xuexue simply waited in the hallway. Before long, another figure appeared down the corridor.
It was Su Ning.
"You're so slow! I thought you'd be home already. I've been knocking for ages and no one answered," Yu Xuexue complained, her cheeks puffed out.
"Didn't I give you a key?" Su Ning said with a helpless sigh as she stepped forward and unlocked the door.
The two women entered the apartment, dropped their bags, and sat down in the living room.
At that very same moment, Haruto, still buried in the bedroom, managed to shift his body just enough to pull out his ghost phone.
[The Most Handsome Realm Demon: @Su Ning, did you receive the gift I sent you?]
A moment later, a reply came.
[Su Ning: Get lost.]
[The Most Handsome Realm Demon:???]
The reply was just two simple words. Haruto's face immediately darkened. Kaguya, hiding beside him, had to bite her lip to keep from bursting out laughing. She silently gave Su Ning a thumbs-up.
[The Most Handsome Realm Demon: I hope you can keep that smile on your face all day today.]
[Her Highness the Princess of Eientei: +1, jie jie jie...]
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