Achoo—
Back on the surface, Hayashi let out a sudden sneeze.
He had no idea that while he was just walking around, Nutcracker was already halfway through… romantically convincing herself.
"Huh? Am I catching a cold?"
"But with the Horse Talisman, that shouldn't even be possible."
Hayashi rubbed his nose, confused.
After only a few steps, he spotted someone standing up ahead, holding a stack of files.
Akira.
"How's everything going?" He approached casually.
"Hayashi—"
Akira lifted her head. A faint glimmer passed through her clear eyes before she began her report.
"The female hostages have already been transferred to headquarters. They're safe."
She lowered the documents and continued.
"Headquarters has completely taken control of the estate. The ghouls fled or were killed. Their casualties are severe."
"As for the Aogiri Tree members, almost all of them were eliminated. Only the higher-ranking officers managed to escape."
Hayashi nodded.
Different path, same outcome as the original timeline.
"Headquarters will take care of cleanup. Leave the rest to us."
Akira hugged the files against her chest, her eyes shining subtly.
"In that case, I'll head home and get some rest."
Hayashi waved a hand and turned to leave.
But the moment he took a step—
Someone grabbed him from behind.
"…Thank you. Truly. If you hadn't been there today, none of us would've made it out."
Akira's voice trembled softly.Her arms around him were tight, her body lightly shaking.
"No need to thank me. I told you—I'll protect my team."
Feeling her warmth, Hayashi reached up and gently ruffled her hair.
"No need to thank me. I told you—I'll protect my team."
Feeling her warmth, Hayashi reached up and gently ruffled her hair.
Akira didn't say anything. She only held him tighter.
"When we're working, use my rank. Off-duty, you can relax a little."
"If you want, you can call me 'senior' like the others."
"Though honestly, I'm probably not that much older. Just calling me by my name works too."
"Call me however you like. Just… don't be so stiff all the time."
His voice was calm, his touch steady—reassuring in a way that made her heart soften.
Even he hadn't expected this. Straight-laced, by-the-book Akira… suddenly hugging him so openly?Yeah, that caught him off guard.
"…Okay."
Akira nodded quietly, almost obediently.
For the first time, she truly relaxed.And in that moment, she felt something she had never felt before:
Safety. Warmth. Peace.
…
Later, in the car heading home, Hayashi stared out the window.
[[You have successfully completed the mission: The Sexy Beauty's Solution]
[Mission reward is being distributed…]
The familiar system voice echoed in his mind.
Finally!
Hayashi's eyes widened with anticipation.The mission was done—now to see what talisman he'd get this time.
He had a feeling this one would be really useful.
A glow flashed across his vision.
[You have obtained a random Talisman: Rabbit Talisman
The agility of the rabbit grants you the ability to travel through space-time]
Hayashi froze.
Then grinned.
"Oh, this… this is going to be fun."