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"Brother, goodbye for now."
Watching the group of people tearfully bidding him farewell at the gate of his house, Kyoma's face twitched slightly.
He truly couldn't understand how the scene he had originally imagined, being robbed and then fighting back in righteous anger, had somehow turned into a warm, friendly exchange that even included them escorting him all the way home.
These so-called "kind people" had even helped him carry the breakfast items along the road. Now, every one of them looked utterly exhausted and out of breath from the effort.
Kyoma felt a bit guilty in his heart.
He pointed toward the house behind him and extended a sincere invitation.
"Why don't you come inside to rest?"
"Really? Then we'll..."
The gang leader had initially intended to abandon this so-called "deal" out of fear of Kyoma's unknown strength.
However, now that his target was actively inviting them inside, it clearly meant they had gained Kyoma's complete trust.
Didn't that mean there was still a chance for success?
A faint trace of greed flashed through the gang leader's eyes.
Just as he was about to accept Kyoma's invitation, a voice suddenly rang out from within the yard.
"You took quite a while just to buy breakfast, didn't you?"
As the words fell, a muscular figure with an X on his upper bare chest slowly walked out from the yard.
He gripped a sharp blade that gleamed with a white light.
His chest rose and fell heavily with each breath, and he was covered in sweat.
It was Drake, who had been exercising in the yard ever since Kyoma left.
The moment he noticed the group standing beside Kyoma, his many years of experience as both a Marine and a pirate allowed him to instantly judge their identities from their clothing and demeanor alone. His brows unconsciously furrowed.
"Who are these people?"
Although his tone sounded merely inquisitive, his eyes carried a sharp, penetrating scrutiny.
The focus of that gaze was naturally not Kyoma. The group instantly felt a chill run down their spines, and they all shivered together.
'Who is this person? He's terrifying.'
The instant the gang leader laid eyes on Drake, fear seized his heart.
He immediately realized that this was, without question, a ruthless man who had survived countless battles.
Any dirty or greedy thoughts vanished completely from his mind.
"Brother, since we've already seen you home safely, we'll be leaving now. There's no need to see us off!"
"What are we waiting for, you idiots? Let's go!" After shouting that, he hurriedly roused the subordinates beside him who had been so frightened by Drake that they hadn't dared to speak, and the group turned and ran off in disgrace.
"Wait? Didn't you want to come inside..." Kyoma's attempt to persuade them abruptly stopped as the group fled as if their lives depended on it, quickly disappearing from sight.
"Maybe next time!!" Kyoma heard a yell.
"Why does everyone I meet today seem to enjoy running away in the middle of a conversation?" Kyoma sighed helplessly.
"From what you're saying, it sounds like you encountered more than just this group today?" Drake glanced over at him.
"Well, there was another guy secretly following me this morning. After I discovered him, he used some kind of ability together with his companion and managed to escape."
****
Breakfast was carried into the house, where Kagura and Klee had already woken up.
Today marked Kagura's most comfortable day since arriving here.
She hadn't needed to spend the entire night changing bandages, nor had she been dragged out of bed at dawn by Kyoma.
Instead, she slept until she naturally woke up, and a delicious breakfast was waiting for her the moment she opened her eyes.
"Kyo-chan!"
Of course, she knew exactly who had bought the breakfast, because every single item was her favorite.
Overjoyed, she leapt down from the second floor and flew straight into Kyoma's arms.
The result was completely predictable.
With a dull thud and a familiar scream, Kyoma caught the girl's body and made extremely intimate contact with the floor.
"You idiot, why would you suddenly jump down from such a height? I really don't understand what goes on in your head. If I hadn't caught you..."
Her enthusiastic greeting was met with Kyoma's endless stream of complaints.
Kagura admitted that she had been wrong.
She happily ate her breakfast, believing that a few knocks on the head were a very small price to pay.
Klee also came down the stairs, still wearing her red knight's outfit, though she had changed into a pair of slippers.
She wasn't carrying her leather bag, which suggested she had no intention of going out.
"Good morning, everyone." Klee's voice lacked its usual liveliness, as though she hadn't fully woken up yet.
While speaking, she rubbed her eyes, the dark circles beneath them particularly noticeable.
"Klee, did you sleep badly? Did that pervert sneak into your room at night? mmph!" Kagura asked with concern, but after only a few words, she began spouting nonsense and was immediately silenced when Kyoma stuffed a donut into her mouth.
"Eat your food." Kyoma grabbed several donuts and forcefully shoved them into her mouth.
He truly didn't know what that mouth was made of.
No matter how much food was crammed inside, it never seemed to fill up, as though it connected to another dimension altogether.
If yesterday's Klee had stepped forward to help her "bullied" Kagura-nee, today she was in such poor spirits that she couldn't even summon the energy to speak, let alone help.
Kyoma noticed her condition and handed some breakfast to Klee.
"Didn't you sleep at all last night, Klee?"
He still vividly remembered the violent Pyro elemental energy he had sensed emanating from her room.
Aside from himself, only Klee could control such power.
"Well... Kyoma-ni said yesterday that there will be many fish bigger than boats in the future, so Klee stayed up last night researching new bombs."
Klee accepted the food and took a small bite.
She chewed slowly with her mouth, looking quite cute and elegant, completely different from Kagura's wild eating style.
"What? You were making bombs in your room last night?"
Drake looked utterly horrified and nearly choked in his agitation.
Fortunately, there was milk on the table that Kyoma had bought earlier. He took a large gulp to calm himself, then looked at Kyoma with a serious expression.
"You actually let her make bombs in her room by herself. You do realize that we all live in the same house, right?"
After hearing that Klee blew up a ship yesterday, he had fully grasped just how dangerous this seemingly delicate girl truly was.
In terms of pure destructive power, she was essentially a living Pacifista.
And such a dangerous individual had been crafting bombs on the same floor while he had been sleeping soundly last night.
"Huh? Is there a problem?" Kyoma raised his head in confusion.
Klee also lifted her small head and blinked at him innocently.
Drake helplessly discovered that the two of them wore nearly identical puzzled expressions, completely unaware of the danger inherent in allowing a child to manufacture explosives indoors.
For a brief moment, he felt as though he himself was the strange one.
"No, you really don't think letting a young girl..." Drake stubbornly continued, but his words were interrupted by footsteps coming from outside the yard.
The four people seated at the table turned their heads toward the sound and discovered that Uncle Neil had arrived at the door without anyone noticing.
Kyoma wasn't surprised, knowing that Uncle Neil was likely stopping by on his way to work at the shipyard.
However, his gaze was unconsciously drawn to the bounty poster in Uncle Neil's hand. Uncle Neil had it facing them.
Golden hair, a red knight's outfit, and a delicate, tender face...
Although it was a painting rather than a photograph, it bore a striking resemblance to Klee, the companion Kyoma had summoned the day before.
Several lines of bold text were printed beneath the bounty:
"The criminal who destroyed a Celestial Dragon ship, the evil bomb maniac. An elf girl who carries explosives, wanted by the Marines."
[Alias: "Blasting Elf"]
[Bounty: 50 million Berry.]