"Together?"
Kaito raised an eyebrow, surprised.
"There's a thief you can't handle?"
He wasn't against acting with Lisa. Setting aside anything else, just her looks and figure alone were… easy on the eyes.
But the more he thought about it, the stranger it sounded.
"Also—why would anyone steal books from the library? You don't lend out anything from the restricted section. The ones you do lend are normal books. Even if some are a little valuable, they're not worth much on the market."
A book anyone could borrow for free—who would buy that?
And if it was a rare copy, then no one would dare purchase it either.
Getting caught would basically mean admitting you were the thief—or connected to one.
"Who knows~" Lisa said, a hint of irritation slipping into her voice. "Someone who causes trouble for others for no reason… deserves a proper lesson."
"What book was stolen?" Kaito asked.
Every book Lisa lent out carried her unique elemental mark. Finding it wasn't difficult.
The Pale Princess and the Six Pygmies, Lisa said.
Kaito's expression tightened.
"…What?" Lisa immediately noticed. "Why that face?"
"Nothing." Kaito smoothed his expression. "I've read it before. It's a fairy tale."
But the moment he heard the title, he already knew who the thief was.
That book likely concealed a secret from Khaenri'ah five hundred years ago.
He'd borrowed it before and studied it carefully…
but he'd only found Volume One.
And he hadn't been able to confirm anything.
"So we're going to retrieve it now?" Kaito asked.
Lisa yawned delicately behind her hand, eyes half-lidded.
"Aww, you're so eager to help big sister… I'm touched."
Then she tilted her head and smiled.
"But isn't it still work hours?"
"…Fine," Kaito said, deadpan.
Lisa stood. "Come with me to the workshop first. Drop off the Ruin Guard body."
"Alright."
They walked side by side.
After a few steps, Lisa thought about it—then walked close beside him, tone light. 'Consider this your reward.'
"…Okay."
Lisa's alchemy workshop was on the upper floor of the Knights' headquarters.
When they reached the front doors, she finally let go.
The two guards at the entrance stared straight ahead, pretending they saw nothing.
Lisa had built up too much "authority" in the Knights over the years.
Offend her, and something terrifying would happen.
No one wanted that.
Kaito glanced toward Jean's office.
The door happened to be open.
Jean had her head lowered, still working—one hand reaching for a biscuit and popping it into her mouth as a makeshift dinner.
A familiar sight.
Kaito didn't comment.
He followed Lisa to the workshop and pulled the Ruin Guard body out of his System inventory.
"The core is completely ruined," Lisa said with regret.
"At the time, we didn't have the conditions to kill it while preserving the core," Kaito explained.
"Jean already told me," Lisa replied.
She bent to inspect the marks on the Ruin Guard's frame.
Her posture was precise and practiced, like an alchemist examining a specimen.
Kaito rubbed the bridge of his nose and forced his gaze away.
If he kept looking, he'd do something stupid.
Lisa studied it for a long while—so focused she seemed to forget he was even there.
Then, as if she'd only just remembered there was a man in her workshop, she glanced back.
"Kaito," she asked lazily, "do you want to stay here and keep big sister company… or go take care of your own business?"
She was shooing him out.
As a "once-in-two-hundred-years" genius witch from the Akademiya, once Lisa got serious, her concentration was frightening.
Everything else simply stopped existing.
Kaito shrugged and headed for the door.
Behind him, Lisa spoke softly, almost to herself.
"When I'm focused, I can't spare attention for my 'proper image'…"
" I can't let you see me being… a mess."
Kaito closed the door.
…
He didn't leave the Knights' headquarters.
After returning to the first floor, he turned and walked straight to the Acting Grand Master's office.
He knocked on the side door—already slightly ajar.
"Come in," Jean's firm voice answered.
Kaito entered and quietly shut the door behind him.
Jean looked up, puzzled.
Then—
click.
Kaito gently pushed the door until it was mostly closed, keeping the noise out. Jean glanced up, a little confused.
"Kaito…"
"What?" Kaito asked, expression innocent.
"I still have work," Jean said.
"You handle yours," Kaito replied, stepping behind her desk. "I'll handle mine."
He slipped her capelet off her shoulders, found the exact spots, and kneaded hard.
Jean's stiff shoulders loosened immediately. She let out a small pained sound—
and then, very quickly, relief spread through her.
Seeing that Kaito didn't push further, she lowered her head again and resumed reviewing documents.
But a faint smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
Then she seemed to remember something.
"Kaito… Lisa went to Good Hunter to slack off again today, didn't she?"
"I knew I'd get caught," Kaito said with a sigh.
Jean rubbed her brow. "Every time she does that, the citizens who come to borrow and return books end up filing complaints with me."
Kaito tried to smooth things over. "She said a book was stolen, and she needs to track it down. Borrowing and returns will be delayed a few days."
"I see." Jean nodded.
Lisa treasured every book in the library. Maybe it was a witch's reverence for knowledge.
Sometimes she cared even more about that than her alchemy work.
Jean went back to processing paperwork.
Knock, knock, knock.
Someone knocked.
Jean startled slightly—then remembered:
This man had locked the door.
Two people inside.
And who knew what outsiders might imagine.
She shot Kaito a reproachful look.
"Wait," Jean called to the door.
She retied her capelet.
Then she opened it.
Jean didn't feel the need to hide anything.
And they hadn't actually done anything improper in here.
Outside stood a squad captain from one of the Knights' patrol teams.
"Acting Grand Master Jean, pardon the interruption. I'm here to submit—"
He saluted, then noticed the other person in the room.
"…Uh, Boss Kaito?"
"You do your thing," Kaito said, leaning casually against the meeting table.
"O-Okay!"
The captain didn't overthink it. He submitted the day's patrol report—they'd just finished switching shifts with the night watch.
"Thank you for your hard work," Jean said, accepting the report.
She returned the salute.
Once the captain turned and left, she thought for a second—then closed the door again.
This time, she didn't lock it.
"Kaito," she asked, now properly curious, "what's that case?"
Only then did she walk over and run her fingers across the rosewood box—still damp with traces of soil.
"Want to open it?" Kaito folded his arms, watching her reaction with easy confidence.
Jean understood immediately.
If he was that calm, then whatever was inside was something he was sure she'd like.
Her breath caught slightly as she opened the lid.
For Jean—who had inherited the title of Dandelion Knight at fifteen—
the sword she had dreamed of for years appeared right in front of her.
Jean drew in a slow breath.
Her fingers traced the blade's length, reverent—
and then she wrapped her hand around the grip.
…
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