Shi'an Apartment was not luxurious, just an ordinary, remote building.
The exterior was plain, as if it had not been renovated in decades.
The soundproofing was terrible. Even the slightest noise could be heard by everyone in the building.
But this was exactly the kind of place that made the middle-aged driver feel at ease.
He slept every day with the money box hidden under the tatami, which gave him a sense of security.
If the landlord knew this man had dug a hole under the tatami, he might have wanted to dig a hole in him too.
Still, this worked to Akemi's advantage.
She placed the rock on the ground.
"Earth Spirit, bring me what is buried below."
The ground began to tremble faintly, though the vibration was so weak that no one would notice.
As the earth shifted, five boxes rose from beneath the floor and settled before her.
Extraordinary abilities truly were useful.
Letting out a breath, Akemi immediately moved into action.
To avoid drawing attention, she had parked only at the mouth of the alley. From there, she would have to carry the boxes.
Each one was heavy, and she could only take them one at a time.
After five trips, she finally loaded the one billion yen into her car.
Returning to the apartment, she stopped before the door of the room and gently shook the wind chime.
A faint breeze slipped through the cracks and into the room.
The wind coiled around the driver's neck like the scythe of the god of death. With a single pull, his head separated from his body without pain.
When it was done, Akemi quietly returned to her car.
Only then did she let out a sigh of relief.
It was over.
The two people who knew her plans were gone, and the stolen one billion yen had been fully recovered.
Yet relief was soon followed by a dull ache in her head.
Had she used too much spiritual energy?
She had only just become a Secrets Suppliant, but she had been using her spirituality heavily, relying on natural spirits to complete multiple tasks. The drain was considerable.
No more action tonight.
Her strength would not last, and there was no way she could rescue Shiho alone.
Today's success had been possible only because both men were unprepared. One was still basking in his success from the day before, the other never imagined his location could be so easily exposed.
The first was careless from overconfidence, the second had lost all vigilance from exhaustion.
That had given her the perfect opening to strike with her abilities.
But the organization never let its guard down.
Which meant she had no chance of saving Shiho without help from God.
After thinking it through, she drove back to her apartment. The money boxes stayed in the car.
Her home was no longer safe, and leaving the cash in the vehicle was better than hiding it inside.
Once home, she prepared a simple ritual circle.
A candle was placed in the pentagram, lit, and sprinkled with a trace of moonstone powder.
"Please, Lord, grant me the Eyes of Insight."
As her spirituality surged, her vision seemed to expand.
She scanned her surroundings. Nothing unusual.
She ended the ritual.
Almost immediately, the backlash struck, waves of pain pounding in her head.
The ritual had consumed far more energy than summoning natural spirits.
Still, it was worth it.
Now she was certain there were no organization members watching her.
It seemed they knew her plan yesterday had succeeded, so they had withdrawn surveillance. But a bank robber like her could hardly leave the city unchallenged.
What awaited her next was surely Gin's bullet.
A bitter smile tugged at her lips.
She had been so foolish to believe Gin would keep his promise.
That man was a cold-blooded killer who never honored agreements. His creed was that whatever he took became his.
Feeling oddly light, she tidied her room, then lay down.
The clock read 2:45. Unable to withstand the backlash any longer, she closed her eyes and drifted off.
The bodies of the driver and the thug remained undiscovered.
There was no breakfast service in a place like this, and the landlord rarely disturbed tenants.
Anywhere Hotel's main selling point was its flexible check-in, not attentive service.
In the cool spring air, the bodies would not emit odor quickly enough to attract notice, and staying inside for a day would not arouse suspicion.
The day passed without discovery.
At 17:32 in the afternoon, Akemi opened her eyes.
She glanced at the clock, then at the setting sun.
"Fifteen hours..."
She patted her cheeks.
"I didn't expect such a strong side effect from consuming so much spiritual energy."
Her spirituality felt restored, as if all that she had spent was replenished, though it had taken a long time.
She sat up quickly.
"The next step is to get Shiho out of that devil's den."
(To be continued.)