Outside the izakaya.
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ
Chisa and the others stood frozen, stunned beyond belief.
"Th-this…"
Aina pointed helplessly to where Iori and the others had just been standing.
She had only been joking earlier, but it actually happened?!
Was her mouth that powerful?
Wait!
Something's not right. Sure, her youth had been saved, but… they hadn't told her when they'd bring Iori back!
At least give her a return date, Mr. Kidnapper!
"Shouldn't we call the police now?!"
At least someone here was a functional adult. Hanabi snapped out of it after a brief pause and immediately switched to work mode.
Snatching men off the street like that? These criminals must be repeat offenders!
Fortunately, as a professional editor, Hanabi had received training for these kinds of scenarios.
She had already memorized the van's license plate. Now all they had to do was report it to the police, and they'd track it down quickly!
After all, being an author was a high-risk job—especially for a flighty one like Kamishiro.
Getting recognized by a yandere fan and locked in a basement wasn't outside the realm of possibility.
So... there's absolutely no problem with the editor receiving training in this kind of area!
"Um… I don't think we need to call the police just yet."
Chisa spoke softly from the side. Just now, her eyes had happened to be fixed straight ahead, so she'd witnessed the entire incident unfold.
Although the culprit moved really fast, she still caught a glimpse of his face.
If she wasn't mistaken, that should count as roughhousing between close friends, right?
"Mitarai was taken away the same way."
Rie added from beside her. At that time, Mitarai had also been brought away in that same van.
However, their technique hadn't been as polished back then, so Rie had gotten a better look at their faces and chose not to call the police.
She didn't expect that in just one hour, these "kidnappers" had improved their skills so much.
Hearing that—
Hanabi, who was just about to call 110, froze mid-dial and looked at Chisa and Rie in disbelief.
"So… the 'culprits' from earlier were their friends?"
Seeing the two nod in response, Hanabi mentally shut down, completely exiting work mode.
Friend group "pranks" were this wild nowadays? This was more intense than a movie!
The happiest one of all was Aina, standing nearby.
She had seen Yamamoto and the others before. Even though they didn't seem very reliable, they should at least be safe, right?
The kind of bickering and chaos they got up to was just how boys bonded. That's right!
That's exactly how it happens in all the romance dramas!
Right now, Iori had been taken away, but there was no threat to his life.
Which meant… he might not be spending the night with them anymore?
Her youthful energy had returned?!
At that thought, Aina's face instantly lit up with a radiant smile, and she became energetic once more.
"Well, in that case, there's no rush to head back. Let's go explore the area a bit!"
"Yeah, sounds good!"
Rie agreed immediately without even thinking—she was a girl who loved shopping.
They had only gotten halfway through their shopping spree before Mitarai got "kidnapped", so now they could pick up where they left off!
"Um, as for me…"
Chisa hesitated. She wasn't too interested in shopping.
"There seems to be a scuba gear shop not too far from here."
"Let's go!"
Chisa's expression changed in an instant—now filled with eager excitement. As long as it had to do with diving, she was all in!
Aina had struck with pinpoint precision.
"Hanabi san, why don't you come too?"
Aina turned her gaze to Hanabi again. Even if Kamishiro was now "kidnapped," she still wasn't at ease.
She wanted to protect her best friend's love!
Even if Kiyoko-chan's love had already turned very "green", as long as Kiyoko hadn't given up—
She would protect it!
Seeing Aina's eyes glowing with some unknown light, Hanabi was a little scared. Wait… did this girl have some strange hobby or obsession? I'm strictly monogamous now!
In the end, Hanabi chose to go shopping with the group because Aina gave her a condition she couldn't refuse.
That condition? A sneak peek into the pigeon's school life!
If she wanted to drive away all the "butterflies" circling around that pigeon, she needed to first understand—just how many butterflies there were!!!
________________
At that moment, a van was speeding down the road toward the seaside.
{{(°△°; "}}!
"G-Good evening..."
Seeing those two familiar figures, Kamishiro forced an awkward smile.
On the other side, Iori was too shocked to speak. They had opened the car door mid-drive and dragged him in—was this some kind of movie scene?!
These guys hadn't considered safety at all!
Wait... judging from their eyes, they never cared about their safety in the first place!
But more importantly—
Iori still hadn't processed how exactly he had been abducted!
That's right.
Right now, both Kamishiro and Iori were tied up with thick ropes.
Judging by how skilled the tying was, the two quickly realized this had been a premeditated, organized operation!
Only Kohei, who seemed passed out like a ragdoll, had avoided being tied up—just tossed aside.
Hearing Kamishiro's awkward greeting, Yamamoto and Fujiwara grinned from the front seats.
"It's definitely a good evening. Hope our arrival didn't interrupt your romantic getaway."
"Three guys and three girls going on a trip together—what a lucky bunch. Now tell us, how do you want to die?
You traitorous bastards who turned your backs on the organization!!!"
Yamamoto's eyes were bloodshot with rage. He had been watching them for a long time before launching the abduction.
Chisa didn't need to be explained—she was originally that bastard Kitahara's girlfriend.
As for the others—one of them was clearly Mitarai's girlfriend, which they already knew.
After all, not long ago, they had "lovingly punished" Mitarai for that.
The remaining two—one was that girl from the mixer whom Yamamoto thought had feelings for him.
Back then, Aina had been dragging Kohei around.
When Yamamoto saw that, he felt like a giant green hat had been plopped on his head!!!
And that unfamiliar beautiful Onee san… Kamishiro's hand had been firmly planted on her butt the whole time!
No need to guess what kind of relationship that was!!!
Their jealousy burned so intensely it brought tears to their eyes.
Unforgivable!!!
Absolutely unforgivable!
Seeing this,
Kamishiro suddenly found the earlier love-triangle drama far more peaceful by comparison.
"Um… if I said this was just a misunderstanding, would you believe me?"
Yamamoto: "Oh? Is that your final statement? How peculiar."
Fujiwara: "Once we hand you over to Nojima, it won't be so easy to talk your way out."
Yamamoto: "Nice. This time we get both money and girls—jackpot."
They laughed like stereotypical villains who had just robbed a bank.
"Money? What money?"
At the mention of that word, Kamishiro seemed to guess their motive and looked toward Kitahara.
Iori's eyes were still as clear—and clueless—as ever.
"Hey, you didn't leak your lottery win, did you?"
Kamishiro whispered. After all, only a few of them had known about Iori's winnings.
"If it weren't for you getting kidnapped, I would've thought you sold me out!
Wait, even if you were kidnapped, that doesn't clear your name!"
Iori was thoroughly confused. The one most likely to have betrayed him was Kamishiro. He now seriously suspected this whole thing was a setup—Kamishiro's scheme to steal his lottery winnings!
"…Don't talk nonsense. We're brothers in adversity, remember?"
Kamishiro's mouth twitched, and he averted his gaze guiltily. He had thought about it, but hadn't had the chance to act—because Hanabi had dragged him into this trip first.
Plus, it was just a measly 300,000 yen win which was not worth getting kidnapped over.
So… what the hell was going on?
The two of them turned their gaze to Kohei. It couldn't be him, right?
Kohei: Maya sama… Maya sama…
"Looks like you two are very confused."
"Seriously, Kitahara. Winning the lottery and not telling your bros? Then sneaking off on a trip with your girlfriend? Naughty, naughty."
Alright.
Kamishiro now had no doubt. These guys were after that idiot Kitahara.
He and Kohei were just collateral damage. Damn it, he knew it—nothing good ever came from hanging around Kitahara!
Kamishiro tried to talk his way out. "Hey, Yamamoto, I just happened to bump into Kitahara. I didn't get any of the prize money.
If your target is that idiot, why not just let me go? I can even help you shake him down for more money.
Don't be fooled by his dumb face—he's a rich kid. His family owns a huge ryokan he's set to inherit."
"Kamishiro, you bastard!" Iori exploded, hearing Kamishiro try to sacrifice him for freedom, and immediately began listing the benefits of kidnapping Kamishiro instead.
"Don't believe him! This scumbag spent the night with that Onee san yesterday! He's also a bestselling light novel author! He's got a steady income!"
"Not true! I'm a lazy author who never updates! Kitahara's the rich one! And his girlfriend is Chisa—a total school idol!"
"I'm not inheriting the ryokan! And my relationship with Chisa is totally pure!"
"You—!"
Kamishiro wanted to argue more, but was cut off by Yamamoto.
"Alright, alright, enough from you two."
Yamamoto, sitting in the passenger seat, waved his hand, then slicked his bangs back and said in what he thought was a cool tone:
"Even though your rabid-dog bickering is entertaining, and it is tempting to just keep watching—
You both seem to have misunderstood one thing."
Yamamoto leaned in close to their faces, revealing a classic villainous grin.
"We're not kidnappers. We don't care about your money. Don't judge a book by its cover—we would never do anything illegal."
Kamishiro and Iori looked silently at the ropes binding them, deeply wanting to know: which country's laws don't consider kidnapping a crime?
The "Free Country"?
A little too free, maybe!
"Then… what is this?"
Kamishiro asked cautiously, treating Yamamoto's response like it was just an extremely loud fart.
"Hmph, even though we're not kidnappers, we came all the way from Izu to Okinawa to find you guys. At the very least, we should get some travel expenses, right?
I heard you won a big prize recently, Kitahara. We'll just take that portion of the money, and we'll call it even."
Of course, this was just a convenient excuse. If Kitahara had hit the jackpot under normal circumstances, they would've just waited for him to come back and then blackmail him for a bit of cash.
But!
This bastard actually used that money to go on a trip with his girlfriend?!
Hah!
Then sorry, but the nature of this matter has completely changed.
This is a betrayal of their brotherly bond!
Just like Mitarai, who they recently caught!
KEKEKEKEKEKE...
The two laughed evilly. This isn't robbery—they're just claiming the inheritance of a good brother!
What's that?
Murder is illegal?
Well… as long as you're not caught, there's room for maneuver!
They had already come up with tomorrow's news headline:
"A young man, pondering life by the beach at night, unknowingly fell asleep and was swept out to sea."
A perfect excuse for drowning!
Shivering, Iori felt a chill down his spine. If he didn't act soon, his life might really be over!
Kamishiro looked at Kitahara with pitiful eyes—he would take good care of Shiori!
But right now, pity didn't matter…
As for Kitahara, they could sacrifice him as many times as they wanted and not feel bad about it.
The important thing was to save himself!
Kamishiro gave Yamamoto a flattering smile and said, "Ahem, so if that's the case, this has nothing to do with me, right?
Actually, you can just let me off here. I won't disturb you any further.
Don't worry, I'll know exactly what to say when I get back!"
At this moment, Kamishiro's eyes were as determined as a monk on a pilgrimage to the West.
As if he truly would help them keep their secret.
But would things really go that way?
Of course not!
Once he got back, with just a bit of subtle handling, this secret could feed him for life.
Heh heh heh~
Trading one ATM for three ATMs!
Totally worth it!
Worst case, he could get a reward from the police—and maybe even both!
Absolutely perfect!
Unfortunately—
Kamishiro was thinking far too simply.
Yamamoto dug in his nose and rolled his eyes at Kamishiro's naïveté. "How could we let you go? Where are we supposed to find girls if you're gone?"
"Huh?!"
Still fantasizing, Kamishiro froze, staring in disbelief at Yamamoto and Fujiwara.
What the hell?!
You guys are this messed up about it?!
"Don't worry, Kamishiro. If you help us organize another mixer, we'll let you go."
Slap!
Yamamoto gave Kamishiro a heavy pat on the chest, eyes burning. "Kamishiro, you know exactly what we want!"
Kamishiro twitched. These bastards were surprisingly pure when it came to love.
Such a simple demand actually made Kamishiro feel guilty! What kind of priorities were these?
Drowning their brother to claim his inheritance—but being all meek and desperate when it came to dating girls?
You've got to be kidding!
But right now, Kamishiro had no room to refuse—he could only nod.
Amidst Yamamoto and Fujiwara's excited expressions, Kamishiro exchanged a discreet glance with Iori.
Escape!
They had to escape!
The plan was risky, but there was no time for hesitation!
While Yamamoto and Fujiwara were still fantasizing about their rosy future, Kamishiro used his expert footwork to pry open the car door.
The next second—
Two "caterpillars" leapt out!
And on their way out, they gave Kohei a swift kick.
"Bye-bye, suckers!"
The scene left Yamamoto and Fujiwara stunned and speechless.
Was this a movie?!
(PS: Do not imitate. This constitutes littering~)