Lunch break with delivery bento eaten.
“Pfft, so it was the President who sent you to ask?”
Fran, chewing on a lollipop and carrying a can of warm black coffee, leaned against the vending machine at the company entrance and asked back.
Clara sat on a bench holding a bottle of fresh milk, nodding slightly at Fran.
“I already know that the President pulled Lucia and me into the dream realm that day, but what exactly did you do? And who is that imposter ‘Squire’? I don’t know any of that… It’s been so long, shouldn’t you have told me by now?”
Clara fired off a string of questions, eager to learn the truth.
“Oh dear, some things I just can’t answer~”
Fran’s research lab was right next to Lucia’s workstation, separated only by a fence covered in fresh green vines, so to discuss this matter properly, they had to find a quieter place.
For that, they used the lunch break as an excuse to come to the employee lounge by the elevator.
“Clara dear, is the truth from that day really that important? It’s enough that we helped ease Lucia’s doubts, right? We didn’t do anything bad, after all.”
Fran still played coy, and her evasive attitude annoyed Clara.
“Is there really a reason you can’t tell me?”
“Hmm, some things just can’t be said, and we have secrets we don’t want exposed…”
“So, was that imposter really you in disguise?”
Just as Clara prepared to press further, Fran shook her head helplessly, swirling her coffee.
“No way, my body shape doesn’t match.”
Neither Fran nor Cessia remotely resembled the ‘Squire’ they had seen back then. Although the imposter was a bottom-tier, they were still a freak with a body taller than an average woman.
Clara shot back, “So you mean anyone with a similar body shape can disguise themselves? You have accomplices besides President Cessia? Are they someone I know?”
Fran didn’t deny Clara’s suspicions, only saying, “Don’t say it so harshly~ They’re here to help you, so don’t ask too many questions!”
Though Clara didn’t know who the mysterious helper was, she was already close to the truth.
“Fran, actually, I have a request… Could you please ask that person…”
Clara hesitated, unable to finish her sentence, but Fran cut in, “You want them to keep pretending to be you, spend some time with Lucia, and mend the sibling relationship… right?”
Her thoughts were completely seen through.
Clara had thought it was all just a dream, but the President told her the imposter was someone else; she had assumed it was Fran in disguise, but even she wasn’t the imposter.
“Um… is that okay?” Clara asked quietly.
Who the imposter was didn’t matter anymore; what mattered was whether they were willing to help her again.
It was a move made out of desperation.
Not only to dispel Lucia’s doubts, but more importantly, to protect her image as the older brother.
Lucia had been in Central City for over a week, barely recovered from serious injuries, and ‘Squire’ hadn’t even come to see his sister — that was hard to justify.
Besides, the lame excuse of being on a business trip couldn’t be used forever. Once or twice was forgivable, but always being away on trips would erode Lucia’s trust and inevitably raise suspicion.
Since Clara wasn’t suited to meet Lucia as the magical girl Clara, the only option was to rely on that imposter.
Taking a sip of bitter black coffee and licking her lollipop, Fran finally sat next to Clara, casually draping an arm around her shoulder.
“I’ve got this covered. I can ask them for you… In fact, seeing Lucia’s lonely expression, I had the same idea.”
Huh? Lucia showed a lonely expression?
Clara hadn’t noticed, but thinking about it, it made sense.
“Then I leave it to you.”
“No need to be so formal, we’re helping each other after all~”
Fran laughed heartily, but Clara could only taste the bitterness of the coffee in her mouth.
Although she wasn’t ready to speak, as soon as she saw that imposter again, Clara would have a chance to find out their identity — maybe by using a small D·M Extractor to scan their data.
“Hey, you livestock! Lunch break’s over, right? Back to work!”
Cessia came walking from the direction of the office, holding her handbag.
“President? You’re leaving already?” Fran asked.
“Don’t act like I don’t work, I’m heading out to a meeting!”
Cessia batted away Fran’s arm that was draped over Clara’s shoulder, then pulled Clara into a hug and started playfully teasing her soft belly.
Clara felt like a toy for these two women.
Although Cessia was busy every day, her focus wasn’t on this ‘Dream Witch.’ Clara didn’t really know what she was so busy with…
“Clara~ Don’t forget your task this afternoon, at three o’clock, okay?”
Cessia reminded her, and Clara nodded.
However, that task didn’t excite her.
As a seasoned bottom-tier freak, the other bottom-tier agents were all juniors to Squire. Although many of them were stronger freaks than Clara, they still had to call her ‘senior’ politely.
So Clara could pretty much guess who Nightmael would assign to be her opponents — probably just the usual guys she hung out with.
She sighed, thinking this wasn’t even a fake match.
Her magical girl data came from Kamui, who was half a step into the A-Rank gateway. Against terrifying witches, she could hold off until a top-tier hero arrived. Lower-rank freaks were just human punching bags to her, and she knew their abilities inside out.
Was she supposed to seriously lay into her juniors?
She wondered how those guys had been doing recently.
Cessia waved and stepped into the elevator. Fran patted Clara on the shoulder.
“Don’t overthink it. Your old colleagues don’t even realize they’re just experience fodder. The Strategy Department must have given them some assignments, but whether they complete them or not won’t affect the outcome.”
“But don’t just wipe them out as soon as you get there, okay? This operation is a publicity stunt. The main goal is to give the crows some good shots…”
=
In a way, this was just a show.
Straightening her rumpled clothes, Clara sighed.
“Ugh, is this what being a hero means?”
She had heard that when undercover as a hero in the infiltration unit, she might get to do some real heroic justice.
But except for the incident at the Expo Center, she hadn’t really encountered any monster crimes since her debut.
Lucia, on the other hand, had received quite a few requests, but none involved fighting crime or hunting monsters.
All were random media interviews or product endorsements.
So they were all rejected.
“Alright, hurry up and take the subway to the site~ Remember to transform somewhere no one’s watching and with no cameras…”
“Am I going alone this time?” Clara asked.
“Lucia and I are both in logistics, and my equipment isn’t ready yet… Besides, you’re not alone, right?”
Clara paused, then understood Fran’s meaning.
Indeed, she wasn’t alone…
There was still Nyx, after all.