It had already been three days since Rinaâs kidnapping incident.
After some time after that, Rina woke up, but she did not remember what happened when the demon took over her body.
At one point, they checked her body for any abnormalities, but there were no problems, and she was finally able to leave the hospital today. Three days later, she had to be taken to the hospital for tests as soon as reinforcements arrived.
And if Rina doesnât remember, Iâm the only one who knows the truth about the incident, so I had to go along with the interview for the past three days.
Of course, I told the police that I had fought with a demon, but they didnât believe me, and I wasted a lot of time until someone with the skills to see through the lies came along.
Rina couldnât attend school for the past three days, and since she had no visitors, she only showed up safe and sound with Rin and her parents.
âRina, Iâm glad youâre okay.â
âItâs true! We worried about you since the kidnapping!â
âIâm sorry.â
âBut Iâm glad youâre safe~!
Rin and Anju both cried and hugged Rina, while Rinaâs parents and a man and woman who looked like Rin and Anjuâs parents watched them smiling.
Then Rinaâs parents, who were a short distance away, came toward me.
âAmemiya-san, once again, thank you for saving Rina.â
âAmemiya-kun. Thank you so much.â
Rinaâs mother and father bowed toward me.
Her father is a tall middle-aged man, and her mother is a petite woman.
Both of them called me to thank me on the day I saved Rina, and they thanked me many times too but meeting them in person like this, I could feel their feelings for Rina.
âNo, by the way, is Rina alright now?â
âYes, she is. Fortunately, she didnât have any injuries. She was just unconscious from the mental shock.
âI see.â
Iâm glad I could Rina, but I still couldnât ask her about her symptoms. Iâm not a doctor, so all I knew was that her life was not in danger.
âSo I am very grateful to Amemiya-kun. HoweverâŠâ
âBut?â
Donât tell me she was left with some after-effect.
With such anxiety, I looked at the father, and his expression became serious, unlike what I expected.
But in contrast, the motherâs expression is bitter.
âRina, I wonât give you Rina!â
âYes?â
âEh, what did you say?â
âI said Iâll never give you Rina! Sheâs our precious, precious daughter!â
I donât know what to do. I donât understand what heâs saying.
I mean, why is he suddenly talking about handing Rina over?
âThat means our Rin, too!â
âMy Anju, too.â
âMore!!!!!!!!!â
Rinâs father, who was a little far away from me earlier, and even Anjuâs father joined us, and for some reason, I was surrounded by the four of them.
What is this? Scary.
âHe, hey! Dad!â
âPapa! What are you talking about?â
âDad?â
As expected, with Rinâs father making so much noise, Rin and the others seemed to have noticed and approached us.
Rin and the others were surprised, their faces reddening, but something else bothered them more than that.
ââŠâŠâ
The mothers of the Rin family, including Rinaâs mother, who was silently smiling earlier, are standing behind the fathers, who are still arguing with the Rin family, with frightened looks on their faces.
Then, the mothers slowly put their arms around the fathersâ necks and squeeze them!
âGwah!
âGghh!â
âGggghhh!â
They held the fathersâ necks tightly and strangled all three of them.
He?
And after a while, the fathersâ faces turn bright red, and they start blowing bubbles.
âUm, what is this?â
I ask as I mutter, and Rin and the othersâ mothers smile and turn to me. But their eyes were not smiling. They looked like the eyes of a ravenous beast hunting its prey.
âIâm sorry. My husband just started to say strange things. Please get along with the rest of you young people.â
And then all three grabbed their husbands by the neck and dragged them away.
I, Rin, and Anju were left behind. Rin was the first one to come to her senses.
âOh, um, Kaede-san. You donât have to worry too much about my dad and the others.â
âOh?â
Iâm confused because of all the chaos in the situation, but Iâll believe Rinâs words for now. If I donât, I feel like Iâll be hunted this time. Iâll stop. Letâs not do that.
âExcuse me.â
âHm?â
While I was stunned by the behavior of Rinâs mother and the others, I heard the voice of a woman who was neither Rin nor the mothers. I turned toward the voice and there was a woman I recognized.
âWho is it?â
Did she come up behind us with no sign of us?
As expected, even though the woman looked familiar, it was impossible to say that she was unguarded after what had happened to Rina recently. For now, Iâll just step forward to protect Rin and the others and be ready to move at any time.
âDonât be so defensive. Iâm not the kind of existence that will harm you guys.â
âEven if you say so.â
âBesides, I believe I met you once, didnât I?â
âEven if I hadâŠâ
Iâve indeed met her once at the association, not quite once, but we still met face to face.
It was also an association, so I guess I can at least guarantee his identity, but even so, Iâm not stupid enough to trust her so easily.
ââââThis idiotâŠâ
âAnh!â
While I was having trouble dealing with the woman, she was hit on the head by a man who approached her from behind. Behind the woman holding her head stood a man in a suit.
The man was wearing glasses, was tall, and looked like he could do the job.
âHey, you. These people, especiallyKanazaki-san, are the victims of the incident. I told you not to alarm them, didnât I?â
âThatâs right. Iâm sorry, itâs just a habit.â
âOh, well, thatâs okay. No, Iâm sorry she startled you. Sheâs always like this.â
âHaa.â
I felt like a fool for being so cautious.
And Iâm at a loss for a response even if he suddenly apologizes.
I mean, what kind of relationship do these two have?
âWell, I know you must be confused by our sudden appearance, but please rest assured that we have no intention of harming you in any way.
âOh, um. We donât care that much about it, you know? Kaede, Rin, Anju-chan.â
Rina says sheâs fine, but she looks at me a little uneasy.
Well, I certainly canât let my guard down completely yet, and Rin and the others are looking at him suspiciously.
âFor now, weâll talk about the details later, but for now, please listen to me for a moment. Oh, hereâs my business card. Here you go.â
âThank you.â
I take the card and look at the name on it.
When I looked at the business card I received, it read, âTsukasa Kamisaka, President and CEO of Astral Co., Ltd.â
âPresident of Astral?â
âYes. Oh, please come in, Kanazaki-san and the others.â
âYe, yes.â
âThank you very much.â
âThank you.â
It seems that the president himself will be explaining the situation to us.
Rin and the others also received business cards.
âWell, let me introduce myself. I am the president of Astral Corporation, and my name is Kamisaka. Iâm sorry to start so soon, but Amamiya-san, Akagi-san, Kanazaki-san, and Takanashi-san, would you like to come with us?â