Emma removed Violetâs thread on the ninjaâs mouth intending to talk with him, but the exact moment she did, Koumei-san landed a violent cat punch on that ninjaâs cheek.
â â â!!!!!â â â
âWaiâ Koumei-san! Isnât it unfair to him if you punch so suddenly!? Ah, you knocked a tooth outâŠâ
William picked up the tooth the moment it fell off.
âHm? This doesnât look like a toothâ
âIsnât it⊠that? You know, the trope of swallowing poison when they fail their mission so no information will leak?â
George replied while looking at the tooth-like thing William was holding.
â? Dying if you fail your mission? They wouldnât go that far, right!?â
âWhat a violent way of thinking you have,â Joshua criticized George.
âNah, itâs⊠âcause theyâre ninjaâŠâ
âWell, thatâs true.â
âTheyâre ninja, after all.â
The three siblings explained to Joshua that a ninja was like a spy, but the Kingdom didnât make their spies take their own life for failing a mission. In the military and the like, there had been cases where one would be executed as a consequence of oneâs failure at a mission, but those cases were extremely special situations that rarely occurred.
Even Joshua, who was used to foreign countries, couldnât fathom the peculiar culture of Imperial Japan. Yet, the three siblings talked about it like it was a commonplace thing.
âSo, what has Koumei-san been trying to do, and for a while now?â
âMeow?â
Koumei-san put the tip of her fluffy forepaw into the mouth of the ninja whose tooth had been knocked off.
âAh, did you do that so he wonât bite his own tongue?â
âMeowâȘâ
Itâs a very Koumei-san-like kindness, but the image of a ninja with something fluffy stuffed in his mouth looks so unreal. Um, how to say it? Iâm a little jealous.
âNinja-san, whatâs your name?â
Koumei-san removed her paw from the ninjaâs mouth so they could hold a conversation, but the ninja didnât answer.
âUnfortunately, even if you bite off your tongue, we have an emergency first aid deputy here. We wonât let you die, you know?â
Emma spoke with her signature sweet smile to assure the ninja, but his face only showed fear. The cats⊠just how much had they tormented him?
âMy name is Emma Stuart.â
Emma introduced herself with the bow she learned from Hilda. Well, the ninjas had been lurking around their mansion, so he probably already knew her name, but Hilda had taught her that any attempt at a smooth conversation must start with a proper greeting.
âThis is my older brother, George Stuart, and my younger brother, William Stuart. Also, my childhood friend, Joshua Rothschild. The cats, Koumei-san, Ryuu-chan, Kan-chan, and Chou-chan. And the spider, Violet.â
Emma went on to introduce everyone in the room, but the ninjaâs stiff expression didnât show any signs of cracking.
Only, the false information that the Kingdomâs cats and spiders were not just absurdly huge but also monster-level strong was etched into the ninjaâs mind.
âNinja⊠because there are many of you, I will call you Hattori-san[1] for our convenience, okay.â
[T/N 1: from the popular Japanese anime/manga, Ninja Hattori-kun]
You see, if weâre talking about ninjas, then it must be Hattori-kun. When Emma wanted to continue the conversation after simply declaring a name for the silent ninja, she noticed that Hattori-kun had an astonished expression.
âDoes this mean⊠you know all there is to know about our sideâŠâ
The ninja sighed as if in resignation.
âHuge cats and spiders with abnormal battle capabilities that can even sense a ninjaâs presence.
They removed the poison I inserted for use in case of mission failure, then predicted that I would bite off my tongue and prevented it.
Out of 19 ninjas dressed identically, they pinpointed me as the head, and while they said that itâs out of their own convenience, they even guessed my name right⊠Weâve been utterly defeated.â