kscans

Chapter 115 - It Has to Be Agent Seven, After All

"Yoshino-san, Lin-san, do you have a moment before you head out?"

I glanced at Nanapon, and our operation began.

"What is it?"

"Is there something else?"

The two of them looked over at me. In that opening, Nanapon circled around behind Yoshino-san.

"I wanted to ask for some advice. What does Kaede-chan think of me?"

It wasn't something I actually wanted to know, but I couldn't think of any other topic.

"I don’t know."

"Not interested."

They both shot me down instantly. Well, I guess that was to be expected.

"You two know Kaede-chan, right?"

"I’ve known her since I was an adventurer," Yoshino-san said.

"I know of her, I suppose. We haven’t spoken much, though…" Lin-san added.

It seemed Lin-san hadn’t talked with her very often.

"What was she like?"

"Hmm, that’s a tough question."

"She seemed to have good communication skills," Lin-san said.

Nanapon was staring intently at Yoshino-san’s bag. It was an incredibly intense stare. She would squint her eyes from time to time, which looked extremely suspicious from my point of view. However, since the two of them were looking at me, they didn't seem to notice… or so I thought, until Yoshino-san suddenly reached an arm behind her back. Her hand seized Nanapon by the neck.

"Gue!"

Nanapon let out a groan as she was grabbed.

"Hm? Oh, it’s you, Nanapon… What are you doing?"

Yoshino-san quickly released her grip.

"Gah! Cough! I was just admiring what a nice bag you have…"

"Hmm… Is that so?"

Yoshino-san held up her bag and asked Lin-san.

"The same thing happened to me a moment ago. Okita-kun distracted me while Yokokawa stared a hole through my bag."

She knew!

"No, no, I have no idea what you’re talking about."

"That’s right. We weren’t doing anything."

I nodded in agreement.

"Hmm… Clairvoyance, is it?"

My heart skipped a beat.

"That’s not it, right, Nanapon?"

Right?

"Yes, it’s not," she affirmed.

See?

"I see… You were trying to look at my Status Card."

We just said that’s not what we were doing. Have some faith in us.

"Okita-kun, you should stop. You’re being way too unnatural," Lin-san said with an exasperated tone. This was a complete failure.

"Was I that obvious?"

"Well, when one person starts talking to you and another sneaks around behind, you’d think it’s suspicious, wouldn’t you? Besides, we have a skill called Presence Detection. We can tell what you’re doing behind us," she explained.

That’s dirty. But wait, that means Lin-san pretended not to notice. Despite her stern face, this woman is a ball of kindness. Her husband must have fallen for that contrast.

"Tch! Nanapon, what about Yoshino-san?" I asked her directly, since the cat was out of the bag.

"It was Perfect Memory," she replied.

I looked at Yoshino-san.

"She’s right. Besides, I already told you that, didn’t I?"

So it really was Perfect Memory. Well, that's fine. I figured she probably wasn't lying.

"Nanapon, can’t you look a little more naturally? From my perspective, you’re staring way too hard."

It was just too suspicious.

"Well, Item Bags are hard to see through," she explained.

Is that how it works? Hmm, what should I do now?

"You two, stand right there for a moment."

I gave instructions to Yoshino-san and Lin-san.

"I don’t mind."

"What’s going on now?"

The two of them followed my instructions and stood still. Not that they were moving much to begin with.

"Nanapon, come over here."

"Yes."

I beckoned to Nanapon, who was standing behind them, and she quickly came to my side.

"Nanapon, put on your sunglasses."

"Like this?"

Nanapon put on a pair of sunglasses that didn't suit her at all.

"Yeah, just like that. Can you see their Status Cards from here?"

The distance between us and Yoshino-san’s group was about two meters.

"One moment, please."

Nanapon looked at the two of them without changing her posture. From the side, I couldn't tell where she was looking because of the sunglasses.

"I can just barely see them."

"By the way, what’s Yoshino-san’s level?"

"Level 42."

Whoa, that’s high… There’s a massive gap between us.

"Is that right?" I asked Yoshino-san for confirmation.

"It is."

"Just out of curiosity, did Nanapon seem strange at all?"

"Well, it’s more natural than before, I guess?" Yoshino-san glanced at Lin-san.

"Probably," Lin-san agreed.

Apparently, she didn’t look unnatural from Lin-san’s point of view either. It seems this will only work when she's Agent Seven with her sunglasses on…

"Nanapon, you can take the sunglasses off now. Oh, and you two are good to go. Thanks."

As I said that, Nanapon removed her sunglasses and put them in her bag.

"What exactly were you trying to do?" Yoshino-san asked, tilting her head.

"Nanapon’s Clairvoyance leveled up, and she can see through Item Bags now, so I was experimenting to see if she could peek at other people’s Status Cards. Being able to know an opponent’s unique skill is a huge advantage."

"I see. So Nanapon’s Clairvoyance has levels…"

"What about yours, Yoshino-san?"

"Mine doesn’t."

It seems unique skills vary quite a bit.

"...Okita-san, Okita-san."

Nanapon whispered my name while tugging on my sleeve.

"What is it?"

She looked like she wanted to whisper something in my ear, so I bent down slightly and tilted my head to match her height.

"...That's Shimizu-san, right? Is this okay?"

"Apparently she’s ignoring all of it. Says she doesn’t want to get involved in any trouble."

"...And that’s okay?"

"She’s a married woman with no lingering attachments to being an adventurer."

Nanapon continued to whisper while I answered normally, which earned us looks from Yoshino-san and Lin-san that clearly said, ‘What are these two doing?’

"...She’s married? And she’s still an adventurer?"

"Ask her yourself."

"...Isn’t Shimizu-san scary? She gives off the same killer scent as you, Okita-san."

What the hell is a killer scent? The smell of blood?

"Lin-san is kind, so you’ll be fine. I bet she’s super popular with guys."

She seems blunt, but she’s a bundle of kindness and consideration.

"I know, right? Lin made a boyfriend before I knew it, and then she was married before I could even blink," Yoshino-san said, nodding in agreement.

"Hey? What are you talking about? And what’s with this situation?"

Beats me!