Sora carefully read through the police announcement in the news twice.
It indeed stated that two paintings had gone missing from the Jinbo Art Museum last night.
One was the painting Cat’s Eye had announced in advance through their calling card.
The other was completely unrelated and wasn’t even displayed in the same gallery.
Because the police hadn’t seen a single suspicious person throughout the night, they only discovered the paintings had been swapped during a routine inspection afterward.
Although additional officers were immediately deployed and the entire museum was searched, they found nothing.
As a result, the official statement contained no information whatsoever regarding Cat’s Eye.
The police didn’t know whether Cat’s Eye was male or female, tall or short, fat or thin, young or old…
Setting his phone aside, Sora peeled a boiled egg while thinking.
It seemed his original assumption had been wrong.
The fusion of multiple anime worlds really had affected Cat’s Eye’s storyline, creating some unknown changes.
Could it be that while stealing the painting, the Cat’s Eye sisters had accidentally discovered another artwork belonging to their father and simply taken it as well?
Or had someone else taken advantage of the chaos, stolen a painting, and shifted the blame onto Cat’s Eye?
The phone on the table buzzed.
Sora glanced at it.
It was a good morning message from Kotonoha.
Cat’s Eye wasn’t the only thing heavily affected by the merged world.
Kotonoha had changed significantly as well.
Not only had she lost her fear of men, but she no longer suffered from her original inability to cook.
Instead, she had become exceptionally skilled in the kitchen.
The current Kotonoha was practically the perfect image of a Yamato Nadeshiko.
After placing the peeled egg on his plate, Sora wiped his hands, picked up his phone, and sent a good morning message back.
After breakfast, he grabbed his school bag and headed for school.
He left home at about the same time as yesterday and arrived at the station at about the same time too.
As a result, he boarded the exact same train.
Sora deliberately chose the same carriage as before and stood by the window.
When the train arrived at the next station— Through the glass, he spotted a familiar girl on the platform.
Kotonoha Katsura.
The moment she boarded, she immediately looked toward his side of the carriage.
When she saw him, her eyes lit up with unmistakable delight.
Sora waved.
“Come over here.” Kotonoha nodded without much hesitation.
“Okay.” Once she reached him, Sora placed both hands against the wall by the window just as he had yesterday, creating a safe space for her.
Lowering his gaze slightly, he looked at the girl standing before him.
“What a coincidence, Kotonoha-san.
We meet again today.” Kotonoha met his eyes for a brief moment before shyly lowering her gaze.
“Yeah…
what a coincidence, Harumi-kun.” She didn’t tell him that she’d deliberately caught this train today, hoping she might see him again.
Likewise, Sora didn’t tell her that he’d chosen this train specifically because he hoped to run into her again.
Both of them had their own little thoughts.
And those thoughts happened to align perfectly.
Knowing Kotonoha was naturally shy, Sora took the initiative and guided the conversation toward topics they could both discuss.
One of them was calligraphy.
It had also been one of his hobbies in his previous life.
“Are you interested in calligraphy, Kotonoha-san?” Kotonoha answered honestly.
“I practiced it for several years…” In reality, it was because her mother, Manami Katsura, had forced her to.
She herself wasn’t especially passionate about calligraphy.
The same went for ballet, musical instruments, swordsmanship, and countless other “proper lady” lessons.
Those endless classes had once left her feeling suffocated.
The promise of freedom from those extra lessons was the reason she’d worked so hard to get into Sakakino Academy.
But now, as she looked at the smile on Sora’s face—the smile that seemed to say, “I’m so happy someone else likes calligraphy too”—she suddenly felt a little grateful toward her strict mother.
Because of those lessons, she could actually hold a conversation with him on this topic.
The train was approaching her stop.
Kotonoha felt reluctant to leave.
“Harumi-kun…
I have to get off here.” “Wait.” “Hm?” “Let me show you another magic trick.” Sora extended his hand.
Open.
Closed.
Open again.
A piece of gum appeared in his palm.
“Eh?!” “Well?” “Amazing!” “Here, it’s for you.” Kotonoha reached out and took the gum from his hand.
“Thank you.” Sora smiled as he escorted her off the train with a wave.
Then he checked his system wallet.
— [0 Gold Coins, 1 Silver Coin, 31 Copper Coins] — Another profitable day.
—— Toyogasaki Academy.
During first period, Eriri wasn’t paying much attention to the blackboard.
As one of the top students, she could master the material just by reading it herself.
She didn’t need to listen carefully.
‘It’s already been a whole day.’ ‘Why hasn’t that guy told me the title of the light novel yet?’ ‘Being kept hanging like this is really irritating.’ Finally, after what felt like an eternity, class ended.
A group of girls immediately gathered around Eriri’s desk and excitedly began discussing last night’s major news.
“Did you see the Cat’s Eye report?!” “Of course!
They’re incredible!
They actually stole the painting exactly like the calling card said!” “The Metropolitan Police are as useless as ever!” “No, Cat’s Eye is just that good!
I bet it’s actually Kaitou Kid using a new alias!” “Ahhhh!
Kid-sama!” Eriri looked at the girls with their unusually excited expressions and felt they were all crazy.
Kaitou Kid was just a thief hiding behind tricks.
What was there to admire?
Of course, she couldn’t say that out loud.
So she simply smiled and nodded along.
Honestly, spending time with these girls was exhausting.
—— Class 1-E of Toyogasaki Academy.
Like students in every other class, most of the class was enthusiastically discussing Cat’s Eye’s theft from the night before.
Except for Sora and Megumi.
Sora knew Cat’s Eye’s true identities and motives.
Megumi simply wasn’t interested.
Today was Wednesday.
Sora stood up and walked toward a seat near the rear window.
Tomoya was chatting with one of his few friends in class, Yoshihiko Kamigo, about Cat’s Eye.
“Aki-kun, I need a favor.” Tomoya looked up.
“Oh, Harumi-kun?
Need to borrow another textbook?” Sora shook his head and smiled.
“Not a textbook this time.
I heard you’re pretty knowledgeable about computers?” Tomoya scratched his head.
“Well…
I know a little about a lot of things…” He wasn’t a computer expert.
However, he possessed all the practical skills needed for a doujin creator.
Because he played games and edited videos, he knew how to build PCs.
Because he produced MAD videos and promotional materials, he was skilled at video editing.
And because he constantly hunted for game and anime information, bugs, and doujin resources, he’d become something of a human search engine.
Looking at him, Sora said: “Good enough.
I want to build a high-performance computer, but I don’t know much about hardware.
I’d like advice from someone knowledgeable.” Tomoya adjusted his glasses.
“I see.
What are you planning to use the computer for?
And what’s your budget?” “Mostly video editing.
Around 200,000 yen.
Is that enough?” “More than enough!” “I also want to buy some filming equipment for outdoor livestreaming.
Any recommendations?” “Oh, there are plenty…” —— At that very moment— Eriri happened to be walking past Class 1-E.
She casually glanced through the classroom window.
Then she froze.
Sora Harumi…
And Tomoya Aki…
Why were those two together?