"Want one?"
No sooner had she stepped outside the warehouse than a flawless, alabaster hand extended beside Durandal, holding out a cigarette.
Durandal: ???
She turned to look at Elysia.
"Where'd you get this?"
"Well, because—"
Elysia paused, watching as Durandal quietly waited for her to continue, then suddenly shoved the 'cigarette' right into Durandal's mouth.
Durandal's instincts screamed at her to dodge, yet her body stayed rooted in place, almost against her will.
She knew perfectly well it wasn't some trick of Elysia's—she simply hadn't moved.
The moment the 'cigarette' touched her lips, Durandal realized something was off.
By then, a triumphant Elysia had already withdrawn her hand, smiling as she watched Durandal.
Durandal met her gaze, then placed the whole stick into her mouth.
Her mouth filled with the sweet richness of cocoa and cream, maybe even mingled with the subtle sweetness of the girl herself.
Turns out, it wasn't a cigarette at all—it was chocolate, shaped exactly like one.
The filter was milk chocolate, tinted a pale brown, while the body was pure white chocolate.
She wasn't particularly used to sweets—after all, the original owner of this body had been very cautious about sugar intake.
But in a situation like this, a little sweetness to get the dopamine flowing wasn't such a bad way to lift the mood.
"If that's not enough, I've got more right here~?"
Elysia waved a box of chocolates packaged exactly like a cigarette case.
No need to guess—this had to be one of those trendy snacks going around at Chiba Academy.
Not many students at Chiba actually dared to smoke, so chocolates dressed up like cigarettes were naturally a hit.
Not only did it look cool to pull one out, but after all the gasps, you could explain it was just chocolate—not a real cigarette—doubling the fun somehow.
Even though Elysia had hardly left Durandal's side, she'd somehow become wildly popular in class and was always up to date with whatever was trending at school.
"Here, take a look at this too."
Durandal shook her head, politely declining another stick, and pulled out the note she'd just tucked away, handing it to Elysia.
Elysia took the note, and for once, her brow furrowed.
"So, what do you think? You used to try everything to get into Fire Moth…"
Before Durandal could finish, Elysia shot her a mock-annoyed look.
"No need to dig up old history—I'm with the Flame-Chasers now~!"
"Speaking of, are you really set on keeping 'Flame-Chasers' as the group's name? Sounds a bit lazy to me… Not that I mind the members being called Flame-Chasers—we can always assign numbers or codenames to tell everyone apart."
Durandal's expression grew stranger the more she listened.
Wasn't this just the Thirteen Flame-Chasers all over again?
She quickly cut Elysia off.
"We can talk about the name and other details later. I brought up Fire Moth not to bring up old grudges."
"But you must've gathered a lot of intel on them back in the day, right? Do any of those names on the note ring a bell?"
Elysia tilted her head. "What are you planning?"
"What do you think I'm planning?"
Durandal looked at Elysia, then pointed back at the warehouse.
"Whoever put together such a massive research team has serious backing. I wouldn't be surprised if there are more labs like this."
"Once this place goes public, Fire Moth will try to bury the story—maybe even make some concessions to our Flame-Chasers."
"But the mastermind, with their status, will probably get off with a slap on the wrist, and then it'll be back to business as usual. That kind of thing…"
Durandal shook her head and didn't go on.
Elysia fell silent too.
"I can get you more detailed files on these people, but promise me you won't dirty your own hands."
After a long pause, Elysia finally spoke, tucking the note back into Durandal's hand.
Feeling the lingering warmth from Elysia's touch, Durandal smiled faintly to herself before looking up again.
"Don't worry. Sometimes, punishing someone doesn't require killing. I've got a few experiments of my own that could use 'lab rats' like them!"
"But before that, we'll use today's incident as leverage to demand someone from Fire Moth—an 'old friend' of yours."
Elysia glanced at Durandal. "You're so invested in my business—you must have a huge crush on me!?"
"Average."
Durandal replied with a completely straight face, leaving Elysia baffled.
That line was a quote from the comic She Definitely Likes Me, a series Durandal had been quite fond of before she crossed over.
Now, stranded in this world with no way to see how the story ended, she felt a twinge of regret.
After chatting a while longer, they soon heard police sirens approaching.
Before long, officers swarmed the area, cordoning off the warehouse.
Meanwhile, the 'mercenaries' lying on the ground and the researchers from the lab below were all slapped in cuffs.
The secretary hadn't given an exact headcount, so the police hadn't brought enough restraints initially—they had to send someone back to the station for more handcuffs and electronic ankle cuffs to manage everyone.
Hauling away the prisoners required several buses.
Safe to say, Nagazora City's prisons were about to be packed.
Also, from what Hayato hinted, officials at all levels in Nagazora named on the list had been taken in by the police too.
The medical team arrived last—understandable, since hospitals aren't as mobile as police stations, coordination takes longer, and they had to keep regular hospital operations running.
But once the medical staff arrived, they worked swiftly and diligently.
Durandal noticed a few younger nurses and doctors who went inside to assess the situation, only to emerge sniffling and visibly shaken—clearly, the scene had hit them hard.
A few even broke down on the spot, needing counseling from psychiatrists themselves.
Couldn't be helped—ordinary medical staff rarely saw horrors like these.
This call-out would likely be the most unforgettable experience of their careers; some might even leave the profession because of it.
Though there were minor hiccups here and there, everything proceeded in an orderly fashion overall.
Durandal was making small talk with Elysia when she noticed Connie jogging over.
"What is it?"
Durandal looked at Connie, who handed her a phone. "It's a call from Fire Moth."
--+--