Chapter 45-Part 3

A rugged man with wavy brown hair and a well shaven beard dressed in leather gear was positioned on a narrow balcony outside the window of the estate.

He pulls his transmission feed device from his pocket.

---<DATE: JAN 30, TIME: 8:45 A.M.>---

"Osprey to nest. I have been currently watching the target entertaining his guests. No signs of suspicion, yet no openings, either. Over."

A voice can be heard on the other end.

"Osprey, this is Albatross. Don't fuck this up. Our survival depends on his capture. ALIVE, not dead, got it? Over."

The man makes a smile that wouldn't look too out of place in a horror film.

"You got it.", he says, chuckling maniacally, but not loud enough to alert anyone.

He puts the device back in the pocket.

"Over.", he says in a stone cold serious tone as he anticipates the move he would make in the next 15 minutes.

---<LOG END>---

As we give our (obviously) fake backstories and connections to the proud mogul, a nurse bursts in the door.

"The bird! It escaped!", she cries.

This made Celeste and especially Makoto jump up.

"What!?", they scream in unison.

"I-I don't know what happened! I had just finished suturing the wounds, and turned away to pull my gloves off. Next thing, it had regained consciousness, and made a fluttering noise."

Celeste grabs her colleague by the apron.

"Where is he.", she had said, not as a question, but as a rather alarming demand.

Celeste was brushed aside by Makoto, who had stepped in between both of them.

First Jin trying to free his prisoner, now this? It was not his day.

"OHOHOHO! Let me handle this, Celeste.", he says, not even exchanging a glance.

He picks up the nurse by the collar, which causes her to shriek in fear.

"Makoto!", his father yells.

"I wonder what kind of training she does to get that strong...", Cringe-kun says, looking at them.

A hand grabbed the back of his head, and turned him around.

"Stay out of it, and drink your tea.", the person who grabbed him, Prez-kun said, looking down while drinking, as calm as a turtle.

"YOU WILL FIND THAT BIRD. NOW!", Ojou-kun lashes angrily.

"M-M-Milady, it may be too late. I turned around after the fluttering, and there was nothing but feathers on the operating table.", she responds, tearfully.

"SO YOU'RE SAYING HE IS FLYING AROUND IN THIS HOUSE!?"

"N-No, Milady. Y-You see...I had left a window open to cool off, and..."

The outer rich showed his inner bitch, reared up his fist, making her flinch, and was about to strike the servant, but his father grabbed it.

"That's enough, son."

(I knew it.), Prez-kun intuitively thought, taking a sip.

A series of hacks, coughs, and sputters erupted from Cringe-kun.

"Y-You're a guy!?", he belts.

Makoto drops the nurse, and looks at "Taiyaki".

"It's just that..."

I step in to help Cringe-kun.

"...you were a guy when we first met you, that's all.", I say.

Cringe-kun looks at me, grinning.

(Thanks. Nice save.), he mouths.

I smile, giving him a thumbs up.

"Ohohoho, about that...the year I met you three made me question things, so I had a leave of absence after that year was over to get a sex change.", he says, despite that he was never on the receiving end of an op, but always on the giving one.

"Ooooh.", Cringe-kun says, buying the lie.

Cringe-kun says, "So, you were the one we were looking for today."

"Ohohoho. I have no idea what you are talking about.", he responds.

"So you didn't do it?", Cringe-kun says.

A wave of shock came over "Aoki" and I from him asking this question.

(IDIOT!), Prez-kun thinks.

I give a cross arm gesture to Cringe-kun, shaking my head, panic on my face.

"Hehe, sorry.", Cringe-kun says with a cutesy laugh.

"What did you mean by that?", Makoto asks, cocking a suspicious eyebrow.

This time, Prez-kun speaks up.

"She meant nothing about it. Apparently, your absence for such a long time made her lose brain cells over the years. Please try not to think anything of it...", he says coldly.

"Heeey!", Cringe-kun catchphrases.

Prez-kun turns his head toward his "bff".

"...or her.", he says, even more sharply, with eyes narrowed.

"Double heeey!", Cringe-kun shouts.

"U-Understood. I guess...", Makoto says.

He turns his attention back to the nurse, who was trying to sneak out.

"You thought we were done with you? Not. Even. Go find the bird, or you can kiss any future jobs goodbye.", the snob said without even a glance.

"Hai, Milord!", she cries, while exiting the manor.

A light blue haired boy had arrived at the front entrance of the manor.

He noticed the front door was open.

(I-it's so huge. Oh! And the door is open. Should I knock anyway, or should I walk in? Oooohhh, what should do?), he thinks to himself.

The timid bunny shakes his head.

(N-No! Now is not the time to second guess myself! I-I'm going in.)

Just as he enters the main foyer, a boy and a nekomeido was exiting.

"Ah! Stranger danger!", the boy screams.

"Eek!", shrieks Machiro.

Haru steps in front of the boy.

"Stey behin' meh, laddie.", he says, taking a protective stance.

"W-wait! I didn't come here for violence!", the blue boy cries, tearing up.

The little boy looks at the stranger upon closer inspection.

"Wait.", he says.

"But, laddie~"

"WAIT."

The boy steps out from behind, looking up and down, measuring Shy-kun, who stood still, trembling.

"It's you."

"Weeeh?", Shy-kun exclaims in confusion.