The child glanced back at Jurim, who looked a bit dazed, then jabbed a finger at Reiji and exclaimed,

“Daddychann! Dis guy’s a bad guy! He’s handsome but don’t get foowed!”

“Oh? Did my little miss just call me handsome?”

Jurim thought it took a special kind of talent to understand only that part.

Reiji tilted his head.

“Does Korea cuff handsome people as a cultural practice?”

Ignoring his nonsense, Jurim hesitated for a moment.

Guru seemed to be missing something... very important.

“Mmh, but you know, that bad guy over there...”

“Yesh! Gwuu awweady caught him, so don’t wowwy!”

Now that she had caught a top-level criminal, surely her own crime would be forgiven thanks to her brave accomplishment!

She almost burst out laughing—Umhahaha!—ready for a triumphant roar.

Then Jurim said,

“That guy is Sabbuu’s dad.”

“...Whum?”

Sabbuu’s dad? All of a sudden?

As Guru’s face clouded over in total confusion, Reiji delivered the next blow.

“Ah, we never properly introduced ourselves. I’m Amakusa Reiji.”

“Amakusa...?”

No way...

Amakusa Reiji...

Amakusa Kazuki...

“...!”

Gyaaaaaaaaaaah!

Guru screamed internally.

That’s right, Sabbuu once said his dad was a bad guy!

And this bad dad was a reeeally bad dad!

There really were so many types of dads in the world!

In Guru’s personal daddy-pedia:

Lazy dads.

Dads stabbed by their sons.

And now—criminal dads got a new entry.

Wait—if Tato Friend was Sabbuu’s dad...

Then Guru had just tried to sell off Sabbuu’s dad to cover her own crime?

...!

Not just ruthless—the worst.

At that moment, Reiji knelt down on one knee in front of her.

“Would you happen to have a red bell, my little miss?”

Thunk—

Guru’s face turned pale as she looked between Jurim and Reiji.

If he was asking about the bell, then he’d figured out she was Jjapso.

“Bell?”

“Wh-Why?”

Jurim and Guru spoke in unison.

As Reiji turned his gaze toward Jurim, Guru stepped closer to Jurim and clung to his pant leg, hiding behind him.

“I was hired to retrieve something. Didn’t know the target was my cute little friend. That was my mistake.”

Reiji smiled softly and reached out his hand.

“So how about handing over the bell?”

Guru looked up at Jurim as if asking, Is it okay?, and Jurim nodded.

Guru handed the bell over.

Reiji grasped it tightly—and crushed it.

POP!

The bursting sound startled Guru so much she shouted.

“Y-You’re gonna get cuwsed if you bwake dat!”

“Hahaha, don’t worry. I’ve already got plenty of curses on me.”

“Pwenty?!”

So one more wouldn’t make a difference?!

Guru stared blankly at Jurim—he nodded, telling her not to worry.

Tato Friend’s scarier than I thought...

Guru trembled.

“But, how’d you know to arrest him just now?”

“I saw it in Sehwi Oppaw’s office...”

“Then why didn’t you tell Daddy and just went ahead and cuffed him?”

“Uh, that was... me exewcisewin da wight to weemain siwent...”

“The right to remain silent is for suspects, not you.”

“Huuung...?”

From her blank look, it was obvious she didn’t even know what it meant. Just parroted something she’d heard somewhere.

“Where’s the handcuff key?”

“In da toy aisle...”

“Lead the way.”

“Wuung...”

Guru clutched the long mittens hanging from her hat and trudged forward.

Veilach scurried up beside her, whispering urgently,

“We’re just going to let him go? He knows your identity. Who knows what could happen now!”

“Bip-bip!”

“But... he destwoyed da beww... and he’s Sabbuu’s daddy...”

“There are some dads you’re better off without.”

“Bip-bip!”

“...?”

Guru stared silently at Veilach.

When Mephisto had stabbed his own dad, the two of them fought like crazy—yet now, they were casually suggesting they off someone else’s dad.

“Even if he’s a bad daddy... he’s stiww a daddy.”

“Not all parents are good ones. Sometimes cutting ties is the better choice.”

At that, Guru stopped and said,

“Den! Waz Mephi’s daddy bad too? Is dat why he did it?”

Veilach hesitated.

Mephisto blinked slowly, as if trying to remember something.

“Maybe. From a human perspective, he probably was bad.”

Veilach answered flatly, and Guru’s shoulders flinched. You agree that easily?!

“Not every family is meant to be loving. Some are better off not existing.”

“Bip—!”

With Mephisto chiming in, Guru frowned as she resumed walking.

Maybe Veilach and Mephisto thought that way because they knew their dads.

But Guru didn’t know her mom or dad.

Relationships better off not existing? She’d never even had one to begin with.

But...

Guru remembered the face Kazuki made when he talked about his father.

A strange smile—just heh-heh—but in it, Guru had seen it clearly: longing. A face she’d worn countless times herself.

Maybe for someone else it wasn’t worth having... but not for Sabbuu.

Guru knew that much for sure.

“Shaddup ‘fore I tuwn you into a hammystuh.”

“What a vile threat...!”

“Bip-bip-bip!”

Veilach trembled, while Mephisto giggled behind his wings.

“Whose side are you even on?!”

“Bip-bip-bip!”

As the three of them squabbled, Jurim sighed and ran his hand down his face before following after.

Reiji, meanwhile, was turning the toy handcuffs over with great interest.

They weren’t ordinary plastic cuffs.

They looked plastic at first glance, but the density and strength were close to actual metal.

This wasn’t just reinforcement.

The plastic hadn’t been strengthened—it had transformed, like a material conversion into metal.

And the child had crafted this not from dungeon by-products... but right there in the toy aisle.

No wonder Prime Minister Takahashi Norio and foreign rivals were going mad trying to track her down.

This child was the genius heir to On Ijo.

“My little friend will become an even greater Hunter than my son.”

Startled by the dry praise, Guru squeezed the mittens on her hat—squeak!—and perked up the ears.

“W-Weawwy?”

“100% guaranteed. Also, that hat is adorable. Mind if I try it?”

“Okiie~!”

Guru trotted over and handed him the mitten string.

Reiji pressed the paw with his cuffed hand—squeak squeak!

The ears flopped up and down, and Guru giggled. Reiji smiled gently.

Squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak!

Just then, a lady at the nearby food tasting station smiled at the sight and handed them a dumpling.

“Oh my, how precious! With a daughter that cute, ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ you must feel full without eating~”

“I appreciate your kindness, ma’am.”

Reiji bowed gracefully, and the woman beamed, offering another dumpling.

“I’ve already received more than enough kindness.”

He declined politely, then blew on the hot dumpling and handed it to Guru.

Guru took a big bite—chomp!—then chewed while squeaking, “Ahh, hottt...”

Only Jurim looked on with a stunned expression.

Just moments ago, she’d been dead serious about arresting this “bad guy,” warning not to fall for a handsome face.

Now they looked like best friends.

He started to wonder if he should separate them so people wouldn’t mistake his daughter for that criminal’s daughter.

Just then, Jurim whipped his head around.

A man who’d been watching them quickly ducked behind a shelf.

Jurim’s brows furrowed.

[“Looks like he was tailing you.”]

[“More precisely, tailing your daughter, not you.”]

[...]

[“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of our little friend’s tail.”]

Reiji smiled brightly—and surged his mana.

A black, dripping shadow appeared in front of the man hiding behind the shelf.

The distorted form opened its mouth wide.

Grrroooaaa—

Moments later, the man collapsed behind the shelf, his body empty like his soul had been sucked out.

[“Who’s the client?”]

[“You’ll find out soon. Don’t worry.”]

It was clear he meant he’d handle it himself.

Jurim nodded.

“There’s someone collapsed over here!”

“Help, over here!”

Guru had reached the toy aisle. Hearing the commotion behind her, she peeked out.

“Hmm?”

“It’s nuffin’. Where’s da key?”

Jurim blocked her view, grabbed her shoulder, and spun her around.

“Keyyy...”

Guru found the handcuff key on a display labeled Kids Cops Kit.

Veilach and Mephisto looked clearly displeased, but Guru hummed as she held out the key.

Reiji reached for it—

Swoop! Guru pulled it back.

“...?”

“Befowe I unwo-ck you... Gwuu got a favor.”

Reiji smiled.

“I was planning to grant your favor anyway.”

“...?”

When?

Guru gaped slightly. Did that happen?

She thought hard, but nothing came to mind.

As always—when she didn’t know something, she defaulted to:

“Otay!”

“I’ll grant whatever you ask. Go ahead and tell me.”