Blood Of Platinum
Chapter 34. A Bright Point
Time felt so short in an instant. Just walk for a while and now they have 25 minutes left. Plus Kaito's words gave another surprise.
“Do you two think it's just a coincidence? You're certain? I mean, I remember clearly that you guys went to the altar this morning” Kaito kept staring at the two of them with his sharp eyes
This is not Kaito's suspicion. Actually, Ryou had also thought the same thing but he decided to dispel the assumption because Kino said his pocket watch was still on him at the altar. Kino immediately explained to Kaito about what he experienced when he was at the altar. Kaito who listened to Kino's explanation did not give any reaction for a while until he finally responded.
“Still there?”
“Iya. Ryou also might have initially thought it was stolen. But I'm absolutely sure the clock is still there. In addition, it is strange that they actually steal such an old clock compared to taking the money in my pants pocket” Kino gave his explanation to Kaito
Ryou could not help much because his mind was actually siding with Kaito. He was also suspicious of the guards' claims about the children. Even so, Ryou still has feelings of guilt if he accuses orphaned children of theft.
Kaito would not budge on Kino's explanation. He glimpsed at Ryou and it seemed like he could tell that the younger brother had the same thoughts as him. Seeing Ryou slightly nod his head once, Kaito immediately stopped arguing and they decided to walk back.
Kino walked slightly in front of the two people. Ryou and Kaito whisper to each other to keep Kino from knowing.
“I'm glad you didn't argue. Thank you very much, Kaito”
“You don't seem to want to see your sister blaming herself like this morning, so I don't want to say anything”
“That's. The thing disappeared without knowing the cause alone can make it almost crazy. If it was indeed stolen, he would feel even more guilty for assuming he was less alert” Ryou spoke while looking at the brother's back
“But with his confidence in answering me earlier, I'm sure you've also managed to change that assumption, haven't you?” Kaito looks at Ryou with his sharp eyes
“At the time with him, yes. But, to be honest I still haven't changed my initial thoughts” this time, Ryou also showed his sharp eyes
Kaito was silent for a while and took a deep breath before speaking. After which, he started asking in a soft tone to Ryou.
“Ryou, tell me how far you think it is and how much information do you have?”
Ryou was a bit surprised but he answered him immediately.
“I heard from one of the couples who became victims of losing objects there, they said it had been a week their goods were gone. And when I asked the altar guard officers, they also just received that information the last week”
“That means before that everything is fine, right?”
“True. Then, I asked the officer if there were any different ones in that time period. They answer–”
“The change lies only with a group of children asking for donations at the altar door, right?” Kaito directly cut Ryou's sentence
But, Ryou did not mind that because it was true. Ryou continued his explanation again.
“The guard also said some children from the group were allowed in to request donations inside the altar. I don't know if it bothers visitors and worshippers there or not”
“So. Then, what do you think about the case of loss that your brother experienced?. The pocket watch is valuable only to you and me, but in the eyes of everyone in this ‘world’ thing that does not mean”
Ryou was speechless listening to Kaito's words. Obviously that's true. Especially before Kaito himself said that the pocket watch was most likely to have a relationship with him. This matter is serious.
“Actually a bit less reasonable indeed if they want to take a pocket watch owned by Kino compared to the money. My thoughts also instantly vanished when he said the clock was still on him at the altar. But, my gut feeling didn't say that”
“Last time...when was the last time Kino took it out?”
“Only until I pick him up to exit the altar. He asked the woman who was carrying a toddler. There was no one there but them. I picked her up to get out of there and not long after that Kino pulled out her pocket watch”
“There's something else going on after that?”
“There. We were accidentally hit by a child. He almost fell down and Kino helped him before it happened”
Here, Kaito can already draw conclusions but because he wants to convince himself more, he still listens to Ryou's unfinished words.
“Some time ago when I finished buying this new pocket watch, I met him. He's with Kino. They ate bread and sat down with”
“You remember the child's features clearly?” Kaito asked Ryou
“Remember. The boy ran away as soon as I saw him when I didn't say anything strange. White boy with deep black hair, physical looks like a 10-11 year old child, wearing orange clothes and brown hat”
“Sure” Ryou nodded in agreement
They are both like people in modern words, partners in crime but in different categories. They are perfectly suited to each other in terms of suspecting everything that could be suspected. Maybe because of Ryou's hard character with his spicy mouth and Kaito who has a lot of experience killing terrible creatures in ‘second
dunia’ so the level of vigilance has reached the maximum level.
“This time it's my turn. My personal opinion says that your pocket watch is not lost but actually stolen”
Ryou wasn't surprised at all because he had expected that long before this. Kaito continued his talk.
“Most likely your pocket watch was stolen by a child who accidentally bumped into you this morning. I don't know why he just stole Kino's pocket watch but I can give you 80% of the odds
that's on y'all”
“Means I just let go of the heist earlier” Ryou relaxed
Not long after, Ryou asked Kaito again.
“But Kaito, give me the most logical reason why that's your belief about the culprit? You just heard all of that from my words just now and made such a conclusion straight away. Kino himself also thought the thing fell”
“Try to think carefully. Remember what happened last night when we saw your brother crash into a wall when he was kicked by a satyr? Obviously he's bagging my memory gems and his pocket watch. Even with such a powerful kick, not a single item within his sack pocket was missing. That means your pants pocket is pretty deep and safe”
“.....” Ryou silently listened
He felt that what Kaito said was very logical and reasonable. He also knows how thorough the brother who has even made a risky plan many times and succeeded when they were in ‘world malam’. A bright spot about the disappearance of their pocket watches is beginning to be seen at the end of time.
“If you want to take the contents in the pocket, I'm sure you can feel someone touching it. Let's ignore the possibility of professional thieves here. I remember as long as we walked in the city, we didn't keep any distance from each other at all but we kept a considerable distance with the stranger” Kaito continued his explanation back
“……”
“Now looking back again, the other person who made very close contact with you guys at the altar this morning is just that kid. The woman with the toddler you said it was impossible to do it because there was no reason for her to do it”
“While the boy who bumped into us had motive to get more donation money, so you mean?” Ryou guessed
“Fast. Those who are allowed to ask for donations inside the altar take the opportunity to steal. The visitors may not be so aware of it at the beginning but if it has lasted a week, there is a chance that some of them will start to suspect the pool of children it”
“Wait a minute, wait a minute. Kino said he believed it was still on him when he came out of the altar. How do you explain that?”
“I'm sure he said that because he didn't feel new putting it in before coming out. There is a possibility before the pocket watch goes into his pants pocket, it has been moved into the hands of the perpetrator when it accidentally hit you”
In a short time they finally find the light for the case they are experiencing. Ryou did not change his serious face at all. He who deliberately disposed of all those prejudices became very confident with his initial premonition.
“At first I thought it disappeared because it had something to do with your memory piece, Kaito” Ryou spoke while looking at Kaito's face
“I think so too and I still think so until now. I assume all this remains interconnected” Kaito put a thin smile on his face
Ryou returned that smile and now the next part of the mind collaboration was the two of them.
“So I will hold you innocent for accusing the orphan of theft and also justify your words. Now the new problem..Where can we find the child to investigate further? I only met him for a while today and I myself did not say much to Kino” Ryou staring at Kaito's face with a confused look
“Do Kino know any information about the boy?”
“I don't know. I didn't ask him”
Kaito didn't give up. He was so convinced that all his explanations were correct and he was still looking for a way to have their pocket watches rediscovered. He remembered something.
[Actually, every morning after I finished praying, I saw them go home several times. It seems to be their residence]
Those were the words that the woman he met when he found out about the new foreign road he had first traveled. With a slightly wry smile Kaito suddenly stopped.
“Fucking basis! Don't tell me I have to go back to that unhygienic place again”
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