Furina, Please Let Me Steal Your Heart!

Chevreuse couldn't believe her ears. "Repeat that."

"I wish to kiss Miss Chevreuse on the cheek."

After a long silence, Chevreuse said, "That's no laughing matter."

"No laughing matter indeed. Although I must admit, I mean it seriously."

She pressed her lips together. "It's even less amusing now. I have no reason to make you do such a thing. Even if I wanted to strike a deal with you, my payment could never be 'my face'," she said, inadvertently echoing the previous encounter.

"Your hand would work too."

"How regrettable. There's nothing on my body that can be used as bargaining chips. And if you don't show some restraint, the only thing you'll receive is a scorching bullet."

That reaction is exactly what I wanted.

Unfortunately, it's not quite good enough. Luna contentedly withdrew her hands. There was nothing on Chevreuse's that she wanted.

Although the special task force's keys and the bag of french fries in her pocket were tempting, there were no treasures within the task force, and the fries seemed to be Chevreuse's dinner.

Taking someone's dinner would be going too far.

Seeing how promptly and neatly she withdrew her hands, Chevreuse's eyes narrowed.

"Satisfied?"

"Content."

"Your personality is truly despicable."

Despicable? She hadn't thought of it like that before.

In any case, whether it was Chiori or Chevreuse, they would both refuse.

Luna blushed slightly. "Ah, now you've made me want to do it for real."

Chevreuse's tone was cold. "Go ahead and give it a try."

Her gun remained pressed against Luna's side.

"Would Miss Chevreuse really shoot me under these circumstances?"

"I would."

"But it's clearly not a moral solution?"

"Morality doesn't catch criminals."

As Chevreuse spoke, her eyes fell on Luna's pistol. Its muzzle was also pressed against her side. With a gentle squeeze of the trigger, a bullet would pierce the flesh, tearing through it.

At this distance, the bullet would surely penetrate the stomach, spraying blood, with no possibility of missing its mark.

"Care to guess if there's a bullet in my gun? Although it's a single-shot, it's either loaded or not—fifty-fifty chance."

If it were a revolver, they could play Russian roulette, but alas, it wasn't.

Chevreuse murmured, "With mine, there's no need to guess. The Special Task Force never enters a fight with an empty chamber, but you can guess whether I'll pull the trigger—the probability... depends on your answer."

Luna hummed with interest.

Then she stepped closer, grasped Chevreuse's hand, lifted it up, and pressed the gun against her own chest, which, though not particularly prominent, was undeniably there.

"Now this is a threat."

A flicker of surprise crossed Chevreuse's eyes, but she maintained her composure.

"You're not afraid to die?"

"Those who lack the resolve to leave me battered and broken have no chance against me," Luna said with a smile.

She knew Chevreuse would never do such a thing.

The Security Corps prohibited extrajudicial violence, a rule that applied equally to the Special Task Force.

"You wouldn't shoot my heart," Luna stated.

Chevreuse retorted irritably, "I could fire all four shots at your limbs."

Prohibition of extrajudicial violence ≠ unrestricted shooting.

This was the modus operandi of the special armed task force.

In most situations, Chevreuse wouldn't act like this... but it was obvious that facing this Phantom Thief White Cat, she couldn't speak to her civilly.

"Then try it?"

In an instant, Chevreuse re-aimed the gun at Luna's thigh.

"If you lose your leg, you won't be able to jump as high as a cat anymore, right?" she said.

"And then I'd have to ask Miss Chevreuse to take care of me for the rest of my life."

"...Sigh."

Chevreuse seemed to have had enough and put away her pistol.

She had never met someone so unshakeable and fearless of death, but without such a nasty personality, Luna probably wouldn't have become this kind of Phantom Thief either.

Luna also put away her gun, as if the tense standoff had never happened.

"Getting back to the point, since Miss Chevreuse doesn't want to accept my request, what should we do about this deal?"

"...You want treasures, don't you?"

"Yes."

Chevreuse put her hands on her hips. "I can give them to you, as long as you tell me the information you have."

Luna's eyes widened slightly.

"What, why are you glaring harder than a cat now?"

"Just realized that Miss Chevreuse is even more unscrupulous than I imagined."

Unfortunately, she had no interest in such things.

Treasures obtained too easily are always tasteless, she thought.

If Chevreuse had meticulously set up the scene, placed the treasure, and then sent Luna a preview notice to see if she could catch her, that would have been more appealing.

Handouts are never satisfying.

But stolen goods? Now those are truly delicious.

Nevertheless, Luna decided to hear her out. "What kind of treasures are you planning to give me?"

"Gems."

"Not interested. I don't like it when treasures are delivered to my doorstep."

They're unsellable, I can't convert them to points, and they hold no sentimental value. Unless they're visually pleasing, what use are they?

Chevreuse suppressed her anger. Is this woman trying to give me a heart attack?

"Didn't you want treasures?" she asked.

"If I wanted them, I'd fetch them myself. I don't want anything given to me on a silver platter. It's just as a math teacher always says, 'the process is just as important as the result'."

Before Chevreuse could respond, Luna twirled a strand of hair and continued, "However..."

She raised her index finger.

"I did enjoy myself tonight, so there's no need for any trades. Let me just provide Miss Chevreuse with some free intelligence as a gift."

Chevreuse's face was filled with suspicion. It had become increasingly difficult for her to trust Luna.

"You'll have to lean in closer. Otherwise, someone might overhear us."

"There's no need for that."

"I think there is. If you won't do it, then I'm leaving." Luna covered her mouth with her hand as she yawned, looking quite drowsy.

If I attack her now, she'll undoubtedly turn the tables on me.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Chevreuse nodded.

"If you try anything inappropriate—"

"How could I? You must trust me."

Who would trust you?

Chevreuse held her tongue, offering only a piercing gaze as Luna approached. Naturally, her hand remained close to her pistol, ready to draw it at any instant.

Luna's fingers twirled a strand of Chevreuse's purple hair.

"I've already said..."

"You have so much hair. How can I make sure you hear me clearly without tossing it aside?"

Chevreuse drew in a breath, silently bearing with it.

As Luna's breath brushed against her ear, Chevreuse felt an odd unease. Aside from her mother, no one had been allowed to speak so intimately into her ear before.

But Luna's next words captured all her attention.

"Watch out for the Confrerie of Cabriere."

"What..."

Chevreuse turned to look but saw no one's figure.

Truly cunning and elusive.

Just as her self-proclaimed name suggested, the white cat... Chevreuse glanced around carefully, confirming Luna had vanished without a trace before lowering her guard.

"The Confrerie of Cabriere? What does this have to do with a merchant guild?"

There was undoubtedly a massive organization backing Sinthe, but to suggest that the merchant guild itself was the mastermind...

Chevreuse began walking, her steps silent.

"We'll need to keep an eye on this guild from now on."

She didn't believe the Phantom Thief's words; every lie from that deceitful liar's mouth was infinitely close to zero credibility.

In reality, 99% of the work done by the security guard brigade was futile.

False clues, incorrect deductions... More often than not, their investigations ended in frustration. Yet, even if there was only a 1% chance of success, they had to act, their eyes peeled for any sign.

To risk everything for just 1% chance of success—Chevreuse loathed such gambler's talk.

But their work was precisely that.

So, even if it was the con-cat's words, she couldn't ignore them.

If the information proved false, it would be yet another mark against her!

In the distance, after watching Chevreuse's figure disappear, Luna reached down and grasped the fallen blood-red gem.

Why had she named the Confrerie of Cabriere specifically? First, because she couldn't possibly reveal the truth; the source of this operation's intelligence would be making headlines tomorrow. Second, because...

"Doing things this way will be easier and less cumbersome," she thought.

Since they're going to investigate the Confrerie of Cabriere anyway, why not let the authorities handle it?

Luna hugged her legs, resting her cheek against her knees, and smiled. "Work for me now, Miss Captain."