Tokyo's Phantom Thief

Momoka snickered like a sleazy old man, elbowing Rinto in the ribs with a conspiratorial grin.

"C'mon, spill it—which one are you into? That glowing halfie bombshell, or the tall, soft-spoken athletic girl? …You've got a thing for gymnast types too, right? Like those twin sisters? Totally your type, huh~? It's the sporty ones, isn't it?"

Rinto squinted at her, deadpan.

"Actually, I prefer messy, unemployed, booze-loving older women who still call themselves rockers. Now shush—I'm trying to text."

He casually swatted away her poking elbow. Momoka pouted like a scolded child.

Out in public, she could actually come off pretty composed.

Some of her fans even thought she was this cool, aloof rock chick who'd step on you if you asked nicely.

But that was pure fantasy. Rinto could personally vouch for how wrong they were.

This woman had the gossiping heart of a middle-aged uncle and zero concept of personal space once she got comfortable. Everyone ended up as "just one of the bros."

She didn't even realize he'd just confessed to liking her—completely in one ear and out the other.

Still leaning over, Momoka stood on her tiptoes and peeked over Rinto's shoulder at his phone.

"You're still texting that high school girl? If you push too hard up front, she'll just ghost you. My old bandmates had guys swarming them too, and all those guys—…wait, who's that?"

"That's the doctor I told Ann and Shiho about. The one at that private clinic," Rinto replied calmly.

"I mentioned it before, remember? I found this... suspicious part-time job recently? That same doctor hired me. Said she was interested in my body and wanted to use me for drug testing."

"I'm messaging her now, asking her to exaggerate the volleyball girl's condition a little—preferably give her a 'no physical activity allowed' note. At the very least, it'll give her an excuse to skip practice."

"Ohh…" Momoka nodded vaguely, semi-following.

She tilted her head in confusion, brow furrowed as she tried to process it.

Finally, just as Rinto sent the last message, it clicked.

"Wait, wait—so you lied about how bad the girl's injury was? She doesn't actually need to take time off? And you're roping the doctor into faking a note…? Woooow! You'd go that far just to impress a high school girl?! You're desperate! So thirsty!!"

"I'll show you 'thirsty,' you empty cardboard box."

Rinto sighed. There was no saving this dirty-minded, chaos-gremlin of a woman. He didn't even bother explaining.

Honestly, it was just him meddling again.

From what little he'd heard, there wasn't hard proof that Kamoshida had done anything terrible—just what Ann and Shiho had said. For all he knew, it could've been a misunderstanding.

And besides, he'd already chosen to retire from the Phantom Thief life.

A normal high school student had no business interfering in some stranger's business.

…But.

Rinto argued with himself.

I didn't just hear about it online. I actually met them. Talked to them.

We're not strangers anymore, right? That counts as knowing each other now.

A passing connection is still a connection. Helping someone a little isn't a crime, is it?

Logically, Rinto knew he was just making excuses. Bad ones. It really did sound like he was just looking for an in with a cute girl.

But whatever.

He did what he wanted. That was all there was to it.

Right on cue, the doctor he messaged replied.

She didn't lecture him with any ethical "do no harm" stuff about faking medical reports.

Instead, her response was simple:

[My little lab rat owes me one.]

Yeah, yeah…

Rinto accepted his fate. The good little lab rat would be ready to pay her back soon enough.

That night—later than usual.

Rinto and Momoka were just finishing their shift, getting ready to head home and cook dinner.

That's when the blonde girl from earlier—Ann—walked into the store, beaming the second she spotted Rinto.

She rushed over, grabbing his hands with both of hers, her smile bright enough to outshine the store lights.

"Thank you, mister~! Thanks to you, I got Shiho checked out just in time!"

"That super pretty doctor lady said Shiho wasn't just sprained—she might've caught some kind of rare virus too! If we hadn't caught it early, it could've dissolved her muscle tissue or something! But luckily, she had a miracle cure right there! We just need to go in a few more times and Shiho will be totally fine!"

"I seriously don't know how to thank you enough~! (≧▽≦)"

"Uh… o-oh. You're welcome. Saving lives and all that—it's the least I could do."

Rinto tried to maintain a polite smile, hoping she wouldn't notice how forced it was.

Internally, he was screaming.

What the hell is that punk doctor doing?!

Sure, he had asked her to exaggerate a little—but this was straight-up science fiction!

There was no way she didn't do this on purpose, just to make sure he remembered the favor.

He was going to have words with her the next time he stopped by the clinic.

That said… he couldn't deny it.

Ann's bright, beaming smile—it felt good.

So Rinto offered her genuine praise:

"You clearly care a lot about your friend. These days, it's rare to see someone go out of their way like that for a classmate."

"Mhm! Well, Shiho's my childhood friend," Ann said proudly, her sky-blue eyes practically glowing.

"We've been close since middle school. When my parents had to go overseas, she was always there for me. She's practically my sister! …Oh, and don't call me 'Miss Ann'—that sounds way too stiff."

Ahem~

Ann cleared her throat playfully, straightening her posture.

Her already model-like figure stood even taller, graceful and elegant—but her smile was all sunshine and youth:

"I'm Takamaki Ann. Just call me Ann, okay? I really appreciate your help. Can I get your name?"

"…Yeah. I'm Asakura Rinto. Just Rinto is fine."

As Ann smiled at him with such warm, honest gratitude, Rinto found himself smiling too.

To be honest… he hadn't had many moments like this before.

He was used to living alone.

No one to rely on. No one to exchange names with.

Ann's sincere, unfiltered thankfulness—it felt extravagant. Familiar, even. Like what he'd felt back when he first saved the Yoshizawa sisters.

Moments like these were the best kind of reward for sticking his nose where it didn't belong.