Seven Coloured Melody

3That must mean they paired him with somebody incompetent. However, there are not many people on the same level as her. Aki should have at least paired him with someone who won't slow him down.     

'When I am not around, Aki gives dangerous jobs to those around her. He is too cruel.'     

A deep sigh escapes her lips. She truly doesn't understand why she is still following his instructions. However, no matter how many times she questions herself. Sumire understood that she would never disobey him.     

Sumire sterilizes the skin around the wound a few times with iodine. This wound is deep, even though the bleeding has stopped already. It must be painful. It will be difficult for him to use his right arm for a while.     

"What's wrong, Ki? You look like you're about to cry."     

"I-I-just-" Sumire stammered.     

"I am fine." Mamoru gave her a reassuring smile and laughed. "Ki, it's truly okay. You know I have experienced worse injuries before."     

Indeed this is not the first time that Mamoru has gotten hurt. Rather this is a mere scratch if she thinks about his previous injuries. But it still doesn't make this any better.     

Mamoru doesn't make a sound as she continues to wash his wounds with saline. He is too used to this. Even when she started to stitch the wound, his expression did not change.     

"How many times have you gotten hurt behind my back? You're too used to this." Sumire couldn't control her tears today.     

"Ki, I-" Mamoru gently wipes the tears from her eyes, but she continues to cry.     

Her thoughts break off when somebody pulls her away from Ru, and she is in a familiar pair of arms.     

"Tsueno." Toh addressed Ru. "I didn't give you two some privacy for you to make her cry."     

"H-hey, it's not like that. She is crying because she is worried about me." Mamoru stammered.     

There was something comforting about Toh hugging her. She still doesn't quite understand why, though.     

"It must be because you did something stupid. What are you doing making her worry so much?"     

It seems like Toh is finally starting to understand Ru. But she indeed spends a lot of time worrying about Ru. When her mind finally cleared up, she wanted to return home as quickly as possible because she was worried about leaving Ru alone.     

Toh didn't let her go until he was sure she had stopped crying. Even then, he told her to wash her face in the bathroom. When she returned, the two discussed something in detail and looked at some papers.     

"What are you both looking at?" Sumire peered over Ru's shoulder. "Two bodies were found in the forest. The police are still identifying them. But there is a high chance they belong to the missing couple reported half a year ago-" She immediately snatched the newspaper from Ru.     

"This forest is-"     

This is the forest that was behind the Ibuki family manor. She recognizes it clearly despite her blurred memories of the time. She did spend so many days in that forest before Aki found her.     

Mamoru nodded. "It's the same place."     

"That place should be restricted. Nobody else is allowed to go there, yet dead bodies turned up."     

This is bad. Everybody knows that the forest is behind her family manor. When the general public puts two and two together, she will suffer backlash and get dragged into the case.     

Sumire bit her lip.     

'I won't mind all the comments. But, right now, the company is preparing for my debut. It's not just me who will be affected by this. Moreover, everybody knows she is nanairofeather's composer. It will affect the other guys.'     

"I bribed the police officer in charge of the case," Mamoru said, breaking her thoughts.     

"Ru you-"     

"It's a method I hate using. But I wanted to buy us some time. I asked Aki for his opinion, and he said that he would also ensure that the police officer sticks to his word. If we can solve the case, the police won't give the details of the forest to the media. The picture isn't very clear. It could be any forest."     

That's all Aki is going to do, huh? Sumire sighs deeply. Of course, he won't help. He always talks about how they may have power, but if they use too much of it, it could backfire on them.     

"We should postpone the university case, then." Sumire looked over at Toh. "Can you speak to her parents for us?"     

"Sure, that's not an issue. But, you have to let me join you for this job." Toh requested.     

Sumire blinked, surprised. They did seem to be in the middle of a heated discussion before she came in. But she did not think that he would join them. She indeed wanted to make use of his skill as a psychologist. However, she still isn't too sure which side Toh was on.     

If it turns out he is working for an enemy organization, won't this backfire on them?     

"I think we could use his help, Ki." Mamoru chipped in.     

At those words, Sumire paused. Whatever they were talking about before she came in seemed to convince Ru. If that's the case, it wouldn't matter, even if she refused. They are both just asking to be polite. Sumire sighs quietly. There are far too many considerate people around her.     

"I do not mind. But make sure Masaru-senpai doesn't find out. He is still recovering from his injuries, and they have a concert coming up." Sumire trailed off.     

Right now, it's better to use Toh than Masaru. Moreover, the image of Masaru falling in her arms covered in blood still remains fresh in her memory. Masaru-senpai is strong for him to end up in that condition. She recalled the man wearing black and shuddered. Why does that person look so familiar to her?     

Her thoughts break off when Ru suddenly stands up. "Are you leaving already?"     

Mamoru nodded. "Yes, I figured I would go to bed early. So I can start working on the case."     

That makes sense, but she is getting a bad feeling for some reason. Recently there have been days where Ru sneaks off and goes somewhere for a long time.     

Sumire stands up and stares at him for a few minutes, and Ru laughs before extending his arms out. Sumire rushed over and hugged him tightly. She really does have a bad feeling, but even if she were to ask him now. Ru would lie to her. She knows that Ru dislikes lying to her.     

"Call me tomorrow?"     

Mamoru nodded. "Mm, of course. Goodnight, Ki."