COTE : Oh No, I've Become the Substitute Chapter 42: My Brother, How Did You Become a Phantom Thief?

Kamuro Masumi's pace was quite fast. Fuyuji had barely just left the library entrance, and she had already nearly vanished at the end of the road.

This direction... it really is the convenience supermarket.

Knowing her destination, he actually felt less rushed.

What was she planning to buy?

Following her footsteps, Fuyuji entered the convenience supermarket.

That unhesitating, resolute stride—he initially guessed it might be the more private feminine products section. But the variously shaped, differently colored cans on the shelves told him this was the beverage section.

He sensed sothing abnormal. If she was simply thirsty, there was no need to go so far out of her way to buy a drink. There were vending machines along the road.

Subconsciously, he slowed his pace, falling far behind Kamuro.

At this mont, Kamuro, having entered the convenience supermarket, also slowed down. Completely devoid of the impatience she'd shown in the library earlier, her gaze fell near the alcohol shelves, as if selecting rchandise.

The school shouldn't permit students to buy alcohol—

In that instant of his puzzlent.

Kamuro casually raised her hand, took down a beer, shifted her body sideways, and a can of beer slid into her shoulder bag.

Her movents were smooth and natural, with absolutely no hesitation. She turned and left imdiately.

Leaving behind Fuyuji in the corner, mouth agape, eyes vacant, stunned into a frozen state.

Everything had happened far too suddenly. By the ti he realized what Kamuro had done, it was already too late.

Afterward, Kamuro walked out of the convenience store entrance as if nothing had happened, like a student who, after school, had a sudden whim to co here for a casual browse and, finding nothing worth buying, simply left.

Fuyuji covered his eyes, a mix of emotions swirling within him.

My brother, how did you turn into a phantom thief?

Do students these days all have to develop their own side hustles?

And this scene... wasn't it just like outwardly an arrogant young lady from a wealthy family, but secretly a cat burglar scaling walls and traversing rooftops with superb skill and exquisite technique...

As for what she sought? The thrill!

But now there was one problem. This phantom thief...

Was from his own side!

If she got caught, Class A might not be wiped out in a bloodbath, but its reputation would plumt and its strength would be damaged.

And turning her in for righteousness' sake... that was even more impossible. After all, family sha must not be aired in public.

So, was there only one option left?

Give yourself up, you dumba—pfft, as if!

Stop this, bro. Outside is full of hidden surveillance caras!

Unknowingly, Fuyuji had already wandered outside and was sitting blankly on a bench by the roadside.

After thinking for a long ti, he lowered his eyes and silently took his phone from his pocket, dialing a number.

After beeping a few tis, the call was connected with a click. Shiraishi Asuka's voice, as soothing to the heart as clear spring water, ca through.

"Moshi moshi. What's the matter, Fuyuji-kun?"

Silent for a mont facing the phone, he spoke. "Shiraishi-san already knew, didn't she?"

"What is Fuyuji-kun talking about? I don't know."

"About Kamuro-san."

"What about Kamuro-san?"

"I felt it was strange earlier. Why did Shiraishi-san refuse my request? It didn't make sense." His voice was thick with confusion.

Then his tone shifted. "Now I've figured it out. Perhaps Shiraishi-san deliberately wanted to go to the convenience store."

"Fufu~" Shiraishi's soft laughter ca through the phone. "Then why would I want Fuyuji-kun to go to the convenience store?"

"Probably to let witness that scene of her stealing..."

Fuyuji continued his deduction. "The series of events that just happened were all too coincidental. Kamuro-san left, happened to drop her notebook, and underneath the notebook was her key card. More importantly, Shiraishi-san knew she was heading to the convenience store just by the direction she left."

"Maybe it was just a coincidence?"

Shiraishi seed to greatly enjoy the process of chatting with him like this. Just from the voice coming through the phone, Fuyuji could already imagine her smiling expression.

"Fine. But even so, it's far too coincidental. An even greater coincidence is that right after Shiraishi-san reminded that Kamuro-san's physical ability is among the best of the girls in our class, I imdiately caught her stealing in the convenience store. The probability of this is simply too low. Apart from it being deliberately arranged, I can't think of any other possibility."

"Mm, mm. As expected of Fuyuji-kun." Shiraishi neither admitted nor denied.

Fuyuji stared at the shadow cast on the ground, his mood complex, and spoke. "Why go through so much trouble to let witness her stealing process?"

"Because Kamuro-san is a very talented individual. Leaving her unused would be such a waste."

"With Kamuro-san's personality, as long as we properly ask her, she would contribute to the class, wouldn't she?"

"Contributing to the class and doing things for oneself are not on the sa level."

"Then why doesn't Shiraishi-san ta her herself?"

"Your influence over the girls' side is insufficient. You need soone specifically to handle matters concerning the girls for you."

Fuyuji blurted out without thinking. "But don't I already have Shiraishi-san?"

The other end of the line held only the sound of soft breathing, no response for a long, long ti—so long that Fuyuji felt as if several centuries had passed.

"Yes... you have ..."

"Then why—"

"Because I feel leading the girls isn't suited for , just like you said you weren't suited to lead the class..."

"So that's why you specially invited Kamuro-san to our tutoring group?"

"Yes. When Katsuragi-kun was allocating the tutoring groups, I happened to see Kamuro-san's na. That's how this tutoring session ca about. Otherwise, I wouldn't have wanted a third person to join this tutoring."

"Shiraishi-san hopes I'll ta her?"

"It's fine if you're unwilling."

"Alright... since Shiraishi-san has said so."

Fuyuji nodded. His tone suddenly turned serious. "Then, I have one final question."

"What?"

Fuyuji heaved a long sigh toward the heavens.

"I don't think I can handle this type of girl. Help , Shiraishi Mama!"

The next second, laughter that brushed the heart like a feather and tickled the ears ca through.

"Don't worry. I'll teach you."

...

Judging by the direction she walked just now, she should be heading back to the dorms. And extrapolating from her pace... This could work!

Fuyuji screeched to a halt at the dormitory entrance and looked around, but found no trace of her.

He took out his phone, intending to contact her by call, but out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a flash of purple disappearing around a corner in the lobby. Without a second thought, he shouted:

"My brotha!"

The loud, clear voice rang throughout the entire elevator hall. A strange, scrutinizing gaze enveloped that "brother."

Kamuro lowered her head and clenched her fists, continuing forward as if she didn't know him.

"You dropped sothing!" The loud voice rang out again.

Fuyuji held her room key card high toward Kamuro. The surrounding gazes grew even stranger. Now, pretending not to know him was no longer an option.

Her long, powerful legs twisted against the floor. Kamuro spun around rapidly and looked at him with a glare usually reserved for trash. "What do you want?"

"I want to get to know you. And," Fuyuji gestured with the room card in his hand, "I ca to give you your stuff back."

"I have no interest in you!"

In three steps rged into two, Kamuro stepped forward and snatched the key card away, heading straight for the stairwell. Her little leather shoes tapped away at an extrely high frequency against the steps, trying to widen the distance from Fuyuji, who was following behind.

"I want to have a word with you."

Fuyuji, slightly behind and below her on the stairs, watched her long, crisscrossing legs and the fluttering hem of her white skirt and spoke.

"I don't want to talk to you at all!" Kamuro continued climbing the stairs.

Fuyuji released his psychic sense, making a quick sweep to ensure no one was around.

"About what you did in the convenience store just now..."

Kamuro's steps halted. She lowered her head, her expression unreadable. "You saw?"

"Crystal clear. This isn't the place to talk. How about we move sowhere else and chat?"

"Right here! So what if I stole? Are you going to report ?" Kamuro's attitude was unexpectedly unyielding.

"Do you have proof? I only have one can of beer in my bag. As long as I throw it away right now and deny it to the death, what can you do?"

Fuyuji let out a sigh and scratched his head with a considerable headache. Sure enough, he had to follow Shiraishi Mama's thod. But he kept feeling this thod was a bit weird.

"What about the ones in your room? I'm guessing you haven't disposed of that kind of stuff this ti, and not the previous tis either. They should all be sitting in your room right now?"

"With your skilled technique just now, you've probably done this more than once. If you're a repeat offender, even theft will carry quite a severe punishnt..."

Will this work, Shiraishi Mama? If it doesn't, I'm seriously going to beco the Class A weirdo.

Using lines like "Young lady, if you don't want your cris to be known..." to threaten a female classmate... if this gets out, I'll suffer total social death.

"Suit yourself!"

As she spoke, Kamuro reached into her shoulder bag, pulled out the can of beer she'd stolen from the convenience store, and shoved it into Fuyuji's hands.

"Go ahead and report it!"

"Hey, hey, my brother, wait." Fuyuji reached out helplessly to stop her.

But upon hearing "my brother," Kamuro only beca more agitated and took out her own phone.

"If you're not going to call, I will!"

"Consider scared of you, alright?"

Fuyuji pressed down on the phone she was about to dial.

"Since when did I say I was going to report you? You're a mber of Class A. Would I stab my own side? Besides, your physical ability is quite outstanding. Right now, the class is precisely in a ti of need for capable people."

Fuyuji straightened his posture, cleared his throat, and spoke with a solemn expression:

"In short... I need you!"

The voice wasn't loud, but it clearly transmitted into Kamuro's mind.

"Tch..."

Kamuro was very irritated right now. This guy in front of her was speaking in riddles. He'd clearly caught her weakness, yet he wasn't planning to report it, nor was he stating any conditions. He just kept hemming and hawing here, saying so incomprehensible nonsense.

Hm? He needs ?

Kamuro's expression showed so hesitation.

That sentence just now was actually a recruitnt notice, wasn't it? He wants to do things for him?

Although she wasn't very sociable, Kamuro prided herself on understanding the situation in Class A. On the surface, the class leader was Katsuragi, but in reality, it was entirely the result of this guy's indulgence. At the very least, the majority of the students in the class had chosen him.

"Spit it out. What do you want to do?" Kamuro asked directly.

Hm? She yielded? That fast?

This... this isn't right, is it? The personality her expression showed just now was one of "either you die or I live." How did she yield so quickly? What Shiraishi-san gave —it couldn't be so kind of hypnotic spell, could it?

Since she's yielded, the rest should be easy to handle. No wonder Shiraishi-san's secret plan only consisted of a few lines.

Looking at Kamuro's tense face, Fuyuji probed gently, "Then... stop doing that kind of thing?"

"Haah? Impossible!" Kamuro refused decisively.

To think his very first demand would be to forbid her only pleasure. This guy really was as nasty as they ca.

"Why? Are you seeking thrills? It doesn't have to be this thod, does it?"

Kamuro glared at Fuyuji. Then her gaze drifted out the window of the stairwell. She folded her arms, her fingers rapping continuously against her elbow. Her voice softened.

"That's my only pleasure. Without it, I don't even know what to do with myself..."

Fuyuji nodded. So, she can't find a goal in life, feels lost, lacks passion and drive, and can't find a sense of excitent. Is that it?

As soone with a ntal age two years older than her, he decided to pass on to her the life goal from his own distant past, hoping she could thereby rediscover the thrill in her heart.

"My brother..."

"Don't call that! Just spit it out!" Kamuro was ready to accept her second order.

"Go get into the University of Tokyo!"

The very air in the stairwell instantly solidified.

"Haah?"

Kamuro turned her head in disbelief, then imdiately began walking away.

"I have nothing to discuss with soone as nasty as you."

"Hey, hey, wait. Getting into Todai is super thrilling." Fuyuji hastily blocked Kamuro, who was making to leave.

"Impossible!"

"Then what do you want?"

"Change it to sothing simple!"

Fuyuji's brain spun at high speed. So, a short-term goal, huh?

It had to be thrilling, yet not illegal, and preferably with so benefit...

"Score above 80 on this midterm?"

"No exams!!"

Fuyuji felt his teeth ache. After racking his brain for a long ti, he finally squeezed out: "The situation in Class D lately has been a bit unclear. How about you go and make friends with so of them?"

"That's more like it." Kamuro muttered. "So, basically, go investigate intel on Class D, right?"

"Putting it that way isn't wrong..."

"Fine. I accept this!"

"You can't go on any five-finger-discount sprees before completing this, though."

"..."

Kamuro was silent for a long, long ti. In the end, she forced out through gritted teeth: "Fine!"

Fuyuji let out a long sigh of relief. Although the process had been a bit strange, the overall result was still good.

As expected of you, Shiraishi-san. The White Gate!

"That's it, then. After you complete this, I'll find you another goal."

Fuyuji breathed a long sigh and prepared to end this conversation.

"Oi!" Kamuro took out her phone and called out to Fuyuji, who was about to leave.

"Your contact info."

"Oh, oh. Right, right."

Fuyuji pulled out his phone. The two added each other.

Stopping his fingers tapping on the screen, Fuyuji turned his head to look at Kamuro. "Oh, right, my brother, what was your na again? Kamurooo...?"

"..."

An eerie silence descended upon the stairwell.

Three seconds later...

"Kamuro Masumi!!"

A voice brimming with fury echoed throughout the entire dormitory building, startling the crows roosting in the trees below, sending them fluttering away with a rush, leaving behind a few drifting black feathers.

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