"But Yuu-kun, what are you doing in the storage room?" Reiko Akiba asked curiously.
Yuu Hoshimiya pulled his hand back and closed the door to the storage room. It was pitch black inside, no lights were on, and Reiko had no idea what was in there.
"Nothing, just taking a stroll. Come on, let's go back to the living room!"
Yuu put his arm around Reiko and led her toward the living room.
Taking a stroll early in the morning? Could that excuse be any lamer?
Cradled in Yuu's arms, Reiko turned her head to look back at the storage room, a suspicion forming in her mind.
It was probably another assassin coming after her.
And it seemed like it had happened more than once.
It was highly likely that Yuu hadn't slept a wink all night, staying up to guard her, dealing with several assassins without waking her up.
That explained why the bed looked unslept in, and why she ran into him right here.
Reiko turned her small face to look at Yuu's profile and couldn't resist standing on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on him.
Yuu was a bit puzzled. There was no music playing right now, so why was she being so proactive?
He stopped, turned his head to look down at Reiko, only to see her tilt her head up again and kiss him on the lips. Her kissing skills were still quite clumsy.
How could Yuu resist? He responded immediately.
He quickly took the lead, his hands wrapping around her soft waist, her nightgown feeling as smooth as silk.
Morning is when a man's desires are highest, and Yuu's hands began to roam over Reiko's soft, curves.
Then, Yuu scooped Reiko up entirely and quickly carried her to the sofa in the living room.
Pressing down on Reiko's soft body, Yuu broke the kiss and smirked. "Reiko, is this how you do your vocal warm-ups in the morning?"
Reiko's face turned bright red, and she couldn't help but ball up her small fists and lightly pound Yuu's chest.
Yuu chuckled, gave Reiko one last gentle kiss, and then sat up.
He sat upright on the sofa, calming the fire in his heart.
Yuu knew his own stamina well. If he took Reiko right now, even with the help of healing magic, it being her first time would definitely affect her condition.
He had already held back this long; one more day wouldn't hurt. He might as well keep enduring it and treat it as training for his willpower.
Reiko quickly sat up as well and headed to the bathroom to wash up.
After finishing, Reiko saw a hearty breakfast already prepared on the dining table, looking at Yuu with pleasant surprise.
By now, having picked up a few things here and there, Yuu's cooking skills far surpassed what they were when he lived alone.
Although he rarely had the chance to cook himself these days, this simple breakfast was perfect in color, aroma, and taste.
Reiko sat at the table and began to eat, surprise flashing in her beautiful scarlet eyes, followed by continuous, satisfied sounds of "Mmm! Mmm! Mmm!"
After breakfast, Reiko, dressed in casual clothes, took Yuu to the artificial river in the villa district. Facing the morning sun, she began her vocal warm-ups.
"Ahhhh ahhhh ahhhh!"
Yuu watched Reiko walking and singing by the river, her long black hair fluttering in the wind. Her voice climbed the scales, soaring and beautiful.
She would occasionally turn around and smile at him.
A smile appeared on Yuu's face; this scene was truly lovely!
The vocal warm-up didn't last long. Afterward, the two returned to the villa.
The concert was scheduled to begin at noon, so they needed to head to the academy to prepare.
As soon as they returned to the villa, Reiko went into her room to change. This time, she spent a long time on her hair and makeup.
Finally, the bedroom door opened. Yuu's eyes instantly lit up. He couldn't help but clap his hands, a smile spreading across his face.
"Reiko, you look beautiful!"
At this moment, Reiko was dressed in pure white—a white gown, white gloves, and white high heels. Her long black hair was tied back with a white ribbon, revealing a confident, exquisite face.
With light makeup and scarlet lipstick, she looked breathtakingly beautiful, an absolute goddess.
Reiko in her white gown instantly stunned Yuu.
Seeing the intoxicated look in Yuu's eyes, a smug smile touched Reiko's lips.
She walked forward, her white-gloved hand hooking through Yuu's arm. "Let's go!"
The two got into Yuu's car and drove toward the Domoto Academy of Music.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Reiko asked, "Yuu-kun, what about the storage room? Do we just leave it?"
"Don't worry about it, I'll take care of it. Just focus on your singing."
Earlier, when they first stepped out, Maya Tachibana and Seiran Hoshi had already packed up the assassins and delivered them to Miwako Sato.
Soon, the car arrived at the Domoto Academy. The parking lot was filled with countless luxury cars; this concert had invited many people from high society.
Upon entering the music academy, the formally dressed Yuu and Reiko instantly drew everyone's attention.
On the way there, Reiko had asked him to pull over and dragged him into a high-end mall, picking out a black Armani suit for him before heading to the concert.
Yuu, already handsome, looked even more strikingly attractive in the suit.
The two walked through the lush, art-filled music academy.
As they passed, whether students or concert-goers, everyone stared blankly at the pair, their eyes filled with envy.
Passing a corridor, an excitedly cute loli voice called out.
"Brother Hoshimiya!"
Ayumi Yoshida, sharp-eyed as always, was the first to spot Yuu. Her short legs pumping, she charged toward him and threw herself against his thigh.
With Ayumi were the Detective Boys, Ran Mouri, Sonoko Suzuki, and Professor Hiroshi Agasa.
Seeing Yuu in his suit, the girls' eyes sparkled with admiration and affection.
Although it wasn't their first time seeing it, every time Yuu dressed up like this, the girls couldn't help but feel swept off their feet.
Just like when Ran and the others wearing different outfits—like black stockings, fishnets, or cosplay—gave Yuu a different kind of thrill, Yuu, who usually dressed casually, occasionally wearing a suit made Ran and the girls' hearts race; he looked exceptionally handsome.
As for Reiko holding Yuu's arm, everyone subconsciously ignored it.
The main reason was that Ran, the official girlfriend, didn't say anything, so even if the others had opinions, it wasn't their place to speak up.
And Ran's "indifference" at this moment wasn't strange; instead, it made others think she was cultured, proper, and magnanimous.
In such situations, let alone a boyfriend or girlfriend, even a married spouse being "borrowed" as a male or female companion was normal.
Being too particular about it would only make some people call you petty and overly jealous.
Of course, that was just how things were said. Yuu, for one, would never accept this.
If anyone dared to hit on Ran or Sonoko, he would definitely put a stop to it.
But the chances of that happening were highly unlikely.
Because Ran and Sonoko would definitely reject them.
As for the true and fake lolis, there was even less to worry about. If anyone actually tried to hit on them, Yuu wouldn't even need to lift a finger; that person would immediately be invited to eat free katsudon at the police station.
"It's you guys!" Yuu smiled upon seeing them, especially looking at Ran and Ai Haibara, who were dressed very formally.
Ran wore a white, waist-cinching short jacket over a jade-green dress, perfectly highlighting her impressive figure.
Ai wore a black shawl over a pink dress, looking exceptionally quiet. However, her actions at the moment had nothing to do with "quiet."
Ai pulled Ayumi's small hand, detaching her from Yuu's thigh, and then nodded in satisfaction.
Ran asked, "Brother Yuu, was everything okay last night?"
Yuu had naturally told Ran yesterday that he was protecting Reiko. Even knowing Yuu's absurdly overpowered strength, Ran couldn't help but worry.
Yuu smiled. "Do I look like anything's wrong? Don't worry. Where are you guys heading?"
Ayumi immediately piped up, "We're going to eat an early lunch."
"The kids are hungry, and the concert is going to last for several hours, so we decided to eat first," Professor Agasa added.
Sonoko immediately invited him, "Consultant Hoshimiya, come eat with us!"
"I just ate, you guys go ahead. Reiko and I will head into the concert hall first."
With that, Yuu reached out and patted Ai's small head, comforting the aloof fake loli, before heading toward the concert hall with Reiko.
The two soon arrived inside the concert hall.
All the lights in the hall were on, and the entire stage was incredibly brilliant and dazzling, practically glittering with gold and jade.
It wasn't time for admission yet, so there were no audience members inside, only a few people present.
It was Kazuki Domoto and his team rehearsing. They stood together, all looking somewhat distressed.
Reiko couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? Is there another problem with the concert?"
Kazuki Domoto replied, "Reiko, Consultant Hoshimiya, you're here. Never mind, it doesn't matter. Let's do our final rehearsal!"
Kazuki Domoto walked straight toward the stage, and Shion Yamane followed him up with her violin.
"What's going on?" Reiko turned to the remaining people.
Genya Domoto smiled bitterly. "It's Mr. Müller. He still hasn't arrived."
"Hans Müller?" Yuu feigned a look of confusion.
Takumi Fuwa, the silver-haired old man and Shuji Kano's biological father, explained, "We were supposed to make final micro-adjustments during the last rehearsal, but since Mr. Müller isn't here, we can't tune it."
"We haven't been able to reach Mr. Müller since last night, and the hotel staff said he went out last night and never returned."
"Doesn't that mean he's missing?" Reiko frowned.
Kazuki Domoto called from the stage, "Reiko, hurry up and get up here. Let's not waste time."
Reiko didn't say anything more to the group and walked straight toward the stage.
As she passed Rara Chigusa, the pink-haired woman with an average face and average figure shot her a look full of jealousy.
But no one paid her any mind.
Takumi Fuwa then said, "Well, there are only some micro-adjustments left anyway. Not being able to contact Mr. Müller shouldn't matter too much; it shouldn't delay the performance."
Takumi Fuwa and Genya Domoto then left together.
At that moment, the music started. Kazuki Domoto began to play, and Shion Yamane stepped forward with her Stradivarius violin and started playing as well.
The prelude to Amazing Grace began. The spotlight shone down, landing on Reiko, making her look incredibly pure and holy.
She rested her hands on her abdomen and began to sing.
The violin was beautiful, the singing voice loud and clear. A soprano doesn't need a microphone; her voice alone can be heard by everyone in the concert hall.
Sitting below, Yuu looked at Reiko on stage with a smile.
His gaze swept over the entire venue. Genya Domoto was still there, but Takumi Fuwa was nowhere to be found.
After the rehearsal, everyone returned to their respective dressing rooms.
But Reiko walked over to Yuu, looking at him with a beaming smile. "How was it?"
"You sang beautifully, like an angel. But Miss Shion also surprised me. To play this well after only three days is impressive."
"Of course. She's been seeking advice at Soko's house for these past three days."
Yuu continued, "However, one of the notes in that pipe organ sounded out of tune."
Reiko nodded in agreement. "You heard it too. That note seemed a bit flat. Come on, let's go up and take a look."
With that, Reiko grabbed Yuu's hand and headed up toward the organ.
...
Reiko sat in front of the pipe organ, pulled several stops, and pressed a key.
"It's this note. It's much lower than normal. But earlier, Mr. Domoto pulled quite a few stops, so I don't know where the problem is."
Yuu said, "The problem is probably with the short flute section."
Reiko immediately pushed the other stops back in, leaving only the short flute stop. Pressing the key confirmed his suspicion.
"Yuu-kun, I didn't expect your hearing to be even more accurate than mine. This needs to be tuned back before the performance, but Mr. Müller isn't here, hmm?"
Reiko looked troubled. Finally, she decided to tell Kazuki Domoto first.
The two quickly arrived at Kazuki Domoto's dressing room, but after knocking on the door for a long time, there was no response.
Reiko said, "If the maestro isn't here, he's probably by the lake behind the concert hall. He usually goes there to clear his head."
Yuu held Reiko's hand and led her to the lake behind the concert hall. The lake surface sparkled, and various green plants grew on the shore; the scenery was beautiful.
"He's not here either." Reiko looked distressed.
But a smile crept onto Yuu's face. He sensed an old man holding a wrench cautiously approaching from behind.
With a whoosh, the wrench swung toward the back of Yuu's head.
Reiko saw it and cried out in alarm.
"Yuu-kun, look out!"
It was a pipe dream to think this wrench could hit Yuu. Even if it did, the feeble strength of this old man couldn't possibly hurt him.
Yuu nimbly turned around, and Takumi Fuwa, wielding the weapon, appeared before him.
Yuu casually reached out and caught the wrench, then delivered a kick right into Takumi Fuwa's abdomen. Takumi Fuwa immediately dropped to his knees, vomiting stomach acid.
"Mr. Fuwa, why did you attack us? Could it be... you're behind the recent cases?!" Reiko looked on in disbelief.
Takumi Fuwa was still vomiting acid and couldn't answer.
Yuu explained, "Hikaru Soma was his biological son. That's why he committed all these crimes, using the flute as a signal for murder, all to commemorate his dead son, the flautist Hikaru Soma."
"In that case, the assassins sent to kill us were also sent by him? But why kill us?"
Reiko furrowed her brows, questioning Takumi Fuwa.
"Naturally, he was afraid of what just happened. He was afraid you, with your perfect pitch, Miss Reiko, would hear the anomaly in the short flute pipe, so he didn't want us in the concert hall."
"However, he wasn't the one who sent the assassins to kill us. Mr. Fuwa, if you confess your accomplice now, perhaps you can get a lighter sentence."
Hearing this, the usually calm Takumi Fuwa could no longer maintain his composure. He retorted in a panic, "Accomplice? What accomplice? I did all this myself. Consultant Hoshimiya, what are you talking about?"
Yuu sneered, "Did it yourself? You're quite something, for a tuner to get his hands on so many bombs!"
"Bombs? Yuu-kun, explain clearly." Reiko looked stunned and pressed for answers.
Yuu looked at Takumi Fuwa, a cold smirk on his lips.
This old geezer was keeping his mouth shut, refusing to tell the truth even now.
In reality, Yuu had already investigated the person secretly assisting him in his crimes.
By tracing the key changes in this fated event, with Noah's help, and his connections spanning almost the entire Japanese underworld and police force, he had figured it out with little difficulty.
Since the old geezer refused to speak, Yuu didn't bother asking anymore.
"There should be a bomb sensor inside the short flute pipe. That's why he was afraid you'd hear the anomaly, Reiko, and take the sensor out."
"As for the bombs, they should be buried in the eighteen load-bearing pillars of the concert hall."
"He wants Kazuki Domoto to play the music himself, burying everyone in the concert hall along with the music, to take revenge on him."
After his explanation, Yuu snorted coldly. "What a boring plan. If you want to kill someone, just kill them. Isn't all this theatricality ridiculous?"
"Why not just buy a gun on the black market and shoot Kazuki Domoto directly? Wouldn't that be the end of it?!"
"You!"
Takumi Fuwa glared furiously, feeling these words completely insulted him.
Wiping the acid from his mouth, Takumi Fuwa said angrily, "You know nothing about an artist's dignity! To pass on to the next world amidst music, under the gaze of everyone—that is the proper end for Kazuki Domoto! Although I hate..."
Before he could finish, a roundhouse kick from Yuu landed on his face. The leather shoe struck his cheek hard, leaving a red mark.
Takumi Fuwa's face instantly turned bruised and purple. Holding the red mark, his old eyes were full of disbelief, as if he couldn't believe Yuu would hit him.
A disdainful smile appeared on Yuu's face. "Old man, stop calling yourself an artist. At best, you only have the dignity of a murderer."
"For the sake of your son, you took your anger out on those innocent friends who traveled with him. What did they do wrong? They just happened to form a band with your son and drank with him while traveling."
"Your son missed a step and fell to his death, so you killed all these people and called it revenge."
"And now, you talk about an artist's dignity, saying you want to kill Kazuki Domoto, but in reality, you want to blow up the entire concert hall with thousands of audience members."
"What grudge do these audience members have against you? An old geezer like you dares to call himself an artist? I've never seen anyone as shameless as you."
"Have you ever seen an artist who commits murder, slaughtering thousands like a butcher?"