Night had fully settled over Jaha Town.
The bar downstairs remained lively.
Laughter and conversation drifted through the floorboards.
Meanwhile—
upstairs.
Saito and Kaito were busy arranging their room.
Or at least—
trying to.
The room was filled with supplies.
Bags.
Souvenirs.
Extra clothes.
Equipment.
And several boxes that somehow ended up in the middle of the floor.
Saito stood in front of the mess with his hands on his hips.
"How did we collect this much stuff?"
Kaito lifted a box.
"You bought half of it."
"I did not."
"You absolutely did."
Saito opened his mouth to argue.
Then remembered the souvenirs.
And immediately looked away.
Kaito smirked.
"Exactly."
A knock came from the door.
Knock. Knock.
The fox beastman bartender stepped inside.
He looked around the room.
Then at the mountain of belongings.
Then back at Saito.
"...Wow."
Saito rubbed the back of his head.
"Yeah."
The bartender chuckled.
"Let me handle it."
"I can put some of this in the storage room downstairs."
Kaito nodded.
"We'll help you."
The bartender smiled.
"Appreciated."
The three began carrying boxes out of the room.
Meanwhile—
in the room next door.
Bomb was carefully arranging his belongings.
Everything had a place.
Everything had an order.
Across from him—
Rin had already thrown most of his things onto a chair.
"Good enough."
Bomb stared at the mess.
"No."
Rin sat on the bed.
"Yes."
Bomb sighed.
Alya, who was organizing her tools nearby, quietly shook her head.
The difference between the two was impossible to ignore.
Rin stretched his arms.
"Tomorrow should be fun."
Alya looked up from her workbench.
"Why?"
Rin grinned.
"We're with Saito."
"Something always happens."
Bomb thought about it.
Then nodded.
"Unfortunately, that's true."
Downstairs—
the bar continued to buzz with life.
While upstairs—
the Blue Scarf crew settled into their rooms.
Unaware that Jaha Town still had plenty of surprises waiting for them.
A few hours later—
the Blue Scarf crew gathered inside Alya's room.
The room was slightly larger than the others.
Tools and machine parts were neatly arranged on a desk near the window.
Saito walked inside first.
Then stopped.
His eyes landed on a second bed near the wall.
He pointed at it.
"Is that bed empty?"
Alya shook her head.
"No."
"That's the bartender's daughter's bed."
Saito nodded.
"Oh."
"That makes sense."
Rin sat down on the floor.
Bomb leaned against the wall.
Kaito pulled a chair closer.
Everyone looked toward Alya.
Alya carefully closed the door.
Then walked to the center of the room.
"Okay."
She placed a small metal box onto the table.
The others immediately leaned forward.
Saito looked especially excited.
"Now it's time to show you all my device."
Rin crossed his arms.
"Finally."
Bomb nodded.
"You've been teasing us about this thing all day."
Alya smiled slightly.
"That's because I wanted to finish it first."
Saito sat down.
Hands on his knees.
Waiting impatiently.
"Well?"
"What does it do?"
Alya looked around at the group.
Then rested her hand on the device.
"Let me explain."
The room became quiet.
Everyone waiting to see what their newest crew member had been secretly building since the beach.
Alya carefully placed the device on the table.
Everyone immediately leaned closer.
The machine looked unlike anything they had seen before.
It was shaped like a tablet.
A transparent screen occupied most of the surface.
Several small buttons lined the side.
Wires and tiny mechanical parts could be seen beneath the glass.
Saito's eyes widened.
"Wow."
Kaito studied it carefully.
"What does it do?"
Alya looked toward Rin.
"Stab your finger."
Rin blinked.
"...Say what now?"
Alya pointed at his hand.
"Trust me."
Rin looked suspicious.
Very suspicious.
Before he could refuse—
Kaito casually tossed a knife toward him.
Rin caught it.
"Traitor."
Kaito shrugged.
"You were closest."
Rin sighed.
Then pricked his finger.
A small drop of blood appeared.
The others watched.
Alya immediately pressed one of the buttons.
The transparent screen lit up.
A soft glow emerged from the device.
A line of text appeared across the screen.
Small Cut Detected
Saito leaned even closer.
"No way."
Then—
a strange rainbow-colored auris flowed from the device.
The energy moved around Rin's finger.
Scanning.
Analyzing.
A second later—
the cut vanished.
Completely.
Rin blinked.
Then stared at his finger.
"...Amazing."
Not even a scar remained.
Saito practically jumped from his seat.
"That's so cool!"
"It's like a healing machine!"
Alya smiled proudly.
Then nodded.
"It is."
Kaito examined the device more carefully.
"How did you put auris into a machine?"
Alya scratched her cheek.
"Well..."
"I borrowed some."
Kaito narrowed his eyes.
"Borrowed?"
Alya looked away.
"Maybe I used some of mine."
Then pointed around the room.
"And some of yours."
Silence.
Kaito stared at her.
"So you just took our auris?"
Alya immediately raised both hands.
"Sorry."
"But now it works."
Rin laughed.
"That's actually impressive."
Bomb nodded.
"Very impressive."
Saito looked at the machine.
Then at Alya.
Then back at the machine.
A huge grin spread across his face.
"It definitely works."
For the first time—
Alya looked genuinely proud of herself.
And the rest of the crew couldn't deny it.
Their newest member had just created something incredible.
The group continued staring at the device.
Rin was still looking at his healed finger.
Clearly impressed.
Bomb, however, crossed his arms.
A question came to mind.
"What happens if the auris inside runs out?"
Alya shook her head.
"No worries."
Everyone looked at her.
Alya tapped the transparent screen.
"It can generate auris by itself."
Saito blinked.
"...It can?"
Alya nodded.
"That's why the auris is rainbow-colored."
Kaito leaned forward.
"Meaning?"
Alya pointed at the machine.
"Normal auris belongs to a specific person."
"But this one isn't tied to anyone."
"The machine creates its own."
The room went silent for a moment.
Trying to process what she had just said.
Then Saito slowly pointed at the device.
"Hold on."
"Are you telling me you made a machine that creates auris?"
Alya thought about it.
Then nodded.
"Basically."
Rin stared at her.
"That's insane."
Bomb nodded in agreement.
"Very insane."
Even Kaito looked surprised.
And that rarely happened.
Alya smiled proudly.
"I spent a long time working on the theory."
Saito looked back at the machine.
Then laughed.
"Alya."
"You're a genius."
Alya immediately looked embarrassed.
"No I'm not."
"You absolutely are."
Bomb replied.
The group nodded.
For once—
everyone agreed on something.
The device sitting on the table might become one of the most valuable things the Blue Scarf crew possessed.
Saito was still staring at the device.
The more Alya explained it—
the more impressed he became.
Then another question came to mind.
"What else can it do?"
Alya immediately perked up.
"It can also detect auris."
Kaito raised an eyebrow.
"Well..."
"Some people can already sense auris."
Alya nodded.
"I know."
Then she tapped another button on the side of the device.
The screen changed.
Several symbols appeared across it.
"But this helps people who can't."
Saito leaned closer.
"How far can it detect?"
Alya smiled.
"About two meters."
Saito's eyes widened.
"No way."
Alya nodded confidently.
"It can identify auris signatures nearby."
Kaito looked at the machine again.
Now more interested than before.
"Even I can only sense around a meter and a half consistently."
Alya nodded.
"Exactly."
"That's why I built it."
Bomb rubbed his chin.
"So if someone is hiding nearby..."
Alya pointed at the screen.
"It should notice them."
Rin whistled.
"That's actually useful."
"Very useful."
Saito nodded repeatedly.
"Imagine how many times this would've helped us."
Kaito thought back to:
ambushes
assassins
hidden enemies
Then slowly nodded.
"Quite a lot."
Alya smiled proudly.
The machine wasn't just a healing device.
It was becoming clear that she had built something far more versatile.
Something that could help the entire crew.
And judging from the way everyone was looking at it—
they were only beginning to discover what it could do.