“Now stopping, Kintetsu Station.”

They exited the station into a city much busier than Kashiwara. The sound of footsteps and cars filled their ears and large boards with advertisements caught their eyes. Beside the station was a shopping district that Ibuki tried to sneak away to until Mikael grabbed her by her backpack. Just standing around the station made them feel like they were in a mini Osaka but that would change as they travel further outside the city.

They walked on a small road covered with autumn leaves and overgrown trees beginning to cover the concrete wall on their right. Mikael had the map and was leading the group to a shrine far and hidden behind the forest outside the city. It wasn't a shrine as big as Kasuga-taisha, but it was well known for--

"Mikael look out!" Mary shouted.

Mikael lowered his map then quickly jumped out of the way of a group of deer hurrying down the street. Hyde looked back at the deers then at Mikael "Did you get hit?"

"I don't think so." Mikael looked forward, "You'd think deers would avoid us."

Ibuki walked past him. "Think that exorcist knows we're here?"

Mikael slouched his shoulders and let out a sigh "Probably…"

They kept moving forward and eventually they passed the red gate and found the roof of the shrine hidden behind the trees far above on the hill beside them. The path they were on twisted and turned, a path much longer than the shrine they visited in Kyoto.

They stopped near the shrine where they saw 3 girls sitting out on the front porch. An older woman in a layered red and black kimono who the detectives presumed was their caretaker, and two rushès. The taller rushè with blue hair and cat ears was dressed in a uniform similar to the blue corps. She quickly stood ready with her hand resting on the handle on her longsword.

Mary gripped her knees "Let me catch my breath first."

Hyde dropped a sweat "You're that exhausted already?"

The trip was long and the steps were steeper than Kyoto’s shrine. For someone with Mary’s physique, it definitely wasn’t easy. Hyde looked at her with crossed arms.

“D-don’t stare!” she exclaimed.

Mikael stepped forward “We’re with the detective agency, Midare sent us here to look for a friend of hers.”

The woman wearing the layered kimono simply stared at him, looking at him from top to bottom before switching her gaze to the next guest and so on. After analyzing them by looks alone, she waved “Come closer.”

So Mikael took a step closer.

“Stop right there! Take another step towards the duke and I’ll cut you down without hesitation.” the blue haired knight said loudly. They were getting conflicting messages.

The woman in the layered kimono smirked, "You can ignore the guard dog, she isn't affiliated with me."

"I'm the sole guardian of the duke. I suggest you turn back now or face the consequences." The blue haired knights warned once more.

Hyde leaned to the side to get a glance at the duke. A young fox rushè almost the same height as Hoka. She had long light blue hair and almost pinkish eyes that were focused on the text of the book she was reading. Her tall fox ears twitched and once she noticed Hyde looking at her, she held up her book to hide her face. Yet all 9 of her tails wagged.

Unlike Hyde, Mary was at a loss on what to do. She hoped He would have a trick up his sleeve to calm the knight down.

"Guess you'll have to cut me down." Hyde began walking forward. Mary gasped, he always seemed to have a plan yet they were always so foolishly reckless.

"So be it." The blue haired knight was halfway through unsheathing her sword when suddenly the young girl behind her shouted for everyone to "STOOOOP!"

She pointed at her personal guardian. "Selena, I command you to stand down. Kaguya told us not to make a fuss while we are staying in Japan."

Selena turned around to bow at the girl. "I apologize but-"

"No buts! As my guardian knight you're supposed to display only humble behaviour. The people standing over there aren't looking to hurt me." The young rushè said.

Hyde grinned then ran his hand through his hair to hide his nervousness. He set his sights on the woman in the layered kimono "Who may you be?"

"Straight to the point, just like Midare." The woman stood up showing off the kimono's pattern of flowers that covered her legs completely. Her hair was a light color and reached down her back. Much like Midare, her eyes were red. A light rose color compared to Midare's ruby red. "I am Yukikari Inouye. I manage this shrine and dispel evil spirits."

Ibuki nodded slowly "I see… before we ask for anything, can you tell us about those two?" She looked at Selena and the young rushè.

Before Selena could respond with an overly formal explanation, Yukikari summed up their occupations. "The Duke of Kazan and her guardian."

Naturally the detectives were confused. Not of her royal title but the land she resided over as well as why she was in Japan. In short, Kazan was a place in Europe that was formerly apart of France, now the capital of Its own country, the Netherlands. It gained its independence after the war on dragons and this girl here was primarily the reason why France never attempted to take back the land.

She was a nine tails, one of the last few in the world. Her royal lineage was one of the closest to the goddess Leanne. This was a lot the detectives would have to research into later. As for the reason she was here? Yukikari was never given an explanation from Kaguya. But she had no problems with looking after them.

"We'll be in your care too." Mikael handed Yukikari a letter from Midare. She skimmed through it and nodded.

"So she's looking for a way to get rid of Morren. I'm afraid I don't have the power you seek." Yukikari replied.

"You're an exorcist r-right? Surely you have some kind of magic spell you can teach us." Mikael stammered.

Yukikari frowned "Unfortunately I do not. Magic that intends to harm cannot be counter by magic that intends to give life."

"So we came all this way for nothing…" Ibuki sighed.

The others shared the same disappointment looking at each other wondering if they should leave to report to Midare about their unsuccessful efforts to gain power. However Selena interjected,

"Individuals like Morren cause more harm to the world than the dragons. Magic isn't a representation of freedom like many believe it to be. I see no animosity in the detectives here."

Yukikari raised an eyebrow "Really? Because I see a lot of it. Midare is their teacher after all and she had unparalleled hatred." She chuckled quietly, "Fine, I'll teach them."

"I thought you said you didn't have any magic that would help us." Ibuki said.

Yukikari began to laugh at their naivety as detectives. "I lied. I thought you would catch on to it as detectives but It seems Midare is holding back on teaching you."

Mikael merely rubbed the back of his head "Ah…"

"Lying is our way of telling the truth." Yukikari held up the letter "Just like how this is a paper telling me that you've been fired."

"Now that's a lie." Hyde glared at her.

Yukikari smiled "Glad you catch on quickly."

The Duke of Kazan pouted at their fondness of lies and deceit. "Mmrrr… Why can't people just get along peacefully."

"Bonds are hardened through conflict. And speaking of bonds." Yukikari clapped her hands together. "An excellent way of gauging your bonds is with the baton touch skill. It's the act of transferring magic power to another to increase their strength temporarily."

The detectives placed their bags and suitcases aside. "Right here? Right now?"

"Gather magic into the palm of your hand and release with the gesture only close friends can truly understand, a high five." Yukikari added.

Hyde looked at his hand then at Mikael. "Let's do it Mikael."

"Timing..!" Mikael prepared his hand.

The two boys rushed at each other and shared the hardest high five they could muster with a loud clap echoing in the sky. Hyde's hand was red and he aimed it high "L'eclair!"

A flash of thick lightning shot out before the sound followed. A loud boom that made even Yukikari jump. The Duke of Kazan was holding onto Selena tightly but even the knight was shook down to the bone.

Yukikari nervously laughed, "That's a particularly strong bond."

Mary frowned, "I wish someone had that kind of bond with me."

Ibuki grabbed Mary's hand "We can do an even stronger spell together. Let's try-"

Yukikari placed her hands on Ibuki's shoulders "That's enough for today. You still have a lot to unpack so I suggest you do that before it gets too late."

She helped the detectives with unpacking and showed her guests their rooms. The shrine had a secondary building that served as their living quarters.

The next day, the city was met with the unpleasant sight of heavy rain. A light storm was approaching and it was a sign of bad times to come. Yukikari stumbled upon Mikael standing outside on the porch looking up at the grey skies. "You're awake early." She commented.

"Early bird gets the worm! As they say." Mikael shrugged, "This rain makes me uneasy. I can't help but feel that I need to stay on my toes."

"So you're the stiff one of the group." Yukikari hid her smirk behind her sleeve. She looked out towards the rain "Stiff, just like this rain…"

"Err… What's that supposed to mean?" Mikael questioned.

Yukikari giggled "Just my musings."

She dug in her sleeve and took out a folded paper. "Since you're in my care you might as well put some of my teachings to good use. Lately there have been strange sightings of a mysterious person going around stealing special weapons. Some think it's an evil spirit out to get them but It's clear as day that Soap is the one responsible."

Mikael took the paper and read it to himself before responding. "We believe he's taking the special weapons to keep us from getting them first. Without that power it'll be near impossible to beat him and Morren."

"Indeed. I only have so many tools that can assist you in your efforts." Yukikari patted his back "Don't stress over it too much. The magic shop that needs your help is in the shopping district near the station."

Mikael nodded and walked off to wake up the others.

────── 〔✿〕──────

The magic shop the detectives arrived at was known for having real magic artifacts unlike others which scammed many people out of their cash. This shop also was a pawn shop and often was given special weapons as a donation to expand their collection and to preserve history.

Mary was the last to enter the building, taking off her yellow rain hood. The shop was spacious with special weapons kept in a hard glass case by the shopkeeper's counter and magic trinkets and other goods were placed around the middle of the shop. Unlike the others, Hyde was drawn to a rack of uniquely designed talismans. Their appearance fooled many to believe they possessed magic properties. They didn't.

"Who may you be?" The middle aged shopkeeper asked.

Mikael took out his badge "Detectives from the agency. We’re here in place of Yukikari. You contacted her about a stolen special weapon?"

"Ah…" The shopkkeper frowned "I was expecting the shrine maiden, not some children…"

Mikael returned the badge to his pocket. "We're just as capable as her. So tell us about this stolen weapon."

"Ah yes." The shopkeeper nervously said. "This special weapon was unlike any other. When I held it, its power almost overwhelmed me…."

He talked about a scythe named Frazzle. A weapon with unbelievable power, so much that even someone who couldn't use magic could use it to half of its full potential. It worried the man that the special weapon had fallen into the hands of a thief. Someone with that power could be unstoppable.

The shopkeeper looked at Hyde who was occupied looking at the various trinkets. "You look like you're interested in buying one of my wares. Unfortunately they do not possess real magical properties."

Hyde nodded and turned to face the group. "I know. They just looked interesting. So what leads can you give us?"

"I had footage of the incident. It happened at midnight, a boy and what seemed like a younger child entered. The younger child pointed to where my secret storage was and after that, the boy found the camera and destroyed it." The man looked at the destroyed camera on the wall corner of the room. He continued, "The footage was very blurry but I could make out what the boy was wearing. It looked like a school uniform."

There was only one person who fit that description…

"So that's where he disappeared to." Mikael rubbed his chin. "I wonder if Noble Third knows more about his whereabouts."

"Ah… Noble Third." The man sighed "They're ill prepared to handle something on that scale. I would have called them to help me, but they ignore requests relating to magic. I believe they’re in town at the police department down the street.”

There was a low chance Noble Third would exchange info with them. If that was the outcome then they had a few tricks they could use to get that information in other ways.

"We'll be on a smooth snail to solve this mystery!" Mary said cheerfully.

"Not you too." Mikael dropped a sweat.

The next place they had to investigate was Noble Third's office. They had to maneuver around the crowded sidewalks of the town to find their building.

A building at the street corner was where Noble Third's offices were located. How did they know? It was because they co-opted a police station and a sign near the door read 'Noble Third detectives taking investigation requests' . It seemed they were freelance investigators yet still, their employer was a mystery.

They entered and were met with a dull looking small interior. The place reeked with monochromatic black and white film and an unengaging stiff lounge room where many people were sitting on the couch across from the counter waiting for a response back from Noble Third. It was the kind of thing seen in hospital lobbies. It’s professionalism was both clean and simple yet boring to be around.

"It's obvious they won't help us directly. We'll have to steal the information ourselves." Hyde said to the group.

"Eh?! Well… I guess you're right." Ibuki replied. "I don't know how we're supposed to do that."

"I think I got a way of sneaking in." Mary said.

Mikael dropped a sweat "I'm surprised you're all on board with this idea. I expected Mary to start scolding us hahaha."

Mary pouted "Now I want to. But we have to focus on getting that weapon and Oscar. We can't afford to mess up again."

Mary explained to them the techniques Midare taught her and wanted to use those skills now. She would be the one to search and read their documents while Hyde, Mikael and Ibuki distracted the others. Mary took out a white cloth and gave Hyde her raincoat. She placed the white cloth on like a ghost costume and vanished from sight. Transparent to magic users but invisible to the naked eye.

Mary split from the group while they went to the counter.

Mary carefully watched each step climbing the stairs so as to not make a single sound. None in view may have concealed her appearance but not the sound she made.

She moved like a swift shadow from door to door. Unfortunately she couldn't take the risk of opening one as it would reveal her position to the two officers talking in the hall. She had to wait but not for too long as Kamui opened the door to leave his office. Mary moved like the wind and gently placed her hand on the door just before it closed, entering before closing it.

"Whew…" she took off the white cloth and looked around. Kamui's office was much cleaner than Midare's but their desks were the same. Cluttered with papers and documents about the cases they took.

Mary shifted through the papers looking for documents relating to their cases. Oscar, Morren, special weapons, anything that gave them an edge in solving the mysteries. What she found was information that was too detailed.

Reports of Oscar's location, documents of every special weapon stolen and their abilities, and very little information relating to Morren. It didn't make sense why Morren wasn't their priority after they were sent a body part. Then a knock on the door nearly made Mary have a heart attack.

She put the white cloth back on and darted for the corner of the room, standing as still as a lamp. The pink haired girl who doubled as a special weapon entered. Her hair was in short twintails and she was dressed in a pink and white outfit that Mary described as a 'magical girl' outfit. What was eye catching was her arm cast and bruised cheek.

"Jeez… our clients are so annoying. Where is that stupid case..?" The girl rummaged through the papers before taking one out and when she turned around, Mary's heart tightened. She held her breath praying not to be seen.

"..." the girl rubbed her eyes, "I must be imagining things." She left, but not before dropping a folded note with very specific instructions. Mary picked it up, and what was written on the outside was 'open after fortune telling' . Mary sighed, there was no hiding from a being of pure magic. Nonetheless, she took some of Kamui's documents and left the room.

In the lobby, the secretary behind the counter was in a heated argument with the detectives about their uninvited arrival. Then they were approached by the three members of Noble Third.

Hyde smirked, "It's Kamui and the kids." he said playfully.

"Leave. Now." Shiki's tone was dark. Noble Third was the complete opposite of the novice detective's light nature.

Hyde couldn't help but chuckle "Come on, Orange you glad to see us?"

"Now I feel like punching you." Ibuki commented.

"Did Midare send you? I should arrange a meeting with her." Kamui said out loud. Lloyd laughed "I kinda like these guys. They seem fun to be around."

"Right? Right Shiki? Kamui?" Hyde gently nudged her.

"I don't know you."

"How could you not? We're quite famous just like you. Haven't you read about us in the papers?" Mikael asked.

"The newspapers tell us how much of a failure you are." Shiki replied with some emotion in her tone. Enough to made Mikael go "Huh?"

Hyde felt someone brush against his back, a signal. He yawned and turned around "We just came to visit to see how our rivals were doing. We gotta go now." He left in an awkward hurry.

Ibuki and Mikael apologized for their inconvenience and left the building and returned to the pawn shop to discuss their findings.

The storm grew harsh…

Mary laid the documents she found on the counter. "Noble Third decided to uh, give us some of their work."

The man nodded looking at the papers "I see… I guess it's because you have a common enemy."

"Something like that…" Ibuki frowned. She caught a glimpse of a document detailing Oscar's ability to detect magical artifacts and special weapons. It explained how the boy was being used to steal special weapons from all over Osaka and how the person using him wanted to get Hoka as soon as possible. It read like a plan. They were going to use the special weapons stolen to kill Yamiko and take Hoka by force.

"Kamui figured this all out by himself?" Ibuki was shocked. Had Midare been slacking off or deep digging to piece together everything like this?

"I don't know what to think of it." Mary shrugged.

"It looks like he was keeping track of Nakata's movements. Look at this," Hyde pointed to a section that was written about a special weapon hidden in an old museum. Inversely the detective agency had 4 special weapons of their own.

"What? I know we have two lances but what are the other two?" Mikael questioned.

"My sister uses a special weapon called liberate weapon, or liberation. I'm not sure what the 4th one is." Ibuki answered. She said to ask Midare about it later.

"The weapon in the museum…" The man sighed "The owner wanted to give it to me for safe keeping but I knew it was better off hidden there."

"At least we know he'll be heading there next. Let's hurry." Hyde was about to rush off until the shopkeeper called his name. He held out a necklace with a small golden sun medal attached to it. "I know my wares are fake but I wanted you to have this. My most prized necklace. I made up a story that it wards off bad luck but that was just to draw interest to my shop."

Hyde took the necklace. "Thanks. It may be fake but I'll believe in its power."

"How despicable…" Ibuki muttered, upset at the shopkeeper's underhanded methods of getting money. The detectives had to hurry to a museum on the city outskirts.