If it were possible, Raiden Ryoma would have preferred that no one had come to rescue him today. He would have rather remained in his solitary confinement cell, worrying about the future direction of Anti-Entropy, awaiting rescue from his organization, and contemplating how to recover his influence.
However, reality was always cruel.
The handsome youth stood before him, pointing at the prison guard who was clearly under his control, and said,
"The surveillance in this prison has already been hacked by my assistant, and I've also placed a suggestion on the prison guards, making them temporarily forget your existence."
Without a doubt, this was an exceptionally outstanding young man. His appearance was impeccable, he possessed the exceedingly rare Natural Stigmata, had quite capable companions, and was remarkably polite towards his elders.
If they had met under different circumstances, Raiden Ryoma would absolutely have admired him greatly, perhaps sighing "the young are truly formidable," and wouldn't even have minded offering some assistance.
Unfortunately, this fellow hadn't appeared before Mr. Ryoma in the capacity of a "promising junior."
"Esteemed Father-in-law, Mei is still waiting for us outside. Shouldn't you be leaving soon?"
A remarkably clear voice sounded, not loud, its tone gentle. The inflection was quite pleasant, easily evoking images of a bright, clear sky.
But in Raiden Ryoma's perception, such a sound was tantamount to someone placing a bronze bell over his head and then striking it with a solid iron pipe.
Hadn't he only been locked up for two and a half months?
Hadn't Mei said she wanted to study hard and refuse to get into romantic relationships?
So, what was the deal with this guy!
His head was spinning, his brain felt like it was trembling, and his sanity was rapidly approaching zero.
Even when Cocolia had schemed him into prison, Raiden Ryoma's mood hadn't been this explosive.
"Does Esteemed Father-in-law feel that leaving so dejectedly would be a loss of face?"
The youth, whose relationship with Raiden Mei was merely that of an acquaintance, barely qualifying for the term "friend," spoke with great sincerity.
"If that's the case, I can spend some time reaching a consensus with the tribunal and the jury to grant you your innocence."
"If you truly cannot swallow this bitter pill of being framed, I am also willing to try and infiltrate your adversary's location and silence him permanently."
This was not good.
Sensing the humility in those words, and the eagerness to display his capabilities, Raiden Ryoma's heart was truly in turmoil.
To be so overly attentive for no reason, one must be either a villain or a thief.
This little rascal was being so diligently attentive; to say he didn't want anything in return, who would believe that!
Fine beads of sweat seeped from Raiden Ryoma's forehead. This situation was far too unexpected.
Everyone had their weaknesses.
Otto Apocalypse's weakness was Kallen. Cocolia's weakness was the children in the orphanage. Bronya's weakness was Seele...
Clearly, the weakness of the doting father, Raiden Ryoma, was Raiden Mei.
Calm down, calm down.
Raiden Ryoma took a deep breath, then exhaled, repeating this process to pacify his emotions.
As Raiden Mei's father, he knew his daughter's personality very well.
Mei wasn't the type to fall for someone after only a short period of acquaintance.
Two and a half months was indeed not a short time, but it wasn't enough for this little brat before him to completely win her over.
"Do you have any proof that you and my daughter are in a romantic relationship?"
The man, whose reasoning faculties were probably as depleted as those of the Doctor from Donkey Island, stubbornly asked.
"89/62/90."
The youth, who, thanks to his magecraft, could flip through his own memories like pages in a book to find the information he desired, calmly recited a string of numbers.
"If I wasn't mistaken last night, Mei's measurements should be these."
The expression on Raiden Ryoma's face froze, like kiln-fired earth that had just been scorched by fire and hadn't yet been processed.
It was stiff to the point of being unsightly.
"You... lived together?"
As if squeezing toothpaste, Raiden Ryoma's voice forced its way through his gritted teeth.
"It was just for last night."
The youth, not lying, spoke with a sincere tone.
========Line Break========
"Hey, hey, hey, Ah Li, have you seen Mei?"
An hour after Raiden Ryoma was officially released from prison, such a voice came from the entrance of the dining hall.
The girl, who had clearly just had a hearty meal, was holding a toothpick and picking her teeth without a trace of a beautiful young lady's demeanor, looking around like a husky searching for its owner.
"She was taken away by Uncle Ryoma. He's probably asking her about her recent living situation,"
said the youth, who hadn't told a single lie throughout the entire ordeal, holding a note given to him by Raiden Ryoma. It contained contact information for Anti-Entropy's North American headquarters and Schicksal's Far East Branch.
Asking questions of his father-in-law in the capacity of a prospective son-in-law made getting answers quite simple.
"Do you have any relatives or friends you need to contact?"
"That Kiana girl seems to have been abandoned by her father. Do you know if she has any relatives?"
Questions like these, once asked, quickly yielded answers.
Uncle?
Miss Kiana's gaze sharpened instantly as she caught those two words.
"Hey, hey, hey, don't you think the term 'Uncle' is rather prone to causing misunderstandings?"
Without much hesitation, Miss Kiana walked over to Li Zihan's side, a "smile" on her face, and asked.
"Indeed, it might be. It's quite easy for people to associate it with 'father-in-law' or something similar."
After memorizing all the characters on the piece of paper, Li Zihan snapped his fingers.
Crimson flames rose, instantly engulfing the entire paper.
"Then don't you think you should change how you address him?"
The girl, who clearly didn't want to be, as it were, adopted into the Apocalypse family, coaxed persuasively.
"You don't need to be on guard against me. I don't have much interest in Raiden Mei."
The youth, whose current phase of tasks involved enhancing his own strength and establishing connections with Welt, Kevin, and Otto, tossed the paper ashes into the wind, letting them scatter.
"Until I possess a portion of my master's strength, I won't consider matters of love and romance."
"Eh?!"
The white-haired dango, completely surprised that Li Zihan had seen through her thoughts so easily, was so taken aback that, for a moment, she didn't even register the latter part of his sentence.
"You know I like Mei."
"Ever since Mei appeared, your IQ has taken a nosedive. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say you've practically given up thinking."
The youth, having already acquired the initial information he desired, stretched lazily and said.
"Whether you 'like' Mei or not, I'm not sure, but your level of dependence on her has become somewhat pathological."
"What do you mean, pathological!"
The girl, whose dependence on Raiden Mei was frighteningly high, retorted loudly.
"That's love! Not wanting to depend on the person you love, that's what's strange!"
"Perhaps."
Li Zihan glanced at the girl, whose sexual orientation was probably bent beyond straightening, and spoke ambiguously.
"Alright, next, we should contact your aunt."
"Aunt?"
The girl, whose only known relative was Siegfried, closed her mouth, merely chewing on this word that seemed to carry a kind of magic, making one want to feel close to it.
"Mm, yours and your sister's aunt," the youth said, gazing into the distance.