Chapter 56

The cell door clanged shut.

"Hey, hey, what’s going to happen to me?"

"…Well, who knows. If you tell us everything, maybe we won’t treat you too badly."

As the tanned man, handcuffed, pressed against the barred iron gate, Oda replied.

"I did talk! I told you everything!"

"Even so, what you did is unforgivable. You might be lying, and at the very least, we can’t let you go free."

"I’m sorry! It was just a moment of madness! I, I didn’t lie!"

Ignoring the man’s words, Oda entrusted the rest to his subordinates and walked towards the room’s door.

"Ah…"

Before I followed, I glanced at the man, who let out a small, pitiful cry.

Leaving the holding cell, we moved to Oda’s room.

"…Mr. Yanagi, I’m really sorry."

As soon as we entered the room, Oda bowed deeply to me.

This was already the umpteenth apology, so I placed my hand on Oda’s shoulder.

"Everyone was focused on recovering the car, so it couldn’t be helped. Besides, it didn’t turn out to be a big deal in the end."

I couldn’t really say to Kaede that it wasn’t a big deal, but in reality, it was a matter of life and death. If it only ended with a bit of fondling, it was a cheap price to pay.

…No, that’s not a good way to put it.

Moreover, I had my faults too.

It was a convenient time to do something while everyone was focused on gathering food, and I hadn’t clearly communicated this to Oda in advance.

I should have been stricter with Yuki and Kaede as well.

Yuki was hugging Kaede and apologizing, crying.

Both of them seemed to have relaxed after hearing that I had safely boarded the car.

"Well, it’s a bit too much to ask Kaede to say it herself. I’ll tell her for you."

"Mr. Yanagi…"

Oda and his team had already apologized to Kaede, but they still felt it wasn’t enough.

However, bringing it up again would only remind her, which wasn’t the intention.

Sitting on the sofa, I opened my mouth.

"…So, what did he say?"

"Ah, yeah. About that…"

Before putting him in the holding cell, Oda and the police officers had thoroughly interrogated the man in the interrogation room.

According to Oda, the man had sneaked out while the evacuees were gathering in the garage and on the roof, and had been rummaging through other evacuees’ belongings.

The multi-tool knife he was using was apparently taken from there.

His original purpose for rummaging through the belongings was to get a radio.

He needed it to communicate with his comrades outside.

The radio in his backpack was also brought for that purpose.

The reason he came here was to gather information on the police station’s activities.

A week ago, he saw a helicopter flying in the area and thought we might leave the police station. If we did, he planned to loot the weapons.

However, since we didn’t leave, he was sent in out of frustration.

He planned to attack directly when we were thinly spread out due to food gathering.

The man claimed he was a low-ranking member and was sent here almost forcibly.

If the helicopter had come, he would have been protected by the Self-Defense Forces, which was a natural assumption.

For him, being protected immediately might have been fine.

But that didn’t happen, and with the radio taken away, he couldn’t contact anyone outside. He was in a desperate situation.

When Kaede noticed his suspicious behavior, he snapped.

However, we learned that he had comrades, but not the location of their hideout.

Apparently, they moved around frequently and couldn’t be located unless they communicated with the outside.

Even when they did communicate, it wasn’t always possible, and someone wasn’t always nearby.

"…I see."

"The next food gathering will be even more complicated since we need to find a new location."

"Yeah…"

I nodded as Oda, frowning, folded his arms.

After discussing the recovery of my car and the supplies, and receiving more thanks, I left Oda’s room.

…Still, so he didn’t reveal the lookout or the hideout’s location, just as I asked.

I had suspected as much from his reaction in the holding cell. It seems the fear of me still dominates his mind.

The skill "Intimidation."

A skill that instills fear in the target, rendering them unable to act.

It’s what I used to help Kaede.

At that time, I first confirmed that Kaede’s gaze was completely gone using "Gaze Perception," then applied a light "Intimidation" to the man and approached him using the high-speed movement technique called "Flash Step."

To the man, it probably looked like I had disappeared.

It was fortunate that Kaede closed her eyes as I asked. Even if she hadn’t, I would have done it anyway.

After that, I used "Intimidation" again, leveraging his fear to make him spill everything I wanted to know.

I considered making him talk later, but thought it would be better to resolve everything on the spot to avoid worrying Oda and his team.

I also learned that the lookout was one of his comrades and got the location of the hideout.

If Oda and his team had known these two pieces of information, I couldn’t predict what actions they would have taken, so I secretly told the man not to talk to anyone else about it.

Of course, not to talk about me either.

I whispered in his ear, but Kaede might have heard everything except the last two things.

However, she probably wouldn’t compare my conversation with the man to what Oda said.

Especially not in her current state after being attacked.

Even if she did so later when she was more composed, it wouldn’t be a problem.

Because I will resolve everything related to them by tonight.