I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

The gray-haired girl looked relaxed, and her words and small gestures naturally carried the air of a 'noble lady,' yet now, for some reason, she exuded an 'elegance' that made people's hearts burn with anger.

“When I first established the tutoring department, I said that it was a temporary club specifically set up for ‘special members with poor academic performance.’ It is necessary for students who ‘fail’ to achieve satisfactory grades.”

Facing the hesitant and helpless gazes of the representatives from other factions, Nagisa maintained her businesslike tone: "Since these tutoring members are still 'far' (one point away) from passing, then they shouldn't leave the tutoring club."

After casually and playfully expressing her "opinions," Nagisa, using her authority as the person in charge of the tea party, finally made a "final decision" on the fate of the tutoring department.

Therefore—the "final decision" regarding the tutoring department is to maintain its current status.

"The tutoring department can continue to exist. Furthermore, considering the outstanding performance of the members of the tutoring department in making significant progress as a whole, we may consider providing them with a larger club activity room, providing club funding, and registering and completing the necessary permissions for other regular clubs."

"The tutoring club will not be 'disbanded.' However, as a 'price', it will become a 'semi-closed club.' If a new member submits an application to join the club, Hifumi, as the club president, will conduct the initial review. Subsequently, the second review will be conducted directly at the tea party."

Nagisa's slightly infuriating way of speaking, deliberately emphasizing key words, left the representatives of the factions feeling powerless.

But since Nagisa was acting in accordance with the "basic rules of the Holy Trinity," they couldn't say anything.

Now, the tutoring department has become an "iron barrel" that is impossible to enter or leave, directly eliminating the possibility of them extending olive branches to these outstanding members, and also preventing them from bringing their own internal members into the tutoring department to build relationships from within.

After announcing the final fate of the tutoring department, Zhu's yellow eyes sharply swept across the conference room.

"Are there any other issues or comments to raise? If not, the meeting can be adjourned."

If it weren't for maintaining her "elegant demeanor as a noblewoman," Nagisa would probably already be standing with her arms crossed, head held high, displaying an expression that would infuriate outsiders, like a "victorious swan."

Although Nagisa didn't directly make such a mocking expression, her clear message, "Is there something you need? If not, you can all go back to where you came from," was enough to make the attendees outside the tea party members secretly clench their fists.

But what else can they say?

The tea party was conducted in a reasonable and compliant manner from beginning to end.

Those who were not part of the tea party left in silence, pushing open the door and departing.

Meanwhile, the tea party members began tidying up the various traces left in the meeting room.

……

The girls in the cram school were unaware of this 'confrontation' taking place in the shadows.

It wasn't until evening that Amamiya received a MomoTalk message from Nagisa. After confirming with Nagisa several times, he announced the "final fate" of the tutoring club to the girls.

“It’s a pity…” Amamiya sighed softly, “Because everyone’s academic progress is slow… Nagisa, and the tea party have decided… to transform the tutoring club into a long-term formal club, granting it the various privileges and benefits (funding) that a regular club should have, so that everyone can work hard in the long term.”

As Amamiya spoke, he couldn't help but laugh. He looked at Hifumi and continued, "Hifumi, continuing as the head of the cram school club to 'supervise' the members' studies... is that alright?"

Hifumi smiled gently and replied immediately, "No problem!"

Having achieved this expected "perfect ending," the girl couldn't help but feel a sense of emotion.

The tutors in the cram school... initially gathered together because of Nagisa-sama's suspicions.

In the end, however... he became the most trusted force in Nagisa, an incredibly solid power, and became the "ace" of the entire Trinity region.

At first, everyone was distant because of suspicion surrounding the tutoring center that had been established...

Now, everyone considers the tutoring center their real 'home' and doesn't want to leave no matter what.

They came together out of doubt... and then became an impregnable barrier against the outside world.

Fate... it really is a strange thing.

Amamiya's gaze swept over Hanako, Koharu, and Azusa: "Is everyone alright?"

Hanako twirled the technical pen in her hand, smiling with her eyes narrowed.

Zi's ​​light purple eyes were clear and bright, and the pair of pure white wings behind her, with various small flowers adorning the inner wing, fluttered behind her.

Xiaochun showed a very brief expression of 'reluctance'.

"No problem!"×3

"So... the 'follow-up handling' of the tutoring department can be considered to be over."

At this point, amidst the girls' jubilation, Amamiya announced another important piece of news: "Therefore... having completed my 'mission,' I will be packing my things and returning to Charlemagne starting today—I will no longer be living here at Trinity."

The girls, who had been happy for only a few seconds, immediately showed their disappointment again.

"Hey?!"

"Although I can understand... Sensei's departure is still a bit..."

"I'll go to Xia Lai to find Sensei later."

“I believe Sensei is not the kind of person who would ‘start something and then abandon it’…”

After giving Hanako a glare for using such a nonsensical adjective, Amamiya continued, "Don't worry, I'll still spend time with everyone whenever I have free time."

After bidding farewell to the girls at dusk, Amamiya picked up his pre-packed suitcase and hurried onto the train back to Charleigh as the sun set.

The matter concerning Trinity is temporarily concluded.

'Next, we should consider…'

'The follow-up arrangements are as follows.'

Chapter Four: A Thousand Years: What Does a Ruthless Tabloid Reporter Even Mean?!

Back in Xialai, after settling my luggage from Trinity, it was already night.

"If things go as expected, there will be a relatively long period of rest and recuperation... Let's think about what to do..."

Sitting on her familiar bed, Amamiya gazed at the night sky outside the window and pondered for a moment.

As we all know, life is not just about the present hardships, but also about poetry and the distant wilderness.

—The Phantom Thieves don't work "all year round." After each raid on a palace, the Phantom Thieves will have a rest period that is neither too long nor too short.

Amamiya, having dealt with so many incidents, finally got a break.

What should we do next?

How about starting a hot spring trip with a seminar?

Or... should we look forward to the possibility of a swimsuit?

'...'

"Now that things have come to this, let's see if there's any news to be dealt with tonight."

Amamiya gathered her scattered thoughts, opened her momotalk app on her phone, and checked her messages.

[Makoto: As expected of the "Phantom Thief of Hearts"...Sensei, I'm becoming more and more interested in you.]

[Makoto: Want to talk?]

'...'

[Chiaki: Sensei, may I interview you about the "Eden Treaty incident"?]

'...'

Hina: Sensei, the "tree" we saw that day...

'...'

[Iori: I'd like to talk to Sensei about what happened a while ago...]

'...'

[Iroha: Sensei, Ibuki seems to be starting to get interested in things related to 'another world'. If she asks, be careful what you say.]

[Iroha: Also, can we talk about something...?]

Looking around, all I could see were evening invitations from Gehenna's students.

Scrolling down, Amamiya can see quite a few invitations from Trinity—however, Amamiya has just returned from Trinity, and it seems a bit inappropriate for him to immediately turn around and deal with invitations from Trinity.

After scanning through all the invitations sent today, Amamiya finally turned her attention to the interview message sent by Chiaki.

When Amamiya first saw this peculiar girl with the keen intuition and sense of smell of a journalist at the Pandemonium headquarters, he thought of a journalist he knew before—[Otaku Ichiko].

Leaving aside whether the other party possesses the same relentless pursuit of the "behind-the-scenes truth" as the mansion, just considering her status as the Pandemonium's scribe and her control over the "Weekly Pandemonium," a key media outlet that directly influences the "public image" of the Gehenna region...

Amamiya believes that, regardless of interpersonal preferences, even from a purely interest-based perspective, the value of a lasting relationship is extremely high.

Morgana had previously stated that "positive reporting by journalists on the Phantom Thieves helps the Phantom Thieves' activities in the other world."

This principle also applies to Shibuya in Tokyo.

This approach would certainly also apply to the present-day Academy City of Gewatos.

If I can form a bond with Chiaki, my 'information channels' will be expanded, and it will also make it easier to move around in the other world...

After pondering this, Amamiya finally replied to Chiaki's message: [Interview? When?]

Perhaps due to the timeliness inherent in journalists, Qianqiu responded almost immediately.

[Chiaki: I'm available anytime~ It mainly depends on whether Sensei has time.]

[Chiaki: If Sensei has time now, you can come to Gerhena right now~]

After a moment's consideration, Amamiya replied: "Then I'll head over now."

[Chiaki: [Coordinates] Sensei, come here when you get to Ghena~ This is a 24-hour café on the outskirts of the academy. It's usually frequented by students from the academy, so there shouldn't be many people here at this time. It's a perfect location for an interview!]

Seeing the coordinates sent out by the other party as if it had been premeditated, Amamiya had a vague sense of unease rising in her heart.

Back then, although Ichiko Oya was very interested in the "rumors of the phantom thief"... her sources for obtaining news were relatively legitimate; at least she would ask the interviewee's opinion before conducting an interview.

Compared to the highly professional Da Zhai, Qian Qiu wouldn't be the kind of "unscrupulous tabloid reporter" who carries a hidden camera and uses the techniques of selective editing and quoting from journalism to the fullest extent, would he?

After all, he's the author of "Weekly Pandemonium," so he shouldn't be that outrageous...

Even so, Amamiya decided to take precautions.

After making some preparations, Amamiya boarded the evening train to Ghena.

……

Bullet marks still visible on the corridor walls, the sound of explosions echoing from the street…

As soon as he got off the bus, Amamiya was slightly taken aback by Gehenna's 'simple' style.

This academy, renowned for its chaotic aesthetics, is never short of disputes, both big and small.

This wasn't Amamiya's first time at this academy; he was used to it. Ignoring the sounds of gunfire in the distance, he followed his phone's navigation, heading straight for the location marked with coordinates sent by Chiaki.

As Qianqiu said, the coordinates are a neoclassical building that looks a bit like a tavern, with dim yellow lights shining in the night.

When Amamiya arrived, the black-haired girl, who was giving herself a final touch-up under the light shining through the floor-to-ceiling windows, seemed to have been waiting for a long time.

She had a red SLR camera hanging around her neck, and next to her was an equipment box that looked like it was for holding interview equipment. Bathed in the light from the floor-to-ceiling windows, she tidied her slightly messy sideburns near the devilish horns on her head.

'Hurry, hurry...dress yourself up to look like you're on a private date, so that if the angle is right...'

'The drone used for filming has already been launched, so...'

From afar, Amamiya, with his exceptional hearing honed from his time as a phantom thief, overheard the girl's mutterings of "big news."

Amamiya quietly approached the girl from behind and asked softly, "Do you need my help?"

"Ah, thank you very much, Sensei..." The girl facing the reflection in the shop window responded subconsciously at first, then suddenly realized something was wrong and stopped abruptly, "Sen, Sensei?!"

A flicker of surprise flashed in the girl's crimson eyes: "Sen, Sensei...when did you arrive?"

"I just came here not long ago."

Amamiya maintained her 'expressionless' face: "Chiaki-kun... I think I just heard you talking about me?"

Chiaki's expression, which had just eased, froze again: "Ahahaha..."

She chuckled dryly and slowly turned around, meeting Amamiya's gaze at close range as he stood nearby.

"That, that..."

Perhaps it was because Amamiya's expressionless and silent demeanor was so oppressive that Chiaki, who was already feeling somewhat guilty, gradually couldn't take it anymore.

She took a half-step back, pressing her body against the floor-to-ceiling windows of the cafe: "Sensei... I was just..."

Amamiya interrupted her self-justification with a teasing tone: "Are those unscrupulous tabloid reporters plotting how to create a big news story?"

Qianqiu: "..."

Her gaze darted left and right, then the girl suddenly became assertive: "Not some unscrupulous tabloid reporter, it's, it's..."