I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

Amamiya had already contacted Nico long before making the decision to use the Fox Squad as the key to breaking Hanaya's defenses.

Nicole has already responded to the message that was sent out ahead of time.

[Nicole: Sensei means... because we need to 'conquer the Hall of Fame,' we need to 'date' a member of the Fox team and get Hanaya's attention...]

[Nicole: And the best target for this 'date' is me...?]

Nicole: Something feels a little strange...

Nicole: But since it's all about conquering the Hall of Fame...

Nicole: Understood. I will cooperate with Sensei and be ready to respond to Sensei's requests whenever possible.

Nicole is all set, so how does she get Hana's attention?

After all, no matter how much the fact that he was dating the vice-captain of the Fox team affected Hanaya... first of all, this matter had to catch Hanaya's eye before it could arouse her vigilance.

Amamiya quickly came up with a 'reason' that could reasonably arouse Hanaya's vigilance and attention.

Since the last Federal Student Council meeting ended and a series of actions against Valkyrie began, Ye Zhu, as the director, was suspended from his duties and imprisoned in a 'detention center' with security measures at the same level as those for the Seven Prisoners, directly under the jurisdiction of the Federal Student Council.

This might be a bit of a disaster for the bureau chief...

But thinking about how he himself had suffered similar torment because of being a 'tainted witness', Amamiya felt not condescending pity for the chief's recent experiences, but rather a sense of shared suffering.

Without a doubt... Ye Zhu is now a 'prominent figure' being watched by many eyes.

Even if I hadn't experienced the same kind of abuse I suffered at the hands of the Special Investigation Department, it probably wouldn't have been much better.

Visiting Ye Zhu would undoubtedly be a good opportunity to immediately attract Hua Ye's attention or even alert her.

After all, Hua Ye is currently in danger, which means she's bound to be sensitive enough to get angry and lose her temper at the slightest provocation.

Having made his decision, Amamiya took out the Shittei no Kita and first confirmed tomorrow's schedule with Alona.

"To be honest, it has been several days since Ye Zhu was put into the detention center."

"It's time to visit Ye Zhu."

Chapter Twenty-Five: Hua Ye is ill, Ye Zhu, you should strive harder.

If you were to ask Amamiya to list several places she would never want to go back to again in her life... then the detention center would definitely be at the top of the list.

There is no other reason.

The detention center... this place is truly heartbreaking for Amamiya's 'growth experience' as a phantom thief.

Here, Amamiya experienced the repeated torment of the glaringly bright chandelier overhead for hours on end.

Here, Amamiya also experienced what 'truth serum' meant and what reasonable surveillance of the judicial process meant.

Here, Amamiya narrowly escaped an assassination attempt by the 'Great Detective'.

After quickly recalling her experiences in the detention center, Amamiya rubbed her temples and adjusted her breathing slightly.

Maintaining a calm expression, he greeted a member of the Federal Student Council's defense office who was in charge of guarding the area.

The person in charge of maintaining order at the detention center today is a girl with long, light blue hair who bears a certain resemblance to Alona, ​​except that she doesn't have any internal highlights.

"Let me double-check..."

Taking the form Amamiya filled out, the girl quickly scanned it and asked 'casually', "Sensei, the person you chose to visit is... the Valkyrie Police Chief, who has been temporarily 'detained' recently for various reasons?"

"Ah."

Because her impression of the detention center, especially the interrogation room, was not good, Amamiya subconsciously straightened her back and sat upright.

"Any questions?"

“It’s not that there’s a problem… According to the Federal Student Union’s visitation standards and rules, Director Ye Zhu shouldn’t have been granted visitation permission in the first place…”

"But who made you, Sensei of Charlemagne?"

The girl tilted her head back and flicked her hair, giving a helpless, bitter smile: "I have someone above me, but you don't have anyone above you."

After making a self-deprecating remark, she picked up her special pen without any hesitation and signed her name as a "guard" on the "permission to visit" form.

Amamiya said apologetically, "I'm sorry to have put you in such a difficult position."

"Do not……"

The girl slowly shook her head, and replied with a faint smile that said, "It's not so bad after all," "I should thank you."

……grateful?

Amamiya raised an eyebrow and took another look at the girl in front of her, whose skin was delicate, whose overall clothing style was light blue, and whose facial features were somewhat similar to those of the 'Tearful Elegy Clan'.

She was... one of the dozen or so shadows from other worlds that she herself had released during the previous exploration of the Hall?

The doubt vanished in an instant, and Amamiya nodded knowingly.

The girl clasped her hands together and whispered, "Thank you, Sensei, for freeing me from the quagmire of 'difficulty in making a decision'..."

His eyes were gentle and deep, and his gaze toward Amamiya was filled with nothing but admiration and unwavering tenderness.

“I can clearly feel... my ‘heart’ has been changed.”

"From the moment I dreamt of the phantom thief, wearing a mask and backlit, rescuing me from my cage, I knew that I had received the phantom thief's...redemption."

"It was the phantom thief who solidified my resolve not to sink deeper into the mud or get stained with dirt again."

After letting out a soft breath, the girl's voice was as clear as a spring as she thanked her again in a gentle tone: "...Thank you."

There's really no need to be so formal...

But since the other party was being so serious, Amamiya felt too embarrassed to correct them.

After nodding to the girl, Amamiya watched her begin organizing the folders.

As if remembering something, she paused, and asked somewhat awkwardly, "Regarding this 'visit'... Sensei, would you mind if I reported it to Chief Hanaya?"

—The meaning is quite obvious.

"Of course we have to report it to Huaye; it's part of the plan."

Is this some part of the 'Heart Stealing Plan'...?

Although I'm not eligible to participate, I'm still really looking forward to it.

The girl nodded knowingly, gathered all the documents, and got up to leave.

"I will summon the person I am visiting immediately..."

The footsteps faded into the distance, and Amamiya sat by the viewing window and waited for a short while.

The problems exposed in the defense room have plunged the already struggling Federal Student Union into a quagmire, as it has been affected by the 'audit'.

The already scarce manpower is now even more insufficient, which is why it is easy for Amamiya to lie about or conceal her 'visit' requests.

But the purpose of this trip was simply to let Huaye know... so there's no real reason why we had to do it.

After waiting for a short while in front of a glass window with a circular opening, Amamiya heard footsteps approaching from afar.

The door clicked open, and the blonde girl with animal ears, who had lost some of her dashing spirit and gained a more decadent air despite only being gone for a few days, walked into the visiting room with her eyes half-lowered and sat down on another chair that was separated from Amamiya by only a glass partition.

"Sensei..."

After a moment of slight confusion, Ye Zhu composed himself, sighed softly, and greeted us wearily, "Good morning."

"Good morning……"

Through the glass, Amamiya sized up Ye Zhu, who, although slightly 'dejected,' was clearly several levels better in spirit and energy.

"Chief, how have you been doing in the detention center?"

"I haven't been mistreated at all, and no one from Hanaya came to visit me or urge me to 'retract my confession and plead guilty as soon as possible'," Hanazawa replied calmly, knowing what Amamiya was asking. "But I basically have nothing to do, I'm very idle..."

"For Ye Zhu, having some free time now and then should be considered a good thing, right?"

【~???~】(Ye Zhu)

Hearing that Amamiya's words, though seemingly teasing, were actually words of concern, Ye Zhu, with his animal ears drooping, didn't know how to respond.

"……maybe."

After a moment of silence, she said softly.

Ye Zhu glanced discreetly at the two-way camera peering into the room, opened his mouth as if to say something, but swallowed it back, instead looking at Amamiya with a silent expression.

'Sensei... is there anything else I can do to help you with this visit?'

Amamiya shook her head slightly: 'Yanagi just needs to cooperate and squat for a little longer.'

Ye Zhu breathed a slight sigh of relief.

She kept her head down and remained silent until Amamiya spoke.

It seems... this 'storm' should be over soon.

I just don't know what direction Valkyrie will take if she gets reinstated...

The "justice" in one's own heart...

Because of a hundred good deeds, one is forced to bear a sin... Can such a sin and a hundred good deeds truly be balanced?

With nothing to do, Ye Zhu began to have the time and energy to think about these philosophical thoughts that he himself would have thought were meaningless.

To uphold the justice in my heart and restore Valkyrie to its original state, all I need to do is work harder... Is that really all it takes?

Seeing the worry in Ye Zhu's eyes, Amamiya paused for a moment, then tapped on the table of the viewing window, interrupting Ye Zhu's solitary thoughts.

"What is Director Ye Zhu thinking? What is the weight of good and evil?"

“Experiencing philosophical thoughts that adults don’t even have time for at such a young age is not a sign of ‘good mental state’.”

"When I have free time, I can't help but think about these 'philosophical' questions."

Ye Zhu let out a soft nasal sound, conveying a sense of helplessness, as if there was nothing she could do about it.

"Ye Zhu is on the right path."

Looking at Ye Zhu and the interior environment behind her, Amamiya said confidently, "Although saying this might sound like 'what do outsiders know,' I still have to say it..."

"Ye Zhu's current beliefs are beyond question; they are correct and clear."

"Good cannot be simply added together, and good and evil cannot be simply canceled out."

Ye Zhu sighed, "But, standing in such a position..."

Amamiya interrupted her with a sharp gaze and a chilling aura: "Ye Zhu... if you feel 'powerless' in the current situation, then you can try to obtain stronger power."

Even greater power...?

"If Ye Zhu were given the position of head of the defense office of the Federation Student Union... do you think you would do a better job?"

Ye Zhu was taken aback by Amamiya's sudden sharp aura and straightforward question.

She paused, then subconsciously glanced at the surveillance camera again.

After hesitating for a moment, she waved her hand with a clear understanding of herself: "I can't pull off those office routines."

Ye Zhu was somewhat confused as to why Amamiya would suddenly ask such a 'bold' question without any reason.

But she could realize that this might be an opportunity specially prepared for her, one that she needed to seize.

So after realizing that she wasn't good at office-related things, she earnestly said, "But if I can only do it a little better... I should be able to."

—Just by doing better than Huaye, it should be quite easy for her to select some excellent 'team members' from Valkyrie and train them.

"Ah."

Amamiya smiled and nodded: "I understand Ye Zhu's intentions."

[I sensed the change in Ye Zhu's emotions...]

[COOP Improvement!]

【Oojima Haguru (Emperor) ★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆】

After a brief exchange of glances, Amamiya stood up, ending the visit.

"Afterwards... I will prepare an opportunity for Ye Zhu to 'practice the justice in his heart'."

Chapter Twenty-Six Nico: I'm sorry, Yukino