When Curator Tsugawa turned around with a face like a thundercloud, the elevator had already begun its descent.
He glared furiously at the changing floor numbers, then bolted for the stairs, determined to cut them off at the first floor.
As Curator Tsugawa raced the elevator—
Inside the elevator, Conan gave the kids a thumbs-up. "Nice job!" He reached out to press the stop button, planning to get them off midway.
According to his calculations, the curator would definitely be waiting on the first floor to block their escape.
And if the curator was one step ahead and had already locked the exit, they'd be trapped anyway once they reached the bottom.
It'd be better to get off early and use the library's maze-like layout to their advantage.
Conan had it all figured out.
But just before he pressed the button, the elevator began to slow down on its own.
He paused, optimistic. Did the kids finally grow a brain cell and decide to get off early without me telling them?
But then he noticed—the button for that floor wasn't lit.
Conan's heart sank.
...Which meant they weren't stopping because someone inside the elevator pressed it.
Someone outside had called it.
Conan instantly pictured the curator, his face pale with dread.
He'd thought he'd outsmarted the angry Tsugawa.
But no—Tsugawa had predicted his prediction, saw through his "get off midway" plan, and was now waiting for him like a hunter setting a trap.
Conan's face turned ashen. He frantically slammed the "close door" button, trying to shut it before they stopped.
No luck. The elevator came to a full halt.
Conan gritted his teeth. He now deeply understood the regret of not carrying a book when one is needed.
—If only he'd brought a massive tome, he could've at least used it to kick with!
With no better option, he crouched down and flicked off his sneaker's power switch.
—Fine. If he couldn't kick, then it was time for a sliding tackle.
If he could just slip between the curator's legs and activate his enhanced shoes mid-glide, he might have a shot.
Steeling himself, Conan braced against the back of the elevator. As the doors opened, he launched himself out with a flying kick—
Only to be abruptly redirected mid-air by a light smack from a swinging stick.
Conan spiraled through the air and slammed into the wall beside the elevator.
"…Ow."
...
Wait. That stick looked familiar.
Conan sat up and blinked in surprise. Standing at the elevator entrance was Jiangxia Tongzhi.
Jiangxia was holding a casually extended swing baton and, without asking why Conan had just roleplayed as a human mop, glanced into the elevator.
"Out," he said crisply to the three children.
Mitsuhiko and Genta, having witnessed Conan get wrecked in seconds, decided resistance was futile and tiptoed out like trembling ducklings.
Ayumi was far calmer. She recognized Jiangxia as the person who'd saved her and Conan last time in that underground dungeon.
Now he'd shown up again right when things were dire. Ayumi's eyes sparkled with **kilakila** starlight.
Jiangxia passed the bear children and stepped into the elevator.
He pressed the button for the first floor.
As the elevator doors closed, he gave them one last look through the narrowing gap.
"Stay here. Don't make a sound."
The four kids snapped to attention like obedient soldiers and nodded in unison.
…
Meanwhile, Curator Tsugawa reached the first floor, face twisted, gripping a metal pipe.
When he arrived at the elevator, he was surprised to see it was still descending from the second floor.
He didn't question how he'd managed to outrun it—he simply chalked it up to the power of unfiltered rage unlocking his inner athletic potential.
Ding.
The elevator doors began to open.
Tsugawa lunged forward, ready to strike. "Let's see where you think you're going now—!"
THUNK!
A slender black blur slipped through the crack and nailed him in the forehead.
Stars exploded in Tsugawa's vision. Before he could recover, a second hit slammed into his stomach.
He flew backward, crashed into the wall, and slid to the floor like a sack of bad decisions.
Dazed, he looked up and saw someone emerging from the elevator—tall, backlit, and definitely not a child.
…When did this man even enter the library?!
How much did he see? About the drugs? The corpses? The kids?! Is it too late to shut up?!
Tsugawa stared at Jiangxia, then at the baton spinning lazily in his hand, panic overtaking his features.
"W-What do you want?!"
Jiangxia casually tossed a book at him. "Returning this."
As the book flopped onto Tsugawa's chest with a thud-thud-thud, the elevator doors closed behind Jiangxia. The light inside faded to black.
In the final sliver of light, the "ordinary citizen returning a book" twirled the baton once with a menacing woo-woo sound and flashed a faint, chilling smile.
...
Fifteen minutes later, Inspector Megure's team arrived at the scene and found what looked like a thoroughly beaten pig.
Wait, correction—a thoroughly beaten Tsugawa.
"…Well, he's still alive." Officer Sato poked him and got a moan in return. She exhaled in relief.
The three kids stood nearby in complete silence, their eyes wide and twitchy.
At Jiangxia's smallest movement, they flinched and huddled together like penguins in a snowstorm.
But Jiangxia didn't approach them.
Instead, he walked over to Officer Sato and said in a low, apologetic voice, "Sorry. He was yelling about silencing the kids. It was dark in the hallway, and he knew the library's layout well… I was worried he might escape and hurt someone. I panicked and… may have hit him a little hard."
The kids thought in perfect unison: Liar!
But they said nothing.
They wanted to snitch, but… Jiangxia had saved them. And simple as they were, even they couldn't bring themselves to betray their benefactor.
Sato gave Jiangxia a firm pat on the shoulder. "You did the right thing."
Honestly, after hearing what Tsugawa had done, she wanted to praise him with a "nice hit!"
But as a police officer, she couldn't actually say that.
So instead, she offered a professional reminder: "Just be careful in the future. If the suspect dies, it'll be you in trouble."
"Understood," Jiangxia nodded politely. "I'll be more careful next time."
*Goal #1: Top 200 fanfics published within the last 30 days by POWER STONES.
Progress: 16/60(approx)*
Glossary:
Bear child – Mischievous or unruly child; often used affectionately or mockingly.
Kilakila – Onomatopoeia for sparkling or twinkling eyes; usually when someone is in awe or admiration.