Chapter 16: Suspicion, Deduction, and “Friends”

"Isn’t that incredibly suspicious?"

Makima nodded at those words. Eigo took the pocket watch from inside his clothes and placed it in her hand.

The instant Eigo shut the pocket watch’s lid—

Click.

Before the sound had even fully faded, the world went silent. The crashing waves ceased, and even the faint snippets of conversation that had occasionally drifted over were gone.

Makima turned her head and surveyed her surroundings. A strip of cloth that had been fluttering in the wind was frozen in midair, while the hand of a man exhaling cigarette smoke at the end of the harbor had stiffened near his mouth.

...What is this?

She breathed. Fortunately, air still entered her lungs properly.

But it was not moving. Unless she consciously performed the artificial act of breathing, it seemed that even the air no longer flowed.

As proof, the wind that had been blowing moments ago had stopped. In this world where everything had come to a halt, she felt as though she were the only being capable of moving.

"...Eigo?"

There was no answer. Her pupils trembled faintly.

What... is this? A Devil’s attack? This soon...?

As the Control Devil, she had experienced countless abnormal phenomena, but this sensation was new. A kind of silence beyond her control.

Her heart skipped a beat.

In this world, I’m the only one... who can move freely.

The moment she recognized that fact, a chill crawled up her spine. Then she heard footsteps right beside her.

The only sound echoing through the frozen world. Amid such crushing silence, even the slightest footsteps came through with unbearable clarity.

Makima listened closely to locate their source and unfurled the chains of control.

"You look pretty shocked."

The owner of those footsteps was Eigo. Relieved, for the moment, that this was not a Devil’s attack, Makima withdrew her chains.

He was smiling as usual. In a world where the sea breeze had stopped, he looked like the only person still riding the wind.

Makima looked Eigo straight in the eye. Her voice emerged calm, but it could not wholly conceal the tremor beneath it.

"...What is this?"

"I stopped time. The moment I put that pocket watch in your hand earlier."

His answer was almost too matter-of-fact. Eigo passed Makima by, then spun around and continued in his usual playful tone.

"The first little secret I’m sharing with my friend: I can stop time!"

Makima’s fingers curled ever so slightly.

"While we’re in this frozen world, never let go of the watch I gave you. That watch is what lets Maki move through stopped time."

He picked up an empty bottle rolling on the ground and tossed it toward a trash can. The bottle flew toward the bin, then stopped in midair.

"As long as we’re in this world, nobody will know what we do. I stopped time, after all. Whether we run or sleep in a world where not even 0.1 seconds pass, the people in the world where time is flowing again can’t perceive it."

Makima steadied her breathing before speaking.

"...Is it really okay to show me this?"

Eigo watched her for a moment, then nodded.

"Of course. Maki is my friend. You’ll keep my secret, right?"

Then he slipped a finger beneath Makima’s chin and gently scratched it. After a brief silence, she nodded.

"...Yeah."

Eigo lightly stroked Makima’s hair.

"What I’m about to tell you might be a little dangerous to discuss somewhere time is moving."

Taking his hand from Makima’s hair, Eigo jerked his chin toward the harbor.

"All right, then. Let’s get to the point."

He slowly swept his gaze over the frozen people, ships, and sea. Then he turned his eyes back to Makima.

"You said the Kiribashi government asked Japan for help through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, right? Said there was a powerful Devil in Kiribashi..."

"Yeah."

"And the Japanese government accepted that request and assigned it to Maki as a mission directly under the Chief Cabinet Secretary."

Makima nodded. Eigo continued.

"Then in a situation like this, how do people usually travel?"

Makima thought for a moment before answering.

"...The side making the request secures transportation to the destination as much as possible. A commercial flight, a military transport plane—something like that. Normally, they make sure there’s at least a route ready from the moment we arrive in the country. Oh, and they assign attendants too. For interpreting, or explaining the local culture."

"Right."

Eigo’s fingers brushed lightly over Makima’s ear.

"But what about now?"

Makima looked over the harbor again. Departure schedules, numbers scribbled over in pencil, motionless people.

"...Nothing has been prepared."

"Nothing."

Eigo smiled, but there was no smile in his eyes.

"Kiribashi, like Japan, doesn’t have a military. So we can understand that military facilities were never an option. But even setting that aside, the government hasn’t provided a boat or a light aircraft that goes directly to Washington Island. There’s only a regular ferry shared with ordinary tourists... Isn’t that incredibly suspicious?"

Makima’s eyes narrowed.

"You’re right, Eigo. They called us in for help, yet they aren’t cooperating in getting the personnel they requested to the destination."

Eigo raised a hand and covered one of his eyes. Makima took the gesture to mean he was organizing his thoughts.

"This is just my guess, but..."

Only after a long while did Eigo’s vocal cords finally move. Makima’s brows twitched faintly.

"What if Kiribashi never knew about the Devil on Washington Island in the first place?"

"...Isn’t that jumping to conclusions?"

Eigo firmly shook his head.

"The contents of the documents Maki received from the Cabinet Secretariat. I read them too, remember?"

"That’s true..."

"What was in those documents was far too sparse.

A powerful Devil has appeared in Kiribashi. No traces other than signs of resistance found on the bodies discovered in reported incidents. Local forces lack the capacity to respond due to the small population and territory, so assistance has been requested from Japan. Encounter the Devil, confirm its abilities, and [eliminate] it.

Isn’t that way too sparse?"

"But the documents we get from the Cabinet Secretariat are always like this..."

Startled by Makima’s words, Eigo covered his mouth. Not understanding the meaning of his reaction, Makima tilted her head.

"No... There’s no place that loves stuffing pointless flowery language into documents more than government agencies like the Cabinet Secretariat. Normally, government documents are so bad you’d be justified in throwing them away the moment you receive them. This is... far too strange."

"If you say so, Eigo, then it must be."

Without warning, Eigo pulled Makima into a tight embrace. Then he slowly stroked her hair.

"Makima, just how have you managed until now..."

She had no idea what he meant, but the warmth of Eigo’s body felt pleasant, and Makima burrowed deeper into his arms. After several minutes passed, Eigo continued speaking without letting her go.

"Anyway, back to the point. Like I said earlier, there’s more than one suspicious thing about this mission."

Eigo took a breath and gently tightened the arm around Makima. Taking an exceedingly long time, he conveyed the possibility he had considered to her.

Makima struggled free from Eigo’s warm embrace and rested a finger against her chin, organizing her thoughts.

"Despite a powerful Devil appearing, Kiribashi specifically asked Japan for help rather than a neighboring country. Yet they secured neither personnel nor transport for the people they dispatched...

The documents I received were inadequate from the start. Government documents are the kind of thing that wouldn’t be surprising if they were plastered with all sorts of vague, ambiguous words... yet the one sent to me was far too plain and clear. Its purpose is far too obvious."

For the record, the word “eliminate” does not necessarily mean extermination~

I know that too.

"In other words, this business trip was a staged act the Japanese government planned from the beginning to secure that [unidentified Devil]?"

"Ding-dong, correct~!"

Eigo applauded in congratulations for student Makima, who had called out the right answer.

"Of course, even if I hadn’t been here, Maki would have figured it out right away. My friend is super, super smart!"

Makima said nothing for a while. It was not as though she was particularly weak to praise, but Eigo’s words always lingered strangely in her heart.

I didn’t realize it because I’m smart.

Things like this had happened many times before. Makima swallowed back the words that had risen to her throat.

"...Still."

Makima quietly opened her mouth.

"This time, I wouldn’t have thought this far without you, Eigo."

Eigo’s eyes widened, and then he immediately burst out laughing.

"Oh my, what an honor for this rookie to receive praise from a Devil Hunter directly under the Chief Cabinet Secretary~

However, Lady Makima, they say excessive humility is also arrogance. Please do not doubt yourself."

"Pfft, what was that supposed to be~?"

The two walked slowly between the frozen people. As they walked, Eigo rested a hand on Makima’s head and quietly stroked it.

"I mean it. My friend is far more incredible than she thinks she is."

They returned to the end of the harbor where they had started. Sitting Makima beside him, Eigo whispered in a gentle voice.

"Still, it’s such a relief that this suspicious situation isn’t a plot targeting Maki."

"This sort of thing has always happened. There’s a Devil with an ability the government has its eye on, and under government orders, I control that Devil... Ah."

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