“Rikka—chan! You’re cute! Let me take another picture!”

A greedy malicious man clicked his camera every second as I posed randomly. My smile emitted both decency and innocence.

I currently wore my bunny suit in attendance at a Cosplay Convention currently held here in Akiba. I’ve been a famous personality online known as ‘Rikka-chan.’

That was never my name.

After hours of circling with men whose names I never knew, I sat at the nearby fountain and stared at the water, reflecting my face.

The image of my long silky black hair and almond-shaped deep-brown eyes welcomed me. I didn’t wear a wig today.

I stood up at an average height with my slender figure which carried me throughout my career.

I took the Domi [ A plush toy, a parody of Domo.] figure from my bag and fiddled with it.

“Let’s go to our real work, Domi.”

My cosplaying wasn’t my real dream… It was just a facade.

Still wearing my costume, I reached an ancient wooden house, nearing the brink of its collapse.

Cobwebs covered the broken windows. The door hung loosely on its hinges, creaking in the wind.

As I entered through the door, molds warped and stained the floorboards.

Specks of dust covered the teary furniture, and emptiness silenced the cold fireplace.

Behind the desk that was partly cut vertically, a man in his leg day sat on a three-legged wooden chair, leaning to only a single stick remaining in its back.

He wore a pair of round glasses which he frequently touches, a black leather jacket, a loose white shirt, and modern jeans.

The moment he saw me, he stood up and posed a fighting stance.

“Kazumi, you’re here, huh? Le Syndicat de Foudre, the Lightning Syndicate, will soon invade akiba, va bientôt nous attaquer! We should harness our magic geniuses to prepare for the calamity! The dark organization was three hundred heads over us already!”

“I know what I should do, Hajime.” Now you’re wondering what my real job might be.

I’m that man’s sidekick, his hacker. I had the accessibility to anything where electric signals travel.

Why do I work for this guy? You wouldn’t believe me, but this man… this delusional man…

… Is a detective.