In Academy City, the Paradise Project begins.

Page 200

"Ah! Yu!"

Saten Ruiko was the first to spot him, and immediately waved and called out happily. She was dressed casually today, radiating energy.

"Yu-kun?"

Misaka Mikoto also looked over, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes.

Haruka Emi, who was standing next to them, also greeted them: "Hello, Higashino-kun."

She seemed to be in a good mood, with an excited smile on her face.

"It's Ruiko, Mikoto, and Haruka."

Higashino Yu responded with a smile. He was also a little surprised to run into the three of them together so late at night; it seemed they had gone somewhere together as a group.

However, if I do get delayed on the road, given their route, it seems I might run into Febri.

What a coincidence! If that were the case, wouldn't the story have unfolded much like the original?

If there's any possible difference, it's probably that Febri probably wouldn't call out Misaka's name.

"What a coincidence to meet you here."

"We just visited Zhi Xianbanli at the hospital."

Leizi explained quickly and directly.

"She's recovering very well, that's wonderful!"

Higashino Yu nodded, his gaze sweeping over the three of them, and asked with a hint of doubt, "Where are Kuroko and Kazari? Aren't they with you?"

Normally, if they were to be together, Kuroko and Uiharu should be present.

This time, it was Haruka Emi who answered. She gently shook her head: "Just now, Shirai-san and Hatsuharu-san received a call from Kofun-senpai... saying that there was a traffic accident in the Seventh School District and the Disciplinary Committee needed to go to the scene to assist in handling it, so they rushed over there."

"Disciplinary committee members are really busy."

Higashino Yu casually remarked, indicating his understanding.

The disciplinary committee members are incredibly busy. After all, managing such a large academy city, while the number of disciplinary committee members isn't small, the sheer volume of daily events often forces them to work overtime.

At that moment, Mikoto's gaze fell on Febri, who was standing close to Higashino Yu, almost hiding behind him.

Mikoto's curiosity was piqued by this unfamiliar little girl. After all, Febri did look very cute.

"Yu, who is this child...?"

Upon hearing Mikoto's question, Febri seemed even more nervous, her small hands tightly gripping Higashino Yu's clothes.

She quickly hid most of her body behind Higashino Yu, only peeking out with her big eyes to secretly watch the three older sisters opposite her.

She had an instinctive fear of these unfamiliar older women; she wasn't the outgoing, approachable type to begin with.

"Forehead……"

Mikoto was speechless for a moment and subconsciously touched her face.

Am I that terrible?

Ruiko and Haruka also cast curious and questioning glances their way.

Higashino Yu smiled and explained in a relaxed tone, "This kid? I guess you could say I just 'picked him up'."

"Found it?!"

Mikoto was taken aback and looked at Febri in disbelief.

In places like Academy City, it's not uncommon for children to be abandoned; in fact, it's quite common.

Many parents send their children to Academy City and then abandon them, becoming unreachable.

Mikoto didn't want Febri to be in this situation, so she nervously continued to ask questions.

"Little girl, what's your name? Where do you live? Have you gotten separated from your parents?"

However, Philip simply hugged Higashino Yu's legs tighter, buried his face in his hands, and completely refused to communicate.

She doesn't want to pay attention to anyone except Higashino right now, and besides, Mikoto now seems like a creepy uncle who's kidnapping children to her.

Ruiko tried to crouch down, giving what she thought was her friendliest smile: "Little sister, don't be afraid, we're not bad people. Big sister has some delicious candy here!"

She tried to use food to bridge the gap, but unfortunately, she failed again. Fibri completely ignored her and even shrank to the other side.

Haruka Koi also stepped forward to try: "Don't be afraid, your older sisters actually want to help you too..."

Haruue Koi also failed; no matter how they tried, Febri refused to come out from behind Higashino Yu.

Febri showed a strong aversion to the three women, had no intention of communicating with them, and only wanted to stick to Higashino Yu.

Higashino Yu felt a sense of dependence emanating from the little guy beside his legs and found it somewhat amusing.

He patted Philip's head and said to the three girls, "Alright, it seems she only trusts me for now. It's okay, I'll investigate her situation later."

Mikoto, Ruiko, and Emi exchanged glances. Although they were still a little worried and curious, they trusted Higashino Yu. Since he had said so, there must be no problem.

"Yes, if you need any help, please let us know!"

Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke earnestly.

Mikoto nodded: "That's right. If we need to find her family or anything, we can help."

Jin Yi whispered in agreement, "Yes, that's right..."

"Don't worry, I will not hesitate to help you when I need you."

Higashino Yu smiled and assured him.

"We'll be going now, let's take her to get something to eat."

"By the way, do you want to come along?"

Higashino Yu suddenly suggested.

"It's a good opportunity to have dinner together, and I can also get closer to Febri."

Mikoto, Ruiko, and Emi exchanged glances, their faces showing hesitation.

"Ah, I'm sorry, Yu-kun," Ruiko scratched her head, somewhat embarrassed.

"The three of us just made plans to go shopping at the newly opened commercial street."

"Yes." Mikoto nodded with a hint of regret.

"And this child doesn't seem very willing to approach us..."

Chun Shang Jinyi added softly, "And we also need to go buy some things..."

Higashino Yu raised an eyebrow: "Oh? What a coincidence?"

Although he was a little disappointed that he couldn't persuade the three girls to have dinner with him, he wasn't an unreasonable person.

Since they had already agreed to go shopping, he wouldn't force them to give up and go to dinner with him instead.

"You guys go shopping, I'll take Philip to dinner."

Mikoto seemed to want to say something, but seeing that Febri was still holding Higashino Yu's hand tightly, she finally nodded: "Well... okay. If you need any help, please contact us anytime."

"Definitely," Higashino Yu replied with a smile.

"have fun."

After saying goodbye to the three girls, Higashino Yu, holding Philip's hand which was still tightly gripping his finger, walked towards a shopping street in another direction.

Chapter 236 New Mission

As Higashino Yu held Philip's little hand and was about to find a restaurant nearby for dinner, his cell phone in his pocket vibrated at an inopportune moment.

"Tsk, let me see who's texting me so late." He clicked his tongue and helplessly took out his phone to check.

"Huh, it's a mission from Tem..."

The contact didn't give him any specific mission details; he was simply told to meet at Tem's base.

He looked down at Philip, who was looking up at him with his big, clear, innocent eyes.

"Let's go, Febri, let's find somewhere else for dinner." Higashino Yu sighed, deciding to cancel the plan to take Febri to dinner for the time being.

However, Tem's base does have a kitchen. Although there may not be readily available ingredients, the support staff can simply buy some.

With that thought in mind, the two disappeared from the street corner in an instant, and the next moment, they appeared in a room in the prop base.

Mugino Shizuri, Takitsubo Rigo, Frenda, and Kinuhata Saiai were already waiting inside, some sitting and some standing.

"Higashino!" Frenda was the first to spot Higashino's arrival. Her eyes lit up, and like a puppy seeing its owner, she cheered and pounced on him, clinging to him. "You came pretty fast!"

This overly intimate gesture left Kinuhata Saiai somewhat stunned, and even Mugino raised an eyebrow.

Although Takitsubo Riko still had that lazy expression, a hint of surprise flashed across her eyes.

They never expected that just a while ago, Mugino had made the astonishing suggestion of "everyone trying to seduce Higashino," and that Frenda would actually become so intimate with Higashino without anyone knowing.

Higashino patted Frenda on the back helplessly: "Alright, alright, Frenda, get down first."

Although Frenda wasn't heavy, Takitsubo still had to consider her feelings. Although she hid it well, Higashino still noticed that she seemed a little jealous, her little hands unconsciously clutching the hem of her clothes.

At this moment, Kinuhata Ai, with her sharp eyes, noticed Philippe peeking out from behind Higashino, curiously and somewhat timidly observing everyone.

"Huh? Higashino, what's with that tiny little guy behind you?" Kinuhata Saiai pointed behind him.

Mugino frowned, her tone tinged with exasperation: "Who is she? Your relative's child?"

She even wondered if Higashino was on a vacation with the Anbu (Anbu headquarters). It was so strange that he brought a little girl with him on a mission.

Higashino finally pulled the reluctant Frenda off him and casually explained, "I picked her up on the road."

This explanation makes sense, since it really was found on the chair, and even Philippe himself couldn't refute it.

However, the four women clearly did not believe Dongye's explanation, and their faces all showed expressions that said, "Are you kidding me?"

Frenda's attention was immediately drawn to the adorable Febri as soon as she was put down. Her eyes filled with curiosity, and with lightning speed, she scooped the petite Febri into her arms, rubbing her face against his soft blonde hair. "Wow! What a cute child! Like a doll! Let big sister hold you!"

Seeing Febri reminded her of her adorable younger sister; both of them were so petite and cute, making her irresistible and tempting to handle them.

"Ugh... let... let me go!" Febri struggled, his short arms and legs flapping in the air, but he was helpless against Frenda's "enthusiasm".

She hadn't expected that the older sister Higashino Yu had introduced her to this time would be so enthusiastic, unlike the three she had met before who were so well-behaved. The older sister actually started touching her all over right away.

Caught off guard, she didn't even have time to dodge before Frenda grabbed her. Now she could only look at Higashino Yu with pitiful eyes, hoping he could save her and free her from this increasingly outrageous clutches.

Looking at Febri, who was being cuddled by Frenda and with her pleading eyes, Higashino had no intention of rescuing her.

He naturally walked to the sofa behind Takitsubo Ri and sat down next to her. He skillfully put his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him: "So, what's the mission today?"

The contact in the Dark Division hadn't sent him the work details for tonight, and seemed to have gotten used to the convenience of his spatial teleportation, only notifying him after everyone else had assembled. Otherwise, he wouldn't have arrived so quickly, and the others wouldn't have been able to get here before him.

Takitsubo leaned obediently against his side, a secret delight in her heart. Higashino still cared about her; this was the first time he had been so affectionate towards her in front of everyone.

“I don’t know the specifics either.” Takitsubo shook her head slightly, indicating that she didn’t know the details either, but her gaze still couldn’t help but drift toward Febri, who was being “ravaged” by Frenda.

Actually, she also wanted to go and tease that cute girl, after all, the way that child looked when Frenda bullied her was really adorable.

Watching the incredibly natural intimacy between Higashino and Takitsubo, Mugino felt a strange tightness in her chest, a subtle pang of jealousy passing through her, but she quickly suppressed it. Among the four of them, Takitsubo was the first to become close to Higashino, and she had no right to be jealous or resentful.

On the contrary, it was Frenda's actions just now that touched her deeply. She hadn't expected Frenda to be so quick, successfully building a close relationship with Higashino in just a few days.

She didn't dare to think about what the two of them could actually do in private, since they could just pounce on each other in front of everyone now.

Surely they haven't already gone to bed together...

Although she had many thoughts on her mind, only she could answer Higashino's questions.

"The information we received indicated that someone was involved in an arms deal, and our mission was to arrest them."

"Does this small task really require so many of us?" Higashino Yu raised an eyebrow, feeling that it was a bit of an overreaction.

Keep in mind that this ANBU unit boasts two Level 5 and two Level 4 fighters, making them arguably the strongest ANBU in Academy City. Assigning them this kind of mission is a complete waste of their talents. They're rarely given simple tasks like this.

It's not that Tem doesn't accept simple tasks, it's just that simple tasks are usually only assigned to Mugino, who then distributes them. Otherwise, he wouldn't have joined Tem almost two months ago and still not had any tasks assigned to him.

The girl next to her, Kinuhachi, crossed her arms and shrugged helplessly: "There's nothing we can do. The contact person said that the mastermind behind us assigned us to handle this and gave us a huge commission."

At this moment, Philip finally seized the opportunity, broke free from Frenda's embrace, ran quickly to the sofa where Higashino was, and then squeezed into the narrow gap between Higashino and Takitsubo, successfully separating the two a little.

Takitsubo wasn't angry; instead, she found the way the blonde little girl puffed out her cheeks and tried to separate them rather cute. She reached out and gently ruffled Febri's hair, her voice soft and gentle: "What's this child's name?"