Part 3

Even after we parted ways with the children from the nursery school, we were often approached by people who wanted to know more about Ouma-san.

Some of them were knowledgeable about reptiles, and they would eagerly ask questions about Ouma-san, who was obviously not a creature of the Earth, but those people were having their memories of Ouma-san erased by the terminal attached to Merl-san’s arm.

If left unchecked, it could lead to troublesome situations like, “New species discovered!” and I was grateful for that because it would have turned out to be troublesome. Space technology is really amazing.

While all this was going on, we decided to take a break at a nearby cafe.

Ouma-san wanted a cake, so I bought one and placed it in front of him.

There was a problem with showing Ouma-san eating the cake, so I had him wear a cloak to hide himself. However, from the other people’s perspective, it would look as if the cake on the ground was disappearing by itself. Of course, I made sure that the cake would not be visible to others.

“I don’t understand why it has to be hidden from view… Umu, delicious!”

(It’s really delicious. In terms of nutrition, it’s inefficient, and eating too much of it may be harmful to your health, but in terms of taste, it’s very good.)

“I-I’m glad you like it.”

Ouma-san continued to eat the cake, his mouth covered in cream.

“So, what do you want to do after this? The place is …Well, I don’t think you know anything about Earth, but do you want to go somewhere?”

“Umu, yeah… I would prefer to go to a place with a lot of people.”

“Eh, a place with a lot of people?”

“Yeah.”

I was surprised by Ouma-san’s unexpected request. I’ve always had the impression that he hated being in crowded places.

“Hmm? Don’t get me wrong. I don’t like noisy places either.”

“T-then why?”

“It’s simple. I thought it would be fun to go to a place where many people from this world gather.”

“I see…”

At the moment, I was taking a walk around my neighborhood, but as Ouma-san said, if we went to a place with a lot of people, there would be a lot to do. I don’t know what Ouma-san is really interested in, but if he wants to go, I’ll just go along with it.

“I understand. Then, let’s go to a place with many people.”

“Umu!”

If it were really the case, I might take him to an amusement park, a zoo, or an aquarium, but as expected, it’s a bit far from my house, so I’ll pass this time. Besides, even if we could get into the park, there is no guarantee that I could take Ouma-san to all the attractions.

So we resumed our walk, and as Ouma-san requested, we came to a busy downtown area…

“O-oh! What’s with all the people here? Is there a festival going on?”

“No, it’s like this every day.”

“Every day? Why?”

“W-why, you ask…?”

Well, thinking purely about it, is it because there are various shopping facilities here?

I’ve been thinking seriously about the reason why there are so many people in this place, and then Ouma-san spoke into my mind again.

“Hey, Yuuya! What’s that?”

“Eh? Oh, that’s a large screen.”

What interested Ouma-san was the large TV set embedded in the wall of the building. It seemed to be broadcasting the news right now.

“Hoho… this is the kind of thing that can be found on Earth.”

(When the technology gets a little more advanced, it’ll turn into a hologram.)

“What’s that?”

(It’s a technology that creates three-dimensional images instead of just projecting them on a screen like that.)

“…I still don’t understand your technology. And don’t interfere with my enjoyment of the show.”

(…I-I’m sorry.)

Merl-san averted her gaze awkwardly as Ouma-san glared at her.

From Merl-san’s perspective, the scenery here is probably full of outdated things.

As I was thinking about this, Ouma suddenly asked me.

“By the way, Yuuya. What’s a hijacking?”

“Eh?”

I was startled by the sudden outrageous word, but Ouma-san continued to stare at the large screen.

“What was that hijacking on the… large screen? The only thing that’s been shown there is something about a hijacking. Is that all they’re going to show?”

“N-no, not really like that, but…”

When I turned my attention to the large screen, the newscaster reported that one of the planes heading to Japan had been hijacked.

“Breaking news. Currently, a plane scheduled to arrive at XXX airport has been hijacked──.”

“Hijacked.”

“Seriously? Isn’t that bad?”

“I mean, is that really possible?”

As the people in the surrounding area looked up at the news on the large screen, I had a bad feeling about it.

Then the newscaster confirmed my bad premonition.

“──The hijackers are demanding a ransom from the Houjou family, one of the wealthiest families in Japan, for the people on board the plane.”

“!”

Houjou…? Kaori’s family!

As I recall, she said her sister was supposed to be back today, but… could it be…

When I was stunned by the content of the news, Ouma-san asked me again.

“What’s going on? Yuuya. And what is hijacking anyway?”

“…There are airplanes that fly in the sky carrying people on this planet, and criminals hijack them.”

“I see… In other words, the airplane has been hijacked and is in trouble right now. So why are you looking so pale?”

“Err… the plane that’s being hijacked right now seems to have Kaori’s family, who Ouma-san has also met before, on it…”

I want to go help her somehow. But how should I do that…?

I’ve no way to fly in the sky. There’s a chance that I could use magic, but even while I’m taking the time to do that…

“What are you thinking about? You should just go.”

“But how do I get to the sky…?”

“Yuuya. Who do you think is in here?”

“Eh? ──No way!”

As my eyes widened in surprise, Ouma-san grinned at me.

“Well ─ let’s enjoy the Earth’s blue sky…!”

＊＊＊

──Kasumi Houjou was glaring at one of the hijackers in front of her.

Contrary to Kaori’s neat and clean image, Kasumi’s short haircut with outer split ends gave her a somewhat lively impression.

In contrast, the hijackers all wore ski masks and were armed with guns.

“…Do you know who I am?”

“Yeah, of course I know who you are. You’re the daughter of one of the world’s wealthiest families, the Houjou family, which has branched out into various fields in Japan, including school management, right? And it’s your father’s fault for ignoring all the threatening letters we sent him. So, if we kidnap you, we can collect ransom money.”

“It won’t be that easy.”

“Hmph. What an impolite thing to say for a rich girl.”

“This is just enough for people like you.”

“──Don’t piss us off too much, okay? If you want to get home in one piece, that is.”

“!”

With the gun pointed at her head, Kasumi wanted to cry out, but she held it back and stared at the hijacker in front of her. She lived abroad with her mother and only had the chance to see her father Tsukasa and her sister Kaori a few times a year when they were on vacation.

Although Tsukasa had told her not to come back this time because of the threatening letters that had been sent to her house, she didn’t want to miss this rare opportunity to see her older sister, so she boarded the plane to Japan.

Of course, she had hired an escort to make sure everything was safe on the plane…

However, the hijackers posed not only as passengers but also as a member of the crew, and they neutralized Kasumi’s escorts one after another.

Normally, Kasumi had a strong temperament like her mother, but now she was quiet. It was difficult for a junior high school student like Kasumi to remain strong in a situation where even the adults were afraid.

The man holding the gun to her head snorted as Kasumi glared at the criminal with all her might.

“Hah. That was cute. At best, you can be a hostage for us to make money.”

Then another man asked a question.

“Hey, if we get the money, are we really going to give her back? I mean, she’s so cute when you look at her face; what a waste, right?”

“!?”

The man let out a sigh as Kasumi stiffened in the unpleasant gaze that was suddenly directed at her.

“Hmph… I don’t understand how you can lust after a kid like this. Well, I’m not saying I’m going to return her when we get the money. After getting what we want, you can do whatever you want with her.”

“Hyahh! I’m getting excited!”

Kasumi stiffened more and more against the man who was giving her the vilest gaze. As the hijackers continued their despicable assault, Kasumi closed her eyes and prayed for help to arrive.

“(Father, Nee-chan, help me…!)”

It was then that Kasumi suddenly noticed the window behind her.

“(If I could just jump out of this window…)”

Even though she knew it was impossible, she couldn’t help but think about it as she looked out the window… That’s when it happened.

“…..Eh?”

Outside the window, she saw two people, a young man, and a woman, who were in parallel with the horizon.

“Eh, wa… Eh?”

This is in the sky, right? Why are there people? What’s really happening?

Kasumi is confused.

One of them, the young man, noticed Kasumi and waved his hand to her with a wry smile.

Kasumi shook her head in panic as the young man waved his hand, catching her by surprise.

What’s going on? There was a very handsome man and a woman with strange hair outside the window, but… Is it my hallucination?

As Kasumi continued to be confused on her own, the plane suddenly shook loudly.

“Kyaa!”

“W-what?”

“Hey, just fly this goddamn thing properly!”

The hijackers were also shouting at the sudden shaking when one of them came rushing from the cockpit.

“L-listen! I don’t know why, but the plane has landed!”

“Huh?”

“What do you mean it landed…? We’re in the sky!”

“B-but it’s true! I can’t control the plane at all, and it won’t move from the spot as if it had landed!”

The hijackers immediately rushed to the window to look out.

Then──.

“W-what the hell is this…?”

“Hey, hey, what’s this rugged land?”

“Is it even a land? It’s dark purple and… doesn’t look right to me!”

The commotion spread not only among the hijackers and Kasumi but also among the other passengers, leading to a huge commotion.

“Tsk… Hey, you bastards! Just go and shut the passengers up!”

“A-alright.”

The moment the hijackers tried to rush to the place where the other passengers were──.

“Guaaaaahh?”

“Wa?”

One of the hijackers, who was supposed to be heading towards the passengers just now, was blown back in a big way.

While everyone was confused by the incomprehensible situation, a man approached Kasumi.

It was──.

“Ah, the guy from earlier!”

“Ah, yes.”

When Kasumi pointed at him, he smiled as if he was in trouble.