The Infinite Journey of a Certain Flame

Upon hearing Kiana's question, Emilia's face immediately showed worry.

"Something very precious of mine has been stolen. Could you please help me find it?"

As she spoke, Emilia bowed her head and bent over, making a very earnest request.

"..."

Kiana looked at Emilia for a moment before saying, "Alright."

Emilia breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

Although it's unknown whether Kiana is truly willing to help, it's enough that she agreed to do so at this point.

Let's go now.

Kiana stretched her limbs and readily agreed.

"Uh? Now?"

Emilia's eyes widened in surprise.

"Okay, let's go now."

"Well... okay."

Emilia nodded.

Since the other party is so determined, I have no choice but to go with her.

The two shook hands and then began their search for the treasure, one after the other...

If Miracles Have Color (re0): Chapter Fourteen: The Approaching Gut Hunter

"Kiana," Emilia suddenly called out to Kiana as they walked through the city streets, then stopped in her tracks. "Perhaps we need to leave for a while."

Emilia's lost treasure was a badge, a badge that was very important to her.

Emilia no longer wanted to talk about how it was lost.

What bothered her most was being attacked by thieves on her way to retrieve the treasure.

Of course, this was actually not a bad thing, because she unexpectedly met Kiana, a powerful ally.

In terms of pure strength, Emilia felt that this girl was truly unfathomable.

She could certainly serve as a guardian knight, but Emilia wasn't going to waste her talents.

After their initial conversation, Emilia learned that Kiana was a very...intelligent person?

Although it wasn't apparent on the surface, after actually talking to her, Emilia felt that the girl spoke very quietly, clearly not some adventurous person who had traveled all over the world, but with very broad insights.

I have a broad range of knowledge, and while I wouldn't call myself a polymath, my knowledge is certainly of high quality.

"If we search together like this, we might not find anything even by dark. Shall we split up?"

Emilia offered a gentle suggestion.

"can."

Kiana nodded, then turned her gaze to the distance.

At this moment, Sirin is having a friendly conversation with the kitten named Parker.

Well, it wasn't exactly a friendly conversation.

The two little ones had a disagreement for some unknown reason, and they were glaring angrily at each other.

If it weren't for the fact that the two guys' owners had a decent relationship, a huge brawl might have broken out on the street.

"These two kids are really close."

Emilia smiled, as if she didn't care about their angry expressions.

Seeing this, Kiana didn't know whether to laugh or give a cold look, so she could only slowly say:

"Yes... but I'd like to ask, how did you find this guy?"

Kiana asked with great curiosity. She had just observed carefully and found that Puck's figure and size were different from any cat-like creature she had ever seen.

Even its intelligence, ability to speak, and remarkable loyalty make it seem less like a cat and more like a human.

To be honest, Kiana had never seen anything like this before. Although she had seen strange things like Paimon before, Paimon at least maintained a human form, just like Sirin.

However, this guy named Parker not only had a non-human appearance, but also exuded a mysterious aura, and that aura was very powerful.

"Well..." Emilia fell silent when Kiana asked the question.

She hadn't expected Kiana to ask that question; perhaps Puck's physique and appearance were simply too striking? Plus, she'd experienced a lot these past few days, making her much more aware of danger.

This is why this guy developed a certain aversion to outsiders.

However, she couldn't tell Kiana the truth, since her strength was much lower than Kiana's.

“This guy is not simple,” Kiana pondered for a moment, then said, “I can sense the aura emanating from him, which is definitely not that of an ordinary cat-like creature. It is probably the aura of some kind of exotic beast, but I can’t see through his level and attributes, nor can I tell what kind of life form he is.”

Emilia was taken aback upon hearing this, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

Should I reveal Parker's information to a friend I've only known for a short time?

After thinking it over, Emilia could only offer an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, I'll talk to you about it another time. Now I need to go find that badge..."

After saying this, Emilia left with Puck, leaving Sirin and Kiana standing there looking at each other in bewilderment.

Finally, he turned around and left...

...

“Next, shall we go find that petty thief? Before he gets killed by the assassin,” Sirin said slowly.

"A petty thief? You mean the petty thief who stole Emilia's badge?"

Kiana walked slowly down the street, her azure eyes reflecting the myriad aspects of life.

She has always loved shopping, and although things aren't finished yet, she still enjoys it immensely.

Beside her was Celine, and the two wandered around the city for a long time before finally buying some odds and ends to keep.

"It's definitely him."

After putting the items into her spatial storage, Xilin nodded in agreement.

"Are we just going to go find that petty thief like this? Isn't that too hasty? Even though you know where he is, what if he hides in a crowded place and starts to run away? How are we going to find him then?"

Kiana was somewhat worried as she headed towards her destination.

“This…” Upon hearing Kiana’s words, Sirin frowned slightly, also hesitating about how to find the petty thief.

"Why don't we find a tavern and rest for a bit? It's almost dark. We can set off again at night. That petty thief is definitely out and about at night, when there aren't many people on the streets. As soon as he comes out, we can catch him right away."

Kiana came up with a compromise. She felt that although she had the ability to foresee the attack like Sirin, she couldn't guarantee that she could easily catch her opponent.

If the other party resists during the arrest and a large-scale conflict breaks out on the street, I might accidentally injure a whole bunch of people.

Emilia will be in trouble then.

Therefore, the only option is to use their wits and wait until nightfall to take action. This way, even if they fail, the impact will be minimized.

"Hmm...that's a good plan. You're getting smarter and smarter, Kiana. I didn't expect you to even consider these things..."

"What are you saying? I'm a very smart person, okay?"

Sirin smiled, then nodded, completely agreeing to Kiana's suggestion.

She knew that Kiana already had her own plan: to find a secluded hotel and lie in ambush there.

Wait for nightfall, and once the petty thief appears, strike immediately and capture him.

Unfortunately, this clever host didn't anticipate that a woman also coveted the badge...

"By night, we might not be dealing with petty thieves, but rather the Gut Hunters, Kiana."

"what?"

Upon hearing Sirin's warning, Kiana turned around in surprise and asked what the Gut Hunter was.

However, the other party seemed possessed by a riddle-solving genius, slowly shaking their head to indicate that it was unspeakable.

Finally, after several unsuccessful attempts to get an answer, Kiana decided to sit down in a small roadside restaurant to wait and discuss their next move.

During their conversation, the two ate quite a bit.

"Cirin, why do you still eat so little?"

After eating and drinking her fill, Kiana wiped her mouth with a napkin, then looked at Sirin with a puzzled expression.

If Miracles Have Color (Re:Zero): Chapter Fifteen - The Inevitable Battle Before Reclaiming the Badge

"Have you forgotten? I'm just a little doll, how could I possibly eat too much? Besides, look at my belly..."

Xilin clutched her clothes, pulled them up, and touched her tummy, smiling helplessly. She didn't know how to explain. After all, she couldn't eat normally, nor did she need to.

Since it wasn't necessary, then there was no need to eat.

Well, although the desserts look a bit tempting, I don't really care for them—hiss!

"What are you doing?!"

Xilin covered her belly with her clothes and looked at her master with some surprise.

At this moment, Kiana had already withdrawn her hand, and explained with a smile:

"It's nothing, I just wanted to see if it really couldn't fit, uh... let me feel it now. It's not particularly big?"

"Nonsense, her belly wasn't that big to begin with."

Sirin glanced at Kiana, then sighed.

"Alright. Let's continue discussing our next steps."

After all, waiting here for the time being is Kiana's main strategy.

It was rare for her to come up with a strategy on her own initiative, so I had to cooperate.