They sat in a luxurious vintage car with seats facing each other at the back. Crepes·Clair and Anna sat side by side with their backs to the driver, while Ryuto sat opposite them.

Crepes·Clair was dressed in civilian clothes instead of military uniform. Not the flashy kind from the bar last night, but rather extremely ordinary attire. It consisted of a plain light yellow long-sleeve jacket, plain blue denim shorts, and plain coffee-colored leather boots.

See, pretty ordinary, right?

Well, it's probably for the convenience of their upcoming operation. After all, wearing the original military attire would attract too much attention on the streets, and it would be more convenient for fighting as well, hmm...

Are they assuming a fight will happen?

However...

It seems they usually wear military uniforms. After all...

Even when coming to see Count Delance, they didn't change until now. There must be a reason for this. They are here on official business, so they wear the military uniform. And now, the reason for dressing like this is also for official business. In other words, if it's not work-related, she wouldn't dress like this. Therefore, even in private meetings with Count Delance or anyone else, she would probably wear the military uniform to avoid appearing rude to others.

Truly a person who takes their work seriously, always dressed for the job. Perhaps she naturally has a very serious personality, but...

It still seems a bit too serious.

Well, let's ignore these thoughts for now.

Not long into the journey, Crepes·Clair shifted into work mode.

Indeed, even in casual wear, she doesn't forget about work.

"Mr. Amagi and Miss Anna, it's now 12:40, and we are expected to arrive there by 13:00. Although we have made some preparations in advance, time is still tight. So, I hope both of you can listen carefully to what I have to say next."

"Understood."

"Sure, no problem."

Anna and Ryuto responded promptly.

After ensuring there were no misunderstandings, Crepes·Clair nodded and continued.

"I will provide some information about the plan itself. Even though your roles are just to play the captured hostage and the terrorist capturing the hostage, you don't need to know all the details. But you must understand the overall process, especially some details about the roles you are playing. I'll explain one by one."

After a brief pause, Crepes·Clair continued.

"First of all, let me outline the general process for both of you. The destination for this mission, where the hostage exchange will take place, is specifically the underground parking lot of a mall in the city center."

Upon hearing this, Ryuto was puzzled.

"Huh? The city center? And it's a mall? Are you sure about that?"

Crepes·Clair just nodded.

"Yes, that's what the intelligence reports indicate."

"But... aren't they worried about being seen?"

"I found it strange too. Normally, for a hostage exchange, they would choose a place with fewer people. Although the underground parking lot may not have many people, it's still in a mall, so there will likely be a fair number around. Besides, there are probably other, better locations available."

"Right, that's what I thought."

"But the fact remains that it's here. I've double-checked multiple times to be sure."

"So why...?"

In response to Ryuto's question, Crepes·Clair confidently replied.

"I've thought about it, and this might be intentional on their part."