«The Lost and Found Boys office is to your service, ma'am.»

He could hear someone gasp down the line, then a gust of whoos.h.i.+ng wind, and a little cry that sounded sweet and pleasant for Kyon's ears. The little thief seemed to have lost something valuable.

«You… Come back… At once!»

Kyon laughed so hard that his eyes started overflowing with tears. The feeling of complete safety and the girl's reaction brought him pure joy.

The shocked girl was in despair. How did he escape? How did he destroy the strong cage and pa.s.s her faithful guards?! Was his mother the G.o.ddess of escape?! It was unthinkable! She was shaking in a fit of rage. His laughter only fueled her anger!

When his excitement calmed down and finally subsided, Kyon asked: – «Do you want me back?»

«Yes! Do not make me mad! I can be scary when I get angry... Be a good boy and come back right away!»

«I am not the kind of boy who gives in to the girls like you.»

She tried to swallow, but her mouth had gone dry. When she said these words, she did not think about his feelings at all. For the first time, the meaning of her phrase came home to her, giving her severe discomfort in her chest that followed by rage.

«Think about what I said.» – Kyon added and cut the connection. The happy inspiration seized him because he highly appreciated this girl, mainly because of her inaccessibility and unique beauty.

The sound transmitter rang unceasingly.

He thought what to do next. He could easily destroy Kyon's ident.i.ty, forget about the Stones and the little thief, and concentrate on the investigator's career. The power and influence would provide him necessary for his body resources. However, he had to be Kyon in the tournament of the families.

Glory to cold rationalism! Screw them all! But Kyon couldn't stop thinking about the dangerous snow queen. If he managed to recruit her, the powerful, influential a.s.sa.s.sin organization would be under his control. The stubborn girl was unlikely to give in, though... It would be sad to leave her until better times. Anyway, he could always call and talk with her.

Next morning, Kyon answered his sound transmitter.

«Kyon, come back, please!»

«You said you're scary when you get angry. I am afraid of you.» - Kyon said with mock fear.

«Don't worry. I won't punish you when you're back! Quite the opposite. I'll be more polite… More careful… Please…»

«Wait! Don't hang up… I am sorry. I was too hard on you. Let's meet and have a talk?»

Her sweet, imploring voice could break the will of any boy, even of an experienced man. Anyone would love to please her, to make her happy... However, her little trick did not work on Kyon.

«Do you promise not to lock me up?» – He asked.

«…»

«I see...»

«Wait! I do… I promise.»

«What do you promise? Do you promise not to lock me up?»

«…»

«Are you messing with me? Say it already!»

«…» – He could hear only her hesitant sighs.

Kyon couldn't understand why she reacted like this. It would be easier for her just to tell a lie and get over with it. Suddenly, he had a eureka moment concerning the girl's true nature. – «Tell me about the day when you lied to the prince about the coniferous poison. He thought he had a bomb in his boxers because of you. Did you feel guilty for your dirty lies?»

«I never lied to him!» – The girl sounded really exasperated. – «It was a joke… It's not my fault that he is a rare fool. Anyway, why are we talking about him? It's all about you… Come back, please… I don't want to search the whole city for you…»

Kyon's eyebrows crawled up his forehead. Back in the library, the girl's reaction to the statement that he knew the entire historical section by heart was exaggerated. Anyone else would have laughed or just ignored what he had said. Kyon remembered her say, "I will have to punish you for your dirty lies." Does it mean that she hated liars, that she avoided lies by all means? It was quite likely. The situation with the prince was pretty transparent. What killer in their right mind would use poison that took 20 minutes to exert its effect?

«Have you ever told anyone about my talent?»

«No, never…»

Kyon drummed his fingers on his knee, deep in thought. – «Hmm… I can meet you tonight at 9 o'clock but with one condition. You have to promise four things.»

«What things?» – She asked at once.

Her question had definitely confirmed Kyon's guess. – «First, you won't have anyone to help you when we collaborate. Second, you will never become aggressive towards me. Third, no one will ever learn from you about my talent. And fourth, you will take the terms of the deal serious and try to reach a compromise. Can you promise me these four things?»

«Okay. I promise.»

«Great. Now swear you do.»

«Why?! I've already said I promise!»

Kyon laughed. – «I don't trust any words spoken in haste. Swear by uncle Leon that you promise these four things... Then will I think about meeting with you.»

«Never! Are you crazy?! How do you know his name?!.. You weren't sleeping, were you?! I should have been more careful… Jerk!» – She sounded really exasperated. He had read her like an open book and was taking advantage of her weakness!

«I give you three hours to think. If you say no, you can forget about the cleaning forever.» – Kyon ended the call and stretched himself.

People's convictions are their major weakness. Living without them would be simple, but it would make you no different than an animal.

Three hours had pa.s.sed.

Kyon answered the call. – «What's your decision?»

The girl down the line was restless. Like a true professional in her field, she had dug into her target's past and found out that he was a homeless orphan without a job. The elder who had hired her said that the boy had appeared in the family all of a sudden as if he had fallen from heaven (another confirmation of his divine origin). It all means, she had no leverage on him. All her influence, wouldn't help her find him. Her accomplices had never seen the boy, and she didn't want to waste her precious time to search for him all around. Today's meeting was her last chance. She would have to make a promise and keep it.

«I promise.» – She said in a humble soft voice.

«Alright. And now swear you do…» – He also made her swear that she hadn't told anyone about his talent until now.

She swore an oath promising to do everything he wanted. Judging by her intonation, the girl really had an unusual character trait. Unless he was mistaken, and she had outstanding acting skills, which he had never noticed in her before.

«I accept your oath. Wait for my instructions.» – He was planning to meet up with her at the library in the evening.

Until then, Kyon decided to find out the origin of the bright flash that came out of his body at the most dangerous moment in his life.

He reached out to his unique body and felt the bright part of the nucleus rejoice the acquired skill like a small child who had learned something new.

He gave a mental command to the nucleus of his unique body to demonstrate the skill, and another blinding flash of daylight came out of his body (or rather the keys of his body).

The body of the void sent him an overall feeling of tiredness. He lacked the energy and had to recharge.

An hour later, Kyon received a response from his body and knew that he could use the flash again! It took the body 60 minutes to recharge!

He kept carrying out the experiments every hour until the evening.

Kyon's subordinates complained the flash kept them panic-stricken. All their feelings seemed to explode, causing unbearable discomfort and pain.

Kyon figured out that the flash of light wasn't electromagnetic radiation but a concentrated attribute of light. When it penetrated others, it overloaded all their senses to the limit. Something similar happened with Tsayan at the party when Kyon infused his plexus with the light element.

Kyon a.s.sumed that this flash could also neutralize the techniques based on the dark element.

To sum it up: the flash of light takes an hour to recharge. It can leave the enemy stunned for a while. A convenient distraction!

There must also be a flash of darkness... But his soul didn't respond. Apparently, he had to activate it so that the nucleus "learned" to use it. It was really messed up...

…

At half-past eight, Kyon called the girl and told her the meeting place, the main Boston library.

Ten minutes later, she arrived at the appointed place. She quickly went upstairs. However, before she reached the top floor, she saw Kyon. He was sitting at the reading table, his back turned to her, leafing through a book.

The girl walked around him and stepped unexpectedly out of invisibility to catch him by surprise. – «You used a dirty trick, nasty boy!» – Her smile vanished, wiped away by astonishment. The usually self-confident boy now looked terribly scared.

«Are you afraid of me?!» – She seemed to have lost her enthusiasm. His unexpected reaction left her disappointed.

«Miss…» – The boy mumbled, turning deadly pale.

The girl frowned and asked coldly:

«Who are you?»

She heard Kyon's voice behind her. – «Just a test in case you have trouble keeping promises.»

The girl opened her mouth in surprise, looking at the two boys in turns. They look like identical twins! Only their voices and characters were different.

The fake Kyon took the mask off his face and pulled off the wig. Then he hurried to leave the library, his legs failing him.

Kyon paid no attention to the little thief's reaction. He entered the elite library section and showed his token to the guard. He had arranged the final test to protect himself as much as possible. If the girl became aggressive towards his subordinate, he wouldn't have appeared at all. However, judging by her reaction and words, she was willing to keep vows and cooperate with him. It was time for negotiations.

The girl followed him like a shadow. She looked at Kyon in the back and marveled at his mysterious ways. Her opinion of him had changed. This boy pulled tricks that made her uncomfortable. Were all the G.o.ddess's kids so special?