Chapter 17: Mamiya Manaka: Life Is Just Too Hard for Me...

One minute, five minutes, ten minutes...

Chi Feichi sat quietly by the bedside, reading without a word.

Feichi climbed down halfway, checked the plastic box on the shelf with the hamsters, counted them one by one—none missing—and then strolled around the room, content.

Kaito Kuroba sat at the table, now calm. He had initially planned to leave immediately, but since he had promised to teach Chi Feichi the art of disguise...

I, the Phantom Thief Kid, keep my word!

Raising his eyes, he saw a certain snake darting wildly around the room, seemingly inspecting every corner. His eyelid twitched involuntarily.

Maybe he should reconsider leaving?

Twenty minutes, thirty minutes...

The room remained quiet.

Kaito watched Feichi running around with Feichi, then took out his phone to play for a while. Glancing up, he saw Chi Feichi still engrossed in his book.

Who can stay calm longer?

He wouldn’t lose!

Forty minutes, fifty minutes, an hour...

Silence still filled the room.

Kaito took a deep breath, looking away from his phone. Fine, he lost. Chi Feichi hadn’t moved an inch. “Don’t you feel bored?”

“Weren’t you the one wanting quiet?” Chi Feichi replied without looking up.

Kaito: “...”

Suddenly, he didn’t want to talk to this guy anymore!

Three more minutes of silence.

Kaito slumped in his chair, trying to fill the silence. “You read my father’s notebook. Once you learn his disguise technique, can you be considered his disciple?”

“Not ‘considered’,” Chi Feichi said, closing the book after the last page. “If you think so, then that’s what it is.”

Kaito straightened up instantly. So he had found a disciple for his father after all. Feeling closer, he lowered his voice and asked, “Don’t you think this family is weird?”

“How so?” Chi Feichi looked at him.

“They say no need to see a doctor, and they really don’t go! I’m not just judging them by that, but from their attitude, they seem cold, like they don’t exactly welcome us... No, it’s not that they don’t welcome us. After dinner, Mr. Mamiya talked about the chess sculpture in the yard with a hopeful tone. Maybe they don’t want visitors but hope we can solve the puzzle, so they agreed to let us stay?”

Chi Feichi nodded. “You guessed right.”

“Do you know something?” Kaito asked.

“I just feel that way,” Chi Feichi replied. “And I think we probably won’t stay long.”

Kaito stroked his chin. “Makes sense. If we can’t solve the puzzle, they’ll think we’re useless and find a reason to kick us out...”

Chi Feichi: “...”

No, the real reason is that soon a little death god elementary schooler will come to cause trouble...

“But I do want to take on the challenge,” Kaito said, looking out the window. “What treasure could that puzzle be hiding?”

“Better not,” Chi Feichi got up to fetch the kettle and poured water for both of them. “It’s rare for me to have a quiet place to study. I also need to train in the forest—the best training ground. If you find the treasure, trouble will come. Let me get my training done first, then we’ll look for it.”

Kaito considered. “Waiting is fine. The treasure won’t run away. What kind of training will you do in the forest?”

Chi Feichi pointed to the weighted gear in the corner he had brought. “Physical training. For the next few days, I plan to study disguise in the morning, read psychology books, then train in the forest, rest in the afternoon, and train at night.”

He would put his supernatural abilities aside for now and focus on strengthening his physical foundation. His combat skills and practical experience were sufficient, but his endurance needed quick improvement.

“You have a training plan?” Kaito became interested. “Count me in!”

Of course Chi Feichi couldn’t refuse training companionship.

That night, Chi Feichi strapped on the weights and adapted to moving around the castle. He didn’t plan to remove them during the night; unless something unexpected happened, the weights would stay for a while.

Luckily, the weights he bought were of good quality—non-bulky, well-distributed. Wearing long sleeves and pants could conceal them.

Kaito, curious, strapped on weights too and followed Chi Feichi around the castle.

The next morning, Kaito woke to find Chi Feichi already back from his morning exercise. After breakfast with the Mamiya family, Kaito grabbed his backpack and headed to Chi Feichi’s room.

“Running so early? You’re working too hard,” Kaito said, dropping into a chair and pulling out disguise tools.

“Not intense training—just a slow jog and two sets of punches,” Chi Feichi sat down too.

“You kept the weights on?” Kaito looked up as Chi Feichi nodded. He sighed and continued rummaging through his bag. “Last night I tried wearing them, but when I woke up, couldn’t move my limbs—thought I had sleep paralysis.”

Chi Feichi reminded him, “You’re still growing. I don’t recommend long-term weight training.”

Kaito smiled. “Got it. I was just curious to try.”

One hour of disguise study every morning was Chi Feichi’s plan.

At first, Kaito thought it impractical—how long would it take at that pace?

But once he started, he realized an hour was more than enough.

Chi Feichi carefully studied the notes Kaito’s father had left. He wasn’t a photographic memory type but slowed his reading and concentrated deeply.

He also had experience in disguise and makeup, with strong skills in facial recognition and analysis.

What remained was learning about materials for disguise, how to use them to alter facial bone structure visually, and how to craft prosthetic faces.

In five days he mastered it, then began learning quick-change magic tricks from Kaito.

Every morning from around nine, Chi Feichi took his homemade nutritious lunch and went out, returning only by dinner.

After accompanying him once, having tasted Chi Feichi’s nutritious food and grilled skewers, Kaito followed him every day.

Besides the first day when training nearly exhausted him, Kaito soon learned to be smart—after a short training, he’d play with Feichi, watching Chi Feichi climb trees, sprint, practice boxing, swim, jump around, free climb, and go night cross-country—all while weighted down.

Watching made him nervous but he never stopped teasing Feichi, who was hunting around.

“Feichi, I feel like your master is heading straight for disaster. Should I buy him life insurance and put myself as beneficiary...?”

Compared to these two’s busy days, Mamiya Mitsuru felt headache-stricken.

Occasionally, the Fourth Aoyama Hospital called to ask about Chi Feichi’s condition, but Chi Feichi went out every day, and when home, just ate and slept. What could he possibly know?

He couldn’t stop him either, and when met with cold, icy stares, he dared not say more. He felt utterly hopeless.

He wanted Chi Feichi to study the chess puzzle in the yard, but the boy was never interested—he ran off whenever he pleased.

The high schooler was no easier; after only seven days, he’d been bitten by the snake four times, yet kept provoking it, enjoying every moment.

One fine, sunny day,

Mamiya Mitsuru received another call from the Fourth Aoyama Hospital. Luckily, Chi Feichi hadn’t gone out, so he smoothly handled the call. But as he stepped into the yard to enjoy the sun, his good mood vanished instantly...

Mamiya Takahito knelt thoughtfully before the chess sculpture, stroking it and pondering seriously.

Chi Feichi treated the chess pieces like a plum blossom pole, hopping and jumping on them.

Nearby, Kaito waved a hamster by its tail in front of Feichi. When Feichi lunged, Kaito performed a trick making the hamster disappear. Feichi chased it, biting wildly, dashing like the wind around the chessboard.

Mamiya Zōdai basked in the sun in his wheelchair, frequently asking, “Has my daughter arrived yet?” or “Who are they?” He growled irritably, “Kids, don’t break the old man’s things! Has my daughter come yet? I want her to kick these brats out! Kick them out!”

The whole yard was in uproar, wild and lively!

Mamiya Mitsuru stared blankly, thinking of hanging a sign on the door saying “Fifth Aoyama Hospital”...

Days went by, and he feared that even if he got used to this life, he himself might become abnormal. He had to keep telling himself, “I am normal, I am normal...”

Living with this bunch was truly tough!

“Ah!”

In the yard, Kaito screamed as Feichi bit his ankle. “Let go! Hurry, I’m dying here!”

Feichi finally released him, then dashed like the wind into the villa and out again.

“Uncle Mamiya, excuse me!”

“Uncle Mamiya, sorry, but the antivenom seems to have run out. Could you drive and buy some?”

Chi Feichi turned his head, giving the snake watching them the same cold, calm gaze, then went back to his own business silently.

Mamiya Takahito didn’t even look up, lost in thought before the chess sculpture.

Mamiya Zōdai wheeled over. “Go buy the kid some! And pick up my daughter on the way—she’s so slow...”

“All right, no problem!” Mamiya Mitsuru forced a polite smile and quietly drove off amid Kaito’s thanks and Zōdai’s constant nagging.

If... if it weren’t for the treasure hidden in the castle...

He really wanted to dump this chaotic mess and leave!

He wanted to go so badly. Thinking it through, even compared to going insane, that treasure... no, the treasure was still very important...