You shouldn’t have trusted your brother.

“I’m just going to grab a drink. Don’t go anywhere” Douman had said before disappearing into the swarm of people at the Kyoto night market. That was over an hour ago.

You’d called, no answer. Of course not. He always keeps his phone on silent. He’s the principal of a youkai academy, after all. The cold night wind whispered through the empty, narrow alleys of the old town. Shops were all closed, paper lanterns flickering dimly in the darkness. Not a soul in sight. A chill crawled down your spine, and then you remembered.

“If I’m not there when you get kidnapped, cursed, or need to borrow money” Douman once joked half seriously “use this 1000 yen bill. Call Ranmaru”

You muttered under your breath “Ridiculous…”

You frown. Why him? You know Karasuma Ranmaru is a sly troublemaker, the kind who kidnaps friends and even your brother’s teachers , just to shave their fur and sell it for quick money. His kidnappings never end well. But the stories about him still linger in your mind.

And yet…you had no other option.

With a resigned sigh, you pulled the crumpled ¥1000 bill from your pocket and knelt down. You hesitated, just for a second, then placed the note on the ground and whispered:

“Karasuma Ranmaru”

The wind shifted. The air buzzed.

THUD

A man dropped out of the sky. Literally.

Feathers exploded around him like ash from a bonfire, spiraling in the lantern light. He landed in a crouch, white and red yukata fluttering, long blue sash whipping dramatically as he stood and casually brushed soot-black feathers off his shoulders.

“Ah~ Acchan’s little sister” Ranmaru drawled, like it was the most normal greeting in the world. He adjusted his crow-mask with two fingers, revealing a lopsided grin beneath. His crimson eyes glinted like mischievous embers.

“I thought you'd only summon me when the world was ending” he sighed dramatically. “Or at least if Acchan finally got arrested for tax fraud”

He bent and picked up the crumpled bill between two fingers, holding it as if it were some ancient relic.

“A thousand yen? Tch” He clicked his tongue. “You could’ve at least offered two bills this time. I came in the middle of a hot streak at the pachinko parlor. I was this close to a jackpot”

He tucked the bill away somewhere in his sleeve with practiced ease and looked you over.

“So then...” he said, voice softening just a bit “What kind of trouble are you in, sweetheart? Don’t tell me Acchan ditched you again. Or did something nastier crawl out of the cracks?”