[Sawari Shirakawa Arc 2] Maybe it’s okay to take one like this now and then

—Afternoon at the annex café, “Siempre.”

The blond man looked around the café with a wide grin, waving cheerfully.

“Kai-saaaan! Those muscles are looking massive today too!”

“Oh, hey there, Wataru-kun. Good to see you.”

Masato Kai responded in his usual laid-back tone.

Behind Wataru, a group of sharply dressed young men in suits dragged in an enormous vault, its weight making the floor creak ominously.

“…That thing clearly isn’t meant to be moved around.”

Rena Henmi muttered, exasperated.

The vault looked like a museum artifact—

a dusty relic with a rusted combination dial on the front, and beside it, a panel of around 50 round buttons.

“Hey! Keep it straight! Don’t scratch it, damn it!”

Wataru barked, and the suited men quickly corrected their posture.

Ignoring the commotion, Kai explained calmly.

“Apparently, Wataru-kun—one of my regulars—couldn’t open this old safe from his grandma’s house.

So he brought it here.”

“…And why to you?”

Rena asked sharply, eyebrow raised.

Wataru stepped forward immediately.

“Kai-san’s amazing! So I figured he could totally handle it!”

“…Seriously? Are you stupid?”

“What the hell—! You’ve got a real attitude problem, you know that!?”

His entourage quickly stepped in.

“W-Wataru-san, not here, please!”

Kosuke Kaname, watching the scene unfold, chuckled quietly.

“Bet he’s pulled this kind of thing before at the gym—‘miracle nose’ and all.”

Beside him, Hayata murmured softly.

“…I liked my grandma too.”

Then, without looking at Rena, he turned to Kaname.

“Hey, Kaname-san.

Let’s try to help him out.”

Wataru immediately responded, grabbing Hayata’s hand in a firm, heated handshake.

“YES! Someone who gets it!”

“No bad people come from loving their grandma!”

In an instant, a brotherhood had formed.

Kaname, watching them from behind the counter, muttered with a smirk:

“…It’s not a case, but maybe it’s okay to take one like this now and then.”

“That’s definitely not okay.”

Rena shot back immediately.

Kaname ignored her, continuing:

“This one doesn’t seem like a good match for Kai’s nose or Rena’s taste buds.”

Kai scratched his head apologetically, while Rena snorted in displeasure.

“Hayata, maybe this is up your alley?

Like, I dunno, maybe you could identify subtle changes in sound while turning the dial or something?”

Kaname turned toward him hopefully.

“Siiiigh…

Kaname-san, you really don’t get it.”

Hayata replied with mock exasperation.

“I’m not Superman, okay?

Sure, faraway sounds or super faint voices—I can pick those up no problem.

But tiny sound differences in dial clicks? Yeah, no. Not happening.”

“…Why does he sound proud of that?”

Kaname waved it off, clearly done with that line of thinking.

—

So now the question was:

How the hell were they supposed to open this thing?