NOVEL WEB Chapter 55
Eventually, that day, I couldn’t meet Yuuki.
With so many people gathered, I understood why I couldn’t find him. Even if I tried to look for him on purpose, it would have been difficult.
I contemplated calling him. If my family had come together, we could meet nearby by making a call. But, I continued fiddling with my phone until just a few minutes before the fireworks ended and then simply shoved it into my pocket.
Yuuki should also have time to spend with his family.
Even with close friends, if someone gets too close to the point of being a burden, the affection starts to fade. Yuuki is kind, but that’s probably why he wouldn’t be able to gladly meet me even if I asked.
Having gone through that event two days ago, I thought I should enjoy some peaceful moments in my daily life.
…And actually, there was one more reason.
After almost finishing watching the fireworks, it occurred to me that Yuuki might have lied to me.
He probably said he had family plans just to avoid making me feel guilty when he heard I had plans with a friend.
Thinking this made me scared of calling him.
What if instead of “Let’s meet,” it turned into “Sorry, I think I’ll be a little busy today”—with other excuses tacked on at the end?
I would feel too sorry for Yuuki.
…Is it a bit strange to be thinking this way?
I think of Yuuki as a close friend, but that doesn’t mean he’s really family. No matter how close friends are, there’s no obligation for that kind of consideration.
Worrying that Yuuki told such a lie just to concern himself about me feels a bit odd.
“So, are you free next month?”
Fukuda asked once more before parting ways.
I nodded.
“Yeah, I should be fine.”
“Great, that settles it, right?”
Since Miura and Yamashita said they’re in.
It seems Miura, Yamashita, and Fukuda all live nearby. They probably don’t stray far from Minato Ward.
Yamashita definitely lives within Minato Ward.
After parting ways with the three of them, who were waving their hands, I returned home, and naturally, it was close to ten o’clock.
“……”
Entering the dark house, I turned on the lights and took off my clothes.
After a quick shower, I changed clothes and sat in front of the fan.
“……”
Hmm.
If I had just spent this time alone from the beginning, I wouldn’t feel so empty right now.
Even before I came here, I had lived alone for several years. I had people I could call friends, but we didn’t meet often, and I never bothered inviting them over to my one-room apartment.
Living alone, I didn’t have a family to support, which meant if someone had to drop out for family reasons, I would usually take their place.
Hence, the house really just became a place for me to sleep. Though I did clean and cook a bit, it couldn’t be helped that it still felt bare.
When I returned home after staying up all night, I would just flop down and sleep for a long while, then wake up, glance at my smartphone for a bit, mess around on my computer a little, start watching a movie, and end up not finishing it.
“I really lived without purpose.”
If I were an extremely positive person, I might think thankfully that I got to help many people—well, I wasn’t that kind-hearted.
What about now?
“I think it’s a bit better now.”
I absentmindedly muttered to myself.
Why do I feel so empty?
Objectively speaking, I’ve spent way more time alone. It’s only been a few days since Yamashita started coming over, and Yuuki only came a few times, too.
Ah, that’s right.
I don’t have to go to school tomorrow. Really.
For the next couple of weeks until the end of August, it’s just me alone.
“No, wait.”
Today’s a holiday.
I do have to work tomorrow. I should work even in summer.
Work hours remain the same. There’s already someone in my previous time slot, and if I extend my hours unnecessarily, I’d have to let them go. My boss wasn’t someone who would spend double the money just to keep people around. He’d give away things he thinks are unnecessary but never treats people like that.
“…I wonder if Kuro will be okay.”
Kuro, the little black cat with a name almost similar to mine.
Though he has grown a bit bigger since I saw him with Shii, he still looked small enough to be called a ‘baby.’
Hmm.
Maybe I’ll stop by to check on him before I go to work tomorrow.
Who knows? I might run into Shii.
Thinking this, I closed my eyes a bit earlier than usual.
…But recently, I haven’t heard the sound of snoring from the next room.
Did he move out or something?
Well, who cares? As long as it’s quiet, I’m good…
*
“Kuro~ Kuro~”
When I called Kuro’s name a few times at the spot where he usually gets canned tuna from Shii, a little ball of black fur appeared at the edge of my sight.
As soon as I opened the can of cat tuna I had bought in advance and put it in the bowl, Kuro sprinted over, as if waiting, and devoured the tuna eagerly.
“……”
I quietly watched Kuro.
Is it just my imagination? The little black body seemed a bit thinner than the last time I saw him after the vacation. Watching him gobble up the contents of the can made me feel like he hadn’t eaten enough.
I carefully touched Kuro’s fur with my finger.
They say stray cats are dirty, but how can I help but look closer?
My hands can be washed later.
As I kept staring, Kuro finished the can and looked up at me.
Meeow.
A small, cute sound unique to kittens.
Is it still too young? The part of its face where its eyes are seems quite large, making it look incredibly adorable.
“……”
Should I just take him away?
Of course, there would be a lot to worry about. I have never raised a pet before. Plus, I had killed a few plants while trying to keep them alive.
But…
Hmm.
Still, it feels a little off to just take him away on a whim.
Kuro and Shii had a good relationship. After all, he was the one who Shii was taking care of first.
If I suddenly take him away without saying anything, Shii would get worried. Wouldn’t it be better to talk to her first?
Alright. Let’s at least mention it.
*
“Kuro?”
“Yeah.”
When I discussed this with Shii, whom I met at the maid cafe, her eyes widened, and she looked at me in surprise.
Fortunately, Shii didn’t declare she would take him herself.
Instead, she smiled widely while holding my hands tightly.
“Are you saying you’d take care of Kuro?”
“…Yeah.”
For some reason, I didn’t want to be alone in my room.
“Well, I’m still thinking about it.”
I wouldn’t want to put Kuro in a lonely room.
If I impulsively brought him back saying I was lonely, I wouldn’t want to leave him abandoned alone afterward.
On the other hand, I feel like I can’t just leave a cat I started caring for outside.
…But bringing home another living creature feels like it would be a bit unbearable for me.
If I’m going to bring a living being into my life, I have to think it through.
“If I end up taking care of a cat… I might end up quitting my job.”
I said with a somewhat serious expression.
“Ah… That’s true. Kuro is still young.”
Shii fell into thought for a moment.
Neither of us could come to a specific conclusion.
Certainly, it would be difficult for a busy person to raise a pet, right? There would definitely be issues with the companion animal’s health.
“…But, Senpai.”
“Yeah?”
After a brief pause of silence, it seemed Shii remembered something she had forgotten.
“I… me and my older brother decided to go on a trip during break.”
“…Oh.”
Wait, what?
I was a bit taken aback by Shii’s words.
No, of course, I intended to participate in the trip to catch the Raiju. I needed to know how the main story flowed.
But I never expected that she would so easily say this to me, let alone directly.
“It seems like my brother’s friends will join us as well…”
In reality, Sasaki planned to go, and Shii was just following along.
She wasn’t forcing herself to tag along. In fact, it was Sehiro, the main heroine, who had tagged along forcibly. Childhood friend Nakahara, senior character Hagiwara, and main heroine Yuuki.
Though Yuuki would have no particular reason to join here, but just for reference, the reason this time was “Isn’t it strange for Shii to be a lone girl?”
Since Shii cleverly omitted the fact that she was clearly wary of such people, our oblivious Sasaki seemed to think “Is that so?”
Perhaps it was because of what I said to Sasaki that the effect might be a little more pronounced in this instance.
“Is there any chance you would like to join, too? The expenses—”
“I’ll cover my part.”
I said that way.
After all, it’s a domestic trip within Japan. Although it is by the beach, I know it’s not far from Tokyo.
I still have the original funds, and I’ve saved up a little during that time, so I could spend a bit more without it being dangerously risky.
And on top of that, the money from the last time Yuuki was here was a whopping 50,000 yen.
I could use that this time, and as I listened to Shii, my mind was already calculating.
Wow, my situation has really improved.
After pondering a moment, I continued, “…Can I bring a friend?”
“Ah, yes! The pension is quite spacious, so it’s okay! …Actually, I would feel a bit more comfortable if you do; I wouldn’t want to be a bother by being a bit whiny…”
I gazed at Shii as she said that and ruffled her hair.
“Uhh, Senpai?”
Her shocked reaction mirrored her older brother exactly.
“What about the duration?”
“Right before school starts. Once we’re back in Tokyo, the very next day is the start of classes.”
It seems Hanagawa High School’s academic calendar aligns quite closely with middle schools. The festival periods seem to be staggered.
Alright then.
That means it won’t overlap with Miura’s plans.
I nodded to Shii.
Though we hadn’t formally decided anything, I finally had a chance to get involved with Yuuki in the main story.
…I feel a bit sorry for Yuuki, though.
*
For now, I decided to leave the cat as it was. Once I invite it home, there would be no option to abandon it.
I resolved to think things through a bit more carefully and leisurely as I returned home—
“……”
“……”
As I approached the stairs leading up to my home, I unexpectedly found Namahage there.
Just in case someone might forget, it’s that yōkai resembling an ogre. He had saved me from the stalker.
Unlike last time, he wasn’t holding a dinner knife. Well, that’s probably expected?
Namahage noticed me and seemed pretty flustered, fiddling with his house’s doorknob, but it seemed the door wouldn’t open.
“…Isn’t that hot?”
I pointed out, as the true summer had just begun. Even during the midnight hours, the temperature hardly dropped, and the humidity meant that I had been sweating all the way from the station.
After I said that, the man seemed to suddenly recall that he still had the Namahage mask on his face.
He hastily removed the mask, revealing a white cloth covering his head and his face drenched in sweat. I thought as much.
“Ah, sorry. Were you scared?”
I shook my head.
At first, I did think it was scary after all; however, it wasn’t just because of his appearance.
I knew of the existence of yōkai.
It was right after I’d almost suffered at the hands of a stalker, and Namahage was seen as ‘real,’ to the point that I almost made my wrist into a knife.
If he hadn’t asked me calmly not to, I really might have ended up hurting this totally clueless guy.
“…Well, it seems I’ve lost the key to my house.”
“……”
I stared at the man for a moment.
“Ah, you can pass by.”
The man said, stepping slightly to the side.
Without saying another word, I nodded slightly and passed by him.
The hallway wasn’t that narrow. It was spacious enough for two people to stand side by side, and it wasn’t that hard to go past the man standing by the door.
However, since he was wearing an old straw jacket on top, in typical Namahage fashion, there was a bit of a risk of snagging my clothes on the broken straw.
I carefully passed by without touching the man’s back and entered my home.
“…Phew.”
As I started to undress—
I suddenly remembered that the man was wearing such clothes and was unable to enter his house in this weather.
…Still, he saved my life once, so it felt a bit wrong to just leave him out in this weather.
But how could I help him?
“……”
Well, maybe I could do something.
I pondered for a moment and decided to give it a shot this time.
I opened the first aid kit I had prepared beforehand and cut some gauze into a suitable length.
Then I took a sharp kitchen knife and—
In the usual hasty manner, without applying much force, carefully made a small cut on my wrist so that a bit of blood emerged.
“Hmm.”
As I performed that action, I heard the voice of the entity that had been watching me with interest.
It didn’t mean I actually saw it in a shape, it just felt that way.
Being an avatar, I could somewhat sense what Jjapgurasu was thinking about.
Maybe Jjapgurasu was deliberately teaching me, for an unknown reason. Maybe it just thought it was more entertaining.
“Are you wondering if I’m planning to knock on his door with this knife?”
“That’s not it.”
This time, time didn’t come to a halt, and I quickly wiped my wrist with a cloth.
Even so, I hadn’t cut too deeply, so blood wasn’t gushing out. The wound was there, but it was shallow.
It stung a bit, but now I was even somewhat accustomed to it.
“Can you make a key?”
“A key.”
Jjapgurasu chuckled quietly.
“Ah, so you’re indeed willing to help the man? Is it out of affection?”
“Surely not.”
After all, he looked at least ten years older than me. Even considering a twenty-year gap seemed unlikely, but beyond age, we were simply different genders.
Though I had taken on this body, my sexual orientation remained as it was in my previous life.
“If it’s just paying back a life debt.”
“Oh.”
“And you should repay me as well, right? If that guy hadn’t jumped out with that kitchen knife, I would have died.”
“I’m curious why you would care if you died.”
I probably mentioned that I was the first of a thousand.
But tell me.
“If I’m the first of a thousand, where did the previous thousand go? They could be on another planet. Maybe there are even more avatars of me somewhere in this land.
Kagami showed great interest in me, and Miura seemed to feel similar.
Yuuki’s grandfather also seemed to know something but kept me close.
Most importantly, the fact that Sasaki was sitting right next to me felt extremely fishy. All sorts of strange things kept happening.
Thus, I had concluded that the person known as Kuroisawa Kotone was probably a quite important character in the story.
Not having an established personality, she gradually formed one through attending school but ended up completely ruined after experiencing various unfortunate events.
Well, isn’t it a typical story? The details may differ in the actual novel, but in truth, I could easily name characters with a similar type of story.
Therefore, this body is special.
Especially because I fit snugly into a situation where I should have been empty.
After all, even Jjapgurasu seemed not to know about my existence.
“If it breaks, that would be a pitiful toy.”
Jjapgurasu paused for a moment after my words, then started to chuckle.
“Indeed, as you say. If it breaks, it would be unfortunate for her. In that case, it’s acceptable to grant a reward to the one who helped her.”
Jjapgurasu said.
“How about experiencing it personally? I could arrange a way for you to sleep in this room.”
“……”
Seeing my dumbfounded expression, Jjapgurasu commented as if amused.
“You’re quite a stubborn creature.”
Then, a few drops of blood that had begun to ooze from my wrist leaped upwards.
The tiny amount was insufficient to create a weapon.
The rising blood twisted as it moved and eventually took the shape of a key. Although its overall shape was similar to the key I carried, it was somewhat different in details from my own key.
I took the key in my hand, quickly wiped my left wrist with a cloth, and wrapped it with a bandage.
It wouldn’t take more than a few minutes, so there shouldn’t be any risk. I tied a hair tie over the bandage and stood up while holding the key.
As I opened the door to go out, the man was still in front of my door.
He seemed to be fiddling with his phone, probably trying to make a call, but he was unable to get through.
At this hour, it was likely that all locksmiths were asleep.
It wouldn’t be good to contact someone like the police, either.
“Could you please step back for a moment?”
I walked towards him and turned my body to cover the key, unlocking the door directly.
“Whoa?”
When I unlocked my house door, the man looked at me with astonished eyes.
What’s wrong?
Do I look like a stalker?
Well, thinking of it, it would indeed be chilling for a girl to hold on to a key to a boy’s house.
“This is a master key.”
I said directly.
“Eh?”
“Here, my mom is the owner.”
“…Ah….”
Strictly speaking, it should be Nakagami who owns it.
I thought it was a bit strange.
Since the first moment I came into this world, I had been concerned about my rent, but during my stay here, I had never once seen my rent actually leave.
Though, in reality, only the space I occupy might belong to Nakagami, and the rest might not belong to her at all, but if the man asked, I should just call and have them explain.
“…Thank you.”
I shrugged and immediately turned around to enter my room.
The key soaked in blood was tossed into the bathroom. When the key hit the tiled floor and bounced a few times, it quickly turned into blood and oozed away.
Then, I changed my clothes, feeling a bit tired.
…Maybe I should wash up after the bleeding stops.
Thinking so, I turned on the TV.
And that night, too, the sound of snoring was absent.
I wondered if he had changed his sleeping position or something? I didn’t know for sure.