Kapitel 92: Chapter 91
"Come and eat."
No one can resist sausages, especially not a dog.
The Akita trotted over, wagging its tail happily. Without a second thought, it gobbled up the sausage from Ai's hand and soon collapsed into a deep sleep.
Ai stepped into the entrance like she owned the place, gently closing the door behind her. She started her little investigation.
"The place is spotless," she noted, her voice soft.
After scanning the living room, she wandered over to the TV, lightly brushing her hand across it.
"The TV's still warm... Looks like he left not too long ago."
Perfect timing to set up a few "gadgets."
As a spy, carrying around surveillance gear was just part of the job. She would install the cameras now, and pick them up later when they had served their purpose.
To Ai, this house was as vulnerable as Nagasaka Slope. She could waltz in and out of here seven times over, and no one would be the wiser.
After planting the equipment, Ai's ears twitched at the faint sound of a key turning in the lock. In an instant, she found a place to hide.
"I'm back."
Natsuki pushed the door open, stepping into the hallway.
A second voice followed.
"Thanks for having me."
Umi trailed in behind him.
"Hmm?"
Ai narrowed her eyes from her hiding spot.
"That voice... Umi?"
Whoever it was didn't really matter.
It was past nine in the evening, and Natsuki had brought a girl home, no less. And they weren't even on a date?
Miss Kaguya, you've been betrayed!
Natsuki opened the shoe cabinet and pulled out a pair of women's slippers. "Here, wear these."
Better to play it safe, especially after bringing back a blonde bombshell who showed up out of nowhere seeking refuge.
"Thanks, Natsuki," Umi said, bending over to remove her shoes. Her legs, wrapped in sleek black stockings, shimmered under the hallway light. "I didn't know you lived alone. This makes things so much easier."
Natsuki walked over to the fridge, glancing back at her. "What do you want to drink? Green tea or cola?"
"Cola!" Umi shot her hand up, grinning.
He opened the fridge and spotted the familiar human-headed spirit peering back at him. It had apparently shown up again without him even noticing. He sighed internally—this was getting too routine. With practiced ease, he pretended it wasn't there.
Natsuki grabbed two drinks from the fridge and walked over to the sofa, handing the Coke to Umi. "Here."
Umi took it without hesitation, tilting her head back to take a long sip. She sighed contentedly. "Ah, nothing beats ice-cold Coke in the summer."
Natsuki sipped his barley tea. "It's not summer yet."
"Daytime temps hit over 30 degrees today. That's close enough," Umi replied, her cheeks flushing from the rush of Coke. She looked at him, her voice turning playful. "So, Natsuki... what now?"
What now?
A guy and a girl, alone in the middle of the night—wasn't it obvious? Hayasaka, still hidden in the shadows, silently watched the two of them from the sofa. She was already composing her mental report.
They need to break up.
No question about it—he's cheating. If they don't split up now, what's the point of staying together? Just for the holidays?
"Nothing to do," Natsuki replied casually. "Fujiwara's away on a trip with her family. There's not much we can do without her."
The curse they were dealing with had some intelligence. To exorcise it, they needed Fujiwara's unique skill set—something to subdue the spirit and then activate the purification spell.
But Fujiwara's family always took trips during Golden Week, and she wouldn't be back in Tokyo anytime soon.
Wait, what? Hayasaka frowned.
Why bring up that ditz all of a sudden? What could they possibly need her for? And why can't they handle it alone? Do they really need a third person for... that?
Meanwhile, Umi swirled her Coke around in the can. "Thanks for letting me crash here for a few days, Natsuki. I can't stand the thought of going back home alone."
Just then, something caught Hayasaka's eye.
On the sofa next to Natsuki, a phone floated into the air, seemingly of its own volition, and unlocked itself mid-air.
"Huh? What's going on?"
Hayasaka's eyes widened in shock.
As someone who'd grown up grounded in logic and science, her first instinct was to find a rational explanation.
"Magic?" she thought.
No, that couldn't be it. Magic was just illusion, tricks with props that made things seem impressive, but ultimately, there was always an explanation.
But here, the phone was hovering—no wires, no tricks. Magic couldn't account for that.
It wasn't magic.
Someone else was behind it.
And that someone... was Mrs.Kaguya, playing with her phone remotely.
As a ghost who never needed to sleep, Kaguya's greatest joy in her afterlife was playing with her phone. If only she could still taste food—then she might have ended up lounging around like a lazy, good-for-nothing, similar to a certain useless angel or a carefree hamster, indulging in food and fun all day long.
Since regular people couldn't see ghosts, from Hayasaka's perspective, all she could see was the strange sight of a phone floating in midair.
This was exactly why Natsuki had banned Mrs.Kaguya from bringing her phone to school. The last thing they needed was her unintentionally scaring someone.
"I remember when I passed away, One Piece was just at the Crocodile arc. It's wild to think how much Luffy's grown in the blink of an eye," Mrs.Kaguya mused, playing with her phone with a distracted sort of glee.
Though, in reality, not much had changed. Despite 25 real-world years, Luffy had only aged about three years in the manga. Still, now he was at the level where he could fight Kaido solo—a truly impressive feat.
"His devil fruit's overpowered, his lineage is overpowered… everything about him is a cheat," Mrs.Kaguya continued, a little amused. "Turns out there's no such thing as a regular civilian protagonist in a shonen series."
Umi, sitting casually beside Natsuki, perked up at the mention of manga. "Oh, I bought the latest volumes this afternoon! They're in my backpack. If you want, we can read them together later, Sister Shimizu."
Hayasaka's eyes widened, watching in disbelief as Umi casually addressed… the empty air. Her heart pounded, and she found herself holding her breath. Had she been too reckless, sneaking in like this?
Something was very wrong.
These two—Natsuki and Umi—were not normal.
Hayasaka had thought she was dealing with a routine spying mission. But now, it was obvious she had stumbled into a situation far beyond her understanding.
"I'm just a spy maid," she thought to herself, panic creeping in. "But this… this is clearly something supernatural."
"It's not magic."
Hayasaka Ai checked over and over, scrutinizing every detail, but there were no flaws. Nothing that explained why a phone could float in midair.
Magic?
Superpowers?
Aliens?
One thing was clear: Natsuki and Umi were definitely not ordinary people. And if they weren't, what about Kaguya?
Hayasaka's mind raced. Could the eldest miss know about all this? She should. And that pink-haired idiot Fujiwara… she definitely knew something too.
Hayasaka quickly began to connect the dots.
They'd never crossed paths at school before, but recently, an abandoned classroom had suddenly been transformed into an activity room. Natsuki and the others frequently gathered there in the mornings. The truth was practically staring her in the face.
Campus Occult Series? Time Stops? Devil App?
As these thoughts raced through her mind, Hayasaka recalled the tropes—supernatural powers often came with the temptation to abuse them. Especially for a high school boy like Natsuki. He was surrounded by beautiful girls—Kaguya, Fujiwara, and Umi, all of them extraordinary in their own ways. It wouldn't be surprising if Natsuki had lost control of his inner desires.
But now…
"The wind's picking up," Hayasaka muttered under her breath, growing more cautious.
As a spy, when the intelligence on a target didn't add up, the best course of action was retreat. Gather more information and reassess the plan. Sticking to the original strategy when things had clearly gone sideways would be foolish.
Hidden on the balcony, Hayasaka made her decision. She needed to retreat, and fast.
But just as she prepared to leave, a sudden burst of barking echoed from below. The noise was especially jarring in the stillness of the night.
"Could it be the evil spirit following us?" Umi gasped, startled.
Natsuki stood up immediately. "Let's go check it out."
The two of them headed toward the balcony.
"Great," Hayasaka muttered, her face tightening in frustration. She moved swiftly, heading to the edge of the balcony. Using a rope she had prepared earlier, she rappelled down silently, her hand brushing against a piece of clothing hanging from the railing. The fabric fluttered away in the night breeze.
Bang.
She landed quietly, retracting the rope, and caught the falling garment just before it hit the ground. She pressed herself against the wall, heart racing, listening.
Up on the balcony, Natsuki and Umi scanned the street below.
From their vantage point, the streets seemed empty and quiet, but to Natsuki and Umi, the scene was far from peaceful. At night, the streets were far more "lively" than during the day.
"Is that the guy under the streetlight?" Umi asked, pointing.
"No," Natsuki squinted, focusing on the figure. "That's the faceless man… holding an umbrella and wearing a black suit."
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein