Chapter 107: Late-night Conversation
After finishing dinner at the Nakano house and resting for half an hour, Sakurai Saki headed back.
The tutoring job was over, and he had no reason to linger. Besides, they had studied too much during the day already; if he kept stuffing them now like a kind of "forced fattening," the five sisters might not be able to sleep tonight, closing their eyes only to see nothing but knowledge in their heads.
Too much of anything is not good, even if it's a good thing.
He pushed the door open and entered his rented apartment.
From within Sakurai Saki's shadow, the loli vampire Shinobu — who had disappeared the entire day — appeared.
"You used superpower to teach them again, huh?! That bunch of idiots has nothing going for them besides barely decent faces!" Shinobu had completely lost hope in the sisters' intelligence.
As the entity currently attached to Sakurai Saki, Shinobu could observe from within his shadow.
"Superpower isn't some kind of treasure. And besides, shouldn't you find this kind of thing very challenging, Shinobu?" Sakurai Saki put down his schoolbag.
Today he was wearing casual clothes; his uniform had already been ironed and put away yesterday. Wearing a uniform on a day off would definitely be weird.
After answering, he paid no attention to the blonde girl sitting on the living room sofa, swinging her legs and acting spoiled.
He hadn't summoned Yakumo Shiro yesterday, so she was probably anxious by now.
He opened the drawer by the bed, and the moment his hand touched the love letter—
Sakurai Saki was pinned down by the ghost girl with white hair.
This time, Sakurai Saki had learned from experience; he immediately pulled the other party tightly into his arms, predicting her move.
"Sakurai-kun~ you're so rough~"
(,,•̀ ⩊ -,,)♡
Shiro spoke provocatively.
Sakurai Saki irritably let her go.
Then he spoke: "Today, was there anything unusual around here?"
"Nope~" Yakumo Shiro answered from the bed.
Sakurai Saki turned serious, and Yakumo Shiro also understood — it was time for the daily report.
"Gaen Izuko's house — Shiro, have you gone inside yet?"
"Ghosts can't enter a house without the owner's permission, so I didn't go in, let alone the second floor." Yakumo Shiro said indifferently.
In truth, Sakurai Saki was somewhat wary of Gaen Izuko, but at first she had a friendly attitude when he judged her by his abilities, which made him not view her as an enemy.
"Sakurai-kun, she might be aiming for bigger benefits from you." Yakumo Shiro warned.
Ghosts are different from Oddity, because ghosts are almost harmless and exist in a different space than Oddities, so Oddities specialist usually pay no attention to ghosts. Too weak, no power, not even worth observing.
That's why yesterday, Yakumo Shiro being beside Sakurai Saki — the other party didn't even notice.
After listening to the conversation between the two during the day, Shiro came to that conclusion.
"She told me to go save Shinobu. In terms of outcome… I actually benefited. Her approaching me, thinking it would be good for me, made me have a favorable impression of her. But she didn't know the process…" Sakurai Saki recalled the surprised look in her eyes when she realized he had become a vampire.
"That's right. If she had known you would become a vampire because of that, she might not have told you to go save her. After all, Sakurai-kun is only pretending to dance with chains on his body, not really being imprisoned." A pensive look appeared on Yakumo Shiro's innocent face.
"Umu. I'm just cosplaying as a normal person, not actually a normal person." Although Sakurai Saki wanted to become a normal person, now it was definitely impossible.
His powers were growing stronger and more uncontrollable, making it hard for him to live like an ordinary person.
The stronger a being is, the easier it is to lose the meaning of life. The more controllable something is, the less people cherish it. Could a doglicker ever be seen by a goddess as a romantic partner? No way! Just be a faithful ATM machine, don't dream of reaching too high!
Sakurai Saki wanted to become a normal person because that goal was full of challenge. An all-powerful Esper needs a goal; without a lighthouse, the ship will lose its course. And the galaxy warship named Sakurai Saki all the more so.
"Understood my past, but doesn't understand my present." Sakurai Saki had just said this when he suddenly laughed: "She didn't think that now that I've turned back, I would become a good person, did she?"
Sealing the superpower was so that it could be controlled in the future, also to entertain himself, not to become a good person.
Outside the door, Shinobu walked in.
"Who are you talking to?"
Sakurai Saki waved at Shinobu, and once she got close, he grabbed her hand.
Shinobu began establishing a connection, and as soon as she saw Yakumo Shiro, she visibly trembled in fear.
"Gh... ghost!"
Σ(°△°ꪱꪱꪱ)
"Hmph hmph! A ghost, indeed!"
⎛⎝( ` ᢍ ´ )⎠⎞ᵐᵘʰᵃʰᵃ
Shiro proudly declared.
Shinobu stared at her a few more times.
'Doesn't really feel like a ghost…'
Ghosts aren't that smart.
Furthermore, she could even touch people! Ghosts absolutely cannot make contact with humans!
'…Even so, it might just be that I know too little…'
Shinobu guessed to herself.
"What were you talking to her about?"
"About the person from earlier today," Sakurai Saki replied.
Shinobu sat on the bed. "I hate that woman."
"Even though the contract has no issues, even helped you with the vampire matter, I still hate her!" Shinobu shouted like a grade-schooler: "Hate! Hate! Hate!"
At that moment, Yakumo Shiro suddenly spoke up, offering a theory: "Sakurai-kun, is there any possibility… that Gaen-senpai stole the heart? And then used it to set a trap?"
"Impossible." The one who answered was Shinobu.
"Why?"
"No need." Sakurai Saki responded.
"Hmm?"
"She wouldn't dare do that, because I have no less than ten thousand ways to investigate the truth. If she already knows my past, then she wouldn't be foolish enough to make an enemy of me." Sakurai Saki said in a calm voice.
"That heart was a free gift, with no conditions attached. Or rather, it didn't even count as a condition. Her main reason was she was afraid I wouldn't be able to control Shinobu, so she said she would seal Shinobu into my shadow. As for Shinobu being dangerous? Hmph, absolutely not true. If Shinobu really were uncontrollable, then that near-death scene at the train station yesterday wouldn't have happened."
Sakurai Saki maintained an indifferent expression:
"Even that wasn't enough — she even smiled and said she would help me deal with the side effects of being a vampire, and finally said that in the coming months I could ask her anything about Oddities."
Yakumo Shiro: "It's also possible she wants Sakurai-kun to do something else for her."
"Exactly. The more I have to pay, the more I'll feel inclined to help her. So the more she have to sacrifice to get that heart, the better!" Sakurai Saki rubbed his forehead.
Ordinary people don't necessarily repay favors when they gain something, but Sakurai Saki was different. To those who had helped him, he would try his best to return the favor. He only listened to gentle words — never responded to forceful ones.
"That's why I'm wondering — just how dangerous is that autumn event, for her to be willing to give me so many benefits in advance."
...
At the same time, at the Yorozuya office.
Gaen Izuko dialed a phone call.
"You sound lively. Something good happen? Gaen-senpai, calling me this late." On the other end, a man's voice — both carefree and slightly roguish — answered.
Gaen Izuko could easily imagine what the man looked like.
A Hawaiian shirt, probably pink, knee-length shorts, and a pair of wooden sandals — very sloppy attire.
That was her junior, Oshino Meme, also a specialist in Oddity, skilled in maintaining balance.
Yesterday, he had witnessed the battle between the three vampire hunters and Kiss-Shot. To stop this one-sided battle, he had stolen her heart while Kiss-Shot was distracted.
To leave a good impression on Sakurai Saki, Gaen had paid quite a price to get that heart from her junior.
"Where are you now?" Gaen-senpai asked.
"Lost on the path of life, umu. Let's see... ahead of me is a small village, and there's a fox statue at the gate..."
Hearing his riddle-like tone, Gaen Izuko instantly lost all interest in continuing the conversation.
At first she had intended to ask for something in return, but this guy had drifted off to who knows where. Worse still, he didn't know how to use a phone — at most, he could receive calls. His phone also tended to go missing a lot. Who knows when they'll meet again next time?
She hung up.
Gaen Izuko sighed.
Life is really not easy.