Ch.102Chapter 16. Worries and Concerns (2)

After some wandering, we found a bench in front of the station.

There would be plenty of people passing by, but hardly anyone who would pay attention to our conversation. And the fact that there were just enough people around to make it safe was also an advantage.

It wouldn’t be appropriate for two teenage girls to go to a park at this hour, right? Not that I’m assuming something bad would definitely happen.

The sun had already set, so it was appropriately dark.

A suitable time to reveal our true feelings.

First, I had Shii sit down, then opened a drink can and placed it in her hand. It was just an ordinary soda. Drinking coffee at this hour might keep us up all night.

Then I sat down next to Shii and asked.

“What’s going on?”

I feel like we’ve been in this situation before.

Last time, Shii was troubled about her brother’s womanizing.

This time it seems to be a family issue again.

“Ah, well, that’s…”

I studied Shii’s face and thought about it.

It could simply be that she’s uncomfortable talking about it, or she might be wondering if it’s okay to add to my concerns when I already have my own significant problems.

If I were in the same position, my reason for keeping quiet would be the former.

After losing my family, I became less talkative around colleagues and friends because I was afraid they might bring up family topics.

Although Souta Sasaki and Shii haven’t experienced losing their parents, it’s still not something easy to discuss in front of others.

“…”

Shii thought for a moment, then nodded to herself.

Lowering her gaze, she said.

“Actually, it’s about my family…”

Good.

At least it’s not something so painful that she can’t even bring it up.

She wants to open up to someone but hasn’t found the right person.

To her brother Sasaki… yes, it might be even harder to talk to him precisely because he’s her brother.

“…I can empathize with family problems too.”

When I said that, Shii looked at me with a slightly surprised expression and then smiled bitterly.

It wasn’t a smile of genuine amusement, but rather one that acknowledged the strangeness of the situation.

I could hear car sounds and people walking around outside.

But strangely, it felt quiet around us. That’s how nights are. Even while knowing the world is full of people, you somehow feel alone.

So the person right beside you feels like the only one who can listen to your story.

“…”

Shii stared blankly, lost in thought without drinking her beverage, then finally nodded and continued.

“Actually, my parents… are divorced.”

I already knew that.

I learned it through channels that wouldn’t normally be available, or more precisely, I woke up in this world already knowing it.

“Father took my brother with him, and I followed my mother.”

I listened silently.

“My mother… honestly, she’s not what you’d call a positive person. She started dating another man, and that man didn’t consider me his daughter.”

“…”

“I know my mother receives money from my father. And I know my father hates me. Because I resemble my mother.”

That’s something I hadn’t heard before. Come to think of it, Shii’s mother wasn’t described in great detail in the story. There wasn’t even a separate illustration.

I’m not sure if Tokyo Slayers was ever animated, but if it was, she probably would have been drawn to look similar to Shii.

Simply taking only the son to carry on the family name… well, such people might exist, but for readers’ sake, it would have been better to add more plausible settings. Shii resembling her mother might have been one of those methods.

Thinking about it this way, it makes more sense why Shii is so particular about keeping herself neat and tidy. She probably didn’t want to look like her mother.

“But… mother didn’t use the money from father for me. I understand though. It was just living expenses. Mother…”

She probably didn’t use that money for living expenses.

The man who could hardly be called a stepfather did nothing but gamble. In the story, it mentioned he spent all day playing pachinko.

Even if he won money, he never brought it back home. He’d have a drink to celebrate his good fortune, and while drinking, he couldn’t resist picking up women.

When he returned home, he’d fight with Shii’s mother who lived with him.

A typical dysfunctional parent.

“So something happened recently.”

When I spoke, Shii paused for a moment.

Then she suddenly gulped down the drink she had been holding.

It was just ordinary cola, but somehow her movement resembled someone downing alcohol.

Thanks to that, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu when Shii exhaled with a “phew” and said:

“They’re asking for money.”

“…”

Father’s money isn’t enough, they say.

“…I see.”

“They knew we were living in that house and had my number. I don’t know how they found out… but they must have thought we had money because of the neighborhood we live in. I haven’t seen my brother for a while, and since he doesn’t act very positively toward my mother, they probably contacted me…”

“…Are there any conditions? Did they threaten to harm you if you don’t give them money?”

Shii seemed to hesitate, wondering whether to tell me or not.

“…They said they would take me back.”

“Take you back?”

“Yes. Because I’m… supposed to be raised by my mother.”

Ah.

Custody.

Fighting over custody during divorce is common, but the Sasaki siblings’ case is a bit different.

The Sasaki father said “I’ll only take the son,” and Shii’s mother agreed. Of course, the process probably wasn’t entirely smooth, but the reason why a woman who wanted to live with another man took Shii with her was easy to guess.

Child support.

I actually don’t know much about this topic. My previous profession wasn’t a lawyer.

When one parent takes all the children, the other parent naturally pays child support according to law, but what happens when they split custody?

Well, the actual law doesn’t really matter. Whatever the case, in this world, “that outcome” happened, and that’s how things have been flowing until now.

Whether by agreement or court ruling, until now, the Sasaki siblings’ father has been sending child support to the mother’s side.

“Since I’m supposed to be raised by my mother, legally speaking, I’m actually a runaway. And since it was my brother who took me, it could even be seen as… kidnapping.”

That’s absurd.

If anything, Shii’s mother’s parenting environment was terribly wrong, and Shii simply escaped from it.

In the novel, it says that her mother’s boyfriend really disliked Shii, but… well, that might just be from Shii’s perspective.

In a novel with this setting, Shii wasn’t just neglected; she could have been a target for sexual crimes.

So…

That’s it.

The reason for making such a deranged woman Shii’s mother was so readers wouldn’t feel sorry when she burned to death. A kind of cathartic device.

And showing the Sasaki siblings grieving despite her being such a woman emphasized how kind-hearted they were.

It served multiple purposes: defeating the yokai, eliminating the worst obstacle from the siblings’ perspective.

But I just prevented that from happening.

“…”

That doesn’t mean I think I did something wrong. It’s not my role to decide who lives or dies.

And I didn’t want Shii to get hurt.

“I don’t want to go back there.”

Seeing Shii say that, I looked at her face.

She looked like she might burst into tears at any moment.

How much had she worried? How much had she kept inside with no one to talk to?

“…I see.”

I’m not stupid enough to suggest meaningless solutions here.

Shii didn’t ask me to solve this for her.

She just wanted to unload the burden in her heart and share it with someone.

She knows it can’t be resolved. She knows that I, being only a few years older than her, can’t provide some grand solution.

But she was just frustrated and wanted to confide in someone—that was the burden on her heart.

Shii and I sat in silence for a while.

“Phew.”

Shii was the first to speak.

“I feel a bit better after talking about it.”

“…Really?”

“Yes, but…”

“It’s okay.”

Seeing Shii hesitate, I answered simply.

“I won’t tell anyone else.”

“Not even my brother…”

“No.”

“Thank you…”

After thanking me, Shii looked momentarily flustered, then quickly stood up from the bench.

“Ah, well, I should go! My brother is waiting at home! He’ll worry if I’m too late!”

Even if passersby aren’t interested in us, shouting words like “brother” so loudly would attract some attention.

Indeed, a passing office worker glanced our way.

Well, by tomorrow morning, they won’t remember our faces anyway.

When I waved my hand, Shii bowed deeply to me again and hurriedly left.

Her face was slightly flushed as she departed.

That’s right.

When you go out with a friend at night, you end up telling all sorts of things without realizing it. And afterward, you always regret it.

Even though that friend won’t tell others, and even though you’ll barely remember the conversation after a few days, it feels very embarrassing to have revealed your deepest feelings.

Shii probably feels the same way.

“Hmm.”

I stretched my legs and crossed them while still sitting on the bench.

And I fell into thought for a moment.

In the end, I ended up saving Shii’s mother, but I don’t regret it. Thanks to that, Shii wasn’t hurt, and I saved people who might have died in between.

But there’s a big difference between not regretting and not needing to clean up afterward.

I could have just pretended not to know, but I still wanted to help Shii. After all, Shii was now one of my friends.

As I finally drank the beverage I had been holding, the first person who came to mind was Mr. Yamashita.

Yamashita’s father.

…Even if we didn’t part on good terms, I’m still Yuu Yamashita’s cousin. So from Mr. Yamashita’s perspective, I’m his niece.

Even if his relationship with Kosuzu ended, his relationship with Kagami seems still good, and his relationship with me isn’t too bad either. Plus, I already helped Mrs. Mori, who will become Mr. Yamashita’s wife.

The problem is, if I resolve this in a “yakuza-style” way, it might just increase the Sasaki siblings’ worries.

No matter how much you dislike someone, they’re still family connected by blood. Hearing that they got beaten up by someone wouldn’t feel good.

It would just complicate relationships, with me at the center.

…And I don’t particularly like using illegal methods for “teaching lessons” either.

So then…

Hmm, I guess that’s the only way.

*

“Koko.”

“Yes?”

At my call, Koko, who was lying on the floor reading a picture book, looked up at me.

Now Koko could read books well without me. She still occasionally clung to me asking me to read for her, but when I went out, she had to stay home alone. She must be figuring out ways to pass the time.

She doesn’t seem particularly interested in longer books yet, suggesting she’s not especially fond of reading.

Well, anyway, that’s not important right now.

To Koko, who got up and sat facing me after hearing me, I asked one thing.

“I think I need to go somewhere alone next week. Can you watch the house?”

“When?”

Koko blinked and asked.

“Probably on Monday.”

“Uuu…”

My answer made Koko’s expression darken dramatically.

We live in the same house and see each other every day, but there’s a limit to how much personal time I can spend with Koko.

I haven’t even considered having Koko work part-time yet, so I’ve been trying to earn money by myself.

The only days I can fully be with Koko are my days off, and even on those days, I spend more than half at school. Lately, Koko has been distinguishing between what can and cannot be said in public places, so she can’t speak freely to me in such places.

…Considering my recent conversation with Kagami, I could have just quit everything and asked the Congregation for money, but I was reluctant to do that.

Our relationship with the Congregation had already deepened after our last conversation, and if I received full support for my entire lifestyle, it would clearly become impossible to pull out from then on.

I don’t mind. I’m going to die soon anyway.

But I didn’t want Koko to be trapped in that organization for life. She might be subjected to the same treatment as when she was sealed in this house.

“Something came up that I need to do.”

“Do you have to?”

“Huh?”

“Do you really have to do it?”

“…”

Hmm…

When you look at me like that, it makes me feel guilty.

I still haven’t figured out Koko’s mental age.

Her appearance is the same as mine, and her academic performance is similar or might even be better. But her mental age… well.

It’s unreasonable to expect a child who excels academically and skips grades to have the same mental age as their classmates.

Based on the circumstances, Koko has been in this world longer than me, but for various reasons, she hasn’t had the opportunity for her mental age to develop.

“Do you really have to?”

Do I really have to?

I think it falls under things that need to be done, but…

“Can’t I come with you?”

“…”

While I was contemplating,

“Meow.”

Kuro, who had somehow approached us as we sat facing each other, sat down and made that sound.

His eyes were directed at me.

“…”

I stared at Kuro for a while.

It seems like he understands the conversation we’re having right now.

Of course, that’s just my feeling.

“How difficult is it?”

I thought about it.

If Koko comes with me…

Ah.

There might be a way Koko could help.

Besides, the Sasaki siblings’ parents have never been involved with yokai or such beings. If they had, such an important setting would have appeared earlier in the novel.

So.

“Koko.”

“Yes.”

“With that hair of yours, what kinds of shapes can you imitate?”

“Imitate?”

“Shapes and such.”

Actually, Koko could probably create all sorts of shapes with parts of her body other than her hair.

But I don’t really like that idea. This is just my selfish desire, but I wanted Koko to continue living just as she is now.

“Shapes? Like this?”

The tips of Koko’s hair lifted slightly and formed the shape of a ballpoint pen.

It looked exactly like a pen was attached to the end of her hair—a perfect imitation.

I shook my head.

“Keep the ‘appearance’ of your hair the same. That is, keep it thin and black, but what shapes can you make?”

“Uuu?”

Not understanding the intention behind my question, Koko tilted her head.

She moved the tips of her hair, making them wiggle as she thought for a moment, then:

“Like this?”

She made a heart shape with her hair.

I almost laughed but managed to hold it back.

“That’ll work.”

Yes, one method came to mind.

With hair this flexible that moves at will.

Well, as long as no one gets hurt, moving together might not be a bad idea either.

*

Finding Shii’s parents without telling anyone else about Shii’s story was quite difficult.

But fortunately, I know where the Sasaki siblings live. If Shii’s mother came to threaten Shii, she would definitely show up around here.

Of course, I don’t know what Shii’s mother looks like, but I’ll find out if I follow Shii.

“So we can’t be seen. Got it?”

“Yes.”

Koko nodded at my words.

Shii already knows what kind of being Koko is. She saw her form last summer.

But seeing her use those abilities to torment her mother would be a completely different matter.

Ideally, we should do this without Shii knowing, just scaring off her mother.

As we were walking around, keeping some distance from Shii’s house.

“Oh.”

For a moment, I felt something off about a person’s face.

I couldn’t stare too intently, but.

Right, didn’t Shii say she resembled her?

They didn’t look as alike as Koko and me, or Kagami and Kosuzu—

But I saw someone with a similar vibe pass by us.

…Of course, her clothes were completely different from Shii’s.