Ch.87Chapter 14. Accident (2)

“……Did you have fun?”

“Yes!”

On our way back.

Koko didn’t seem particularly happy about being squeezed between people, but she still answered my question positively.

If there had been a transfer point somewhere, we might have been able to catch our breath, but I’m not sure whether to call it unfortunate or fortunate that the train goes straight to Omiya Station without transfers.

And then a 30-minute walk with Koko to home.

Koko has a good memory. She’ll probably memorize the way home quickly.

“You need to remember it well.”

“Wha?”

…Actually, I was still a bit worried about letting her go alone.

“You might have to go by yourself someday.”

“Huh?”

At my words, Koko tilted her head.

“Why?”

“……”

I hesitated for a moment. Of course, that hesitation really only lasted for a ‘moment.’

I wasn’t ready to tell Koko, or anyone around me, something like ‘because I’ll leave someday.’

“Because I work. You need to stay home and watch over Kuro.”

“Uuu……”

But at my words, Koko made a reluctant expression.

Koko likes being with Kuro. She also likes being with me. But she hasn’t been alone for long periods of time yet.

If we include the time when she was shaped like a nose, she had been alone for quite a while, but perhaps because of that experience, Koko didn’t seem to like being alone very much.

“If you want to live with me, we need to help each other.”

Even Koko had to nod at those words.

Still, thanks to all the knowledge she quickly absorbed during the last training camp, Koko seemed to vaguely understand that I wasn’t just ‘going out and coming back with food.’

Maybe as time passes, Koko will offer to help me. That wouldn’t be bad. Shii was already working part-time at that age too.

But that’s a story for a bit later.

“We can go together every morning.”

“Yes.”

At my words, Koko nodded.

And her expression brightened a little. I let out a small sigh.

*

We took the subway and arrived at Omiya Station.

Today I thought about stopping by a supermarket on the way back. Food was the best way to cheer Koko up.

Koko liked sweet things. I was a bit concerned about whether I should balance her nutrition, but I didn’t think Koko would suddenly gain weight just from eating a few more snacks. Koko’s size… didn’t seem to be determined that way.

As I was about to leave the station holding Koko’s hand.

“Excuse me!”

I heard someone calling me from behind.

As soon as I turned around, I slightly furrowed my brow.

“Wha?”

I pulled Koko’s wrist and positioned her slightly behind me. If we were to fight, Koko’s strength would probably be better than mine, but I still didn’t want to put Koko through any life-threatening battles.

The person was a middle-aged man. He had a very common appearance for this area, so even if our eyes met in passing, his impression would probably fade within a minute.

He was a bit thin, but if you looked closely, his lower belly protruded slightly under his suit. This too was a typical office worker physique. Usually like this unless one actively manages their body.

“…Who are you?”

I asked, thinking he would probably follow us if I just ignored him and left.

“Ah, well.”

The man looked back and forth between Koko and me with slightly surprised eyes.

He doesn’t seem like someone I’ve never… seen before. At least based on the fact that he approached me directly. If he just talked to me because he found me attractive, then this man simply has no sense of social awareness. People around us were already glancing at him because of my attitude.

Well, at his age and as an office worker, he should have that much awareness.

So he either knows me or has at least seen my face before. However, he didn’t know that I’ve been going around with Koko lately.

I relaxed a little. At least he doesn’t seem to be like that pervert from before.

The man looked extremely embarrassed and anxious. He had called out to me urgently, but he seemed very uncomfortable with all the attention gathering on him.

Fidgeting nervously, he took out a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his forehead, then deliberately spoke a bit louder. As if pleading to the people around, ‘It’s not what you think.’

“…Haven’t you saved someone here before?”

“……”

I stared blankly at the man, and finally managed to pull out a memory buried deep in my brain.

Ah, that’s right, that did happen.

I had completely forgotten about it because of all the intense events that followed.

“…The one who choked on bread.”

I answered while slightly releasing Koko’s hand.

“Huh?”

Koko, who had been on high alert behind me, seemed a bit confused by my change in attitude. However, she seemed to have lowered her guard.

“Yes, that’s right. You remember.”

If that pervert hadn’t followed me that day, it would have remained a good memory. It was an incident where my mood plummeted right after being lifted.

“I remembered because the other person who helped told me about it. A student in a black sailor uniform.”

…I see.

At that time, I left without leaving my name or affiliation. The other female office worker who helped this man probably couldn’t tell him anything other than that obvious visual characteristic.

And there aren’t many people around here who wear sailor uniforms as school uniforms. Even in Japan, schools that use sailor uniforms as their uniform… well, honestly, even though it’s the early 21st century, there aren’t that many.

“Thank you. I survived thanks to you.”

“…If the ambulance had arrived on time, it would have been fine without me.”

Though it would have been a bit more dangerous.

Japan, like Korea, is a country with good hospital management. The insurance system is probably similar too. In reality, the ambulance would have arrived quite early. I just didn’t stay to check.

“I… have a wife and children. If you hadn’t helped me then, my family would certainly have been in trouble.”

“……”

The gazes of people around us changed a bit.

“Wha?”

Koko looked back and forth between me and the man. She probably doesn’t understand what we’re talking about. She didn’t see it directly.

“I didn’t do it expecting anything in return.”

The man nodded at my words. He seemed to understand.

Seeing the man take a step toward me, I stepped back while holding onto Koko.

“Ah, well. I’d like to repay you somehow—”

“…I didn’t do it expecting anything in return.”

I repeated the same words.

“……”

After hearing my words, the man looked at me for a moment, then said,

“Perhaps if I speak to your school—”

“It’s fine.”

“I see……”

When I refused even that, the man finally seemed to realize that I truly didn’t want anything in return.

His expression changed subtly. He seemed both moved and impressed. But it wasn’t an exaggerated expression. If that was some kind of act, then the man had chosen the wrong profession. He would have earned much more in acting.

I turned around without responding further and quickly moved away with Koko.

No one called out to stop me or grabbed me. I thought that was fortunate.

The whole time I was walking away almost like I was fleeing, I felt a bit strange.

*

Dinner was a bit later than usual. Koko, admirably, didn’t complain. Instead, Kuro did.

When we returned home, Kuro was sitting in front of the door with an expression that suggested he had been waiting for a walking can opener.

When I went to my room, he jumped up toward my knees, so I sighed deeply and opened a can for him, placing it in his bowl. Let’s consider this a special treat today.

Then I emptied Kuro’s litter box, refilled his water bowl, opened the window that I had left slightly ajar a bit wider, and made dinner.

Today’s side dish was bean sprouts… and meat stir-fried with them.

“Delicious!”

I smiled slightly at Koko, who was mumbling with her mouth full of meat.

And—

[—Next news. Last night, a fire broke out in Tokyo’s Ota Ward, resulting in a family tragedy—]

—from the TV that I had turned on as background noise, such a story flowed out.

I paused with my rice bowl in hand and chopsticks moving to look at the TV.

“Huh?”

Seeing me, Koko also looked at the TV with curious eyes.

The TV didn’t specify exactly where the fire had occurred. Well, news in Korea was like that too. It would say things like ‘at a shopping district in Seoul.’

Sometimes in sensational news, they would openly mention the surname and name of the person involved, but basically, it was like this.

A fire. A family tragedy.

At a glance, it seems like one of the tragedies that always happen in a country. Something everyone wishes wouldn’t happen, but inevitably does. A small mistake, or an accident that even the person didn’t know about. It seems like something that could happen anytime.

Yes. Arson can happen anytime too.

“……”

I stared intently at the screen. The news didn’t continue for long. It seemed as if the political issues and livelihood-related news mentioned earlier were deemed much more important.

…Yes, that might be true. Looking at the bigger picture, those would naturally be considered more important.

Rushing into a burning building at the risk of one’s life, or carrying out the body of a dead child, is not an easy thing to do, but there’s no need to show people every detail of such scenes. People can roughly understand that ‘someone’ does and experiences such things just by watching the news.

The reason I’m showing such interest in this news is partly due to my professional habit, but—

Yes, this incident might be connected to the main story of the original work.

“Kotone.”

“Yes?”

I heard Koko calling me, so I turned my head to look at her.

“What is it?”

To Koko, who was tilting her head and asking, I hesitated for a moment and then shook my head.

“It’s nothing.”

“Huh?”

Koko is perceptive too. Even if she didn’t understand my emotional changes at first, that’s not the case now. She spends a lot of time with me.

But still, I don’t want to make Koko worry too.

I should do what I need to do myself.

The problem is how to handle it.

*

So, why is that arson case related to the original story?

For now, the answer to that question can only be described as a ‘hunch.’

I just know about things that are going to happen. I can only piece them together like a puzzle.

For example, it was the same with Mako. I knew that a serial killing case would occur, and I knew that the culprit was not a human but a yokai. But I didn’t know the details.

So I used the method of investigating the victims’ appearances to lure it.

It was the same with Raiju. Again, I didn’t know exactly where and when the incident would occur, so I followed Sasaki and got directly involved.

This case is the same.

The actual incident itself is described in the novel as happening after the sports festival, but there must have been signs before that.

Kasha (fire cart) is not a yokai that comes and goes like Raiju. It’s a type of yokai that appears continuously and causes incidents in succession.

And among the victims of that incident was Sasaki and Shii’s birth mother.

Shii’s real circumstances are also revealed at that time.

“Kotone-chan.”

“…Yes.”

“Are you worried about something?”

“……”

I blinked at Fukuda’s words.

It wasn’t the kind of voice dripping with emotion like Mako’s. Fukuda was the type of child who seemed to show all her emotions, but rather, because everything was so exposed, it was difficult to read her true expressions or thoughts.

When similar things are all mixed together, it’s hard to distinguish between them, isn’t it?

“Just wondering if I can do well.”

So, I decided to hide my emotions among similar ones.

“What~? If it’s about that, you’re already doing well.”

There were other girls besides me wearing the gakuran-shaped cheerleading outfit. Fukuda was on the cheerleader side. The cheer was a group dance where they alternated positions: cheerleader—gakuran—cheerleader.

Koko is adapting well. She seemed to really enjoy dancing, and moved her body almost excessively, but that seemed to appeal to the girls her age, as her popularity was steadily rising.

…I thought I just needed to teach her something, but in reality, there were so many things I hadn’t considered.

“You don’t need to worry about Koko, right? She’s already doing well.”

“…Yes.”

“Or are you jealous because she’s doing too well?”

“……”

Jealousy, should I call it that?

It’s a strange feeling. I think it would be good for Koko to distance herself from me, but if that really happened, I might feel hurt.

“Look over there.”

Koko had stopped dancing and was running toward us, enthusiastically waving her pom-poms.

“Kotone!”

“Yes.”

“I did well!”

“You did.”

To the statement that ended with an exclamation mark rather than a question mark, I answered with a bitter smile.

…Yes, you’re doing well.

“Wha!”

Koko showed me the action she had just learned. Even though her outfit revealed her midriff, which might have seemed a bit inappropriate, with Koko doing it, it didn’t feel that way at all.

“That’s cool.”

“Koko is cool!”

While thinking that it might be problematic to take such self-praise at face value, at the same time, considering the confidence I never had, this didn’t seem so bad either.

Koko will surely understand the middle ground someday.

*

Wednesday.

Even though we were in the middle of practice, it seemed a bit too much to not visit the literature club room even once a week, so I visited with Koko.

There was no fishing today.

Instead—

“Wha?”

…When I opened the sliding door to the literature club room, there was a string taped to the top of the door frame, with bread hanging from it.

“Wha!”

Koko quickly grabbed the castella cake. The string, which was just loosely attached with a layer of tape, simply fell off.

“…Does this have any meaning as fishing?”

“I got to see Koko take the bait, which was cute. It’s a fish trap, a fish trap.”

Kaoru, who was sitting and reading an occult magazine, answered.

A fish trap is meaningless if the fish escapes.

Well, I have to admire the dedication of preparing a 24-hour setup because they didn’t know when I would come. What exactly is people-fishing to this person?

“Hello, Kotone.”

“Hello.”

I slightly bowed my head to Izumi, who greeted me with a gentle voice befitting a club president. Izumi was sitting in a spot where the slightly orange-tinted sunlight was shining well, as if trying to create a scene.

…Considering that she might have been sitting like that for days waiting for Koko to come, it seems best not to break the atmosphere.

“Hi.”

And, after a very long time, I met Yuka who had arrived at the literature club room before me.

“Hi.”

Actually, we had greeted each other at lunch today too.

The weather has been quite clear lately, so Koko and I have been eating on the rooftop. And so has Yuka. It was the same as in the first semester. Yuka would buy bread, and I would eat it… and now Koko was part of that too.

I felt too sorry about this, but seeing Yuka’s expression as she watched Koko eat bread, almost as if she felt some kind of maternal instinct, I couldn’t bring myself to tell her it wasn’t necessary.

Kaoru and Izumi had already anticipated that I would bring Koko, as they had placed two chairs next to Yuka. I thought it might be difficult for three people to sit at one desk, but perhaps because all three of us were slender female students, it wasn’t as uncomfortable as I had thought.

Looking once at Koko, who was eagerly eating castella next to me, I suddenly asked Yuka.

“Your house is in Ota Ward, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Yuka answered.

Even though I had been there several times, since I mostly traveled by subway, I still wasn’t clear about the boundaries between wards. Actually, this wasn’t much different from when I lived in Seoul.

I was thinking about the fire incident. That incident also occurred in Ota Ward.

Recalling the Japanese geography I learned at school, Ota Ward was quite large. I certainly couldn’t draw all the wards of Tokyo accurately by shape, but I definitely remembered that there was an airport in Ota Ward.

So even if the fire incident occurred in Ota Ward, it might be difficult for Yuka to know about it—

“There was a big fire nearby recently, it was terrible.”

Yuka said with a somewhat gloomy expression, and I closed my mouth.

Kaoru and Izumi looked at Yuka with wide eyes.

“It wasn’t where anyone I know lives, but still. It was probably on the news?”

“…I saw it.”

“Really? It’s such a tragedy.”

Yuka said with a deep sigh.

Yuka was someone who sacrificed her own life to hunt yokai. And of course, that was also for people’s safety. While she probably gets paid, it’s also a job that requires a sense of mission.

In the original work, Yuuki Yuka… didn’t often share her inner thoughts with Sasaki. That’s how tsundere characters typically are.

But this Yuka is different. She has always been honest in front of me.

And it seemed she thought it was okay to open up to Kaoru and Izumi to some extent as well.

“If it’s a fire incident, is it this one?”

Kaoru asked, showing an occult magazine.

“…Yes, that’s probably it.”

Unlike the news that only mentioned ‘somewhere in Ota Ward,’ this magazine had a photo of a house engulfed in flames. And they had crudely superimposed a devil’s face on the smoke.

They really have no minimum standards as media.

Well, it was a magazine that could hardly be called media anyway.

“Here, it was the home of a famous fraudulent couple, they say.”

And Kaoru’s following words were enough to maintain my interest.