This Japanese Monogatari Isn't Lame

"Because Mr. Temple is just too sly!"

Sitting on the cushion, Shen Gu Mirai pouted:

"Going for a walk and coming back with a girl, how can I be at ease about that! Isn't it normal for me to eavesdrop?"

Her tone was full of righteous indignation.

Indeed.

Beichuan Si just goes out for a walk and brings back a girl. To be honest, it really would make anyone feel insecure, so eavesdropping makes sense too—

"Ouch, ouch, ouch! It hurts! Mr. Temple, I was wrong! I actually just wanted to listen! It's just me wanting to listen!"

"..." Beichuan Si.

Beichuan Si expressionlessly retracted the hand that was pinching Shen Gu Mirai's cheek and, after thinking for a moment, added:

"Actually, it's not a problem if you wanted to listen, because I didn't plan to hide the earlier matters."

And as the main party involved in this matter, Shen Gu Mirai undoubtedly has the right to know these things.

At least in this matter, Beichuan Si was in no position to hide it from Shen Gu Mirai.

"Hehe. I knew Mr. Temple wouldn't hide it from me." Shen Gu Mirai chuckled twice, then lowered her head to look at her wrist.

There, a small red mark had subtly emerged.

"The red mark..."

Looking at this red mark, Shen Gu Mirai murmured.

She had actually overheard what Beichuan Si and Mouchi Mashi were discussing, the matter of the red mark and the world between the "hidden world" and the "real world."

Although she couldn't quite grasp the meaning of some proper nouns, she could derive their general meaning through the conversation between Beichuan Si and Mouchi Mashi.

The strange and supernatural events that have emerged this year are all related to the tricks left in the Yellow Springs by the Mouchi Witch.

And this time, the Mouchi Witch is her... Shen Gu Mirai.

What does this indicate...?

Shen Gu Mirai looked up at Beichuan Si, her once playful expression turned somber.

"Mr. Temple..."

"Hmm?"

Beichuan Si, who was picking up a teacup, turned his head to look over.

"... If I don't go to Yellow Springs... the supernatural and strange events will just keep increasing like now, won't they?"

But if she goes to Yellow Springs...

According to what Mouchi Mashi said... none of the Mouchi Witches who went to Yellow Springs could return to the real world.

"..." Beichuan Si.

After hearing Shen Gu Mirai's question, Beichuan Si put down the teacup in his hand and turned his body fully towards her.

"You don't need to worry about these things."

Beichuan Si's tone didn't waver in the slightest.

"But if I don't go to Yellow Springs, the boundary between the real world and the hidden world..." Shen Gu Mirai opened her mouth.

"There's no 'but' about it."

Beichuan Si waved his hand and calmly asked, "What do you think you are? Shen Gu Mirai?"

"Do you think you're some savior? Or think you're someone amazing? You're just an ordinary little girl, and no one dictates that you have to do these things."

That's the trouble with girls.

They complicate simple issues and turn complicated ones into melodrama.

Matters that have little to do with them are forced into melodramatic plotlines like departing at the Gate of Yellow Springs.

With that thought, Beichuan Si shook his head and continued:

"Besides, whether maintaining the balance between the real world and the hidden world requires a Mouchi Witch, and where exactly a Mouchi Witch is needed... there are still doubts about these points, and many things need to be investigated to become clear."

Once again, he reached out, pinching Shen Gu Mirai's tender cheek with a hint of 'hating iron for not becoming steel': "Do you really think you're a novel's heroine? Do you need to personally get involved in saving the world?"

"And most importantly, so what if the boundary between the real world and the hidden world becomes blurred? Tokyo has already established a special department; if it really evolves to that stage, exorcism will become a very common profession, and there's no need for you to worry excessively."

These words from Beichuan Si weren't just sharp; they were piercingly precise.

Shen Gu Mirai had no way to refute the contents of his words and could only stand there with a flushed face, opening her mouth slightly, wanting to rebut but unable to find anything to say.

The problem was that Beichuan Si indeed made a lot of sense.

No one was forcing her to do these things, and she's certainly not the heroine of some novel. All of this was just content she filled in after imagining a bit.

And would the government just sit back and do nothing about it?

Of course not; they would surely take a series of actions too.

So—

"Instead of thinking about all these unnecessary things, why not join me in looking at mountaineering gear?"

Beichuan Si withdrew his hand and took a gulp of tea.

He heard Nakajima Hiroto say that the ancient mansion cluster they were heading to this time... namely the Mouchi Main Family, is about one hundred kilometers from Kagoshima Prefecture, with seventy kilometers by car and thirty kilometers requiring a hike via mountain roads.

The seventy-kilometer drive wasn't too much, but the key part was the thirty kilometers of mountain hiking.

Starting early in the morning by car and then walking for six to seven hours to reach the destination.

It's certainly necessary to buy equipment suitable for trekking mountain roads.

Trekking poles and such should not be overlooked.

Although Nakajima Hiroto also said he would prepare those for the two of them.

But it's still safer for them to check for themselves.

After all, the other party doesn't know what he and Shen Gu Mirai actually need.

With this said, Beichuan Si did not hesitate any longer, directly pulling the completely flabbergasted Shen Gu Mirai out the door.

First, to help her unwind, and second, to think of a solution for the red mark.