"Hikki?"
Yuigahama Yui looked at Hikigaya Hachiman, who was reaching out to her with a somewhat frightened expression, and showed a worried look: "What's wrong with you?"
"Ah?"
Hikigaya Hachiman was stunned for a moment, then came back to his senses and awkwardly put his hand down, "I just thought... um, can we go home now? No one is coming to ask for help anyway."
Yuigahama Yui looked at him suspiciously and said in a somewhat resentful tone, "Really? Hikki, are you treating me like a fool?"
If that's all, then why did you look so scared?
"...It's true."
Under Yuigahama's suspicious and slightly worried gaze, Hikigaya Hachiman was sweating, his hands grabbing his pants, his toes curling as if trying to dig a hole.
Seeing that he wouldn't tell the truth, Yuigahama Yui frowned and pouted, "Hmph, why you don't want to tell me, I'm not talking to you!"
With that, she grabbed her bag and left the Service Club first, while Hikigaya Hachiman stood at the door like a dumb goose, watching the orange haired girl leave.
After a few steps, Yuigahama Yui couldn't help but turn around, puffing her cheeks and urging, "Aren't you coming!?"
"Oh, oh, I'm coming."
Hikigaya Hachiman quickly grabbed his bag and followed her out of the Service Club. Just as he stepped out the door, a key flew towards him. He instinctively caught it, looking confused.
"Take the key to the activity room back to Hiratsuka-sensei's office, I'm leaving first!"
After throwing the key, Yuigahama left without looking back.
It seemed she was really a bit angry.
Hikigaya Hachiman scratched his cheek, and after she disappeared down the stairs, he turned and walked towards the school building.
It was then that he suddenly remembered.
—Ordinary people can't see curse spirits.
...
...
...
After defeating the fly-headed curse spirit, Yukinoshita Yukino returned to the room where the victim was.
She looked at the blood-soaked body on the floor with a complex expression, feeling a mix of emotions.
"What should we do now?" she asked.
"What do you mean?" Hayashizaki responded casually, not paying much attention to her.
He was checking the newly added points.
[Current Points: 1450]
An additional 550 points were added. The last third-level curse spirit, a centipede, added 800 points, while the one Yukinoshita defeated was clearly weaker.
But last time it was a centipede, and this time it's a fly mixed with a bee. Does Yukinoshita Yukino have a connection with bugs?
"Of course, it's about the victim!" Hayashizaki's indifferent answer made Yukinoshita Yukino a bit annoyed.
"Why not just burn it?" Hayashizaki suggested.
"How can we do that?" Yukinoshita Yukino immediately rejected the idea.
She seemed to have found something in the messy living room, quickly walked over, and picked it up.
It was a broken glass photo frame, but fortunately, the photo inside was still intact.
The photo looked old and slightly yellowed. It seemed to be a family photo.
The middle-aged parents were smiling kindly, a young man stood behind the father, smiling shyly, and next to him was a little girl who looked about seven or eight years old. The girl wasn't looking at the camera but was pouting at her brother, holding his sleeve with her chubby little hand.
The victim should be the young man in the photo.
The background of the photo was a field, with golden fields, low houses with white walls and brown tiles, distant mountains, and a blue sky.
It's not hard to guess that the young man came to the city to work hard. This newly built apartment building might be the result of his efforts, but before he could look forward to a bright future, he died in a curse spirit attack.
"He has his own family too..." The girl's ethereal voice carried a hint of pity. "If we just burn it, it would erase not only his body but also the traces of his hard life."
"I don't care either way," Hayashizaki said lazily. "So what are you going to do? Call the police?"
"As the first witness at the scene of death, how do you plan to explain it? You might expose your family."
"You should think it through."
Yukinoshita Yukino was momentarily dazed, then fell silent for a long time. Hayashizaki knew she was making a decision, so he stayed quiet and waited.
The girl was silent for a full ten minutes, during which she thought about many things, including her sister and family's possible reactions.
Finally, Yukinoshita Yukino lowered her eyes, looked at the yellowed photo in her hand, and said softly, "At least, let his family know."
"It seems you've made up your mind," Hayashizaki said.
Once the decision was made, the rest was simple.
Hayashizaki lifted the [barrier], and after confirming the location of the apartment building, Yukinoshita Yukino dialed the police.
She first reported her identity on the phone, then calmly stated the location of the death and even described the victim's tragic state.
The gruesome details shocked the person on the other end of the line. This was a major case that would attract the police's attention, especially since the caller was the daughter of a Chiba prefectural councilor.
If something happens to someone, it's over.
Soon, the sound of sirens echoed from the apartment building.
Yukinoshita Yukino quietly stood outside the door, waiting.
Soon, several police officers arrived at the scene, led by a middle-aged man with a police inspector badge. He greeted Yukinoshita Yukino before leading the officers into the apartment.
In less than ten seconds, they all came out with pale faces, covering their mouths. One young officer even leaned against the wall, vomiting, with stomach acid and undigested lunch pouring out of his mouth.
After they recovered, the inspector said to Yukinoshita Yukino with a serious expression, "Thank you for reporting this. Please go home and rest today. Witnessing such a hellish scene must be hard..."
Yukinoshita Yukino shook her head calmly, indicating she was fine.
"...Tomorrow, when the preliminary investigation results are out, we hope you can come to the police station for a statement."
The middle-aged man felt a bit embarrassed by the girl's calmness.
Was his stress tolerance lower than a young girl's?
She nodded lightly, "Of course."
After that, Yukinoshita Yukino had nothing more to do. She went home as usual, without attracting her sister Haruno's attention. Haruno only noticed that her sister seemed a bit more down than usual.
The next day, Yukinoshita Yukino took a leave from school and went to the police station alone.
However, she didn't meet the middle-aged inspector from the day before, but a man in a suit.
"Hello, Yukinoshita-san. I am the assistant supervisor from the Jujutsu High School."
...
...