Chapter 35: The True Purpose
—— What a close call ~
Walking side by side with Kanade towards the Supernatural Research Society, I secretly sighed in relief.
I had just narrowly avoided Kanade confessing to me, which made me break into a cold sweat for a moment.
Fortunately, I had practiced enough to handle situations like these, perfecting my skills in “interrupting confessions.”
The rumble of the train, the sound of fireworks bursting, the wind, the rain—I had to skillfully use all environmental factors to interrupt the other person’s confession; that’s what makes one a top-notch “natural” childhood friend.
For an introverted kid like Kanade, a confession is not only a spur-of-the-moment impulse but also heavily reliant on the atmosphere of the moment.
If a confession is interrupted halfway, they would definitely not be able to gather the courage to try again for a while.
But just to be safe.
After interrupting Kanade, I immediately followed up with a super direct compliment.
This made Kanade, caught off guard by the straightforwardness of her beautiful childhood friend, lose her ability to think temporarily, and she felt a bit light-headed.
Giving me a small moment to catch my breath.
Hibara Ryo.
The top support character from the original work of “Star Draw 2” truly lived up to the name.
I didn’t expect that within just one morning,
I could almost trigger a confession from Kanade, whom I had been controlling my feelings for.
It seems I need to stay alert around him.
As I thought this,
The sunlight streaming through the hallway window illuminated her cute, blushing face beside Kanade.
Her moist, starry eyes reflected Kanade’s figure next to her.
……
……
Since the evil spirit Dokidoki-chan incident,
Kanade finally returned to the Supernatural Research Society after a long time.
However, the Supernatural Research Society had now been downgraded from a club to a “circle.”
Even the sign outside had changed to “Supernatural Phenomenon Research Club.”
As the former president, Amamiya Chika had also become the new president.
It seemed that the clubroom of the Supernatural Research Society had undergone some cleaning.
I heard that the student council president Renji and vice president Miki came to help organize it after that event.
Especially the old bookshelf.
It used to be crammed with all sorts of books, magazines, and newspapers, but now they were neatly arranged.
Not only was everything categorized, but various sticky notes were even attached for easy reference.
After not seeing Chika for a long time, she finally revealed a relieved smile upon seeing Kanade and me arrive together at the Supernatural Research Society like in the past.
Since she had already met me at noon, she immediately started chatting warmly with Kanade.
Chika had heard from me about the evil spirit curse’s disappearance.
According to the publication records, it was highly likely that the evil spirit had transferred to Kanade.
So she was quite worried about this.
From Kanade’s perspective, it was also hard to explain the contract with DD-chan at that moment.
According to DD-chan, the less people know about the fantasy monsters, the better.
Otherwise, it could easily bring danger to those in the know.
“Amamiya-senpai, I’m really fine…”
Kanade said as she took out a jade-colored amulet from her pocket, with a golden fox embroidered on it reflecting a bright sheen in the light.
“Maybe it’s this amulet you gave me, Amamiya-senpai, that dispelled the curse and protected me and Kanade…”
“So, thank you, Amamiya-senpai.”
As Kanade spoke, she returned the amulet to Chika.
Later, I learned from Kanade that Chika had placed the amulet she had cherished for a long time into Kanade’s pocket when she was unconscious in the nurse’s office.
According to the party involved, DD-chan, this amulet indeed possessed supernatural abilities.
Thanks to this amulet, the evil spirit couldn’t put Kanade under its sway and had to sign a contract instead.
Kanade was half-convinced by DD-chan’s statement.
However, it was very suitable for explaining to Kanade and Chika…
“Is that so… That’s great…”
Chika accepted Kanade’s explanation upon receiving the amulet.
She vaguely noticed that the fox embroidery on the amulet had become slightly cleaner, but since the difference was too small, she just brushed it off as an illusion.
Beside her, Kanade quietly touched her own pocket, where the amulet had already turned completely black and gray.
The amulet on Kanade was a fake, one specially fabricated later by Kanade.
The real “token” was still with Kanade.
Though she had temporarily tricked the false god, Hakurei, by making the priestess “commit suicide,”
She believed that soon enough, they would send out another priestess to look for the one holding the token.
So it was still better to keep the token in her possession for now.
After ending the topic about the curse,
Kanade appeared hesitant, as if there was something hard to say.
This expression sparked curiosity from both Kanade and Chika.
Under the gaze of Kanade and Chika, Kanade finally admitted that he couldn’t think of a good excuse and could only straightforwardly say:
“About this curse, I’d like to ask everyone not to spread it…”
“Why?”
Chika asked the obvious question.
“Because… this…”
Kanade couldn’t figure out how to explain his request rationally without revealing the existence of fantasy monsters.
“I understand.”
Kanade’s soft but resolute voice made Kanade look up.
His eyes aligned perfectly with Kanade’s gentle smile.
“Since you said so, then let’s do it. You must have your reasons, right?”
“Y-yeah…” Chika nodded as well.
“Tsukimi-san must have her reasons too, right?”
“Thank you, everyone…”
The trust shown by the two girls before him made Kanade feel a wave of warmth.
At the same time, he secretly made up his mind.
He must protect them—
—— By the way, since that amulet really works, should he also ask Kanade to go pray for another one?
“Speaking of which, Kanade, do you want to go to Hakurei Shrine to pray together next time we have some free time?”
Both Kanade and Chika froze for a moment upon hearing this.
Immediately, the former’s cute face turned bright red with a “bang.”
“Y-you mean, with you, Kanade!?”
“Wow~ Wow—” Chika also covered her mouth and made a strange sound.
“Huh?”
As the person in question, Kanade was left puzzled, not understanding what was happening.
Seeing Kanade’s confused expression, Chika could only quietly explain to him—
“Hakurei Shrine is very famous for prayers related to love… If a boy and a girl go to pray together, it’s understood as that kind of meaning, you know?”
“!?”
……
……
After school.
The sun sank.
Alice and Maki returned to the special branch of SEMA in Kawano City.
There should have been a meeting called by the branch manager here for them to report today’s work progress.
But for some reason, the branch manager was nowhere to be seen.
Left with no choice, Alice had to head to the room arranged for her.
“Although I heard there’s something unusual about the Kawano branch, I didn’t expect it to be to this extent…”
Alice secretly sighed in her heart.
She wasn’t sent to Kawano City just to investigate the “crown species” incident this time.
After checking that there were no surveillance devices in her room,
She sat in front of the mirror, slowly taking off the colored contact lens from her right eye.
Then, after glancing around and confirming that there were no magical reactions,
She took out another private phone, dialing the only number stored in it.
“Hello.”
The other end of the call connected swiftly.
An elderly man stood with his back to the floor-to-ceiling window.
The morning sun streamed through the window into the room.
Illuminating the antique wooden desk in front of him.
“Alice, how is your first day in Kawano City?”
“To be honest… it’s quite strange…”
“Although that’s not quite appropriate to say, I want to tell you that your feeling is correct.”
The old man chuckled lightly.
“This is also the reason why I had to demote you, the ‘ACE,’ to ordinary personnel and send you to Kawano City for investigation.”
“Having no extraordinary disasters for 13 consecutive years… I must say, excessive peace is also a kind of anomaly.”
“There must be something there…”
“I understand. I will work hard to investigate this matter discreetly.”
“Yes, I have faith in you~”
—— ACE Hybrid Dragon Princess.
After hanging up the call,
The old man’s gaze slowly fell on the picture frame placed on the desk.
The figure of a young man with pitch-black short hair clearly reflected in the old man’s blue eyes.
“This child always reminds me of you. If you were still here… you would definitely be comforted by her now, right?”
