Ghost Hunt:Volume 8 Chapter 10

Chapter 10 - August 14, 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm

1

“Get up already!”

When I was awakened by Ayako’s scornful tone, the inside of the bungalow was shockingly bright.

“Morning...”

I’m sleepy. It’s too bright.

When I buried my face in the futon, a fist came flying at my head.

“I said get up!”

“Okay...”

As I was muttering, the ground suddenly shook and I was thrown out. —To be exact, the mattress was pulled from beneath my body and I rolled off onto the tatami mats.

“Ouch...”

I opened my eyes. In the corner of the room a ready meal had been arranged. I clung to my thin summer futon while wearing only my pajamas.

“Ah, the meal is ready. I’m hungry.”

“Hey, get yourself together! You’re indecent for a young woman!”

Shut up. I’m sleepy, so I don’t care about that kind of thing.

In a sleepy state, I vacantly looked around the inside of the room, then jumped up.

“...!”

The majority of our group was staring at me with shocked expressions.

—Crap!!

Of course. Only Bou-san would do something like tear away your futon. Both John and Yasuhara-san had slightly embarrassed smiles and were blushing a little.

I was sleeping like a log in front of the boys, wasn’t I? See, even if I put on airs now, my true character has most likely been exposed. But isn’t this the worst?

“Aaah, morning!”

***

With great haste, I washed my face, changed my clothes next door (clearly, since there was a large audience, I couldn’t change in that place), and returned to eat our meal.

“Let’s eat!”

Ayako’s cooking is very good. Her surprisingly good rustic cuisine doesn’t match her garish appearance. Humans are a mystery, aren’t they?

“Time to eat.”

“You haven’t eaten since yesterday morning. I’m sure you’re probably starving.”

“Will you stop talking like I’m a glutton?”

“Am I wrong?”

...you’re not wrong.

We came back late last night. Regardless, I took a bath and fell asleep shortly after I dried my hair.

“What time did everyone get up?”

“In truth, a great deal earlier than you.”

...I’m very sorry about that.

“We went to the town hall and met the village chief, then we went shopping and made food.”

“Thanks for the hard work.”

“At least look a little sorry!”

Right, right. Thank you for letting me sleep.

2

“Well? In the end, how was the aftermath dealt with?”

“The blame was taken by the assistant.”

When Bou-san said this, I looked into his face.

“Blame?”

“After all this time, they don’t want to get in trouble with the police or anything, right? At the same time, it’s impossible for them to feign ignorance after corpses are found strewn about.”

Certainly.

“And it seems he discovered it. Afterward, those guys probably went about it in their own way without telling anyone.”

“I see. …Well, you reap what you sow.”

“That’s right.”

...Speaking of corpses.

“Hey, what’s happening with the effort at the dam?”

I hate myself for eating a meal while asking that.

“It’s currently in progress. Also, it seems it was postponed yesterday due to the rain.”

“Hmm...”

It must be tough…

“How can you eat while talking about such a thing?”

Ayako appeared disgusted.

“Give me a break. Ayako, you’re pretending to be delicate.”

“Unlike you, I actually am delicate.”

“Tchhh. It can’t be avoided. It’s the same for spiritualists as it is for monks.”

“What’s that?”

“If people don’t die, you’re useless.”

A few people burst into laughter.

“That’s true.”

“The job of a monk isn’t only funerals, young lady.”

Because of Bou-san’s frown, I asked,

“Is there something else beside funerals and memorial services?”

“We also do wedding ceremonies.”

“That’s a lie.”

“Simpleton. More or less, that’s what you call a marriage before Buddha.”

“Really?”

“At a proper temple, taking a vow and exchanging prayer beads before Buddha.”

“That’s not really romantic, is it.”

“Well, this won’t be done unless it’s a child of the temple.”

I see. I don’t think girls will yearn for that.

“Hey, it’s okay. Because you can wash your hands of all this.”

Being said by Ayako, my shoulders fell a bit.

“That’s right. When the office closes, I won’t have to go on investigations anymore.”

At great pains, it finally became possible for me to cleanse spirits. Well, that doesn’t necessarily mean I want to continue doing such a thing.

“After the office is closed, I’ll have a lot of free time.”

It was John who told me this.

“...Yeah. I’ve been going to the office for a while, so I’ll have trouble figuring out how to use my time.”

It’s possible I’ll also have trouble with money. How did I support myself before working part-time?

“Then, why don’t you come to Sunday school sometime soon?”

I looked at him blankly.

“Sunday school? Is that when you gather the children and study the Bible in church?”

“Yes, it is. I usually look after them. It’s fun with all the rambunctious children. Mai-san, do you not like children?”

“I like playing with children. But I’ve never read the Bible...”

John smiled elegantly.

“Actually, it’s mostly playing with children. If you don’t mind, please come visit sometime.”

Sunday school? I wonder what it’s like.

As I was thinking about this, Bou-san chuckled.

“What?”

“Well, I can imagine what it’s like.”

“What it’s like?”

“John, the male nanny.”

There was a roar of laughter inside the building.

No way, it’s true! He would definitely be like a male nanny. John, playing with the children and wearing a troubled expression, but laughing nevertheless.

“Is Sunday school great?”

“Yes. Takigawa-san, too, please come if you like.”

“I think I will go. It would be nostalgic.”

I blinked in surprise.

“Nostalgic?”

“Right. I used to go often when I was little.”

“...Wait a minute.”

“Oh?”

“Bou-san, isn’t your home a temple?”

“It is a temple. Isn’t it okay even if the child of a monk goes? When I went to Sunday school, there were picture-card shows of Biblical stories and I was given sweets.”

...was that your aim, you corrupt monk? Honestly, this old man.

3

Having finished the meal, we chased the three men out and tidied up.

“I wonder if anyone will hire me to work part-time.”

When I said this, Ayako, who was drying the cups, gave a wry smile.

“I could hire you, but I can’t pay you a part-time wage as much as ‘Shibuya Psychic Research.’”

Ah. I see. I can understand that.

“It was exceptionally good. —Do you make a living as a spiritualist alone, Ayako?”

“More or less. If it’s not enough, my parents give me money.”

“I see. You’re a rich person. There’s no need for you to try to marry into money.”

Ayako gave a brief laugh.

“Greatness is comparative. Even though my family has a villa, there’s no yacht. Hohoho.”

“Extravagant person.”

“I’m an extravagant woman. Unlike you.”

“Nya!”

“Ho-hohohoho!”

“Aren’t you an only child? Does your family not have a successor?”

“I wish my parents would adopt a rich doctor as a son-in-law who’s a good-looking and well-rounded person.”

I looked at Ayako incredulously.

“You really are an extravagant person.”

“Japan is a country where there’s a gap between the rich and poor. Don’t you know that?”

“I know it now. —Masako, what about you? Do you have any siblings?”

Masako, who was putting away the cups, blinked her eyes.

“I have none. What are you up to?”

“Investigating personal histories. After thinking about it carefully, I don’t know anything about you guys.”

“Is that so...”

“It is. After the office is closed, it’s possible I won’t see everyone again. Therefore, I thought I should ask before it’s too late.”

“We cannot meet if the office is closed? Why is that?”

“Isn’t that so?”

“I wonder if it is.”

I sighed.

“I don’t know your house or telephone number, Masako.”

“I don’t know your contact information, either, Mai.”

“Yeah. That’s right.”

“But you’ll know it if you ask, right?”

“If I ask, will you tell me?”

Masako sighed. A moment later, she abruptly turned her back on me and went back to the room.

“Mai-chan will be lonely, huh?”

Ayako laughed.

“Yeah. I’ll be lonely. I’ve gotten used to being bullied by everyone and if I don’t get bullied, my body will feel like there’s something missing.”

“What have you mistaken for bullying? If I win the heart of a son from a distinguished family of some kind of large business and get married, I may take you along as a lady-in-waiting.”

“You won’t have a single boyfriend due to an overambitious aim like that.”

“Shut up!”

Ultimately, it might be classified as a business association.

Sighing deeply, I failed to notice the sound of Masako’s footsteps as she returned.

“Mai.”

“Huh?”

Masako grabbed my hand.

“Masako?”

“...”

“J-Just a minute! What are you doing?”

“...”

“Hey! Just a minute, hold on!”

“Here you are.”

Masako held up a magic marker and grinned. Ayako burst out laughing.

“...what were you thinking, Masako?”

“My address and phone number.”

“Do you usually write it on other people’s arms?”

“Oh, you would have prefered it if I wrote it on your shirt, I wonder?”

“I say!”

I looked at my arm incredulously. With such large characters… Oh!

“Put out your hand!”

“I refuse.”

“Then I’ll write on your kimono.”

“I refuse that, too.”

This girl really doesn’t have a good personality.

“Alright, alright. I get it.”

“There’s notepaper in the room, you know.”

“...”

“You’re embarrassed to exchange addresses formally, aren’t you?”

Yup. I understand perfectly why Masako would write on a person’s arm. She’s fiercely embarrassed to write it on notepaper and say something like, ‘Keep in touch!’ This isn’t limited to Masako, either. Such is the kind of embarrassed relationship we have.

“Surely everyone thinks so, too!”

“Is that so?”

“At least, I did. Even though I thought about sending out New Year’s cards, I was embarrassed to ask for addresses, so I gave up.”

Ah, indeed. There’s the custom of New Year’s cards.

“John said so, too.”

Ayako told us.

“Really?”

“He said he thought about sending out cards at Christmas, but felt it was kind of strange to ask for addresses after all this time.”

Well, that’s true. I guess.

“It’s a strange relationship.”

“It is, huh?”

“That’s right.”

4

I was distressed.

While I was at the office, there were people I met as matter of course.

I loved all of them. To refer to them as friends was strange, however, I undoubtedly thought of them as siblings or relatives. I thought it would continue in this way for a long time.

—However, there are no relationships that are without goodbyes.

If I’m reluctant to say goodbye, then it would be best to express that sentiment. Because even if I get rejected, it’s not like I’ll die. I should appeal to them by saying that I don’t want to part ways. Then, what the other person does is another matter for that person.

That’s why I used a lot of notepaper this afternoon. I made calling cards with a variety of colored markers. To hide my embarrassment, I made them as vibrant as I possibly could. Occasionally, I drew comics that said, ‘Keep in touch,’ and put things like hearts all over the place. *giggle*

When I handed them out during tea time at three o’clock, everyone was shocked and laughed.

“Wow, Taniyama-san, you really are a high school girl.”

“It’s colorful and beautiful, Mai-san.”

“This old man is dizzy.”

“I’m questioning your aesthetic sense.”

“You have become desperate, haven’t you?”

Say whatever you like. I want to be contacted even if we cut ties.

“Still, this is a good idea. —Is there notepaper?”

Yasuhara-san said, then rummaged around and made an impromptu calling card.

‘A cheerful telephone-boy will be waiting for you anytime. ’

This was written on the calling card I recieved and I laughed really hard.

“Hey you, it’s not a chat line, you know.”

“There’s someone on each end of the telephone box, isn’t there...”

“He’s certainly cheerful.”

“He is, isn’t he?”

It was just like Yasuhara-san.

In the end, everyone told me their contact information and I felt very happy. Now, after the office closes, there’s no reason we can’t see each other again.

—Excluding a certain two people.

“If I gave these to Naru and Lin-san, it’d be hilarious.”

When I said this to no one in particular, a small silence descended.

I can imagine their reactions. One: Look astonished. Two: Say, ‘What are you thinking?’ Three: Dismiss it then and there.

“It’s because those two are insensitive.”

Ayako was the one who said this with a mingled sigh.

“We’re probably outside their consideration. Not that I even think I’d want to see them enough to keep in touch.”

“Really?”

If you can’t be honest, you’ll regret it.

“Oh, so you’re saying you’ll particularly want to see them?”

“Of course. I like both Naru and Lin-san to the extent that I’d want to contact them even if we cut ties.”

—Even though I say this, it’s not my honest opinion.

Though I thought so, Ayako stared at me in amazement.

“...What’s come over you? You’re being honest.”

“Yeah. I like them enough to be worried about them being sick and I like them enough to get annoyed when they have secrets.”

...I’m not being honest at all.

“Given that we’re outside their consideration, they won’t even think of us anymore. Since I like the pair tremendously, that means my feelings will be unrequited.”

“That’s an extremely futile unrequited love.”

“I agree. Still, even if I’m sad about unrequited love and say ‘I don’t like you two,’ it’s completely pointless. Even if I say such a thing, because I’m outside their consideration, they probably won’t even be hurt. After all, the moment they go off somewhere, they’ll forget about it.”

“That’s...true.”

“It’s incredibly pathetic and unattractive to be enamored of someone and say, ‘I hate you,’ out of spite that your feelings aren’t reciprocated. Without mutual love, the regard of another person isn’t appreciated. Instead, it’s desperate and tacky.”

Ayako looked the other way in slight embarrassment.

“You’ve sure grown up.”

Bou-san patted my head.

“...Well, humans are growing creatures. But they also regress.”

“That’s the fun of being human. I like your positive attitude, Mai-chan.”

“Me, too. I like you, Bou-san.”

Hug! *snuggle*

“You shameful lot...”

“Aw, Ayako is jealous. We’ll include you. Come here.”

“No way!”

“You’re not being honest! Still, I like you, Ayako. Including that dishonest side.”

“Me, too!”

“Stop it!”

“I like you!”

“Same!”

“Stop it!”

“Aw, you’re blushing!”

“Oh, my! She’s bashful, huh?”

“Yeah.”

“You two!!!”

In the middle of that ruckus, Masako cried out, ‘Ah!’ Yasuhara-san stood up.

“Shibuya-san.”

Just as Yasuhara-san swiftly opened the screen door, Naru and Lin-san passed in front of the patio. The bungalow that they were using was a little back from ours, so if they tried to go to the water’s edge, they would end up passing by here.

“...Perfect. Are you in a hurry?”

Naru appeared slightly dubious.

“I’m not in a hurry, but that doesn’t mean I have time to spare.”

“I have a few questions I want to ask. Could you spare some time for me?”

“...Right now?”

“I would prefer right now.”

..questions he wants to ask?

“Ask.”

“Then, please come inside.”

“Can’t you do it here?”

“The questions are a bit complicated. I’m very sorry. —I also have something I’d like to ask Lin-san, so please come in.”

Naru and Lin-san briefly exchanged glances. All of us also exchanged glances. What on earth had been set into motion?

The pair promptly went around the patio and appeared at the doorway.

“Come, come, please take a seat.”

Yasuhara-san pushed us aside to make spots for the two. He sat Naru and Lin-san down there, then sat himself down in front of them with a serious expression.

“...So, this is it.”

What will he ask?

“Which do you prefer, Darjeeling or Earl Grey tea?”

Naru furrowed his brows.

“Don't worry about tea. What did—”

“So then, which would you like? Would you like it hot or would you like it cold? How strong would you like it? Would you like it with milk or lemon? Or would you like Cambric Tea or Chai? Or would you like it flavored with apple? We have cookies and cold butter cake, but which would you like to have? Both?”

…*stunned*

“You see, it’s complicated, right?”

When Yasuhara-san grinned, Naru sighed.

“Is that what you wanted to know?”

“That is what I wanted to know.”

Naru sighed even deeper at Yasuhara-san’s completely serious reply.

“...Anything is fine.”

Waahhh. Does that mean Naru and Lin-san were drawn out by tea?

“Splendid. As one would expect from Echigoya!”

“How cunning!”

“Master Smooth-talker!”

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