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V7 Story III – Part 05

“Should we really have entered Mr. Odagiri’s apartment? Would we not trouble him?”

“It’s all good. He doesn’t get bothered by small stuff,” Aya said, waving her hand. “Even if there’s a problem, it’s not like he’ll go looking for it and bring it up.”

As a matter of fact, we had a very serious problem. I just wanted to grab the swaying ponytail in front of me and give her a good lecture about not entering others’ homes without permission.

“Um, I’ll make some tea,” Aya said. “I’m kinda hungry. I wonder if there’s some snacks around.”

And she was even plotting to loot the place.

Aya got up and disappeared from view. Shirayuki looked at Yukihito, and he gave a start. They held each other’s gaze. Shirayuki opened her fan, her brush moving smoothly across the paper.

Before she could direct the fan towards Yukihito, I managed to read the words.

“So, Yukihito, what are you doing here? Where is Mr. Odagiri? You do not have a sister. Who is this girl?”

Yukihito jumped again, and he turned a pleading gaze to me. I was the one who needed help, though.

Now was our chance. I wanted him to make up some reason to take Shirayuki outside. He seemed to have understood, as he began thinking.

And then he burst into tears.

“Ah, that guy’s done for,” Yusuke said. “He’s exceeding his capacity. He’s overheating.”

“You’re our only hope, Yukihito.”

Shirayuki studied Yukihito curiously. A moment later, she ran her brush across the fan.

“Why are you crying? Did something happen?”

Yukihito shook his head, unable to speak. Shirayuki glanced at the sleeping Hirugao. Then, she dropped her brush.

Clang.

She froze, as if struck by lightning. Then slowly she picked the brush up again, and moved it with trembling fingers.

The words she wrote next left me flabbergasted.

“Is this child perhaps Mr. Odagiri’s child?”

“How did she even arrive at that conclusion?! How?!” I slammed the wall hard, but Shirayuki didn’t seem to notice.

“Calm down, Odagiri-san! Stop hitting the wall!”

Shirayuki leaned forward, waiting for Yukihito’s answer. I held my breath. I had to correct her misconception no matter what. Yukihito, intimidated by my intense gaze, spoke up.

“Th-That’s not… um… that child is…”

He fell silent. It dawned on me that he didn’t even know who Hirugao was. He frowned and groaned, but I knew his actions could deepen Shirayuki’s suspicions.

Jumping at my fierce gaze, he said, “I think she’s Yusuke’s child!”

Shirayuki appeared confused.

“Oh, wow. I guess I’m a father now,” Yusuke said nonchalantly.

“Should I be congratulating you?”

Shirayuki studied Hirugao’s face. Hirugao mumbled something. Her voluminous, ashen hair was wrapped around her back like a squirrel’s tail.

“They do not look alike.”

“I think she takes after her mother.”

“She could be his sister.”

“Ah, I think that might be the case.”

Shirayuki still wasn’t convinced. We exchanged glances.

“If she was my daughter, how old was I when she was born?” Yusuke said.

“W-Well, at least I’m safe now. Did she buy it?”

Shirayuki had her arms crossed. She wrote something again.

“She is really not Mr. Odagiri’s child?”

“Really! I swear!” Yusuke asserted.

Shirayuki nodded, her shoulders relaxing as the atmosphere loosened. Yukihito wiped the sweat from his forehead, but Shirayuki picked up her brush and asked another question.

“But why is this child here? Where are both Mr. Odagiri and Mr. Yusuke?”

Yukihito froze. His teary eyes turned to me, but I couldn’t do anything. He had to get through this on his own.

“Um, well… Odagiri-san is not here right now, and…” he stammered, his gaze darting around.

“Obviously.”

“Yusuke went out for groceries with him,” Yukihito said, sweat pouring out of him.

I looked at Yusuke. “Looks like we have to come back.”

“This is bad. We might have to wait now.”

Shirayuki tilted her head. She opened her fan and moved her brush. “So, Yukihito. You are watching his apartment?”

“Yes! That’s right!” Yukihito nodded emphatically.

His answer seemed to satisfy Shirayuki.

“Then shall we wait for Mr. Odagiri together?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Relieved, Yukihito nodded with a smile.

And so we got ourselves into a dire situation.

---

“’Yes, ma’am, my foot!” I hissed. “Looks like they’re gonna wait for us. What now?”

“Good question,” Yusuke said. “I’m so done with this.”

There was nothing we could do. Hirugao’s snores echoed in the silence. After a while, Aya returned, carrying a tray with tea, yokan, senbei, apples, and canned mandarins.

“Shirayuki-san, I got a big haul!” Aya said.

“Aya, you little… Did she really just grab all my food?!”

Yusuke opened the sliding door a little. “She just looted you.”

As Aya sat down on the floor, the dustpan in my arms vibrated, making a loud noise that could be heard even through my suit.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud.

The god inside seemed to be struggling with its last bit of strength.

Aya raised her head and looked around. “Hmm? Did you hear that?”

The entity inside ran out of energy and immediately went quiet. Aya looked baffled.

And then, she spoke the worst possible words.

“I think it came from the closet.”

Before Aya could turn around, I closed the sliding door. I managed to shoot a glance at Yukihito just in time, moving my lips desperately.

Please do something, Yukihito.

I held my breath in the darkness and hugged the dustpan, preparing myself for what was to come. However, the sliding door didn’t open. Perplexed, I moved cautiously and very carefully opened the door a little. And then I saw Yukihito standing.

He leapt and lifted his left leg. He took a deep breath, tears in his eyes. He then spread his arms and started moving slowly.

Yukihito started dancing.

“Yukihito’s dancing for god knows what reason,” I told Yusuke.

“What? What’s going on out there?”

Yusuke slid open the door a little. Yukihito’s dance was odd, almost like some kind of ritual, with his arms and legs twisting and turning, and his head moving from side to side. His movements were absurd, yet uniform. I thought I could hear drums beating from somewhere.

“Is he doing this because I asked him to do something? Now I feel awful.”

“I think it’s too late for regrets,” Yusuke said.

Yukihito continued his dance. Sensing something going on, Hirugao rubbed her eyes and got up. When she saw Yukihito, she jumped. I thought she would start crying, but instead she clapped her hands.

“Whoo!”

She was loving it. Aya and Shirayuki joined in the clapping. Yukihito kept dancing, adding some strange, bird-like movements to his repertoire.

“Looks like things are heating up,” Yusuke said.

“But how does it end?” I wondered.

Yukihito’s movements grew more and more intense, his arms moving up and down at lightning speed.

“Kieeeeeeeee!”

With a bizarre cry, Yukihito jumped high up into the air, sweat sparkling as it scattered around him. He remained suspended in the air for a few seconds before gracefully landing with both feet.

Yukihito lifted his face, basking in a round of applause. He looked as if his soul had left his body, or he had accomplished something significant.

“Amazing!” Hirugao exclaimed. “I don’t know what happened, but that was amazing!”

“It was,” Aya agreed. “I wasn’t sure where that came from, but it was entertaining.”

“Where did you learn that? I do not really understand, but I think it was incredible.”

Yukihito silently sat down, as still as a stone. It was as if his energy from earlier had never been.

Aya sprang to her feet. “I almost forgot! What time is it now?”

She pulled out her phone from her apron pocket, and her face turned pale as she checked the screen.

“I-I’m sorry, Shirayuki-san!” she said. “I forgot that Nanami-san told me to go out for groceries! The sale is going to end soon. I’ll be right back!”

Shirayuki quickly wrote something down as well. “I understand. Allow me to accompany you. Maybe there is something I can help you with.”

“Really? Are you sure about that? Thanks a lot. I’ll pay you back later. Well then, Yukihito-kun. We’re leaving for now. Please tell Odagiri we’ll come back later!”

The two hurried away, leaving Yukihito and Hirugao behind. Hirugao stretched, while Yukihito remained in his position, unmoving.

After making sure that they weren’t returning, we opened the door and jumped out of the closet.

“Don’t cry, Yukihito!”

“You did well! Great job!”

Yusuke and I patted Yukihito’s head. As we showered him with words of comfort and praise, an electronic ring sounded.

It was my phone. I took it out of my pocket and pressed it against my ear. “Hello. This is Odagiri.”

“Odagiri-kun, I just realized a terrible fact,” Mayuzumi declared out of nowhere.

The knot in my gut tightened again. Why was she calling me?

I gulped. “What’s wrong, Mayu-san?” I asked, my voice stiff. “I thought we’d disposed of all the gods.”

“The ones in my apartment, yes. But recall what you said earlier: ‘I don’t think there are any places left where you would go.’”

I did say that, but there wasn’t anything wrong with what I said. Even if the gods multiplied at the supermarket I frequented, it wouldn’t affect her.

“I thought the same at first. But there’s one important place you’ve forgotten. And if they were there, it would be the worst-case scenario for me.”

Where could this important place be? I furrowed my brows, racking my brain for an answer. But I had no idea.

Mayuzumi let out an irritated sigh. “The Mayuzumi household.”