Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? Volume 1 Chapter 4

Koutarou let out a loud yawn.

"You look sleepy, Satomi-kun."

"I couldn't really sleep very well last night."

"That's unusual for you, Kou."

Koutarou, Kenji and s.h.i.+zuka were walking to school together.

The three of them were wearing their brand-new uniforms.

And they were all about to attend Kitsushouharukaze High School's entrance ceremony.

"Did something happen, Satomi-kun?"

"Yeah, just a thing yesterday."

The tone of s.h.i.+zuka's voice was not the tone of a landlord, but rather that of a friend.

s.h.i.+zuka's tone had changed when she started addressing Koutarou as Satomi-kun yesterday.

Koutarou, who was bad with formality, welcomed the change.

"Actually, Landlord-san, that thing appeared."

"Appeared? You mean..."

"The ghost appeared!?"

"Yes. I couldn't believe it at first either, but it's without a doubt the ghost."

s.h.i.+zuka and Kenji were amazed by Koutarou's answer.

"So that's why it was a bit noisy yesterday..."

"So... So are you okay, Kou!?"

"Calm down, Mackenzie. It's not that big of a deal. A ghost appeared and some paranormal phenomena occurred, that's all."

"O-oh... Well, if you say so..."

Kenji let out a sigh of relief after seeing Koutarou behave as if nothing had happened.

Kenji was not good with scary stories.

"So are you okay, Satomi-kun? Do you think you'll be able to keep living there?"

As Corona House's landlord, s.h.i.+zuka did not just share the same worries as Kenji; she also had another set of worries.

If Koutarou moved out now, Corona House's reputation would drop even further.

"It's okay, Landlord-san; it's not that big of a deal. It'll be settled within a few days."

"I see. You're so reliable, Satomi-kun."

"Just leave it to me. I'll deal with it!"

Koutarou pounded his chest as he undertook the task, and s.h.i.+zuka showed a relieved smile.

Looking at her smile, Koutarou reconfirmed his decision to never run away from his room.

"But to think there really was a ghost..."

"I'm just as sur - huh?"

As Koutarou smiled wryly at Kenji, he noticed the shadow of someone peeping at them from behind a utility pole.

"What's wrong?"

"Look over there. There's a girl staring at us..."

"You're right, but that outfit certainly stands out..."

"I'm not usually one to say this, but... Is she not embarra.s.sed walking around like that?"

It was a girl who seemed to be around the same age as Koutarou.

Although most of her body was hidden by the utility pole, it was not enough to hide the flas.h.i.+ness of her outfit.

She was wearing a colorful and frilly dress that looked like it belonged to an anime heroine.

"Ah."

Although her voice didn't reach Koutarou, the way her mouth moved suggested that that was what she had said.

Immediately after that, the girl turned around and fled, vanis.h.i.+ng around a nearby corner.

"What was that?"

"Who knows..."

As Koutarou and Kenji looked on in confusion, they could hear the sound of a collision from the corner the girl had run off to.

"Kyaa!?"

"You idiot! Don't just suddenly jump in front of my bike!"

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It wasn't on purpose!"

"And what's with that outfit!? If you're gonna play, do it elsewhere!"

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm not playing! This is part of my job!"

A quarrel could be heard around the corner.

"What was that?"

"Who knows..."

"I wonder if it was the girl from before."

The trio approached the corner.

"...Who knows what the young are thinking nowadays..."

However, as the three of them peeked around the corner, all they could see was a middle-aged man picking his bike back up.

The girl from before was nowhere to be seen.

"The girl from before probably jumped out and got hit by the bike..."

Kenji concluded as he peeked around the corner.

"I see. I wonder if she's alright, though..."

Koutarou looked back at the corner that they were moving further and further away from.

"I'm sure she's fine, Satomi-kun. If not, she would be lying there."

"You have a point."

The worried Koutarou smiled slightly after hearing s.h.i.+zuka's words.

"That sure was a strange girl, though..."

"It's spring after all.."

"Now that you mention it, the strange ones come out in droves in the spring, don't they."

And the three headed to school as though nothing had happened.

After attending the entrance ceremony and homeroom, Koutarou headed for his work site.

He then worked until nightfall for a total of roughly seven hours.

Because of that, Koutarou and Kenji were both exhausted by the time they reached Corona House.

"I'll hurry home and get to bed."

"I wish I could do the same..."

Koutarou sighed next to Kenji, who sat himself down on the bike seat.

"Make sure you get some sleep, okay? You fell asleep during the entrance ceremony, and you don't want to do that during cla.s.s!"

"Yeah, I will. See you later, Mackenzie."

"Yeah."

Koutarou and Kenji lightly waved to one another and headed for their own destinations. Koutarou headed for his room and Kenji headed for the station.

"...Well then, It's time to get down to business."

Koutarou looked back at Kenji and slapped his cheeks with both of his hands to pump himself up.

"What the!?"

What entered Koutarou's eyes when he opened the door was a mountain made of his furniture, piled up in front of the door.

"I'm helping you move out and building a barrier to defend myself from invaders at the same time!"

Said Sanae smiling as she stuck her head through the mountain of luggage.

"Whatever, move it."

"Oh come on!"

However, Koutarou showed his bag to Sanae and she disappeared into the room. The Maneki Neko and charms were still in there.

"What a childish thing to... Right, you are a child."

Koutarou took off his shoes and mumbled as he climbed over the furniture.

Since it was just furniture for a six tatami mat room, there wasn't a lot of furniture to begin with.

"If you don't want childish things to happen to you then come back earlier! It was boring just waiting around! Besides, you said you were just attending the entrance ceremony! Why are you coming home so late!?"

"My bad, I had work after the entrance ceremony. Unlike you, I have to earn my living expenses. I don't want to cause too much trouble for my old man."

Koutarou started by carrying the TV back to the room.

"Hmm... So you're having a bit of a hard time too."

"That's why I'm not leaving this cheap room!"

"But I'm gonna have you leave!"

The room was completely deserted.

Koutarou sighed as he put the TV down next to the antenna outlet.

"Alright, next is..."

After putting down the TV, Koutarou pa.s.sed by Sanae, who was lying in wait, and headed for the entrance to move the next piece of furniture.

"Stop! You can do that later, right? What about me!? Besides, you might be about to leave anyways."

"Ghost, instead of talking, help me move this back. I'm not dealing with you until everything is back where it was."

"Fine, it can't be helped..."

And Sanae reluctantly followed Koutarou.

She can be quite obedient from time to time...

Watching Sanae reluctantly help him, Koutarou felt some positive feelings toward her for the first time.

"Is there anything left?"

"No, this is the last one."

Sanae shook her head and answered Koutarou's question as she levitated a cardboard box through the air.

"Okay."

Hearing that Koutarou stopped moving towards the entrance.

"Alright, hand me the box, Sanae."

"Sanae... ?"

Koutarou stretched his hand out to take the box but Sanae stared at Koutarou in amazement with a surprised expression.

Tears began forming in her eyes.

"What's wrong?"

Koutarou asked as he noticed and Sanae quickly wiped her eyes.

"It's nothing! Just some dirt that got in my eye"

"I see"

Since Sanae was a ghost, there was no way dirt could actually get in her eyes, but Koutarou, who didn't think anything of it, believed her.

"Come on, give it here, Sanae"

"He-here!"

Sanae floated the cardboard box to Koutarou's hand, who then headed for the wardrobe with it.

"He called me Sanae..."

Sanae whispered as she gazed at Koutarou's back.

n.o.body had called Sanae by her name since she had become a ghost several years ago.

Because of that, Sanae didn't attack Koutarou, who had both of his hands occupied with the cardboard box with his back turned towards her, and instead gazed at his back, a mysterious emotion welling up within her.

"And that's it."

Closing the wardrobe, Koutarou turned back to Sanae.

"Hm, What's wrong?"

Koutarou noticed the unmoving Sanae.

"I-it's nothing! That's right, we still have to settle this!"

"Yeah, we do."

Koutarou had almost forgotten while he and Sanae were moving back the furniture.

"I have no intention of leaving this-"

Koutarou was interrupted mid-sentence by the sound of his window breaking.

"Kyaa!?"

"What!?"

The surprised Koutarou and Sanae looked at the window, and at the same time that something that was breaking the window flew into the room.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

That something fell flat on its face and rolled across the mat as it screamed.

It crashed into the wall face first and then stopped.

"Wh-what just happened!?"

"Wh-who knows..."

Koutarou and Sanae glanced at each other briefly and took a look at what had flown into the room.

"It looks like a person..."

"Yeah..."

It was a girl who seemed to be around the same age as Koutarou. She had a large b.u.mp on the top of her head.

"But what's with this flashy outfit?"

"Is she not embarra.s.sed walking around like that? You can almost see her b.r.e.a.s.t.s from this position."

What Koutarou and Sanae found odd was her outfit.

It appeared to be a dress abundantly decorated with things such as frills and lace. The colorful design used a lot of pink and primary colors, and the dress itself was quite revealing.

As Sanae said, the girl's well-shaped b.r.e.a.s.t.s looked like they were about to spill out.

And the most noticeable thing was the broom she was straddling.

It was a broom, no doubt about it, but it was not designed for cleaning.

The broom was also colorful and well decorated, and seemed to value design over function.

"She looks like she's from a fairy tale, like the old witch handing out poisoned apples... Except that this girl's cuter."

"She does have a witch feel to her, but doesn't the outfit look like something an anime heroine would wear?"

"So it's cosplay..."

"That's it!"

The two came to a conclusion, and when you thought of it as cosplay it made perfect sense.

"But why would a cosplayer come flying through the window?"

"Who knows... Maybe because it's spring?"

"Spring... Ah!"

At that point Koutarou recalled the event in the morning.

"I think she's the one I saw this morning!"

"Morning?"

"I saw her on my way to school! She was hiding behind a utility pole so I can't say for sure, but it'd be odd for several people to be walking around dressed like this. It must be her!"

"Which means she's been walking around in this outfit since this morning?"

"...A complete oddball..."

"Yeah..."

With the maniac girl in front of them, the two unintentionally looked at each other with amazed expressions.

"So what do we do about this?"

Sanae repeatedly poked the girl lying unconscious by her feet, but the girl showed no response whatsoever.

The big b.u.mp on top of her head and wide open mouth made her look pitiful.

"We can't just leave her like this. I'll put out the futon; you go get some water."

"Okay, I got it."

The two forgot about their situation and began nursing the unconscious girl.

The girl in question woke up after Koutarou had changed the washcloth they were using to cool off her forehead for the fourth time.

Over three hours had pa.s.sed, and the time was now 11 PM.

"N-nnnn..."

"Hey, it looks like she's coming to."

"Really?"

Sanae rushed over to Koutarou's futon just as the girl was blinking her eyes repeatedly.

"E-Eh?"

And as her vision regained its focus she could see Koutarou's and Sanae's faces.

"Hey."

"Good morning!"

The girl blinked once more.

"Eh? Uhm... Eh?"

The girl was unable to comprehend the situation.

"Listen. A while ago you flew through my window, hit the wall, and pa.s.sed out."

Koutarou pointed at the window covered with newspapers and then at the wall.

"And the two of us took care of you and cleaned up the shattered gla.s.s."

Hearing Sanae's explanation, the girl's eyes opened wide as she came back to her senses.

"Ahhhh! I-I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

The girl hurriedly got up and repeatedly bowed.

"It wasn't on purpose!"

Hearing her apology, Koutarou became convinced that it was the girl from the morning. Her voice sounded just like it had back then.

"If it was on purpose, we'd have thrown you out already... That doesn't matter, though. You're paying for the repairs."

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I don't have any money!"

"Then come through the door! Why would you crash through the window!?"

"I'm sorry, I was in a hurry!"

Attacked by Sanae from the moment she woke up, the girl looked like she was about to cry.

Seeing that, Koutarou decided to give her a hand.

"Don't nag her too much, Sanae. She might have her reasons for it."

"But she broke my window, you know?"

"You can get angry later. Let's start by hearing her story."

"You wouldn't even listen to my story!"

Sanae looked like she was ready to erupt.

"Ah... Anyways, let's just hear what she has to say!"

"Fine, but don't think this is over..."

Sanae finally backed down after the persistent persuasion, and the two stared at the girl.

"So, what did you come to this room for? Or were you in an accident or something?"

"Uh-uhm..."

The girl flinched as the two glanced at her.

"...Isn't it just her hobby?"

"You just be quiet, Sanae."

"Hmph!"

As Sanae turned her pouting face away from Koutarou, the girl slapped her cheeks to pump herself up.

"Fight! Yurika Fight!"

"Actually, this room is in danger."

Her voice and gaze were more serious than they had been before, as could be seen in her sharp expression.

"Danger? What danger?"

"Explain it properly!"

"There are people trying to steal this room for themselves!"

"Steal it for themselves?"

"That's..."

Koutarou and Sanae pointed at each other and said in unison:

"Do you mean Sanae?"

"Do you mean Koutarou?"

"It's not me! This is my room!"

"What are you talking about!? I'm the one living here!"

As the two began to argue, the girl shook her head from side to side.

"No, it's not either of you."

"It's not?"

"Eh? It's not Koutarou?"

"No. It's a completely different group."

The girl clearly a.s.serted as she nodded.

"Who are they!? Are they also after this cheap room!?"

"O-or do they want to make this beautiful ghost their own!?"

"...That won't happen, ever."

"Why not!? Don't be so rude!"

"It's neither. They're after the abnormal power that's concentrated in this room, so please hurry up and run away! It's dangerous! They will surely appear in a few days!"

"Power? Danger?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Hearing the girl's explanation, the two looked astonished. To them it was nothing but nonsense.

"Please explain it properly. Even if you tell me to run, it's not like I'll just pack up and leave."

"Yeah. For starters, what's this power you're talking about?"

"I want to know too!"

When the two demanded answers from the girl her glance began drifting.

"Uh-uhm... You could call it a naturally overflowing power, or erm... a supernatural power..."

Her convincing att.i.tude started disappearing and she began to stumble over her words.

Beads of sweat began forming on her forehead and she forced herself to smile.

"Aha, aha, ahahaha..."

What? Should I not have asked?

The girl's fake smile left that impression on Koutarou.

"I don't understand anything from that kind of explanation! Don't use a vague word like power and tell me exactly what it is!"

"D-Do I have to?"

"Please do. It might be hard for you to say, but I'm ready to accept most things today."

"You wouldn't hear me out though..."

"Since I believe you now, I want to hear this girl's story from the start."

"Do-don't think I'm crazy or that I'm kidding, okay?"

The girl's uneasy gaze flitted between Koutarou's and Sanae's faces several times.

"Don't worry."

"Fine, I promise."

"O-okay, then I'll tell you..."

The girl nodded and swallowed her saliva.

And after looking at Koutarou's and Sanae's faces one more time she finally opened her mouth.

"...Actually, the power in this room is......."

Though the girl started explaining, her voice quickly became quieter and quieter, and the essential part couldn't be heard.

"The power is what?"

"I can't hear you!"

"I-I'm telling you, the power filling this room is ma..."

She really didn't want to say it.

Her words disappeared for a second time.

And her face was turning red.

"Don't worry. We won't laugh at you, so please tell us."

"That's right. If you don't tell us anything, nothing will happen."

Hearing that from Koutarou and Sanae, the girl pumped herself up once more.

"Yurika Fight! Yurika Fight!"

She then stared straight at Koutarou and Sanae.

And began explaining with large and exaggerated gestures.

"Both of you, please listen! Actually, a large amount of magic power is gathering in this room!"

"Eh?"

"Ma-Magic!?"

"If the magic power keeps gathering at this rate, evil magical girls who plan on misusing its power will soon appear! And this place would become a battleground! So please run away if possible right now!"

The girl loudly declared as she took the broom in her hand and started spinning it.

"I'm the princess of love and courage, Magical Girl Yurika! I will defend the peace in this town!"

Between the oddly practiced pose and the firm beautiful voice, Koutarou and Sanae s.p.a.ced out for a second.

"Ah, what can you say... Right, Sanae?"

"I know exactly what you want to say. This must be the worst possible development."

"It's spring after all..."

"That must be it."

When Koutarou and Sanae recovered from their dumbfoundedness, the first thing they did was look at each other and let out a big sigh.

"Eh? Eh? What? What are you talking about!?"

"No, it's nothing. We're just talking about how it's much warmer now that it's spring, really."

"That's right."

Saying that, Koutarou grabbed a hold of the girl, Yurika, the one wearing flashy clothing.

"What? Why are you holding me?"

"No reason, no reason."

Koutarou smiled at Yurika and headed straight for the entrance.

"That's right; no reason, no reason."

Sanae also smiled, using her Poltergeist to carry Yurika's broom.

"Eh? What? Where are we going?"

"That's up to you to deciiiiide!"

Opening the front door, Koutarou threw Yurika outside.

"Kyaaaaaa!?"

Yurika fell flat on her face and rolled until she reached Corona House's concrete wall.

"Here, you forgot this."

Sanae followed up by throwing the broom at Yurika.

"Kyan."

The broom hit Yurika's head. However, neither Koutarou or Sanae bothered watching.

"Fu..."

"Good grief."

After quickly closing the door, Koutarou and Sanae sighed.

"It's spring, after all..."

"Isn't it because last year's winter was cold?"

"You're right. It sure got warm all of a sudden..."

Koutarou and Sanae were convinced Yurika was a cosplayer with an active imagination.

Even after admitting the existence of the paranormal phenomenon that was Sanae, magic and magical girls were in a completely different league.

There was a limit to the amount one could believe.

"Excuse me, please open the door! Please listen to what I have to say! And why did you throw me outside anyways!?"

A vigorous protest could be heard from the other side of the door, along with an intense barrage of knocking.

Yurika did not leave as Koutarou and Sanae had hoped.

"Keep it down, cosplay woman! If you want to hold a cosplay party, do it elsewhere!"

"You heard him! It's because of people like you who don't consider their surroundings and bother people around them that the reputation of all cosplayers is ruined! How about you think about your actions instead!"

Hearing that Yurika knocked once more very weakly and quieted down. Instead they began hearing her sobbing.

"Uuu... Auuuu, yo-you don't have to say it like that! You wanted me to say it and you said you'd believe me, so I told you even though I didn't want to! Please believe me!"

"Who would believe you when you're running around with that kind of outfit, talking about magic!"

"I-I'm well aware of that! I don't want to either! When I transform into this outfit, all the men stare at me! It doesn't fully hide my chest or b.u.t.t either!"

And instead of a knock a scratch could be heard.

"But, the magical land told me to wear this and act boldly or I'll be poorly received by the citizens, so I have no choice!"

The whimpering voice gradually grew louder.

"I already know! That I'm not suited for this job and that no one will believe me! I'm not crazy! Fueeeeeeeeeeee!"

Her whimpering had now become a loud bawling.

"Uwaaaaaaaa! This is too cruel! Uwaaaaaaa! Open the door! It's not fair! Please believe me! Fueeeeeeeeeeee!"

Even though there was a closed door between them, her crying could be heard as though she was right next to them.

"Haa..."

And Koutarou, having finally had it, put his hand on the doork.n.o.b.

"Koutarou, do you really believe that idiot's story?"

"It doesn't matter if I believe her or not. At this rate, it'll bother the neighbors."

If Koutarou could hear her voice this clearly, all the other rooms probably could as well. Besides, it was already midnight. If this kept up, he would be thrown out.

"I don't have any part in this."

"It can't be helped..."

And Koutarou sighed once more as he opened the door.

"I-I'm not lying, I really am a magical girl!"

"I understand, okay? So please stop crying."

"That's right, Yurika. Your belief is splendid; not a lot of people can stick with it like you."

Even inside the room Yurika would not stop crying.

Koutarou and Sanae tried to calm her down, but it did not go very well.

"Do-Does that mean you believe me? That this place is in danger? And that magic is real?"

"Th-that's a bit..."

"I knew you didn't believe me! You're all talk! Fueeeeeeee! You think I'm just some pervert!"

"You idiot, Sanae! At times like this, say you believe her, even if it's a lie!"

"That's because she's talking about magic! No matter how many abnormalities you add up magic is just impossible!"

"Uaaaaaa! You really don't believe me! You're just trying to trick me!"

"Look what you did because of your unneeded remark!"

"It's not just my fault!"

In the middle of room Yurika was bawling her eyes out. Koutarou and Sanae were fl.u.s.tered, and the situation was getting worse by the minute.

"Here, Yurika, wipe your tears with this. Okay?"

Sanae used her Poltergeist to send a nearby towel floating up to the sobbing Yurika.

Seeing the towel float towards her, Yurika suddenly stopped crying and opened her eyes wide.

"Ma-magic!? You can use it too!?"

"Eh? Me?"

"Yes! This is magic, isn't it!? Why won't you believe me when you can use it too!?"

Yurika's face regained all of its l.u.s.ter in an instant. She was happy to have found another magic user.

"Ah, this? This isn't magic."

However, Sanae clearly denied it.

"It's not... magic?"

Yurika made a surprised face and blinked repeatedly, then tears began forming again.

"This is just a paranormal phenomenon."

"Paranormal... phenomenon?

"Yeah. I'm a ghost after all. Look"

Sanae stretched out the towel mid-air and flew through it.

"Eeeeeeee!?"

This left Yurika speechless.

"Are you really a g-g-ghost?"

"Yeah, as you can see. Here's your towel."

Sanae landed with her back to Yurika and handed her the towel.

The towel flew through her body and floated in front of Yurika.

"What?"

Sanae stared at Yurika, who had her eyes wide open, and stopped moving.

"A-Aaa, auuu..."

Yurika blinked twice.

"Are you okay?"

And as the worried Koutarou started approaching Yurika, she began to move.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaa! Nooooooooooo! G-ghost! Not a ghost!!"

Yurika suddenly sprung to her feet, picked up her broom, and surveyed the room. She then ran for the wardrobe.

"Wh-What!?"

"H-Hey, what's wrong?"

"Don't possess me please! I beg you! I'm scared of ghosts! If you're going to possess someone, possess him!"

Yurika jumped into the wardrobe and closed the sliding door in a hurry.

"Don't come near me! Don't possess me! Nothing good will come from killing me! Please suck the life out that energetic person over there instead, please!"

Pitiful pleas could be heard through the wardrobe door.

"What's up with that?"

"Wh-who knows... But she's probably scared of you."

Koutarou and Sanae, who had been left behind, stared at the wardrobe, dumbfounded.

"Ri-right. Normally when a person comes across a ghost they act like that. After spending some time with you I completely forgot."

"Were all the previous tenants like that too?"

"Yeah, something like that."

Sanae looked at Koutarou and nodded.

"But is it even okay for a magical girl of love and courage to run away like that? She even left you behind to take her place as the victim."

"Well, she's just a cosplayer. Even if she wanted to act like a real one, she couldn't"

"You have a point."

The pair kept giving the wardrobe frigid glances.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! You don't have to believe in magic anymore! Just please don't possess me!"

Unaware of Koutarou and Sanae's feelings, Yurika desperately pleaded for her life.

"So what do we do about that?"

"What's there to do? We'll just have to get her to come out."

"...Yeah."

Koutarou and Sanae looked at each other again and sighed heavily.