"I just came to reminisce at the school I used to attend, and I didn't expect to encounter the legendary evil spirit. How unlucky."
Though she said she was unlucky, Seika's face didn't show much resentment; her voice was free and easy, and indifferent.
"Thank you just now. I didn't realize you were quite amazing. I can rest assured leaving Nijika in your care."
Kitahara Makoto softly said:
"Actually, Seika-nee has always been taking care of Nijika."
"Why are you calling me 'nee'?"
Seika glared at him, displeased.
"Am I that old?"
You're already thirty years old, about to be promoted to a Grand Magus, don't you have any idea how old you are?!
Kitahara Makoto cleared his throat.
"Then should I call you Little Seika?"
"Hm?!"
Seika immediately narrowed her eyes, clenching her fists with murderous intent.
"You really want to die, don't you?"
"..."
It's confirmed.
Seika in her high school days was indeed a delinquent girl, with a fiery temper, always wanting to kill people at the slightest provocation, a completely different personality from the thirty-year-old salted fish store manager.
Time… always leaves its mark on people.
"I'm sorry, I was wrong." Kitahara Makoto cooperatively raised his hands, "Then I'll call you Seika-sensei?"
"Hmph~"
Seika hummed noncommittally:
"I don't want to waste time talking to you. I still need to hurry up and visit familiar places, do some things I wanted to do at sixteen but couldn't… You can go back now. I'll text Nijika later so Nijika doesn't worry."
Kitahara Makoto softly suggested:
"Seika-sensei, do you want to go to the Onsen Village, at least to dry your clothes and wipe your hair?"
Seika looked over curiously:
"What kind of place is the Onsen Village?"
"It's troublesome to explain…" Kitahara Makoto extended his right hand, inviting her, "Seika-sensei, give me your hand, and you'll know once I take you there."
"…"
A hint of hesitation appeared on Seika's pretty face, but she quickly extended her right hand and placed it decisively on Kitahara Makoto's.
Although this boy was Nijika's boyfriend, they had already hugged just now, so holding hands shouldn't matter anymore, right?
Besides, the feeling of being completely soaked was incredibly uncomfortable, and she was even a little exposed. If you looked closely, you could see the color of her underwear beneath her shirt. She definitely couldn't go out like this.
As for whether she would be taken advantage of… Seika wasn't afraid at all.
She was Nijika's older sister after all; this guy definitely wouldn't lay a hand on her, right?
Seeing Seika agree so readily, Kitahara Makoto was slightly surprised.
However, a moment's thought brought him to understanding. The sixteen-year-old delinquent Seika, with her chivalrous spirit, straightforward nature, and full of reckless energy, was never one to be indecisive.
The light distorted slightly, and their figures vanished instantly.
The next second.
In the Onsen Village.
"Eh?"
Seika's eyes widened in disbelief, and she looked around in surprise:
"Nijika told me last night that you were an exorcist, and I didn't believe it… Are all exorcists this powerful?"
"Actually, there's another possibility." Kitahara Makoto humbly said, "Only I am particularly powerful."
"Tch."
"…"
There's no need to say more about what happened next.
Kitahara Makoto led Seika to the bathing area and handed her a set of clean clothes.
Upon discovering the onsen bath, Seika showed no shyness and expressed her eager desire to soak in the onsen. Kitahara Makoto naturally wouldn't refuse.
A moment later.
Seika finished her shower, put on a white bathrobe, and walked over in wooden clogs. The clogs made crisp clacking sounds as she walked along the stone-paved path.
Kitahara Makoto didn't plan to join her in the mixed-gender onsen. He sat quietly on a chair by the shore, waiting.
However, as Seika walked past him, Kitahara Makoto suddenly noticed something amiss:
"Wait a minute."
Kitahara Makoto raised an eyebrow, suddenly reached out to stop Seika, and instructed:
"Seika-sensei, please lift your bathrobe a little."
"…Ha?!"
Seika quickly stepped back half a pace, covering her chest with a wary expression:
"I'm Nijika's older sister! How dare you try to take advantage of me? You really want to die, don't you?!"
My sister!
Who would be interested in your middle schooler-level flat chest!
Kitahara Makoto frowned and said:
"I just saw something on Seika-sensei's wrist. Lift it up so I can see."
"When I was showering just now, I did see something…"
Only then did Seika realize she had misunderstood. She wanted to apologize but felt too embarrassed to speak, so she could only lift her bathrobe while speaking, revealing her fair, slender wrist.
In the middle of her wrist was a dark bluish-black mark, which looked like a tightly closed eye.
"I tried to scrub it off just now, but it had no effect at all… Why would my future self get a tattoo?"
Seika looked at the thing on her wrist and complained curiously.
Kitahara Makoto looked over speechlessly:
"Seika-sensei, when you woke up this morning, didn't you check your wrist for a tattoo?"
"I don't remember clearly." Seika said self-righteously, "It's like you don't remember what you ate for breakfast yesterday, right?
"Fried rice with egg, miso soup, and smashed cucumbers."
"Eh?"
"Don't even mention yesterday's breakfast; I remember breakfast from ten days ago."
"…You really want to die, don't you?"
"…"
"I'm very certain that Seika-sensei did not have a tattoo on her wrist." Kitahara Makoto said, holding Seika's wrist. He could feel a faint, gloomy aura emanating from it, and he frowned slightly, "It should be related to the Swimming Pool Spirit from earlier. It looks like an eye."
Seika blinked upon hearing this and quickly reacted:
"That's right, I found an eyeball in the swimming pool earlier and remembered holding it in my hand… Then I don't remember anything else."
"That must be it." Kitahara Makoto said softly, "It's very unsafe to have this thing on you. Should I help Seika-sensei with its Stripping?"
Seika asked curiously:
"How do you seize it?"
Kitahara Makoto coughed lightly:
"First, Seika-sensei needs to take off her clothes…"
"Then forget it!" Seika quickly shook her head, covering her chest, "I'm Nijika's older sister! You actually tried to trick me into taking off my clothes, doesn't your conscience hurt?!"
"I wasn't tricking you, I was telling the truth."
"In any case, don't even think about it!"
"…"
Kitahara Makoto's lips twitched slightly. He knew Seika wouldn't agree to let him help, so he could only say:
"Go soak in the onsen. If you feel uncomfortable anywhere, remember to tell me immediately."
There was nothing he could do. She was his sister-in-law, after all. He couldn't just forcibly strip her, so he could only take things one step at a time.
After soaking in the onsen.
Drying clothes.
Kitahara Makoto took Seika out of the Onsen Village and returned to the real world.
"Seika-sensei, do you want to play in the school for a while longer?" Kitahara Makoto asked, "Those few girls earlier might call the police, and it would be a bit troublesome if the police came."
"No more playing." Seika clasped her hands across her chest, her tone a little lonely, "The school hasn't changed much, but all those familiar people are gone."
As her words fell, her stomach suddenly rumbled.
"Mmm…"
Seika covered her stomach with her right hand, her pretty face slightly red, and said:
"I'm hungry. I didn't have an appetite this morning and only ate a little bread… I need to go eat something."
Kitahara Makoto said softly:
"I'll accompany Seika-sensei."
"No need." Seika frowned and looked over, "I'm not a child, what do I need you to accompany me for?"
Kitahara Makoto said speechlessly:
"The evil spirit mark on your wrist is still there; we can't let our guard down."
"Tch, so troublesome…"
Seika hummed softly, then turned and walked outside.
Kitahara Makoto stepped to follow, simultaneously pulling out his phone and telling Nijika the situation in full detail.
Nijika finally breathed a sigh of relief:
"It's good that my sister is okay. From now on, I'll leave it to Kitahara-kun. Please take good care of my sister."
Kitahara Makoto: "Don't worry. The cooking towel is at home. The cooking for lunch will be left to Nijika-senpai."
Nijika: "Understood, leave it to me."
"…"
Putting away his phone, Kitahara Makoto followed Seika out of the swimming pool.
"Seika-sensei, how did you get in? Do you know the gatekeeper uncle?"
Kitahara Makoto asked curiously.
"No, I don't." Seika said casually, "I climbed over the wall to get in. I didn't expect those few bricks in the hidden corner to still be there after so many years… Wait a minute, how did you get in?"
Kitahara Makoto smiled and said:
"What a coincidence, Seika-sensei and I are kindred spirits."
Seika: "…"
The two quickly walked to the wall.
"The wall is a bit high." Kitahara Makoto asked curiously, "Can Seika-sensei really climb over it?"
"Don't look down on me."
Seika cracked her knuckles, about to show Kitahara Makoto her wall-climbing skills as a girl. However, after finally climbing onto the top of the wall, her foot slipped, and her body lost balance and slid down directly.
Bang.
Kitahara Makoto extended his arms and easily caught Seika, suppressing a laugh as he said:
"Not bad, worth the price of admission."
"You actually made fun of me!" Seika glared at him in shame and anger, "You really want to die, don't you?!"
"No, no."
Perhaps feeling that she had lost face, Seika turned her head to look elsewhere, muttering to herself:
"My body feels so much heavier. I get tired after just a few steps. It's clear I haven't exercised properly, and I've gained a lot of fat on my stomach. All my old abs are gone… My future self is really useless."
For a thirty-year-old adult, lying down and playing on their phone every day is the norm; it's perfectly normal to become useless!
"And there's an even more annoying part…"
Seika's gaze suddenly dropped, falling onto her own chest, and her eyes clearly showed a hint of resentment.
Her thirty-year-old self was still super flat-chested. Even Nijika was bigger than her now, which was truly embarrassing!
And a thirty-year-old person with no dating experience at all was indeed super useless!
Could it be that in all these years, she hadn't met a single boy who made her heart flutter?
"Wait, a boy who makes my heart flutter…"
Seika's breathing hitched slightly, and her gaze involuntarily stole a glance at Kitahara Makoto.
As her eyes landed on Kitahara Makoto's profile, Seika clearly heard a sound…
Thump-thump.
It was the sound of her own heart accelerating.
"The feeling of… my heart fluttering?"
"No, don't overthink it!"
"This guy is Nijika's boyfriend!"
"…"
Seika took a deep breath, suppressing the terrible thoughts in her mind, and bit her teeth lightly, saying, "Hurry up and put me down."
Kitahara Makoto put her down:
"Seika-sensei, do you need my help?"
"No need."
"Tsk~"
No wonder Nijika described you as tsundere, tsundere, tsundere; you really aren't cute at all.
Seika took a deep breath, and this time she finally managed to climb over the wall successfully, though her movements weren't graceful, and she also let Kitahara Makoto see something he shouldn't have.
Sitting on the wall, Seika belatedly realized, quickly covered her skirt with her hand, and glared over, annoyed:
"Did you see that just now?"
Kitahara Makoto said seriously:
"I'm sorry, I'm colorblind; I can't tell the difference between blue and white…"
"You said you didn't see it, but you clearly did! You really want to die, don't you?!"
"…"
Kitahara Makoto easily leaped over the wall, then rode the bicycle over.
"Seika-sensei, get on."
Kitahara Makoto patted the back seat of the bicycle:
"Where are we going for lunch?"
Seika originally wanted to refuse, but her lips moved, and she swallowed the words back. Even if he was Nijika's boyfriend, riding a bicycle wouldn't be a problem, right?
The weather was so hot; walking all the way to the ramen shop she remembered would definitely make her sweat, which sounded super uncomfortable no matter how she thought about it…
Seika pursed her lips, sat sideways on the back seat of the bicycle, and pointed with her hand:
"Ride straight down this road; there's a ramen shop I really like… Let's go see if the ramen shop is still there."
Kitahara Makoto nodded:
"Understood, Seika-sensei, hold on tight."
"Hmph~"
As Kitahara Makoto rode off on the bicycle, a cool breeze immediately swept over them.
"…"
Seika let out a satisfied sigh, her gaze sweeping over the scenery on both sides, finally landing on Kitahara Makoto.
Kitahara Makoto was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt today, and in the sunlight, he seemed to be emitting a faint glow… Her heartbeat quietly accelerated again.
Thirty-year-old Seika wouldn't have her heart flutter for a boy riding a bicycle by the roadside, but sixteen-year-old Seika found it hard to resist.
She raised her hand to tuck back the hair blown messy by the wind, and a faint blush suddenly rose on Seika's face.
(This guy rides so fast… If I don't hold on tight, it'll be dangerous if I fall, right?)
(Should I hug him for a bit?)
(But he's Nijika's boyfriend…)
(What does it matter? Anyway, I'm just a so-called 'side effect' and will disappear soon.)
(I'll cease to exist very soon, so even if it's the end of the world, it has nothing to do with me, right?)
(And my sister's boyfriend feels even more exciting…)
After learning of her 'fate,' sixteen-year-old Seika inevitably felt a bit self-destructive, so after taking a deep breath, she quickly extended her arms and hugged Kitahara Makoto from behind.
"Seika-sensei?"
Kitahara Makoto looked back in surprise.
"Less talk! It's all your fault for riding so unstably!" Seika's pretty face flushed slightly. "Just ride properly!"
A moment later.
The bicycle stopped in front of an unassuming ramen shop.
"This shop is still here!" Seika's voice was filled with pleasant surprise as she jumped off the back seat of the bicycle. "When I first started high school, I went to a friend's house and happened to discover this ramen shop; the ramen is super delicious."
"I remember this shop has a ramen called [Hellfire Ramen]; it looks super spicy, and I never dared to try it, but I decided I must eat a bowl someday. I wonder if my future self ever tried it, or if I've already forgotten about it…"
Kitahara Makoto parked the bicycle:
"Then today you should really give it a try."
"…"
The two walked into the ramen shop. The interior space wasn't large, but it was fully equipped. The owners were an old couple. Upon seeing them, Seika's eyes suddenly brightened:
"The decorations in the shop haven't changed, and the owners are still them… They just look much older."
Kitahara Makoto's expression was normal, showing no surprise.
For a ramen shop that had been open for decades, with the owners unchanged and even the shop not renovated, it was quite normal in Japan.
Because Japan has a tradition of 'family inheritance,' many people who don't get into university after high school return home to inherit the family business, so century-old shops are everywhere. For example, Tamako in a certain anime, whose grandfather ran a mochi shop, whose father ran a mochi shop, and whose wish was also to inherit the mochi shop—truly a shop passed down through three generations, with the shop remaining even after people pass on.
"Welcome."
The old lady's voice was kind, but she clearly didn't recognize Seika.
"Do you still have [Hellfire Ramen]?"
Seika asked expectantly.
"Yes, we do."
"Then I'll have one." Seika walked to a table and sat down, looking at Kitahara Makoto, "What do you want to eat, kid? My treat today."
Kitahara Makoto casually said:
"I'll also have a [Hellfire Ramen]."
Seika looked at him suspiciously:
"Are you sure you can handle it?"
Kitahara Makoto said calmly:
"Seika-sensei will know if I can handle it later."
"Don't overdo it." Seika crossed her arms over her chest and said, "If you cry from the spice, I'll take an embarrassing photo of you and send it to Nijika… Speaking of which, current phones are amazing; they don't even have buttons anymore. Compared to phones from over a decade ago, it's incredible."
Kitahara Makoto casually said:
"Times have changed, Seika-sensei. Your universal charger from back then can't charge anything now."
"…"
After a brief chat.
Two bowls of [Hellfire Ramen] were served, their fiery red color instantly whetting the appetite.
"I'm digging in!"
Seika impatiently picked up a chopstick full of ramen, slurped it into her mouth, and then her entire body instantly froze.
"Seika-sensei?"
"N-nothing…" Seika took a deep breath. "It's a little hot…"
She said nothing, but tears instantly welled up!
Kitahara Makoto said speechlessly:
"I'll go get two glasses of iced water."
"No iced water." Seika sniffled and stood up. "I want to drink alcohol! Ramen with alcohol, the more you drink, the better it gets!"
"…"