On the third day, the fog swallowing the city spread even farther. It had devoured what felt like two-thirds of it.
Mr. Kain was not home today. Instead, he had gone to the hospital to see a psychiatrist.
He described the problems he had been having over the past two days: auditory hallucinations, even visual hallucinations.
They're not hallucinations, Aerith said from beside him.
And as she listened to the psychiatrist's advice, she grew more and more anxious. The doctor told Mr. Kain not to let himself be influenced, to ignore it as much as possible, and to insist that it was false—that he must not be deceived.
"Doctor, should I delete those study materials, then?"
That question made Aerith tense up as well.
By "study materials," she now understood what he meant. It was mortifying, but those things seemed to make it easier for Mr. Kain to sense her.
So last night, she had clicked them open and played them several times.
That was probably why Mr. Kain suspected he was developing schizophrenia, and why he thought his condition had suddenly worsened enough that he had inexplicably opened those videos.
"It would be best not to," the psychiatrist said. "Deleting them could actually make your problem worse."
Aerith let out a breath of relief, though her feelings were still complicated.
"If the hallucinations become more frequent and more realistic, then no matter what they say, do not respond. Act as though you can't see them or hear them…"
They're not hallucinations.
In the blink of an eye, night had come again.
Standing by the window, Aerith looked out at the darkness beyond, her expression growing increasingly gloomy.
On the first night, the city had still been a city that never slept.
Tonight, it looked as if two-thirds of its lights had gone out. The beast called darkness seemed ready to swallow everything until only this house remained.
So, should she play the video again tonight?
Play it!
Doing that made it easier for him to notice her. Even if he ignored her, Aerith was determined to force him to realize she existed—to make Mr. Kain respond to this so-called hallucination.
That might be the moment when she could fully make contact with him.
This time, however, Mr. Kain did not watch. He simply ignored it.
Was he pretending not to see?
He seemed absorbed in a mobile game, and he had even deliberately put on headphones, so he could not hear the sound either.
He probably really had not noticed.
Because if he had noticed, he would have gone over to look. That was also what the doctor had told him: do not deliberately avoid it. If you should look, then look. While looking, do whatever you normally would.
Deliberately suppressing it would only worsen the condition.
Hm? He stood up. Was he coming over to look?
No, that was not it. He had gone downstairs to pick up his takeout.
After receiving the food, Mr. Kain walked back and was about to run into her—only to suddenly turn away and head into the first-floor living room, where he took a cold drink from the refrigerator.
It looked perfectly normal, but Aerith sharply sensed something was off.
It was as though he had really seen her blocking his path. Just as he was about to bump into her, he turned aside for a drink, pretending he had not noticed her standing there at all.
After getting his drink, he did not go upstairs. Instead, he sat down in the living room and began eating there. Was it because she was still standing on the stairs?
She had to make him speak to her.
Aerith immediately stepped forward, reaching toward the newly opened ice-cold Coke. She intended to knock it over.
The instant she touched it, she froze.
She had almost completely grabbed it.
Before this, she could barely affect physical objects in this world. If she used even a little force, her hand would pass straight through.
Now, it seemed as though she could grasp it fully.
So she lifted it, and the bottle of Coke really rose in her hand without falling.
Glug, glug!
She drank it right in front of him. With something this obviously abnormal, she wanted to see how long he could keep pretending. How long he could endure it.
Yet he truly showed no reaction to such an obvious anomaly. His expression remained completely natural.
After drinking half of it, Aerith could not take any more. The fizz was getting up her nose.
She had to admit, though, that it really was good. Cold and refreshing.
Then she continued her assault on Mr. Kain's takeout.
She did not take all of it away. Instead, she did something far more wicked. It was barbecue takeout, so she took a bite from this skewer, then a bite from that one.
She was like a little mouse stealing food.
How would Mr. Kain react when faced with those half-eaten skewers?
"Mmph!"
Aerith puffed out her cheeks slightly. He had no reaction. It was as if, in Mr. Kain's eyes, the takeout had not changed at all.
Fine, then. Next, she would block his path until he could not help but act.
After he finished eating, he looked ready to head upstairs. Aerith immediately blocked his way.
After she blocked him a few times, he simply sat back down, lay across the sofa, and started playing his game.
Then she would snatch his phone away. But just as Aerith was about to grab it, he predicted her move one step ahead, stopped playing, and tossed it aside.
Then he simply closed his eyes.
Was he going to sleep right there?
Aerith's expression changed drastically. He could not be allowed to sleep.
She looked outside at the night uneasily. There had been no switch, which meant he had not truly fallen asleep.
Still, even if he fell asleep soon, it might not necessarily cause a switch. Aerith had noticed that the two previous switches had happened exactly at midnight.
Suddenly, he opened his eyes again and got up. This time, however, Aerith did not dare block him. She could only let him return upstairs to his room.
Then something occurred to her, and she circled around Mr. Kain first, entering his room ahead of him.
Mr. Kain was coming upstairs now without his headphones. She went over to the computer and turned the volume up to maximum.
If he heard the sound, then according to the doctor's instructions, he could not pretend he had not. He could not deliberately avoid it. He would have to look.
That way, Mr. Kain would have to do something very awkward.
And since it seemed she could now be seen clearly, Aerith stood nearby and watched him, waiting to see whether he could withstand this embarrassment.
She could not turn the volume up immediately. If Mr. Kain heard it before passing through the door, he might simply turn around and leave.
She had to wait until he stepped into the room—
Now. This was the moment.
The volume went to maximum, and she noticed Mr. Kain's face stiffen almost imperceptibly.
A moment later, Aerith genuinely admired him. Aside from that initial, tiny stiffness, he showed not the slightest embarrassment at having her standing beside him.
Or was it that he truly could not see her?
Hm?
This was—!
Aerith's expression shifted slightly. Tifa was being far too reckless.
Tifa had actually managed to force herself free from the frozen time as well. Afterward, she had gone to the No. 1 Mako Reactor and jumped down, trying to carry Mr. Kain's body back up. As a result, the violent psychic shock had also connected Tifa's consciousness to the Lifestream.
Aerith closed her eyes, preparing to guide Tifa and lead her into this world.
In the next second, the air beside Aerith rippled, turning almost liquid. Aerith opened her eyes, thrust both hands into it, and pulled outward.
Just like that, Tifa was dragged out.
"Aerith! Hm? Mr. Kain—uh?"
Tifa sounded excited, but her face froze almost instantly.
The scene before her had left her completely confused.
Mr. Kain was watching the footage on his computer. Inside it were two women who looked like they were playing Aerith and her.
As for what he himself was doing, it was truly hard to describe.
And the real Aerith was standing right beside him, watching.
What on earth was going on?
(End of Chapter)
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