Chapter 47: Remember, Don't Let Mother Yukari Pick People Up
After obtaining the specific information and address for King Chen's family, Haruto first made a trip to Eientei to retrieve Kaguya. However, the two didn't set off directly. Instead, they took a detour to find Yakumo Yukari, hoping she would use a Gap to bring Yotsuya Miko over from her world.
"No."
"Why not?" Haruto muttered, a hint of dissatisfaction in his voice. Although it was just a simple visit to deliver a gift, he felt it was better to have Miko come along for something like this.
"She would be discovered. What other reason could there be?" Yakumo Yukari replied crossly, her fan snapping shut with a crisp sound. "While I can open a Gap to your friend's world, and the probability of being detected isn't high, it's simply not worth the risk for such a trivial matter."
Her reasoning was sound. Hearing this, Haruto didn't press the issue. He instead sought out Yakumo Ran and asked her to open a Gap to the Outside World, making sure to instruct her to pick them up at the same time the next day.
As for why he didn't continue to pester Yakumo Yukari...
The reason was simple: Haruto was genuinely afraid she would oversleep, completely forget about them, and leave him and Kaguya stranded outside, unable to return.
He had deep, personal experience with this particular problem.
The last time he'd gone to the Outside World to play for a few days out of sheer curiosity, he had been summarily forgotten. To make matters worse, he hadn't thought to greet Yakumo Ran before he left that time, either. He was left utterly alone, forced to work hard just to save up enough money for the bus fare.
He finally managed to take a bus to an abandoned shrine located on the very boundary between Gensokyo and the Outside World. After waiting there for half a day, he was luckily discovered by a passing Reimu, who then unceremoniously spirited him back into Gensokyo.
Stepping out of the shimmering portal Ran had created, the two of them arrived in the Outside World.
Kaguya looked around with wide, curious eyes. Although she had seen so-called modern cities in various anime, this was her first time personally stepping outside of Gensokyo and witnessing it all for herself.
The streets were wide and paved with smooth asphalt. Ordinary, functional buildings lined both sides, a stark contrast to the traditional architecture she was used to. There weren't many cars on this particular road, but the sidewalks were bustling with pedestrians coming and going.
The two didn't head straight for their destination. Instead, they first took a detour to a nearby food street, intending to properly sample the various snacks the Outside World had to offer.
As they strolled, Haruto discreetly opened a tiny, almost invisible Gap near his mouth and whispered Miko's name.
At that very moment, on the other side of the dimensional divide, Yotsuya Miko was sitting in a classroom, trying to endure a lecture.
Her attention wasn't on the teacher at the podium in the slightest. Her gaze was firmly locked on the grotesque spirit at the classroom door, its head split cleanly in half, revealing the hollow cavity within. Yet, there was no longer much fear in her eyes.
After being tempered by two harrowing game instances, this kind of spirit—one that "couldn't hurt her as long as she pretended not to see it"—was already quite friendly in her eyes.
"Miko~"
The voice that suddenly whispered in her ear made her jump slightly. She quickly regained her composure and scanned her surroundings with her peripheral vision, but found no trace of any new spirits.
"Miko~ Miko~~"
The voice called out again, the boy's tone becoming clearer. The tension in Yotsuya Miko's eyes immediately melted away, replaced by a spark of joy. She quickly raised her hand.
"Teacher, I'm feeling a bit dizzy. Can I go to the nurse's office?"
The teacher glanced at her and nodded sympathetically. "Of course. Take care of yourself. There's no rush for the afternoon exam; you can come back after you've fully recovered."
"Thank you, teacher!"
Yotsuya Miko offered her thanks and hurried out of the classroom, making her way to a deserted corner of the school grounds before finally responding.
"Haruto? I'm here, I'm here. Is there something you need?"
"I asked someone to dox—cough, I mean, I asked someone to find the information on Uncle King Chen and his family," Haruto's voice came through the invisible connection. "Kaguya and I are on our way there now."
"..."
Yotsuya Miko blinked, a subtle expression crossing her face. 'Did he just let it slip that he was "doxxing" him?' But then, thinking about the usual style and character of those two, she felt a sense of relief. It was exactly what she would have expected.
"Can I go with you?" she asked tentatively.
Haruto's apologetic voice came from the other end. "Sorry, I can't do that right now. I can't open a Gap to your side myself. Mother Yukari can, but for... certain reasons, she's not available to do so."
"Okay, I understand. Are you and Kaguya going over now, then? Can you wait for me a bit? I want to make some snacks for you to take over as a gift for the visit."
Miko wasn't too disappointed. She already had a feeling this would be the answer before she even asked. If he could have brought her along, he wouldn't have contacted her this way, much less waited until they had already arrived to tell her.
"No rush," Haruto replied. "Uncle King Chen's wife doesn't get off work until seven in the evening. Kaguya and I plan to look around for a while and head over after seven. I'll contact you again before we set off."
"Okay."
Hearing this, Yotsuya Miko found an excuse to ask for leave from school and went home. It was only two in the afternoon, leaving her a full five hours. There was plenty of time.
Meanwhile, Kaguya found everything in the Outside World novel and exciting. Whenever she saw a crowd, or spotted something that looked fun or delicious, she would grab Haruto's arm and pull him along to join in.
Haruto, naturally, wouldn't refuse. Although he was the young master of the Yakumo family, Yakumo Ran was extremely strict about his diet, almost never letting him touch anything heavy, oily, or spicy.
So the two of them strolled around, looking here and there, eating this and that. Before long, their hands were full of various snacks. They ate until their mouths were slick with oil, having the time of their lives.
While the food couldn't compare to the exquisite delicacies served at home, it was novel. It carried a sort of illicit thrill, like secretly eating snacks under the desk during class as a child, hiding from the teacher's watchful eye.
"Look, there are two cosplayers over there! They're so beautiful."
"What characters are they cosplaying? How can they look so good? I haven't heard about any anime conventions recently."
"Hey, don't you love getting photos with cosplayers? Want to go try?"
"I can't even find the same outfits online. Are they original characters? The texture of those clothes looks expensive at a glance. Aren't they afraid of getting them dirty in a snack street like this?"
"..."
Bursts of whispering came from the surrounding crowd.
Even though everyone lowered their voices, with Haruto and Kaguya's enhanced hearing, these discussions reached their ears without a single word being missed.
Kaguya was still wearing her exquisite, multi-layered princess dress, while Haruto wore a fine Taoist robe hand-sewn by Yakumo Ran, tailored in the same style as Yukari's. From their appearance alone, the word "nobility" was practically written all over them.
One of the girls in a nearby group was pushed by her companion, causing her to stumble a few steps forward until she was standing right before Haruto and Kaguya. She shot a glare back at her friend before turning to the two of them and asking cautiously.
"Um... can I get a photo?"
"I don't mind," Kaguya agreed with a graceful smile, then turned to look at Haruto.
Haruto just shrugged indifferently and nodded as well.
The girl was immediately delighted and took out a pink instant camera. She first took a few individual photos of the two of them, then set up the camera on a nearby ledge and quickly stood beside them to take another photo with all three of them in the frame.
"Thank you, teachers!" Looking at the new, beautiful photos in her camera, the girl's eyes lit up as she thanked them repeatedly. "Please wait a moment! This camera of mine can print photos immediately. If you don't mind, I'll print a copy for each of you, too."
Since there were free photos to be had, the two naturally wouldn't refuse and simply found a nearby bench to sit and wait.
"What characters are you two cosplaying, teachers? Are they your own originals?" the girl asked as the camera whirred.
"Guaranteed original. Isn't it handsome?" Haruto replied, narcissistically striking a pose.
It had to be said that his appearance was more than up to standard, perhaps due to the high quality of his Boundary Youkai bloodline. Combined with his elegant Taoist robe, he exuded the strong air of a noble young master. This smug attitude, however, also successfully earned him a roll of the eyes from Kaguya.
"Eww~ Haruto, you're so cringey~~"
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