"N-no choice, I can only take it off…"
Rustling sounds echoed within the cubicle.
A moment later.
Nagasaki Soyo let out a soft breath.
Burn it!
Must burn it!
As long as she burned it, this dark history could be completely erased!
To actually leak… Ahhh! She had never been so embarrassed in her life!
The Tsundere Young Miss clenched her silver teeth, secretly vowing:
"And places like ghost Houses, I'll never come again in this lifetime!"
Composing herself, Nagasaki Soyo picked up her backpack, preparing to look for spare items.
"Eh? How come it's not here?"
A bad premonition welled up in her heart.
Nagasaki Soyo quickly widened her eyes, searching meticulously twice more, but the desired item was still not in her backpack.
"Oh, oh no, there's no P.E. class today, so I didn't bring it when I left this morning… What do I do now?"
Nagasaki Soyo bit her lower lip, panicking as she thought of a solution.
"Ask Kitahara-kun for help…"
"No!"
"Even if I go without, I can't ask a boy to help me buy that kind of thing, can I?!"
Nagasaki Soyo's breathing suddenly hitched:
"Eh… go without?"
For the Tsundere Young Miss, going commando was something she had never imagined.
"But there really is no other way…"
After hesitating for a long while, Nagasaki Soyo finally, with a flushed face, made her decision.
When chatting with friends, she had heard that some girls, seeking excitement, would secretly go to school without wearing panties; at such times, as long as one was bold enough, they wouldn't be discovered…
"Steady."
"Don't panic."
"…If others can do it, of course I can too!"
Nagasaki Soyo took a few deep breaths, her face flushed as she bit her silver teeth, then got up and walked out of the cubicle, beginning an unprecedented, ultimate challenge of shame.
"Kitahara-kun, sorry to keep you waiting."
Kitahara Makoto turned his head at the sound, looking at the Tsundere Young Miss, who was covering her skirt with both hands, her face flushed, shuffling over step by step.
He couldn't help but ask:
"Still weak in the legs after all this time?"
It wasn't weak legs! It was that she didn't dare to take big steps, alright!
"Um…" Nagasaki Soyo's face was flushed, her gaze a little unfocused, as she tried to say in a casual tone, "I sat for too long just now, so my legs are a bit numb."
It must be said that this Tsundere Young Miss had excellent psychological fortitude; if it were Bocchi-chan, she wouldn't even be able to reply, let alone remember how to walk!
"Take a break." Kitahara Makoto handed her a bottle of drink, "Have a drink to calm your nerves."
"…Thank you."
Nagasaki Soyo instinctively thanked him, took the drink, and after taking a small sip, suddenly reacted.
"Wait a minute—"
How did she just drink it without a second thought?
Her mother often taught her not to casually drink beverages given by strangers when out and about; how did she have no vigilance at all just now?
Nagasaki Soyo was not stupid; on the contrary, she was quite intelligent.
After a brief thought, she silently bit her lower lip.
(Damn it… did the boomerang come back to hit me?)
Kitahara Makoto, while drinking his own beverage, casually said:
"I was just about to message you; you took so long to come out, I thought you were being sought for revenge by an evil spirit imp."
"Eh?" Nagasaki Soyo widened her eyes in surprise, "Kitahara-kun, what do you mean by 'sought for revenge'?"
"I forgot to tell you earlier." Kitahara Makoto sat up straight, looking at the Tsundere Young Miss, his expression serious, "Most ordinary people can't see evil spirits, but once they see them, they will be haunted by them… The evil spirit imp that escaped in the Haunted House just now definitely won't give up."
Nagasaki Soyo immediately became nervous upon hearing this: "Kitahara-kun is an exorcist, you can eliminate evil spirits, right?"
"I can, yes." Kitahara Makoto nodded, "Provided the evil spirit appears before me; the Haunted House is so big, if it's determined to hide, I really can't find it."
Nagasaki Soyo bit her lower lip, already understanding the seriousness of the problem.
The escaped evil spirit imp would seek revenge, and most likely wouldn't dare to target Kitahara Makoto, so… the target would only be herself, right?
"Kitahara-kun, do you have anything to deal with evil spirits?" the Tsundere Young Miss asked nervously, "Like an amulet from an anime?"
"Sorry, there's absolutely nothing like that," Kitahara Makoto said honestly. "Even I can only eliminate evil spirits with my fists."
Nagasaki Soyo pressed her right hand to her chest, her delicate brows furrowed: "Do ordinary people have no way to fight back when they encounter evil spirits?"
Kitahara Makoto spread his hands and said:
"You're right, they really have no way to fight back."
Nagasaki Soyo: "…"
Ordinary people have no power to fight back against evil spirits, so the only safe way is to stay by Kitahara Makoto's side twenty-four hours a day, never leaving…
Impossible.
There's no way that's possible!
Seeing the Tsundere Young Miss's face turn pale, Kitahara Makoto gently comforted her:
"Don't worry too much. Even if an evil spirit comes for you, your life won't be in immediate danger. Weaker evil spirits mainly focus on scaring people in the early stages, just like Togawa Sakiko. When she was haunted by a ghost, she lasted a full seven days…"
Kitahara Makoto originally thought that as soon as ordinary people saw an evil spirit, they would be attacked and eaten. Later, he asked the Beast Eared Girl and found out that evil spirits were not as terrifying as he imagined.
Ordinary evil spirits can only continuously harass and torment people, causing mental weakness and even madness, and only then will there be a life-threatening danger.
"Eh?" Nagasaki Soyo suddenly looked up, "You said Togawa-chan was also haunted by an evil spirit?"
Kitahara Makoto looked up at the sky: "Did I just say that?"
"You definitely did! I heard it clearly!" Nagasaki Soyo widened her eyes and said excitedly, "Kitahara-kun, what exactly happened to Togawa-chan?"
"That's Togawa Sakiko's private matter…"
"Please tell me! I'll do anything!"
"…"
Kitahara Makoto pondered for two seconds. Although it was a private matter, it wasn't a secret that couldn't be told, so he briefly explained the situation.
After Nagasaki Soyo finished listening, her mind went blank.
According to Kitahara Makoto, he and Togawa-chan had only known each other for two weeks, and the reason Togawa-chan was so close to him was only because she was haunted by an evil spirit…
Nagasaki Soyo looked over blankly: "Kitahara-kun didn't date Togawa-chan?"
"Of course not." Kitahara Makoto shook his head and said, "Togawa Sakiko and I just met, how could we possibly be dating?"
"That night on the Commercial Street, I saw you holding hands with Togawa-chan…"
"It was just to replenish magic."
"…"
The misunderstanding was resolved.
Nagasaki Soyo only felt dizzy, and she wasn't feeling well at all.
"Togawa-chan was haunted by an evil spirit, and she's not dating anyone…"
"And it's even less possible for her to be pregnant with a baby…"
"Everything was just my own imagination…"
Nagasaki Soyo was in a daze, unable to control herself.
"Kitahara-kun… why didn't you tell me before?"
"You never asked." Kitahara Makoto said as a matter of course, "Besides, if you hadn't seen a ghost with your own eyes, even if I told you, you wouldn't have believed it, right?"
"…"
Nagasaki Soyo was speechless.
Bang.
Her finger accidentally brushed the drink bottle, causing it to roll to the ground.
The Tsundere Young Miss, feeling dizzy, was filled with regret. She subconsciously bent down to pick up the drink.
At the same time.
A cool breeze happened to blow by.
The surrounding trees rustled, casting dappled shadows on the ground, and at the same time, the girl's school uniform skirt fluttered.
Kitahara Makoto instinctively glanced over, then his gaze suddenly froze, and a thought appeared in his mind:
"Some people's hair isn't the only pink thing…"