Chapter 32: Don't Worry — There Really Isn't a Great Demon King in the Diary
After Kuroneko's explanation, the girls' view of the fortune-telling shop changed.
This place hadn't appeared in Miko's story — was its presence here just coincidence?
Kaguya's sharp eyes caught sight of a familiar figure, and she quickly signaled to the group.
"Don't leave yet. Miko is here. We can watch her closely from here."
Sure enough, their timing was perfect.
An orange-haired girl, full of energy and far more voluptuous than Utaha, was tugging along a black-haired girl — Yotsuya Miko, the one they had come for.
"Boss, do you have prayer beads that won't break? Really sturdy ones!" the orange-haired girl asked the shopkeeper excitedly.
Kamubo glanced at the pair. Their clothes were ordinary, not the look of wealthy customers. But with that group of refined girls still watching, she decided to put on a show.
Her eyes flicked briefly toward the faint shadow clinging to Miko, and her lips curled into a confident smile.
"Hehe — powerful prayer beads, you say? All of mine are blessed. But first, little one, let me ask you something. Have you seen anything unusual lately? Strange things happening around you?"
The blunt question startled everyone. Kuroneko frowned. How does this woman know Miko can see them? Could she actually have real ability? Or… does she hold a diary too?
Miko froze, but behind her, a shackled evil spirit loomed silently — it had followed her all the way from the nearby alley. Swallowing her fear, she forced herself into denial.
"No, I didn't see anything."
Kamubo only nodded and crouched down to rummage through a sealed wooden box. From it she pulled a string of old prayer beads that glimmered faintly under the light.
"Fate has led us to meet. These are my finest work from years past. Take them — try them on."
She muttered under her breath about catching a big fish today, but outwardly her expression was calm and commanding.
Miko, caught between fear and hope, slipped the beads over her wrist.
Then—
Crash!
The string snapped apart in an instant, beads scattering across the floor and bouncing against Kamubo's face with stinging force.
The shop went silent.
Kamubo stood stunned. Her strongest beads had crumbled instantly. For the first time she wondered if retirement and a quiet life of farming might not be so bad.
But Kaguya's eyes gleamed. Even if she couldn't see the spirit, the evidence was obvious — something unclean clung to Miko. Kamubo wasn't just a scammer; she had at least some real power to detect it.
Kaguya motioned discreetly to Hayasaka, then led the group after Miko, who was already hurrying away with downcast eyes.
---
Miko's heart was pounding. The beads had broken, but the spirit hadn't chased her — for now, that was relief enough. Yet before she had gone far, the beautiful girls stopped her.
At first, she only wondered why they wanted to talk. Then her gaze fell on the diaries in their hands — the exact same kind that had appeared on her desk.
Her breath caught. The nightmare she'd dreamt — of being surrounded by diary holders — came rushing back.
She glanced at Hana, her bright friend, who stepped forward to greet them cheerfully, completely oblivious.
Miko's diary… like the ghosts… only I could see it.
Panic swept through her chest. She couldn't drag Hana into this.
She forced a weak smile. "Sorry, Hana, these are old friends. We'll probably chat for a while… can you head home first?"
Hana hesitated but saw Kaguya's polite smile. "I understand, Miko. Have fun! See you Monday!"
As Hana walked away, light on her feet, Miko's heart ached as if saying farewell to safety itself.
She turned back to the girls, resigned. Bocchi, watching her, instinctively thought she had found a fellow sufferer of social anxiety. Utaha, however, pinched the bridge of her nose in disbelief.
If she had a diary, wouldn't she at least peek inside? Utaha had doubted it before — but when they all revealed their diaries, Miko's brief look of panic told them the truth.
Utaha sighed and turned to Kaguya. "So your guess was right. Let's find somewhere private and explain."
Then, to Miko: "Are those things still following you? If they are, don't answer. If not, just say so."
Miko hesitated, then slowly shook her head. "No… after the beads broke, that one left."
---
Ten minutes later, they found a quiet spot free of spirits. Miko, trembling, finally pulled out her diary — the first time she'd touched it since it appeared two weeks ago.
"Go on, open it," Kaguya urged gently. "Everything you want to know is inside."
Miko's voice cracked. "There isn't… some Great Demon King sealed in here, is there?"
Utaha groaned, massaging her temple. "What Great Demon King? It's just a diary from a Mysterious Person with the worst sense of humor imaginable."
The book was thick with two weeks of entries. With Utaha and Kaguya guiding her, Miko skipped trivial matters, focusing only on essentials.
Half an hour later she reached the newest page.
"So… I'm just the protagonist of a horror manga?" she whispered, numb. Since her Yin–Yang Eyes had awakened, she had searched desperately for a cause. To discover it was only "plot necessity" felt more cruel than fate itself.
The others remained silent; none of them could truly feel her despair.
Then Ai clapped her hands. "Oh! Reading value can activate Yin–Yang Eyes. Miko, maybe you can use it to turn yours off!"
The others' eyes lit up. They had nearly forgotten the feature.
"You must have some reading value — the diary mentioned you many times," Ai said encouragingly. "Try it now!"
Miko recalled faint prompts she had ignored: You gained reading value. Nervously, she followed Kaguya's instructions and willed the diary to respond. Nothing.
Her reading value had been collected passively. She hadn't accumulated the seven points required to unlock its functions.
Kaguya handed her a fine fountain pen. Miko wrote carefully: Close Yin–Yang Eyes.
The diary responded. Her face fell.
"It says they can't be closed at will. Only shielded… seven points of reading value per day."
The others exchanged glances. Two points gained per day at best — Miko could only shield her eyes for two days each week.
Utaha spoke firmly. "Use your reading value first on Ripple Breathing. It'll protect you from ordinary spirits. Save the shielding for when you face something worse."
The others agreed. Ripple was good for minor threats, but the diary hinted at an existence far more terrifying. When that came, shielding her vision might be the only way to survive.
END of the chapter
150ps=1 extra chapter and so on
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