"Possession while eating, huh..."
Ho Fei-yu subconsciously touched his neck. It was no longer uncomfortable and had returned to normal.
"You already possessed me earlier, didn't you!" he grumbled irritably.
"Hehe, don't be so stingy. You're different from others, so possessing you is totally fine."
Hanako playfully stuck out her tongue and circled Ho Fei-yu.
"What do you mean? How am I different from others?"
Hanako's words left Ho Fei-yu puzzled, and he looked confusedly at the air.
"By the way, can you materialize? I mean, condense a physical form that can be seen with the eyes. It's tiring talking like this."
It was truly a case of hearing the voice but not seeing the person, which made Ho Fei-yu feel awkward. If it weren't for Hanawa Amakawa sitting below, who trusted him, anyone else would have called a psychiatric hospital. Moreover, talking to the air made him look foolish, so he suggested.
"Alright, stand a little further away from the podium."
Hanako thought it was a bit improper that she had secretly possessed Ho Fei-yu earlier, so she agreed to his suggestion.
The next second, she closed her eyes and began to concentrate on the unknown power within her body.
She called it an "unknown power" because Hanako only knew that her power came from others' fear, but she didn't know why fear granted her power.
Hearing her, Ho Fei-yu took a few steps back, his eyes fixed on the podium.
Then, a small, human-shaped outline suddenly appeared on the podium, emitting a dazzling light. In an instant, a delicate girl with short purple hair materialized out of thin air.
The girl wore a red and white dress, with a cute red ribbon tied on her white collar. The most captivating feature was the girl's small, palm-sized, beautiful feet, covered in clean, sacred white ankle socks, looking like freshly baked white buns, making one yearn to taste them.
"Do... do I look good? Pervert! Where are you looking! I knew you had bad intentions; you actually have naughty thoughts about a little girl like me. I'm calling the police!"
Hanako couldn't remember the last time she had revealed her form, and she felt inexplicably shy. She was just about to ask Ho Fei-yu if she still counted as a human when she noticed his gaze was nakedly lustful. She quickly used her hands to cover her chest and her mysterious area, blushing and speaking angrily.
The girl's sharp voice brought Ho Fei-yu back to his senses. Before he could retort, Hanawa Amakawa's voice, strongly supporting him, came from behind.
"Yu-kun is not a pervert!"
Ho Fei-yu sniffed, feeling a little comforted. He hadn't doted on Hanawa-chan for nothing.
But the next second:
"Yu-kun... he's just a little bit naughty, but he's great in every other way!"
Although Ho Fei-yu was still very touched, he wished that Hanawa-chan would only say the first part of the sentence from now on.
"Hmph!"
Hanako snorted lightly, still looking at Ho Fei-yu with vigilance. She removed her hand from her chest, but her mysterious area remained securely guarded.
"Are you a little girl? Besides, the rules of the underworld don't govern the living world, and you're a ghost anyway. Even if I had thoughts about you, it wouldn't matter..."
Ho Fei-yu felt it was time to clear his name, so he spoke logically.
Although Hanako didn't like Ho Fei-yu's words, she had to admit they made sense. But why did she still feel uncomfortable inside? Just as she was about to say something:
"This is more my type."
"Mmh~ Yu-kun~"
Ho Fei-yu walked up to Hanawa Amakawa, reached out his hand, and grasped the girl's magnificent snowy peak. He squeezed gently, and even through the clothes, the flesh sank into the gaps between his fingers, drawing a shy murmur from Hanawa-chan.
"Actually, I can... grow bigger too..."
Hanako subconsciously looked down at her own slightly swelling "small steamed bun." Compared to Hanawa Amakawa's "big watermelon," it was like a grain of rice compared to the moon. She immediately deflated, releasing the hand covering her mysterious area, but then she thought of something and said in a whisper-soft voice.
"What?"
"Nothing!"
"Oh, then let's talk about the possession thing."
Ho Fei-yu brought the conversation back on track.
"With your appearance, can't you directly touch objects? Do you still need to possess someone to eat?"
Ho Fei-yu looked at Hanako sitting on the podium and asked doubtfully.
"Don't let my appearance fool you. I'm still in a ghostly state. I can just make myself visible and audible to ordinary people."
Hanako adjusted her skirt, moving her body to show Ho Fei-yu clearly that she was floating on the podium, not sitting on it. To be more convincing, she slowly passed right through the podium.
"No matter what state I'm in, possessing someone doesn't allow me to share their sense of taste. But! You are the only exception."
Hanako continued, her gaze toward Ho Fei-yu looking slightly complex on the last sentence.
"Only I am the exception?"
"Yes, only you."
Hanako nodded.
"I tried everyone, men and women, old and young, without exception, and all failed. Moreover, anyone I possessed would fall ill afterward, so I gradually gave up. That is, until you came today, disturbing my lunch break. I originally only wanted to prank you, but I didn't expect..."
The girl paused slightly, seemingly building up to something.
"I didn't expect your lunch boxes to look so delicious, so I couldn't resist trying again."
"..." x2
Ho Fei-yu and Hanawa Amakawa, who were listening intently, were speechless. They had expected the girl to reveal some earth-shattering secret, but it turned out she was just a foodie.
"Then... will Yu-kun get sick after being possessed by you?"
Hanawa Amakawa seized the key point and quickly asked Hanako with concern.
She had been a little afraid of the legendary Hanako, thinking she was a terrifying creature with a green face and fangs. But seeing the girl's small and delicate appearance, her fear subsided. Since it concerned Ho Fei-yu, she couldn't help but interject.
"I told you he's the exception. Naturally, he won't get sick like ordinary people."
Hanako shook her head.
"Trust your man, Hanawa-chan."
Hanawa Amakawa still wanted to press Hanako further, asking why she was so sure Ho Fei-yu wouldn't get sick. As Ho Fei-yu's girlfriend, she had to consider the boy's safety. But a delicate caress suddenly touched her cheek. She looked up and saw Ho Fei-yu looking at her with a confident smile, so she didn't say anything more.
Hanako looked at the intimate couple, and for some reason, a sense of loneliness arose in her heart. She sadly turned her back.
"Alright, you can possess me while I eat from now on, and I'll find a way to help you pass on soon."
Ho Fei-yu agreed, looking at Hanako's slender back.
"Mhm."
With Hanako's simple reply, the girl's figure also vanished from Ho Fei-yu's sight.
"Are you really okay, Yu-kun..."
"I'm fine. Don't you know how amazing I am, Hanawa-chan?"
Ho Fei-yu teased, pinching Hanawa Amakawa's tender earlobe.
His words made the girl blush and gently chide him again. Hanawa Amakawa's uneasy heart was now much better.
"Alright, wake Yūshin-chan up. Class is about to start. It's a shame we didn't get to nap."
"Yūshin-chan, wake up quickly~"
Hearing this, Hanawa Amakawa smiled, looking at the girl in her sleep. She gently pinched her soft cheek to wake her.
"Mmh~ Why did I fall asleep?"
Yūshin Aonoi slowly opened her hazy eyes in Hanawa Amakawa's warm embrace and looked confusedly at Ho Fei-yu.
"We used to have a little pig at my house, and it slept after eating."
Seeing that the girl had forgotten what happened, Ho Fei-yu didn't intend to remind her, lest she have nightmares when she went home, so he said.
"A little pig? Sleeping after eating? Huh!? What do you mean?"
Yūshin Aonoi, having just woken up, didn't immediately realize Ho Fei-yu was making fun of her.
"Pfft."
"Fei-yu-kun, you big meanie, all you do is tease me. Hanawa-oneesan, quickly deal with him!"
It wasn't until Hanawa Amakawa's cheerful laughter sounded in her ear that Yūshin Aonoi realized what he meant. She pouted unhappily (○｀3′○) and complained to Hanawa Amakawa.
"Alright, alright, let's go to class."
In the corner of the abandoned classroom, Hanako floated there, looking at the retreating figures of the three playful people. Unknowingly, a look of envy appeared in her eyes.
Once upon a time, she could be like them... until...
"Sigh."