Morning came too soon.
Sunlight sliced through the thin curtains like it had a personal vendetta. I woke on my side, futon twisted around my legs, mouth tasting like stale sake and regret. The room was quiet except for the distant clatter of dishes downstairs and the low hum of the city waking up outside.
I lay there for a full minute, staring at the ceiling cracks that looked vaguely like claw marks if I squinted.
No nightmares.
No sudden yokai ambush in my sleep.
Just the same low static—faint now, almost polite—like a guest who knows they've overstayed but hasn't been asked to leave yet.
I pushed myself up slowly. Joints popped. Head throbbed once, then settled. Stamina had crept back to full overnight.
**Echo Evolution – overnight recovery complete.**
**Current stamina: 105/105**
**Passive traits active: Fleeting Speed Trace (+3%), Minor Drift Glide (2–3s), Shadow Tether Resistance (+5%)**
**Last pride status: 100%. Still mocking me with optimism.**
I exhaled through my nose.
The system had a way of making small victories feel sarcastic.
I changed into a fresh uniform—blazer still faintly smelling of tomato vines—ran fingers through messy hair, and headed downstairs.
Seiko was at the low table in the kitchen, already nursing black coffee and a cigarette. A small plate of tamagoyaki and miso soup sat untouched across from her.
She didn't look up. "Eat. You look like roadkill."
I sat. Picked up chopsticks. The eggs were perfect—fluffy, slightly sweet. The miso was salty and warm. Normal food. Normal morning.
It felt wrong.
"Thanks," I muttered.
"Don't thank me. I made too much." She flicked ash. "You sleep?"
"Barely."
"Figures." She sipped coffee. "The shadow thing won't come back today. They're cowards once you push. But something else will. Always does."
I swallowed a spoonful of soup. "Any advice?"
She met my eyes for the first time that morning. Tired. Sharp. Knowing.
"Don't look for fights. But don't run from them either. Let them come. Survive. Copy. Repeat." She paused. "And if Momo drags you into her mess… don't die stupidly. She's got enough ghosts on her conscience."
I nodded slowly.
She stood, joints cracking. "School. Don't be late. And kid?"
"Yeah?"
"Try not to lose your last pride before lunch. Rent's still due."
She left me with the empty table and cooling soup.
---
The walk to school felt different today.
Not safer. Just… familiar. The same streets. The same telephone poles. The same stray cat on the same wall, watching me pass like I was part of the scenery now.
The static was there—soft background radiation—but no spikes. No shadows stretching wrong. No wet giggles from alley mouths.
Almost peaceful.
I hated it.
Peace in Kamigoe City felt like the calm before a truck.
At the gates, students streamed in. Laughter. Phone screens glowing. Someone yelling about a missed test.
I slipped through the crowd, head down, blending.
Class 2-B was already half-full when I entered. Aira was at her desk, legs crossed, scrolling on her phone with one thumb. She glanced up as I passed.
"Morning, tomato boy."
I paused. "Morning."
She smirked. "You look less dead today. Progress."
"Trying."
She tilted her head. "You're still weird. But less jumpy. Did something happen yesterday?"
I hesitated.
Then shrugged. "Just… long walk home."
"Uh-huh." She didn't push. Just nodded toward my seat. "Sit before the bell. Teacher's in a mood."
I did.
The morning classes blurred: math I half-understood, history that felt distant even though I was living in it now, English where the teacher called on me once and I answered perfectly—too perfectly—earning a few curious glances.
No incidents.
No static spikes.
Just school.
It should have felt relieving.
Instead it felt like waiting for the other shoe to drop.
---
Lunch break again.
I didn't go to the roof this time.
Too exposed.
Instead I found a bench near the back of the school building—shaded by an old ginkgo tree, out of sight from most windows. Quiet. Forgotten.
I unwrapped another convenience store onigiri. Tuna mayo. Sat. Ate slowly.
The static hummed—gentle, almost soothing.
Then it changed.
Not a spike. A shift.
Like someone turning their head to look at me from across a room.
I froze mid-bite.
Looked left.
Nothing.
Right.
Nothing.
Up.
A small shape perched on the lowest branch of the ginkgo—barely bigger than a crow. Humanoid. Skin pale gray. Eyes like wet ink. No mouth. Just a smooth slit where one should be.
It didn't move.
Just stared.
**Supernatural Sense – entity identified: Silent Watcher (low-grade). Pure observer. No direct attack capability. Collects data. Reports to higher entities.**
My grip tightened on the onigiri wrapper.
It tilted its head—slow, deliberate.
Then it raised one thin arm.
Pointed.
Not at me.
At my shadow.
I looked down.
My shadow was normal.
Mostly.
A faint ripple ran across it—like water disturbed by a pebble.
The Watcher nodded once.
Then it simply… dissolved. Melted into the branch like ink into paper.
Gone.
The static settled back to baseline.
I exhaled shakily.
**Echo Evolution – passive observation milestone.**
**Trait reinforced: Shadow Tether Resistance +2% (total +7%).**
**New note added: Silent Watchers don't hunt. They shop. And you just got window-shopped.**
I stared at the empty branch for a long time.
The onigiri sat forgotten in my lap.
Somewhere in this city, something bigger had just taken notice.
Not attacking.
Not yet.
Just… interested.
I stood up slowly.
Threw the half-eaten onigiri in the trash.
Headed back toward the building.
The bell would ring soon.
Normal life waited.
But the static followed me every step.
Patient.
Curious.
And no longer alone.
**End of Chapter 7**