Chapter 213 Original Story Side Story (Part 3): If Daigo raised a little wolfhound, Ichima, in the prison gates...

Kazuma Hatori does not have the habit of sleeping in late or staying in bed.

When the clock struck seven, he opened his eyes and got up to wash.

The extra fox spirit divination game he played yesterday slightly delayed his usual bedtime, but the impact was minimal.

Kazuma Hatori splashed cold water on his face, trying to clear his head as well.

The "ghost" named Gojo Satoru is real. He is neither a blood relative nor a profiteer who adopted him, but he is more friendly and kinder than them.

That's right... Although the two can only communicate through the psychic board, which is extremely inefficient, Kazuma Hatori is unable to judge the other's personality or opinion of him from their tone, expression, or gaze.

But Kazuma Hatori still felt a kind of beastly intuition deep down, subconsciously believing that this sudden "ghost" had good intentions towards him.

Even so, these are merely conclusions drawn from the other party's occasional initiative to touch him and the fox spirit game, which are neither rigorous nor objective.

She must not dislike him to be willing to pat his head.

After all, although he couldn't see the "ghost," the "ghost" could see him.

Even when Kazuma Hatori was lost in thought, he didn't slow down his movements; instead, he methodically prepared everything. When he put on his pure black school uniform and slung his packed schoolbag over one shoulder, he was ready to leave.

However, he paused for a moment as he gripped the bedroom doorknob, turning his head to face the empty bedroom and asking a question as if talking to himself.

Will you come out with me?

A gentle, warm breeze brushed against my left hand, and I received a "no" answer.

Is it that I can only stay in his bedroom, or is it just temporarily not allowed?

Kazuma Hatake nodded slightly, then opened the bedroom door and left.

The bread I left in the fridge yesterday that I didn't eat is perfect for today's breakfast.

In addition, there was an extra 1,500 yen on the previously empty dining table, which was his adoptive parents' money for his meals this week.

This is just a small, cheap apartment with old facilities, and large patches of mold and stains on the corners of the kitchen and bathroom walls.

The adoptive parents originally chose to share a rental to save on rent, but they were actually the type who liked to live a carefree and happy life, and believed in "getting what they wanted immediately" without any intention of working hard to save money.

After they got to know each other, they decided to get a fake marriage certificate in order to get government subsidies and adopt him. This was because having a child takes ten months of pregnancy, which is too time-consuming, and the adoptive mother thought that childbirth was too painful and that taking care of a child would be too troublesome. It would be faster to adopt a child and receive money regularly every month.

As it happened, Kazuma Hatori was a quiet and easy-going child. He was already five years old when he was adopted, so he wouldn't be a burden on their play.

At this time of day, they've probably come back from playing all night and are sound asleep in their rooms.

If they happen to bump into each other occasionally, they will exchange a few polite words with a smile, asking how you've been lately... Anyway, Yuqu Kazuma doesn't talk much, just nods silently a couple of times in agreement, and the conversation ends just like that.

Kazuma Hatori didn't make a sound. He quietly changed his shoes in the entryway, went out, went downstairs, turned left, and walked towards the school.

At this time every year, when he passes by the residential area ahead, he always sees a mother smiling gently and kindly, encouraging her child who is standing at the door waiting for the school bus, then gently patting his head, and watching him being led by the teacher onto the school bus.

Kazuma Hatori walked past them without glancing to the side, not even sparing them a glance.

When he arrived at school and sat down in his seat, most of the students in the classroom had already arrived and were chatting in small groups.

"How was yesterday's homework? Can I take a look?"

"Hey—didn't you write it? Let me look for it."

"The last question was really hard, but luckily my dad is also a math teacher, and he said it should be done like this..."

"That's great! Yohei always has his dad help him with his homework. I hate math the most, please teach me!"

"Wow, the lunchbox you brought today looks really big!"

"Mom said she made too much and insisted on giving me two portions... How about I share some with you at lunchtime?"

Kazuma Hatori ignored the noise and pulled out a chair to sit down by himself.

No one greeted him first, and Kazuma Hatori was already used to it.

Objectively speaking, Kazuma Hatori's appearance is not bad; in fact, he is the kind of person who would attract most people's attention as soon as he appears. However, at the same time, he always has a cold expression and does not respond to anyone's attempts to strike up a conversation with him. His solitary style also makes him seem completely out of place.

If it weren't for his exceptionally handsome face, the classmates who knew Kazuma Hatake wouldn't have given him positive descriptions like aloof, composed, or even cool and handsome. Instead, they would have described him as eccentric, strange, and having a terrible personality.

But no matter what, it's perfectly normal for someone like Kazuma Hatake, who doesn't participate in their discussions, doesn't join club activities after school, and won't agree to meetups or outings, to be subconsciously avoided and ignored by everyone.

Kazuma Hatori, who had placed yesterday's homework on the corner of his desk to wait for the class monitor to collect it, was also oblivious to their whispers. He propped his head up with one hand and looked at the draft paper on which Gojo Satoru had written down the solution steps for yesterday's problem.

To be fair, Mr. Ghost's handwriting was rather ugly. He actually spent more time deciphering the content than understanding the other person's problem-solving approach.

It feels like something drawn randomly on sand with a finger—crooked and sloppy, yet trying to make each stroke appear slightly more upright and in its proper place.

Kazuma Hatori didn't throw away the draft paper after solving the problem; instead, he carefully tucked it into his textbook and brought it to school with him.

In both his life and studies, he rarely received such proactive and selfless help.

Because it was so rare, it stirred something in Kazuma Hatake's heart, and he inexplicably put it away. At this moment, he stared blankly at the ugly handwriting.

Meanwhile, people in the back seat were whispering to each other, and fragmented words reached his ears.

"The bell is about to ring..."

"Why hasn't Takamura arrived yet?"

"Skipping school?"

"No way, even though that guy wasn't a good student, he wouldn't just disappear without a word..."

"Maybe he's sick? Should we go see him after school?"

"Let's see what the teacher says later."

Kazuma Hagoromo heard the gist of it, but didn't take it to heart.

Gao Cun was one of the unremarkable boys in the class. He had neither outstanding physical advantages nor witty or humorous speaking skills, and his grades were just average, neither good nor bad.

But these kinds of guys are the easiest to form groups and make a lot of friends. At least in their eyes, they are much better than the loner, Kazuma Hatori.

It's probably because Gao Cun was playing with them yesterday, but suddenly didn't come to school today, which has caused some concern.

When the teacher took attendance during the morning class and found that Takamura was not there, the anxiety intensified instantly.

"Where is Gao Cun? Does anyone know where he went? His parents didn't call to ask me for leave either."

The teacher looked at the students in the class and could only get blank shakes of their heads and whispers among themselves.

“Okay,” he thought for a moment, “I’ll contact Takamura’s parents later to ask.”

Neither the teachers nor the classmates took it seriously, assuming that Gao Cun had suddenly fallen ill or had other important matters at home, which was why he forgot to ask for leave.

But in the afternoon, even more puzzling news came, causing a huge uproar.

"The Takamura family moved to another area? So suddenly??"

"There was absolutely no news beforehand, and Takamura never mentioned that they would be moving."

"Didn't we agree to go to the Igawa old house again next week to play the test of courage game?"

"incredible……"

"Have they disappeared without a trace?"

"Hey—you actually believe in this kind of supernatural stuff?"

"I'm not lying to you, my mom told me about a distant relative who suddenly..."

The conversation gradually veered towards strange topics, and the teacher urgently stopped it.

"Don't make wild guesses. If Takamura's father suddenly gets a job transfer, moving is normal. Okay, let's continue the lesson."

The term "divine disappearance" refers to a situation where a person is "hidden away by gods or monsters." For example, when a child disappears without explanation and it is difficult for outsiders to find their whereabouts, it is speculated that the person has been invited, abducted, or kidnapped by gods or monsters and has completely disappeared from human society.

Most of the students in the class would only discuss such hypothetical scenarios that leaned towards the supernatural; they would never actually believe that the Takamura family had disappeared.

But when Kazuma Hatori heard this word, he was reminded of an invisible "Mr. Gojo" who had appeared in his bedroom.

Did he also experience a "disappearance" phenomenon?

School ended at 3 p.m., and Kazuma Hatori went straight home. The moment he opened his bedroom door, his head was rubbed hard, almost making him stumble. Luckily, he was still holding the doorknob with his right hand, so he didn't fall.

Everyone says not to touch him with so much force...

But the other party seemed to welcome him back, and rubbed his head several times—once even touching his chest, causing Yuichi to dodge reflexively.

It was too close. He had never interacted so intimately with anyone else, or even completely and utterly intruded into and encroached upon his private territory.

Kazuma Hatake instinctively wanted to escape, but the other party's actions were clearly more forceful and brooked no argument, as if determined to force him to get used to this kind of touching.

“…”

In this small bedroom, he had no room to hide. Yesterday's protest had been completely forgotten by the other party today, leaving Kazuma Hatake standing stiffly in place, waiting for Mr. Gojo to be satisfied and then take the initiative to stop this "welcome ceremony" for his return home.

With his body finally no longer sending tactile feedback, Kazuma Hatake breathed a sigh of relief. He put down his schoolbag, then took out the psychic paper from the drawer and spread it out on the floor.

Has Mr. Gojo disappeared without a trace?

He asked the question he had heard that day, his finger slowly sliding across the psychic paper to spell out the answer: "No, why would you ask that?"

Kazuma Hatori organized his thoughts and slowly recounted what he had heard that day to Satoru Gojo.

The act of sharing something with someone gives them a sense of novelty.

A moment later, Mr. Gojo also responded.

I guess he hasn't disappeared.

Perhaps they've encountered...trouble.

The word "troublesome" was only given by the other party after Kazuma Hatake ran his finger over a round of hiragana.

He seemed to feel that the word was not quite accurate, but he didn't know how to describe it with more accurate words. So, after a long time, he gave a brief explanation and reminder to Kazuma Hatake regarding his doubts.

Don't play games that test your courage.

Is it about the test of courage that Takamura and his classmates had arranged to play in that abandoned old house?

Kazuma Hatake was naturally not interested, and no one would invite him.

But while Mr. Gojo's answer did not confirm the existence of [disappearance], it seemed to indicate something even more... unusual.

...Could it be related to his imprisonment?

Kazuma Hatori pondered silently in his heart, but did not ask aloud.

He intuitively guessed that Mr. Gojo was unlikely to answer him truthfully, so there was no need to ask.

Moreover, rather than getting to the bottom of things, Kazuma Hatori felt that he seemed to prefer the fact that "only he could contact and interact with Mr. Gojo," and he was secretly pleased about it.

A subtle, melancholic desire for possession quietly took root in some desolate corner.

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I packed my things early this morning and took a bus back to my hometown for the Chinese New Year. I barely managed to squeeze out one chapter (wiping sweat). Sorry, I'll make up for it with an extra chapter tomorrow qvq