Tahara Hideki was stunned for a moment, then he flew into a rage and asked, "Who are you? Are you the ones who did this prank? I'm calling the police!"
"Oh, this is really ignorant."
The purple-haired heroic spirit smiled and said, "This isn't the first time something like this has happened, is it? Let me guess. You have dozens of amulets from different shrines hanging in your house because you're afraid of something. Not long ago, a colleague of yours was attacked by an invisible monster. You actually guessed that it was related to you, right?"
“…”
Tahara Hideki remained silent, his face turning pale and blue. After a while, he asked, "Who are you?"
Xia Yujie smiled and continued, "A spellcaster, an exorcist, a psychic, a demon hunter... anything is fine. In short, someone who can help you solve your problems."
Hideki Tahara hesitated and looked back at his wife and daughter. His daughter was sobbing and curled up in his wife's arms. His wife had messy hair and was still wearing an apron she wore when doing housework. When she saw Hideki Tahara looking at her, she looked away, as if she didn't want to see him.
They had just had a big fight and were in a cold war for two days.
Tahara Hideki said a little embarrassedly: "...Let's talk about it outside."
He opened the door, but immediately saw Suda Manami standing outside. The beautiful lady in formal attire stood outside the door with a smile on her face and greeted him calmly, as if they had just bumped into each other in the company elevator.
"Ms. Suda? Why are you here? Didn't you take a leave to go to the hospital to see that boy?"
Oh, it turns out that Hideki Tahara didn't notice them when they were downstairs in the company just now.
Manami Suda gave a polite smile that was reserved for the workplace: "Mr. Tahara, these two are the exorcists I found."
Tahara Hideki was stunned, and then he heard Suda Manami continue: "Because his condition is getting worse and worse, the doctors and nurses are helpless, so I had to find an exorcist to help. When we were downstairs in the company, we happened to hear you making a phone call, so we followed you without permission. I hope you don't get angry."
"So that's how it is." Tahara Hideki suddenly realized, and he said nervously: "Then his condition--"
"I'm fine now. I should be able to be discharged from the hospital in a few days. I've been so worried these days."
Seeing Suda Manami's relaxed attitude, Tahara Hideki finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Over the past few days, the scene of his colleague falling down in front of him kept replaying in his mind. He clearly remembered every detail of the moment. The place where his colleague was attacked by an invisible monster and bleeding profusely was exactly where he had been standing a few seconds ago.
He had been feeling extremely frightened, and after visiting his colleague in the hospital, this feeling of fear became even stronger.
"...Hahaha, yes. After all, it was Miss Suda who taught him during his internship."
Manami Sugata smiled but said nothing.
Tahara Hideki hesitated for a moment, then turned his head to look at Al and Geto. The two tall boys just looked at him with a half-smile. He didn't know if it was his illusion, but he thought that the attitude of these two "exorcists" towards him was a bit subtle.
But... since he's the exorcist introduced by Manami Suda, he shouldn't be a liar, right?
It has nothing to do with how familiar they are with each other. "A very reliable female colleague" - this is the image of Manami Suda that is deeply rooted in people's hearts in the company.
Suda Manami took the initiative to say, "Let me help you clean up the house. The lady may not be able to clean it up by herself. Besides, she was frightened and probably doesn't want to stay alone."
Tahara Hideki nodded quickly: "Okay, thank you, Ms. Suda."
Manami Suda gave a polite but friendly smile, and Hideki Tahara and the two boys stepped aside to let Manami Suda go in and comfort the frightened woman and child. Then the three of them went straight to the rooftop.
Al said, "Jerry, that's okay, right?"
Xia Yujie said, "It should be fine. After all, Miss Suda is a first-class sorcerer. Even if the Pakurokumo attacks again, she can hold out until we arrive."
After reaching the rooftop, Tahara Hideki got straight to the point: "Can you really solve the problem at my house? If you can, one million... is not impossible."
Xia Yujie said: "Of course."
He acted like a charlatan and said in a mysterious way, "The monster that has entangled you is called the Polu Demon, a very famous monster."
"Pokulu?" Tahara Hideki said with a strange expression: "Are you talking about the Pokulu that specializes in taking away disobedient children?"
"Um?"
Xia Yujie blinked in surprise.
Al asked for him: "Hey, Mr. Tianyuan, do you know the Polumo?"
"Of course. I have heard the legend of Polumo since I was a child in my hometown in the countryside. It is said that there is a mountain ghost called Polumo who will specifically capture disobedient children in the village and eat them. Therefore, people in my hometown like to use Polumo to scare their children at home."
Hearing this, Xia Yujie couldn't help but smile: "How interesting. After all, it is a cursed spirit that has lived for so many years, it is normal for it to leave its own legend somewhere. But you are wrong about one thing, the Poklu Demon is not a monster that eats children."
Tahara Hideki wondered, "What else could it be?"
Xia Yujie shook his fingers.
"The Polu Demon is a monster formed from the resentment of children. It is naturally close to children and will help them kill anyone who makes them feel miserable. After taking revenge, it will take the children away."
Tahara Hideki was stunned.
A monster formed from the children's hatred? Will it kill those who make the children... miserable?
Al and Xia Yujie took in his expression. Al smiled and said, "It seems that you feel guilty. If we are right, the one who summoned the Pok'u Demon to your home was actually your daughter."
His tone was a little cold.
"It's irresponsible parents who are causing pain to their children."
Tahara Hideki was stunned for a long time, then he became furious and said: "What nonsense are you talking about? Don't think that I will allow you to interfere in our family affairs just because I ask you for something. Zhisha has always been very happy. She-"
"Ask yourself," Al said calmly, "Do you really love her?"
“…”
Xia Yujie smiled and said, "By the way, the care we are talking about is not the kind of care that involves taking a couple of photos and posting them on a blog. Hahaha, are you the kind of person who would take a photo before helping his daughter up after seeing her fall?"
Tahara Hideki seemed to have been hit in the foot. He flew into a rage and said, "Please stop interfering in other people's affairs! What exorcist? I think you are just liars!"
Al showed a frightened expression: "See, Jake, there are some things that cannot be said honestly. Mr. Tianyuan was broken by you."
Xia Yujie said hypocritically: "I'm sorry, Mr. Tahara, I'm just like that, I speak my mind, if I offend you, please don't take it personally."
Tahara Hideki: “…”
Speaking frankly? I don't see that you speak frankly, I just see that you are quite eccentric!
Without waiting for Tahara Hideki to respond, Kagome changed the subject as if nothing had happened and said, "The mysterious calls to your home, the amulets being torn to pieces, the colleagues being attacked by invisible monsters... You are actually very clear about it, right? If you hadn't dodged it, you would be the one lying in the hospital coughing up blood now."
“…”
"And with your connections, you may not be able to find someone who is capable of saving you."
Manami Suda would run around for her juniors in the workplace, but she might not run around for Hideki Tahara. To be honest, if Manami Suda had not contacted Geto Suguru through Kong Shigure, the injury would have been something that an ordinary sorcerer would not have been able to deal with.
Tahara Hideki clenched his fists, not sure whether out of anger or fear.
"It's not difficult to solve this problem. The Polumo is in a special space, isolated from the world. Therefore, it is not familiar with the outside world. It only knows the way to your home or the way to your company."
Xia Yujie said: "The most effective method at present is to move, and change a company to work for. It is also best to change your mobile phone number. When you receive strange calls, do not reply. Just weaken the connection between you and the Pok'u Mo as much as possible."
“…That’s it?”
Xia Yujie shrugged.
"These are all very effective methods, but if your daughter still tries to summon the Pura after moving to a new home, the Pura will soon know where your new home is."
Tahara Hideki: “…”
Al narrowed his eyes. "I hope you won't go home and ask your daughter why she summoned the Polu. Such an action would scare your child and further anger the Polu."
The purple-haired Heroic Spirit concluded for the Master: "If you want to cure the root cause, please treat your wife and daughter well."
In the end, Hideki Tahara parted ways with them on bad terms. He seemed to simply not want to admit the fact that he had been bad to his wife and daughter. Whenever the topic leaned towards this, he would fly into a rage and eventually, he refused their help and went to find other helpers.
Xia Yujie shrugged.
"This company is in such bad shape. We know of three employees who walked out today."
The purple-haired hero was not afraid of making trouble. "The other employees must have complained a lot. We may even have to work overtime. I just don't know if there will be overtime pay."
They walked down the rooftop side by side. Al said, "I've seen many parents, some good and some bad, but rarely like him. Jerry, why don't you tell me that he is not a good husband and father?"
Although most bad parents are reluctant to admit this, Hideki Tahara's reaction was indeed too extreme.
Xia Yujie said: "Well, who knows, maybe he doesn't want to face the various difficulties in reality, and would rather immerse himself in the warm illusion in the blog."
"..." Al was stunned. "Well, what you said makes sense. The second dimension is a good place to escape reality."
Kagome: "...Don't suddenly attack innocent people in the second dimension. Mr. Tahara is not addicted to the second dimension, right?"
“Hahahahaha.” Al laughed, “Well, don’t worry about such details. The principle is the same anyway.”
His eyes were slightly gloomy, with some emotion and some self-mockery as he said, "If you imagine yourself as a powerful hero, living alone won't be so unbearable. After all, heroes are lonely. Loneliness is the suffering I should have endured."
"What a mess... Is your personality also starting to act like a chuunibyou?"
Xia Yujie grabbed his hand and said, "Let's go and take a look at Miss Suda."
Al was pulled away by him obediently, but he didn't continue his inexplicable and immature remarks.
They returned to Hideki Tahara's house and rang the doorbell. After a while, Hideki Tahara's wife came to open the door for them.
Hideki Tahara's wife is named Kana Tahara, an ordinary woman with pretty looks. She worked as a cashier in a supermarket before marriage. After her husband began to pursue her passionately, the naive woman quickly married Hideki Tahara and became a housewife.
Her attitude was very friendly: "Please come in. I'm so sorry, the house is a mess now..."
"Nothing."
Xia Yujie waved his hands and said, "We are exorcists. We just want to help you check the situation at home. You don't need to bother to entertain us. By the way, you didn't get hurt after such a dangerous incident?"
Kana Tahara paused, a trace of embarrassment appearing on her face.
She smiled bitterly and said, "It's okay. My daughter and I are not injured."
She made way for Al and Geto Suguru to come in. The sofa in the house was made up first. A girl named Orisa was curled up on the sofa with her legs hugged, waiting for her mother and Manami Suda to clean up the house. When she saw the two strangers, Orisa seemed a little scared.
Kagome walked into the living room, carefully stopped at a safe distance, and waved to her in a friendly manner: "Good afternoon, Oisa-chan. We are not bad people, we just want to see if there are any monsters hiding in Oisa-chan's house. Can we check every corner of the house?"
Zhisha hesitated for a few seconds, then nodded in confusion.
Xia Yujie smiled and thanked her.
Before he went to examine the amulet, he exchanged a quick glance with Al, who nodded knowingly.
The purple-haired Heroic Spirit stepped forward and said to Orisa in a gentle voice, “Can I sit here, Orisa-chan?”
Zhisha nodded obediently and gave up her seat, and Al sat down in the seat she gave up.
"Thank you, Oisa-chan, you're such a good kid!"
Zhisha blinked and smiled shyly.
The girl has a chubby face and big, cute eyes. If she were in kindergarten, she would be a cute little flower. How can I put it? This child really combines all the advantages of her parents' faces. She is so cute!
After he sat down, he followed the procedure of coaxing a child and asked questions such as "How old is Zhisha this year?", "Which kindergarten does she attend?", "What is her favorite food?", etc. Perhaps because his motherly temperament was so strong, the little child quickly let down his guard and was tickled by Al.
Hearing Zhisha's innocent laughter echoing in the living room, the adults in the room couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Tahara Kana said to Geto Suguru: "Excuse me, my husband..."
"He went to find other foreign aid." Xia Youjie pretended to be distressed and said, "Mr. Tahara doesn't seem to trust us. Yes, we look too young, so it's natural for our business ability to be questioned."
It was a blatant case of putting the blame on someone else, but Xia Yujie didn't feel any guilt about it.
Tahara Kana believed it and quickly comforted him, "That's not the case. Miss Suda is a very good lady. I believe in the friends that Miss Suda brought with her. It's just..."
She hesitated to speak.
Xia Yujie waited for a while, and when he saw that she didn't intend to continue talking, he gently waved the torn amulet in his hand.
"Was this damaged in the commotion just now?"
Tahara Kana bit her lip: "Yes."
"Has the amulet been destroyed before?"
"……yes."
"Are those amulets still there? Can I have a look at them?"
Tahara Kana lowered her head and said softly, "Yes, please wait a moment."
She hurried into the bedroom and closed the door from the inside. Xia Yujie restrained the smile on his face, stared down at the amulet in his hand, with a thoughtful expression.
"Did you notice that too, J-chan?"
"...Al?"
The purple-haired hero patted the sofa he was sitting on. The sofa was covered with crisscross scratches, which looked shocking. "At first glance, the cracks on the sofa look like scratches from a monster, but if you look closely, they also look like they were cut with scissors."
Kaguru sighed, "That's right. The amulet doesn't look like it was torn by cursed energy, but rather it was cut like this by someone. The marks left by the scissors are too heavy."
He had been a sorcerer for more than a year and had seen many powerful cursed spirits as well as many tragic incidents, so he still had some ability to distinguish.
The scene before my eyes was definitely not the work of a cursed spirit.
The black-haired boy took a few steps and saw a pile of broken plates in the corner of the living room. Although they were broken into pieces, the beautiful and delicate patterns on them could still be seen.
Would things in the kitchen fly into the living room during the commotion and be broken into pieces like this?
Manami Suda came out of the bathroom and said, "It's strange, the damage was mainly in the living room and kitchen, only the mirror in the bathroom was broken, and there was nothing wrong with the two bedrooms."
Based on her own experience, she doubted, "If it was shattered by the curse, it is impossible that only the kitchen and the living room were shattered. And just like you said, I can't feel the existence of the remaining curse."
Xia Yujie said helplessly: "I think I know what's going on. Anyway, let's clean up here first."
He picked up the broom and said, "I'll clean up the glass. You guys watch your step and don't step on it by accident."
Suda Manami looked at his skilled appearance, was stunned for a moment, and said with emotion: "You... are really a good man."
While sweeping the floor, Xia Yujie teased, "You can't judge a person by his appearance. It's too early for you to make a conclusion."
With a chuckle, Manami Suda was amused by his words.
Al said, "Don't be modest, Jerry."
He immediately held Zhisha on his lap and said cheerfully, "Our Jie is a very good child. He is loyal and caring. He works diligently and conscientiously. Although he is a bit picky, isn't it more adorable to have such a shortcoming?"
Xia Yujie was helpless when he was praised by him.
"Al..."
“This is all true.” The purple-haired heroic spirit lowered her head and asked Osamu, “Osamu-chan, is this brother handsome?”
Zhisha stared at Xia Yujie with her dark eyes and said innocently, "Handsome!"
Al held her hand and said earnestly, "Osa-chan, if you get married in the future, you have to marry a good man like this. Do you understand?"
Zhisha said crisply, "Well, I won't marry someone like my dad!"
Xia Yujie: “…”
Manami Sugata: "..."
After his own daughter, Osamu, said this herself, the image of Mr. Tahara Hideki could no longer be cleared.
Al's heart was moved, and he asked her softly, "Oisa-chan, what kind of person is Oisa-chan's father?"
Zhisha was silent for a few seconds, then said in a baby voice, "You always make mom cry. You don't play with me. Your blog is more important than us."
The adults fell silent, not knowing how to respond. Al sighed and said, "Zhisha, do you want to play with daddy too?"
"Yeah!" Zhisha nodded, and then said, "But... I have friends now, so I don't have to play alone."
"What friends?"
Zhisha chuckled and said, "Po----------!"
…
When Tahara Kana came out with a bag of amulets, the living room had been almost cleaned up. Suda Manami put the broken fragile items into the garbage bag and carefully put them in several layers of bags. Al was playing the game of "tap one, tap one" with Orisa.
Zhisha seldom plays with others. Her father ignores her and her mother is busy with housework. She almost always plays by herself. Finally, she meets Al, who is very good at coaxing children. Zhisha is so happy that she goes crazy.
Xia Yujie waved from the balcony, "Mrs. Tahara, this way!"
Tahara Kana walked over and handed the bag to Kagome Ken: "This is the amulet that was broken before. I put it away carefully."
Xia Yujie took a look and nodded, saying: "Well, these are indeed the work of Polumo, but——"
He fished out today's amulet from his pocket. "These are man-made."
Kana Tahara was startled.
Xia Yujie whispered, "You are the one who made your home like this, right?"
After a while, Tahara Kana sighed.
"Yes." She smiled bitterly, "We have been in a cold war for two days. I have to look after the children, do housework, and cook. My mother is still in debt, and the debt collection calls kept coming to my house. I kept apologizing, and they kept insulting me and my mother. I wasn't paying attention, and the soup in the pot overflowed and flowed all over the floor. Zhisha was scared and cried non-stop."
She simply threw the can down and said, "At that moment, I felt like the strings in my brain had snapped. I smashed everything I could. When I came to my senses, the house was already in this state. So I called my husband and told him that the monster was back. I wonder if you can understand how I feel?"
Most adults' collapse only lasts for a moment.
Maybe nothing big happened, but the accumulation of small things one after another became a weight that was enough to crush her.
Xia Yujie whispered, "I understand."
Tahara Kana said: "But it wasn't me who called the landline."
Xia Yujie said calmly: "Your behavior scared Orisa, and Orisa's emotional fluctuations attracted the attention of the Pok'un Demon, which led to the last phone call."
Today's cursed spirits keep up with the times. Even Zhenzi can climb the TV and make phone calls, so there's no reason why Pakumo can't.
Tahara Kana didn't quite understand what was said. She was quiet for a long time, then she said slowly, word by word: "I would rather it really appeared and killed us all."
…
On the way back, Xia Yujie seemed absent-minded.
Al understood and said, "Jack."
Xia Yujie came back to his senses, "Huh?"
The purple-haired heroic spirit said calmly, "I don't deny that empathy is a gift, but everything should be done in moderation. If you always empathize with the pain of others, you will end up breaking down yourself."
He now looks like someone who has the aura of a rich man.
"You are too sincere. It is better for people to live a more indifferent life."
At this point, Al prefers Gojo Satoru's personality.
Xia Yujie sighed: "It's not that serious. I just think... it's really not easy for everyone to live in this world."
They walked out of the station and slowly headed towards a certain base of the Panxing Cult.
Al knew he would not be able to get over this emotion for a while, so he changed the subject: "Will we go there again in the future?"
"Go ahead. Bring Wu with you next time. I always feel that something is wrong with that child. She seems to have attracted more than just the Pakumo. If I'm not mistaken, she... No, forget it. I need to let Wu confirm this with his own eyes first."
Al paused. "Oops. Jake, be careful."
The next second, a red laser cannon rushed directly towards Xia Youjie's face, and with a bang, the road they were walking on was turned into a mess.
Gojo Satoru's smug voice came from far away.
"Jay, Al——Did you see my "H"? I, the invincible me, have finally mastered the reversal technique!"
Geto's response to this was very simple. He summoned the "Rainbow Dragon" and gave Gojo Satoru a fierce Dragon Tail Swing.
"Let's have a fight, Satoru!"
Two high school dropouts were fighting fiercely under the street lights. Al watched for a long time and tilted his head with some relief.
"Yeah, that's good. Doing some exercise can help me forget about unhappy things. As expected, life lies in exercise. Thinking less and exercising more is the secret to a long life."
"——Hey, you idiot over there, don't jump to some ridiculous conclusions, that's too much! The ending of my elementary school birthday diary is prettier than yours!"