Chapter 73
"You...eat too?"
Xia Youjie's eyes lit up noticeably, with an eagerness to find like-minded people, and even a natural sense of closeness.
It was as if he had suddenly realized that he wasn't the only one who could experience the bitterness of swallowing the cursed spirit orb; even though the cursed spirit orb was still unpalatable, Xia Youjie felt relieved at this moment.
"……Um."
Kazuma Hatori responded slowly—because he suddenly remembered something.
Xia Youjie's technique involves shaping the cursed spirit into a cursed spirit ball and then eating it himself.
This means that the cursed spirit cannot be exorcised by him.
But if he doesn't exorcise them, where will the [Curse Crystal] come from to feed him?
...As expected, he's a despicable villain who tries to take everyone down with him in the first playthrough, even the mechanism of leveling up by consuming cursed spirits is designed to mess with the player.
Well, this mission is most likely caused by the curse master, so there shouldn't be a situation where they fight over cursed spirits.
Yuqu Kazuma casually opened the [Request] interface and found that Xia Youjie's trust level with him had increased by 10%, becoming 12%/80%.
Is it just because they can all consume cursed spirits?
Kazuma Hatori remained somewhat silent.
The trust level of this future villain is a bit easy to raise... Judging from the series of schemes in the first playthrough, he seems to be a rather cunning and suspicious type no matter how you analyze it.
If he hadn't unlocked a realm that wasn't in the enemy's intelligence at the last moment, he might have been killed without taking any damage.
And at this moment...
Kazuma Hatori looked up and stared at Natsumi Yuuki again.
This gentle, humble, and even benevolent gesture was a far cry from the cunning and scheming nature that had surfaced from the depths of darkness in his memory; it was as if there wasn't even a trace of familiarity about him.
...Is the enemy too cunning, or is the player too slow to react?
First, rule out the possibility that the player is too slow to react.
Kazuma Hatori withdrew his gaze.
"It's just a means to increase our strength... Let's go."
More than completing the commission, he wanted to finish the mission quickly and return with a souvenir that pretty Xiao Wu liked, and see him so happy that even his big, round blue eyes curved into crescents, giving him a super bright and untroubled smile.
Although 28-year-old Satoru still harbors a curiosity to explore and connect with the world, the sense of responsibility that has weighed on him for years no longer allows him to possess the carefree liveliness and unrestrainedness of his youth.
Kazuma Hatake had read the mission reports written by Satoru. He wrote with great skill, following the template to produce those standard descriptions of the events, simple, concise, and devoid of any emotion.
Instead of the 15-year-old Wu, he would write down every detail that made him happy in the report, cherishing every single point, and even wanting to add his own chibi self-portrait next to it to express his feelings at the time.
Just like he would squat down and gently touch the soft petals of the roadside covered in dew with his fingertips, but he would not pick them.
It's such a shame that these beautiful little flowers, which have worked so hard to bloom, will wither if they're picked, and only I can see them.
Those pale blue eyes turned to look at him, blinking proudly and smugly, as if to say—he was already very lucky to be able to appreciate this blooming flower.
Kazuma Hatori, who was squatting next to him, wasn't looking at the flowers, yet he seemed to be looking at them nonetheless.
…………
Kazuma Hatori and Natsuyuki were heading to Kamakura, a small seaside city in Kanagawa Prefecture with a population of less than 200,000.
However, it is also a very famous tourist attraction, with a constant stream of visitors every day, making it very difficult to search for clues related to the incident.
Because of its small size, the streets here are quite crowded and narrow. Tram tracks, sidewalks and motor vehicle lanes are almost all next to each other, winding between the tall and short buildings that are both by the sea and backed by the mountains. The sirens of trams can be heard from time to time, but pedestrians seem to be used to it. Apart from tourists with cameras who turn their heads in curiosity, not many people will turn their heads.
Xia Youjie, holding the mission intelligence, stood on the street where they had originally agreed to meet, but which was now deserted, and was making a phone call to the assistant supervisor.
While waiting for them to finish their conversation, Kazuma Hatori lowered his head and sent an email to Satoru Gojo.
[There are inverted trains here, the kind where the tracks are mounted on top of the train.]
[What!? I want to sit here, let's sit together next time—]
[good. ]
In the era before smartphones were invented, they could still communicate via email even without LINE, and they replied to each other incredibly quickly.
Even so, it doesn't stop Gojo Satoru from adding simple but cute emoticons to the end of each sentence, like he's dragging out the last syllable and acting cute, full of anticipation and excitement. Just a few characters can capture the essence of the chibi version of Satoru.
"Huh? Ah... It's alright... Are you alright? Ah, okay, please rest well... Hmm, leave the mission to us, you don't need to worry too much."
Xia Youjie, who was standing next to him, looked surprised. After chatting briefly for a few more minutes, he hung up the phone and his tone when explaining to Yuqu Kazuma became quite helpless.
"Mr. Xinshi said he was hit by a car on his way here. He was not seriously injured, but he broke his right leg and is currently in the hospital with a cast on."
Kazuma Hatake: "..."
Kazuma Hatori let out a faint chuckle, unsurprised.
"I understand, let's set off then."
This patriarch's tricks are endless; he won't stop until he puts the two of them alone.
Compared to Xia Youjie, who appeared rebellious in his attire but was quite kind in his speech and behavior, it was the scheme devised by the patriarch that gave him a strange sense of déjà vu, reminiscent of Xia Youjie from his first playthrough.
Kazuma Hatori's calm, almost indifferent reaction caused Natsumi Yuuki to look at him with some confusion several times.
But Kazuma Hatori didn't care what Natsuyuu Ge thought, just as he didn't care whether the request could be completed.
Which attack site should we go to first?
Yukichi asked Natsumi, "Let me make this clear first, I can't see any residual curse power."
Xia Youjie was stunned for a moment, "Can't you see?"
"Completely invisible."
"actually……"
Seeing that Xia Youjie was about to say something, Yu Qu Kazuma spoke up first: "Satoru has already tried to teach me, but I still can't get it."
Xia Youjie: "..."
Oh, this.
It turns out that this seemingly cold and aloof black-haired boy, who exudes an unapproachable aura, couldn't even see the remnants of his cursed power.
In other words, the opponent is most likely a weaker sorcerer than myself...
"It's alright. If there are any remnants of cursed power left by the curse master, I'll take care of tracking them down."
Xia Youjie softened his voice even more, seemingly including Yuqu Kazuma within the scope of his protection.
"Don't feel too much pressure. When I first came into contact with this knowledge about magic, I wasn't very good at it either."
She even started comforting him—but it's unclear whether what she said was true or false.
Kazuma Hatake listened in silence for a while.
Then he opened the game's "Commissions" interface.
[Currently triggered delegate:]
Ayako's instructions: Please get Natsumi Yuuki's trust level with the player to reach 80% within the specified time.
Xia Youjie's trust rating: 21%/80%.
Reward: Gain the skill .
...Isn't it a bit too easy to increase the trust level of future villains?
Kazuma Hatake closed the floating window and then silently glanced at Natsumi Yuuki.
Perhaps because he hadn't responded for a long time, the other person even seemed a little uneasy, as if worried that he might have said something wrong and hurt his pride.
There's really no need for Wu to exclaim in surprise that he was a magic idiot. Instead, he acted so genuinely and freely that Wu found it quite endearing.
However, most people are probably like Xia Youjie.
In order to blend in and win the favor of others, and fearing that they will be ostracized and hostile, they pay great attention to their attitude and words, carefully considering every word they say.
But in the real world, Kazuma Hatori has never cared about other people's opinions or views, and he is equally indifferent at this moment.
"It's okay, you don't need to worry about it."
After a brief pause, Kazumasa Hatori added another sentence.
"I can deal with the enemy."
Hearing that the black-haired boy's tone was no different from before, Xia Youjie secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"That would be wonderful,"
—Refocusing his attention on the task, he flipped through the stack of documents and took out one of them.
“The remnants of the curse will gradually dissipate over time and cannot remain at the scene indefinitely. Let’s go to the only surviving victim and ask for a more detailed account.”
“But during the last TV station mission,” Kazuma Hatori thought for a moment, “he could even see the residual cursed power entangled on the host and the victim’s sister. At that time, that curse master had not made a move for more than a week.”
The implication is that only three days have passed since the last attack, so why not go directly to the scene to see the remnants of the cursed power?
Having understood what Kazuma Hatake meant, Natsumi Yuki couldn't help but pause for a moment.
“Wu’s eyes are different from ours; they are extremely sensitive to the power of incantations.”
He pointed to his eyes and explained to Kazuma Hatake, "Many tiny impurities that we can no longer distinguish are as bright as candlelight in his eyes."
"So this kind of task of tracking down the remnants should have been done by him; it would have made finding the culprit much easier..."
The black-haired boy, who usually remained silent, frowned and interrupted Xia Youjie after understanding the reason behind it.
There should be no "should".
Xia Youjie subconsciously uttered a "Hmm?"
"The event occurred randomly and was not designed specifically for Wu."
Recalling the intense work schedule of Satoru in the first timeline, where he could only sleep three hours a day and often only doze off in the car, Kazuma Hatori's voice gradually turned cold.
"Just because Wu can solve it doesn't mean he should do it. Saying that it's his responsibility just because Wu is capable of solving it is like saying it was his responsibility."
"Wu is just a person, and the time and energy he has are the same as those of ordinary people. The number of tasks he can take on is also limited."
"If we unfortunately perish in this mission, are we going to blame him before we die, saying, 'If only it had been Satoru from the beginning, there would definitely have been no problem if he had handled it'?"
Those dark eyes stared at him quietly, without a change in tone, which made Xia Youjie's heart skip a beat, and he couldn't utter a single word in response.
It was through these small, seemingly insignificant details that Satoru gradually strayed towards the other side, becoming what was known as the "monster."
"...Let's go. Even if I can't see the remnants of the curse, I have my own ways to find the culprit."
In the brief silence, Kazuma Hatori was the first to turn his gaze away and look in the direction of the police station they had passed when they first arrived in Kamakura.
“In cases like this, where a series of murders occur within a city, the police act just as quickly, and their extensive experience means they investigate in a more professional and detailed manner than we do.”
"So, let's go to the police station first."
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