Chapter 301: Isayama Mei Appears
"Don't be so nervous; I didn't take what happened just now to heart."
Hikigaya Hachiman waved his hand at Tsuchimiya Kagura, signaling for her to relax a little.
He understood that Yomi Isayama had only attacked him because she had lost her mind. Knowing this, he wasn't about to baselessly direct his anger toward the two of them.
"No, but... Yomi did attack you after all, Onii-chan..."
Hearing that Hikigaya Hachiman didn't plan to hold Yomi Isayama accountable, Tsuchimiya Kagura breathed a sigh of relief. However, as she thought of other implications, her expression quickly became conflicted.
Although she was still only in junior high, because her strength had already reached S-rank (Special Grade), her father had already begun handing over certain family affairs to her. After more than a month of such tempering, she was no longer the little girl who knew nothing but cultivation.
She knew all too well what it meant to attack an exorcist.
Even if Hikigaya Hachiman didn't intend to pursue the matter, the other spiritualist families—especially those within the Isayama clan who were already dissatisfied with Yomi—would absolutely use this incident to challenge her status as the next head of the family.
It would be fine if she simply lost her position as the successor, but if those people refused to let it go...
Therefore, if Hikigaya Hachiman only expressed that he didn't plan to hold her responsible without explicitly ordering that the matter of the attack ends here, Yomi Isayama's fate would surely be miserable!
"So, Onii-chan, can you truly forgive Yomi?"
After describing the potential fallout in detail, Tsuchimiya Kagura looked at Hikigaya Hachiman with eyes full of entreaty.
"...This is quite a hassle."
Hearing Kagura's explanation, Hachiman scratched his head in frustration.
To be honest, he never imagined that something he considered trivial would be viewed so seriously by Kagura, nor that it would trigger such a series of chain reactions. Especially the idea that spiritualists he didn't even know would go to such lengths just to curry favor with him...
And furthermore...
"Has my identity been exposed this quickly?"
Rubbing his chin, Hachiman felt a sense of defeat. He had put so much effort into trying to hide his identity, but in the end, were his actions just a farcical performance in the eyes of others?
"No! Your identity is top-secret information! Aside from me, Yomi, and the Division Chief, only a very few clan heads know!"
Hearing Hachiman's words, Tsuchimiya Kagura mistakenly thought he was displeased about his identity being leaked and hurried to explain.
"I told you, there's no need to be so nervous. You're Komachi's friend; I'm not going to do anything to you."
Looking at the way Kagura feared him, Hachiman felt somewhat helpless. He felt he was acting perfectly harmless, yet Kagura looked at him as if she were facing a Great Demon King...
"Are my dead fish eyes really that scary?"
Holding his forehead, Hachiman let out a discouraged sigh. Then, he looked up:
"Fine. I forgive her for attacking me earlier. This matter ends here. Is that enough?"
"Thank you very much!"
Having received Hachiman's promise, Kagura's tone became excited.
"But even if I say it, no one besides you can hear me, right?"
Hachiman was curious about how others would know he had forgiven Yomi. If it just relied on Kagura's word, it wouldn't have much authority, would it?
"About that... we have a special ritual that can distinguish the truth of one's words..."
Perhaps because it involved family secrets, Kagura spoke vaguely, but Hachiman understood the gist of it. These families likely possessed something akin to a lie detector, and it presumably never made mistakes. Thus, as long as Kagura heard his forgiveness with her own ears, there would be no problem.
"Then I'll leave her to you. We're heading out."
Hachiman handed the bound Yomi Isayama over to Kagura. Not curious about the further development of the situation, he prepared to take Yotsuya Miko and head back to Chiba by train.
However, just as he turned around, Kagura called out to him again.
"Um, Onii-chan, could you tell me about the scene when you encountered Yomi?"
Fearing that she might annoy Hachiman and cause trouble, Kagura spoke with a hint of trepidation. However, in order to find out why Yomi had ended up like this, she couldn't worry about that anymore.
"If you're hoping to find the reason she became like this through me, you're going to be disappointed. When I found her, she was already in this state."
After saying that, Hachiman glanced at Yomi Isayama's hollow eyes. The once heroic and spirited young woman had now lost her vitality, lying quietly in Kagura's arms like an exquisite doll.
Hachiman felt some pity for Yomi's plight, but unfortunately, he currently had no way to solve the problem. Moreover, Yomi had Kagura, the Isayama family, and many others behind her; they might not need his help at all.
"Is that so?"
Hearing Hachiman's answer, a flash of disappointment crossed Kagura's face. But she quickly composed herself and forced a smile.
"In that case, I won't trouble you any further, Onii-chan..."
"Kagura."
Before Kagura could finish her sentence, another woman's voice, full of authority, suddenly came from the entrance of the alley.
"Mei-nee?"
Hearing someone call her name, Kagura turned her head. Upon seeing the figure at the mouth of the alley, a look of pleasant surprise appeared on her face.
"Mei-nee, Yomi she..."
Watching the woman approach, Kagura acted as if she had found her pillar of support and hurried to explain Yomi's situation. However, before she could finish, the woman addressed as Mei raised a hand to stop her.
The newly arrived woman then straightened the kimono she was wearing and greeted Hikigaya Hachiman with a solemn expression:
"It is a pleasure to meet you for the first time, Hikigaya-sama. This humble one is named Isayama Mei, the cousin of Yomi Isayama. I hope you can find it in your heart to overlook the offense they caused you..."
"You know me?"
Looking at the kimono-clad woman before him, who possessed a classic Japanese beauty, Hachiman's face showed surprise. At the same time, he turned his head toward Kagura with a questioning gaze.
Didn't she say only a very few people knew his identity?
Then how did Isayama Mei know who he was?
Don't tell him that Isayama Mei is the current head of the Isayama family!
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