Chapter 9: The Supernatural Club's Not-So-Ordinary Meeting
The rooftop wind, carrying the unique warmth of the afternoon, gently rustled the hair of the three.
In the end, the delicate battlefield caused by the two bento boxes was temporarily brought to a ceasefire by Natsume Yu's calm declaration, "Since you both brought them, let's eat together."
However, the atmosphere during lunch was still filled with a strange tension.
Eriri, while taking small bites from her bento, would steal glances out of the corner of her eye, secretly observing Natsume Yu's expression as he tasted the tamagoyaki she had made, her heart a mix of anticipation and nervousness.
Yuigahama Yui, on the other hand, was like a cheerful little bird, constantly recommending the fried chicken in her bento to Natsume Yu, her enthusiasm so great that she almost put it in his mouth herself, earning her several dissatisfied glares from Eriri.
It was a lunch filled with sparks.
"By the way," Natsume Yu suddenly said as they were packing up their bento boxes, "the club application I submitted this morning seems to have been approved."
"Eh? Really?" Yuigahama Yui asked in pleasant surprise. "Does that mean we have a clubroom now?"
"Yes, the student council gave us an old sports equipment room."
"That's great!" Yui clapped her hands happily.
"Hmph, I can't believe the school would approve such a suspicious-sounding club," Eriri pouted, but a hint of unconcealable curiosity flickered in her ice-blue eyes. "Where's the clubroom? Since I'm a member too, I might as well go and take a look."
And so, in the last moments before the end of the lunch break, the three founding members of Sobu High's "Paranormal Investigation Club" arrived at their future "secret base."
It was a small room at the end of the corridor on the first floor of the old school building. A brand-new wooden sign with "Paranormal Investigation Club" written on it hung on the door.
Pushing the door open, a faint smell of dust and old wood greeted them. The room wasn't large. In a corner were some discarded vaulting boxes and basketballs. The windows were covered in a layer of dust, and sunlight streamed through the panes, creating beams of light in the air where one could clearly see the dancing dust motes.
"Whoa... it really has that kind of atmosphere..." Yuigahama Yui subconsciously grabbed the corner of Natsume Yu's shirt, her voice a mix of fear and excitement.
"Tch, isn't this just an unwanted storage room?" Eriri crossed her arms, looking around with a disdainful expression, but her feet honestly edged closer to Natsume Yu.
Natsume Yu didn't mind. He found a usable chair and sat down, then calmly announced, "Well then, let's begin the first official activity of our Paranormal Investigation Club."
"An activity? Right now?" Yui and Eriri were both stunned.
"Yes," Natsume Yu nodded, his cerulean "Six Eyes" sweeping over the two girls, his deep gaze seeming to see through everything. "Before we conduct any 'paranormal investigations,' we need to have at least a basic understanding of our 'targets'."
He paused, then, in the most ordinary tone, he spoke words that were enough to overturn their worldview.
"First, you need to understand what 'Cursed Spirits' are."
"Cursed Spirits?" Yui repeated the unfamiliar term in a small voice.
"Simply put, they are formed from the negative emotions that leak from humans—hatred, jealousy, fear, shame... When these emotions gather, they form curses, also known as 'Cursed Spirits'," Natsume Yu explained. "They are real and exist in every corner of our lives. Schools, hospitals, stations... wherever people gather, Cursed Spirits will inevitably be born."
"They-they're all around us?" Yuigahama Yui's face turned pale, and her grip on Natsume Yu's shirt tightened.
"Th-that's so unscientific!" Eriri immediately retorted, but the slight tremor in her voice betrayed her inner unease. "Saying they're made of negative emotions is too idealistic!"
"There are many things that science cannot explain," Natsume Yu didn't argue with her and continued, "Most Cursed Spirits have no intelligence and act on instinct, repeating the negative behaviors that led to their creation. For example, a Cursed Spirit born in a bathroom might continuously repeat the act of knocking on a stall door."
This sentence made Yuigahama Yui recall her terrifying experience with "Hanako," and her body trembled involuntarily.
"Then-then what should I do if I encounter one?" she asked nervously.
"For ordinary people, the best way to protect themselves is to 'ignore' them," Natsume Yu's gaze became serious. "Cursed Spirits usually don't actively attack people who can't see them. So, even if you feel like you've heard a strange sound or seen a blurry shadow, you must never show fear or curiosity. Pretend nothing happened and leave immediately."
"Pretend you can't see them..." Eriri muttered thoughtfully, taking out her student handbook and a pen, as if to take notes.
"Hey, didn't you say it was unscientific?" Natsume Yu glanced at her.
"I-I'm just taking notes on today's lesson! It has nothing to do with this!" Eriri's face flushed, and she quickly hid the handbook behind her back, retorting stubbornly.
Seeing her obvious attempt to cover up, Natsume Yu gave a helpless smile and turned to the almost-cowering Yuigahama Yui. "Of course, if you're really being haunted, like last time, you can only seek help from a professional."
"A professional... someone like you, Natsume-kun?" Yui looked up, her eyes filled with admiration and reliance.
"You could say that."
Natsume Yu took out two white paper talismans folded into triangles from his pocket and handed one to each of them.
"These are simple protective talismans made with my Cursed Energy. Although their effect isn't strong, they can at least ward off most low-level Cursed Spirits."
"Wow! Thank you, Natsume-kun!" Yuigahama Yui received it with both hands as if it were a precious treasure and carefully put it in her pocket.
Eriri looked at the paper talisman handed to her, hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took it.
"Is... is this thing really useful?" she muttered under her breath, but her fingers clutched the thin piece of paper tightly, as if it were a lifeline.
Sunlight streamed through the dusty window, illuminating the three of them.
One was calmly explaining the other side of the world, one was drawing closer in a mix of fear and excitement, and the other was wavering between stubborn retorts and silent trust.
Although the topic of discussion was incredibly bizarre, in this small, dusty clubroom, a strange, lighthearted, and slightly ambiguous atmosphere was quietly forming.
And so, the extraordinary meetings of Sobu High's "Paranormal Investigation Club" began, amidst the complex yet pure feelings of two young girls.