The sky after school was perfect, the setting sun dyeing the cherry blossoms of Toyonoki Academy in warm golden-orange hues. Students left the school gates in twos and threes, the sounds of laughter, bicycle bells, and distant street traffic blending into a familiar end-of-school scene.
Eriri pushed her bicycle and walked along the path leading to the school gate. Beside her walked Megumi Katou—the black-haired girl moved lightly and quietly, her presence as faint as a weak shadow.
A few steps behind, Utaha Kasumigaoka followed leisurely. Her long crimson hair shimmered in the sunset, and her school bag seemed heavier than usual—probably stuffed with her laptop.
"Um…" Eriri turned her head slightly and looked at Megumi Katou, her ears slightly red. "Katou-san, do you have some time…?"
Megumi Katou blinked and answered calmly, "Yes. I told my mom I'd be home late today, saying I was discussing club activities at school."
"Then, would you like to come to my house for a bit?" After saying this, Eriri regretted it a little, feeling she had been too abrupt. "It's just… since you can see Genji, he's very interested in your constitution and said he wants to study it. Of course, if you don't want to—"
"Okay," Megumi Katou nodded, her voice still flat. "I'm also curious about Lord Zen'in Genji. And…"
She paused and added softly, "It seems good to know more about these 'special' things of yours."
Eriri sighed in relief, the corners of her lips unconsciously lifting. But before she could finish exhaling, a familiar voice with a teasing edge came from behind:
"Sawamura-san, isn't it a bit too generous to invite a classmate home but not your senpai?"
Eriri whipped her head around and glared at Utaha, who had already caught up to them. "I-I wasn't inviting you!"
"But I want to come," Utaha said as a matter of fact, pushing up her special glasses on the bridge of her nose—she had switched back to her ordinary black-rimmed glasses, as wearing the cursed glasses was too conspicuous for walking on the street. "Katou-san is the prototype for our game's heroine. I need to observe her speech, behavior, and habits more to write a more realistic character. Visiting her home is a great observation opportunity."
"Then you should go to Katou-san's house, not mine!"
"But Katou-san is currently going to your house," Utaha tilted her head, her crimson eyes glinting with mischief. "Besides, I'm very interested in Lord Zen'in Genji's research on 'special constitutions.' It might become good creative material."
Typical Utaha logic—wrapping all her selfishness in high-sounding reasons. Eriri was so angry her teeth itched, but she couldn't find a retort.
"Let her come," Genji's voice sounded in Eriri's ear, only she could hear it. "Miss Kasumigaoka's observation and analysis skills are very strong. She might provide a different perspective. And…"
He paused, a smile in his voice. "Don't you think she really wants to learn more about this 'hidden world'? She's just too embarrassed to say directly, 'I'm interested in jujutsu, please let me listen.'"
Eriri was stunned for a moment and looked at Utaha again. The black-haired girl was pretending to adjust the strap of her school bag, but her eyes occasionally glanced at her—or rather, at the "air" beside her. In those eyes, there was indeed curiosity, a desire to explore, and a natural hunger for the unknown that belonged to a creator.
"…Fine, whatever," Eriri turned her head away, pushed her bicycle, and continued walking forward, her ears red. "But first, when you come to my house, you can't snoop around, you can't enter my bedroom, and you can't—"
"I know, so many rules," Utaha followed in her footsteps, her voice relaxed, as if she were strolling. "But, Sawamura-san, what are you hiding in your bedroom that you're so afraid of someone entering?"
"None of your business!"
Megumi Katou quietly walked between them, looking from one to the other, the corners of her lips lifting in a very faint, almost invisible arc.
The three of them—and one ghost, though others only saw three—left the school gates and headed toward Eriri's house.
---
The Sawamura residence was located in a quiet residential area, a two-story building combining Japanese and Western styles. The garden was planted with neatly trimmed pine trees and a few camellias, stone lanterns standing quietly in the dusk. The overall style was simple and elegant, showing the owner's taste.
"Excuse me," Megumi Katou bowed politely at the entrance.
"Welcome," Eriri called into the house as she changed her shoes. "Mom, I brought friends home!"
"Oh, Eriri brought friends home?" Sayuri Sawamura came out of the living room with a soft smile on her face.
Today, she wore a lavender home outfit, her long hair casually gathered in a side ponytail, looking much younger than her actual age. Seeing Utaha and Megumi Katou following behind Eriri, her eyes lit up. "It's Utaha and… who is this?"
"Megumi Katou, Class 2-C, my classmate," Eriri introduced.
"Hello, Auntie, I'm Megumi Katou," Megumi Katou bowed again, her movements flawless.
"Hello, Katou-san," Sayuri smiled so widely her eyes curved into crescents. "Eriri rarely brings friends home. This is a rare occasion. Come in, I just baked some cookies. Would you like to try some?"
"Mom, we're going to the study to discuss club stuff," Eriri said quickly. "Cookies… we'll have some later."
"Okay, okay, you young people talk," Sayuri waved her hand, then turned and added before heading back to the kitchen, "But don't talk too late. Katou-san's family will worry."
"Got it."
Eriri led them upstairs. The study was at the end of the hallway, a solid wood door with a handmade "Do Not Disturb" sign hanging on it—Eriri had drawn it when she was in elementary school. The art style was immature but very earnest.
Opening the door, the study was more spacious than expected. Three walls were floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, filled with books in various languages—English novels, Japanese manga, art books, and even some hefty academic monographs.
A large mahogany desk by the window was neatly arranged with a tablet, monitor, drawing tools, and several sketchbooks laid out. On the other side of the room was a cozy reading area: a large fabric sofa, two armchairs, and a low coffee table in the middle.
The most impressive were the pictures hanging on the walls—there were oil paintings of landscapes, character sketches, and what looked like copies of ukiyo-e. In the bottom right corner of each picture, the name "Eriri Spencer" was signed in fancy English.
"Please, sit," Eriri pointed to the sofa, walked over to the mini-fridge next to the desk, and took out several cans of drinks. "Cola, oolong tea, orange juice. What would you like?"
"Oolong tea, thank you," Megumi Katou sat down in an armchair, her eyes slowly scanning the study.
"Cola," Utaha unceremoniously sat down on the sofa, put her school bag at her feet, and naturally took out her laptop. "By the way, what's the WiFi password?"
"Can't you take a break?!" Eriri shoved a drink at her and gave her the password. "And don't secretly take pictures of my study!"
"Who would want to take pictures of your messy study?" Utaha curled her lip, but her fingers kept typing, probably recording some observation notes.
At that moment, Genji appeared.
He floated cross-legged in the open space in front of the bookshelf, his indigo hunting robes glowing softly in the warm yellow light of the study. His deep indigo eyes first swept over the room, lingering on the books and paintings, then turned to Megumi Katou.