Tokyo Psychic

Page 215

Unexpectedly, after the little girl had finished petting the cat, Morgana was about to ask for some more snacks when he saw a tall, imposing man with silver hair following behind her.

Morgana's first thought was that the phantom thief had been reincarnated into the human body in front of him, after all, they were too similar in many ways.

But it soon realized...

This guy is the previous contractor of the Velvet Room.

Narukami grabbed Morgana by the scruff of his neck. Just as Morgana immediately realized his identity, he also immediately discovered that this black cat was actually a creation of the Sea of ​​Hearts.

Before he could chase Morgana away, he saw the little girl next to him looking at him with great disgust.

"Brother, what are you doing here again?!"

Narukami Yu staggered back two steps as if struck by a heavy blow. "I specifically waited until Nanako's friends had all left before..."

"Stop talking! That's disgusting! ...Okay, put the cat down quickly, it looks so pitiful!"

“I’ve been told I’m disgusting…” Narukami Yu felt like the world had collapsed. Looking at the Morgana he was holding, he was filled with rage—it must be the reason that Nanako disliked him.

"Nanako, do you really like this cat?"

"That was a rather abrupt way of changing the subject! At least explain why you came here! You promised you wouldn't pick me up from school, it would be so embarrassing if my classmates found out."

Narukami Yu wanted to explain that he was protecting her, after all, the girl had recently been assassinated by that madman named "Akechi Goro".

And lately, there have been some inexplicable enemies appearing in Tokyo...

But Yu didn't want to trouble his younger sister, who was in middle school, so he awkwardly changed the subject, saying, "I heard that cats don't live long if they aren't spayed/neutered, and they get all sorts of diseases in the wild. There's a pet hospital right ahead, so we..."

"Okay, I know you're worried about me, so don't hurt the cat. It's innocent!" Nanako Dojima took Morgana from Yu Narukami.

Just as Morgana was secretly cheering, "We're saved!"

But then she saw a happy smile on Nanako Dojima's face. "But it's so clean! It doesn't look like a stray cat at all... Can I keep it?"

Nonsense. Creations of the Sea of ​​the Heart, in other words, are God's apostles. How could they not be clean?

Narukami Yu and Morgana thought the same thing at the same time, and then looked at each other.

Morgana saw clear disdain and frustration in Narukami Yu's eyes.

Narukami Yu saw a hint of pleading and frustration in Morgana's eyes.

Finally, Narukami Yu looked at Dojima Nanako. Faced with his adorable younger sister's request, this powerful Persona abruptly averted his gaze, ignoring Morgana's pleading eyes, and said with a stiff neck, "Of course."

"Yay! Big brother is the best!"

"..."

Thus, the Phantom Thieves' only reconnaissance unit was intercepted halfway.

184. The Moonlight That Guided Him (Two-in-One)

Where did Morgana go?

Even after all the bands in the livehouse had finished their performances, the girls in the rest area had said their goodbyes, and the sun had completely set, Akira Kurusu still hadn't seen the return of the Phantom Thieves' only detective unit.

Does it really take six hours to investigate the "perpetrator" of a school bullying incident? Logically, given Morgana's unique circumstances, even if they encountered a very formidable enemy, they should have been able to escape here to seek reinforcements...

It is obvious that something bad has happened to Morgana.

Akira Kurusu had a spoon stuck in her matcha parfait, which she hadn't touched much since the beginning.

It was already 9 p.m., and all the girls from "MYGO" had left, but Kaoru Nai had no intention of going home. She sat next to Akira Kurusu, staring intently at the matcha parfait in his hand.

"It melted."

The girl's high-pitched voice brought Akira Kurusu back to reality.

"Why aren't you home yet?" In Akira Kurusu's memory, at this late hour, Kaname Rakuna should have been dragged out of the performance hall by Shiina Tatsuki with a worried look on her face, then led onto the train with prenatal education-level patience and meticulousness, and finally safely delivered to her doorstep.

But today, Shiina Tatsuki was distracted by Nagasaki Motoyo with various words after all the bands' live performances had ended... For a period of time before leaving STARRY, he was drinking sugar-free cola filled with ice cubes while chatting with Toyokawa Shoko about various ideas and understandings of composition.

Toyokawa Shoko was as talented as ever, but she seemed to have become more composed and reserved. She no longer had that almost arrogant concern. As if she could see through people's hearts, she could always keenly capture the subtle inferiority and embarrassment that Shiina Tatsuki inadvertently revealed when faced with the gap in talent, and then take care of her feelings quietly with a gentleness like rain.

Even Chihaya Aine, who didn't know how to join the conversation, gradually began to participate in the exchange thanks to Toyokawa Shoko's initiative in striking up a conversation.

When the girls from "MYGO" boarded the train with Toyokawa Shoko, chatting and laughing, Shiina Tatsuki noticed the empty seat opposite her as the doors were closing. Only then did she belatedly realize that she had left Kaname Rakuna in STARRY.

Chihaya Aine asked Shiina Tatsuki curiously, "Rikki, what are you thinking about?"

Shiina Riki wore a guilty expression, then sighed and covered her face.

Seeing Shiina Tatsuki so distraught, Chihaya Aine also regained her composure from her smugness at "the elegant and dignified Miss Toyokawa praising me." After looking around, she was horrified to find that her band's guitarist was missing.

As always, Toyokawa Shoko sensed their emotions. After hesitating a few times, she finally smiled serenely. "It's alright, Ren will get Ryuna home safely. Wasn't it him and Mutsuki who helped bring Ryuna home last time?"

"No, that's not it," Shiina Tatsuki stammered, "I just felt like I was leaving Rana behind..."

"She probably prefers hanging out with Ren, so she wanted to stay." Toyokawa Shoko was smiling, but Nagasaki Motoyo next to her couldn't help but shiver, then looked down and fiddled with her phone.

My finger tapped repeatedly in the Line message list, and I inexplicably wanted to subtly remind Akira Kurusu, but after seeing Shoko Toyokawa, I felt there was no need to do so.

Nagasaki Motoyo couldn't understand why Toyokawa Shoko always tolerated her boyfriend maintaining close distances with other girls, but that obviously didn't mean she had the right to criticize.

Even though she should have reminded Toyokawa Shoko as a friend at this time... seeing their past friendship rebuilt perfectly, Nagasaki Motoyo couldn't understand their absurd relationship, but could only try to offer her blessings and accept it.

My fingertip hovered over Toyokawa Shoko's account nickname.

[You must be happy].

So Nagasaki Motoyo silently wished her best friend, "Shoko...you must be happy."

......

Akira watched as Kaname took the glass from her hand without any hesitation, picked up the spoon she had just used, and began to enjoy the matcha parfait, which had partially melted inside.

Her gaze softened slightly, and then she quickly hopped down to the stairwell.

The lead singer of "Morfonica," who was supposed to leave with his bandmates, Kurata Mashiro, inexplicably came back.

"Did Kurata-senpai forget something?" In the band industry, Kurata Mashiro is indeed considered Kurusu Akira's senior.

Kurata Mashiro stopped, panting, and said earnestly to Kurusu Akira, "The God asked me to say a few words to you!"

"Hmm?" Akira Kurusu remembered that this lead singer claimed to be able to see blue butterflies, and that Ferremon personally provided a "bedtime story to lull her to sleep" session every day.

The credibility is questionable, but at least she did call out Ferremon's name and seemed to know everything about herself... Let's just assume that this seemingly ordinary high school girl is actually Ferremon's "chosen one".

Even though Kurata Mashiro was casually spouting information that could potentially shake the world, everyone in STARRY who was listening in—from the sound engineer PA to Iji Tomoka behind the counter, and even the Morfonica band members who were following her—all had expressions that said, "Ah, Shiro's chuunibyou is acting up again," or "Shiro is dreaming again."

Kurata Mashiro looked around and then revealed a very hurt expression.

Fortunately, she was already used to being misunderstood when she spoke the truth, and her anxiety when Ferremon suddenly conveyed the message was greatly relieved.

Kurata Mashiro leaned closer to Kurusu Akira, "Lord Ferremon asked me to remind you of a few things."

"Please speak."

When Akira heard Kaname making a crunching sound while biting a plastic spoon, he instinctively reached out to tap her head. But halfway there, he remembered that it wasn't Iori Jinna, so he changed his approach from tapping to stroking.

Kaname looked at Akira Kurusu with a blank expression, then smiled lightly, clearly pleased.

Kurata Mashiro noticed that even the "phantom thief" wasn't taking her seriously, which made her feel even more frustrated. It was as if the surrounding environment had suddenly turned dark and was rapidly closing in like a tide to engulf her...

At that moment, she noticed a blue butterfly fluttering by beside her, its wings fluttering. A strange sense of responsibility washed over her, and she mustered her strength to say to Akira Kurusu, "I know I don't seem very convincing! But... but I really can see Ferremon!"

After petting the cat, Akira Kurusu looked at Mashiro Kurata and said, "I have always believed in you, Kurata-senpai."

"You clearly don't believe me at all!"

"Trust is always a gradual process."

Kurata Mashiro felt a little encouraged when she saw that someone was finally willing to believe her. "Lord Ferremon said, please don't get too close to Miku Miku."

"It seems like this is not something I can change subjectively."

"There's a second rule: He also said that you should never go to Mitakihara City."

"I have a reason to go."

"Yes, He heard that, which is why He said again that if you absolutely must go to Takihara City, then be careful of Homura Akemi... Who is Homura Akemi?"

Akira Kurusu instinctively wanted to recommend the heartwarming anime "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" to Mashiro Kurata. But upon closer inspection, she realized that there was no playwright named Gen Urobuchi in the world, and that Madoka Kaname and Homura Akemi were real people. This helped her suppress her urge to share.

"..."

"They actually clicked on the same wavelength." Touko Kiritani whispered to Tsukushi Futaba beside her. The other two girls nodded in agreement, expressing their strong admiration for Akira Kurusu, who could talk so freely with Mashiro Kurata about such mysterious and chuunibyou (delusional) fantasy topics.

This is beyond the typical level of adolescent delusions.

......

At this moment, the "Homura Akemi" that Akatsuki Akatsuki and Kurata Mashiro were discussing was on Tatsumi Artificial Harbor Island, far away from Mitakihara City.

This place is located in Iwatodai, Minato Ward, Tokyo, far from the sites of many of the disasters she remembers.

The summer festival is almost here, and you can see the new fireworks being tested in the port area across the sea.

Homura Akemi was like a dark shadow, silently sweeping across the tide.

......

Fireworks blazed brightly before the stars, then faded after the city lights shone. Fishing boats in the distance were returning home, guided by the lighthouse. Waves crashed against the rocks, barnacles scraped the soles of a fallen girl's feet, and her blood mingled with the dark earth.

Misaka Hatsuka, dressed in her school uniform, stood on the rocks, gazing at Tokyo in the distance, her eyes filled with a mixture of longing and sadness.

After a while, she heard the soft rustling sound of bare feet stepping on the pebbles behind her.

The sound, which should have been swallowed by the waves, was so clear.

When Misaka Hatsuka turned around, she saw a beautiful middle school girl whose figure was so thin it looked like a paper tube, as if she could be blown away by the cold sea wind at any moment.

Hello, may I ask...?

"I'm looking for my older sister; I've gotten separated from her," Homura Akemi lied expressionlessly. "Big sister, can you help me?"

"Ah...please tell me, I will try my best to help you."

"Yes, my older sister's name is 'Shiomi Kotone'. Have you met her?"

"Of course I've met her. Are you really her sister? You two don't look alike at all."

“I know everything about her, including the name of the boy she likes, his hobbies, his family, his height, and his grades in every subject. There is definitely no one in the world more qualified to be her sister than me.”

"It sounds like..." Misaka Hatsuka hesitated, then nodded. "I understand. I'll take you to her now, but I'm just trying. I can't guarantee you'll be able to see her."

"It's alright," Homura Akemi said, looking down at the faint blood seeping from the soles of Hatsuka Mikasa's feet where the seawater had washed away. "Big sister, you seem to be injured."

"It's just a small wound; I can treat it with a band-aid when I get home."

"..."

Along the way, Mikasa didn't ask Homura Akemi why she was walking around the beach alone so late at such a young age.

Homura Akemi didn't ask Hatsuka Mikami why she was standing alone on the beach at night, gazing towards Tokyo.

The two had only just met, yet they seemed to already have a special understanding with each other.

We've finally arrived at our destination, and this brief encounter is about to come to an end.

Homura Akemi turned back to look at her "comrade-in-arms" who had successfully escaped the fate of becoming a magical girl, and a complex emotion welled up in her eyes.

"Thank you, Miss Triangle, for bringing me here."

"Well, I'm going home now." Mikasa didn't know why she felt a slight flutter in her heart after seeing Homura Akemi, as if they had met many times before.

Moreover, there was a vague sense of gratitude and surprise, which quickly transformed into an overwhelming feeling of emotion in the night breeze.

She looked at the girl she was meeting for the first time and said sincerely, "I wish you success."

Homura Akemi paused for a moment, then nodded. "I'll definitely succeed this time."

......

The wall clock on the research institute wall clicked softly.

The hands and minutes were frozen in place.

The mechanical components, which had been working tirelessly since birth, finally got a hard-won rest.

Homura Akemi, a magical girl with the ability to "stop time," entered the research institute through a hidden underground passage on the beach.

She walked past a group of weary researchers, paused in front of the enormous testing equipment to look at the ice coffin containing a boy in a school uniform, and then continued on her way to her destination—

The temporary ward located at the top of the research institute is also the residence of Shiomi Kotone.