Is this how it feels when you’re messing around with the guys in your school clubs?
No doubt the sun’s blinding rays were still shining outside,
the whining drone of the cicadas still as loud as always.
On that summer’s day, I made up my mind.
And to make my resolve clear, I said it out loud.
“—I swear I’ll do my best for the Mekakushi-dan!”
KAGEROU DAZE III
When did it begin?
When did it all originally begin?
I was supposed to travel from the countryside to the house of Hiyori’s relative for my summer courses.
That was what was supposed to happen, I think.
What was the name of that guy with the white hair in that house?
I seem to remember it being something really weird.
Not that I have any business saying that. My name—Hibiya—that’s pretty weird to some people, too.
He was really tall and laid-back.
Maybe I should ask Hiyori. She probably remembers the name.
But I feel like I asked her a thousand times already, a long time ago.
What was that name again…? Ah, it doesn’t matter.
Come to think of it, where did Hiyori go?
I know we left the house together.
Have I ever wound up by myself like this before?
I feel like I have…or maybe I haven’t.
Huh…Now it’s starting to rain.
I’m pretty sure this is the first time…
Amid my constantly repeating dream,
the unanticipated rain painted the town in a new light.
The cicadas that cried out so loudly up until now,
and the hot haze in the distance; they were both hidden today.
“Hey…You.”
“Yes?”
“Did you come here by yourself?”
“No…I came with a friend, but we got separated.”
“A friend?”
“Yeah. We’re always together. But I’m starting to feel like I won’t see her today…”
“I see. Do you want to?”
“…I do.”
“Good. I wouldn’t worry, then. You, and her, you’re both…”
“…Where are you going?”
“Follow me if you want, but no regrets, all right?”
“All right.”
“Perfect. Let’s get going. I’m sure there are others waiting for us, ready to cooperate, just like you.”
“Cooperate…?”
“I know there’s something out there that their ‘eyes,’ and your ‘eyes,’ can see…”
“—So whatever you do, never forget about today.”
MEKAKUSHI CHORD
The water softly coursed down my body, lapping at each and every curve. It was the shower I had longed for ever since early this morning, but I never expected it under these circumstances.
Here I was, in a shadowy organization’s secret base,
myself and my phone covered in hot tea,
deluged with apologies all the way to the bathroom.
It sounds all the more strange when put into text form. I suppose truth really is stranger than fiction…or a TV drama script.
Once out of the shower, I returned to the main room, wiping my hair dry. The three of them turned toward me for a moment, but quickly returned to normal.
The old clock hung on the wall ticked away, its pendulum swinging back and forth.
It was just past eleven thirty in the morning.
“Hey, thanks for lending me these clothes and everything…”
“Nah, nah. This was our fault in the first place. But, man, what a dilemma…”
“You sure said it…Ah! No! I mean, it’ll be fine! It’ll be totally okay! Right?!”
Marie had been incessantly apologizing for the past while, but even at this point, she still looked about ready to bawl if I so much as sighed.
“But…But…!”
Marie’s hand was gripping a sealed bag filled with chemical drying agent—the stuff in those little “do not eat” bags. My phone, doused in tea a few moments ago, was safely ensconced inside.
After wiping the phone dry, they had whipped through all their bags of candy and other snack foods to salvage every packet they could. The opened snacks were laid out on the table like an hors d’oeuvre spread.
“I…I have to pay you back…”
“Pay her back? Where’re you gonna get the money for that? You gonna sell your books?” Kido suddenly interjected, her body draped across the sofa as she read a magazine. That was all it took for tears to finally stream down Marie’s face.
“Whoa, whoa! Take it easy on her, boss!”
“It’s true, though. It’s not like she has any way to pay you.”
“Well, maybe not, but still…L-listen, Marie, you really don’t have to worry about it, okay? There’s no need to cry!”
I tried to comfort her, but to no avail. The tears continued to stream as she stood there, still tightly gripping the bag.
“More to the point, though, getting shut out from the outside world is pretty bad news for you, huh, Kisaragi? Shouldn’t you at least, like, give them some kind of contact?”
Kano let out a very deliberate shrug, all smiles as always.
“Yeah…I guess you have a point.”
That message I just sent was a disaster, no doubt about that.
I had the sense it was going to blow up into a massive story. It was already starting to get on the news. The afternoon news shows were all running ads with narration like “Fans Shocked at Megastar Idol’s Sudden Disappearance!! Was She Kidnapped…or Worse?!”
“Do you remember any of the phone numbers? Like, your manager’s, or at least your home phone?”
Kano had already looked up my agency’s phone number. He tried giving a call, but never got anything but a busy signal. That seemed unlikely to change anytime soon.
“I…uh…I don’t…”
“Really? Eesh, Kisaragi…”
“Well, I’m just…not good with numbers, okay? I…I know that if you add up all the numbers, you get fifty, but…!”
“Yeah, that’s real helpful.”
“Ugh…”
Ever since I woke up this morning, I felt like people had been taking pity on my stupidity.
“You know, the police are probably already on the move. If this keeps up, they might storm in here, like, any minute.”
“Then we’ll all be arrested for kidnapping, huh…? We sure could use that phone.”
Kido sighed and looked toward Marie. Her shoulders convulsed as she unloaded yet another trickle of tears.
I could see the situation was serious, but for some reason, the two of them seemed to enjoy it. That, and bullying Marie.
Suddenly, Kano pounded a fist against his palm, a bright smile on his face.
“I know! We can just have Marie work as a day laborer until she gets the money to pay for a new phone!”
“Good idea. Let’s see…Looks like there’re some jobs directing traffic. Ooh, and they’ll even take you if you don’t have any experience.”
Kido chucked the job-search magazine on the desk. It was open to a page showing a cartoon construction worker waving a fluorescent light baton to and fro.
Marie stopped crying at the sight, her face growing more and more devoid of color.
“Hang on, this job looks better for her. ‘Get Fit on the Job! Work for Ishiburo Package Delivery!’ Hmm…That’s the guys with the penguin logo, huh? The pay’s pretty cheap, but hey, they’re an equal opportunity employer!”
“Not bad. She could use a little muscle on her anyway…Whoa, wait, wait, wait.”
Marie was quietly edging her way out of the room, the bag she so dearly clung to placed on the desk. Kido grabbed her by the collar before she made it, sitting her back down on the chair.
“Where were you going?”
Kido interrogated the poor girl, who seemed concerned less about the pho
ne and more about the intense, frightening danger she suddenly faced.
“I…I can’t do it…that sort of thing…”
The magazine on the desk was open to an advertisement prominently featuring an illustration of a cute, pink penguin. It was apparently the mascot of the delivery service, a far cry from the picture spun by the ad copy. NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY! MEN AND WOMEN WELCOME! IF YOU’RE STURDILY BUILT AND LOVE MOVING YOUR BODY, COME ON IN! You could smell the sweat just reading the ad.
“Uh…Don’t you think you’re both being a little hard on Marie?”
“No way! We’re just trying to help her learn about the real world! Oh, wow, the available work hours run from six a.m. to eleven p.m.! You can start working immediately, too. She could save enough to pay for that phone in no time flat!”
Kano was staring directly at Marie, his smile really more of a demented smirk at this point.
Marie, for her part, reacted to every new stunning revelation with a light “Ahh!” or “Eep!” or whatnot.
There was something about this girl, apparently, that made it endless fun to pick on her.
“Look, that’s enough! You’re just being mean to her! Can’t you see she’s in distress?”
I took the job-search magazine off the desk. Marie piously looked up at me, as if I were some sort of goddess.
“Well, yeah, but if you ask me, I think it’s time she learned a little about, like, how hard life can be. She can’t stay cooped up in here forever,” Kano, stretched out on the sofa, chimed in. Kido nodded her firm agreement.
But do either of these guys have a job?
“I…I’m working real hard, too…!”
For once, Marie finally fired back at them.
However, Kido and Kano both countered immediately, cutting her off.
“Huh? You mean that job making artificial flowers at home? That pays, like, five hundred yen a month, doesn’t it?”
“F-five hundred yen?!”
I had to confirm I heard her right, unable to hide my shock at the idea of a job paying for maybe one Happy Meal monthly.
Noticing my reaction, Marie’s face gradually turned red, presumably out of shame.
“I know, but…but I make sure every flower’s made up right, so…”
“Look, you know you get paid, like, five yen per flower, right? You can’t spend the entire day making three or four of them.”
Kido sighed at the absurdity of it all.
Kano stepped up to deal another telling blow.
“You know, Marie, most normal people probably make, like, a hundred times what you do. Right, Kisaragi?”
“Huh? Me?!”
I could feel Marie’s gaze upon me, pleading for my aid. But, honestly, at five hundred yen per month, there wasn’t much defending her job efficiency.
“Uhh…Well, I mean, everyone works at their own pace, I guess! I bet Marie probably does a great…job?”
“…Even though she gets paid in coins? One per month?”
“Even…even if it’s one per month!”
I tried to stand strong against Kido’s commonsense question. Tentatively turning toward Marie, I was greeted with a supreme look of satisfied confidence.
I had mixed feelings about it, but also a sense of relief. There was no doubt, though, that this girl’s future was uncertain.
Kano sighed and turned to Kido.
“Well, if that’s how Kisaragi feels about it, I guess she’ll have to cover the phone costs, huh?”
Kido nodded silently.
“Right! Excellent! Boy, isn’t that great news, Marie? Kisaragi’s agreed to pay for the whole thing!”
“Huh?! Wait, when did I…? What?!”
I was violently thrown by this harrowing conversation derail.
“Oh, so you’ll have Marie pay for it?”
Kano’s face beamed a little too brightly for my tastes as he asked.
“…Ugh! I…I mean, I’ll pay, but…”
“There! You hear that, Marie? Isn’t that wonderful?”
“That settles that, then.”
I had thought about covering the cost from the start, but now I felt like this whole discussion was one big trap. Was this how these people always treat each other…?
This group was weird, right down to the core.
“Uh…Are, are you sure it’s really okay…?”
Marie still looked anxious as she stared at me.
“Y-yeah! Sure! Absolutely okay!”
The money I earned from my “work” wasn’t managed by me. I was still too young for that. There was an allowance I could use for whatever, but I wasn’t sure if I could cover the whole phone with this month’s stipend alone.
But, thanks to not having any friends to waste money going out with, I had way too much saved up. Once I find someplace to withdraw it, that should—
“Ooh, I don’t know, though…You think this is really enough, Kisaragi?”
“Well, we’ll have to make do with…Hey! Why do you have my wallet?! When…How did you…?!”
Kano was nonchalantly rifling through the wallet I thought I had stowed inside my bag.
Checking inside the bag, I saw it definitely wasn’t there. When did he take it…?
“Whoa! Man, Kisaragi, you should really start pitching these receipts! Also, wow, you eat a ton of dried mangoes, don’t you?”
Kano placed all the receipts he snatched out of my wallet onto the desk. Kido joined the party.
“These show you eating them every day…alongside these dried shredded squid snacks. You trying to strengthen your teeth, or…?”
“Yeah, totally. Oh, eww, what’s this stuff you’re drinking? Red bean soup–flavored…soda? You start buying it every day starting with this one. Is it that good?”
Marie tittered a little, looking from the side. My face felt so hot, I was ready to spew fire.
“Aaaaaaggghhhhh!”
In a rush, I snatched up the receipts from the desk, ripping the wallet out of Kano’s hands.
“W-what are you doing to me?! You can’t just go looking into people’s wallets…!”
“Huh? Oh, uh…guess I just wound up doing it?”
Yeah, and you “just wound up” revealing my food and drink habits to the world, too!
I should’ve just bought a clubhouse sandwich and tea every single day.
“The squid and red bean idol, huh?”
“W-what’s that mean…? What’s so bad about that?!”
I looked at the receipts I had taken from Kano, wallowing in self-pity. Suddenly, Kano spoke in a much more serious tone.
“I dunno…Like, I guess you had to deal with a lot of stuff, didn’t you? Sorry I kind of poked around in there.”
“L-let’s just drop it, all right?! Ooooooh! Look at these snacks! That kind’s pretty rare, isn’t it? And such an attractive bag design, too! I can’t wait to dig in…”
Attempting to change the subject any way I could, I picked up one of the bags on the desk that Marie didn’t get around to opening.
It was a bag of dried, flavored radish slices. The front read THICK KELP SOUP STOCK FLAVOR! A SNACK FOR HARD-BODIED MEN!
“Uh…yeah, go ahead. Dig in.”
Kido’s reserved response contrasted with Kano’s uproarious laughter.
I wanted to crawl into a hole, have someone shovel dirt over me, then keep on digging until I hit the Earth’s core.
“But…but red bean soup can be yummy, too…I like it a lot…”
“M-Marie…!”
Marie was making a strenuous effort to back me up.
I knew she was a nice girl at heart!
“Yeah, but in soda form?”
“Th-that might be kind of gross…”
Well, that sure blew up in my face.
I was utterly crestfallen after all of this emotional damage.
“All right, all right…I know I’m a weirdo, okay? That’s why I could never make any friends.”
Somehow I doubted that most of the country’s t
eenage girls would carry around wallets jam-packed with receipts for dried squid strips.
“Oh, cheer up! There’s no need to be down about it.”
“Yeah, but ‘Thick Kelp Soup Stock Flavor’? Ugh…my stomach…it hurts…”
“Will you stop laughing at me already…?! Oh! Uh, I’m sorry…?”
While I tried to tell off Kano, who was still holding his stomach and laughing his head off, Marie’s shoulders convulsed as a fearful expression spread across her face.
“Yeah, sorry, sorry. Whew! Thought I was gonna die there for a moment. Anyway, enough chitchat. Ready to get going?”
“Huh? Get going where…?”
Kano stood up and stretched, arms high in the air.
“We need to, like, get you a new phone, right? There’s a place right nearby here.”
“Oh, yeah, that one…?”
Kido’s response sounded distracted as she thumbed through a gadget magazine she had plucked from the rack next to the sofa.
“Just to be sure, though…Would getting a new phone help me at this point?”
“Well, I mean, you should be able to transfer your contacts, at least. Don’t know unless you ask.”
“Yeah, but…but if I go outside again…”
If I went outside again, seriously bad things would happen.
The next time I attracted a crowd like that, I had a feeling that running would no longer be an option.
“Oh, you’ll be fine if we’re along. Right, Kido?”
“…Pretty much.”
Kano looked at my bewildered expression and gave me an excited smile.
“We showed you Kido’s ‘skill’ just now, but that’s just part of what she really is.”
He continued to explain, arms open wide to emphasize his point.
“To make a long story short, Kido can control not only her own sense of presence, but that of anyone around her she wants. We call that her ‘concealing eyes’ ability. Basically—”
“Y-you mean she can make me disappear, too?!”
I raised my voice, more than a bit enthused at the concept.
“Not disappear, exactly. More like make your presence as utterly thin as possible, I guess. You probably already know how it works, actually. Like, it’s not like you’re just constantly attracting attention everywhere you go, right? You know you can do certain things, in certain ways, and that will draw people to you.”
In a Daze Page 10