Hearing this, the smile instantly froze on Hana Yurikawa's face, replaced by panic and confusion.
"How... how do you know? We all called her Menma... five years ago..."
"I know, she drowned in the river five years ago, right?"
"Eh? How do you know that?"
"Let's talk while we walk."
After saying this to Hana Yurikawa, Ye Xing employed pickpocket-like skills with his right hand to swipe the last butt daifuku from the box she was holding. Eating as he walked forward, he spoke in a calm tone.
"You already know that evil spirits exist in this world. So if I told you that Menma's spirit is still lingering in this world, you probably wouldn't be too surprised, right?"
Hana Yurikawa was momentarily stunned by this, then exclaimed with delight.
"Really? In that case, could you let me see her? Even though I can't communicate with her directly, as long as you or Miko act as translators, it should be fine, right?"
Although Hana Yurikawa usually appeared ditzy and simple-minded, even somewhat silly, in reality, just like Yui Yuigahama, her appearance was deceptive. She wasn't stupid at all, but actually quite clever.
Dango's cleverness was mainly demonstrated in her ability to read people and situations.
Fortunately, by the time she confronted her own feelings, the Supernatural Society had already upgraded from PVP to PVE (harem members challenging the big boss, Kyoto's number one eroge shooter).
Otherwise, with Yui Yuigahama's harmless demeanour combined with this ability to read situations, she might have become the ultimate winner in any harem conflict.
And despite Hana Yurikawa's usual appearance, she actually had excellent academic results. Though not as outstanding as Yukino Yukinoshita, she ranked near the top at Sobu High School, even barely making it into the top fifty in joint exams with Shuchi'in Academy.
From her immediate response just now, it was clear that Hana Yurikawa processed information quickly, realising that, with a psychic as an intermediary, she could communicate with Menma despite lacking her own observation abilities.
"I'm afraid that won't be possible."
Seeing Ye Xing shake his head, a rare look of dejection appeared on Hana Yurikawa's usually smiling face as she whispered.
"As I thought... Menma resents me..."
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
Seeing Hana Yurikawa in this state, Ye Xing rolled his eyes.
"It's because your life aura is too strong, and it might unintentionally harm her as a spiritual entity. There's no need to take that risk. Do you think someone with Menma's personality would resent you for any reason?"
Hearing this, Hana Yurikawa froze for a moment, pursed her lips, looked at Ye Xing, forced a faint smile, and said softly.
"Ye Xing-kun... you're really just as Miko described. Although you seem difficult to get along with, you're actually... a very kind person."
Ye Xing immediately refuted with righteous indignation.
"Slander! Whatever Miko told you, it's pure slander! I have absolutely nothing to do with words like 'kind'."
Hana Yurikawa couldn't help but laugh and added.
"She also told me you have hidden tsundere attributes."
Ye Xing: "..."
"That's too insulting."
"She also said..."
"Please stop talking. If you keep going, you'll probably come up with some other strange attributes. I'm not some gentle male lead from a trashy romance anime, so don't give me these inexplicable adjectives."
"Hehe."
Hana Yurikawa couldn't hold back her laughter. After Ye Xing's abstract words, her mood, which had been somewhat low from remembering Menma, improved slightly. She asked.
"So Ye Xing-kun, what did you come to see me for today...?"
"I wanted to ask if you remember what happened on the day Menma died? Was there anything particularly strange? You understand what I'm referring to, right?"
"Yes, I understand."
As someone in the know, Hana Yurikawa could naturally guess that since Ye Xing was asking about the day of Menma's death, it meant the incident probably wasn't just a simple accident, but rather a mysterious event involving evil spirits - or at least, there was such a possibility.
"Strange things..."
Hana Yurikawa recalled carefully, murmuring.
"That morning, Naruko, Menma, and I met up and went to the secret base in that mountain... then... Menma suddenly seemed to lose her soul, ran out, and then Naruko did too... after that... I fainted, and when I woke up... Naruko had already carried me down the mountain."
"You fainted?"
As a professional exorcist, Ye Xing naturally wouldn't miss this detail in Hana Yurikawa's words.
Could it really be just simple fainting?
Impossible.
Since the three girls - Menma, Naruko Anjou, and Hana Yurikawa - were together at the time, yet only Menma ended up drowning in the river, this completely defied logic.
If there really was some evil presence in that mountain, it should have targeted Hana Yurikawa, whose powerful life aura would be far more tempting than an ordinary person's.
"Do you remember how Naruko Anjou reacted after you woke up?"
"Naruko? She..."
Hana Yurikawa tried hard to recall, but it was after all five years ago; she was young at the time and had just woken from unconsciousness. In the end, she could only shake her head.
"I... I don't remember very clearly. It's just that after that, when I messaged her, she never replied, and we gradually lost contact."
"I see..."
Ye Xing gave a noncommittal nod.
Originally, he would have left matters of analysis and speculation to Rio Futaba.
For no particular reason other than sheer laziness.
However, over the past two days, Rio Futaba had been working alongside Haruno Yukinoshita, Yukino Yukinoshita, and Mai Sakurajima as Lady Kaguya Shinomiya's primary physicians, so she likely had little spare time.
Under these circumstances, he had no choice but to analyse it himself.
Of course, the facts were already quite clear.
On the day Menma died, Hana Yurikawa and Naruko Anjou should have met the same fate, but the life aura surrounding Hana Yurikawa was so intense that it likely harmed the so-called evil spirit.
Having expended too much vitality, Hana Yurikawa fell into a coma, while Naruko Anjou carried her down the mountain, allowing both to escape successfully.
There was only one puzzling aspect in the entire incident.
That was Naruko Anjou's subsequent behaviour.
Menma's cause of death differed from the original storyline—it wasn't due to an argument with Hana Yurikawa or Naruko Anjou, so there was no possibility of cutting ties with childhood friends out of guilt.
If that was the case, then why did Naruko Anjou not reply to Hana Yurikawa's messages, leading to them losing contact later?
This sudden and bizarre change was truly baffling.
Perhaps, during the period when Hana Yurikawa lost consciousness, Naruko Anjou encountered certain events.
Certain terrifying events that were beyond her imagination and impossible to accept. Therefore, for self-protection and to avoid recalling those horrific memories, she could only choose to completely sever ties with everyone involved in this incident, including her close friend Hana Yurikawa.
This speculation was the most reasonable one.
"Alright, I understand."
Ye Xing nodded and spoke the most important words he had come to say to Hana Yurikawa today.
"In your current state, you truly cannot interact with Menma in her spiritual form."
"But if you could become a psychic, you would be able to control your own power."
"As for whether you want to become a psychic or not, I hope you can give me your answer when school resumes next Monday."
"And also..."
Ye Xing reached out and wiped the corner of Hana Yurikawa's mouth, smiling.
"You've got cream from the daifuku on your lips."
After wiping his hand with a tissue, Ye Xing turned and left, leaving only a blushing Hana Yurikawa standing there, completely flustered.
...
The next evening at nine o'clock, in the executive bar on the top floor of a Kyoto hotel.
Ye Xing sat at the bar counter, idly browsing through online news, finding that nothing particularly noteworthy had happened in Kyoto recently.
Thinking about it carefully, this was quite normal.
The attack planned by Shuten-dōji last time, although it didn't achieve its original goal, had a significant impact on Kyoto.
That is, the evil spirits powerful enough to affect human minds had been nearly completely eliminated by the several psychics from the Supernatural Society.
Surprisingly, the one who eliminated the most evil spirits wasn't the most powerful Miko Yotsuya, but the very cute and exceptionally talented cooking student, Dango.
It could be said this way.
Every evil spirit discovered at that time was eliminated without exception.
Additionally, the thousands of evil spirits controlled by Shuten-dōji and the Ushikubi-no-Onna during the attacks on the power station and Kyoto Tower met the same fate of complete destruction.
And most importantly, Mask had appeared once again during a television broadcast.
Although Ye Xing himself didn't act specifically to eliminate criminals, to uninformed observers, every action of Mask targeted serial killers, kindergarten hostage-takers, violent gang members, and hostage-taking madmen.
Under Mask's deterrence, those with ill intentions didn't dare make any reckless moves.
Although the Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department hadn't issued an official announcement, in an interview with Director Soichiro Yagami, this criminal affairs director hinted at one thing through suggestion.
Mask would truly kill people, and moreover, would kill using extremely cruel methods.
Mental illness? Surrender? The law? Turning oneself in?
These might matter to the Metropolitan Police Department, but Mask wouldn't consider such things.
Taking all these factors together, Kyoto's crime rate had recently plummeted almost straight down, even approaching zero.
And the decrease in the crime rate in the real world also gradually returned the restless Reverse World to stability, with the frequency of powerful evil spirits appearing decreasing significantly.
To sum it all up in one sentence.
The Harem God could finally begin to enjoy a peaceful summer life, even though school would start next Monday...
But for the Satan of Sobu High School, whether school was in session merely determined whether he could tease the single iron-fisted older woman in the office.
"Ahem..."
Saki Kawasaki, wearing a uniform behind the counter, brushed aside her blue hair near her ear, a hint of shyness appearing on her pretty face as she forced herself to remain calm.
"Thank you for coming to keep me company today. It was really an unexpected situation - someone asked me to fill in for a shift."
"Hey, what's between us? No need to be so polite."
Ye Xing waved his hand, leaning forward slightly to carefully examine Saki Kawasaki's lower attire, nodding in satisfaction.
"As long as I get to see black stockings."
Since it was summer, Saki Kawasaki wasn't dressed like when she first met Ye Xing here, but had changed into a suit dress with black stockings, even wearing high heels.
For her, this kind of outfit was indeed rarely seen.
"You... you..."
Saki Kawasaki glanced around, noticing that the few customers at the tables were all engaged in their own conversations and hadn't paid attention to them, before sighing in relief. Suppressing her embarrassment, she muttered quietly.
"If you want to look, you can look after my shift... I'm working right now, be more discreet."
After saying this, before Ye Xing could even react, steam seemed about to rise from Saki Kawasaki's head.
Though she appeared like a delinquent on the outside, she was actually too pure and easily embarrassed.
If it weren't for her younger sister constantly pushing her, leaving Saki Kawasaki with no other choice, where would she find the courage to invite Ye Xing to accompany her during work and speak such straightforward words?
Mainly, Saki Kawasaki was anxious herself.
Counting the time, she had joined the club on the same day as Yukino Yukinoshita and Marin Kitagawa, and if considering when she met Ye Xing, it was even earlier than those two.
Even if taking turns, shouldn't it be her turn by now?
...
Three hours later.
"Finally off work."
Saki Kawasaki cleaned the counter, stretched lazily, clearly revealing her attractive figure.
Then, looking at Ye Xing, who had been sitting at the counter keeping her company throughout the entire evening shift, she clutched her clothes, pretending to be nonchalant.
"Ahem, well... is there anyone... at your place today?"
"No."
Ye Xing's tone was very steady.
"Though Shoko Makinohara wanted to come, Mai Sakurajima told her I've been quite busy recently, so she's staying home obediently with Menma and Hachishaku-sama."
Hearing this answer, while feeling shy, Saki Kawasaki couldn't help but let a surprised smile curl at the corner of her lips, harder to suppress than an AK.
Her sister's words echoed continuously in her mind.
"To achieve victory, one must keep charging forward!"
"If they can do it, can't you do it too, sister?"
"Are kings and nobles born to their stations?"
As a little girl not yet in elementary school, Keika Kawasaki really had it tough - watching her hopeless older sister, she practically wanted to recite a modern version of a memorial about factional struggles to tell her what to do.
An unambitious older sister, an extremely charming young man, and a younger sister watching intently, practically itching to take her sister's place.
It was simply... indescribable, like something straight out of an eroge.
Under her sister's urging and the pressure of Marin Kitagawa's challenge, Saki Kawasaki finally resolved to take this bold, proactive step.
"Is that so..."
Saki Kawasaki cleared her throat lightly, turning her head aside so Ye Xing wouldn't see the shyness in her eyes, pretending to be completely calm as she spoke.
"Well... It's really too late today. If I go back now, I'll definitely wake up Keika. She's at that age where she needs proper sleep to grow, so... so, could I... stay at your place for the night?"
Ye Xing didn't hesitate; one might even say he was eager.
"Let's go."
...
When Saki Kawasaki arrived at Ye Xing's home with him, looking at this room she'd visited countless times before, the feeling was completely different now.
It wasn't that she'd never stayed at Ye Xing's place before, but the problem was that there had always been others around then.
But now...
Saki Kawasaki was genuinely nervous, but she didn't want Ye Xing to notice. She could only sit on the sofa, take a deep breath, clench her fists, and tell herself to stay calm.
To ease the slightly awkward atmosphere, Saki Kawasaki randomly brought up a topic.
"Speaking of which... school's starting soon."
Ye Xing nodded noncommittally.
"Yeah, next Monday marks the second term."
Saki Kawasaki pressed her lips together, a hint of gloom flashing in her eyes as she murmured.
"It's been so long... and I still haven't awakened my spiritual power. Am I... really suited to stay in the club?"
Hearing this, Ye Xing smiled dismissively.
"Yukino Yukinoshita and Marin Kitagawa haven't awakened their spiritual power either, have they? You don't need to be a psychic to be a club member. That's not the recruitment criteria."
Saki Kawasaki breathed a sigh of relief at his words, then couldn't help asking curiously.
"Then what are the recruitment criteria?"
"Hmm..."
Ye Xing appeared to be thinking very seriously, only responding with a light laugh after a long moment.
"There are many criteria, but the most important one has to be being a beautiful girl."
Saki Kawasaki rolled her eyes and retorted.
"You're such a pervert."
"Heh, little Saki, you've hit the nail on the head there."
Ye Xing emphasised with a serious expression.
"Being able to interact with different types of beautiful girls every day makes me happier. You should know that Soul Materialisation manifests the user's true inner self. If I'm happy, it means my combat power increases, which means I can perform exorcisms more efficiently, which means you're contributing to the club. Don't you agree?"
"Uh..."
Saki Kawasaki wanted to argue, but after thinking it over, she found Ye Xing's reasoning practically flawless.
It seemed... he was actually right about this.
"You're still wearing the necklace I gave you?"
Ye Xing glanced at Saki Kawasaki's pale neck, leaning in closer for a better look.
"Hmm... it does look quite nice."
Feeling his breath against her skin and seeing Ye Xing's face just centimetres from her own, Saki Kawasaki's cheeks flushed slightly as she couldn't resist leaning forward to gently kiss his cheek.
"I like you."