Shiina, fresh out of the shower, wrapped in a bath towel, walked carefully across the floor.
She was afraid of accidentally slipping. Once, she had slipped after a shower and it hurt for a long time.
Although the water drops on her body made the floor slippery,
Shiina believed more that her body proportions weren't very coordinated.
Top-heavy and bottom-light, she easily fell with a slight loss of balance.
"Sigh, it seems to have gotten heavier again."
Shiina sat on the edge of the bed, sighing helplessly.
She was now at the point where even exercising felt strenuous.
She really envied Ibuki-san, who didn't have such a big burden.
Shiina took out her hairdryer and began to dry her hair.
Just then, her phone showed a new message.
Shiina was a bit surprised.
It was a day off today, so no one should be looking for her to hang out.
Although Shiina was considered a female leader in Class C,
compared to Karuizawa from Class D,
Shiina was much more low-key.
So much so that even girls in her own class often overlooked her existence.
But Shiina didn't mind. Everyone had their own habits, and she wasn't living for others. There was no need to force herself into their cliques.
Reading a book, eating some dessert, and having afternoon tea alone.
This was an extremely comfortable life for Shiina.
If there were no class rivalries, that would be even better.
Everyone could comfortably enjoy their wonderful school days.
Shiina thought about various things as she opened her phone.
Upon seeing that the sender of the message was Amane,
Shiina hesitated for a moment.
If she remembered correctly, ever since she and Amane became friends,
they hadn't exchanged a single word.
Why did Amane suddenly decide to message her today?
Shiina tapped to open the message.
"Hiyori, Hiyori, I found a really good book! Are you interested in reading it together?"
A really good book?
It seemed suspicious no matter how she looked at it.
Shiina pouted.
Was Amane treating her like a child?
Trying to trick her with such a simple lie.
She wouldn't fall for Amane's trick.
"I'm sorry, Miyako-san, I have some things to do today, so I can't read with you."
Send.
Shiina smiled.
That should be fine, right?
What should she do next?
Should she try making the cookies she bought at the bakery last time?
That taste had stayed with Shiina for a long time.
Since she had some rare free time, she might as well try making them herself.
Just as Shiina was about to prepare the ingredients,
Amane sent another message.
"That's really a shame. I finally found a novel about humans and yokai going on an adventure together."
Upon seeing this text,
Shiina's eyes lit up.
Humans and yokai adventuring together.
It sounded quite interesting.
Even with Shiina's extensive reading experience, she couldn't immediately recall any book that fit Amane's description.
This, in turn, sparked a desire in Shiina to read it.
Just like most adventure novels feature a protagonist with a few human companions fighting monsters and leveling up.
At most, they might have a few elves similar to humans, or acceptable animal companions.
Overall, it aligns with people's perception of adventure.
However, after such works become abundant,
they can lead to visual fatigue.
The protagonist will always invite various companions that are within people's understanding.
But what if someone told you there was an adventure novel where the protagonist's companions were goblins, minotaurs, tree spirits, and insects—these strange creatures—on an adventure?
Wouldn't that spark the idea of wanting to read an unusual adventure story?
Shiina was in just such a situation now.
Her heart was itching.
She wanted to agree to Amane, but she was also afraid that Amane was trying to trick her into coming over and then tease her.
To be safe, it would be better to ask for more details.
"Miyako-san, where did you find this book?"
"It's in the library! I was just planning to go to the library. If Hiyori wants to read it, we can go together!"
Seeing that Amane was inviting her to the library,
Shiina felt a little relieved.
In the library, Amane shouldn't do anything excessive.
Having made up her mind, Shiina was about to agree.
But she still felt something was off.
Could Amane be using a non-existent book to trick her into going to the library?
"Miyako-san, could you please tell me the name of this book?"
Shiina planned to try and get more information out of Amane.
"Hiyori, you want to know the name of the book?"
"Yes, I really want to know."
Shiina blushed a little.
Every time Amane called her Hiyori, she felt a bit shy.
Their relationship hadn't reached the point where they could call each other by their first names.
But Amane acted very familiar.
This made the gentle Shiina uncomfortable correcting her.
"I won't tell you. If I tell Hiyori the name, you definitely won't come, so I'll keep it a secret."
Amane's reply made Shiina bite her lip.
Amane was really naughty!
"Then I'll try a different approach. Can I ask three small questions?"
Shiina smiled. Since Amane wanted to keep it a secret, wasn't she allowed to use a little trick?
"Of course you can!"
"Is this book famous?"
Upon seeing such a question,
Amane couldn't help but grin widely.
It seemed Shiina-san was still not giving up.
She wanted to guess the book's title.
"The book is very famous."
Very famous?
Shiina carefully reviewed the books in her mind that fit the criteria.
But she still couldn't pinpoint which one it was.
So Shiina decided to use her second question.
"What elements does this book have?"
"Love, yokai, adventure, legends."
Upon seeing these keywords,
Shiina immediately circled the books in her mind that roughly matched the content.
"Last question, was this book written by a domestic author?"
Shiina clicked send.
Then she waited quietly for the result.
She already had some clues.
If the author matched up too.
She would roughly know which one of a few books it was.
"Yes, it was."
Shiina saw Amane give an affirmative answer.
A smile also appeared on her face.
She knew it.
In that case, there was only one answer!
As a seasoned fan of mystery novels, she had finally narrowed down the answer to a work by Natsuhiko Kyogoku based on multiple pieces of information.
Humans, yokai, legends, adventure, love.
All could be found in Natsuhiko Kyogoku's works.
Although his works were called the shame of mystery novels by some in the mystery circle.
They were still quite readable.
She hadn't expected Amane to also enjoy such absurd-style works.
Now she had no choice but to check them out.
Shiina and Amane arranged a time and then Shiina excitedly went out.
Nothing was more worth being happy about than meeting someone with the same interests.
As soon as she entered the library, she saw Amane by the window.
She jogged all the way, and just as she reached Amane.
When Shiina saw the book in her hand.
She froze like she had been hit by a petrification spell.
Standing still, motionless.
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