Not long after, Kamiyama Rikuo returned to the real world. Rikuo looked at Togawa Kiyotsugu beside him and fell silent.
'Damn it! I just spouted a bunch of chuunibyou lines for ages! You're telling me we all get teleported to a unified location?!'
Rikuo covered his face, feeling a wave of embarrassment.
'However, what's confirmed is that while Anomalies like ghosts can teleport to different spaces, there's a range limit. So, if I encounter an Anomaly in the future, it might reduce the trouble of searching. Perhaps this type could be called an evil-aligned earthbound spirit? I can first suspect it's at the place where the resentment was strongest during their life, or where they passed away. But I guess it still needs to be classified and analyzed.'
Rikuo didn't forget to analyze the logic of ghost existence, as he might frequently encounter similar situations in the future.
'Speaking of which, Anomalies like ghosts should arise from obsessions during life. Perhaps this could lead to benefits in crime investigation? If a ghost exists at the last place they were alive, there will definitely be clues. In any case, I need to wait until tomorrow. Rushing to prove it today without official reporting would likely cause a lot of trouble.'
Rikuo began to further consider the potential impact of ghost existence on him.
'Maybe in the future, I can switch to this kind of part-time job, or perhaps exorcism would be good too.'
"Kamiyama-san, right? Thank you so much just now."
Togawa Kiyotsugu saw Rikuo's changing expression and understood the young man's embarrassment, so he chose to change the subject.
"Yes, Togawa-jisan, I'm Kamiyama Rikuo, your next-door neighbor. I'm also Togawa-san's friend. I was supposed to go to the same school today, but unfortunately, due to the apartment explosion this morning, I haven't even been able to show my face at school yet."
Rikuo awkwardly scratched his head. Although his previous impression of Togawa Kiyotsugu wasn't great, after what felt like a life-or-death interaction, he still felt embarrassed about the chuunibyou lines he'd uttered in front of an elder.
'What if the old man tells Sakiko about my chuunibyou history? Will Sakiko think I'm a chuunibyou guy?'
Kiyotsugu didn't think that way at all. Although he didn't recognize the young man immediately, as neighbors for a while, he had gradually come to know the young man next door.
'To lose his father so young, and his mother to have been missing since he was a child, and then to have to drift alone in society. No wonder. How could such a young man not become friends with Sakiko? And he also bears such a mission... right? As he just said, "I will fight destiny and win for you to see!". Such a spirited young man is very suitable to be friends with Sakiko.'
"So, Kamiyama-san, your apartment doesn't exist anymore, right? What made you think of walking in this direction?"
Sakiko's father voiced his question. After all, Sakiko had already arranged a new apartment for them. This time, it was a residential apartment under the Togawa Family, so there would definitely be no risk of it aging and falling apart. His luggage in the ruins also seemed to have been sorted by a random moving company. In Japan, minors (Japan's age of majority is 20, don't kill me for this review) are not allowed out late at night.
"It's only 8 o'clock now," Rikuo said, then rummaged through his pockets.
'Oh right, no phone.'
"It's 11:30 now, Kamiyama-san."
Kiyotsugu took out his phone and showed it to Rikuo.
"Oh, it's only 11 o'clock, what the heck? It's 11:30? Didn't I leave at 2 PM?"
Meanwhile, the on-duty nurse:
"Did the clock in this ward run out of batteries today? Never mind, anyway, only one young person stayed in this ward today. Who doesn't have a phone these days?"
..."You mean, you woke up in the afternoon, looked at the hospital clock, and thought it was 2 PM? So you rushed to the old apartment late at night to look for lost items?"
Kiyotsugu listened to Rikuo's explanation... (sweating emoji).
'Are there still young people without phones these days? And wouldn't he have seen the time along the way? Didn't he notice the second hand wasn't moving?'
Seeing Kiyotsugu's expression, Rikuo felt his mental state was perfectly splendid. Yesterday his home exploded, this morning he almost exploded with Soyo, at noon he exploded with the clock, tonight he almost worked overtime for a lifetime with a corporate slave, and now he has to be suspected of mental instability by the uncle next door.
"But my phone really exploded, I didn't notice the second hand, and I was deep in thought the whole way here. Maybe it's just a beautiful coincidence."
Kiyotsugu sighed softly. After all, without the young man, Sakiko might truly end up alone, and perhaps even an aerial flight of Sakiko would play out.
Kiyotsugu shook his head, dispelling those improper fantasies.
'This young man is probably under too much stress; it's normal for him to have some mental issues. Speaking of what he just said... maybe it's better if he isn't too spirited? I should talk to Sakiko and ask her to understand this young man.'
Poor Rikuo, he didn't realize he had already leveled up from a chuunibyou guy to a mental patient.
"Kamiyama-san, in that case, I'll go with you. With an adult accompanying you, there won't be any misunderstandings. After all, Kamiyama-san is my lifesaver, and I can still be of some help with this small favor."
Rikuo didn't want to talk anymore, he just nodded in silent agreement.
Kiyotsugu then followed Rikuo towards the old apartment. Along the way, they encountered several patrolling police officers, who merely asked a few questions before leaving. Kiyotsugu had indeed helped Rikuo quite a bit.
'If it weren't for Togawa-jisan, not only would I be invited for katsudon, but given my current situation, I'd probably be considered a runaway. And without a phone and no adults at home, I'd be sent back home the next day and stared at with sympathetic glances for quite some time. Moreover, it seems Sakiko-sensei left in a hurry this morning and didn't even inform me that she had arranged a residential apartment for me; I don't even know where I'm staying tonight. I actually wanted to go home first before heading to Osaka...'
Rikuo wore an expression as resolute as Soyo's.
'My heart has been stolen by Blade; perhaps I will never again feel joy or sorrow in this life.'
Until he approached the apartment and saw the blue glowing cards.
"Hehe, my official Bandai limited cards, do you have cards like these?"
Rikuo approached the apartment ruins and picked up two Undead cards.
"This child, is he really under too much stress and having mental problems?"
From Togawa Kiyotsugu's perspective, he couldn't see the blue glow of the cards. This was a scene only visible to those qualified to be a Kamen Rider. However, precisely because of this privilege, in Kiyotsugu's eyes, Rikuo was already not far from that supreme being in the auditorium.
While Rikuo was happy, he also realized something unusual.
'Why am I so tired right now?'
No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than Rikuo collapsed to the ground.
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