Chapter 81: The Result of the Tarot Card Divination, Bunny Girl Sakurajima Mai
The two left the hotel and walked on the streets of Wakayama City.
Mai looked around constantly like a curious baby, looking very immersed and enjoying herself.
Wakayama City wasn't considered prosperous, far behind Kyoto.
However, Kyoto was also far behind Tokyo.
There was a saying that put it well.
There is only one big city in Sakura Prefecture, and that is Tokyo.
The rest are all countryside.
"Eh? Is this... Tarot cards?"
Mai saw a small street stall with a sign for "Fate Divination" by the roadside. Curiosity appeared in her eyes, and she pulled Yoru over.
"Come quickly, get a reading."
Of course, she wanted to get a reading herself.
Unfortunately, seeing that the old woman running the stall never even looked in her direction, it meant she couldn't perceive Mai's existence either.
"Psycho."
Yoru shook his head.
He thought this old woman can't even see you, yet she talks about divination determining fate. Isn't that laughable?
"Young man, you can't say such things casually."
The old woman couldn't see Mai and thought Yoru was talking to her.
With a kind smile on her face, she extended her hand in an inviting gesture, looking very mysterious, and lowered her voice.
"Tarot cards are cards of destiny that can reveal your future path. Please sit down. You'll understand after the divination."
Yoru sat opposite the small stall and looked closely.
Oho, isn't this an acquaintance?
In the original plot, Miko had visited this old woman's shop to buy bracelets.
What was she called again... Godmother? Or godmother something...
Oh right, the Godmother (The Fortune Teller).
Yo, isn't this the Great Onmyoji Godmother?
Haven't seen you for a few days; how did you end up in Wakayama?
Is it because the Old Geezer's fame is too great and business too good, so you were squeezed out of the Kyoto shopping district?
Could it be my fault?
Yoru threw away the whimsical thoughts in his mind. Looking at the expectant Mai beside him, he thought since she wanted to see a Tarot card reading, there was no harm in trying.
"Let's make it clear first. If you try to scam my money, I'll use that move on you: Secret Technique, Dust Release: Mother Stripping Jutsu."
Facing such abstract words and the gesture Yoru made, the Godmother forced a smile.
"Uh... Young man, seeing the aura emanating from you, you don't seem like an ordinary person!"
Mai beside him was shocked upon hearing this.
Does this roadside stall old woman really have special abilities?
She can actually see the specialness in Yoru?
"Heh."
Compared to the simple-minded Mai who fell for it with one sentence, Yoru saw through it immediately.
Isn't this the classic opening line used by fortune tellers?
Your Yintang is dark; there will be a bloody disaster recently.
Your philtrum is dark; there will be a bloody disaster recently.
Your skull is dark; there will be a bloody disaster recently.
And when facing high school students of his age, it was "You don't look like an ordinary person."
Test first to see if it's Chunibyo.
If it's Chunibyo, money is easy to scam.
Generally speaking, normal people would only express two emotions at this time: excitement or surprise/denial.
Under the confident gaze of the Godmother, Yoru just pouted. His attitude exceeded her expectations as he retorted toughly.
"Do you need to tell me? Don't I know it myself? Hmm?"
Listening to his matter-of-fact tone.
The Godmother's smile stiffened: ....
She thought I've never seen such a confident Chunibyo boy in my life!
Normally, meeting someone who could agree with him, shouldn't he start frantically narrating the settings in his fantasy to satisfy his need for recognition?
Why aren't you following the script, kid!?
"Hurry up and start your Tarot reading. Stop rambling."
The Godmother put away her hypocritical polite smile. Her eyes were piercing, staring closely at Yoru's face.
She felt challenged.
Known as the Godmother, she was a genuine spirit medium.
Before that old thing Oda Noto rose to prominence, she was a leading figure in the exorcism circle of Kyoto and even the entire Sakura Prefecture.
Unexpectedly, today, in this small city of Wakayama, she encountered the most difficult opponent in her life.
This kid's money...
Is probably hard to scam.
The harder she felt it was to scam, the more unconvinced the Godmother became.
Today, even if she risked her old bones, she had to make him take out the money obediently!
This wasn't about one or two hundred yen.
This was a battle for dignity to defend the title of Godmother!
"Good."
The Godmother looked like she was facing a formidable enemy. She took the deck of Tarot cards on the table and began to shuffle them slowly with her wrinkled, withered hands.
Yoru sat opposite her. Their gazes collided in the air, sparking invisible sparks.
Slap!
After shuffling, the Godmother slapped the cards onto the table. With an extremely skillful movement of one hand, she spread the deck into a fan shape, face down one by one, and spoke slowly, word by word.
"Please, state the content you want to divine, then draw three cards!"
"Bring it on! The content I want to divine is the identity of the person who came to Wakayama City with me this time!"
Not to be outdone, Yoru's momentum was astonishing.
"Now, it's my turn! Draw!"
He took three cards from different positions in front of him and placed them in front of himself.
Mai was confused.
No, it's just a Tarot card reading; do you two need to make it so hot-blooded?
Especially Yoru.
Even when going to that shrine to fight that so-called god, she had never seen him look so serious.
The Godmother's eyes were extremely determined, betting her decades of reputation, experience, and ability on this round.
Today, you must take out these two hundred yen from your pocket and hand them to this old woman sincerely and respectfully!
Yoru's eyes were equally serious, revealing unwavering determination.
Today, I will absolutely not take out these two hundred yen for you!
The battle was on the verge of breaking out.
The Godmother extended her right hand, wrinkled like a dead tree, and slowly revealed the three Tarot cards placed in front of Yoru.
"Hmm... The Hermit, The Empress, The Lovers."
Mai didn't understand the specific meanings of Tarot cards.
But hearing the names of the three Tarot cards read by the Godmother, she was also stunned.
Yoru's divination question was about the identity of the person accompanying him to Wakayama City, referring to her.
Mai's current state fit The Hermit card perfectly.
The second card, The Empress, also fit her identity as a former national idol actress.
As for the last one....
Mai stole a glance at Yoru sitting there, raised her hand to tuck her long hair behind her ear, her pretty face slightly red.
Tentatively... consider it accurate.
"Got some skills, but not much."
Yoru gave his evaluation, took out a red hundred-yen bill from his wallet, and placed it lightly on the table.
But the Godmother shook her head and smiled.
"Your first question was just to test this old woman's ability. For questions where the guest knows the answer, this old woman doesn't charge. Now start your formal question."
At her age, honestly, the Godmother didn't lack money.
What did she want?
She wanted the young guest in front of her to be convinced by her powerful divination ability and respectfully call her Godmother!
Battle of Dignity!
Money was secondary.
"Alright then."
Yoru wasn't polite with the Godmother.
It was unexpected that she really had some skills in divination.
Mai's Adolescence Syndrome was a special phenomenon that even spirit mediums like Miko and Rio couldn't detect.
Although the Godmother didn't perceive Mai's existence either, being able to accurately locate Mai's identity through Tarot cards indeed showed some skill.
But not much.
After all, Mai was just an ordinary person and hadn't awakened the ability of Soul Manifestation at this stage.
Next was what he really wanted to ask.
After the Godmother took back the three Tarot cards and reshuffled them, Yoru spoke slowly.
"The question I want to divine this time is the identity of the next person in Kyoto who might become my collaborator."
Logically speaking.
Such vague questions shouldn't be asked in Tarot divination.
Collaborator?
Collaborating on what, and in what way? It all had to be made clear.
But the Godmother just smiled slightly without expressing any objection.
She was a genuine spirit medium who had practiced for many years.
The Godmother's Tarot divination was completely different from those crooked ways on the street fooling little girls.
She wanted a challenge!
After Yoru drew three cards and placed them in front of himself, the Godmother took a deep breath, stimulating all the spiritual power in her body at this moment. extending her right hand, she slowly revealed the first card and read softly.
"Justice."
Yoru's eyes didn't fluctuate at all; he just nodded noncommittally.
His question was the identity of the next person who might become his collaborator.
On this issue, the card Justice seemed too vague.
Not to mention anything else.
All members of the Super-Quant Club fit the Justice card, as they were all people protecting Kyoto's safety in the dark.
The Godmother could see that Yoru wasn't surprised by the result revealed by the first Tarot card, but she wasn't in a hurry either. She just slowly revealed the second card with the same movement.
"Judgement."
"Justice, Judgement..."
The Godmother pondered for a moment and analyzed slowly.
"Through the revelation of these two Tarot cards, the person referred to in your question might be someone holding a position like a judge or prosecutor."
However, seeing the second card was Judgement, a strange look flashed in Yoru's eyes.
Justice and Judgement?
Could it be that guy?
If it was really as he guessed, then the third Tarot card should be...
Yoru extended his right hand, revealed the third card placed in front of him, looked at the pattern on the card, and softly read two words.
"Death."
As these two words came out, the Godmother felt an inexplicably cold wind blowing past her.
She frowned tightly, her old face full of confusion and puzzlement.
"How can this be... this isn't right."
The two cards Justice and Judgement made the Godmother certain that the identity of the person Yoru referred to was a practitioner of jobs like prosecutor or judge.
But the third card overturned her guess.
In this question, Death referred to someone surrounded by death, or even someone who witnessed death with their own eyes.
Nurses in hospice wards or doctors in hospitals could fit the definition of this card, but it contradicted the results of the first two cards.
It really baffled her.
"Mmhmm, the divination is very accurate."
Yoru took out another hundred-yen bill from his wallet and pushed it to the Godmother along with the previous one, smiling.
"Your divination is very accurate."
Watching Yoru's retreating back, then looking down at the two hundred-yen bills on the table, the Godmother's expression was very complicated.
This situation should count as her Tarot divination being accurate, a win for her.
But the doubt about the answer to the question lingered in the Godmother's mind.
Justice, Judgement, Death—three Tarot cards.
What exactly is the true identity of the so-called collaborator?
Or rather...
What exactly is the collaborator referred to in Yoru's question assisting with?
She was just a diviner using Tarot cards, but she couldn't see what result she had divined.
This was the first time the Godmother felt such frustration.
.....
On the way, Yoru called Rio. He didn't mention much, just said to pause "club activities" for these two days.
Plus, he addressed her by the code name "Quantum."
Rio naturally understood Yoru meant pausing all exorcism-related matters.
She didn't ask more, just agreed, saying she would explain to Yui and Miko, and then hung up.
....
After lunch, in the afternoon.
"The seawater is so cool."
Mai, wearing a bikini, stepped on the golden beach with her two snow-white jade feet. She scooped up a splash of seawater with her hand, observing it carefully, with a very comfortable lazy smile.
At this time, Yoru also changed into swim trunks.
Not that he wanted to change.
But this public beach didn't allow entry without swimwear.
Today was Friday, a working day, so there weren't many people on the beach. Most were groups of friends or couples. No one came up to hit on Yoru yet.
This made him feel much more relaxed.
Mai wearing a bikini exposed large patches of snow-white and delicate skin. Although the girl's figure wasn't very exaggerated, it was slender and well-proportioned. Coupled with that exquisite flawless face, under the warm afternoon sun, it was simply a superb view.
Unfortunately, only Yoru could appreciate this beautiful scene.
No.
Only I can see it; this is clearly not unfortunate at all.
"Aren't you coming together?"
Hearing Mai's inquiry, Yoru lay on the lounge chair under the parasol and waved his hand.
"Play by yourself. I'm not interested in the sea."
"Finally came here; hurry up, come together."
Mai walked over quickly, hugged Yoru's arm directly, and pulled him up from the lounge chair.
So white.
Blindingly white.
So soft.
Soft... no adjectives left, just soft.
While Yoru admired Mai's beautiful body, she was actually stealing glances at him, pretending to be casual.
"Yoru's figure is really good..."
Coming to play on this beach was partly because Mai had only been to the beach when filming before. Now that no one else could see her and she could enjoy quiet time, she really wanted to enjoy the beach to her heart's content.
On the other hand...
She wanted to see Yoru's figure.
Girls were curious about the person they liked too.
This look didn't disappoint Mai.
Yoru's figure was also the proportionate type, but the six-pack abs and muscle lines on his arms were clearly visible.
Compared to those exaggerated monster figures that made people feel a bit disgusted, Mai still preferred Yoru's lines that didn't look awkward in clothes but were angular when undressed.
"Mai-san, please don't keep taking advantage of me (wiping oil). You look like a pervert."
Hearing Yoru's righteous accusation, the exposed Mai blushed instantly and said angrily.
"Who, who is taking advantage of you? Narcissist."
Immediately after, Mai squatted down, holding a handful of sand warmed by the sun in both hands, and smiled.
"Want to compete? Building sand sculptures? Loser treats dinner tonight."
"No problem."
Hearing Yoru's very normal answer, Mai suddenly had a very ominous premonition.
His reply was a bit too normal.
And on Yoru, normal meant abnormal.
Fifteen minutes later.
Looking at the towering column-shaped object built of sand in front of her, lifelike and nearly 1.8 meters high, Mai finally understood where her ominous premonition came from.
"Art, truly art."
Yoru looked at his masterpiece and nodded with satisfaction.
"Not bad, not bad. This is my greatest masterpiece! Named Neo Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Cannon!"
For some reason, although Mai felt the sand sculpture Yoru made was too abstract and unbearable to look at directly, but...
She looked down at the pitiful little castle under her feet, then at this tall column-shaped object.
"I lost."
.....
After a day of fun, the two returned to the hotel room.
While Mai was taking a shower, Yoru received a call from Haruno.
"Hello, Yoru-kun~"
Haruno's tone still carried that slightly teasing smile.
"Just telling you, everything is arranged. Starts at 9:00 AM sharp tomorrow."
"Thanks."
Yoru responded with a smile, then asked.
"By the way, can it be seen in Wakayama City?"
"Definitely. I arranged it for every city in Sakura Prefecture. Spent a fortune this time."
Haruno replied first, then asked meaningfully with a smile.
"You are in Wakayama? Probably not alone, right? A date?"
Yoru nodded slightly and said something Haruno didn't expect.
"Mmhmm, it's a date. If you want to come too, you can book half a month in advance. I'll schedule a free date for you."
Immediately after, he added with a smile.
"We are all friends, don't be polite."
Haruno on the other end laughed dumbfounded and shook her head.
"You high school students have spring break to relax fully, but I, a university student, am very busy. Next time I go to Kyoto, I'll find you."
"Okay, remember to book in advance."
"Stop bantering with you. Hanging up."
.....
Early next morning.
Wearing hot pants and a T-shirt as pajamas, Mai climbed out of bed and stretched lazily.
She rubbed her eyes, jumped out of bed, and checked the time on her phone.
8:55 AM.
Thinking about returning to Kyoto today, Mai looked at the scenery outside the window, feeling very reluctant.
However, occupying two days of Yoru's spring break satisfied her.
Mai's smooth jade feet stepped on the soft carpet. Seeing Yoru sitting on the sofa, she waved and greeted.
"Yoru-kun, good morning."
....
"Yoru... -kun?"
Yoru sat there playing with his phone, as if he couldn't hear Mai's words at all.
"Could it be..."
Mai's heart sank.
Finally, can Yoru no longer perceive my existence either?
She looked at her suitcase aside, hesitation flashing in her eyes. Finally, she gritted her silver teeth and opened it.
Taken out were a pair of sheer black tights, two white cuffs, a tight outfit like a swimsuit, and most importantly.
A pair of bunny ear headwear.
Mai ran into the bathroom, changed into this bunny girl costume, looked at herself in the mirror, and couldn't help but feel shy.
"Can't help it. Have to do this."
She remembered Yoru once said a sentence.
If one day I really forget you, as long as you wear the bunny girl costume, I will definitely be able to remember again.
She felt this statement was outrageous and made no sense at all.
But no harm in trying.
Enduring the shyness in her heart, wearing a pair of black high heels, Mai left the bathroom and walked quietly to Yoru.
After a long while.
"Is it really like this..."
Mai's smile was bitter and helpless.
Sure enough, a method that sounded outrageous couldn't work.
She squatted down. This time not peeking, but staring openly at Yoru's face.
Mai leaned forward slightly, her soft pink lips gently printing a kiss on Yoru's cheek.
Still no change.
Mai sighed deeply.
Stories in fairy tales were indeed unreliable.
The last person in this world who could see her couldn't see her anymore.
Just as Mai lowered her head and remained silent, Yoru's voice carrying a smile sounded in her ear.
"Mai-san, your behavior is definitely like a pervert."
"Eh... Eh!?"
Mai stood up immediately upon hearing this, surprised.
"You... you actually still remember me?"
"Of course. Didn't I say? I won't forget."
Yoru stood up and pointed outside the floor-to-ceiling window of the hotel room.
Mai looked in the direction he pointed and saw a scene she would never forget in her life.
A huge airship was floating in the air, hanging a wide banner underneath. Even passersby standing on the ground could clearly see the words on the banner.
The content on the banner was simple.
[Celebrating the successful completion of Yukinoshita Construction Company's first project in Kyoto, Office Building Delivery Day. Famous Idol Actress Sakurajima Mai will cut the ribbon at the scene.]
Mai was stunned.
Yoru still looked nonchalant, shrugged, and smiled.
"Now, no one in the entire Sakura Prefecture will forget you again."