Previously:
"Hmmmmmmm," they all said as Ayako, Masako, Bou-san, Yasuhara, and John all stood in a circle, trying to figure out who it could be.
"Excuse me. Heeey," Mai said in a small voice, still pointing at herself.
"… There's no one else left though," Yasuhara said.
"That's not true!" Mai said.
"No way! It's my vote that the purification just kind of occurred naturally somehow," Ayako said.
"Really?" Yasuhara said.
"Well then, shall we head back?" Bou-san asked as he stated walking away.
"Eeeh!?" Mai exclaimed, flinching in shock. '… Hold on, aren't you all forgetting someone—? Oh well, I am usually good-for-nothing though, I guess—Grrr. Since I've never been helpful before, it wouldn't occur to them that I'd be effective in this case. Tch. Well, it's fine though. Since everybody's okay after all...' Someone was rubbing her head. Mai looked up. Bou-san was grinning at her. Masako and Ayako patted her on the back as they passed her. John smiled at her as he passed. Yasuhara too. Even Lin. Hitomi smiled and patted her on the back.
"… Good job," Naru said as he passed her. Mai looked at him, pleasantly surprised. Mai smiled.
'… Well, it's fine,' Mai thought.
However, after this, the real case was still lying in wait for them.
The Forgotten Children (Part 7)
Mai was standing back to back with someone. She turned her head to see who it was.
'Naru?' she thought, surprised to see him there. 'Eeh!? Wh-Wh-Why? We aren't even investigating anything right now. Why am I dreaming about Naru!!?' Naru turned his head and smiled at her. She took a step away and moved to face him. "Hey, Naru? What happened? Did something else—" He began to fade away and disappear right in front of her eyes. "Wha—What? What's going on? Hey! Naru!" He vanished completely.
"Hee. Hehe. Heheh."
Mai could hear voices and laughter.
"… Hey. Isn't it better to wake her up now…?"
"It seems like she'd suffering. Pfft. Making such an awful face."
"It's already past lunchtime too."
"Okay, I'll do it. Hmph."
"What are you planning on doing? Ehh..."
She could hear footsteps drawing closer. Mai gasped and opened her eyes when she felt herself roll.
"Oomph!" she said when she rolled right into the wall with a thump.
"Hey. Good morning," Bou-san greeted her with a grin, holding her futon. He was the culprit. Back in the waking world, the others—Hitomi, Ayako, Masako, Bou-san, John, and Yasuhara—had gathered in the girls' bungalow.
"Go… Good morning… Haha," Mai said, turning completely red in the face. "Why is Bou-san here?" Ayako giggled.
"You're exploding," she said. They had all been worn out from the case yesterday, but Mai was the only one who slept past lunchtime. Once she was dressed, she joined the others.
"So, how did we solve the problem?" Mai asked as Hitomi came out the kitchenette with drinks for everyone.
"We made the assistant take official responsibility," Bou-san said. "We said that we found the dead body, and we told them to deal with it however they wished to. There's also Naru's older brother."
"Oh yeah! How is the search going?" Mai asked.
"It's currently ongoing. Yesterday it had to stop because of the rain," Hitomi replied.
"I see..." Mai said. 'By the way, I wonder why Naru was in my dream...'
"Well, anyways, I'm glad that everything ended up fine this time too," Ayako said. "This way, Mai can also get out of this world. You won't have to do anything scary anymore." Mai's eyes widened slightly. She had forgotten that Naru said he would close the office.
"Ah, that will be great," Mai said with a forced smile, rubbing the back of her neck.
"But then she'll have to look for another job," Hitomi said.
"I can hire you as my assistant," Ayako said. "The pay won't be as good as working at Shibuya Psychic Research."
"Well, we were special," Mai said. "When the office closes, I'll have a lot of free time."
"Well, you're always welcome at my house," Hitomi said.
"By the way, what did you use to do before?" Bou-san asked.
"Nothing in particular," Mai said. "I just lived my life—" 'Wait! How did I use to spend my days… after school when I didn't work at SPR?'
"Mai-san," John said.
"Ah, yes?" Mai said.
"If you have some free time, Do you want to come to Sunday school?" John asked.
"Eh? But I've never read the bible or anything," Mai said.
"It's only for fun, but I'm always watching the children, and they're really funny," John said with a smile. "You can come too, Hitomi-san." Bou-san laughed.
"What?" Mai asked.
"No, I was just imagining… Father John," Bou-san said, conjuring up an image of John walking while holding hands in a line of children, all looking happy and cheerful. It was too cute. The others burst into laughter.
"So—sorry, John!" Mai said.
"Sorry!" Hitomi apologized.
"It suits you!" Ayako said.
"Sunday school—" Bou-san said.
"Yes, you can come too, Takigawa-san," John said with a nice mile.
"That sounds good," Bou-san said. "It's nostalgic."
"… Nostalgic?" Hitomi asked.
"What?" Mai said.
"Yeah, I used to go to Sunday school," Bou-san said.
"Wasn't your house a temple?" Yasuhara asked.
"So what?" Bou-san said. "If we went to Sunday school, we could listen to biblical stories, watch a play, and also eat free snacks. Charming..."
"What's that?" Mai said, sweat-dropping.
"So that was your intention," Yasuhara said.
"You really are a lost cause," Ayako told him.
"Well, it's true that it's fun," Hitomi said.
"You've been before too?" Mai asked.
"My mom was Catholic, so she brought me to church with her," Hitomi said.
'Is this the end?' Mai wondered. 'We'll separate when we get back to Tokyo, and then we won't be able to laugh together anymore?' She remembered what Bou-san said.
There is no human relationship that doesn't end.
'I understand what Bou-san means, but… is this really the end?' Mai wondered.
"Eh? What's wrong?" Bou-san asked her. "You got quiet all of a sudden."
"..." Mai opened her mouth to speak, then closed it. She stood up and went over to her bag and began searching for something in it. She pulled out a pen and an address book and held them out in front of her as she turned to face them again. "Please, give me your address!"
"Huh?" Bou-san said.
"I… I don't want to separate from everyone like this!" Mai said earnestly and anxiously. "Even without the office and work, I want to meet with everyone! I want to sometimes meet with you guys to chat like this, and even if we don't meet, I want to call just to ask how you are doing." She bowed. "So, if you don't mind, I would like to get everyone's addresses!"
"I don't mind," Bou-san said.
"really!?" Mai asked, popping back up.
"Ye-eah," Bou-san said, a little surprised by how quickly she stood up again. "I was wondering what you were going to ask with such a serious expression. Right?"
"I know," Yasuhara said. John and Hitomi smiled.
"Tell us yours too, okay?" Ayako asked.
"Yes!" Mai said happily. They began passing Mai's address book and pieces of paper around.
"Should I write it here?" Ayako asked.
"Yeah. I have a pen," Mai said, handing her a cute bear-shaped pen.
"The next person..." Ayako said, handing it to Bou-san.
"Eh? This is a pen?" he asked, sweat-dropping.
"It's mostly an animal," Mai said.
"No wonder girls' pencil cases are so full," Yasuhara said. Mai's address book was eventually passed back to her with a message from Yasuhara added in: The walking telephone boy will always wait for you. It was signed with a picture of a the head of a person wearing glasses.
"Bahaha, what is this?" Mai asked, laughing.
"You..." Bou-san said, sweat-dropping.
"It's a joke," Yasuhara said. "Like in America or in Italy."
"… Do you think… Naru and Lin-san will tell me if I ask them?" Mai asked, sweat-dropping.
"H-Hmm… Don't ask me..." Bou-san said.
"Well, we won't know until we try..." Hitomi said.
"Ah," Yasuhara said, looking out the glass door. He stood up and opened it. Naur and Lin were walking past them. "Shibuya-san! Are you busy?" he asked, leaning on the porch railing. "I would like to ask a couple of questions. Do you have time right now?"
"… Right now?" Naru asked.
"It's better if it's now," Yasuhara said.
"I will listen," Naru said.
"Then, please come inside," Yasuhara said.
"We can't do it here?" Naru asked.
"I am sorry, but the questions are quite personal, and I would like to ask Lin-san as well, so please."
"What is Yasuhara-san doing?" Mai asked Bou-san.
"Who knows? Let's watch," Bou-san said.
"?" Mai said. Naru and Lin came inside and sat down.
"So, here is the thing..." Yasuhara said, clearing his throat. Mai gulped.
"Which tea do you prefer, darjeeling or Earl Grey?" Yasuhara asked. Mai nearly fell over.
"I am fine. What did you want to talk about…?" Naru asked.
"Which… one?" Yasuhara pressed with a smile. He was sparkling. "Would you like it hot or would you like it cold? How strong would you like it to be? Would you like it with milk or lemon? Cambridge tea or Tai. Would you like to add apples? Would you like cookies or butter cake? Both?" Mai, Hitomi, Bou-san and Ayako sweat-dropped. "So, it's complicated, right?" Naru stared back at him. He sighed.
"… I am fine with anything," Naru said. Mai and Bou-san were amazed.
"Amazing!" Bou-san cheered quietly as they clapped a little. "You're a perfect flirter."
"You are!" Mai agreed with sparkling eyes.
"Pfft!" Hitomi looked away and covered her mouth to keep from laughing too much. It was a well-earned victory. "Earl Grey, right?" Hitomi said as she stood up.
"You know how I like it," Naru said.
"Ooh~" Yasuhara and Bou-san said.
"Was it just me, or was that a little…?" Bou-san whispered.
"Indeed, it was, Takigawa-san..." Yasuhara whispered back.
"Was a little what?" Mai asked, frowning at them. What were they implying? Hitomi came back with the tea and served Naru and Lin.
"What are you going to do… after you close the office?" Yasuhara asked Naru. Naru's eyes flickered briefly to Hitomi.
"Does it have anything to do with you, Yasuhara-san?" Naru asked.
"Yeah, it does. Geez, aren't we friends?" Yasuhara said.
"Whoa..." Mai said, paling. That was dangerous ground he was treading.
"If you are going to joke like always, you chose the wrong person," Naru said. "Did you call me in here to talk about such an insignificant matter?" Hitomi furrowed her brow.
"It may be insignificant to you, but it's important to us," she said.
"Matsumoto-san is right. It isn't insignificant," Yasuhara said. "We were just wondering what our beloved Shibuya-san and Lin-san will do from now on."
"You do not have to worry about it," Naru told him.
"Of course I'll worry about those I care about," Yasuhara said.
"Then you do not have to care about me," Naru retorted.
"It's my own free will to like whoever I want," Yasuhara said.
"It is also my own free will to do whatever I want, right?" Naru said.
"That. You don't have to say it like that, right?" Mai said. "Everybody's really worried."
"There's also the world's 'onlookers spirit'," Naru said. Mai snapped as he pushed her anger button. Mai stood up.
"Onlookers spirit, isn't that stupid?" Mai said angrily. "Why can't you be grateful and accept it? Why do you think everyone is here? Because you got sick and were hospitalized, and we were worried, right? You're stupid for not accepting other people's goodwill!"
"I never asked for it," Naru said.
"Of course it's a one-sided goodwill! But… you also need to be respectful and treat other people better when they're kind to you!" Mai yelled. "You might want to say farewell as soon as we're done with this. At least be a little more sincere in the end!" Mai was huffing and puffing from all the yelling. 'Ah… I'm so stupid too. I don't want to say things like this.'
"What… in the world made you so mad?" Naru asked with a sigh.
"Everything!" Mai said, and Bou-san had to restrain her as she raged. "The reasons why you're closing the office, I just don't like the fact that… you're hiding everything without a good reason!"
"Got it, got it," Bou-san said. "So calm down a little. Naru also has his own reasons."
"But!" Mai said.
"You don't want it to end without an explanation, right?" Bou-san asked. "So if he explains, are you going to accept it?"
"Eh?" Mai said.
"So, are you willing to explain, Naru?" Bou-san asked.
"I don't think it is necessary," Naru said.
"You're so intolerant," Bou-san said with a sigh. "Then—I want to ask some questions. Will you answer them?"
"It's a waste of time," Naru said, standing up to leave. Lin stood up too. Yasuhara and John blocked the doors.
"Sometimes it's important to waste time," Yasuhara said.
"I can get through by force," Naru said.
"Why are you so against telling everyone?" Hitomi asked. "I think by now, you know you can trust everyone here."
"..." Naru stared at her.
"Hmmm…. It'll be bad if your wounds reopen," Yasuhara said, making Naru look at him again. "But if I call the ambulance… and say that Lin-san attacked us, even the police will come. But all the things that Shibuya-san's trying to hide might be revealed as well… How about it? Can you cooperate with us?" Naru stared at Yasuhara. Naru sighed.
"… Five minutes," Naru said, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall.
"Don't be stingy, I want thirty minutes," Bou-san said.
"Fifteen minutes," Naru said.
"Okay, fifteen minutes," Bou-san said.
"Oh wait, I don't know what's going on," Ayako said as Mai sat back down next to her and Hitomi.
"But you're about to explain all the things you've been hiding, right?" Bou-san said. "Then I won't go easy on you."
'Hm? Maybe these three are planning something…?' Mai thought.
'It sounds like they know or at least suspect something already...' Hitomi thought.
"So. The first thing I want to ask… is about the name," Bou-san said.
"Name?" Mai asked.
"Don't you think it's weird that the name of the director of an office at Shibuya is name Shibuya?" Bou-san asked.
"It's not a coincidence?" Ayako asked.
"Well, there are three possibilities," Bou-san said. "One: mere coincidence. Two: he made the office in Shibuya on purpose. Three: it's an alias."
"Alias!?" Mai asked.
"If… it was me or the young boy, it would be quite impossible, but for Naru, it isn't," Bou-san said. "The most probable reason is coincidence, but there is also another thing that bothers me."
"Wh-What is it?" Mai asked.
"Do you remember what Naru said to you when we first met you?" Bou-san asked.
"Ah! You called us without honorifics!"
"You did as well."
"I remember, but..." Mai said.
"It was a weird sentence, so I remembered it," Bou-san said. "Mai called him by his nickname 'Naru the narcissist', but it didn't mean you called him without honorifics, right?"
"Ah—" Mai said, eyes widening slightly in realization.
"And one more thing..." Bou-san said. "Why does Lin call him that too? Isn't it weird?"
"Why?" Mai asked.
"Does Lin look the type who will call his boss 'Naru the narcissist'?" Bou-san asked. "If 'Naru' is a nickname that comes from 'narcissist', then Lin is definitely the only one who would not call him 'Naru', right?"
"Uh… Now that you mention it..." Mai said.
"You might… be right…" Ayako said, holding a hand to her head.
"Well, we need to ask them, but I just laid out a theory," Bou-san said. "Maybe 'Shibuya Kazuya' is an alias and 'Naru' is your real name?'
"..." Ma said as a bead of sweat slid down the side of her face. "Your real name is… Naru?" Naru smiled slightly.
'Bou-san is sharp,' Hitomi thought.
"Don't imagine too much," he told Bou-san.
"Fufufu, the fun hasn't even started yet," Bou-san said. "If your real name is 'Naru', then it wouldn't be weird even if Lin were to call you that. When I think about it and remember, I realized I've never seen any proof that 'Shibuya Kazuya' is your real name."
"Bu… But, isn't that the same for everyone?" Mai asked.
"Yeah, but we're in a different situation from Naru," Bou-san said.
"What do you mean?" Ayako asked.
"Wasn't there a time when Naru had to be hospitalized?" Bou-san asked.
"Ah, during the Yuasa High School incident—" Mai said.
"Do you remember that there was no name tag on his door?" Bou-san asked. "They write your real name on those tags, but his was blank. But this time, there was a tag that said 'Shibuya Kazuya'. Also, he refused visits the first time, but this time he didn't mind even if we visited him every day. And I don't know about last time, but this time he said he didn't have healthcare, so he was in a special part of the hospital."
'All that money,' Mai thought, remembering the stack of it that Lin had handed over when it was time to pay.
"So… That means that the last time he went to the hospital, he forgot and used his real name, and he put a blank name tag on the door?" Mai asked.
"Probably," Bou-san said.
"That means that the doctors, and also the nurses knew his real name, so he didn't want us to visit him or else we might have found out," Ayako said. "So this time he purposely said he didn't have healthcare so he could use his alias?"
"Those are… just our assumptions," Bou-san said. "However, I think that 'Shibuya Kazuya is definitely an alias." Naru smiled slightly.
"Ah! Then that's why he named himself 'Narumi', which the name's shorter version is 'Nau'!" Mai said.
"That's why he said you called him without honorifics," Bou-san said.
"Ah, I see..." Mai said.
"So, I just want to know… if 'Shibuya Kazuya' is an alias or not," Bou-san said.
"I don't feel the need to answer to you," Naru said.
"Oh, I see," Bou-san said with a sigh. "So let's move on."
"Eh? There's something else?" Mai asked.
"Of course there is," Bou-san said. "I also don't think that… Naru = 'Shibuya Kazuya' is the only weird thing. His lifestyle is also a mystery."
'You got that right,' Hitomi thought.
"Do you know why he doesn't tell anyone… his address or phone number?" Bou-san asked.
"No, no matter how many times I asked him, he didn't answer me," Mai said.
"How many times…? You're a challenger," Ayako said, sweat-dropping.
"Kind of..." Mai said, blushing a little and rubbing the back of her head.
"Right? He obviously wanted to hide where he lives," Bou-san said. "The question is, why?"
"Why… Because he's trying to hide himself from fans?" Mai said, sweat-dropping.
"There's no meaning to hiding only his home if people know where his office is," Bou-san pointed out. "Then I had an idea. Maybe if people find out about where he lives, they'll find out about… what he really wants to hide, right?"
"What he really wants to hide?" Mai asked.
"Naru's real identity," Bou-san said.
"Iden..." Mai said, only to be cut off.
"He's obviously trying to hide his identity," Bou-san said. "However, if people find out where he lives, they might find out his identity as well. That's why he hides it. Am I wrong?"
"Aren't you pushing it too much?" Naru said.
'So stubborn...' Bou-san thought, sweat-dropping.
'Identity… What is Naru's real identity?' Mai wondered. 'Isn't Naru just Naru? I feel like if I find out… something bad will happen—'
"Hey, Mai," Bou-san said.
"W-What?" Mai said, snapping out of it.
"If 'Shibuya' is an alias, it would be a problem if people had his address and looked it up and found out his real name, so I understand why he hides it," Bou-san said. "Then do you know why he hides even his phone number?"
"So… Because people can find out where he lives by the area code?"
"Ah! People can look it up in the directory?" Ayako suggested.
"If it's that, all he has to do is not put his number in the directory," Bou-san said. "What about you, Hitomi? Any guesses?"
"I have a feeling you're about to tell us anyway," Hitomi said. To be honest, she was curious about that as well.
"Then… What if Naru doesn't have a real phone number?" Bou-san said. "What if he only has a disposable phone?"
'Ah, that makes sense,' Hitomi thought.
"You mean a pre-paid phone?" Ayako asked, sweat-dropping.
"I can't imagine him living like that..." Mai said.
"Well, that's true, but… if someone who doesn't know his address calls him, and a family member or a friend picks up, it would be bad," Bou-san said.
"Ah, because the person who picked it up might say something accidentally," Mai said.
"Right," Bou-san said. "He could probably make sure people around him don't talk about his identity, but apparently he doesn't do that… No, he can't do that, so he doesn't give us his number."
"Then why doesn't he get a personal line?" Ayako asked. "It's more natural than keeping it a secret. Naru even has his own income, so that wouldn't be too hard."
"Maybe his family or landlord doesn't allow it?" Mai suggested.
"It's unlikely his family is against it," Bou-san said.
"Why?" Mai asked.
"Hey, Naru is underage, remember?" Bou-san reminded her. "Whatever he does, he needs his guardian's approval."
"Ah," Mai said. Of course.
"But he's responsible for the office," Bou-san continued. "That means—that what Naru is doing isn't opposed by his family in any way, so they wouldn't mind giving him a personal line, right?"
"I see..." Mai said. "Hmm…. Wait. Then they wouldn't mind helping him keep his identity a secret right? So maybe the landlord said no?"
"That's a possibility, but I don't think so," Bou-san said. "If he can't get a personal line even though his family isn't against it, it means that wherever Naru is living, they put him under a contract. Meaning—he's living somewhere, where he isn't allowed to get a personal line."
"Eh? Is there such a place?" Mai asked, sweat-dropping. Bou-san smiled. Hitomi's eyes widened slightly as it clicked.
'Oh, so that's it...' Hitomi thought. 'When Lin-san yelled at Naru for staring down the ghost instead of waking him, because he was in the next room, I assumed they had rented an apartment together, but….'
"It isn't a house, or an apartment," Bou-san said. "He's staying in a hotel."
"!" Mai and Ayako said.
"If he lives in a hotel, it would be bad to give out his address, since the front desk would pick it up," Bou-san said. "It might be hard to explain his situation to the front desk. He could try to get a private line, but that would be a little hard, so it's easier to hide his number."
"But why a hotel?" Mai asked. "He can go to the office from his house— wait, maybe…"
"Exactly. Naru isn't from Tokyo," Bou-san said. "He said he was looking for his older brother, right? That's probably why he came to Tokyo and started living in a hotel. He probably didn't think it would take him this long, so he never looked for a proper place to live. Am I wrong?"
"I don't feel the need to answer you," Naru replied. Bou-san sighed.
"Wait a minute, he didn't have to live in a hotel for so long just to stay in Tokyo," Ayako said. "He could have looked for his brother from home. Wasn't he looking for his brother all over Japan? That would've been cheaper and easier."
"That's true," Bou-san said. "What if his home is farther away than the distance between Tokyo and Hokkaido?"
"Huh?" Ayako said. "What's that? It's not like he's from another country," Ayako said, waving her hand. She paused. Mai's eyes widened slightly.
"… Another country—" Mai said.
"That makes… more sense than anything else," Bou-san said. "For example, he doesn't know a lot of expressions and proverbs. He doesn't know a lot of kanji either. Even in his data notes, there are yokomoji. I've seen him reading Japanese, but— I've never seen him write in Japanese."
"Ah, now that you mention it, the first time I saw him… he answered me in a weird way," Mai said, remembering when he had appeared in the classroom when they were telling ghost stories, and he had replied 'I'll be seventeen this year' when she asked what year he was in.
"Right?" Bou-san said. "If I tie it to the 'he has an alias' theory, everything makes sense. He isn't Japanese." Mai and Ayako stared at him with wide eyes.
"Bu—But, wait..." Mai said.
"He might look Japanese and speak Japanese, but he might not be Japanese," Bou-san said. "Isn't Lin the perfect example? If you think that way, it makes sense why he doesn't go to school. If he's living in a hotel, he obviously hasn't taken care of the papers to transfer here." A bead of sweat slid down Mai's face as she stared at Naru.
"So, he's Chinese, like Lin-san?" she asked.
"I thought that too at first, but I don't think that 'Naru' is a Chinese name, so we have to ask him," Bou-san said. "Where were you born, Naru?" Naru just gave them a small smile. "You're not going to answer, huh? Then I'll keep on going, okay? Next."
"Next!?" Mai exclaimed. "There's more!?"
"Yeah. Another thing that's very strange is… how he got all of the equipment," Bou-san said. "How much do you think everything is worth?"
"Who knows?" Mai said.
"It's probably a few millions," Bou-san said. Mai was shocked. "Even if he's rich, all this equipment isn't something a seventeen-year-old kid can afford. Will you answer this, Naru?"
"I can't take away Bou-san's spotlight," Naru said.
"Then… let me say one more thing," Bou-san said. "Is the office really Naru's? Don't you think it's weird that the owner of the building agreed to rent a room to an underage kid? Also about Mai and Hitomi."
"Us?" Mai said, exchanging a glance with Hitomi.
"Why doesn't he let Mai, who is a part-timer, pick up the phone, when he lets Hitomi do it? Why doesn't he let them sort the mail. Isn't that what their job is?" Bou-san asked. "Any mail that Mai and Hitomi touch is inspected by Lin first. Correct?"
"Ye-Yeah," Mai answered.
"It seems like he's trying to keep outsiders away from the phone calls and mail. Right, Hitomi-chan? You were allowed to answer the phone because you already know something. That's why you're being so quiet now, when normally you'd be jumping in with deductions of your own." Hitomi smiled wryly. She was caught.
"Eh!? Is that true, Hitomi-sempai!?" Mai asked, staring at her with wide eyes.
"I promised I wouldn't say anything," Hitomi said.
"Even now?" Bou-san asked.
"Even now," Hitomi confirmed. "It's not my secret to tell."
"I can respect that," Bou-san said.
"Then, why wasn't Hitomi trusted with the mail?" Ayako asked.
"Because… in the case of the letters, there might be a return address and also information that he might not want people to find out, so he hides it, right?" Bou-san said. "I'm guessing there are some things Hitomi still doesn't know."
"Correct," Hitomi admitted.
"I see! If 'Shibuya Kazuya' is his alias, his real name might be written on his letters," Ayako said.
"Is that what we think?" Bou-san said. "But that place is an office, so all mail comes to 'Shibuya Psychic Research'. Not to Naru's address."
"Then he doesn't have to hide it," Ayako said. Mai nodded in agreement.
"That's when I imagine a lot of things," Bou-san said with a grin. "What if the person who its addressed to is different?"
"Eh?" Mai said.
"What if 'Shibuya Psychic Research' is also… a fake name?"
"But if the name of the office is different, then the mail wouldn't arrive, right?" Mai said.
"That might be true," Bou-san said, still grinning. "There's the name 'Shibuya Psychic Research', but there's also 'SPR' at the same time. One of them must be the real name, right?"
"I don't get it… Sorry," Mai said, sweat-dropping.
"Listen, the office has to be registered," Bou-san said. "So I'm wondering which name is the one registered, since the mail doesn't need a correct recipient name… as long as it has the right address. But that doesn't mean that 'Tanaka Psychic Research'… can suddenly have a 'Shibuya Psychic Research' sign out front."
"Is it really like that?" Mai asked.
"It is," Bou-san said. "But it wouldn't be strange if 'Shibuya Psychic Research' had an 'SPR' sign, and also vice-versa. As long as 'Shibuya Psychic Research is written on the side, who knows which one is the registered name."
"No comments about this either?" Bou-san asked. Naru remained silent.
"… I still don't get it..." Mai said.
"What I mean is, 'SPR' is not an abbreviation of 'Shibuya Psychic Research,' but an actual registered name," Bou-san said. Mai held her chin. Her head would've exploded if that were physically possible. "In conclusion, the office's name must be 'SPR'. In addition, there's no meaning to 'Shibuya Psychic research'. It wouldn't matter as long as it can be abbreviated to 'SPR'. He probably named it 'Shibuya' because it's in Shibuya by coincidence. How about it?" Naru smiled.
"Even if that's true, why would I hide the mail from Hitomi and Mai if it said 'SPR' on it?" Naru asked.
"If it said 'SPR'. What if it said something else?" Bou-san asked. " 'SPR' is just the abbreviation, but what is the actual name? Let's see, what if it's 'Shimauma (zebra), Panda, Rakko(sea otter)'?" Mai laughed. "And what if the mail has the whole name written on it, not just the abbreviation? If S'himauma Panda Rakko' is written on it, even Mai would be suspicious."
"I definitely would!" she said. "For various reasons."
"I'll explain it," Bou-san said. "Why the office is named 'SPR', and it actually makes sense if I add the fact that Naru isn't Japanese, and why he hides it."
"Ah!" Ayako gasped.
"Exactly," Bou-san said. " 'Society for Psychical Research'. It's an old paranormal activity investigative organization in England. 'Shibya Psychic Reseach' is just a fake name to hide the fact that… the office is actually a Japanese branch of 'SPR'. If Naru's one of the members of the British SPR, everything would make sense. He doesn't do it for personal reasons, but for the office. There's also another thing. I can imagine why he uses an alias, and hides himself if he is a member of SPR."
"Eh?" Mai said. "Why why why? Hey, why?"
"Fufufufu, when Mai called him 'Naru' he said she was calling him without honorifics," Bou-san said. "This would make sense if he was Japanese, but it raises a question."
"W-What?" Mai asked.
"Hint: 'SPR' 'Naru'," Bou-san said. Mai tried to think of what that meant. And tried. And tried.
"I don't know!" she admitted with a vein throbbing on her fisted hand. "What kind of hint is that!?"
"As I thought," Bou-san said with a smile. "Then hint number two. Tom is a male name, but it's a nickname. What's the original name?"
"… Why is it an English pop quiz?" Mai asked.
"Just answer it," Bou-san said.
"Hm… Thomas?" Mai said.
"Correct," Bou-san said. "Mike?"
"Michael," Mai answered.
"Tony?"
"Hm… Anthony!"
"Good, good," Bou-san said. "Now it's a little harder. Dick?"
"Ugh…" Mai said. She looked at Hitomi for help, but before she could say anything, someone else answered.
"Richard," Ayako said.
"Amazing, Ayako," Mai said.
"Okay. Then—how about Naru?" Bou-san asked.
"Eh?" Mai said.
"If Naru is from England, he's an Englishman," Bou-san said. "If so, even siblings call each other without honorifics. It's actually natural to do that. So what do people who care about him do when they want to show affection?"
"Is that when they use nicknames?" Mai asked, looking at John and Hitomi, who both nodded in confirmation.
"Exactly," Bou-san said. "He was called by his nickname that only people who are close to him would use. That's why he said, 'you called me without honorifics'."
"Oh, I see… but Naru is…?" Mai asked.
"Tell her, John," Bou-san said.
"If it's Noll, it's Oliver," John said. "It's a nickname for Oliver."
'Ah, so they know...' Hitomi thought.
"Oliver..." Mai said.
"SPR's Oliver-san. Isn't there one? An important one who needs to hide himself," Bou-san said. Mai's eyes widened.
"Davis-hakase?" she said. They all stared at Naru. He stared back.
"… Is that true?" Mai asked. Naru closed his eyes.
"I don't feel the need to answer you," he said. "Are the fifteen minutes over?"
"Ah," Yasuhara said. They were. He and John stepped aside and let Naru leave. He left them in pool of silence.
",,, Don't space out now," Bou-san said. "Damn it."
"Naru said that there was no need to answer. Probably because he feels there's no need to answer if you know this much," Lin said.
"Then… does that mean Naru really is Davis-hakase…?" Mai asked. Bou-san scratched his head.
"… Oliver Davis is a SPR parapsychologist, and he's one of the youngest, but brightest members of SPR," Bou-san said. "He rarely appears in society, so his profile's unknown. It's only known that he has very strong PK. We also know that he has a sibling named Eugene Davis, who has strong spiritual powers as well. However, Eugene disappeared in Shimaguni. Davis-hakase has been looking for his brother. If the media finds out, it will be a huge commotion, and I can see it becoming an annoyance. So he hides his identity. If that's true, it makes sense that Naru knew what the place looked like, but didn't know the name. Naru used his powers, and he saw his brother come here as Davis, but had no other information about it. So he had to go around looking for his brother."
"Is that why he had my brush before?" Mai asked. "Was that also psychometry?"
"Probably to see if Mai was safe or not—he was trying to see if he could feel a death aura coming off of it," Bou-san said. "Is it sad for you?"
"..." Mai looked down. 'So, that's all it was…?' She shook her head. "But why did Hitomi-sempai and Masako know about Naru?"
"I guessed," Hitomi admitted. "And I coincidentally happened to have a clue."
"What clue?" Mai asked. Hitomi looked at Lin, wondering if it was okay to say now that everyone knew everything else. Lin nodded.
"His brother visited my grandfather and placed an order with him," Hitomi replied. "His brother left behind a picture of the two of them with the names 'Noll' and 'Gene' written on the back."
"Why didn't you say anything!?" Mai asked.
"Because I promised Naru I wouldn't," Hitomi replied. "Even as doll makers, we still protect out client's confidentiality."
"When was this?" Bou-san asked.
"After the case with the Morishitas," Hitomi answered. "I was looking for a new doll for Ayami-chan, when I happened to find it.
"What? So you knew pretty much the whole time?" Bou-san said.
"Well, I knew Naru's real name was Oliver and that he was originally from England, and that he was looking for his brother, but I didn't guess that he was the Dr. Oliver Davis until we fell down that manhole together, and I realized he must have used PK to save us," Hitomi explained.
"And Masako?" Mai asked.
"Because I had seen a video about America's 'espers'," Masako replied.
"Video?" Bou-san said excitedly. "—Perhaps that famous one?"
"Yes," Masako said.
"Video?" Mai asked.
"There's a video that shows Davis-hakase's experiment using PK," Masako said.
"The one you all mentioned before where he slammed a heavy piece of aluminum against the wall?" Hitomi asked.
"Yep, yep!" Bou-san said. "It's a very secret experiment..."
"Bou-san, your eyes are shining," Mai said, sweat-dropping.
"That video's very important, so if you aren't part of a big psychic research company, you can't have access to it," Bou-san said.
"I see," Mai and Hitomi said.
"It was quite impressive, so I still remember it," Masako said. "So when I first met Naru, I knew I had seen him before."
"That's why you asked him if you had met him before?" Mai asked.
"I remembered after the incident, and when I told him, he asked me to remain quiet about it," Masako said.
"You used it to threaten him, didn't you?" Mai asked with a vein throbbing on her head.
"She sure did," Hitomi said.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Masako said, playing innocent.
"Anyways, I feel so relieved," Ayako said with a sigh, clapping her hands. "Now he can go back to England or wherever. You're a smart, sinful monk."
"You're annoying," Bou-san said. "My head is different from yours, it isn't empty."
"Well, I'm still prettier," Ayako said.
"Excuse me?" Bou-san said with a vein throbbing on his head.
"Takigawa-san only seems like he isn't paying attention to things, but he's actually paying attention to all the little details," Yasuhara said as he and John sat down with them again. "When he started talking about it, I thought he was insane."
"So that's what you three were talking about in the corner all by yourselves," Mai said.
"I'm sorry," John apologized.
"Yeah. Hehe," Yasuhara said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I was bored and had nothing else to do," Bou-san said. "I started to actually pay attention when Naru collapsed the other day. He should have an impressive spirit cultivation, remember?"
"Yeah," Mai said.
"I don't know a lot about spirit cultivation, bu I noticed his style was unique and impressive," Bou-san said.
"Yeah, Lin-san said it looked like spirit cultivation, but it was a little different," Mai said.
"Yeah, that's when I thought it could be PK," Bou-san said. "There's already a theory that spirit cultivation is equal to PK, but that was too intense to be PK. So that's when I thought that Hakase was able to do a very intense PK. When you think about it, everything makes sense. Like the spoon. When we saw it, he was using a trick to break the spoon, but when Mai saw it, Naru was literally breaking it with his mind. If that's true, it was PK. I always thought it was unusual how good he was at gathering information. Just like that time with the doll—"
"Minnie?" Mai said.
"Yeah. He quickly said it had nothing to do with the doll, remember?" Bou-san said.
"I remember. There were times when he would pause suddenly after touching something and then ask a question that led to more information," Hitomi said.
"Like when he was walking around the school once, he said, 'were you summoning ghosts?'" Yasuhara said. "It was at my school."
"And if you think about that time with Mai, it would be weird if it was just psychometry. In addition, there was the 'fake Davis-hakase' incident," Bou-san said.
"Ah, Naru's master, Mori-san?" Mai asked. "Was he a client?"
"Yeah, why was that necessary?" Bou-san asked. "But if Naru and Mori-san are both part of SPR, everything makes sense. So all the suspicious things start to make sense..."
"I see," Mai said. "Amazing..."
"But—I could never figure out what nickname 'Naru' stood for," Bou-san said. "It's not in the name dictionary either."
"If it makes you feel any better, I'd never heard that nickname before either, and I grew up in America..." Hitomi said with a wry smile.
"Right?" Bou-san said. "Then I asked Shounen and John, and they told me."
"When you stop and think about it, there are a lot of suspicious things," Yasuhara said. "We also thought about it, and we were kind of mad at you too, Taniyama-san."
"At me!?" Mai asked, startled.
"Yeah, it's your fault," Yasuhara said. "Because you simply accepted the explanation that his name was Naru for narcissist."
"… I-I-I-I-I-I'm so sorry..." Mai said, bowing low until her head touched the floor.
"Then is there any problem, Lin?" Bou-san asked.
"I don't think so," Lin said, looking like he was trying not to laugh at Mai.
"I wanted to know why there was a need to have an office?" Bou-san asked.
"… There wasn't a lot of information about Gene..." Lin replied.
"Gene? Eugene's nickname?" Bou-san asked.
"Yes," Lin said. "We knew it would take time to find him. We couldn't come every now and then from England and we had to hide ourselves as well, so we needed a temporary address. And a person cannot cut all ties with society. So we decided to at least get an office with the excuse that we were a normal office that investigated paranormal activities."
"I see. If you had opened an 'SPR' office, you wouldn't have been able to hide yourselves," Bou-san said. "So, is Naru the head of the office?"
"Yes, he is the president," Lin replied.
"What!? Even though he's younger than you!?" Mai asked.
"Age doesn't matter, Naru has more experience and has been working longer than me," Lin said.
"That's how it is… I see..." Mai said, sweat-dropping. "What about school? Isn't Naru a high school student?"
"He's a college student," Lin replied. "He's taking some time off right now."
"C-College student? At seventeen!?" Mai asked, shocked.
"Yes," Lin said.
"He was actually that smart," Mai said, sitting in her own little corner of woe. "I can't complain that he treats me like an idiot..."
"Can I ask some more questions?" Bou-san asked.
"I'll answer if I can," Lin replied.
"Is he a British citizen?" Bou-san asked.
"Naru? Yes," Lin answered.
"But I heard 'Naru' was an American pronunciation, right?" Bou-san said, looking at John, who nodded.
"Naru lived in the U.S. until he was eight," Lin said.
"Wow. So his parents are half Japanese?" Bou-san said.
"But Professor Davis is fully British," Lin said. "Naru and Gene are adopted. They were both orphans who were adopted by Professor Davis."
'I see… Naru was an orphan. I wonder if that was why he was so sympathetic to Mai's situation...' Hitomi thought.
"Also, Eugene was the only one who called Naru that way," Lin added.
"I… see… Naru is also… different from me,' Mai thought. 'Naru had an older brother, but… even that older brother...' They were all silent. They all felt for Naru. "Ahm… Then Naru will return to England when his brother's body is found, right? That's why he said he's closing the office. I think… I can finally accept it. I think..." 'If he returns this way, we might not meet him again. It's just like Masako said… We will never meet him again…'
"AH!" Yasuhara said loudly, startling everyone.
"What is it, Shounen?" Bou-san asked, trying to calm his rapidly beating heart.
"I—just realized something," Yasuhara said. "Takigawa-san admires Davis-hakase, right?"
"Eh," Bou-san said, not liking where this was going.
"Then… It means you're a huge fan of Shibuya-san's!" Yasuhara said with a sparkling smile.
"YHAAA—A!" Bou-san exclaimed.
"Oh yeah! Even Hakase knows you're his huge fan," Mai said.
"Since you praised him right in front of him," Hitomi said.
"Isn't it nice that you were able to talk with him a lot?" Ayako asked, grinning.
"Are you not going to get his autograph?" Yasuhara asked.
"Don't say it like that. Stop! I'm trying not to think about it!" Bou-san said, holding his red face.
'That was close,' Mai thought. 'I was about to cry. Good job, Yasuhara-san.'
"When you recorded that, didn't Naru collapse?" Bou-san asked. "He did throw something that was fifty KG."
"He didn't use to collapse; also, Eugene amplified his power," Lin said.
"What do you mean?" Hitomi asked.
"I don't understand either, but… when Naru sent Gene energy, Gene amplified it and sent it back. That was how it worked. And the more they did it, the stronger the power got, so he didn't collapse," Lin explained.
"… What?" Bou-san said, furrowing his brow.
"I don't understand it very well, since Naru didn't do a lot of psychic experiments," Lin said. "Because of the experiment, he got exhausted more easily, and he didn't really have an interest in psychic experiments."
"I see… so cool," Mai said.
"… Can I request something?" Lin asked.
"What is it?" Bou-san asked.
"Please keep all of this a secret," Lin asked.
"Understood," Bou-san said.
"But is it that necessary?" Ayako asked. "There are a lot of psychics on TV right now."
"The media's greedy, so they will find the story amusing and explore it as much as they can," Lin said.
"That's true, but still!" Ayako said.
"A psychometric psychic is the type with the least freedom," Lin said. "The media will eventually get tired of it, but some people wont'. How many letters do you think Naru received everyday before coming to Japan?"
"Letters?" Mai said.
"Between twenty and fifty letters, all asking for help. Asking him to look for missing relatives," Lin said. "It's not a problem is the missing person is alive, but they are usually dead. But everyone who asks for help are hoping that those missing people are alive. So when he tells them that their loved one is dead, he is hated, not thanked."
"… That is true..." Mai said.
"And he experiences it every time?" Hitomi asked, furrowing her brow with concern. She was sad and horrified for Naru.
"Yes. He's too good," Lin said. "If the only thing he found out was that the person's dead, it wouldn't be a problem. But he can feel the death with his own body."
"That's like that time when Mai was dreaming..." Ayako said, horrified. As was Mai. She remembered how awful it was.
"In extreme cases, he gets injured," Lin said. "It's just a split second of implied effect."
"!" Hitomi said, the crease in her brow deepening. She hadn't known that.
"There's such a thing!?" Mai asked.
"Yes. Depending on the medium, he or she can get injured at the same place as the dead person or feel strong numbness," Lin said. "So Naru only uses psychometry in extreme cases, and only accepts certain requests."
"That… explains why he runs away from the media," Bou-san said.
"Yeah… I was wondering why he still refuses big cases, but now I understand," Mai said. She remembered when she asked him if he knew how it felt to be killed. 'Just because I didn't know anything, I said something terrible that time.'
"Also..." Lin said.
"?" Mai said.
"No. Please, I'm counting on you," Lin said.
—∞—
Hitomi walked through the woods until she found Naru. He was leaning against a tree. She leaned against it on the side, next to him.
"Any progress?" she asked.
"Not yet," Naru replied. They stood there in silence for a few minutes.
"… I can accept why you want to close the office…" Hitomi said. She looked at him. "But I'm not okay with not seeing you again." She was close to tears at the thought.
"As usual, you get right to the point," Naru said. He looked at her. "Why are you not okay with it?" Hitomi almost laughed.
"Do you really have to ask?" she said. He continued to stare at her. She blushed and resisted the temptation to look away. "I'm in love with you." It felt like an eternity before he answered.
"Come to England with me."
"Eh?" she said, surprised.
"We have better equipment at the main branch," Naru said. "We can get better readings on your abilities."
'He wants to study me?' Hitomi thought, sweat-dropping. "I wouldn't be able to stay too long," she said with a sigh. "I have a lot of projects lined up, and I can't make my dolls just anywhere."
"… That is a problem," Naru said. He held his chin. "I see… It can't be done 'just anywhere'."