Chapter 26 – The Ups and Downs of an Outsider's Life
At first, Kyouichi thought he'd be able to stay calm and endure all of Hiroto's provoking remarks and occasional bullying, but it only got worse with each passing day. It was just a matter of time when things would escalate to the point of open conflict between the two. For an entire week Kyouichi just shrugged off Hiroto's insults and his attempts to discredit him in front of Shimizu-san. In his mind he pitied Hiroto and laughed at his childish behavior, but by the end of the week, things really stared to get out of hand. It was no secret that Hiroto hated all outsiders just as much as Naota hated all the youkai. He kept constantly expressing his hatred to outsiders and in no uncertain terms. But when words were gradually replaced by provoking prods and even slaps, Kyouichi had just about enough.
"Will you just leave me the hell alone?!" he yelled at Hiroto as he pushed him away from himself. Of course, Daisuke was not in the shop at that moment.
Hiroto grinned like an idiot. "Oh, so you'd like to fight, outsider, eh? Then let's take it outside!" he cracked his knuckles. "Come on, outsider! You wouldn't want to dirty Shimizu-san's books with your blood, would you?"
"I don't want to fight. I just want you to get off my back."
"You don't want to fight? You don't want to fight?!" he repeated while pushing Kyouichi towards the door. "Then I hope you won't mind me taking a few whacks at your skull, four-eyes!"
Hiroto grabbed Kyouichi by the throat, opened the door and shoved him out on the street. It was still raining quite a bit and there were no people on the street to stop the upcoming fight.
"I heard you had your arm broken recently." remarked the outsider as he was getting up from the ground. "And now you're in a risk of getting fired… Not only that, but perhaps even arrested."
"Hahahahaha~!" Hiroto laughed madly. "There are at least two brawls in the one of the taverns in the village every week! Do you really think they arrest everyone who gives someone a punch in the face?" he asked and charged forward. Kyouichi attempted to block his punch but Hiroto was so strong that he knocked Kyouichi down even through his defense.
"Whew… at least he didn't break my nose…" exhaled the outsider with relief as he was standing up again.
"And besides…" continued Hiroto and kicked Kyouichi right in the ribs as he was standing up. "I never said I liked working in the bookstore."
Kyouichi held his hand over the place where he got kicked. This time Hiroto let him stand up.
"So, what about now? Do you still not want to return that pain back, outsider?" he taunted him. "Don't worry, I won't be cheating by using spells or weapons… Just you and me up close and personal…"
Kyouichi just stood there, trying to catch his breath again and Hiroto took it as a cue to hit him again.
"If you're not going to make a move, then I will!" he charged for another attack.
Kyouichi again just tried to evade. Hiroto's first punch missed, second one was blocked, but he surprised the outsider by a quick kick in the chest, again knocking him down.
"Come, on outsider! At least pretend to be defending yourself… Picking on such a wimp is no fun at all."
Kyouichi helplessly looked at the both ends of the street, hoping there'll be someone to help him, but there wasn't anybody. Hiroto was starting to lose his patience with him when he wasn't standing up. He walked up to him grabbed him by his hair and put him into a headlock.
Now, the young outsider was really afraid of him. Unable to put his arms into a block, he got assaulted by Hiroto's repeated knee strikes in the chest and solar plexus. One particularly unpleasant kick knocked the air out of his lungs. As soon as Hiroto released the headlock, he grabbed him under the shoulders, lifted him off the ground and tossed him forward; almost making him hit the building across the street. Kyouichi lay there on his back, pain shooting up in his head, ribs and stomach, his vision was getting blurry. "Stop… Somebody, make him stop…" he thought.
Suddenly, the door on the building he was lying in front of opened and bumped into his head. "Ow…!"
Somebody was just trying to go outside, but they couldn't open the door, since he was lying in the way.
"Ow... ow… ow…" he murmured in monotone as the person trying to open the door repeated his or her attempt. "Don't mind me… I'm just takin' a breather…" he uttered to whoever was at the other side of the door. By this time, Hiroto was already standing over him. He grabbed him by the collar of his kimono and picked him up. "What's the matter, you wuss? Had enough already?" he shook him back and forth violently.
Kyouichi was mentally preparing himself for another series of hits, when he heard the door behind him finally opened and closed. Hiroto lifted the outsider again with his powerful arms and was about to throw him again, but instead, he just dropped him down this time. Kyouichi landed on his feet for a change and gave Hiroto a confused look. Hiroto looked back with the same confused face and he tilted his head to the side.
"Seriously, man… Just stop it already…" wheezed Kyouichi beggingly.
Hiroto's eyes suddenly widened and his mouth opened in shock. He pointed his index finger at Kyouichi and let out a terrified scream.
"WAAAAAAAH~!"
Then, in a blink of an eye he turned away and sprinted towards the marketplace, flailing his arms in panic. "Please, don't kill me!" he called from the distance and the next second, he was gone. If this was an anime or a manga, Kyouichi would probably have a huge question mark flashing over his head right now.
"Huh….?" he stared in amazement in the direction of the marketplace. "What the beep was that all about?" he asked himself.
"Good afternoon~ ." sounded a greeting from behind his back.
He turned around to see Yuuka Kazami, who just left the flower shop. She was standing there with her parasol opened; now serving as an umbrella. In her left hand she held a basket full of flowers of different kinds. Despite the unpleasant rainy weather, she was still smiling like a sunflower.
"Oh… Yuuka-san. Good afternoon." he greeted her and bowed slowly, because the pain in his ribs still persisted.
"Wasn't that the son of a Ryuuken captain just now?" wondered the youkai lady.
"Oh, he's a son of a… yeah, a Ryuuken captain. His name's Hiroto Yukiyama." specified Kyouichi, who was still confusedly staring at the end of the street where Hiroto ran. "I swear… I have never seen someone run so fast…" he remarked admiringly. "It could even be a world record…"
"Ah, so his broken arm finally healed up…" said Yuuka thoughtfully. "Is he causing you trouble?"
"Trouble? Well… for the first few days it was bearable, but it seems that he doesn't like outsiders much…" shrugged Kyouichi and tried to dust off his clothes. "Then again, I don't think he likes anybody at all… But how do you know about his broken arm? Are you two friends or something?"
Yuuka giggled amusedly. "I met him just once about one month ago~ . I think he was headed for the Scarlet Devil Mansion…"
"Wait… A month ago? That could be on the day when he got his arm broken…" deduced the young outsider. "Did you meet him on that road?" he pointed west, towards the farmlands and the road that stretched all the way to the Forest of Magic.
"Yes~ ." nodded the young flower youkai. "At first I didn't notice him as he walked towards me, but then he suddenly charged at me. I thought he was a thief who wanted to steal my precious umbrella, so I grabbed his wrist as he tried to reach for it. I guess that's when his fragile little bone cracked~ ." she explained with unsettlingly sweet voice and smile.
"S-So you're the youkai he provoked into a fight, just to prove he was worthy of joining the Ryuuken?!" asked Kyouichi in disbelief. He felt a sudden wave of anger building up inside him. "What a bastard!"
"Oh, so he actually wanted to fight~ ? Really? I don't know why he didn't challenge me to a formal duel then…"
"But… wow… You broke his arm… just like that?" he wondered. "…Come to think of it… I've heard a rumor that Hiroto's arm was broken by a very dangerous and powerful youkai and that he can be happy that he still lives…" he thought in his mind, but as he looked at the cutely smiling Yuuka, he immediately shook his head. "Nah…" He did guess that Yuuka could be stronger than a human, but she didn't look the least bit like a dangerous youkai. "Even Marisa said that Yuuka was kind of cute, so she must be…"
"If he's giving other people trouble, maybe I could… talk some sense into him~ ." she suggested, nonchalantly spinning the umbrella in her hand.
"Oh, you don't need to bother, Yuuka-san. I'm going to quit working here anyway…" said Kyouichi and beckoned at the bookstore. "There are other ways to earn money. And with people who don't hate you for not being born in the same village as them."
"So you're not going to work in the bookstore? Because of Hiroto?"
"Yeah… He can stay here with Shimizu-san. I'll try my luck elsewhere."
"Maybe you could work in a flower shop~ ." Yuuka suggested and widened her smile.
"Hehe…" chuckled the outsider. "Maybe… Who knows? Oh, and speaking of flowers, I've got something here for you, Yuuka-san." he returned the smile and began searching his kimono.
"Something….for me…?" she looked at him curiously. "What could it be~ ?"
"I think you'll like it…" he replied without giving away the surprise. "Now, where did I put it?" he muttered as he was searching his pockets. "Aah… there you are… Okay, Yuuka-san, please close your eyes and open your hand."
Yuuka blinked a few times in surprise, and then she put down the basket with flowers gently on the ground and did as Kyouichi asked her. She felt a sensation of something light being placed on her hand.
"You can open your eyes now." said Kyouichi once he gave her a little present.
She curiously tilted her head as she observed the small package in her hand. "What's this?" she wondered.
"Exactly what it says on the pack." smiled Kyouichi, and waited for Yuuka's reaction.
The flower youkai looked more closely and muttered: "Hibiscus Arnottianus…" Oddly enough, it was when Yuuka became surprised or curious that she wasn't smiling as always.
"I remember you were looking for those…" said the outsider. "It really surprised me too when I found those seeds in Kourindou. Even though, they have lots of stuff from the outside, this really wasn't something I expected to find. (It almost makes me believe in that stuff about fate that Remilia was talking about.) I immediately remembered you when I saw this."
Yuuka's ruby-red eyes focused on the packet of hibiscus seeds. She tore open the small bag and took out a single seed. She stared at it curiously as she rolled it between her fingers. Then she clasped it inside her hand and as she opened it, a beautiful blooming white flower appeared. It was like seeing a magician's trick, only better. The flower just kept growing larger and larger before Kyouichi's eyes. But even the flower's beauty paled in comparison to Yuuka's following joyful smile. It wasn't her usual smile – it was something much more beautiful. Kyouichi couldn't think of any other word than "adorable" as he looked at her.
While Yuuka was mesmerized by the blooming hibiscus in her palm, Kyouichi noticed that some people showed up on the street. One of them he could recognize even from a distance.
"Yo, Naota-san!" he waved at the old man.
Naota noticed him and walked up to Kyouichi a little faster.
"Hey there, Naota-san. You're not going to believe what just happened to me…" he started as the old man was within earshot, but Naota ignored his words, grabbed him by the sleeve and pulled him away towards the marketplace.
"W-What's going on?! Hey, what are you doing?"
Yuuka curiously looked at Kyouichi being dragged away by the old man.
"Just wait here a moment, Yuuka-san, okay? I think Naota-san here wants to talk to me in private about something…" he called at the flower youkai and waved his hand.
Yuuka just stood there and waved back.
"Alright, alright, I'm coming with you, Naota-san, you don't have to drag me… Geez…" said the young outsider as he freed his arm from the old man's grip. Just as they reached the far end of the street at the edge of the marketplace, Naota stopped and gave him a serious stare. Kyouichi could predict something wasn't right about Naota's look and just as the old carpenter swung his palm at him, he ducked and evaded the slap.
"Haha…" chuckled Kyouichi amusedly. "You know, I was kind of expecting you'd do something like that, Naota-san, but trust me, I didn't start that fight. It was Hiroto…"
"What the hell are you talking about?!" growled the retired carpenter. "More importantly, what the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"Uhh… I'm talking to you?"
"What did I tell you about not hanging around with youkai?!"
"That old story again? Look, Naota-san I know that you hate them all indiscriminately and I don't even know why… Gensokyo is their home after all, not ours. Every normal human here has at least one youkai friend…"
"That would probably not bother me as much, kid." said the old man and hushed his voice. "But why on Earth did you decide to mingle with one of the deadliest of youkai in Gensokyo?!"
Kyouichi raised his eyebrow disbelievingly. "Yuuka-san? Dangerous? What makes you say that?"
"Trust me, kid, I've heard many rumors about a horribly powerful youkai, supposedly even stronger than a dozen oni and that she kills people and other youkai just for fun… And THAT youkai over there…" he pointed at Yuuka, "…fits the descriptions very well."
"Oh, I see… You've heard rumors…" said the young man, hinting sarcasm. "I've heard quite a few of them myself. For instance, that excessive alcohol consumption can have negative effects on the brain in the long run."
"I'm just trying to keep you away from danger, kid. Stay away from that youkai if you know what's good for you…"
"But you and your rumors don't even make any sense!" argued Kyouichi. "Do you seriously think that the Ryuuken guards would let a murderous youkai walk around the Human Village so freely? Besides… just look at her." he turned his head at Yuuka, who was now making hibiscus flowers bloom on the ground in front of the flower shop. "She's just so… so… moe~!"
"What the hell does that even mean?!" bellowed the old man.
"You don't know what's moe? What kind of anime fan are you…? Oh, wait…" Kyouichi paused himself as he realized that Naota probably didn't even know what anime was. "Well, just look at how sweet she is… That's moe… Yes. A youkai moe~."
Since this popular slang word literally means "budding" it was really appropriate for a youkai with the power of plant manipulation.
"One thing you should learn about the youkai, kid – never judge them by their appearance." lectured the old outsider.
"I never did that in the first place… Now if you excuse me, I'm still on job." said Kyouichi and without even bowing to the old man, he walked back towards the bookstore. Yuuka was still standing there, as if she was waiting.
"What did that man want from you?" she wondered.
"Oh, nothing really… Anyway, do you like the hibiscus flowers?"
"Yes~ . It's been so long since I've seen them. Now I can make my garden even prettier~ ."
"Glad you like them." nodded the young outsider. "Think of it as a… as a parting gift or a memento or… whatever…"
The flower youkai bowed gently. "Thank you. Now that I think about it, I remember I told Yukari once that I was looking for hibiscus…"
"Well, I did find those seeds in Kourindou, so maybe she got them for you, but was too… uhh… preoccupied to bring them to you personally." speculated Kyouichi. "But did you know that she's not in Gensokyo anymore?"
Yuuka didn't change her expression. "This doesn't surprise me. She likes going outside… of Gensokyo I mean. I hope she shows up soon, though."
"Well, I'm not waiting for her any longer than autumn. Then, me and a bunch of other outsiders are leaving through the shrine."
"It would be really bothersome if Yukari didn't show up until then."
"We might not need her help anyway." Kyouichi muttered and remembered that he still has to return to the shop which was left unattended for almost 15 minutes now. "Alright, Yuuka-san, I think I should return back to the shop already. Until next time…" he bowed to her hurried back into the bookstore.
There was still nobody inside, which was good. He could at least have a moment of piece and quiet from both Hiroto and Daisuke. While he was sitting on the chair behind the counter and waiting for his boss to return, he was thinking about how to tell him that he no longer wants to work for him. He was a bit reluctant to part with this simple job, but also eager to try something different. After all, it was all the same to him, since one day, he'd leave Gensokyo anyway. Now that he thought about it and realized that he'd spend yet another 3 months there, he had a feeling that he should enjoy those three months to the fullest. He wanted to make many good memories of events that he experienced and people he met. His thoughts took him to an event in the near future – the Tanabata festival at the Hakurei Shrine. He was really looking forward to it. It was supposedly one of the few days in year when many people and youkai gather to drink, feast and celebrate and one of the few days when Reimu actually gets any donations. Apart from that, he still remembered that he wanted to visit the village of Kazemura and the day he and his Ryuuken acquaintance agreed upon was tomorrow. Brooding about being unable to return to Tokyo the easy way was pointless. Instead, Kyouichi decided to take things optimistically.
Almost an hour has passed before Daisuke returned to the bookstore together with Hiroto. Both of them had calm faces, as if nothing happened. Kyouichi nodded to his inner voice and stood up from the chair.
"Shimizu-san, I've been thinking this over for quite some time now and have come to a conclusion…"
"What conclusion are you talking about, Ishimaru?" wondered the storekeeper, surprised by Kyouichi's unusual formal tone. "And why are you all wet and dirty?"
"Oh, I'm surprised your reliable old assistant hasn't told you yet…" smirked the outsider and gave Hiroto a sharp stare. "The conclusion I was talking about was my decision about working in the Starlight Glyph. It wasn't a sudden decision, and for a few days I was hesitant about it. But not anymore… I've decided to terminate my job contract with you, Shimizu-san. For the better of me, you, and Yukiyama-san…"
Hiroto put on a grimace of surprise and amusement. "Awww~. Say it ain't so…" he drawled in sarcastic manner.
After a long moment of silence, Daisuke raised his head again to look Kyouichi in the eyes. "Are you really sure about that, Ishimaru?"
"Oh, absolutely." nodded Kyouichi and crossed his arms. "I would have left anyway once I'd get the chance to return to my real home. That chance hasn't come yet… or at least, not in a form as I expected, but we, the outsiders, are going to make our own chance. Or perhaps not make… this chance was already here all along and still is, but I was too blind to see it… Too focused on searching for the youkai of boundaries to realize that THIS is actually the easier way… The gateway of the Hakurei Shrine. All that is left to do is to make proper preparations for our long trip and then we set out."
"It was about time. Good riddance." murmured the arrogant son of a Ryuuken captain.
"Sorry for sounding so melodramatic, boss, I just got a little carried away…" apologized Kyouichi while chuckling weakly. "Oh, and don't worry, Hiroto-san, I'm not angry at you at all… Hopefully you'll make it to the militia one day, but remember that being a Ryuuken also means providing help and protection to outsiders…" he added and grinned provokingly. "Oh, and I almost forgot – Yuuka-san sends her regards."
The sudden change of expression on both Daisuke's and Hiroto's faces was simply priceless. Kyouichi could easily guess what made Hiroto become afraid of her, but why did Daisuke also tremble in fear? Was it because he was worried that Yuuka might associate him as a friend of the man who attacked her? Or perhaps he heard the same rumors as Naota did? That Kyouichi didn't know, but he couldn't hide his snickering as he thought about what will Hiroto and his boss do, if Yuuka ever comes to the bookstore again.
By the time Kyouichi's final shift at the Starlight Glyph ended, the rain outside stopped completely, but it was still cloudy. Daisuke paid him his week's wage, shook his hand and wished him good luck. He said that he'll need it.
"Thanks, Shimizu-san… And good luck with your business too…" smiled the outsider and with money in his pockets, he left the bookstore. Just as he stepped outside, he remembered that Marisa's father's shop is on the same street and that the man wanted to see him again. Having no other duties for today, Kyouichi decided to at least check out what kind of shop it was. It was a supposedly in Kirisame-san's house, so Kyouichi just knocked right on the door.
Nobody was coming, but the door opened by itself.
"Huh?" uttered Kyouichi surprisedly.
He peeked inside and saw Kirisame-san standing behind a table full of some unknown miscellaneous items. This time, Kyouichi couldn't brag that he knew what each of the objects was used for, unlike the goods at Kourindou.
"Oh...! Young outsider!" the man recognized him, but couldn't recall his name. "I thought you'd never come to visit me… Come in, come in." he beckoned him to step inside the little shop "Welcome to Kirisame-ya – my little second-hand shop!" He looked at Kyouichi with a little confused face. "Uh… Had a hard day?" he asked when he noticed his clothes soaked with rainwater and dirty with mud.
"It could be better, I suppose." shrugged the outsider. "So… Marisa told me that she came to see you about a week ago."
"Ah, yes, yes…" nodded the robed man. "My Marisa… It was really nice to have her visit me after so long. And I've heard that it was you who asked her to come here." Kirisame-san smiled and turned around to pick up something from a tall wooden shelf behind him. "I'd like you to have a little something for your trouble…" he turned back to the outsider and offered him a small object shaped like a magnifying glass with smooth black metallic frame and a very unusual glass. It was as if it could randomly change colors.
"What's that?" he asked before he dared to touch it.
"This is the so called magic detector. It works on the same principle as its more advanced version used by the Ryuuken warriors. It can detect the essence of magic within a fifty meter radius." Kirisame-san explained excitedly as if it was his own invention. Come to think of it, it probably was.
"Uhh… excuse me, Kirisame-san, but… what use will I have for it? I'm just an outsider."
"Oh, it can be very useful, young man. Especially for you. It can even detect youkai when they get near and even give you an approximate idea where they are."
"Now that really does sound useful." nodded Kyouichi. "Thank you very much…"
"No, mister… uh… outsider, I thank you for helping me arrange a reunion with my daughter. Hope this little device helps you stay away from danger. Or maybe it will help you find some lost magical item of even greater value… Who knows?"
"Hey, maybe I could check out those ruins at Kazemura with this thing…" thought Kyouichi aloud. "If the Ryuuken haven't done so already."
"Oh, just a little word of advice – if you get too close to the barrier, for instance at the Hakurei Shrine, the strong magical resonance will render the detector useless."
"O-kay, and how will I know that it detected something?"
"There are two ways to use it. First option is to use its default detection field which works by emitting low-intensity neutral mana particles and recalling them subsequently once they travel a distance of 50 meters. When the particles collide with any form of magic, they usually change their element into that of the other mana particles, and once they are channeled back into the detector, they project an image on the glass as a colorful flashing dot. To demonstrate how it works, I'm going to cast a simple illuminating spell…" the mage raised his palm and murmured a silent incantation. Suddenly, a small bright light appeared in his palm.
"Now take a look at the detector."
Kyouichi lowered his head and looked at the strange magnifying glass in his hand. He could see a small yellow dot appear just a little off the center of the glass.
Kirisame-san kept explaining. "Your position is always at the center of the glass, so if I'm standing in front of you, you'll see some magic being detected just a little closer to the upper edge of the glass. If there was something magical behind you, a dot would appear closer to the lower edge…"
"Wow, it's almost like sonar!" said Kyouichi in amazement.
"Eh…what?"
"Umm… never mind." he muttered while waving his hand. "What about it's second use?"
"Pretty much the obvious…" shrugged the father of Marisa. "To look directly through the glass like if you were using a monocle. That way you can see magical essence a bit further than 50 meters and in much greater detail, but that way you narrow your scanning field to just your field of vision."
Kyouichi was tempted to try it out, so he held the glass close to his right eye and looked through it. Not only he could see a bright yellow aura around the illuminating spell, but also a similar aura around Kirisame-san himself and a whole color spectrum around several objects placed on his table.
"This is cool…" he grinned like a kid who got a whole box of candy. "Now it almost looks like a kaleidoscope."
"That's because you're looking at my merchandise, which is mostly magical. Different colors represent different magic elements, although, not in all cases. But I'm not going to give you a long tiring lecture about different kinds of magic when I know that you won't be able to learn it. Suffice to say that any unusual color or movement that you'll see through the eye of this detector and not with your naked eyes is magic. Even if you'll look at people who were born in Gensokyo, you'll se their aura. It should be fairly obvious to you by now that it doesn't detect normal objects, animals and outsiders. Otherwise you'd see a bright dot in the middle of the glass in its default mode."
"I see… This will really come in handy. Thanks again, Kirisame-san." bowed the outsider thankfully. "Guess taking a look at your shop was really worth it…"
The magician waved his hand. "No problem… And try not to lose it."
"I'll do my best." he reassured him. "By the way… It's very clever how you managed to refurnish this room into a shop." he said on a side note as he admired the interior.
Kirisame-san chuckled dryly. "Yeah… Imagine that I've got a kitchen just behind that door." he gestured at the closed door by his left side. "Anyway, feel free to come visit my shop again sometime. Who knows? Maybe one day I'll invent magic scrolls that even outsiders could use."
Kyouichi could sense that Kirisame-san wasn't too serious about his last sentence, but even if he did come up with something like that, it would be probably when Kyouichi and most of the other outsiders would no longer be in Gensokyo.
"See you next time, Kirisame-san!" called the young outsider from the doorway as he was leaving the shop with magic items. "…Maybe…" he muttered once the door closed behind him.
He hid his new gift within the safety of his pocket and as he listened to his growling stomach, he marched back to his "home" – the Saitou residence. This day was somewhat sinusoidal for him. He got ridiculed at school, he got beat up by his colleague, he made one youkai happy, he quit his part-time job and he received a special gift. He truly couldn't complain about boredom today, but at the same time, he hoped he wouldn't have to experience too many days like this in his near future. However, he already had to prepare himself for tomorrow's long walk to a place near the northern edge of Gensokyo. As he heard from a few people who travel between the villages regularly, the trip from Human Village to Kazemura on foot could take up to six and a half hours.
After he satisfied his stomach with zoni soup and fried eel, which were today's dinner of the Saitou family, his body simply begged for a nice relaxing bath. As he was sitting in the ofuro filled with steamy hot water, he was contemplating about what sort of part-time job he should be looking for now. He didn't want to end up unemployed and penniless. However, he didn't even have any idea about what sort of job he would want to do. Although he could already make a pretty long list of what he didn't want to do.
After a half an hour, he shook himself awake upon realizing that he nodded off in his bath. He reminded himself to be more careful about that, since he could have easily ended up drowning himself. The water was already getting cold, and his body was thoroughly soaked. Kyouichi swiftly got out of the ofuro and dried himself up. Even though the two siblings, Chitose and Tadao were curious to hear about his little incident with Hiroto, Kyouichi was too tired to stay awake for much longer and he headed straight for his futon in the guest room. Before that, he asked Mizuto to wake him up before dawn, so he could be already standing ready outside to meet up with Lieutenant Takamori and set out to the mining village.
Despite what he expected after such an eventful day, Kyouichi had little trouble falling asleep. But his slumber didn't last nearly as long as he would like it to.