A/N: Hi! The art dump (on AO3) has been updated again to include some Aged-up NaruMai art if you'd like to check it out!

*Warning for mention of suicide in this chapter*

Mai's thoughts = Italics

Gene talking = Bold italics


Previously…

Hey, Gene?

Yeah?

Crushes go away eventually, right?

Sometimes.

Well, I think mine can. I'll make it go away. She nodded her head in triumph.

Gene raised a single brow at her declaration. If Mai couldn't distinguish between infatuation and real feelings, then he didn't know how to help her. At least this meant things were going to get interesting.

If you say so, Mai.


Case Five—Part 1

Despite what her friends liked to call it, her study session with Takata was surprisingly pleasant. First, it was her work family teasing about it, and then as soon as her school friends found out, they couldn't stop talking about it either. Date this, date that.

It was exhausting.

No matter how many times she told them she wasn't interested in any relationship, they kept rattling on about it.

Because of their incessant teasing, she met him with apprehension and pre-conceived judgment. All it took was a few minutes of chatting for her to realize that she was being a huge utter fool. He was just a friendly guy. He didn't shower her with pick-up lines or flirting like she expected.

It just reminded her how ignorant she was about the world of dating—manga and otome games didn't count.

"I heard this café has really cute latte art," Takata said, looking at the menu after they set up their study materials. "Morimoto from class D got one of Doraemon and Shin-chan."

Mai raised her brows. "In the same mug? With what space?"

"It was one of those extra-wide mugs. Here, he sent me a picture," he said, pulling up the picture on his phone. She leaned forward before eventually taking his phone to zoom-in closer in awe. "Isn't it cool? I can barely make one cup of coffee yet they can make this so quick."

She nodded, handing him his phone back. "I never drink coffee, so I didn't know this café was so known for their art."

"What do you usually get?"

"Fruit or milk teas. I've never been a big fan of coffee, but I kind of want to order one just for the art."

Takata looked thoughtful for a minute. "I was planning on ordering one anyway, so you can just choose the art on mine."

Mai shook her head, waving her hands in the air. "N-no, it's okay! I'm sure you have something else in mind."

He scratched his cheek. "Actually, I have no clue. I just want latte art, so you'd be helping me out with an idea."

Mai blinked, suddenly feeling bashful. "Oh, um, okay. Thanks."

She ended up asking for a bunny latte art in tribute to Usa-sama while she ordered her own matcha milk tea. When the latte finally came, the two "ooh-ed" and "ah-ed" long enough for the drink to cool down.

When it came time to sip, they both made eye contact in anticipation, no one moving. It wasn't until Takata started laughing that Mai relaxed and joined in out of the absurdity of the situation.

"I'll be honest," he started, "I don't want to drink it. It's too cute."

Mai studied him for a moment, resting her cheek in her hand. Before she processed what she was thinking, she blurted out, "You're a lot different than I thought you would be."

His brows raised. "What makes you say that?"

Her cheeks grew hot when she realized how rude she must have sounded. "I didn't mean it in a bad way! I just… I don't know. A lot of guys at school can be a little arrogant or super boyish, but you're not like that at all. You're down to earth, kind of like my friend, John."

He smiled, shrugging. "No offense taken. I have sisters so they've probably rubbed off on me," he said. "Is this 'John-san' the foreigner with the Kansai accent?"

"Yup! He's like an older brother I can confide in," she said, smiling at the thought of John's patience and kindness.

"You seem to really get along with your coworkers. Watching you with them at the park, I would never have thought you weren't just a group of friends."

She nodded, mixing her milk tea slowly with a soft expression. "Yeah… I suppose we do get along well," she said, looking up to find him watching her with a faint smile on his face.

A light blush dusted his cheeks as he averted his gaze after being caught. "Anyway, we should get studying. I'm having a hard time with comma use," he said quickly, looking down at his notebook.

Mai absentmindedly nodded, her heart beating faster.

I think he was just watching me.

You think?

What do I do?!

You've never been on a date before, have you?

This isn't a date!

And I'm alive. Just be yourself, Mai. Heck, if you really don't want to think of it as a date, try studying like he said.

And study she did.

She couldn't even accuse Takata of using studying as an excuse for a date; his English skills were actually atrocious. And Mai couldn't even say she was that great at English either. She had merely busted her ass to get this far. She even spent hours on WeTube trying to improve her "l" pronunciation with merely passable results.

"Why do I feel like we're taking completely different English classes?" Takata asked, comparing their notes. Her notes were far more detailed with paraphrasing and explanations—ignoring the doodles on the margins that looked oddly like her coworkers.

"I try to learn a little on my own too," she said, shrugging.

"Do you do this for all your classes? I'm surprised you're not at the top of the class." He referred to the grade postings displayed on a bulletin board to encourage competition. While Mai wasn't at the top, she also wasn't at the bottom either. With all the ball busting she'd been doing, she managed to secure herself in the upper half.

"Not as much as English."

"Why? Are you planning on becoming an interpreter or something?"

Mai played with the corner of a notebook page as she debated telling him. No one knew about her plans yet, not even Gene.

"I was thinking of studying abroad after high school. Maybe for a year or something, at least for my general classes," she said, still fidgeting with the page.

"Wow, really? That's so cool! Won't it be expensive, though?"

"I talked to a few advisors and they said that if I can get this one scholarship, I could be fully sponsored. I would complete a year overseas and then return here to finish my degree!" she said, excited thinking about the idea. Then, her face dropped when she remembered the requirements. "But I have to take an extra entrance exam and score really high marks."

Takata sent her a sympathetic look. "Good luck. You'll need it with all that work, but I know you can do it," he said, giving her thumbs up.

She grinned. "Thanks. What are your plans?"

"I don't know… I could help my parents out with the shop, but they want me to go to college and work in a stuffy office," Takata said, rolling his eyes as he watched people walk by the window. "First, I just gotta survive these exams. Between English and math, I'm gonna be destroyed."

Mai could understand that sentiment. Mathematics was easily her weakest subject, hence why she relied so much on Yasu's help. The guy was a genius with numbers!

She had tried to get Gene's help but was reminded that she was technically at a higher grade than he was. So, it only hurt more when he managed to figure out the problems she struggled with simply by reading her notes.

Some people were just blessed with intelligence.

"I'm struggling with math too. My friend from another school has been helping me study. He's a senior, so all of this is old news for him."

"So lucky. All my friends suck just as bad, so they're no help."

Mai debated with herself for a moment before mentioning, "If you want, you could join us sometime."

He perked up at the idea. "Sure! If your friend doesn't mind."

"I'll ask him!"


Takata joined her and Yasu for a few study sessions before their exams started. Yasu helped them with math, Mai helped Takata with English, and Takata bought them drinks. Surprisingly, they all got along well. Yasu and Takata were in some of the same academic committees, and they were all fans of this one anime that was airing. They even agreed to meet up for the new movie coming out.

All three of them.

As a group.

As friends.

That seemed to tame her nosy posse, but her school friends would hear none of it.

"I still think it's utterly cute," Keiko said muffled, her ice cream spoon sticking out of her mouth. "He obviously has a crush on you and is trying to get to know you better, on your terms."

Michiru nodded, taking a bite out of her ice cream crepe.

Mai rolled her eyes. As if she hadn't run through this a million times with Gene. It was only the other night when Gene had to watch her pace back in forth in the astral office as she argued with herself about the whole ordeal. She liked Takata a lot but not in the way everyone teased. Maybe if she lived a carefree life like other high schoolers, she could consider a casual relationship, but right now just wasn't the time. Between school, friends, work, and psychic trainings, her schedule was full.

"I like him, but you guys know I'm not looking for anything right now," she said, absentmindedly digging her spoon into her ice cream repeatedly.

Her friends glanced down at the mutilation before looking at each other. "Is there something else going on?" asked Michiru.

Mai shook her head. "Not really. Just busy. No time for a boyfriend."

"What about a summer fling? Wouldn't that be fun?" Keiko looked up to the sky, daydreaming some kind of fantasy.

Michiru studied Mai for a bit longer, a quirk to her brow. "Or maybe… you have feelings for someone else?" she said, finishing her statement with a solitary bite of her crepe.

Mai used this time to eat a heaping spoon of ice cream, which quickly backfired with the huge brain freeze that followed.

Her friends didn't care, of course. Keiko leaned forward in curiosity, her chin in hand. "Don't tell me…?"

"Is it Yasuhara-kun? Or maybe that Australian guy? He's pretty cute." Michiru pried.

That jerked a reaction out of her but not the one they wanted. Mai nearly choked at the thought of John in that way. "Absolutely not!"

There was a moment of silence as they thought, munching away at their treats before Keiko turned to her abruptly, squinting her eyes in suspicion. "Bet it's Shibuya-kun."

As hard as she tried to not react, Keiko's proximity and the intensity of her stare had Mai blushing. Digging her spoon in again, she took down another heap of ice cream.

"Aha!"

Michiru tilted her head in question. "I thought you didn't like him like that?"

Yeah, I thought you didn't like him like that? repeated her head gremlin sarcastically.

"I didn't! Well, not at first." Mai scraped at the bottom of her bowl before dropping the spoon in defeat. "Honestly, I don't plan on pursuing it."

Keiko slammed her hands on the table and stood up. "Why not?!"

"He has a 'sort-of girlfriend.' Plus, I don't know if a relationship like that would even work out between us." Mai paused for a minute before adding, "At least right now."

What she didn't mention was the fact that the guy was currently on a mission to find his dead brother's body. And said brother was also Mai's friend whom she also wanted to help put to rest.

Not the best circumstances for a relationship, especially considering that he was also her boss. And then there were her plans of studying abroad. It just wasn't a good time.

Keiko looked like she wanted to say something but was warned by Michiru with a tug of her shirt. She relented, sitting back down. "Who's the 'sort-of girlfriend?' Anyone we know?"

Mai almost snorted. "No one special, just Hara Masako."

"What?! Really?!" Keiko nearly leapt across the table this time but had enough self-awareness to stop herself. "She's your competition?! She has a fan club that's made up of guys that aren't even into ghosts!"

Michiru sent a scolding look before smiling reassuringly at Mai. "Celebrity or not, you have a bunch of qualities she doesn't have. Ones, that Takata-kun and a bunch of other guys can obviously see."

"Sure, sure," Mai said, waving off Michiru's need to reassure her. "Anyway, I heard Keiko has a crush on the new teacher…?"

"Shh! Don't say that out loud!"


With exams done and over with, Yasu officially being accepted into university, and Mai starting her sophomore year, the SPR crew took off for their next case at the end of summer. The details were a bit elusive, something about the ex-prime minister's wife's great grandfather's mansion or whatever. Reports stated that when a few college students had snuck in one night, one of them had mysteriously disappeared along with a fireman who had helped search for them.

Mai sighed as she ran through the files for a fourth time as she sat in silence between Lin and Naru in the van. Due to their higher quantity of equipment, she couldn't enjoy the back seat like she usually did. For that reason, Yasu had to ride in Bou-san's car with Ayako and John.

Some people were just lucky.

Meanwhile, Madoka sat out of this case despite it being her personal request. She mentioned having something else to take care of but would be open to researching. Mai found the story a bit odd for some reason but didn't comment.

She was just grateful Masako wasn't joining them for their ride. Mai probably would've been shoved to sit with the equipment while Masako sat comfortably in front with Naru and Lin.

On second thought, maybe that wouldn't have been so bad.

Suddenly, the theme song of a toilet paper commercial cut through the silence indicating a video call from Yasu. Glancing between Naru and Lin, she shrugged and answered the call.

She didn't expect to see Ayako's face interrupting her serenity. "Mai! We have an emergency."

That woke her up from her half-slump. She sat up straight, noticing Naru pause in the middle of his typing.

"What happened?"

"Yasuhara," Ayako said, turning the camera to show said teen in the back. "Tell us again the name of the girl you've been talking to."

Cue Naru resuming his typing.

Yasu shrugged, complying. "Chizu-chan."

Mai narrowed her eyes. "What's her given name?"

"Kasai."

Bou-san could be heard in the background saying, "If you're into crazy, you've hit the jackpot!"

"Why? You guys know her?"

Mai scoffed. "Know her? She tried to kill us with her psychopath teacher. Remember that case I told you about with the other high school?"

"That one?!"

She nodded in confirmation, wanting to giggle seeing his face blanch. The other side of the call erupted into chatter about the Yuasa case, and she couldn't help but envy the liveliness. Naru didn't say anything, but she could practically feel the irritation emanating from him, so she hung up soon after.

And so, she read through the case one more time before eventually nodding off.

The dream was brief but frightening all the same.

She was scared. Dread filling her body as she traveled from corner to corner of this messed up building. She'd been wandering for what felt like ages, utterly lost. She hoped they didn't find her. She had to get out of this twisted place. When she caught glimpses of the white clothed figures, she knew she'd been found. She would rather die nine times over than be caught. So, she ran as fast as she could and—

Threw herself over the indoor balcony.

Mai jutted awake at the sound of a muffled scream accompanied by the splattering of viscous liquid hitting the floor, the faint scent of blood lingering in her nostrils. She went into a violent coughing fit as her throat filled with what she initially imagined was blood, heaving for breath.

"Here."

She glanced to the side, surprised to find Naru standing outside the van with a canister cup of tea extended out to her.

When had they arrived?

She reached for the cup, quickly drinking to rid herself of the imaginary metallic taste. The lukewarm tea was successful in relaxing her, the tension gradually leaving her body.

"Thank you," she said, handing him back the cup, only now realizing that it was the same one he'd been drinking from the whole ride.

Naru studied her carefully as he screwed the cup back on the canister. "Are you okay?"

She nodded, still struggling to swallow what felt like tar. Unsure if the dream was related to the case or not, she brushed it off, ignoring his inquisitive eye. Luckily, Bou-san chose this moment to approach them, preventing Naru from inquiring further.

The rest of the group gathered at the van before entering the building together. As soon as they stepped inside, goosebumps trailed up her spine as intense dread overwhelmed her senses.

Something's not right about this place. I don't think we should be here.

Naru, who walked beside her, leaned in closer. "Continue to pay close attention to your senses. It's imperative you let me know what you feel," he instructed quietly as Ohashi-san, the representative they would be working with, greeted them.

Yasu, the "president" of Shibuya Psychic Research, introduced himself. Everyone else introduced themselves as well with Naru going by "Narumi Kazuo," because that was a thing now, apparently. Their ever-so-valiant boss was skeevy around the media, so he asked—told—Yasu to be his stand-in due to his impressive ability to bullshit. Even Madoka had to comment on Yasu's acting skills.

"Lin, you say? Are you Chinese?" asked Ohashi.

"Yes, I'm originally from Hong Kong."

Now, that surprised everyone. There was so little they knew about Lin—well, both Lin and Naru. It did explain where his name came from, and the little intricacies Mai noticed in his office. He preferred oolong and chrysanthemum teas, which she found interesting. He also always kept some kind of Chinese medicinal balm in his jacket, which she'd only noticed when it fell out one day.

"Please follow me," said a prehistoric-looking maid, leading them to the meeting room where Masako and whoever else they called would be waiting.

Mai scanned the hallway as they walked, eying the odd architecture.

"I wonder if the builder was an artist?" asked Ayako, likely thinking the exact same thoughts as her.

"Like the Winchester mansion," said Bou-san. "The wife of the owner of Winchester rifles created a mansion just like this to confuse the supposed spirits of the victims of her husband's rifles."

"That's creepy."

When they arrived through the room's double-doors, the familiar sound of liquid spilling onto hard flooring made her freeze. She whipped her head around, noting that the hallways were carpeted.

"What's up?" asked Bou-san.

"Nothing," she said, glancing down the hall one more time before joining everyone else. "Thought I heard something."

Mai continued looking around as the representative introduced the other specialists who were called there to investigate. Aside from Masako, there was an Igarashi-sensei from a local university with her assistant, Suzuki, some chief priest from a temple nearby, and then the members of Minami psychic research.

What caught her attention was the introduction of the observer accompanying the Minami group, the alleged Oliver Davis.

She swore she heard Gene scoff.

Her crew erupted into awe and quiet chatter as they admired the "original SPR" from afar, specifically Bou-san who stared like an idiot.

The more she observed this Oliver Davis character, the more things didn't seem right to her, but she couldn't put a finger on it. This man couldn't be the real doctor—

He's too old.

She wasn't sure why she thought that, but she knew better than to ignore her gut. Oliver Davis isn't Caucasian, is he? She asked herself, and maybe Gene.

I don't know… what makes you say that?

Why did she say that? Nothing she'd read indicated anything about his appearance or race, yet she believed it wholeheartedly.

Lost in her thoughts, she failed to notice Naru regarding her with narrowed eyes.


Oliver unwound one of the bundles of cords, ignoring his team's chatter as they brought in the equipment. All their conversation leading back to his imposter. It was yet another reminder how his reputation preceded him.

"Don't you guys think he's a bit old?" Mai asked, a hint of caution in her voice.

John put a finger to his chin in thought. "I suppose I did think he would be a little younger," he said.

"I think it's fitting for someone so accomplished. How much younger did you think he'd be, Mai?" Matsuzaki put a hand on her hip.

Really young, he heard her say telepathically. Maybe even a prodigy of some sort.

"I don't know… maybe around Lin-san's age?" she said offhandedly, pulling a monitor out of a box.

Oliver wondered why she felt the need to lie. Did she figure out his identity and was trying to get him to admit it? No, she lacked the ability to be discreet. Knowing her skillset, not to mention her very personal connection to him, it was likely either postcognition or her gut talking. Whether she would put the pieces together was entirely up to her. It was always a gamble with Mai. He could easily underestimate her as he could overestimate—he quit guessing a long time ago.

Right now, the biggest threats to his identity were her and Hara. Mai was less so due to her circle of influence being much smaller. If Hara decided to share his identity to the public, it would be detrimental to his plan of finding Gene and would reveal what had transpired. His parents would be devastated to hear about Gene's death being leaked over social media. He was certain that she didn't know about Gene's death, or Gene at all for that matter. While Gene was a perfect medium with an excellent resume, he didn't have the research or other publications to make him as well-known as Oliver. One would have to know about him already to search for him.

"Say Mai, are your parents okay with you going on cases for this long?" Yasuhara asked, breaking Oliver out of his thoughts. "It took some convincing for mine to agree."

Without a falter in her step, she shook her head. "Nope, not a problem at all. My parents passed away years ago, so I make my own calls."

Yasuhara and Bou-san paused in their work while Matsuzaki and John shared a look.

Oliver and Lin continued their work quietly, not reacting nor indicating that they were listening. Although, Lin did opt to stop typing in favor of mouse-work.

"You're an orphan, Jou-chan?" asked Bou-san, his face dropping slightly from the news. Oliver was surprised Matsuzaki hadn't announced it to the world when she found out.

Apparently, Mai had the same thought. "Oh, Ayako didn't tell you?"

Bou-san eyed Matsuzaki accusingly. "You knew?"

Matsuzaki shrugged, replying, "Wasn't for me to tell."

"It's really not a big deal, so I only told people when it came up. Ayako helped me out after the accident, so she ended up finding out at the hospital." Mai continued to work as if nothing was amiss, checking equipment off on her clipboard.

"How long have you been on your own?" asked Yasuhara.

"My mom passed away my first year of middle school, but a teacher was kind enough to let me stay with her until I got into low-income housing for special cases like mine. I have my own apartment now though, and I feel like I'm making a place for myself!" She grinned, her face beaming with pride. "Plus, my school's really generous to students in need, so if I need a day off, I just tell them I have work!"

"Says a lot about your math skills," Yasuhara joked in good-nature.

Bou-san suddenly enveloped her in a big hug. "Whenever life gets you down, know that Bou-san's only a call away."

Oliver exhaled through his nose, a faint aching in his chest as he thought of her situation. Her skirting around the answer didn't go unnoticed by him. He knew she just didn't want to make them worry. Her record from the school indicated that she'd been alone for the last four years. She had worked at only one other place, a tea shop, but had to leave due to the shop closing. Since then, she'd been living off her parents' remaining funds.

Then, a knock was heard from the door and Ohashi entered, silencing the group as Yasuhara greeted him. As discussed, he instructed Oliver, "Narumi," to direct the questions regarding the mansion's history. It was revealed that in addition to the information they had received, there were other disappearances as well.

After attributing the college student's disappearance to the deterioration of the building, they underwent major renovations. During these renovations, a few of the builders had also disappeared. The staff had also reported seeing full body apparitions in the mansion, leading to rumors among the workers as well as in the community. Due to the unrest and suspicion, the prime minister's family reached out to various mediums to resolve the concerns before any other incidents happened.

Looking through the history of the building, the original owner continually renovated the mansion. New additions were being added every year to the point that there were barely any remains of the original structure.

"Miyama Kaneyuki-sama owned a huge plot of land in the Suwa region where he built a silk-spinning factory. He eventually devoted himself to philanthropy, becoming well-known for his charity hospitals and orphanages."

"I see. Are there any blueprints of the building?"

Ohashi shook his head.

"Thank you for your time."

With that, the group was left to their own devices. He stood up and leaned against one of the tables, bringing his pen to his mouth in thought.

"We will need to develop a general floor plan, Lin. For now, we should get temperatures and have everyone map the rooms they visit. Travel in pairs or groups of three or more."

"Isn't that being a little over cautious?" Bou-san asked, slumping on the couch.

Oliver shot him a look. "Those are the words of someone looking for an excuse to be lazy."

Bou-san frowned at the jab before his face morphed into a smirk. "Now, isn't that a change of attitude from our lowly investigator 'Narumi-kun?'"

Ayako caught on and played along. "You're right! I didn't know Narumi-kun had such authoritative skills. I thought those qualities were meant for our president," she said with an ugly smug grin.

"He's usually timid with us. I never would've expected this out of him!" Bou-san cackled.

They're poking the tiger… he heard Mai mumble to herself as she watched, pretending to check her cuticles like she always did in times like these.

Oliver assumed his best fake Gene-smile, dazzling everyone in the room. "I suppose I could concede to my elders," he started, the first part meant to jab at Matsuzaki. "Of course, if either of you would like to take over, by all means. Matsuzaki-sama? Takigawa-senpai?"

Bou-san and Matsuzaki immediately froze and shivered, grimacing at his sweet tone.

"So, who would like to take charge?"

"We're sorry…," they said in unison.


Yasu stood at the door with his arms on his hips, taking in the expanse of the space as Mai began taking temperatures. "A room inside a room. Weird."

"Like a dungeon in an RPG," Bou-san said.

"You think there's anything in there?" Mai asked, eying the structure. It was only slightly bigger than a phone booth and stood smack dab in the middle of the much larger room.

Yasu approached it and opened the door cautiously to reveal… absolutely nothing. "Well, that's boring. In dungeons, there's usually a chest with treasure. Or an enemy waiting to surprise attack you."

The sound of nearby chatter and footsteps approaching from the hallway had the three snapping their heads toward the source.

Minami and his colleagues from Minami Psychic Research entered the room. Oh, minus Dr. Davis, much to the disappointment of Bou-san.

"Oh, wow, you guys are here too! This will be such a great learning experience for you," Minami said, whipping out his traditional thermometer. He winked at Mai. "Feel free to use any of the techniques you see. They were all passed down by the doctor." He proceeded to spin the thermometer like a magic wand, which had Mai questioning everything about this man.

You can't tell me this guy is a real researcher. He's a dumbass!

Pfft.

"President, I sense something outside this room," said one of his posse.

"Ah, my staff are so talented!" Minami laughed gleefully before turning towards Yasu, who was looking anywhere but at him. "Let me know if you'd like some connections to professional mediums, young man. It really inspires me to see aspiring youngster like you bunch! I hope you can learn a lot from us."

Yasu suddenly looked over, as if seeing him for the first time. "Oh, I'm sorry. Were you talking to me? In my old age, I'm having trouble with my hearing," he apologized. "Care to run that by me again, whipper snapper?"

Minami seemed taken aback by that response, instead standing up straighter and adjusting the collar of his shirt. "I don't find that very funny."

"Well, I do! Considering that's the exact same disrespect you just showed us! Youngsters, these days. Letting their egos get the better of them. I'm sure your ancestors are turning in their graves as we speak," Yasu said, laughing good-naturedly.

He didn't even get through the rest of his comments before Minami escorted himself out in a huff, leaving the trio to erupt into laughter.

"How can you bullshit like that with a straight face, Shounen? Impressive work." Bou-san wiped a tear from his eye.

"Oh, it's easy. Especially when it's some quack like our friend, Minami."

Mai let out a "pfft" before laughing again. "Naru knew what he was doing when he hired you."

The trio finished up their mapping before returning to the base where the team collected their findings. From their measurements, it seemed some of the rooms should've been squares measured from the outside, but from the inside they were rectangles. That left areas of inaccessible space.

"Oh, and then there's that Minami group," Mai said, complaining. "The guy whipped out his thermometer and didn't even record anything! All he did was be condescending until Yasu ripped him a new one, and then left."

"Yeah. His conduct and methods aren't exactly in line with Dr. Davis's teachings," Bou-san agreed, crossing his arms and leaning against the table. "The doctor emphasizes researching the supernatural in a way that can allow it to be considered scientifically. Meanwhile, Minami pranced in there like the fairy godmother from Cinderella."

"Are you talking about the stuff from that book the doctor wrote? The systems of something or other?" Mai tilted her head, not quite remembering the full title. For whatever reason, Gene started cackling at this.

In her confusion, she failed to notice the prominent twitching of Naru's brow at her botched memory of the title.

"'The System of Unexplained Phenomena,' you mean?" corrected Yasu.

"Yeah, that one."

"From what you say, this Minami guy doesn't sound trustworthy. Plus, don't you find it odd that the entire time, Dr. Davis didn't utter a single word?" mentioned Ayako.

John nodded. "That is quite odd."

"Could it be that he's not used to speaking to younger people?"

John shook his head. "That shouldn't deter him. After all, he earned a very specialized doctorate from Cambridge University, which was curated just for him as their best researcher. He was even given a lecturer's position, so he should be accustomed to speaking in front of people of all ages."

Wow… I hadn't known he was so impressive. Mai knew of his accomplishments secondhand but never realized the extent of his prowess. For him to be as young as she suspected, he must've been a real prodigy with an analytical eye for fieldwork and leadership.

Someone like… Naru.

A memory of Madoka mentioning that Naru had skipped a few grades played in her head. If by few, she had meant the entirety of pre and post-graduate studies, then yeah, he skipped a few grades.

She sat down on the couch as she started to feel lightheaded, leaning back to close her eyes. Everything around her tuned out as she firmly setup her mental walls, her head spinning. Yet again, she asked herself the question that always lingered in the back of her head.

Did she know Naru at all? This person whom she claimed to have feelings for?

She knew he was a foreigner, that he had experience with the paranormal that far exceeded what a teenager should know, that his parents were professors, that he had a twin brother, what his favorite foods were, and his mannerisms.

But not his real name.

After everyone agreed to rest for the night, she quickly retreated to her room with the other girls and pretended to go straight to sleep. Once everyone else was settled, she pulled out her phone to pursue her own research. If Oliver Davis was good at researching psychic phenomena, then she was good at snooping.

Even if she didn't know Naru's real name, she had another name she could use to confirm her suspicions.

Just when she thought she had a lead, she was smacked in the face with thousands of people with the same name. Apparently, that was a common thing in the west.

After sifting through, she finally found what she needed after narrowing her search several times. It was in a research database where she found a study on perfect mediums from three years ago. Oliver Davis was cited as one of the researchers, and listed in the study subjects was—

Eugene Davis.


A/N: Hi friends! A shorter chapter to begin the craziness that is my favorite case, as well as to set the stage for things going forward! I'm referencing both the manga and anime for this case as there were some funny scenes I wanted included. I did change up Yasu's interaction with Minami just a tad :3

If you enjoyed reading, please consider leaving a review (on any fic you read)! They're a writer's reason for living (not really, but at the time, kinda)

As always thank you to everyone who has checked out the story/art dump on AO3, reviewed, favorited, and subscribed so far. It's always appreciated, and I love to see people loving on Ghost Hunt like the series deserves :')

Toodles~!