There were no bears, and no dead people, but the people running the campsite also came.
Of course, our plan to sleep one more day went down the drain.
Just like I cried, Mako also cried. She cried much longer than I did.
Strangely enough, her tears weren’t out of fear from the bear.
“Koto Ne, Koto Ne.”
“…Yeah.”
“Are you okay? Are you really okay?”
“…Yeah.”
I nodded stiffly.
To be honest, I wasn’t really okay. But how could I say that in front of an elementary school kid? How could I admit that it was hard to accept?
Kagami seemed so drained that she didn’t even have any more tears to shed.
Honestly, at that moment, I wasn’t just worried that the camping trip ended early.
…Do I have to leave again?
Do I have to leave without spending the remaining time with Mako?
I didn’t know.
Mako’s father stared at me for a while. Was he in a daze? Or maybe he just had a stiff, expressionless face.
Soothing Mako, who was crying, we quickly packed up the tent.
It seemed better to leave before we ran into the police. I figured they were bound to find our house eventually.
However, the police hadn’t arrived even while we were packing. It seemed a bit strange, but well, sometimes there are absurdly strange police around. Or maybe the campsite owner was reluctant to report the accident.
No one got hurt, and there was no bear, so it was a given, right? Was I just dismissing it as a prank?
I’d rather it ended like that.
It was okay if Mako hated me. If she had just thought it was an illusion and hadn’t seen me being attacked, then maybe that would be lucky.
At least, Kagami and the uncle seemed to think so. Not getting caught by the police was considered fortunate.
If I had the choice, I probably would have wanted to just leave everything behind, tent and all.
…But Mako was there. There was a bond between me and that girl named Mako.
In front of that, I probably couldn’t move like that. It was more important to be aware of her gaze than to act morally.
“……”
On the way back in the car.
The car was quiet. I couldn’t figure out what to say, and it looked like Kagami felt the same.
Kagami was simply hugging me tightly.
That warmth calmed my mind a bit.
…Kagami probably felt the same way.
*
Though I really, really disliked it, we started packing as soon as we returned home.
The uncle was the first one to suggest it, and Kagami nodded with her face pale.
I wanted to say let’s stick around a bit longer. I wanted to befriend Mako more and had more things to share.
I wanted to greet my classmates, too…
But I knew there wouldn’t be time for that.
Every time we ran away, we always just wrote a short greeting in a letter and moved on.
Kagami and the uncle seemed to think that the bear was no ordinary bear. I felt the same. I’d heard in the news about bear-related incidents happening in places where people lived every year, but if something like that had happened here, there would definitely have been warnings.
Thinking it was far away…
…But could there really be someone who could control a bear? Or if that wasn’t a bear to begin with, then what the heck was it?
Last time, the woman who followed us had used strange means of attack.
As I watched the chaos around the house with a vacant expression, Kagami came over and hugged me with one arm.
“I’m sorry.”
There was no need to apologize.
It was all because of Dana.
So, it was all my existence that was causing everything happening right now.
In that situation, not a single wound remained on my body. Even the gash on my neck that almost killed me—there was no trace left.
I… didn’t seem to be just a human.
Maybe this world was affected by some strange phenomena that I didn’t understand at all.
Or maybe I was just dreaming—
No.
Dreaming is… Not it. I want to believe that, because I can feel Kagami’s warmth as she hugs me.
I couldn’t bring myself to say that to Kagami.
Wasn’t it? In this situation, the one going through the toughest time was probably Kagami.
If it were Kagami, she would definitely be hurt by me saying such things. She might tell me not to say that because it’s not my fault, or that I’m not human. She might even stop me from finishing.
In the end, I moved silently.
I filled my bag with the stuff I wanted to take with me.
The already broken magical girl wand.
A few books that Mako had gifted me.
…Other than that, it was just my clothes and underwear, and a few disposable items that I might need immediately.
By the time I stuffed my bag and stood up—
Ding dong, someone rang the bell.
All three of us froze. I put my bag down and went out of the room to look at the entrance.
Ding dong.
Since they rang the bell again, it must be someone who really needed to talk to us.
Maybe it was the guys who helped us when we were running away.
Suddenly, I felt scared.
What if someone gets hurt again? What if someone dies?
The uncle raised his hand first, then put a finger to his lips.
And he slowly approached the entrance, checking outside.
He probably thought it was someone safe because he opened the door.
Mako’s father was there.
“Hello.”
“…Mr. Miura. I’m so sorry about today. Because of us…”
The uncle played the role of our father like he usually did.
“Not at all.”
Mako’s father shook his head.
“No one got hurt, so it’s fine.”
But his gaze was directed at me, peeking from a distance.
I felt Kagami’s hand holding my shoulder.
Something felt uneasy. That gaze.
Was it because of Mako? Because Mako was in danger because of me—
…No, an ordinary person wouldn’t think like that. From just the situation, it was clear that something had happened. Even before the police arrived, we had tumbled out of there—
“Could I talk to your daughter for a moment?”
Mako’s father said in a very calm voice.
“Excuse me?”
“I believe I need to understand what happened today.”
“…Mr. Miura, I’m sorry but—”
“There were two children who saw the bear. One could escape, but one stayed behind. You must realize how slim the chances of survival are in that case.”
“…My wife went directly.”
“A bear is not a creature that would simply be frightened by the presence of one more person. Unless it’s holding a gun or something.”
Mako’s father’s gaze shifted towards me.
I found that a little scary.
When I looked up at Kagami, her eyes were wide open as she stared at Mako’s father.
“—You.”
“No, it’s not what you’re thinking. You don’t have to worry too much. Actually, it’s a situation where we could help you.”
Mako’s father said.
“What are you talking about?”
The uncle’s expression suddenly became menacing.
He was wearing his usual neat outfit, but his expression looked exactly like that of a Yakuza. It was the face close to what he used to wear for his original work.
However, Mako’s father didn’t look frightened at all.
On the contrary, he seemed calmer. As if he had confirmed some fact.
“What if I told you it was a Yōkai?”
Mako’s father asked.
“What if the bear you saw today was actually a Yōkai from folk tales and myths that we refer to?”
“……”
“Yōkai usually roam about looking for specific prey. It has been here before, but I never expected to encounter it again so far away. For now, this incident is over, but I may have one more job left that you don’t know about.”
“…What are you planning to do?”
Kagami said.
“You—”
“I’ll say it one more time. You don’t need to worry too much.”
Mako’s father’s voice was still calm. It was like he was telling us about some advantageous condition.
“However, I would like to hear a little about your story. As a government official, I think I need to confirm what’s going on in this situation.”
How much emotion was behind that voice?
What kind of emotions were mixed in the way he feels about me, who got involved with his daughter?
About the fact that Mako almost died today.
“……”
The uncle turned this way.
Neither I nor Kagami could say a word.
It was already too late. We missed our chance to escape.
Surely there were more people in town who would help us, but Mako’s father clearly said he was from the government.
…Even if they are Yakuza, they couldn’t win against dozens of police officers. If they started chasing us, it would undoubtedly get much more troublesome. There was no way they’d just let us go in this situation.
In the end, the uncle and Kagami nodded. At least, let’s hear out their story.
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