Chapter 23: Black Stone (2)

Takahiro and I immediately hurried over to Kaimori-chan. Apparently, Kaimori-chan and Kitatsuji-san had spotted Lynette on the third floor of the north building. The third floor…? That sounded familiar. Takahiro must’ve been thinking the same thing, because as we walked briskly side by side, he tilted his head in thought.

"The third floor of the north building—we went there yesterday too, right? You know, where that history exhibit was."

Ah. Now that he mentioned it… that’s right. …Lynette was there? …Was that just a coincidence?

When we arrived at the scene, Takamiyagi-senpai and Yuno-chan were already there. At the end of the hallway, Lynette was crouched down, trembling, while Kaimori-chan gently patted her head. Ohh. She’s been captured nice and quietly… Truly, Kaimori-chan, master of wild animals.

Meanwhile, Kitatsuji-san stood a short distance away by herself, wearing an oddly displeased expression. What’s going on over there…? Well, whatever. More importantly—

"You actually managed to catch her… Kaimori-chan, nicely done!"

"Kitatsuji-san found her and chased her down."

From what they explained, Lynette had first been picked up by Kitatsuji-san’s “cute things radar,” then relentlessly pursued until she ran out of stamina. But whenever Kitatsuji-san tried to approach, Lynette got too scared to talk, so they switched roles, and Kaimori-chan stepped in to “rescue” her. Well, yeah—that tracks. Kaimori-chan is clearly harmless. Probably second only to me.

…Still, well done. This should resolve everything. I’ll treat Kaimori-chan to some ramune later.

Noticing us, Lynette shrank back nervously behind Kaimori-chan. I quietly stepped forward and smiled, extending my hand.

"Come on, it’s okay. You don’t need to be scared."

"…Um… who… are you…?"

"Oh, sorry. My name is Shione Yozakura. I’m a second-year at this school."

"…No, that’s not what I meant! I’ve already met ‘Shione-san’ once before. So then… who… are you… really?"

Wait—she knows me…? Or rather, she definitely seems terrified. But as I looked into Lynette’s trembling green eyes, something hazy stirred in the back of my mind—like a distant memory resurfacing.

A memory…? But not mine. This was… Shione’s…?

Now then, although I had safely been discharged from the hospital, unfortunately my condition showed no signs of improving. Every visit meant more needles, and one day I noticed the bruising from injections on the inside of my elbows had stopped fading.

It was around that time that I heard a rumor—there was a real witch living in the western part of the city.

…A witch. In modern-day Japan. Suspicious would be putting it lightly. Still, the hospital had already tried everything it could, and nothing seemed to be working. If that was the case… perhaps I couldn’t afford to dismiss more unconventional methods.

So, early one morning, I took an hour-long train ride and arrived—along with Takahiro, who insisted on coming—with the house of this so-called witch. I’d half-expected something like a candy house, but instead it was an ordinary home in a quiet residential neighborhood. A bit of a letdown. At least I wouldn’t need breadcrumbs to find my way back.

I checked the time. 10:58. Our appointment was at 11, but this should be fine.

Ding-dong.

After I rang the bell, the door clicked open, and a foreign girl about my age appeared.

…Silver hair. A refined, well-proportioned face. But her green eyes darted about nervously, lacking confidence. …She seemed shy. Was this girl really the witch?

We were shown into the living room and sat down on a soft sofa. Across from us, the same girl sat stiffly, hesitantly. It seemed she really was the witch from the rumors. She looked young… though perhaps appearances were deceiving. Maybe she was actually two hundred years old or something.

Or… maybe she was just an ordinary girl at that age where she wanted to call herself a witch.

For now, I smiled and bowed my head. We were the ones seeking help, after all—building a friendly rapport came first.

"Nice to meet you. I’m Shione Yozakura. I contacted you earlier."

"Takahiro Ryuzoji!"

"Eek!"

For some reason, the girl suddenly sprang up from her seat and hurriedly hid behind her chair. After a moment, she slowly peeked out from behind it.

…What is this…? Calm down. She was still sitting when I introduced myself. Which means…?

I shot a glance at the childhood friend sitting next to me.

"Come on, Takahiro-kun, don’t scare her so much… Let’s keep things friendly, okay?"

"…Hey, all I did was say hello!"

"Eeeek!"

She darted out from behind the chair and retreated even further, hiding behind a desk. Then she cautiously peeked out again.

…The distance had increased. Physically—and definitely psychologically.

"If you scare her again, you’re waiting outside."

Takahiro fell silent, albeit reluctantly. Yeah… sorry. This time, it’s not your fault.

But why is she so scared?

No—rather…

…what is she so afraid of?

Thirty minutes later.

Unbelievably, it took a full thirty minutes before she finally agreed to sit down again. I watched her with a slightly strained smile. Maybe keeping up a constant, gentle smile had helped. I hoped it looked natural.

I also had to thank Takahiro for staying completely silent the whole time.

At long last, she introduced herself. Her name was Lynette—a witch of a long-established lineage originating from Europe.

Why she was living in Japan piqued my curiosity, but there was something more important to ask first. I hadn’t expected an immediate solution, but contrary to that expectation, she answered my concern with surprising simplicity.

"—What you have… is a curse."

A curse. In modern-day Japan.

Apparently, someone had cursed me. I had no idea who. Thinking back on all the injections and medications during my hospitalization, it did make a certain kind of sense—those wouldn’t exactly work on a curse. Even in games, curses are lifted in churches, not hospitals or inns.

"But it’s not intentional. It’s more like… collateral damage."

"Collateral damage, huh…"

Well, the cause didn’t really matter. The real issue was whether there was a solution.

"A curse is like a distortion engraved into your body and soul, so we need to fix that somehow!"

"Fix it how? Not with injections, I hope."

I joked, but she shook her head and continued, completely serious.

"For example, separating the body and soul. Or temporarily inviting another person’s soul in. The idea is to disrupt the balance that’s sustaining the curse!"

"You say that like it’s simple…"

Even after that explanation, I didn’t really get it. Apparently, the curse existed because of the balance between my body and soul. So by bringing in another soul, you could temporarily reset that balance.

"Letting another soul coexist with yours would be best. Don’t worry! As the original owner, you’ll have priority. Even if someone else enters, they won’t be able to do much!"

"I see… So they won’t suddenly take over my body or anything…?"

"Don’t worry! That would absolutely never happen—not even by a single millimeter!"

I-I see… Her intensity was a bit overwhelming, but if she was that certain, it was reassuring. The small witch in front of me spoke quickly and nervously, but there wasn’t a hint of insincerity. Somehow, I felt like I could trust her… even though we’d just met.

"I’m not thrilled about letting another soul in… but if it’s necessary, then I guess I don’t have a choice. Okay, I understand. So where do we find this soul? A haunted spot or something?"

At that, Lynette’s expression darkened for the first time. It didn’t seem like I was completely off base… so then, what was the issue?

"The truth is… not just any soul will work…"

That, apparently, was the problem. Just like medicine injected into the body, the soul to be introduced had strict conditions.

There were two requirements.

First: the shape of the soul must match mine.

Naturally, I had no idea what that meant, so I asked.

"What does it mean for the shapes of our souls to match?"

"It means your wavelengths have to align… in simple terms, they must share something in common. Preferences, beliefs, values—something like that. But it has to match completely! The core of your soul—the part that can’t be changed—must be the same!"

"Even so, I don’t really have strong preferences…"

"Hmm."

I crossed my arms and thought. If I wasn’t particular about anything, maybe I could match with just about anyone? Like mixing any color into something transparent—it wouldn’t really change anything.

But my childhood friend chimed in with a knowing look.

"You say that, but you’re actually pretty particular, Shione. More stubborn than you think."

"Be quiet, Takahiro-kun. …So, what’s the second condition?"

"They must have a strong will to do something for your sake. N-not just any will—it has to be strong enough that they’d be willing to cast themselves aside for you…!"

"Me!!! That’s it!!! It’s me!!!"

"Eek!"

The moment Takayuki suddenly lurched up from his seat, Lynette sprang to her feet at incredible speed and bolted deeper into the house like a startled rabbit. A beat later, from somewhere far inside, we faintly heard a door slam shut.

I turned to my childhood friend beside me with a smile. He was sweating profusely. Perhaps he understood exactly what I was about to say—because the moment I pointed toward the entrance, he silently stood up.

"I’ll come out once we’re done."

"…Yeah."

Takayuki trudged out. Watching his retreating back, I immediately eliminated him as a candidate, despite his enthusiastic volunteering. It seemed unlikely we had any meaningful “common ground”…

After that, it took about fifteen minutes for Lynette to reappear. …Perhaps she was gradually getting used to us.

"Anyway, about what we were discussing… how do I find someone like that?"

"I’ll lend you this!"

Lynette suddenly stood and brought over a small box from a shelf in the corner. It was black, covered in ornate decorations and intricate geometric engravings. The carved letters looked almost blood-red. This really looks like some kind of cursed box, I thought—though I kept that to myself.

When she opened it, inside was a small black stone, carefully wrapped in cotton.

"This is…?"

"Th-this is called a ‘Black Stone’."

"That’s… very literal. Well, easy to understand, I guess."

"In short, it’s a catalyst used to communicate with the will of the world."

"…Huh? I already don’t understand. Come again?"

After another explanation, I more or less got the idea. The black stone was essentially like a message board. If you placed a wish into it, there was a chance—if you were lucky—that it would reach something capable of granting it.

Whether that wish would actually be fulfilled, however, depended entirely on whoever received it. And more often than not, it would simply be ignored.

"Do I only get one try?"

"N-no. You can only have one wish granted, but there’s no limit to how many times you can attempt it!"

…I see. In that case…

I picked up the black stone and smiled at her.

"Can I try using it right now?"

"R-right here!?"

"Why are you so surprised? It’s safer to have an expert watching, isn’t it?"

If something demonic popped out, it would be far riskier if I were alone. Judging by how flustered she looked, there was at least some level of danger.

I held the black stone in my hand and closed my fingers around it, focusing my thoughts.

Now then… how should I phrase this? For now, I’ll just go with what she said earlier.

—Bring me someone who shares my wavelength… and who would do anything for my sake.

…Wow. Even thinking it myself, that sounded incredibly self-serving. There’s no way someone like that exists anywhere in the world.

Well… except maybe for that second condition.

After trying for a while, nothing happened. Maybe no such person existed—or maybe even the “will of the world” had given up on me. Either way, I eventually lowered my hand and opened my fist, letting out a small sigh as I looked at the stone.

"Figures it wouldn’t work right away."

"No, the reason it failed just now is obvious!"

She said it with complete confidence. I looked at Lynette. A failure, huh… Well, it certainly hadn’t felt like a success. What exactly had gone wrong? Did I just lack talent?

"No, talent isn’t the issue at all. The problem is that your wish isn’t fully formed. That’s all there is to it!"

…That made sense. My request had been vague—far too vague. Even for something like the “will of the world,” that would be a difficult order to fulfill. So I needed to be more specific…

"I’ll let you take the stone home, so you can think it through carefully."

"I can take this with me?"

Something that grants wishes—it felt like it should be incredibly important. And she was entrusting it to someone she’d just met?

"It’s certainly rare, but it’s not the only one. These are fragments of gods that once existed in this land… you could call them fossils, in a sense. So if you search the area, there should still be a few more. Just return it once you’re done!"

"Really? It just looks like a normal stone…"

I held it up toward the ceiling light. It looked like something you’d find lying in a riverbed. But as if in protest, the stone seemed to glimmer faintly.

As I continued to stare at it, Lynette spoke again.

"I wish you the best of luck! I’m sorry, but my next appointment will be arriving soon…"

Seeing the almost pained look on her face, I understood. I didn’t have much time left.

In that case, I couldn’t afford to waste any. If I had questions later, I could always call.

I thanked her and stood up—then paused as something occurred to me, turning back.

"—By the way… why were you so scared of Takayuki-kun?"

I stepped outside and called out to my childhood friend, who was waiting awkwardly near the entrance.

"All done? …Everything okay?"

"Yeah. For now, I got a lead."

I slipped a hand into my pocket and gently gripped the black stone. It was worth trying, even if it all sounded absurd. Either way, nothing was going to improve if I stayed as I was.

Thinking back on the flustered little witch, I let out a small chuckle.

I pulled out my phone to check the train schedule home.

…Huh?

I frowned at the screen. But the numbers didn’t change.

"Shione, what’s wrong?"

"We got here just before eleven, right? And we stayed for about an hour after that."

"…Yeah, so?"

I thrust the phone toward him.

"Get this—it’s still only 11:03."

…I see. I think I’ve got a rough idea of why I’m here. But something—something feels off. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something about that memory and everything else doesn’t line up.

More importantly…

"Um… so then… where is Shione-san right now…?"

Right. That’s the obvious question. She’s supposed to be sharing this body, isn’t she? But no matter where I look, she’s not there. It’s more like she’s wandered off somewhere—like she ran away from home or something.

Shione-chan… is this a rebellious phase? You hate living with me that much? That’s… kind of depressing.

"Well, I’ve seen her wandering outside a few times…"

"…Whose story are you even talking about?"

"Yikes, I seriously have no idea what Senpai’s saying… though, honestly, that’s pretty normal."

The two first-year girls whispered to each other at the edge of my vision. Somehow, they seemed to have gotten along pretty well.

As I nodded to myself, oddly moved, Lynette suddenly went pale at what I’d said.

"That’s bad!"

"Yeah, I mean, she ran away from home, right?"

"That’s not what I mean! Not that… Even for Shione-san, wandering around as just a soul…! At this rate, she’ll disappear!"

"…Wait. Seriously?"