Chapter 38

'If I recall correctly, it was on the fifth floor, wasn't it?' I thought to myself while walking up the stairs. 'Right. Room 503, which is on the left side.'

Finding the right room, I knocked on the door and waited.

No one answered so I knocked once more.

I know for a fact that Shuzenji is here. Saten was more than willing to lend an eye when I explained to her my agenda, after all. Or rather, she even seemed eager to do so?

Shuzenji may not need much sleep as a Youkai, but it is now the nine in the morning, long after the time I speculate he normally wake up because school usually starts at around eight and he isn't the type of person to sleep-in on his days off work, especially in his current state.

I checked any messages on my phone and confirmed that yes, Shuzenji is currently inside, wide awake and studying.

Heaving a tiny sigh, I placed a hand on the door and concentrated a little before suddenly finding myself inside his room. Despite knowing that he should have sensed me by now, he is still largely preoccupied by the... Regular textbook he is reading.

I wanted to scold him a little bit but that feeling was squashed down as my eyes inadvertently wandered all over the different paintings placed out in his dorm.

It was one thing to see pictures of his works, and it was a completely other thing to see them in reality.

I saw the different canvases littered all across the walls, each work depicting a different aspect of his early life.

Unknowingly, I took steps to one of them in order to have a closer look. It was a work of him and his sister, with her tying a ribbon to his head on a porch. The paint and brush strokes were delicate and yet, they had texture. Some parts of it were layered with multiple patches of paint to raise the picture giving it a new depth.

Taking my eyes off of that and curiously studying the other places of his room, I found the corner with all his art materials. It was neater than what I expected. Actually, the whole room was neat and clean. I suppose the rumor that boys were untidy was just a hoax.

There are certain parts that is starting to gather dust from lack of use, the art supplies for example.

His room is orderly and... Efficient, I should say? Other than the paintings, there does seem to be anything else that denotes as a hobby. Shuzenji is studious when it comes to both mundane academia and magical theoretics, but when was the last time he truly had taken a break for some time for himself to unwind? Would last night have count?

Snapping out of my train of thought, my mind is brought back to the reason why I even came here in the first place.

Placing back my gaze on the red-haired boy, I'm glad that he isn't in his pajamas but rather in his regular wear. No longer wasting any more time, I placed a hand on his shoulder, which seemed to bring his attention but before he said anything, I promptly teleported the both of us to the sky directly above the dormitory.

"So you were the one that was setting off my senses..." He said with a voice lacking in emotion.

"You don't seem surprised?" I quipped as we continuously teleported. This act would qualify as an illegal usage of quirk but if I were to stop for even a moment, the is a good chance that Shuzenji will escape my grasp and fly off. The only reason he's staying still is because of the risk of spatial splicing.

"I am, but more resigned, really." He blinked slowly as if he was thinking about something. "Someone set you up for this?"

"Not at all." I said truthfully. "I thought about how to get you out of this... State. With some help from a select few others, of course. I don't suppose you have a knack for causing trouble and worrying people?"

"Funny you mention that." He smirked. A better reaction than I was expecting but a welcome suprise. "You could say that not a single being really lives their life to the fullest until they had a hand in various incidents." He chuckled. Was this some inside joke?

"Is that so?... I suppose from a certain standpoint, any person would have caused problems one way or another, particularly children."

"Trust me, children can be the center of larger incidents, let alone fully grown adults." He is giggling now. I am curious as to what he finds so amusing but I would have to put that aside for now as we have reached our destination.

"We're here." I announced as I kindly let him go. He was to busy looking at where we are that he didn't even think about escaping.

Good. That means that my guess was spot-on.

"A sweets shop?" He asked almost dumbfoundedly, although there is a tinge of amusement in his tone of voice.

"Even better. A traditional Japanese sweets Shop." I said while proudly meeting his gaze. "You mentioned how your old home environment was a technologically backwards humble village. I figured that since your arrival to more modern cityscapes, you haven't had the chance to indulge in something closer to what you were used to."

"Hence this whole thing?"

"Indeed! It was quite a task to find a location similar to this, mind you. More and more places opted for easier and artificial methods to create their products but this fine establishment here does everything by hand! A rare oddity in modern day Japan, much less this city!" I proudly exclaimed. Looking at his frozen expression, it might have worked?

"...I didn't think a place like this still existed."

"Well, I admit that it was Uiharu that managed to locate this place first." I said while I gently laid my hands on his shoulders and guided him inside. "Let's go find a seat, shall we? It would be rude to simply stand in the middle of the sidewalk."

It was a small store hidden in a quiet and small alley. This place is set at a distance that even the nearest school or subway station is dozens of minutes away on foot so there wasn't that much commercial traffic.

The stores appearance from the outside, it is simply a plain wooden door with a single small sign hanging by the middle of it. It was inconspicuous so I suppose that the only ones to visit this place are the people who coincidentally stumbled onto it or those that were invited by people who have.

The inside was large enough to hold a few tables, thankfully. Small as it is, this place can easily hold a dozen or so people.

The interior designed had no theme to it. Any free place that can hold items are displaying different knick-knacks and trinkets that were most likely collected over the years. Photographs of people decorated the walls and some of it were some kind of painted murals. Everything here showed signs of aging, from the floor to the ceiling, the decor and the furniture. It all pointed to a place that was cared for and cherished over the years.

I had no idea what to expect from this place as Uiharu kept the details to herself but now I understand. The very first unblemished impression was definitely worth the suspense. And peeking from my side to see his expression shows that he too, feels the same.

Gently, I nudged him towards one of the chairs and seated in front of him. Teleporting the distance of half the city in rapid succession was quite an exercise that I am having a small craving for something sweet.

I called over the waitress who came as soon as I motioned her over. There really wasn't anyone else here so it was nice that we have the place to ourselves for now. The place doesn't use a hand-out menu but rather, it displays the names and prices of their selection on the wall so all we had to do was take a look and order directly.

The silence settled between us as we waited for our individual orders.

I watched on as he keeps glancing around the different items littered across the room with innocent admiration as a thought made it's way to my mind.

Tsukomogami.

Everything here is obviously cherished for a long time that it would make sense. Was he seeing something different? Is he listening to the voices of these things?

Shuzenji is smiling.

It is not strained, not is it fake. It is a genuine smile that represents the tension from the tragedy of that day is slowly starting to loosen it's hold on him. Not a lot, but still, it is progress.

I spent some time simply watching him that I didn't notice it pass by so quickly. The waitress finally came back and set down our sweets.

A plate of yōkan for myself, a plate of castela for him, and green tea for the both of us.

Gently, we ate.

In front of me is a boy who silenltly relished the sweet flavours and soft textures in each and every single bite. No doubt do I have, he is reminiscent of his hometown.

Quietly, we ate. Peacefully, we drank. And unspokenly, we finished.

And as we paid for our meal and left, we walked unhurriedly in the undisturbed alley. To remember things that have long passed is a way to put things to perspective. Is Shuzenji now looking back on his actions this past few weeks and reflecting? Perhaps so. It would be for the best it he has.

Along the way, we came across a small structure. He said it was an abandoned shrine, used to host local deities but left forgotten. The original owner long gone and the place ignored, So we did what we can and cleaned it as much as we can.

When I asked him why, he explained that even when it is abandoned now, doesn't mean it cannot become home for someone else eventually.

Despite how much he denied it, he is kind.

He is kind enough to care about what may or may not happen. Kind enough to care about people beyond his duty. The same kindness that is cutting into him with guilt not of his make.

"Hey..." He called out in a whisper. "Thanks for... This. I really appreciate it."

"Think nothing of it. You've helped more people that you can count, it is only right for you to receive the same." I said gently. "Don't be afraid to ask for assistance whenever you require it, there are plenty who would have lent you a helping hand."

"Yeah, guess so."

"And it is so." I huffed. "I'm sure Recovery Girl would have said the same thing, much less your own sister, no?"

"She would've smacked my head flying, too, yeah." He laughed. "I still feel bad about... What happened but..."

I patiently waited for him as he carefully chose his words.

"But I'll still try to keep going. Normally, of course." He clarified. "But first things, first. I'll getting some sleep when I get back. Human amounts of sleep. To refresh."

"Good." I nodded in approval. "And afterwards, I expect you to apologise to everyone for making them sorry about you, yes?"

"Right."

"Then shall we be off? It appears that it will rain soon."

"You go ahead. I'd like to walk a bit more."

"That won't do. What if you weren't remorseful at all and sneaked off to exhaust yourself again?"

"You don't trust me?"

"Not with what you've done so far, no." I shook my head. "I'll accompany you on your walk to make sure that you won't run off again."

"...fine." He relented. "But we should get an umbrella first. I don't want you getting sick because of me."