Compared to Ryuji 's relaxed deanor, the three girls from the ga production club were far from comfortable. They had spent the night plagued by the strange encounter at Aki's house, and it showed on their faces when they t up during the break.
Upon seeing the dark circles and fatigue in each other's expressions, it was clear none of them had slept well.
"It seems like you all had the sa dream, right?" Utaha sighed as she sat down on the rooftop, unconsciously standing on tiptoe, a habit she had when feeling unsettled.
gumi nodded silently. She was beginning to regret ever going to Tomoya's house the previous night.
On the other hand, Eriri was far less composed. Her twin ponytails swayed wildly as she vented her frustration. "After I got ho, every ti I closed my eyes, I'd see that woman with half of her face as a skeleton, just standing there, staring at . I couldn't sleep at all!"
Eriri looked exhausted. She had thought she was being haunted by sothing unnatural, and while nothing happened physically, the lack of sleep was taking its toll.
Utaha didn't say much, but it was clear she felt the sa way. What they had experienced last night had completely shattered their sense of normalcy. Now they understood why Tomoya had seed so different, so unnervingly detached.
"What should we do now? Go to a shrine?" Eriri suggested, her voice tinged with desperation. She had never been one to believe in the supernatural, but after last night, it seed like the only logical solution.
"That's a good idea,"Utaha agreed, folding her arms. "There's got to be a shrine nearby that handles this sort of thing."
gumi, who had been listening quietly, suddenly spoke up, her voice calm but with a hint of sothing else behind it. "I think I know soone who can help with this kind of problem."
Both Utaha and Eriri turned to look at her in surprise. "You do?" they asked simultaneously.
---
During lunch break, Ryuji was spending ti with Miko. She barely spared a thought for her best friend Yurikawa Hana; all she wanted was to be near Ryuji.
"Ryuji, what do you think we'll do after graduation?" Miko asked dreamily, holding onto his arm as they strolled through the school grounds.
"Maybe I'll go into demon exorcism, or sothing like that," Ryuji replied with a shrug. He wasn't soone with grand ambitions like saving the world. His goal was simple beco strong and live life comfortably.
Miko seed thrilled by the idea. "That sounds perfect! We can start a demon-hunting agency together. I'll be your assistant!"
Ryuji smiled, not wanting to burst her bubble. "Sounds good. You can take care of all the little things."
Just then, his phone buzzed with a ssage. He glanced down and saw it was from Kato gumi, the girl he had saved from a strange encounter not long ago.
"Who is it?" Miko asked, noticing Ryuji's distraction.
"Ah, it's from soone at our school. I helped her out with a weird situation a while back. Seems like she's in trouble again and needs my help."
Miko nodded understandingly. "You should go, then."
Ryuji thought for a mont before pulling Miko closer. "Co with . No need to stay behind."
"Really?" Miko asked, looking a bit hesitant. She worried that her presence might complicate things, especially when it ca to supernatural matters.
"You're my girlfriend. You belong with ."
Miko blushed and nodded happily, letting Ryuji lead her by the hand.
Not far from them, Hana watched the two of them with a sigh. "Miko's really changed. She used to tell everything, and now... I've been completely forgotten." Hana pouted. "I want a love like that too..."
---
Back on the rooftop, Utaha and Eriri were still staring at gumi, processing what she had just said.
"You know soone who can help with... this?" Eriri asked incredulously.
"Yes," gumi replied calmly. "I ran into sothing strange a little while back after school, and this person helped out. I think he can help with whatever is happening now."
"Really?" Utaha's interest was piqued. "What happened to you?"
gumi told them about her encounter with the human-faced dog, explaining how Ryuji had saved her just in ti.
Both Utaha and Eriri were shocked by her story, leaning in as she spoke. It was hard to believe that soone as calm and indifferent as gumi had been caught up in sothing so terrifying.
"And this person... is he a student here?" Utaha asked.
gumi nodded. "Yes, he is. He should be here soon."
Just as they were processing this information, the rooftop door opened again. Ryuji stepped through, Miko right behind him, her hand still in his.
"Ryu..." gumi stopped herself mid-greeting as she noticed Miko standing with him, her hand intertwined with his.
"Hello again, Kato-san," Ryuji greeted casually, not seeming to notice her pause.
"Hello, Ryuji-kun," Kato gumi replied, keeping her usual calm expression, though there was a flicker of sothing in her eyes perhaps surprise or curiosity.
Seeing gumi's subtle reaction, Ryuji decided to introduce Miko properly. "This is Yotsuya Miko, my girlfriend."
"Hello, my na is Yotsuya Miko!" Miko greeted with a bright smile, clearly proud to be introduced as Ryuji's girlfriend.
Utaha and Eriri blinked in surprise but quickly composed themselves.
"Nice to et you," Utaha said politely, giving a small nod.
"Yeah, nice to et you!" Eriri added, though she couldn't hide the surprise in her voice. They hadn't expected Ryuji to already have a girlfriend, let alone one as sweet-looking as Miko.
As the introductions ended, gumi observed the pair. She had never thought much about Ryuji's personal life beyond their brief interactions, but seeing him with Miko... it made her feel sothing, though she wasn't entirely sure what it was.
"So," Ryuji started, "Kato-san, what seems to be the problem this ti?"
gumi quickly composed herself and explained, "It's not just . Kasumigaoka-san and Sawamura-san here have also been having strange experiences after visiting Aki's house. Sothing... off is going on."
Ryuji listened attentively, nodding as Kato explained the eerie events, including the unsettling presence of a woman with half her face skeletal, who seed to be haunting them. As he listened, his expression darkened slightly.
"Sounds like you've been caught up in sothing serious," he said, his tone more serious now. "I'll take care of it. Where's this Tomoya now?"
The three girls exchanged glances, unsure. "We don't know," Utaha admitted. "We tried contacting him after last night, but he's not responding to our ssages."
"Well, we'll have to find him first. But don't worry. I'll get to the bottom of this."
gumi, Utaha, and Eriri all nodded, a sense of relief washing over them. Even though the situation was bizarre, there was sothing about Ryuji that made them feel everything was going to be alright.
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