Yotsuya Miko Becomes a Devilish Cultivator

"I understand."

Hana lowered her head, awaiting the impending punishment. However, Tono Zen merely tossed the bread into the trash can and continued reading his lecture notes.

"Well then, please continue reading."

"Huh? Oh, understood, Teacher."

In that instant, she felt disbelief, then quickly came to her senses, picked up her textbook, and loudly read the passage before her until the designated section was finished.

"Very good, then…"

Hana sat down, still wearing an expression of disbelief. Beside her, Yotsuya Miko probably no longer knew how to describe her feelings.

"Yotsuya Miko, please read the next two paragraphs."

Tono Zen didn't look at the attendance sheet but fixed his gaze directly on the black-haired, golden-eyed girl before him. This was the girl who had struck him as strange back then, and she still struck him as strange even now.

"…Yes, Teacher Tono."

Miko paused, stood up from her chair, and focused her mind on the text. Today's reading was "The Spider's Thread."

It was another short story by Ryunosuke Akutagawa, telling a tale connected by a single spider's thread. A great thief who had fallen into hell could have escaped the blood pond by virtue of a moment of good deed, yet he ultimately lost the spider's thread of salvation due to his own selfish desires. It could be considered a peculiar story, profoundly expressing the changes in human inner emotions.

Miko silently finished reading the designated paragraphs. Even as she sat down, she still looked at Tono Zen with a puzzled gaze, always suspecting she had misread the change that had occurred at that moment.

But that shouldn't have been an illusion. In that fleeting moment of a smile, the deathly stillness that had been on Tono Zen's face suddenly receded, and a sense of life permeated his expression. It was as if a Buddha, who had been desperately seeking true knowledge, suddenly attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree and understood cause and effect, his face beaming with joy. The expression of suffering and resentment for all beings transformed into bliss, much like Yin Xi of Hangu Pass glimpsing the purple qi of the heavens and hearing the teachings of a sage, seeing through the mortal world.

To put it simply, it was like a corpse, newly buried and with funeral rites completed, suddenly bursting from the earth and slapping the crying living people, saying, "You brats, I'm not dead yet."

That, perhaps, was how Miko felt seeing the sudden smile appear on Tono Zen's face. If her mental fortitude hadn't forced her to suppress her expression, she probably would have directly asked Tono Zen what had happened to him to cause such a drastic change.

Could it be… that another god has truly placed divine power into my Talisman Iron Pellet?

Yotsuya Miko suddenly felt that perhaps the omnipotent Silver Ball was not just an empty rumor. She lost herself in thought for the entire morning, only being woken up by Hana at noon.

"What's wrong, Miko?"

"I just saw something more terrifying than seeing a Ghost."

Miko could only say that, then shook off the thought. She planned to ask Tono Zen what had happened that evening.

"Something terrifying? Are you talking about Teacher Zen? Ah, I get it. I thought he would get angry too, but I didn't expect him to be so easy to talk to."

Hana patted her shoulder, filled with relief.

"Otherwise, I would have had terrible luck today. By the way, Miko, you should change your impression of Teacher Zen. He's clearly a good person, but you…"

"…I'm already changing."

Yotsuya Miko chose to give up thinking.

"Let's go have lunch with Yuria."

Chapter 63: Persecuting Yuria

Yuria's lunch was quite elaborate.

Yotsuya Miko silently glanced at the tamagoyaki and octopus sausages in her bento box, then at the boxed milk in her hand and the bagged bread in Hyurikawa Hana's. She took a sip of milk.

Due to their parents' work, she and Hana rarely had bento lunches. Most of their lunches consisted of bread or sandwiches. Miko's mother, for instance, had to bear the entire family's financial burden alone after her husband's passing; it was truly difficult to say she wasn't working hard.

"Is lunch this fancy every day?"

Hana ate her bread with large bites, expressing her amazement at Yuria's bento and her regret over the portion size.

"It's just that the quantity is too small."

In the plastic bag beside her, several empty bread bags were already collected. Perhaps Hana's family didn't make her a bento lunch because they considered her astonishing appetite; otherwise, just the bento alone would fill a school bag.

"…Do you think everyone is like you?"

Miko said irritably, crushing the empty milk carton and putting it into the plastic bag beside her. Although she envied Yuria's lunch, looking at such an exquisite meal, Miko probably formed an impression of Yuria's parents as well – they were likely a couple who loved their child.

"Did your mom make it?"

"Eh?"

Yuria was tidying her bento box when she heard the sudden question and was momentarily stunned. She looked at Yotsuya Miko, her eyes flickering slightly.

"Mm—yes, it's… like that. By the way, why don't you two have bentos?"

She managed to gloss over the topic and shifted the focus of the conversation to them. Miko, who had just noticed Yuria's expression change, immediately forgot her previous thought and fell into the awkwardness of this questioning.

"Uh, well… actually…"

She was speechless, while Hana frankly explained her reason.

"I want a bento lunch too… but Mom says it takes too much time to make breakfast in the morning, so there's no time to make lunch."

This reason was plausible. At the very least, after seeing Hana's astonishing appetite more than once, Yuria was no longer surprised by it.

"Is that so? Your mother must be working very hard."

"Yes, she is. So I started eating bread at school. As for Miko…"

Hyurikawa Hana threw an arm around Yotsuya Miko, who was still thinking about how to answer the question, causing the latter to be taken aback.

"She told me she didn't want to trouble our family to specially make her a bento, and also said—'I'm happy to eat bread at school with Hana'—something like that. It's really heartwarming."

"...Uh... Actually..."

As Yuria looked her way, Miko was already feeling embarrassed, her face flushing, her earlobes growing hot.

"Actually... that's right, but don't just blurt things out like that, Hana."

Her hidden thoughts exposed, she finally couldn't stand Yuria's gaze and admitted it in a fit of self-abandonment.

"Please, it's really embarrassing."

"How so?"

Yuria looked at her with some confusion, but Miko simply took it as politeness.

"Laugh if you want, it's Hana's fault anyway."

Saying that, Miko, somewhat angered by shame, grabbed Hana and tickled her, feeling even more ashamed amidst Hana's laughter.

"I told you, don't just casually..."

"No, there's nothing funny about this. It's a truly remarkable decision."

Yuria stood up and looked at Yotsuya Miko with admiration.

"Isn't someone like that... a proper adult?"

Hearing Yuria's words, Miko's movements paused. Hana, seizing the opportunity, broke free from Miko's grasp and scurried behind Yuria.

"Aha, I'm finally saved."

Yurikawa Hana hugged Yuria tightly, hiding behind her with a smile on her face.

"See, Yuria thinks so too. It's just you, Miko, who's embarrassed. How many times have I told you, you're really great, Adult Miko-chan."

"...What's with the weird nickname 'Adult Miko-chan'."

Miko covered her face, but the next moment, she suddenly let go and burst into laughter.

"What is it, so I was just overthinking it."

She looked at Yuria, who still had a serious expression, and couldn't help but step forward and mess with her face.

"Well then, thank you for your understanding, Yuria-chan. And... you greedy guts."

Even though her face was being messed with, Yuria didn't resist at all at this moment. She looked at the girl with a smiling mouth in front of her, this powerful Psychic, and seemed to feel that there wasn't much distance between them. Just like herself, who had troubles and worries, Yotsuya Miko in front of her also had her own troubles and worries, and would feel embarrassed, ashamed, or angry about things concerning herself.

So... you're just like an ordinary person.

"I told you not to call me that so casually!"

"Greedy guts, greedy guts, Hana is a greedy guts!"

"Miko! I'm going to get angry now."

"Are you going to get angry? Yuria-chan--is Hana a greedy guts?"

As she was thinking, Yuria, who suddenly heard her name, mumbled, "Yes," and only after the hands that were messing with her cheeks left did she realize what had happened... It seemed she had subconsciously heard Miko's words... and then...

"You think so too--Yuria-chan."

Yuria's face turned pale. She subconsciously recalled a previous situation, her body being twisted by a great force, and her head being shoved into a soft place again. The familiar feeling finally returned.

It was suffocation, intense suffocation!

"You think I'm a greedy guts too?"

Hana hugged Yuria, shaking her body, on the verge of tears.

"We're good friends, how can you see me like this?"

No, that's not it.

Yuria wanted to deny it, but being completely blocked by Hana's chest, she couldn't speak at all. She struggled desperately, but compared to Hana's small frame, she was completely helpless.

Yotsuya Miko, who had instigated this ordeal for Yuria, was watching the scene with amusement, taking pictures with her phone, a mischievous smile all over her face.

"Yes, Yuria actually thinks so."

She continued to add fuel to the fire without any self-awareness, continuing to torment the blonde little girl.

Chapter 64: A Redemption (Part 1)

After the midday roughhousing ended, Yotsuya Miko spent the afternoon peacefully.

Although the Silver Ball incident caused quite a stir, with a very popular figure at their school, Natsukawa Yuki, the school still managed to suppress the impact, giving Ms. Natsukawa, who was currently overwhelmed, a week off.

As for Tono Zen, who also received considerable attention, he responded to reporters' questions very rigidly, disappointing them with his calm demeanor, forcing them to vent their dissatisfaction in writing. Thanks to Ms. Natsukawa Yuki taking the heat for many Silver Ball holders, the main focus had not yet spread to every Silver Ball holder.

The local government also handled the entire matter calmly. After all, it involved a certain mysterious power, even the existence of gods. They had no intention of risking their own lives to test whether the actions of these unscrupulous reporters would anger the gods. Therefore, they handled the tricky topic properly—without any bowing—and ensured that the matter quickly faded from public view.

These efforts were also evident. Although the incident was still unfolding today, compared to yesterday's heated discussions, the public today was clearly much calmer, and their attention on the topic of Silver Balls had shifted to more explosive celebrity gossip.

"I can't believe he already has a lover... and a man, that's incredible."

"Yes, I felt so disgusted at the time, I just didn't want to love anymore."

Yotsuya Miko, as the person involved, listened indifferently to her classmates' criticisms of a certain celebrity, not paying much attention to the cooling down of the Silver Ball craze. After all, she didn't have a clear understanding of certain behaviors. She only knew that she seemed to have to continue hiding for a while longer, until this matter truly ended.

"Rumors about Silver Balls, huh..."

Hana, who was as out of touch as Yotsuya Miko, only learned about the Silver Ball today. She was currently slumped over her desk, eating bread.

"I wish this great deity could let me eat my fill every day."

She sighed as she ate. Miko, beside her, could only think that she really couldn't help with that wish.

"Even a god can't grant such a greedy wish, right?"

"Then just let me eat less."

Hana tore open another bag of bread and continued to eat listlessly.

"Afternoon classes are so boring."

"Mm, they really are."

Miko nodded in agreement. Her heightened senses continued to pick up on the students' conversations. She began to realize that she might need the help of these classmates, who were at the forefront of current events, to get news to herself, who was so out of touch.

"Did you hear... that teacher Natsukawa Yuki is going to resign?"

"Is that true? But yeah, with that kind of public pressure, it's hard to resist."

"I never thought we'd have such a legendary figure at our school. The media even calls her the Witch of the Silver Ball."

It seemed the deification of the Silver Ball was already a foregone conclusion. Yotsuya Miko glanced at her shoulder bag and abruptly wondered, if that Ms. Natsukawa was the Witch of the Silver Ball, then what was she? The Deity of the Silver Ball? Or the Santa Claus of the Silver Ball?

But none of that had anything to do with her. At school, she was just an ordinary high school girl, and at home, just an ordinary girl. Oh, she needed to add a prefix now: a girl who liked calligraphy.

"Hana, are you free this weekend?"

"Yes, why?"

Yurikawa Hana looked at Miko, pausing her bread-eating.

"What's up?"

"Actually, I'm planning to enter a calligraphy competition this weekend. Could you come with me?"

The calligraphy competition was fast approaching, though Miko was completely unprepared. Still, she planned to practice during this time, using the time she would have spent drawing Talismans to practice calligraphy. Her younger brother, Kyosuke, probably wouldn't want to watch the competition; the little brat had never had any confidence in his sister's calligraphy. As for their mother, she didn't have the time or energy. Therefore, the only person left to accompany her to the competition was her friend, Yurikawa Hana.