Jerry at Black Cat's Home

And there was one very obvious thing all their stories had in common.

Yet You Know Who, who usually loved kicking people when they were down, perversely chose not to continue. It seemed he was waiting for the girls reading the Diary to uncover the truth themselves.

Black Cat viciously complained about You Know Who in private, then began looking for ways to investigate Eromanga Sensei's true identity.

Fortunately, the girls in the group were all sensitive to anything You Know Who had mentioned in his diary. She would probably learn about Eromanga Sensei from the group before long.

Aside from complaining about You Know Who, Gokō Ruri had to admit that compared to debuting as a light novel author, the advice he had given her in the diary was indeed more practical.

Compared to light novels, she was much more confident in her computer skills and gaming abilities.

In this era when online livestreaming had only just emerged, if she followed what You Know Who had written in the diary, she might really be able to make money playing games in the future. Then her family would not have to work so desperately to earn money.

At that moment, Gokō Ruri was sitting before the old computer she had assembled bit by bit from secondhand parts bought with her own savings, working on a model.

The avatar You Know Who had suggested looked a little embarrassing, but compared to showing her real face on camera, it was clearly much easier to accept.

As long as she adjusted and modified it a little more, no one in real life should be able to recognize her.

But just as she had been drawing on the computer for a few minutes, the entire room suddenly went pitch-black. Panicked cries from her younger sisters immediately came from next door.

Her parents had not yet returned from work, so as the eldest sister in the family, she naturally had to take responsibility for looking after her sisters.

After spending quite a while calming them down, she picked up her phone and prepared to check the circuit breaker.

She also complained about it in the group chat.

Everything had seemed normal at first, and she had only assumed it was an accident. But after she reset the breaker and returned to her room, it tripped again within a few minutes. That was when she began to sense that something was wrong.

This time, she carefully checked the appliances in the house and confirmed that there was nothing wrong with them.

Then she told her two younger sisters to stay in their room and not wander around before returning to the breaker and resetting it again.

This time, she did not leave right away. Instead, she stood beside the breaker and waited. After several minutes passed without the power tripping again, she finally frowned and headed back.

That was strange. Why had the breaker tripped just now? Should she call someone over tomorrow to check whether some wiring had gotten old?

But since it did not trip again this time, Gokō Ruri did not think too much about it.

Returning to her computer, she planned to continue working.

Yet after only a few minutes, the sound of a television suddenly came from the living room.

"Hinata, are you watching TV? Didn't I tell you that you can't watch television after eight at night?" Gokō Ruri called toward the living room. Gokō Hinata was the second daughter of the family and had just turned ten this year, so naturally she could not stay up late watching TV.

But shortly after Gokō Ruri asked, footsteps sounded outside her room.

Gokō Hinata, her twin ponytails swaying, ran into her eldest sister's room with a puzzled look on her face.

"I'm telling Tamaki stories in our room. Didn't you turn on the TV, Sis?"

Hearing her sister's explanation, Gokō Ruri's confusion only deepened.

Her sister would not lie about something like this. If she really wanted to watch TV, she only had to say so honestly. As long as it was only for a little while longer, Gokō Ruri would not say much.

So if it was not her sister, then who had turned on the television in the living room?

Gokō Ruri walked out of her room and stared at the television, which had somehow turned itself on. For some reason, she could not help feeling nervous.

For once, she asked her sisters again whether they had turned on the TV.

She received the same answer as before.

Could the house really be haunted?

Gokō Ruri swallowed.

She was somewhat chuuni. Before obtaining the Diary, she had often hidden alone in the house at night to perform various rituals. But things were different now.

She had already confirmed that ghosts truly existed in this world. She had even listened carefully in the group as Yotsuya Miko described how disgusting those Vengeful Spirits and Evil Spirits looked.

Those Vengeful Spirits, however, could hardly affect reality unless they attacked people who could see them. It was even more impossible for them to do things like trip circuit breakers or turn on televisions.

Still, Gokō Ruri remembered that aside from those Vengeful Spirits, Shitamachi Godmother had also mentioned that ancient yokai were slowly reviving as the times changed.

Could some yokai have entered her house?

Thinking of that, Gokō Ruri hurriedly sent Shinomiya Kaguya a private message in the group, asking her to consult Shitamachi Godmother about what she should do in a situation like this.

Chapter 84: Jerry at Black Cat's Home

When Shinomiya Kaguya saw Gokō Ruri, who had just been complaining in the group, suddenly get scared, she naturally became interested in the appearance of a "yokai" as well. She immediately went to consult Shitamachi Godmother.

"I haven't dealt with yokai much, but I have indeed heard quite a few rumors about them in recent years. Generally speaking, though, there's no need to worry too much. This is Tokyo, after all. No particularly dangerous yokai should appear here."

After listening to Shinomiya Kaguya's description, Shitamachi Godmother Takeda Misae quickly gave her opinion.

Shinomiya Kaguya, however, did not have much faith in those so-called official supernatural practitioners.

After all, Beika Town had already become a gathering place for Vengeful Spirits, yet she had never seen those officials deal with it. Would they really care so much about yokai?

"The supernatural factions of the Reverse Side World treat Vengeful Spirits and yokai differently. Vengeful Spirits cannot attack people who cannot see them, after all, and they can barely affect reality."

"Every day, these Vengeful Spirits are born in all sorts of places. Then, through various means, they either dissipate or are eaten as food by other Vengeful Spirits, cursed spirits, or even yokai. The overwhelming majority of Vengeful Spirits do not affect human life at all, so Sorcery Headquarters focuses more on controlling them than exterminating them."

"Cursed spirits born from curses can attack ordinary people, but they are far fewer in number than Vengeful Spirits and rarely gather together. The threat they pose is only slightly greater than that of Vengeful Spirits. Sorcery Headquarters specifically handles them, so there is no need to worry too much."

"But yokai are different. Yokai have minds of their own and can directly affect human life. They also enjoy living in groups and may even form factions, so yokai have always been a major concern for the Reverse Side World."

"If some great yokai had truly appeared, Sorcery Headquarters would probably have noticed long ago."

"The one in your friend's home is probably just a small yokai that has recently revived and likes playing pranks. These little yokai are quite easy to deal with. Usually, offering them a few meals is enough to send them away. If you are lucky, you might even be able to turn that yokai into the guardian deity of your household."

Like the zashiki-warashi of legend, a yokai that liked running into other people's homes to play with children. The family it stayed with would also gain good fortune as a result.

Because of this ability to bring luck, some people in ancient times would specifically ask Onmyoji to bind zashiki-warashi to their homes so they could monopolize that good fortune.

"If you don't mind, could you tell me where your friend lives? Let me take a look. If it really is a zashiki-warashi, Lady Kaguya, what do you think?"

Takeda Misae sought Shinomiya Kaguya's instructions. After all, she was currently making a living through Shinomiya Kaguya. If she could really bring back a lucky zashiki-warashi for this young lady, she would certainly receive more benefits.

Shinomiya Kaguya was somewhat interested in the matter of the zashiki-warashi, but keeping one in her own home was unnecessary.

The Shinomiya Family had already developed to its current extent. Did they really need a little yokai to bring them extra luck? Such a thing would be better left to Black Cat, whose family circumstances were more strained.

After receiving Shinomiya Kaguya's reply, Gokō Ruri relaxed slightly.

She did not hesitate for long before giving Shinomiya Kaguya her address.

Then, following Shitamachi Godmother's advice, she let her two sisters watch television in the living room while she stood guard at the living room entrance and waited for Takeda Misae to arrive.

Of her two sisters, the younger Gokō Tamaki was delighted that she could still watch television so late at night.

The older Gokō Hinata, however, felt rather nervous.

She had heard the phone call her sister had made in her room just now. Her sister suspected that some yokai had entered their home.

Gokō Hinata knew that her sister was somewhat chuuni. She usually hid in her room chanting spells and drawing magic circles. She had even made up a whole bunch of nonexistent contacts in her phone to make it seem like she had lots of friends.

Of course, Gokō Hinata did not have any complaints about her sister's behavior. She had even sworn to herself that, no matter what strange things this sister who usually took such good care of her did, she would control her expression and never laugh.

In the past, if she heard her sister talking about yokai or something similar, she would definitely have assumed her sister was playing a prank on her.

But recently, her sister's behavior seemed to have become strange, forcing her to think more deeply about it.

Simply put, it seemed like her sister had actually managed to make something happen.

This change appeared to have begun a little over half a month ago.

One night, her sister suddenly came to find her, wearing a serious expression as if she wanted to tell her something. In the end, however, she only said a few ordinary things about daily life before leaving.

Before that day, Gokō Hinata had truly never imagined that someone could make both a delighted and disappointed expression at the same time.

So Gokō Hinata began paying closer attention to her sister.

And once she started paying attention, things became serious.

She had naturally known about the group chat for some time. Her sister now held her phone all day chatting with people, and she had even gone out to meet them last week. As her younger sister, Gokō Hinata had been a little worried about whether her sister could get along with others.

Fortunately, when her sister returned that day, she had looked very happy. She had even boasted to them that she had eaten a grand meal cooked by a graduate of the legendary Totsuki Culinary Academy in an enormous mansion that evening.

But putting aside the fact that her sister had found friends, what deserved even more attention was her sister's physical condition.

She knew that although her sister was skilled at housework and capable in many ways, she was hopeless at exercise. Even doing stretches looked like serving a prison sentence.

Yet recently, her sister's stamina and coordination seemed much better than before.

In the past, whenever her sister gave the room a thorough cleaning, she would be exhausted and panting, frequently needing to take breaks.

But during last weekend's deep cleaning, her sister had displayed astonishing strength and stamina. She spent an entire morning cleaning without resting even once. By the time she finished, there was not even much sweat on her.

At the time, Gokō Hinata had curiously asked her sister about it, only to receive the same chuuni answer as always: "As long as you maintain the correct breathing, you won't feel tired."

Her sister had even wanted to teach her some breathing rhythms then, but the awkward-sounding way of breathing made her give up immediately. She had merely assumed her sister was joking with her.

But what truly bothered her was that, later that night, when she got up to use the bathroom, she suddenly heard the sound of electrical arcs coming from her sister's room.

Worried that something had happened to her sister, she secretly peered through the crack in the door—and saw that the electrical arcs were actually coming from her sister's hands.

She had screamed in fright on the spot.

Although her sister later explained that it was magic, she was already ten years old. Such lies might fool Tamaki at most. How could they possibly fool her?

Her sister had definitely gained some kind of superpower. Perhaps that group chat was a mysterious organization created by a group of Espers.

Therefore, when she heard her sister mention yokai tonight, her first reaction had been to assume it was a joke. But after calming down, she realized that her sister did not seem to be joking with her.

She could even faintly hear electrical arcs crackling around her sister whenever she left the living room to inspect other places.

Could a yokai really have entered their home?

Had it been drawn here by her sister? Or had it come to their house by chance?

Gokō Hinata's mind was entirely focused on the suspicious yokai. She had no desire to watch television seriously, and she completely failed to notice that a brown mouse was sitting on the cabinet behind her, intently watching TV.

Jerry had been following a show recently. Because he had to come here today, he had nearly missed it.

"Still, this Black Cat seems pretty easy to get along with. When she saw me watching TV here, she even called her sisters over to watch with me," Jerry muttered to himself as he looked at the two little girls seated in front of him.

This family did not seem to be doing very well, though. Not only was it nowhere near Miyauchi Hiyage's mansion, even the place Jerry had lived in before coming to this world had been much better than this.

He had taken a brief look around the area and caught the scent of more than one fellow mouse.

But his fellow mice in this world seemed to be brainless filthy creatures. Not only did they relieve themselves everywhere, they chewed on everything and brought back all kinds of parasites from outside. They did not possess even a hint of the elegance a mouse should have.

Jerry felt that once he finished tonight's prime-time show, he should teach those brainless local mice a proper lesson. Since they lived in someone else's home and ate and drank from their supplies, they should at least have basic manners.

If they refused to behave politely, he could only invite those fellow mice to go elsewhere.

But just as tonight's drama reached its most exciting point, the arrival of an uninvited guest diverted much of Jerry's attention.

An old woman in her sixties or seventies, giving off an unpleasant smell.

"That should be the Shitamachi Godmother Miyauchi Hiyage mentioned," Jerry thought as he watched the old woman chat with Black Cat while entering the house and looking around. Her clothes revealed her identity.

"Did that Black Cat call her here to catch me?" Jerry considered it for a moment, then decided the pressure she gave him was nowhere near as great as that blue cat Tom. So he simply remained still and continued watching television from atop the cabinet.

There was still nearly half of today's show left. He did not want to miss it.

But just because he did not want to bother others did not mean they did not want to bother him.

Takeda Misae had only just entered the house, listened to Black Cat's explanation, and greeted her two sisters.

She was preparing to show off her skills in front of the girl who had once looked down on her when she turned around and saw a brown mouse sitting on the cabinet behind her, completely absorbed in the television.

The house did not look messy, yet a mouse actually dared to crawl out so openly?

She had no idea how this girl had become friends with the young lady of the Shinomiya Family.

But since she was already here, she might as well put on a good performance.

Takeda Misae muttered to herself, then casually took out a string of Magic Orbs, preparing to stimulate the Spiritual Power inside.

Her shop was on a commercial street, where there were plenty of mice as well. These mice were much more sensitive to Spiritual Power than ordinary people. As long as she gave them a slight jolt with it, they would not dare come near.

Of course, she normally would not be so extravagant as to use her Spiritual Power on a mere mouse.

But things were different now. She had come here to search for a yokai.

Scaring this mouse away with Spiritual Power would not only let her show off in front of these little girls, but also let her see whether there would be any other reaction in the room.

She crushed several beads, and the power she had possessed in her youth instantly burst from the Magic Orbs, rapidly spreading throughout the entire room.