CH 11

NOVEMBER 26, 2022 / MAD HATTER

“…Eh…?”

I was at a loss foriwordsiwith a half smile on my face. What Hirai said was too enigmatic.

When I was about to ask what she was referring to, sheicame backibehind the counter, and before long, she was standing very close to me.

You might beiwondering how close she was to me. She was really quite near at hand.

“Ueaa!?”

Perhaps I wasn’t aware of it, but she was right next to my waist. Hiraiiwas peeking at me.

Or rather, her b-b-b-b-b-reasts! It’s hitting myichest, Hirai!?

What, what was all thisiabout? Whatiwas this!?

“Um.” debhbfheyfwe

Her large eyes widened, and she stared at me. Hirai madeino movement.

Like a sculpture, I couldn’t budge. But her breasts, her breasts! They were hitting my right arm…! Hiraiiiiii!!

Eh, what was this really? What should I do? Was she inviting me out?

No, no matter what, a security cameraiwas on the ceiling! Or rather, it was soft or something… I wanted to die!!

“I’ve been curiousiabout this all day.”

“Y-Yes…?” efwf

At last, Hirai spoke up and without separating from me, she looked up atime and asked, “Hakamada, those claw marks on your neck. How did you get them?”

Neck, claw marks. At the mention of it, a shiver shotiup my neck again. It reminded me of that time.

The intense gaze I felt brought on an unexplainable difficulty in respiration. How my body became immobile as if I was bound, and how I suffered to the stage whereieven my voice was rendered mute. Hirai was looking at my neck as if she was licking it, and she said to me. Fromimy neck to my collarbone, severalired marksihad beenileft, as if someone had grasped me with claws and pulled me down.

Andithen… jfyguf

“Wow… somehow, it’s erotic…!”

Unless I hadimisheard her, she blurted out something like that. Even I, naturally, felt goosebumps at those words and for some reason, Hirai had a look of ecstasy on herivisage. In a panic, I pulled her away from me and distanced myself from her, who was clinging to me defenselessly.

“Wait… Hirai, what are youisuddenly… What’s wrong?”

When I was flustered, she twirled her long, fluffy hairiwith her fingers as she looked alternately at the outside of the store and at me before muttering,

“I thought it was strange, they were loitering in front of the store and hanging there with an incredible expression on their face… Even though Takenaka just drove them away the other day.”

“Hirai…?”

“Hakamada, I think that person is afteriyou.”

“That person…?” fwefew

“Yeah, there, in the corner of the glazed magazine section is a woman in tattered clothes… From time to time, when someone she likes pops up, she will try to pull a nasty move on them, to make them her ‘possession’…”

It didn’tifeel like she was trying to frighten me. Hirai seemed to be describing the situation straightforwardly while staring at the glazed section of the magazine corner.

“Oh… It’s creepy that I said this so bluntly, isn’t it? Sorry, I shouldn’t have done this.”

“…Um, you can see them…? Hirai…”

When I asked with aislightly quizzical countenance, Hirai nodded with a smile.

“Yeah. I can see a woman with bloodshot eyes watching Hakamada over there in the glazed section.”

Yet, the wordsiuttered were not befitting of a smile.

“I… see…”

“Hmm. Your face says you don’t believe me, Hakamada.”

Right as I was attempting to brush it off lightly, she caught on toimy thoughts in one shot, leaving me feeling impatient inwardly. Before I could deny it, Hirai opened her mouth.

“It’s fine, I didn’t say that to makeiyou believe me.”

She was only expressingiher vision in words.

“Hakamada, you are the kind of personiwho doesn’t believe in such things, right? If so, Iisuppose that’s fine. It’s preferable to being overly frightened.”

“Why… Why do you think so?”

“Because I thought so, soiperhaps I hit the mark?”

“Uh.”

“Did I guess it right?”

Silenceiwasiaffirmation―

“No, Hirai, indeed I am a person who doesn’t believe in such things, but it doesn’t mean I assume that you are lying… you know.”

Feeling that the atmosphere would be awkward, I was afraid to speakioutiof fear of that, but after voicing it, I thought I was being foolish. My intention was to follow up with a contradiction, yet conversely, it turned out that I had no clue what to say. Silence ensued over my response.

“I don’t really care how you think about it, Hakamada. It’s fine. After all, some people will definitely believe it, and some people will definitely not.”

‘That’s how things are,’ added Hirai. No matter how I reacted, Hirai remained indifferent and seemed to be unaffected by it.

“However… I merely figured that I’d give you a warning. This place is even stranger than you think, Hakamada.”

A normal personiwouldn’t be able to carry on like this.

Like me, numerous people have been lured by the hourly wage and worked here. Practically all of them had quit within a week or so, despite their claims to the contrary.

“I don’t mean to be creepy, but I don’t want you to resign straight away, so please hang in there.”

Hirai’s words contained no falsehoods. Intuitively, I thoughtiso. This person was not fabricating a lie. This person was… really.

“Can you really… see it? Those things…”

I was half in doubt. With such feelingsiin my heart, I thought asking such a question was impolite. Nevertheless, Iicouldn’t help but inquire. Perhaps it was out of curiosity as well. What would Hiraiisay back to me?

“Then, shall you try lookingiat it?”

What followediwas a far different responseithan I had anticipated.