"Amamiya-kun, did you get a game notification?"
Kitagawa Marin's steps paused slightly. She shuffled over to Natsuki's side with small steps and whispered close to his ear.
Natsuki spoke quietly:
"Zoo Ghost Story?"
"That's right—that's the one." Kitagawa Marin breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought I was the only one who got the game notification... Large-scale mission—just hearing that sounds super dangerous. But if I'm with Amamiya-kun, it'll be fine."
You still need to be strong yourself—don't pin all your hopes on other people. Getting stronger yourself is the right path!
"Oh right—after Amamiya-kun got the game notification, did Chika-chan get one too?"
Kitagawa Marin asked expectantly.
Natsuki said:
"Wait a minute and we'll know."
"..."
One minute passed in the blink of an eye.
"No message." Natsuki glanced at his phone. "She clearly didn't get a game notification."
Evidently, Zoo Ghost Story was the same as the previous "Midnight Subway"—a triggered mission. You only gained eligibility for the game after entering the corresponding scenario.
Of course, it would be best not to encounter this kind of sudden game scenario.
The unknown inevitably meant danger.
That said, there was something else Natsuki was even more concerned about.
"Miko." Natsuki took two steps forward and came to his childhood friend's side, speaking quietly: "Come here for a second."
"Eh?"
Miko tilted her head, her expression confused. She walked with Natsuki to a corner.
Natsuki got straight to the point:
"Why did you feel something was off about the zoo earlier?"
"Amamiya-kun and I just got a game notification saying we encountered the large-scale dungeon 'Zoo Ghost Story.'" Kitagawa Marin explained from the side.
"I... can't really say." Miko pressed her lips together. Hearing this, she furrowed her brow slightly and spoke in a low voice: "When I entered the zoo just now, I felt a bit uncomfortable. Like when you're alone in a room and your hair suddenly stands on end for no reason."
Kitagawa Marin blinked: "Come to think of it, Miko is just an ordinary person, right? Not a player. So why can she see evil spirits?"
"I'd like to know why too." Miko bit her lower lip, her tone resentful. Her gaze swept past an evil spirit in the distance. "I don't want to see those things at all!"
"Using simple logical syllogism for deduction." Natsuki pondered. "Ordinary people can't see evil spirits. Miko can see evil spirits. Therefore, the conclusion is..."
Natsuki looked at Miko: "Clearly, Miko isn't an ordinary person."
"Sorry." Miko squinted at him critically. "I really don't feel any different from ordinary people."
Kitagawa Marin raised her hand: "Miko-chan can see evil spirits. Ordinary people can't."
Yotsuya Miko: "..."
"Miko, what are you guys talking about?" Yuri Kawahana called out loudly. "Let's go see the giraffes!"
Miko turned to look: "Coming!"
Natsuki spoke calmly:
"Let's go. Continue touring the zoo."
The scenario hadn't officially started yet. Worrying and being frightened right now was pointless.
Kitagawa Marin felt the same way. The blonde gyaru had a carefree personality—completely lacking any sentimental attributes. She quickly tossed what had just happened to the back of her mind.
In Kitagawa Marin's words:
"You never know which will come first—tomorrow or an accident. So of course you should enjoy life in the present."
The zoo stroll continued.
"Why are those two giraffes bumping necks?"
The elementary school brother asked.
"I know, I know!" Yuri Kawahana leaned against the railing—the only one carefree and genuinely enjoying Golden Week. "...They're helping each other scratch itches. Just like the monkeys we saw earlier—they often help their companions pick lice off their bodies."
"I don't think that's quite right..."
Miko turned her head and looked at Natsuki.
"If giraffes want to scratch an itch, they'll just rub against a tree." Natsuki said. "A giraffe's neck is its weapon. When they swing them around like that, they're actually fighting."
"There's actually an explanation like that?" Kitagawa Marin raised her phone and activated selfie mode. "I'm going to film this and upload it to Line."
At the same time.
The Shinomiya family villa.
Having just finished her tea ceremony lesson, Kaguya Shinomiya was resting. Her slender, delicate hand picked up her phone. She unlocked the screen and looked at the empty chat app, puffing out her cheeks slightly.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing!
Aside from the messages Mom sent, she hadn't received a single message from Natsuki!
They'd clearly already exchanged contact information, but he'd sent her fewer than five messages total. Shouldn't he at least send one per day?!
Ai Hayasaka stood beside her, arms folded across her chest. She sighed: "Why not take the initiative and message Amamiya-kun yourself?"
"No. I refuse." Kaguya rejected the idea outright, sitting up straight. "I was only checking the time... Besides, he probably hasn't even gotten out of bed yet."
Hayasaka retorted:
"It's almost ten o'clock. Still not up? No one could be that lazy."
"That's not necessarily true." Kaguya countered. "I've heard that for many people, their day off doesn't start until noon."
"Yes, yes."
Hayasaka covered her forehead and sighed helplessly.
If it were anyone else sleeping in, Kaguya wouldn't spare them a second glance. But now she was actually making excuses for him... The young miss was beyond saving.
Still, compared to the Kaguya-hime who barely spoke a few words all day, the current young miss constantly testing the waters at love's edge was clearly much more adorable.
"There's one more method." Hayasaka bit down on her lollipop. "You could make Amamiya-kun ask you out proactively."
"What method?"
Kaguya's ears perked up slightly.
"The young miss could post an update saying 'The weather's nice—perfect for going out.'" Hayasaka offered her counsel. "If Amamiya-kun sees it, he'll definitely know what to do."
"Today's weather really is quite nice."
Kaguya glanced at the sunlight outside the window and casually opened her feed. A photo of giraffes came into view.
Previously, she'd used a flip phone. Now that she'd switched to a smartphone, her contact list was still pitifully small—
Natsuki Amamiya. Chika Fujiwara. Ai Hayasaka. Mrs. Kaguya. And Kitagawa Marin.
Below the giraffe photo was a girl's selfie. The blonde gyaru's smile was exceptionally bright and radiant.
Kaguya's finger swiped across the screen. Her gaze quickly hardened.
It was a photo taken at the zoo entrance.
In the photo, Natsuki stood in the center. To his left and right were Kitagawa Marin, Miko, and the Ōpai alien Yuri.
Too much!
This was way too much!
She'd thought he was sleeping at home—but it turned out he'd gone out on a date with other girls!
Kaguya set down her phone with a perfectly blank expression: "Hayasaka, let's go see the pandas at the zoo."
Hayasaka's gaze swept across the phone screen. She turned and headed out: "I'll have the driver prepare the car."
Crunch.
The lollipop snapped clean in half.
The day before yesterday at noon, the young miss had suddenly vanished from the villa without a trace. No matter how hard they searched, they couldn't find her. As her personal maid, it was an utterly unforgivable dereliction of duty!
Natsuki Amamiya.
It was necessary to strip this boy down and investigate him inside and out, thoroughly and carefully.