Meanwhile, Yotsuya Miko had already returned to her home. Seeing that the tentacled evil spirit really wasn't behind her anymore, she finally let out a long sigh of relief.
Thank goodness, it didn't follow me.
"I'm home~"
"Hmm? Miko, you seem very happy today." A woman wearing an apron looked at Miko and smiled.
Despite being dressed as a housewife, the woman's face was still young, with soft, rounded features and not a single wrinkle. She looked about seventy percent like Miko.
However, her aura was much more mature than Miko's. Even her hairstyle was the standard "dangerous housewife" look—her long black hair tied in a ponytail and draped casually over her right shoulder.
"Yeah, because something good happened today," Miko replied to her mother with a smile.
It really was a good thing; the tentacled monster that had been following her stopped, and it had even helped her resolve a crisis.
Well... it was the kind of "good thing" that didn't exactly make one feel happy.
Miko wept silently in her heart. If only she still couldn't see them like before. Why did she suddenly start seeing them?
"Is that so? Then today really is lucky. But dinner will have to wait a bit," Miko's mother replied with a smile.
"Got it."
...After dinner, Yotsuya Miko walked out of the bathroom in her pajamas, feeling quite happy.
Today truly seemed to be her lucky day, as she hadn't seen a single evil spirit in the house so far. Normally, she probably would have seen three or four by now.
Like that long-necked evil spirit from before, whose head had rotated a full 180 degrees, its entire neck looking like a towel being wrung dry.
That time, she had waited for over twenty minutes before it finally disappeared. She had been on the verge of despair. It was also through attempts like that that she learned salt piles were useless against these monsters.
"Phew, it's all in the past, it's all in the past."
Miko patted her cheeks to encourage herself, and while she was at it, she touched the Buddhist prayer bead bracelet on her wrist.
She had bought another prayer bead bracelet, but this time it wasn't from a store; it was from a fortune-telling shop run by an old woman.
She hoped these beads wouldn't suddenly snap like the previous ones.
Yotsuya Miko held the prayer bead bracelet and silently whispered her wishes before returning to her room on the second floor.
After carefully scanning the room and finding no signs of monsters or ghosts, she finally breathed a sigh of relief and walked in, relaxed.
Sigh, I wonder when this life of constant caution will ever end.
Yotsuya Miko threw herself onto the bed and scrolled through her phone, searching for any nearby shrines. If there were any, she would go pay her respects this Sunday.
She hoped she wouldn't have to see those things anymore. She was trying so hard to pretend she couldn't see them every day.
"Mitsuko-dani Shrine? A powerful power spot? I should go check it out with Little Hana next time."
Seeing the recommendation from the navigation app, Miko muttered to herself while scrolling.
But just as she was engrossed in searching for nearby spots, a shadow suddenly flickered by.
Hmm?
Yotsuya Miko suddenly sat up in bed. There seemed to be something just now. Wait, could it be... Eek! I'd better close the curtains and go to sleep right now.
At the thought that something might be right outside the window, Miko immediately wanted to turn around, pull the curtains shut, and go to sleep.
But before she could make her move, under the moonlight, a shadow resembling tentacles was suddenly cast onto the floor.
Miko's heart skipped a beat at the sight. In the next moment, the tentacled shadow seemed to find a point of support, and a figure slowly emerged from the shadows of the windowsill.
The shadow cast on the floor by the moonlight was humanoid, but it had no arms. In place of arms were several tentacles flailing about.
It was grotesque, but that wasn't the point. The point was... she seemed to have seen this appearance during the day.
In an instant, a chill filled her heart. Could it be... "Are you trying to get rid of me?"
A low whisper accompanied by a cold wind sounded in her ear. A head shrouded in black mist slowly peeked out from her shoulder, grinning at her with a mouth full of sharp teeth.
Several tentacles also appeared from both sides of her, slowly surrounding her.
It's over... With that single thought in her mind, tears welled up in the corners of Miko's eyes. Then, her eyes rolled back, and she fell straight onto the bed.
She had fainted from fright.
"..."
Seeing this, Xia Yu was instead stunned. This... Girl, is your mental fortitude really this weak?
She could clearly keep a straight face when seeing any other ghost before, so why did she faint like this? Is he really that scary? Probably not... right?
Okay, he admitted he really did want to scare Miko a bit. Who told her to leave him behind without hesitation? So he definitely had to get a little revenge. But... looking at the unconscious Miko, Xia Yu was at a loss. What should he do? How did she just faint like that?
Glancing at her again in her pajamas, he felt a bit of a headache. If she slept like this, she would definitely catch a cold.
Tsk, why does it feel like I'm acting like a naggy mother?
Forget it, forget it. Since he was the one who scared her unconscious, he should take responsibility.
After thinking for a moment, Xia Yu first merged all the tentacles into a pair of hands, then tried to pour all the yin energy in his body into them.
After a moment, his figure became somewhat translucent, but his hands were very solid, as if they were physical objects.
Looking at Miko still slumped on the bed, Xia Yu first tried to touch her. He found that although he would still pass through, there was now resistance.
He was delighted. Resistance was enough; he was afraid it would be like before, where there wasn't even a sensation of touch.
Taking advantage of the time he could still control his solidified hands, Xia Yu didn't delay. He struggled a bit to pull the blanket over Miko.
Although it was tucked in a bit messily, at least she was covered.
"Phew, as expected of me. So thoughtful."
Looking at the crooked blanket and the fainted... fast asleep Miko, Xia Yu nodded in satisfaction, then plopped down on the nearby chair.
Then he started dazing off. Since he had nothing else to do anyway, he went to browse the chat group, figuring he could consult the Cultivator Xia Yu for some cultivation experience.
Even though the other had already transferred a lot of cultivation memories to him, who would complain about having too much experience?
The night passed in silence.
The next morning.
Yotsuya Miko slowly woke up. After a brief moment of morning grogginess, she suddenly remembered everything that happened last night.
That tentacled monster had come to her house!
But she quickly realized she was still alive.
Feeling the blanket covering her, Miko breathed a soft sigh of relief.
So it was a nightmare. She almost thought it had actually come for her.
"Thank goodness, it was just a nightm—"
"Yo, you're awake. Good morning."
"Ah, good morning."
After subconsciously turning her head and greeting with a smile, Miko suddenly froze. A chill ran through her entire body. Who was talking just now?
She stiffly turned her head. What met her eyes was a pitch-black figure made of mist. Several tentacles at its arms were waving at her, as if saying hello.
It's over, it's really over... "Waaaah..."