Campione! - Volume 21 - Chapter 7.8

Part 8
「Eerr, can I ask something?」

「Of course I don’t mind, Kusanagi Shizuka-san. However, from the view point of personal information protection, please be merciful from asking my address and phone number.」

The person who introduced himself as Amakasu spoke grinningly in respond to Shizuka’s question.

He was a young man around the early of his thirty, wearing a worn out business suit. His appearance looked like he wouldn’t even harm a bug, but for some reason he didn’t look like a honest office worker relatively to that.

(It might be that. He is a person with atmosphere that resembled a detective in casual clothes……)

Shizuka thought such thing.

They were at Toranomon of Minato district. The shrine where her junior Hikari would sometimes worked part-time at. However, there was not a single shrine staff in the main building, on the shrine ground, or in the office.

On the grounds covered with gravels──

There were only Kusanagi Shizuka and the young man called Amakasu there.

「Around what time I will be able to go home?」

「After the ghost extermination is over.」

「Just where are Hikari and the people of this shrine going……?」

「To avoid the worst scenario from happening, we asked them to take shelter.」

「What do you mean by worst scenario?」

「That’s if the wrathful god in question followed the aura of its target and appear at your location.」

「I am being targeted by that person!?」

「I think it will be more accurate to say that the wrathful god is targeting the lithograph that sealed it in the past. Our staffs are lying in wait at Kusanagi residence that once temporarily became its storage site. They are in the middle of dealing with it exactly right now. It’s also possible that it will follow the presence of the house’s residence and chase after the trace of you or your mother.」

「Haa」

The young man Amakasu who was fluently speaking of his peculiar logic looked somewhat happy.

Perhaps he had a personality that would feel happy when teaching a person something. A few hours ago when Shizuka was made to wait in this shrine, he appeared in front of her and said this.

『Nice to meet you. I’m a specialist in ghost extermination. I will protect you for a while.』

Furthermore,

『This shrine left everything to our agency, I came from the Shinto shrine agency.』

It was a really arrogant declaration.

Shizuka once more asked the young man who was mysteriously in a good mood since the first time they met.

「Just how high is the possibility that I will meet a real danger?」

「I am accompanying you just in case but──I believe it is only ten percent at most. The team that is working in your residence consisted of the most prominent people in their field at Japan. However, if there is one factor that is worrying, it’s about how a person at the level of Lucrezia Zora had to use “that lithograph”……」

「?」

「No, you see, the lithograph in question is an article with outrageous pedigree. It’s not something to be used unless the opponent is really tough or tenacious. Perhaps, in the most unlikely event, the possibility of the wrathful god slipping through the encirclement of those three by a hair’s breadth isn’t zero, something like that──」

When Amakasu was speaking torrentially of an incomprehensible explanation.

*Shiver*. Shizuka suddenly felt a chill.

It felt like her body was freezing until her core. It was unthinkable for Tokyo in December. It was as though she had come to a winter mountain with piling up snow.

And then, Amakasu was looking dumbfounded. He was staring at a spot inside the ground.

Shizuka was also shocked. Over there──mist of indeterminate shape was squirming. Something that was like a lump of cloudy air was hovering murkily!

「Wha, what, is that?」

「The possibility that is less than ten percent completely happened……. The wrathful god-dono estimated that the lithograph would be brought out, and he desperately chased after the presence of the inhabitants of Kusanagi residence──」

「The, then, it’s something like a ghost as expected!?」

「It’s an existence of a bit higher class. Please back away.」

The young man Amakasu quickly threw a paper talisman.

Some kanji and pattern were drawn complicatedly on it. Amakasu then formed a handseal with his right hand and chanted this.

「Kyuukyuu NyoritsuryouUrgent and emergency tathata vinaya order──. O talisman, go swiftly in haste to where I commanded.」

The paper talisman instantly blazed *boh* with blue flame. And then amazingly it stuck on the mist of indeterminate form, stopping the wriggling of the ghost something. Shizuka yelled.

「I saw that once in Onmyouji movie once!」

「That’s, it helps that I don’t need to explain. Just, I don’t have supernatural power as great as Abe no Seimei, so I don’t know how much effective it is──guhah!?」

「Eeh!?」

The burning blue talisman sticking on the mist of indeterminate form.

It suddenly flew at Amakasu and clung on the back of its owner. The blue flame changed color to black. Young man Amakasu fell down with a flop, then he was starting to twitch all over.

「Amakasu-san!?」

He didn’t respond. It seemed he fainted. Shizuka was astonished.

And then when she noticed, the murky thing──the lump of cloudy air had surrounded her. She was assaulted by shuddering chill, and that wasn’t all.

(……I can’t breathe──?)

It felt like the air was thinning down and her consciousness was getting distant.

She became unable to stand, and both her knees followed her. The texture of the gravels was painful. Furthermore a severe feeling of terror welled up inside her heart.

(I will, die like this……?)

It was a terror she felt for the first time in her eighteen years of life.

Vague malice and hate were keenly conveyed from the mist of indeterminate shape. It considered everything in this world as hateful and scattered its curse around. Shizuka abruptly comprehended that it was that kind of existence.

This thing didn’t think of particularly anything about Shizuka as an individual.

That was why, it would kill her as easily as plucking a flower──. She didn’t want that. Driven by terror, Shizuka yelled.

「Help me, Onii-chan! Kusanagi Godou!」

Come to think of it──

Two years ago, just before the departure to Milan, the destination of the study abroad. Her big brother, Kusanagi Godou said this to her.

『In the future, if there is time when you feel that your life is in danger, try to call my name when you think you have nothing more to lose. Perhaps, I’ll come running to save you at that time.』

When she heard that, 『Don’t say something stupid!』 she angrily yelled.

But, right now she instinctively yelled just like her big brother hinted.

How foolish. However, there should be no chance anymore for her big brother to know that his little sister really did something like this. In that case, perhaps it was okay…….

Her consciousness was getting further, in that moment.

*Whoosh* Shizuka felt a strong wind blowing.

「……Are you all right, Shizuka?」

She suddenly heard her big brother’s voice. There was no doubt about it. It was Kusanagi Godou’s voice.

「Onii-chan!?」

「Yo. You look energetic──you aren’t huh.」

She was carried in her big brother’s left arm when she noticed.

And then, the big brother swung his right arm in a big move as though to stir up the air. There was no way such gesture would do anything──the mist of indeterminate form vanished completely…….

「What happened?」

Her consciousness rapidly cleared up. Shizuka murmured.

The wind she felt just now was still blowing. Perhaps it was bringing fresh air to her surrounding, because the wind showering her felt strangely pleasant.

She wondered if this wind also blew away even the revengeful ghost (wrathful god?)──.

Shizuka was thinking of unrealistic thing while she stared fixedly at her big brother’s face.

「……Did you get taller?」

「Just a bit. It’s only two or three centimeter at most.」

「Even though I didn’t grow at all.」

「Looks like it. Your appearance almost doesn’t change from when you were in middle school.」

「That’s where you should say that I have become adult-like! Even if it’s just a transparent flattery!」

「Hahahah. Is that so.」

Kusanagi Godou laughed brightly and let go of Shizuka’s body.

And then──he helped Amakasu who was still lying down to stand up. It seemed that he didn’t faint, the young man in business suit smiled weakly.

「It’s really unexpected to be reunited like this.」

「Long time no see. Is your body okay?」

「Yes, somehow. Hahaha, to be able to see the miraculous effect of Kusanagi no Tsurugi after so long, it’s really something.」

Young man Amakasu laughed wryly after getting helped to stand up by her big brother.

It seemed that these two were fellow acquaintances. Besides Kusanagi no──what? When Shizuka tilted her head, Amakasu smiled pleasantly.

「It’s other name is Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi. There is a divine sword that accidentally has the same name with Kusanagi-san’s family isn’t it. Well, it’s something trivial. And then」

「It seems that Hikari-san contacted you, am I right?」

「Aa, something like that. It’s nice timing, so I also want to meet that girl. Also Kaoru-san and that Yinghua too.」

The two men exchanged glances, looking like they were secretly exchanging words through the implication.

However, the big brother approached toward the suspicious Shizuka──.

「But for today, I’ll go home after so long. I’m also worried about this girl too.」

「I, it’s not like I have done anything that will make Onii-chan worry about me──!」

「None at all? But as expected I’m concerned, so obediently depend on your elder brother. Let’s go home for today. How about everyone else?」

「Both Ojii-chan and Okaa-san aren’t at home today though……」

「What, so it’s just the two of us. Then, let’s go eat dinner somewhere. In the end I flew here without eating dinner, so I’m hungry.」

Shizuka began to walk beside her big brother, Kusanagi Godou who was muttering a complaint.

It wasn’t just his height that grew up a bit. His face looked from the side was also a bit mature. Perhaps he went various hardships over there.

Shizuka lightly sighed ‘fuu’.

She would forget the baffling matters for a while.

She shelved up various things inside the shelf of her heart by her own convenience──. The special skill that the elder brother of Kusanagi family boasted was actually a skill that the little sister had properly mastered too.

「How long you are planning to stay in Japan, Onii-chan? Or rather, give notice beforehand if you are coming back. I also have my own schedule that I got to clear up.」

「Are you planning to stick close to me while I’m at Japan huh?」

「Is that bad? It should be fine. After all I’ve been waiting all this time until now for Onii-chan to come home──. I think it’s only normal that Onii-chan accompanied me once in a while.」

「Eh? You, were waiting for me?」

「Yep.」

Perhaps because it was right after various kind of trouble. Shizuka nodded with extreme honesty.

The elder brother, Kusanagi Godou unusually showed a meek──apologetic expression to such Shizuka.

「I see……. Then, I’ve got to compensate you for a bit.」

「Not just me, even Hikari and Lu-kun was waiting for Onii-chan’s return after all. Take care of that too properly okay?」

「Roger.」

「Well, there is a mountain of things that I want to say but, I’ll shelve them for now. We are going eating somewhere. After that let’s go home quickly.」

「Ou」

Big brother and little sister──the two went home together for the first time after a few years.

Shizuka smiled cheerfully at the one whose return she had been waiting continuously all this time.

「Welcome home, Onii-chan.」

–

–

–

Thus, the tale of Kusanagi Godou closed its curtain.

Regarding his new adventure, and then the oath of reunion that the war god of the east spoke about, perhaps the day would come someday where they would be told, but──

The writing brush would be put down here for now.