Chapter Twenty: Could This Legend Really Be True?

Uesugi Tetsu stared at the phone screen for a long while, frowning before pulling his gaze away.

It was the White Hannya—undeniably, unmistakably the White Hannya.

Even though the figure in the photo was blurry.

If you asked why Uesugi Tetsu was so certain—aside from the different mask, everything else matched perfectly with the Laughing Hannya he himself had embodied. It was unmistakable at a glance.

Something was wrong.

This was a big problem.

The White Hannya had appeared in the real world?

Was it a pure coincidence, or was this the “wounded White Hannya” from the main questline of the Arakawa eerie village?

Resting his fingertip on the cold token in his pocket, Uesugi Tetsu hesitated.

Unlike the Laughing Hannya, rumored in jest to “love playing tricks on cute children,” the White Hannya was a true vengeful spirit—a bloodthirsty demon that killed for pleasure.

If it were mere coincidence, then it would be nearly impossible for Minatsu Shizuma, who had encountered a fully formed White Hannya at close range, to still be sitting intact before them.

So the scales of probability had already tipped the other way.

“—Could the demons and monsters from the eternal world actually come into the real world?”

The very thought startled Uesugi Tetsu himself.

Because if the White Hannya could cross over, then the red-faced samurai Fang Xiang he had met in Edo Castle should also be able to.

If a mass murderer who had slain thousands in ancient times could appear in the present...

A chill ran down Uesugi Tetsu’s spine.

At that moment, Ririko asked, “Minatsu, you said you found out what kind of monster this is from the trending list?”

“Yeah, yeah!”

Though unsure of what was happening, seeing the young couple’s sync, Minatsu Shizuma replied cheerfully, “Not long ago, this topic was pretty hot.”

White Hannya, Twitter trends, very popular.

Uesugi Tetsu couldn’t for the life of him understand how those words connected.

“Because a lot of people said they saw white shadows floating behind them,” Minatsu Shizuma said, quickly pulling up the browsing history from that day when she noticed both of them leaning in. “Look, don’t these photos look a lot like me?”

Squinting, Uesugi Tetsu noticed that behind all the pictures, whether clear or blurry, was the silhouette of the White Hannya.

Ririko said coldly, “And ‘how to summon the White Hannya’?”

“Uh, yeah.” Minatsu Shizuma blinked. “Why? To be honest, I actually tried that method myself before I managed to take these miraculous photos.”

As soon as she said this, Kitano Runa, quietly observing the situation from the side, noticed the sudden darkening expressions on Uesugi Tetsu and Ririko’s faces.

The reclusive girl swallowed nervously and thought, “My goodness, could this really be true...?”

“Move out.”

Uesugi Tetsu spoke abruptly. “Shizuma, I strongly recommend you move out immediately, or at least don’t go home for now.”

“Uh... hahaha, Uesugi, you’re scaring me a bit.”

Minatsu Shizuma gave a forced laugh and looked at Ririko. “Come on, Tokugawa, say something too.”

“I support Uesugi’s view.”

Having also barely survived the courage test, Ririko stared seriously into Minatsu’s slightly uneasy eyes. “I’m not joking, Minatsu.”

Seeing Ririko so serious, Minatsu Shizuma realized this was no small matter.

She took several deep breaths before managing a strained smile. “Let’s just eat first, okay?”

Uesugi Tetsu, picking up his chopsticks again, remained silent.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to speak, but the sudden flood of information was overwhelming.

Based on Minatsu Shizuma’s earlier words, Uesugi Tetsu already had a vague suspicion, but nothing confirmed.

“—Why does it sound so much like the real thing!?”

Kitano Runa pulled out her phone, staring at the notebook app filled with dozens of similar summoning methods and a dozen or so checkmarks.

The White Hannya was just one inconspicuous little demon among them.

In an instant, Kitano Runa was already planning which funeral package was most cost-effective and which cemetery plot was cheapest.

After devouring the meal, Uesugi Tetsu volunteered, “Shizuma, I know someone. If it’s convenient, you could stay with your family at their place for a couple of days.”

Ririko, eating with her head down, paused but said nothing, simply continuing to eat.

Minatsu Shizuma seemed a bit confused, taking several seconds to reply, “I live with my sister—it’s pretty convenient.”

“I—I’m coming too!”

Kitano Runa raised her hand anxiously.

Everyone looked at her in surprise, and Uesugi Tetsu was still trying to recall her name, wondering if he had forgotten it.

But he said nothing more; whether it was two or three people, they could be accommodated just the same on Nanjo Manami’s end.

In fact, Ririko’s friend seemed quite aware of the danger—a lot of others probably still treated this as a joke.

After explaining the whole situation to Nanjo Manami via Line, within seconds, Uesugi Tetsu received a reply.

[Big Sister Nanjo: We’ve naturally noticed the phenomenon you mentioned. Whenever a paranormal-related topic hits the trending list, measures are taken within minutes.]

[Tsukisa-chan: Then why can I still see the history on my friend’s phone?]

[Big Sister Nanjo: Try not to look into it. In short, it’s not that we haven’t tried, but for now, we can’t do anything. Also, I sent someone this afternoon—don’t forget to answer the phone.]

[Tsukisa-chan: Okay.]

Restrictions, huh? Just like the Friendship Club.

Uesugi Tetsu had no intention of probing further; if Nanjo Manami remained silent, it was surely for his own good.

Of course, part of it was also due to his own current lack of strength.

A mere one-and-a-half-star Karamy like him delving into this would probably not even know how to write the word “death.”

“I’m done eating.”

Ririko set down her chopsticks, breaking the silence.

Thus, the four’s first meal together ended abruptly, burdened by unspoken worries that made it impossible to continue in a relaxed manner.

Watching Minatsu Shizuma and the others leave first, Uesugi Tetsu approached Ririko, who had waited specifically for him, and said,

“This afternoon, let’s skip class and go practice swordsmanship.”

Ririko swallowed the exact words she wanted to say and, seeing more people around, nodded nonchalantly: “Okay.”

Uesugi Tetsu: “But I might need to wait two or three hours first.”

“Mm.”

After parting with Ririko, Uesugi Tetsu decided to replenish some water, then find a patch of grass to lie down and enter the eerie village to deal with that workshop.

Unlike other regions, most tap water on Japanese school campuses is drinkable straight from the faucet.

Turning on the tap to drink was far faster than waiting for boiling water to cool down—and there was no issue of peak-time water shortages causing delays.

—Yet few knew that the taste of water varied depending on the faucet.

For example, the sink beside the teaching building was the farthest from the rooftop water tank, so the chlorine smell was faintest there, making the water taste the sweetest.

Walking under the shade of a tree, Uesugi Tetsu turned the faucet handle upward.

Just as he was about to open it and drink deeply, he spotted a very familiar figure on the opposite side.