At six o'clock the next morning, Fujiwara Reya woke up on time.
After brushing his teeth and washing his face, he left his home at Asakusa Shrine, and continued his morning run along the usual route.
The sky had yet to brighten, and all of Tokyo was still shrouded under the dark canopy of night, with scattered lights twinkling like stars on the Skytree.
Wearing headphones, he practiced Spanish pronunciation while running past the riverbank illuminated by dim lights.
Passing by the bakery from yesterday, the doors were still closed, not yet open for business. However, the people living on the second floor above were already awake, with warm yellow lights piercing through the curtains, casting a layer of fish-scale-like sparkle over the dark river surface.
Fujiwara Reya liked Tokyo at this time.
Not hot, not noisy, not complicated, yet the floating lights lent a breath of life, perfect for supernatural beings wanting to conceal their identities to come out and act.
He opened his chest to breathe in the fresh and compact morning air, striding on the well-trodden stone path, his form weaving through the floating mist, at that moment, he was like a slender and graceful dolphin swimming freely in a vast ocean of blue light—at least that's how he felt.
Dolphins are free!
Fujiwara Reya is free too!
With one breath, he ran to the base of the Skytree, where the sun peeked out a bit, and Tokyo started to heat up.
When there was a breeze, it wasn't too bad, but whenever there wasn't, the misty humidity wafting from Tokyo Bay would wrap around one's body like a damp cloth, leaving a feeling of discomfort all over.
Fujiwara Reya turned off the radio, switched his headphones to noise-cancelling mode, and ran back in the direction he came.
Without listening to the broadcast, he usually thought about his yokai life.
Or perhaps thinking about yokai life meant summarizing and reflecting on small mundane events in his recent life, like, would the woman who fell into the water yesterday catch a cold?
Hopefully not... Such a foolish woman might not even buy medicine if she fell ill.
Where did the Bald Spider come from?
Killing it might bring trouble, but no one knows.
In any case, Fujiwara Reya was well aware that the incident at the bakery factory last night couldn't be concealed. If the Bald Spider had any relatives or friends seeking revenge, he, having been present, surely would be remembered.
For now, he could only hope that the Dark Crow could find useful clues in Kyushu, thereby uncovering the Bald Spider's identity and preparing a counter-strategy in advance. Otherwise, it would be troublesome to be revenged by an unknown enemy...
Fujiwara Reya wasn't afraid of these.
But he was currently enjoying peace in his own territory, and if his calm life was disrupted, it would be annoying.
While pondering over varied thoughts, he walked past the place where the woman fell into the water yesterday, turning his steps towards the bakery.
The bakery named [lemon] had a small entrance, nestled unassumingly amongst a jumble of buildings, with a blue ladies' bicycle parked in front, a white plastic basket on its back seat.
Looks like that foolish woman followed his advice... Fujiwara Reya felt a sense of relief, pushing open the shop door.
There was the sound of a bell ringing in his ears.
"I ra ssya i ma se! (Welcome)!"
A very small shop, with mediocre decor, had only a bread cabinet, a bar, three long tables, and two small tables, with not a single guest.
Inside the bar, a long-haired woman in a blue dress was engrossed in a book. Hearing the noise, she looked up in his direction.
"Oh, it's you?"
After recognizing Fujiwara Reya, Yukino Ritsuko hurriedly closed the book, walked out quickly, and bowed slightly, "Thank you so much for yesterday. If possible, please allow me..."
Looks like she didn't catch a cold.
"It's good that you're okay." Fujiwara Reya interrupted her, turning around to leave immediately.
"...Eh?"
Yukino Ritsuko was so surprised she forgot to close her little mouth.
Just leaving like that?
I haven't repaid you yet...
She hurried out the store door, wanting to call him back, but the boy's silhouette had already disappeared around the corner of the street.
After pondering blankly for a long time, Yukino Ritsuko finally realized and murmured with a frown, "Was he worried I might catch a cold, so he came specifically to check on me? I guess he's a considerate person, though not very gentle..."
The sea breeze from Tokyo Bay swayed the tips of the hair hanging down her back. She sniffed, returning to the bar to continue reading her book.
A book about Shinto, discussing the roles Shintoism played in Japanese society.
In modern society, Shintoism plays a crucial role, compensating and perfecting the imperfections and contradictions in the social system.
Because of Shintoism, people can enjoy the stability and prosperity brought by a harmonious society.
Upon encountering something strange, she would twist her lips slightly in a mocking way, pick up the sharpened pencil on the table, and mark the book, pushing aside the bangs that blocked her view with her slender, fair wrist.
Absorbing the needed information from the words on paper with single-minded focus, her lips had unknowingly started to part slightly, revealing neat white teeth and a soft pink tongue hidden inside.
If one were to look closely from the front, they might see her pinkish tongue lightly curling, sucking at the air as if licking something, while her cheeks would occasionally bulge or hollow, as if something held in her mouth were suddenly withdrawn.
Yet as the person involved, Yukino Ritsuko seemed unaware of this abnormality at the moment.
Only after putting down the book, retreating her thoughts from text to body, did she realize belatedly that her mouth felt cold, and her lips numb, as if she had eaten something frozen.
Why is this happening again...
Yukino Ritsuko frowned prettily, tapping her fingers lightly on the table in a gentle rhythm with the pencil clutched between them.
Since a year ago, she often started to experience such hallucinations unconsciously, inexplicably feeling as though something was gently stroking her cheeks, hair, thighs, dainty feet; and sometimes a round icy stick would be placed into her mouth for her to suck on.
A peculiar, unreal hallucination, because whenever she snapped back to reality, she couldn't detect any anomalies, nor were there any strange sensations within her body.
It's probably just the stress of blending into human society that's causing these illusions to appear... Yukino Ritsuko comforted herself with this thought, then remembered the strange boy.
He passed by the shop two days in a row; was this a fixed morning jogging route?
If I get up earlier tomorrow, will I be able to run into him?
If I do run into him, how should I greet him?
Hi?
Wouldn't that be too simple?
Are you here for breakfast?
That's not bad, inviting him in to have some bread and a hot cup of coffee wouldn't be a bad idea.
Consider it repayment!
Yes.
He probably wouldn't refuse, right?
With her chin in her hands, Yukino Ritsuko sighed lightly, thinking that if he entered the shop tomorrow, she must surely ask for his name.